Frank Lautenberg: “The amendment that has been proposed by the Senator from Kentucky, Republican Mitch McConnell, is as dangerous an effort…”

“The amendment that has been proposed by the Senator from Kentucky, Republican Mitch McConnell, is as dangerous an effort as we can imagine. It would undermine our children's health while helping polluters and their lobbyists. And what a strange thing this is. I hope the American public sees it for what it really is. It is an attack on the well-being of our children, our grandchildren, at the expense of promoting those companies, taking the rules off so those companies can run rampant, do any darned thing they want, put up any pollution they feel like doing, not having to care that effluent from their manufacturing process has to be properly packaged away but just dump it, get rid of it. Often, those dump sites wind up as Superfund sites. But it does not matter; just go ahead and do what you want. I was watching television, as everybody here must be, looking at the calamity that struck Japan, and I saw one bright moment. They found a child who was under debris for something like 3 days, and they unearthed her. She was so beautiful, and it brought tears to my eyes--I am a tough guy, it is believed--to see this beautiful thing alive and wanting to be protected and continue her life. I never met a grandparent who was not ready to show you pictures of their latest grandchild. So there is no deeper love that can be found. Here, we hear the message that has been going around: Let's get rid of the EPA's ability to regulate. Who are they to tell us what businesses can do?…”