Political Quotes

“Mr. President, the five Great Lakes are as vital to our industrial heartlands as the Rockies are to the West or the Atlantic coastline is to New England. Eighty-four percent of America's freshwater is in the Great Lakes--84 percent. Around the globe, only polar ice caps contain more freshwater than do these five Great Lakes. Lake Erie is one of the biggest lakes in the world. From the boats and barges that moved goods along the Ohio River and the Erie Canal to the ships that leave Lake Erie and export grain and steel to the world, my State of Ohio has a rich history of cultivating this vital natural resource. In Ohio, families and businesses rely on Lake Erie. Its waters are critical to farming and to clean energy development and industry and regional economic competitiveness, to fishing and recreation and so much that people do every day in my State. From tourism in Catawba and Put-in-Bay, to fishing at Marblehead, to vacations and family reunions at Maumee Bay State Park, Lake Erie benefits our communities and creates jobs in our State, but for more than a half century, keeping our lake healthy has been a constant struggle. Lake Erie is the shallowest of the Great Lakes. In the Western Basin off the shore of Toledo, it is only 30 feet deep--much shallower in contrast with Lake Superior, which is 600 feet deep on average. I remember how polluted Lake Erie was when I was growing up. As a child, it was obvious the water shouldn't look quite the way it looked.…”