On the recordFebruary 12, 2019
as a former chair of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, I have a pretty good sense of how complicated it is to pull together a legislative package of public lands like the one this Senate is about to pass. So I would like to begin my comments with a special shout-out to our chair and committee leadership, Chair Murkowski, Senator Cantwell, Senator Manchin, then-chairman and my friend Congressman Rob Bishop, and now-Chairman Grijalva for helping me negotiate the Oregon provisions in this bill. This morning, I have brought to the floor of this Senate a copy of a wonderful story. It is called ``Fire at Eden's Gate.'' It is an inspiring account of our late Republican Governor, Tom McCall. Nobody understood better than Tom McCall the very basic idea that protecting our public treasures should not be a partisan proposition. In this day and age, too often, it can feel like the sense of common purpose around protecting our public treasures is slipping away, but I hope this bill is a bit of a signal that it is coming back. That is why this morning, I am dedicating the Oregon provisions of this bill to the memory of our late, great Tom McCall. If Governor McCall were here with us this morning, he would say the Oregon provisions in this legislation are all about protecting and enhancing Oregon's unique and extraordinary livability.…
