[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 109 (Thursday, July 29, 1999)]
[House]
[Page H6587]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       WHATEVER FLOATS YOUR BOAT

  (Mr. SCHAFFER asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. SCHAFFER. Mr. Speaker, last week Presidential contender and self-
proclaimed environmental guru, Vice President Al Gore, treated himself 
to what amounted to a $7.1 million taxpayer-funded and environmentally 
reckless canoe trip down the Connecticut River in New Hampshire.
  While on a campaign swing through the first-in-the-Nation primary 
State, the VP decided to demonstrate his environmental prowess for the 
cameras by floating four miles downstream and then climbing ashore with 
a $100,000 Federal grant check for the local water commission.

                              {time}  1015

  Unfortunately, Gore and his handlers determined too late the low 
water level on the river might not fully float Gore's boat, thereby 
presenting a potentially embarrassing political moment to the campaign 
flotilla. Rather than forgo the photo opportunity, the local water 
commission, yes, the same group that received the check, was persuaded 
to release 4 billion gallons of captured water down the river for the 
35 minutes Gore was afloat. Water usage cost to release the 4 billion 
gallons: $7.1 million.
  This was not the first time. They did the same thing in Colorado in 
1996 at the Chatfield Reservoir. In either case while farmers pay a 
premium for reliable water supplies, the Vice President spends their 
money like water.
  Mr. Speaker, as they say over in the White House, ``Whatever makes 
your boat float.''

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