OFFICIALS LEGISLATION INTEREST GROUPS PUBLIC STATEMENTS COMMITTEES VETOES

Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008 -- Continued

Floor Speech

Date: Dec. 18, 2007
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Defense Foreign Affairs


CONSOLIDATED APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2008--Continued -- (Senate - December 18, 2007)

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. SANDERS. Mr. President, like many of my colleagues, I worked very hard to assure that, given the veto threats of President Bush, the Omnibus appropriations bill was as strong as it could be. In that regard, we have made some real progress. Unfortunately, however, this bill contains $40 billion for Iraq operations, with no strings attached the money to be used as the President wishes, with no accountability for when our involvement in Iraq will end. With expenditures of $12 billion a month, it is now estimated that the total cost of our Iraq involvement will end up being more than $1 trillion.

I cannot support providing more money for continuing our ill-conceived and tragic presence in Iraq, money provided with no requirement for plans as to when the redeployment will begin, when it will be concluded, and what our future course in Iraq will be. Consequently, I will vote against the Omnibus appropriations bill.

My vote against this bill also reflects genuine concern regarding last-minute additions of loan guarantees for questionable energy sources, which move us in exactly the wrong direction. More specifically, the report language accompanying the Omnibus appropriations bill provides $18.5 billion in loan guarantees for nuclear powerplants, $2.0 billion in loan guarantees for uranium enrichment, $6.0 billion in loan guarantees for coal, which I have reason to believe includes coal to liquids, and $2.0 billion in loan guarantees for coal gasification, which I also fear could be used for coal to liquids. It is, quite frankly, beyond belief that we would be passing legislation to support these questionable energy sources. In my view, we should be doing everything we can to transform our energy system so as to move away from unsafe and polluting sources to energy efficiency and sustainable and renewable technologies. Congress can, and must, do better.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT


Source
arrow_upward