Political Quotes

“I am pleased to join my colleague once again in sponsoring this important amendment to restore funding to our Nation's elite Urban Search and Rescue teams. Our modest, simple, straightforward amendment, which has the support of the International Association of Firefighters, would provide level funding, as my colleague just indicated, for the Department to continue supporting the 28 national teams currently spread across 19 States, including our respective home States of New York and Virginia. When people are trapped in the unstable rubble of a collapsed building, the window of survivability can be measured in hours. Without highly trained responders, rescue attempts can actually imperil victims and rescuers alike. Thankfully, because of this training, we have made strategic investments in specialized research and search and rescue teams. These elite firefighters and emergency medical technicians are not just first responders, though they are that. For people awaiting rescue, they are often the last hope. As my colleagues are aware, federally supported search and rescue responders were on the scene recently in Oklahoma after the tornadoes there and in New Jersey and New York after Superstorm Sandy last year. Prior to coming to Congress, Mr. Chairman, I served for 14 years in local government in Fairfax County, Virginia. For 9 of those years, I shared an office with the fire department.…”