Earl Blumenauer: “we have just witnessed last night the first of the presidential debates between the candidates of the two major parties.…”

“we have just witnessed last night the first of the presidential debates between the candidates of the two major parties. After a great deal of wrangling, I was pleased to see that Governor Bush agreed to the debate commission's recommendations and has agreed to share the platform. I think it is important that we are now turning to issues that confront the American public. Unfortunately, sometimes with the barrage of issue ads that we see and at times conflicting claims, I can understand how the American public can be confused about what the actual truth may be in a particular area. But I will tell you in the areas that relate to the environment, there is really no excuse for confusion. The differences could not be clearer between the two political parties and the two major candidates. We wanted to take a few minutes this afternoon to address those issues of the environment, where people stand and what difference it makes for the American public.”