Political Quotes

“Well, when we are paying $4 a gallon for gasoline, we are affecting and impacting everybody who moves a product for business or anybody who commutes to work for any kind of distance. I know my colleague has probably heard, as I have, from a lot of small businesses that when fuel costs become the second largest expense, it is hard for them to continue to do business. So my colleague is right. The CFTC could basically address this by just implementing the authority we gave them under the financial regulatory reform legislation we passed. That is all they have to do. Now, I would say to them that they already have the emergency authority. They have so many tools at their disposal. I am glad they are investigating this case. I think this case is illuminating of the type of scheme that might include the details which are so familiar to my colleague and me of prior schemes and how people work them. But I would say that an investigation of these schemes is only going to go so far in helping the American consumer. If they take another 6 to 8 months to investigate these schemes, a lot of people are going to lose their jobs. So why not implement the rules they have right now, put them in place so we can protect consumers, and certainly don't pass legislation here in the Senate or in the House that is going to take away the ability to stop the kinds of activities that drive up higher gas prices by manipulation.…”