Ernest Istook: “Mr. Chairman, I was hopeful that we could get through this debate without having an amendment such as this offered…”

“Mr. Chairman, I was hopeful that we could get through this debate without having an amendment such as this offered because I think it is based upon very misleading arguments and claims. I would certainly hope that nobody in this body would want to take a cheap shot at the Vice President of the United States. The Vice President by law resides at the Naval Observatory here in Washington, D.C. The grounds are under the jurisdiction of the United States Navy. Two years ago, they installed a separate meter for the residence. Now, it is not just the residence that comes through it because there is all the security lighting and there is the Secret Service needs. There is a lot more than would normally come under any residence. Besides that, it is a 33-room building that has the official functions as well as the residential functions as part of it. After they installed the meter, Mr. Chairman, 2 years ago, they found out that the former Vice President, Mr. Gore, overspent on utilities 220 percent of his office budget. What they did then was have the Navy make up the difference for former Vice President Gore's utility bill, which I believe the difference was somewhere in the neighborhood of $125,000.”