Maurice Hinchey

We are in the process now of trying to get Federal recognition of certain areas in New York, including in the Hudson Valley...

Those are national public lands and they were set up as national public lands because they were abandoned by the states.

I have been supporting that for I think roughly about 16, 17 years here.

I agree with Peter, I think that this would be a very viable way of creating jobs in Utah.

It is fitting that we are having this hearing while PBS is airing Ken Burns' new documentary, 'The National Parks: America's Best Idea.'

The great wildlands of Utah that are owned by the American people are under threat.

Many people are asking, why are we even having this hearing today? My response to that is that it could not come at a more important time, and thank you, Mr. Chairman.

We are now in the twentieth year of this effort, but it is just the latest chapter in nearly 140 years' effort to protect and preserve our nation's most pristine natural resources.

This bill reflects updated inventory information.

A lot has changed since, but we are still working to protect wild public lands in Utah.

It is also a great pleasure to be here with other witnesses who will be speaking later who have traveled here today from Utah.

I appreciate your scheduling this hearing and giving us all the opportunity to be here to talk about this.

It put more money in the hands of the wealthiest people, as we have seen, and it also caused a decline in the income and economic sustainability of middle-income and lower middle.

It is going to deal with some aspects of the problem. But it is not going to deal with it all the way.

That is the circumstances that we are dealing with.

This Congress and this administration needs to deal with it effectively.

We have seen a manipulation of the lending practices in this country now going back for almost a decade.

I am sure that they were advised to do that by a lot of the people who wanted to engage in these practices that we have seen that have caused so much of the damage.

The predatory lending--and that predatory word, I think, is very appropriate--is a major part of the problem.

The economic circumstances that this Congress is attempting to deal with is probably the most serious and severe since the 1930s.

There is an awful lot more work that needs to be done.

The elimination of that Glass-Steagall Act was intentional, and purposeful, and it was designed to allow the manipulation of these investment practices.

I wish that we had given you more power, including subpoena power because I think that you would have used that effectively.

I contacted Congressman Hinchey, and I wanted to get his medical records.

Whatever we are doing, we should be doing it as well as we can.