[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 14 (Tuesday, January 24, 1995)]
[House]
[Page H546]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                              {time}  1125
  VOTE ON PERMITTING COMMITTEES TO MEET DURING 5-MINUTE RULE SEEN AS 
                         WRONG AND UNDEMOCRATIC

  (Mr. GEPHARDT asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. GEPHARDT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to voice my strong opposition 
to a motion that was forced through this House last night by the 
Republican majority. While this may seem like nothing more than a 
trivial, administrative matter, it speaks to the very heart of our 
purpose here as Representatives of the people in this country.
  Last night the Republican majority pushed through a motion that said 
the committees of this House can meet to consider urgent legislation 
even while there is urgent legislation on the floor of the House.
  In other words, Members of Congress have to be in two places at one 
time, and if that means we have to miss crucial votes, if that means 
that on some of those dangerous and potentially devastating proposals, 
the voices of our districts will be missing in action, then that is 
just too bad.
  When we tried to object to a motion which is impractical, illogical, 
and just unfair, we were gagged. We were told that we only had 3 
minutes to speak, and we were defeated by one of our closed, no-
discussion, no-debate votes that have come to define the Republican 
Congress.
  This is not just a partisan issue. I think Republican members should 
be as concerned and outraged as Democrats. What do we tell our 
constituents? That we wanted to fight to protect Social Security or 
Medicare but we missed the vote because we were running from one room 
to another, that we wanted to preserve clean air and clean water, but 
there was a scheduling conflict and we were missing in action?
  I know the Republicans want this to be the Hundred Days That Shook 
the World, but we have an obligation to stand up for those who may be 
shaken.
  This motion last night was wrong, it was undemocratic, and I call 
upon all of my colleagues to resist it and denounce it for what it is, 
a gag rule on the people of this House.


                          ____________________