Political Quotes

“this past weekend I was in Tennessee--in Nashville, my hometown. The visit was an opportunity for me to catch up with constituents. Again and again, whether I was in Nashville or over in Carter County at a wonderful pig roast or over in Jackson, TN, west Tennessee or Memphis, the concern of the high cost of gasoline, the high cost of cooling homes, and the impact on local businesses came up again and again and again. As I was driving through the streets of Tennessee, the average price of gasoline in Nashville, I remember specifically, was $2.87 a gallon-- kind of a bargain if you compare it to here in DC, where many metro area prices averaged over $3.08 a gallon this weekend. But people back home in Tennessee feel that it is anything but a bargain. They feel the pinch in their wallets, and it affects how they live every day--whether it is driving their kids to school or taking their vacation at this time of year or filling that tractor with fuel. Across the Nation, Americans are compensating for these high gas prices and high energy prices by cutting back, feeling the squeeze and having to cut back in other areas. We think twice about going out for dinner or lunch at a restaurant. We select our vacation destinations based today on how far one has to drive from home rather than the appeal of that destination. And we wait a few weeks longer than comfortable before turning on that air-conditioner or heating our homes.…”