Outgoing Chairman of US House of Reps Committee on Science and Technology Has Some Sage Observations. (January 4, 2011)

The outgoing Chairman of the US House of Representatives Committee on Science and Technology, Bart Gordon (Democrat, Tennessee) was interviewed by NatureNews' Ivan Semeniuk.

Here with several excerpts of what Mr Gordon had to say which would seem to have meaning beyond US borders.

The United States needs to be able to increase its investment in research. Research leads to innovation; innovation leads to jobs; jobs leads to more taxes, which then pay for more research. I have a 9-year-old daughter and I am concerned about her future and our country's future.

I think President Obama has put a strong marker down that he wants to see science take a greater role. He has brought together an unheard of number of high-calibre scientists [in his administration] that I think are helping to do this. The thing that I've found is that whether it's John Holdren [director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy] or [energy secretary] Steve Chu, you have these top-notch scientists in their own fields that, prior to coming to Washington, have come to know each other, and so it really gives them the ability to talk outside their bureaucratic silos.

I voted for the House [climate] bill, but I'm less interested in a particular bill than I am in trying to deal with the problem. I'm very concerned that we're outliers compared with the rest of the world. In term of our international stature, that really has hurt, particularly in Europe.

When asked: "Do you have any advice for your Republican successor as chairman?" Bart Gordon had this to say:

Try to maintain the civility that allowed us to work together. I tried to bring the Republicans in early to make them a part of the process. It made our bills better, and because of that we were able to go to the floor with a unified effort and pass legislation in a bipartisan manner — and if you want legislation to continue here, it needs to be bipartisan.