Providing for Consideration of H.R. Preserving Choice in Vehicle Purchases Act

Floor Speech

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Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. I thank her for her leadership on this important issue and for giving us all the opportunity to speak on the rule that would bring this shameful legislation to the floor.

Mr. Speaker, I strongly oppose the Republicans' latest assault on the health and safety of our children. Every child deserves clean air to breathe. We in California believe this is our sacred duty. That is why our State has taken strong action to reduce vehicle pollution, preserve our environment, and protect our children.

I just have one question for our colleagues across the aisle: Why? Why don't you want children to have cleaner air to breathe? Why don't you understand what this means to their health? Why do you not understand the connection between pollution and asthma and how unfair that is to children in our population?

That is why more than five decades ago this Congress acted to preserve California's authority to protect our children and has repeatedly reauthorized that since.

Despite this precedent, this bill would restrict the ability of States like California to protect families from dangerous pollution.

Now, it is important for people to understand that as the gentlewoman pointed out, this is at the discretion of the States. Seventeen States have decided that they would use such a waiver in order to protect the children and the air that they breathe.

Why would you want to throw the American auto industry into disarray, diminishing leadership and the electric vehicle future?

Mr. Speaker, as the gentlewoman referenced, it is an economic decision that the auto industry makes. We have in this body, in the Democrat majority, come to the aid of the auto industry--not corporations, but the industry and the workers--and we want our auto industry to be preeminent in the world.

California is a very big market for the auto industry. For 50 years they have lived with this emissions standard, this waiver, that enables that to happen. If you are making cars for California it is easier than to make the same safe cars for the rest of the country because it is a big market in California.

Sixteen other States have followed suit, representing at least 40 percent of new auto purchases in our country--a big chunk of our auto industry economy.

Again, what would be the reason that you would interfere in the free market of the auto industry and the free breathing for our children of cleaner air? The only explanation could be that Big Oil opposes this legislation. They are so living in the past. They don't even realize that the future is upon us, and the future is for the children.

Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``no'' vote on this rule.

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