David Obey: “I am of a mixed mind on this amendment. The gentleman and I had a conversation earlier today, as he knows, and I…”

“I am of a mixed mind on this amendment. The gentleman and I had a conversation earlier today, as he knows, and I indicated at that time that because he had described his amendment to me as being one which made clear that this was a matter of choice for workers, I told him I thought I would have no objection. The language is somewhat different than I had expected. I would have no problem accepting the amendment, provided that we understand that in conference I want to make sure of two things. No. 1, that the language is sufficiently clear so that we know that it is a worker choice being exercised here. And second, I would simply note that when asphalt is being used on road surfaces, I am told that its temperature can exceed 300 degrees, and it can cause severe burns when it sticks to skin. So I reserve the right in conference to make certain that if workers are making a choice, it will be an informed one. But having said that, I would withdraw my objection and accept the amendment.”