[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 30 (Wednesday, March 2, 2011)]
[House]
[Page H1464]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           BREATHE CLEAN AIR

  (Mr. INSLEE asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. INSLEE. Mr. Speaker, one thing we share on a bipartisan basis is 
Republicans and Democrats like to breathe clean air. We don't want to 
see our kids exposed to aggravated asthma problems.
  That's why it's very disappointing that the Republicans are trying to 
threaten a government shutdown if they don't get to pass their dirty 
air act. Now, their dirty air act is a bill that they want to pass, and 
I am not making this up. They want to pass a bill that would make it 
illegal for the Environmental Protection Agency to enforce the 
provisions of the Clean Air Act that will reduce air pollution.
  This is amazing to me. You want to shut down government, if you don't 
shut down government in enforcing pollution. Now, I always thought that 
the American people thought that that was a really bad idea.
  I want to share my colleagues' proof of this. In polls done in 19 
congressional districts recently, including the Speaker's own district 
in Ohio, 68 percent of Americans said that we should move forward with 
the EPA in this; 6 out of 10 said the Republicans' dirty air act is a 
really bad idea.
  We need to keep the government to keep this clean air. Reject the 
Republicans' threat of a government shutdown.

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