Gregory Laughlin: “Mr. Chairman, I think it is fitting that we gather here in Washington on the Potomac River on the 160th anniversary of…”

“Mr. Chairman, I think it is fitting that we gather here in Washington on the Potomac River on the 160th anniversary of the date that a group of Texans gathered at Washington on the Brazos in Texas to declare our independence from a repressive government in Mexico. Five years ago the gentleman from Louisiana, my good friend, Mr. Tauzin, and the gentleman from Texas, my good friend and colleague, Mr. Fields, and I filed a bill to protect the private property rights of the owners who had their rights taken from them in wetlands areas. So I think it is fitting that we are here at Washington on the Potomac on the anniversary of the Texas Declaration of Independence. So I rise in support of the Tauzin-Laughlin-Peterson-Fields-Danner amendment to the substitute that limits the scope of this legislation to a few specific regulatory laws. The Framers of our Nation clearly recognized the need for protection of property rights as they laid out the foundation for American democracy. Furthermore, they understood the vital relationship between private property rights, individual rights, and economic liberty. Despite this, the rights of property owners have been progressively eroded away by actions of our Federal Government.”