Maria Cantwell: “No, I cannot imagine why any of my colleagues would want to vote against this amendment that prohibits market…”

“No, I cannot imagine why any of my colleagues would want to vote against this amendment that prohibits market manipulation and puts that in the Power Act in a very simple way. Her economy has been devastated, but California actually had a retail cap, which meant even though those prices were being charged, and it left the California economy in disarray and a bill at the State legislative level that is exorbitant, what happened in Washington State, because we didn't have retail caps, is that the ratepayers actually saw the increase in their day-to-day electricity bills. They saw it to the tune of 88 percent increases, 61 percent increases, 54 percent increases. Those disconnect notices are real. The companies that have left or are leaving the State are real. The long-term impacts on our economy are real. No, I cannot imagine, if this had happened to any of my other colleagues from other States, that they would not be in the same position I am in today, or Senator Murray, saying, at a minimum, outlaw this market manipulation.”