09.28.23

McConnell: Override Biden Vetoes Of Property Rights, Infrastructure, American Energy

‘As is so often the case under the Endangered Species Act, this move by Washington bureaucrats would encroach on private property rights and to block infrastructure and economic development in the name of preserving habitat.’

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) delivered the following remarks today on the Senate floor regarding Congressional Review Act resolutions:

“This week, the Senate will have the opportunity to push back one more time on a pair of short-sighted Biden Administration policies with major consequences for small businesses and landowners across America.

“Earlier this year, thanks to the leadership of our colleagues, the junior Senator for Kansas and the junior Senator for Oklahoma, the Senate passed two resolutions disapproving of President Biden’s decision to ‘up-list’ two creatures – the Lesser Prairie Chicken and the Northern Long-Eared Bat – as endangered species.

“As is so often the case under the Endangered Species Act, this move by Washington bureaucrats would encroach on private property rights and to block infrastructure and economic development in the name of preserving habitat. As many as 37 states would be affected by the designation of the Northern Long-Eared Bat as endangered. And nearly $14 billion in agricultural production would be affected by the designation of the Lesser Prairie Chicken. 

“Now in reality, aerial estimates show that numbers of Lesser Prairie Chickens have grown from less than 17,000 in 2013 to over 26,000 in 2022. And the President’s own experts admit that the declining population of Northern Long-Eared Bats is mostly explained by disease, not humans.

“Of course, that hasn’t stopped the Biden Administration from pushing ahead with a plan to infringe on property rights, impede urgent infrastructure, and put even more of America’s energy abundance literally out of reach.

“So I’d like to thank Senator Marshall and Senator Mullin for their leadership on these resolutions. And I would urge each of our colleagues to join me in voting to override the President’s veto.”

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Related Issues: Congressional Review Act