Political Quotes

“for the past week the Senate has been debating the way that America produces and uses our energy. We have talked about how these issues affect our economy, how they affect our communities, and how they affect the world--the world that we hope to leave to our children. As Senators have come to the floor and offered their ideas, I have tried to keep one basic idea in mind, and that idea is that we want to make energy as clean as we can, as fast as we can, as long as it doesn't raise costs on American families. I think that is the goal of many Members of the Senate with regard to this bipartisan legislation. I want to talk today about two bipartisan ideas--ideas that some of us have offered to make this legislation even better. One of the first amendments the Senate took up on this bill was an amendment I offered, along with Senator Schatz, that passed by voice vote. He is a Democrat, I am a Republican, and it is something that both of us think is a very good idea. This amendment creates a prize system to encourage new technologies that could remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and permanently sequester it. A lot of the Members of this body talk about reducing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Some of them want to reduce this by cutting the amount of emissions of carbon dioxide; some want to do it with a carbon tax; and some others want to do it by banning some of the energy sources that we need today to power our economy.…”