Jeff Merkley

The thing that I really like about that is that folks see the energy savings on their bill, and if their loan is on there as well, they realize they were able to upgrade their home, often practically paying for it with energy savings…

I was proud to help in that policy for our Nation.

Well, there is nothing like a living wage job as a foundation for a family, so that is terrific.

I think if you can really push and instill the triple bottom line of sustainability, the social, environmental, and economic impact, and every time you look at a project, you ask what social impact it's had, I think people will start to…

I would like to close by thanking U.S. Senator Merkley and this Subcommittee for the opportunity to share my story.

I appreciate your comments, and I also think it's very cool that the solar panels are going up.

But, really, what we're talking about here is how good environmental policy becomes very good economic policy as well.

I'm going to be introducing a bill this coming month that focuses on energy savings in the manufacturing process.

If my children were very young, I'd be thinking about moving to Vernonia.

So that term, workforce mapping, was relatively--well, it was new to me, not relatively new. It was new.

And, Berenice, you said in your testimony that the average savings, I believe, were 34 percent.

We need policy that insures that rate payer dollars can mingle effectively with public dollars.

I am convinced that it can be an extraordinarily important innovative State.

Creating good-paying jobs is one of the best ways to restore and strengthen the middle class.

I applaud the work that has been done. This is certainly extremely close, was extremely close to Frank's heart.

I find it fascinating that we have a variety of regulatory powers, but essentially despite those powers dispersed among a number of different agencies, we have a picture of companies, big banks, that have enormous assets being able to buy…

Despite the powers invested in the Fed and the SEC and the CFTC, it seems like there is a huge amount of conflict of interest and a huge amount of market manipulation, and it does not seem like much action.

Yes. I can assure my colleague that each and every one of these involved an actual vote, and each and every one of these 10 occasions did reverse the previous precedent. That happens in two fashions.

I have in front of me the list of the number of times the application of a rule was changed from the precedent. It was done each time under a simple majority structure, and it was done 10 times since 1985. I pointed out earlier--I am not…

Is it fair to say someone from a background where they have less wealth, less assets, is more likely to pay the 9 percent than the 3 percent and, therefore, pay a much higher price for their education?

If you come from a background in which you have less wealth, you are going to pay a higher price.

We have a new form of debtor's prison for our students.

Does the system in general, as we have described it here, create extra hurdles for those who come to the education marketplace with poor assets?

The 5-4 decision that just came out is deeply disturbing.

The strategy of voter suppression has been used against blacks, Latinos, elderly, the poor, immigrants.