A critical mass is developing of people who are now aware of the problems that the existing Endangered Species Act imposes on landowners and communities and understands that it's counterproductive to recovering species.

It is a drastic mistake to eliminate the provisions that have to do with the protection of habitat for endangered species. It is my opinion that the Endangered Species Act is 99 percent about protecting critical habitat.

The Endangered Species Act is the strongest and most effective tool we have to repair the environmental harm that is causing a species to decline.

Endangered species are our friends.

What is a fish without a river? What is a bird without a tree to nest in? What is an Endangered Species Act without any enforcement mechanism to ensure their habitat is protected? It is nothing.

We wonder why we have got the Freemen or the militants. We wonder why we have got unrest in this country. It is because our government, in fact, has got out of hand and out of line, with the Endangered Species Act.