[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 29 (Thursday, February 28, 2013)]
[House]
[Page H804]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1240
                IT'S A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN WASHINGTON STATE

  (Mr. HECK of Washington asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute.)
  Mr. HECK of Washington. Mr. Speaker, it's a beautiful day back in my 
hometown of Olympia, Washington--of course it's raining cats and dogs, 
but that's what passes for beauty in our corner of the world.
  It's a beautiful day at the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge near 
Olympia, and it's a beautiful day at Mount Rainier National Park, which 
you can see from my neighborhood. But Mr. Speaker, if we don't replace 
sequestration, I'm worried about how many more beautiful days there are 
ahead.
  If we don't replace sequestration, then some of the 7.5 million 
visitors who are scheduled to visit one of our 13 national parks aren't 
going to be able to. They have already announced that they are closing 
the Ohanapecosh Visitors Center at Mount Rainier. All of this because 
Congress can't--or won't--do its job.
  Mr. Speaker, it is a beautiful day in Washington State, but I don't 
know for how long.

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