Media

[as prepared]

Good afternoon to everyone, and welcome to Washington, DC. Thank you to the US Geological Survey Coalition for this presenting me with this Leadership Award. Thank you Harvey for your introduction.

I am proud to hail from the Land of 10,000 Lakes. A state fortunate to have as much water above as below. And home to the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area located in the middle of a bustling urban setting.

[as prepared]

As you’ve already heard here today, H.R. 5544 is missing an awful lot of important detail & taxpayer protections -- creating major problems with its vague and unusual language. One major omission in this bill is its failure to acknowledge the treaty rights of Minnesota’s tribal nations. Treaty rights are a prominent concern in this land exchange because the unspecified lands under consideration in H.R. 5544 are all within the Superior National Forest, which is governed by the 1854 Treaty between the Chippewa nations and the United States Government.

[as prepared]

The House should not be spending its limited floor time on this bill. The House should be debating the American Jobs Act – the President’s plan to put nearly 2 million Americans back to work without adding a dime to the deficit.

Instead, the Republican Majority has a land exchange bill on the floor that is completely unnecessary. The State of Minnesota and US Forest Service have the authority they need to finalize this land exchange. There is a stakeholder process underway in Minnesota to determine a proposal for land sale and exchange.