Sheldon Whitehouse

Senator, we have talked before about the need to have greater oversight and to try to focus on things that would improve the overall operations of the Federal Government.

I think even in this first hearing we have seen the qualities of energy and inquiry that I think will help make this a very valuable Task Force.

The pursuit of bi-partisanship should not and cannot lead us beyond the realm of reason, beyond the scope of science.

We are still here in the Senate in an environment in which we are still frequently told that there are scientists that disagree with the fundamental premise of climate change.

One of the reasons I mention that... is that we have a very severe unemployment problem and at the same time a water and wastewater deficit.

We have seen estimates from the Environmental Protection Agency that the current deficit of water and wastewater infrastructure in this country is $662 billion.

I was impressed by the examples of the effects that Dr. Frumhoff gave us of, essentially the effects that already underway.

So, our present reliance on foreign oil is a national security risk?

By putting a price on it, you allow the market to adapt to the real cost of their product.

The missions that our military will have to address will be more dangerous, more frequent, more widespread, if we cannot control our climate.

As I understand it, this bill does nothing to interfere with the military's selection of the appropriate--the most appropriate fuel, to carry out its mission.

For many years, corporate polluters in the Midwest have been ducking and dodging around the Clean Air Act.

It is my understanding that those dispatch rule do not take the environmental costs of the units into consideration whatsoever.

Let's work together on making sure we do that.

I would urge that as you look at the nuclear component of our energy portfolio, you invest aggressively in potential technologies that could take our existing nuclear waste and reconfigure it into fuel and turn it into value.

Americans are brought together by our common understanding that our current fossil fuel energy habit is not sustainable.

Rhode Islanders and Americans across our Nation acutely understand the benefits of becoming the world's leader in clean energy technology and the risks of failing in that endeavor.

Everyone in America should have a stake in legislation that can transform our energy system into one that is far more efficient, far cleaner and provides energy independence for America.

I look at the credit card industry as having been behind the bankruptcy reform and that its primary purpose was to keep people harassed longer before they could get into bankruptcy.

There is nobody you could go to and say, 'Listen, you do not understand.'

But you have no choice. You still have to----

The Medical Bankruptcy Fairness Act would change that.

As we in Congress continue working on broad legislation to reform our broken health care system and ensure accessible, affordable health insurance for all Americans, we take advantage of this hearing today to examine a particularly cruel…

I believe the Medical Bankruptcy Fairness Act, introduced by Chairman Whitehouse, would help families like mine recover from medically-based financial hardship.

It would waive the means test and credit counseling requirements, which are unnecessary, time-consuming, costly, even humiliating for debtors forced to file by medical misfortune.