Political Quotes

“Mr. President, in a few moments, I intend to put forward a request for the Senate to take up and approve the nomination of a very special Oregonian; that is, my friend Chuck Sams, President Biden's choice to lead the extraordinarily important National Park Service. I am just going to take a few minutes to talk about Chuck Sams and make sure the Senate understands why this is the right person for this very important job. First of all, I would say to the Senate, we have heard the national parks described as America's best idea. That is because they form a network of treasures that no other country can match. But the fact is, the National Park Service is not only about the views and the photo- ops; the Director of the National Park Service is in charge of an organization of over 22,000 employees and almost a quarter-million volunteers. The Park Service generates tens of billions of dollars of economic activity. The people of my State, Oregonians from one corner of the State to the other, particularly understand how critical outdoor treasures are for rural economies and rural jobs. There are park units in every State in the Nation--urban parks, rural parks, historic American buildings, ancient archeological sites. And the personnel at the Park Service--what incredible people. They do it all, from education to preservation to maintenance, and they are also now doing more resilience against wildfires.…”