WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Steve Daines today delivered his maiden speech on the Senate floor and outlined his priorities as Montana’s new United States Senator.
During his speech, Daines discussed the need for state-based solutions to restore economic growth that keeps America safe and secure.
Key excerpts from Daines’ speech are below:
We are blessed to live in the greatest nation on earth. And it is the solemn responsibility of the United States Senate to do everything in its power to keep it that way.
Washington is more concerned with its own self-interest and self-gain than the well being of the American people.
It’s time for Washington to be accountable to the American people. That’s why the first bill I introduced in the United States Senate was the Balanced Budget Accountability Act. It simply requires Congress to balance the budget – or members won’t get paid. It’s not that complicated. It’s easy to measure. It’s very simple – no balanced budget, no paycheck.
We shouldn’t be hitting pause on American energy production—we need to encourage it. More made in America energy doesn’t just mean more money in the pockets of hard-working families. It also means more jobs. It means energy independence.
We have tremendous opportunities to develop our nation’s energy resources and create new jobs across the entire nation. But we must allow the states to take the lead. Because rather than moving forward commonsense, job-creating solutions, like the Keystone pipeline, Washington continues to put barrier after barrier up to prevent job creation and the responsible management of our resources.
We must ensure the states have primacy in these decisions. We must ensure that the hard-working farmers, the ranchers, the loggers and the sportsmen who live, work, and recreate on these lands every day have their voices heard—and that those closest to the land are guiding management practices, not bureaucrats in Washington, D.C. or lawyers in San Francisco that would hard-pressed to find Montana on a map.
I worked in the technology sector for more than 12 years. I know first hand how the Internet has removed geography as a constraint for countless businesses in Montana and across our nation. I know that technology has created jobs and economic opportunities in communities where little previously existed.
The FCC recently approved a 300+ page plan to regulate Americans’ Internet access as a Title II utility. In short, a government takeover of the Internet. That’s like putting a buggy whip manufacturer in charge of Tesla.
The Internet is unconstrained innovation. That’s why I’ll stand strong against Washington, D.C.’s attempts to tax the Internet, to regulate the Internet, and stifle innovation.
Washington is more focused on press releases and headlines than getting results. As an engineer, I was trained to solve problems, find solutions and get results.
It’s time for Washington to look to the states for solutions, to adhere to principles of federalism and states’ rights as clearly found in the Constitution, empowering local communities, state legislatures, governors and tribes to manage their resources, to grow economic opportunity, and create their own destiny.
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