Political Quotes

“I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Chair, I rise today in support of H.R. 2083, which would provide targeted relief to endangered salmon and steelhead stocks in the Columbia River and its tributaries from the threat of predation by non- native sea lions. Mr. Chair, I thank my colleague Ms. Herrera Beutler for her work on this bill, and Mr. Schrader from Oregon, and take this opportunity to highlight the many weeks of bipartisan negotiations, which included revisions from the National Marine Fisheries Service, our State and Tribal wildlife comanagers, and other key stakeholders that resulted in this compromise bill text. It is because of that consensus that I am able to voice my support for this bill today. I am thankful for that because I care about salmon and protecting salmon. I care about fishing jobs, and I care about Tribal treaty rights. And I care about the other animals in our ecosystem that rely on a healthy salmon stock, like the endangered Southern Resident orca population, of which there are few in our oceans, fewer than the number of people who serve in this Chamber. We have heard from our State and Tribal wildlife managers that, if salmon predation at the Willamette Falls choke point is not addressed immediately, there is a 90 percent probability that at least one of the winter steelhead populations will go extinct. Enhanced management of the sea lion predators at this site would make a difference immediately.…”