On the recordFebruary 2, 2011
Madam President, yesterday Senator Hutchison raised a very good point about slots. Slots are kind of the hidden problem in the FAA bill. What I think I would like to put forward--and I wish she were here to hear me--is that I recognize the majority of the population growth in this country, and, therefore, the need for more flights, is in the West. It is not in the East. That is extremely important. We deny it, but a lot of people are east coast centric, and we have to learn how to be equally west coast centric. So one of the things that occurs to me is that maybe we are thinking too much about airlines and not enough about the people who take those airlines to go to various places in the West. It cannot stand that Los Angeles has a flight a day to DC. It cannot stand. They need at least four or five. They can bear that traffic. I want to lay before the Congress--and the Senator from Texas made this point yesterday and I totally agree with her--the growth of population in this country and the need for air flights, yes, is in the East but it is more now in the West. As we go through this bill and come to the matter of slots, it is important we keep that in mind and that we think about the public flying as individuals, not necessarily is it United, is it USAir, is it American, is it whatever. It is the question, Can we get them to where they want to go. I yield the floor. The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Texas.
