Political Quotes

“Mr. Chair, this amendment sets a dangerous precedent not only for the energy future of the Atlantic and the Florida coasts, but for the Nation as a whole. Although this is framed as an Atlantic amendment, I would make clear that the residents from South Carolina, Virginia, North Carolina, and Georgia support offshore seismic survey activities pursuant to the all- of-the-above energy approach that America needs. Seismic surveys are routinely conducted off American coasts and around the world for oil and gas. We have been conducting seismic surveys around the globe in the oceans of the world for 50 years with not a single verifiable instance of a marine mammal being harmed or killed. In fact, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has confirmed this. President Obama's own BOEM Director, Abigail Hopper, confirmed this to me in a public hearing when I asked her last Congress. Seismic surveys have not been conducted in the Atlantic region for over 30 years. Today's advancement in technologies allows for 3-D and 4-D seismic work to actually look into the Earth and see what may be there. I would argue that the folks who are against seismic work really aren't against seismic for the purpose of trying to save marine mammals; they just don't like fossil fuel development. But we need to see what is out there. If Members are genuinely concerned about Russia, then voting in favor of oil and gas exploration should be a no-brainer.…”