Political Quotes

“This amendment seeks to delay the operation of the bill pending an unregulated contingency. Let me just say this: I was on the Natural Resources Committee for a while, and I think the person in the chair was on that committee, as well. I remember we were talking about seismic testing, and there was this huge outcry that seismic testing would harm marine mammals. We got a letter on BOEM's website that said that there is not a single verifiable instance anywhere in the world, off the coast of Africa and the Mediterranean, off the coast of the United States, anywhere in the world, that a marine mammal was harmed or killed by seismic testing. I just read an article this week, though, that whales are washing up onshore, and they believe it might be attributed to offshore wind production. Are you going to include that in this? Those are marine mammals. It is just amazing that these amendments are put in place. This amendment invokes an entirely different statute and agency, the Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Department of Commerce. I could make the argument that it is not germane. I am not going to do that. This amendment prohibits a leasing plan from including any tract on the Outer Continental Shelf if it would adversely impact marine mammals. Show me where a marine mammal has been killed from oil and gas production or exploration. As I just pointed out, there is not a single verifiable instance, and ironically, that was during the Obama administration.…”