[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 12 (Friday, January 20, 1995)]
[House]
[Page H415]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 THE IMPERIAL SPEAKERSHIP GOES TOO FAR

  (Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute.)
  Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, having worked very hard this 
weekend, having made a special round trip here to interrupt my weekend 
in my district to work on the Mexico loan bill, trying in cooperation 
with other Members to put together a set of conditions that would allow 
us to respond to a potential crisis in a way that met Members' 
concerns, I was appalled to see a memorandum from the chairman of the 
Committee on Banking and Financial Services on the Republican side 
threatening us that if we did not desist in our speaking about 
disagreements with the Speaker of the House, this would jeopardize the 
Mexico loan bill.
  Members on the other side have said that we must do the people's 
business. There is no inconsistency between vigorous debate where we 
disagree and working together where we agree. This effort to threaten 
us into silence by telling us that if we continue to express our views 
on the unrelated issues we have about the Speaker, we will therefore 
have them pull the plug on negotiations over the Mexico loan, makes it 
clear who it is that is interested in blocking things. The imperial 
speakership is being taken much too far.

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