Political Quotes

“I wish to say a few words about an issue of enormous importance to the people of the State of Vermont and people all over this country; that is, the issue of making sure that in America this winter nobody goes cold, that nobody freezes to death, that children do not become ill because the thermostats in their homes are turned down so low. The issue I am talking about is to ask for support for legislation that is being introduced by Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island and Senator Olympia Snowe of Maine which would level fund the LIHEAP program at $4.7 billion. As most of my colleagues know, LIHEAP is the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program. Here is the problem we face. We are in the midst of a horrendous recession. Unemployment is sky high. In many cases, wages are in decline, poverty is increasing, and at the same time the price for home heating oil and propane gas is going up. According to the Energy Information Administration, average expenditures for households that heat with oil or propane are forecast to be higher than in any previous winter. Heating oil prices are currently averaging about $3.90 a gallon. So what people in the Northeast and people all over this country are looking at are the highest home heating oil prices we have ever seen, coming in the midst of a terrible recession, with unemployment high and wages in decline. In Vermont, heating oil prices are already 34 percent higher than they were at the same time last year.…”