[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 1 (Wednesday, January 3, 2001)]
[House]
[Pages H2-H5]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          ELECTION OF SPEAKER

  The Clerk. Pursuant to law and to precedent, the next order of 
business is the election of the Speaker of the House of Representatives 
for the 107th Congress.
  Nominations are now in order.
  The Clerk recognizes the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Watts).
  Mr. WATTS of Oklahoma. Mr. Clerk, the Congress and the Nation have 
been blessed these past 2 years by the inspiring leadership of a 
gentleman whose only special interest in these United States of America 
is these United States of America. We are deeply grateful for his 
selfless devotion to this institution and to the advancement of the 
American people and the American Republic.
  Mr. Clerk, as Chairman of the Republican Conference, I am directed by 
the unanimous vote of that conference to present for election to the 
office of the Speaker of the House of Representatives for the 107th 
Congress the name of the Honorable J. Dennis Hastert, a

[[Page H3]]

Representative-elect from the State of Illinois.
  The Clerk. The Clerk recognizes the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Frost).
  Mr. FROST. Mr. Clerk, as Chairman of the Democratic Caucus, I am 
directed by the unanimous vote of that caucus to present for election 
to the office of Speaker of the House of Representatives for the 107th 
Congress the name of the Honorable Richard A. Gephardt, a 
Representative-elect from the State of Missouri.
  The Clerk. The Honorable J. Dennis Hastert, a Representative-elect 
from the State of Illinois, and the Honorable Richard A. Gephardt, a 
Representative-elect from the State of Missouri, have been placed in 
nomination.
  Are there any further nominations?
  There being no further nominations, the Clerk will appoint tellers.
  The Clerk appoints the gentleman from California (Mr. Thomas), the 
gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the gentlewoman from New Jersey 
(Mrs. Roukema), and the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur).
  The tellers will come forward and take their seats at the desk in 
front of the Speaker's rostrum.
  The roll will now be called, and those responding to their names will 
indicate by surname the nominee of their choice.
  The reading clerk will now call the roll.
  The tellers having taken their places, the House proceeded to vote 
for the Speaker.

                              {time}  1330

  The following is the result of the vote:

                              [Roll No. 2]

                              HASTERT--222

     Aderholt
     Akin
     Armey
     Bachus
     Baker
     Ballenger
     Barr
     Bartlett
     Barton
     Bass
     Bereuter
     Biggert
     Bilirakis
     Blunt
     Boehlert
     Boehner
     Bonilla
     Bono
     Brady (TX)
     Brown (SC)
     Bryant
     Burr
     Burton
     Buyer
     Callahan
     Calvert
     Camp
     Cannon
     Cantor
     Capito
     Castle
     Chabot
     Chambliss
     Coble
     Collins
     Combest
     Cooksey
     Cox
     Crane
     Crenshaw
     Cubin
     Culberson
     Cunningham
     Davis, Jo Ann
     Davis, Thomas M.
     Deal
     DeLay
     DeMint
     Diaz-Balart
     Doolittle
     Dreier
     Duncan
     Dunn
     Ehlers
     Ehrlich
     Emerson
     English
     Everett
     Ferguson
     Flake
     Fletcher
     Foley
     Fossella
     Frelinghuysen
     Gallegly
     Ganske
     Gekas
     Gibbons
     Gilchrest
     Gillmor
     Gilman
     Goode
     Goodlatte
     Goss
     Graham
     Granger
     Graves
     Green (WI)
     Greenwood
     Grucci
     Gutknecht
     Hansen
     Hart
     Hastings (WA)
     Hayes
     Hayworth
     Hefley
     Herger
     Hilleary
     Hobson
     Hoekstra
     Horn
     Hostettler
     Houghton
     Hulshof
     Hunter
     Hutchinson
     Hyde
     Isakson
     Issa
     Istook
     Jenkins
     Johnson (CT)
     Johnson (IL)
     Johnson, Sam
     Jones (NC)
     Keller
     Kelly
     Kennedy (MN)
     Kerns
     King (NY)
     Kingston
     Kirk
     Knollenberg
     Kolbe
     LaHood
     Largent
     Latham
     LaTourette
     Leach
     Lewis (CA)
     Lewis (KY)
     Linder
     LoBiondo
     Lucas (OK)
     Manzullo
     McCrery
     McHugh
     McInnis
     McKeon
     Mica
     Miller (FL)
     Miller, Gary
     Moran (KS)
     Morella
     Myrick
     Nethercutt
     Ney
     Northup
     Norwood
     Nussle
     Osborne
     Ose
     Otter
     Oxley
     Paul
     Pence
     Peterson (PA)
     Petri
     Pickering
     Pitts
     Platts
     Pombo
     Portman
     Pryce (OH)
     Putnam
     Quinn
     Radanovich
     Ramstad
     Regula
     Rehberg
     Reynolds
     Riley
     Rogers (KY)
     Rogers (MI)
     Rohrabacher
     Ros-Lehtinen
     Roukema
     Royce
     Ryan (WI)
     Ryun (KS)
     Saxton
     Scarborough
     Schaffer
     Schrock
     Sensenbrenner
     Sessions
     Shadegg
     Shaw
     Shays
     Sherwood
     Shimkus
     Shuster
     Simmons
     Simpson
     Skeen
     Smith (MI)
     Smith (NJ)
     Smith (TX)
     Souder
     Spence
     Stearns
     Stump
     Sununu
     Sweeny
     Tancredo
     Tauzin
     Taylor (NC)
     Terry
     Thomas
     Thornberry
     Thune
     Tiahrt
     Tiberi
     Toomey
     Traficant
     Upton
     Vitter
     Walden
     Walsh
     Wamp
     Watkins
     Watts (OK)
     Weldon (FL)
     Weldon (PA)
     Weller
     Whitfield
     Wicker
     Wilson
     Wolf
     Young (AK)
     Young (FL)

