(Washington, DC)—“I would like to thank my good friend and Majority Leader, Steny Hoyer for inviting me to stand with him as he re-introduces the PROGRESS Act. One of America’s founding words is ‘Independence.’ As colonists we declared it, as citizens we celebrate it — ‘Independence’ is in our blood, it is part of who we are as a nation."
 
"The word ‘Independence’ means different things to different people. To the disabled it means being a part of the community, to seniors it means living life to its fullest, to children it means finding their own path and back home in my District, Independence, prior to and after the ascension of its favorite son, Harry Truman, meant ‘unbeholden’." 
 
"Today, however, we are here to talk about a different kind of independence — energy independence. While a relatively new, but overdue, conversation, I believe the issue of energy independence goes to the heart of our nation’s founding beliefs. Our Founding Fathers sought to throw off the chains of a foreign power, so our nation could discover its own destiny. Yet, here we stand 230 years later again beholden to foreign nations whose influence threatens our future."
 
"We are the world’s only superpower, but when it comes to oil, we are a colony of the Middle East. Here, today, it is time we once again declare our independence from those who manipulate our decisions by controlling the oil that has become our lifeblood." 
 
"It will take boldness, innovation and sacrifice to break this cycle of dependence. The PROGRESS Act commits our nation to harnessing American ingenuity by creating a public-private Manhattan Project to research and develop high-efficiency vehicles and alternative fuels. America’s researchers have put a man on the moon and mapped the human genome. With this bill, we can and will now lead the world in the next generation of vehicles."
 
"To further the goal of energy independence, I am proud the PROGRESS Act includes provisions of my Congress Leads by Example Alt-Fuels Resources Act or CLEAR Act. Leader Hoyer’s bill will begin the process of moving the government and particularly Members of Congress toward using alternative fuel vehicles." 
 
"Americans would much rather see a sermon than hear one. Surely, Congress cannot sell the public on the need to abandon its gas-guzzlers when they observe Members of Congress proudly driving them."
 
"With the PROGRESS Act, we look forward to one day celebrating a 21st Century Independence Day — a day when America sustains its own citizens’ energy needs and steps forward as a steward of the global environment.”

Emanuel Cleaver, II is the U.S. Representative for Missouri’s Fifth Congressional District, which includes Kansas City, Independence, Lee's Summit, Raytown, Grandview, Sugar Creek, Belton, Raymore and Peculiar, Missouri. He is a member of the exclusive House Financial Services Committee.