Political Quotes

“last year, this same amendment passed this body unanimously by a vote of 98 to 0. I remain convinced that this legislation, offered by my good friend, the senior Senator from Oklahoma, and myself, is a good solution to the problem of excessive bureaucratic regulation. This amendment, like this bill, will do a lot to put common sense back into our regulations. As I visit the communities around Nevada, big and small, I see many small businesses trying to compete in these evolving markets. I know of many local shops and enterprises that cater to small towns just trying to remain solvent. It is the same in our big cities, Mr. President. Government should not be an obstacle to commerce and competition. I am afraid that in too many cases it is. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has estimated the cost of complying with regulations is $510 billion a year, approximately 9 percent of our gross domestic product. The amount of time spent filling out paperwork has also been estimated at about $7 billion. I think that is too low. I think it is much higher than that. Now, not all regulations are bad. Some regulations are valuable and serve important purposes, but because of the regulatory efforts that we have made, we have made great progress. Our workplaces are generally safer. We have much cleaner water than we used to have, both in our rivers and streams and in our drinking water. Air quality standards are better than they used to be.”