Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I appreciate what the chairman has said. His message is the same as my message; that is, this is a very important bill. It is one--the authorization of the FAA--we have extended, since 2007, with 18 short-term extensions. Neither the chairman nor myself want a 19th short-term extension. That is, as he mentioned, not the way we ought to be doing business. We ought to be able to assure that a contract will be let for a new runway or a repair on a runway and that it will be finished. I hope we can get through some of the thornier issues, and there are several of those. I ask my colleagues to come down and get their amendments pending because we want to close out amendments and then deal with the ones we have and move on. Senator Wicker and Senator Collins are going to be here very shortly. They will be talking about the Wicker amendment. That is one I think they have now agreed to sponsor together. They have made some good changes. We have others that are also being worked on. It is time, if a colleague wants to offer an amendment, to come down and do it. We are continuing to work on the perimeter slot rule from Washington National Airport, with the hope of coming to a consensus that will increase the number of opportunities for people from the Western half of the United States to come into Washington National Airport. I will say, I believe it is in everyone's interest to open Washington National on a limited basis. We do not want to add to the congestion.…”