Political Quotes

“I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. I rise, respectfully, in opposition to this amendment offered by my friend and colleague from Alaska. This amendment would block the implementation of the Comprehensive Conservation Plan for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, a plan that will already have been in place for nearly 2 years by the time this language will take effect and a plan that received broad support upon its implementation. At more than 19 million acres, the Arctic Refuge is one of the crown jewels of our Nation's public lands, and like Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon before it, this iconic landscape deserves to be protected for generations to come. Included in the CCP is a recommendation for expanded wilderness designations which nearly 1 million people from all 50 States-- including native, faith-based, business, and conservation groups--have submitted comments of support for. The Arctic Refuge's Coastal Plain is the biological heart of the refuge, which the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service calls the ``center for wildlife activity.'' The plan's current wilderness recommendation would ensure that these pristine habitats will remain intact for future generations. This is critical to supporting native wildlife and maintaining traditional and subsistence activities on the refuge. Since President Eisenhower established the Arctic National Wildlife Range, Members of both parties have stood up to protect this truly unique national treasure.…”