On the recordMay 20, 2014
There are a lot of competing interests for public lands. Certainly, national security is one of them, but it is not the only one. There is domestic aviation, and there are all kinds of considerations. This is not terribly binding, as it is a sense of Congress, and so it does not change the law. I do, however, think it sets a bad precedent that, somehow, the Department of Defense is going to hold sway over public lands over all of their interests, regardless of what they are. We have had many, many interests in our public lands. Certainly, defense is one of them. I don't think it should be paramount. Therefore, I oppose the amendment. I reserve the balance of my time.
