Political Quotes

“I thank the ranking member from Texas for yielding and the chairwoman from New York. Mr. Speaker, I am honored to be speaking here today as the newly appointed ranking member of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee. I am honored to be paired with the newly appointed chair of the subcommittee, my friend and fellow Great Lakes advocate, Congresswoman Betty McCollum from Minnesota. I am thrilled to be working with her in this capacity, and I look forward to many years of bipartisanship and collaboration on behalf of our constituents, our States, and our country. The Interior division of the omnibus bill before us today was negotiated in good faith by both House Republicans and House Democrats. It reflects bipartisan priorities and represents many months of hard work by the House Appropriations Committee. I am pleased that the bill includes $3.9 billion for the Department of the Interior and the United States Forest Service to fight devastating wildfires; $9 billion to increase the Federal commitment to our treaty and trust agreements with American Indians and Alaska Natives; over $3\1/2\ billion to improve our Nation's aging water infrastructure and improve public health; and $1.9 billion to reduce maintenance backlogs in our Nation's parks, trails, and wildlife refuges.…”