Brandon Williams: “The redefinition of these waters of the United States rules is really only about one thing, and that is Government…”

“The redefinition of these waters of the United States rules is really only about one thing, and that is Government overreach. When faced with a crisis, the Government is given a broad mandate and loves very vague rules. Just recently, we remember the incredible rules of the COVID crisis and the extraordinary powers granted to Government to effect this crisis. Mr. Speaker, if you remember the definition of essential businesses, essential personnel, essential services, then you have some idea really of what the waters of the United States redefinition desired by activist courts and desired by current administration means. You can imagine the effect it will have on our lives, Mr. Speaker. The Clean Water Act was a broad power given in 1974 to clean up polluted waterways. Guess what, Mr. Speaker? It worked. We have clean waters and clean rivers. It has been an extraordinary success since the high point of pollution in the 1970s. With a government that is hungry for power, as we learned most recently in COVID, bureaucrats remembered that vague rules allow for extraordinary powers. You are not a farmer; you are a polluter. You are not a homeowner; you are a polluter. You are not a home builder; you are a polluter. You are guilty until proven innocent. My colleagues across the aisle say that this provides clarity, and it does. But clarity for whom? This rule provides clarity only to EPA regulators who will have extraordinary authority.…”