Political Quotes

“Once again I stand up in a continuing theme of what I believe fiscally responsible Members who come to the floor should look at--the operation of Amtrak. Today, once again, I come to the floor to offer my ideas about how we can help, especially during troubling financial times for the American taxpayer with our Federal Government, that we can look at and find ways to where we work with Amtrak. Years ago I met with the chairman of the board, who openly acknowledged that there were challenges that Amtrak faced, not just safety issues, but many other issues that dealt with their financial integrity. I told him I would continue doing these kinds of amendments, and he considered this, in a sense, an opportunity for the people who provide money, meaning the taxpayers of the United States, to have a say about the operation of how their money would be used. That is the same spirit that I am here on the floor today. Madam Chairman, my amendment would eliminate funding for Amtrak routes that have total direct costs that are more than twice the revenue that they produce. That means, if the cost is twice as much as the revenue, I think that that should be a solid reason why someone should consider eliminating those routes. They are all over the place, and I believe that Amtrak continues to provide these, accept government money, and they don't give two flips about what we think about the use of the taxpayer money. And so I think it is worth our time to be here.…”