Bob Goodlatte Quotations

The visa lottery system poses a national security threat. Under the program, each successful applicant is chosen at random and given the status of permanent resident based on pure luck.

The oak has long been an enduring and mighty tree. It is truly a part of our national heritage and it merits the formal distinction of America's National Tree.

Cities may now bulldoze private citizens' homes, farms and small businesses to make way for shopping malls or other developments.

If you need food stamps, you should meet the criteria.

If businesses don't know from state to state what the requirements are for taxes, they have to waste a lot of money on accountants and lawyers before deciding to expand their business into the state next door.

The gulf coast region has been hit hard by two major hurricanes and is going to need federal assistance at several levels, The best way to make sure that the resources are targeted properly is for us to see this area firsthand. I am pleased that members from both sides of the aisle share my commitment to making sure that the relief effort is targeted and managed as efficiently as possible.

But simply someone who broke the law, came here, say, 'I'll give you citizenship now,' that I don't think is going to happen.

A guest worker program should help farmers who are willing to pay a fair wage for law-abiding, dependable workers - not punish them ... And for this reason I support replacing the H-2A program and implementing new policies that will bring our illegal agricultural workers out of the shadows, as a first step in the process of overhauling our nation's immigration system.

People have a pathway to citizenship right now- It's to abide by the immigration laws, and if they have a family relationship, if they have a job skill that allows them to do that, they can obtain citizenship.

On the last farm bill, we had a budget surplus for the first time in 30 years. That contributed to having a lot of money available...

Our trading partners need to understand that we will do everything possible to ensure the competitive position of American farmers and ranchers,

Our biggest challenge will be trying to find ways to help farmers make it through this year,

We are the world's largest exporter of agricultural products. We are also the world's largest importer. We are much more open in terms of low tariffs and lower subsidies than most other developed countries, Europeans, Japanese and so forth. We have a lot of disputes with them.

We will continue to hold 10 or 12 more hearings all through this year. This is the second one. We were in Fayetteville, N.C., yesterday. We will hold subcommittee hearings later in Washington, and plan to start writing the next Farm Bill early next year.

Fair trade is vital to U.S. producers and we will continue to seek access to markets for our producers as well as continuing to reduce trade barriers to U.S. products.

While the Mississippi River itself continues to be a major hub of commerce, port facilities and agri-business are currently plagued by a number of problems that include a shortage of barges, workers and truck drivers at a critical time in the nation's grain harvest,

While the Internet holds many potential opportunities for children, there is also a tremendous danger of online predators.

The work being done by the dedicated staff and volunteers of Second Harvest in New Orleans is a tremendous demonstration of the potential partnership that can exist between a well-organized grassroots organization and the federal government. Before the hurricanes, the food bank was providing food to over 350 agencies, distributing approximately 14 million pounds of food to Southern Louisiana each year. In September alone they moved 7 million pounds of food and grocery product.

The United States is uniquely positioned in the world to protect the fundamental principles of free press and free speech, upon which the Internet has thrived,

They have a national reputation for dealing with problems related to child sex offenders and child abuse and sexual abuse in general.

This president mocks the people, mocks the Congress, and this censure is just what he wants,

This legislation is supported ... across the spectrum, from Ralph Reed to Ralph Nader.

That's a situation we no longer find ourselves in. We are facing budget deficits again. The president has been offering tight budgets and we've been responding as best we can. We don't know how much money will be made available to us next year when we write the farm bill.

I have respectfully disagreed with him. We want to keep the programs operating the way they are now. You shouldn't penalize people for becoming more efficient.

I don't think anyone can possibly imagine the impact these hurricanes have had on the region and on production agriculture unless they see it firsthand, ... We saw fields flattened by winds and inundated by salt water. We heard accounts of homes swept from their foundations and we saw trees broken like toothpicks. Of course, the full story can only be told by those whose lives and livelihoods have been forever altered by these storms.

The enormity of this problem ... is something you don't appreciate until you go down there,

The gulf coast region is very important to the nation's commerce and the effects of the recent hurricanes will be felt throughout the economy in the prices paid for food and fuel, ... In the brief time we met with producers, we heard some very compelling testimony.