Political Quotes

“I thank the gentleman from Washington State, whom I have been proud to serve with. I had an opportunity to visit his district, and I know natural resources are extremely important to him. I appreciate his yielding on what is germane to this discussion, which is basically trying to claw back regulations that had no basis in science that essentially were causing harm and taking away good-paying jobs for Americans. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the underlying legislation, which disapproves of a midnight regulation that the Obama administration made with just 1 month left in his Presidency. The stream protection rule negatively targets coal country and will devastate communities that have already been hit hard by job losses and reduced mining activity making sure that America has affordable and reliable energy and electricity. Pennsylvania is the fifth largest coal producing State and generates roughly 25 percent of its electricity from coal-fired power plants. Coal-fired electricity provides roughly 30,000 jobs in my State, equaling nearly $8 billion in economic impact. Although coal continues to be an essential component of our energy mix, this rule duplicates many existing laws while providing very little environmental gain. What the rule does is expands the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement's regulatory authority. In effect, this Federal agency would overtake the regulatory authorities of individual States.…”