Political Quotes

“It is a pleasure to be on the floor here this afternoon with my friend and colleague, Congressman Walden, who is going to talk at great length--maybe not, but he could. This represents, hopefully, the culmination of over 12 years' work. Congressman Walden and I spent a good deal of time with stakeholders back in Oregon focusing on what needed to be done to protect the treasure that is Mt. Hood and the surrounding wilderness area. It culminated with a hike that we took around Mt. Hood--a 3-day camping trip with Congressman Walden, his family, our staff, having a series of meetings with people who cared about the work. It was, for me, one of the most memorable experiences I have had as a Member of the House, both in terms of the delightful experience we had enjoying that wilderness area, but also being able to focus on things that were concrete, that would make a difference. This is the remaining piece. In fact, it was 8 years ago in the first hours of the first Obama administration that the legislation that we worked on as part of the Wilderness Act was signed into law. And as has been referenced by our friend from California, we have been here before trying to complete this last piece. The land exchange is necessary to be able to fully realize the benefits of the hard work of the stakeholders, to preserve the recreational benefits, to preserve the water, to be able to have a true win-win situation. All that remains is this little exchange.…”