                             GEPHARDT--206

     Abercrombie
     Ackerman
     Allen
     Andrews
     Baca
     Baird
     Baldacci
     Baldwin
     Barcia
     Barrett
     Becerra
     Bentsen
     Berkley
     Berman
     Berry
     Bishop
     Blagojevich
     Blumenauer
     Bonior
     Borski
     Boswell
     Boucher
     Boyd
     Brady (PA)
     Brown (FL)
     Brown (OH)
     Capps
     Capuano
     Cardin
     Carson (IN)
     Carson (OK)
     Clay
     Clayton
     Clement
     Clyburn
     Condit
     Conyers
     Costello
     Coyne
     Cramer
     Crowley
     Cummings
     Davis (CA)
     Davis (FL)
     Davis (IL)
     DeFazio
     DeGette
     Delahunt
     DeLauro
     Deutsch
     Dicks
     Dingell
     Doggett
     Dooley
     Doyle
     Edwards
     Engel
     Eshoo
     Etheridge
     Evans
     Farr
     Fattah
     Filner
     Ford
     Frank
     Frost
     Gonzalez
     Gordon
     Green (TX)
     Hall (OH)
     Hall (TX)
     Harman
     Hastings (FL)
     Hill
     Hilliard
     Hinchey
     Hinojosa
     Hoeffel
     Holden
     Holt
     Honda
     Hooley
     Hoyer
     Inslee
     Israel
     Jackson (IL)
     Jackson-Lee (TX)
     Jefferson
     John
     Johnson, E. B.
     Jones (OH)
     Kanjorski
     Kaptur
     Kennedy (RI)
     Kildee
     Kilpatrick
     Kind
     Kleczka
     Kucinich
     LaFalce
     Lampson
     Langevin
     Lantos
     Larsen (WA)
     Larson (CT)
     Lee
     Levin
     Lewis (GA)
     Lofgren
     Lowey
     Lucas (KY)
     Luther
     Maloney (CT)
     Maloney (NY)
     Morkey
     Mascara
     Matheson
     Matsui
     McCarthy (MO)
     McCarthy (NY)
     McCollum
     McDermott
     McGovern
     McIntyre
     McKinney
     McNulty
     Meehan
     Meek (FL)
     Meeks (NY)
     Menendez
     Millender-McDonald
     Miller, George
     Mink
     Moakley
     Mollohan
     Moore
     Moran (VA)
     Murtha
     Nadler
     Napolitano
     Neal
     Oberstar
     Obey
     Olver
     Ortiz
     Owens
     Pallone
     Pascrell
     Pastor
     Payne
     Pelosi
     Peterson (MN)
     Phelps
     Pomeroy
     Price (NC)
     Rahall
     Rangel
     Reyes
     Rivers
     Rodriguez
     Roemer
     Ross
     Rothman
     Roybal-Allard
     Rush
     Sabo
     Sanchez
     Sanders
     Sandlin
     Sawyer
     Schakowsky
     Schiff
     Scott
     Serrano
     Sherman
     Shows
     Sisisky
     Skelton
     Slaughter
     Smith (WA)
     Snyder
     Solis
     Spratt
     Stenholm
     Strickland
     Stupak
     Tanner
     Tauscher
     Thompson (CA)
     Thompson (MS)
     Thurman
     Tierney
     Towns
     Turner
     Udall (CO)
     Udall (NM)
     Velazquez
     Visclosky
     Waters
     Watt (NC)
     Waxman
     Weiner
     Wexler
     Woolsey
     Wu
     Wynn

                               MURTHA--1

     Taylor (MS)
       
       

                               PRESENT--2

     Gephardt
     Hastert
       

                             NOT VOTING--3

     Gutierrez
     Lipinski
     Stark

                              {time}  1249

  The Clerk. The tellers agree in their tallies that the total number 
of votes cast for a person by name is 431, of which the Honorable J. 
Dennis Hastert of the State of Illinois has received 222, the Honorable 
Richard A. Gephardt of the State of Missouri has received 206, and the 
Honorable John P. Murtha of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has 
received 1, with 2 voting ``present.''
  Therefore, the Honorable J. Dennis Hastert of the State of Illinois 
is duly elected Speaker of the House of Representatives for the 107th 
Congress, having received a majority of the votes cast.
  The Clerk appoints the following committee to escort the Speaker-
elect to the Chair: The gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Gephardt),
  The gentleman from Texas (Mr. Armey),
  The gentleman from Texas (Mr. DeLay),
  The gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Bonior),
  The gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Watts),
  The gentleman from Texas (Mr. Frost),
  The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Crane),
  The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hyde),
  The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Evans),
  The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Lipinski),
  The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Costello),
  The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Manzullo),
  The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Rush),
  The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. LaHood),
  The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Weller),
  The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Jackson),
  The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Blagojevich),
  The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis),
  The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus),
  The gentlewoman from Illinois (Mrs. Biggert),
  The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Phelps),
  The gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Schakowsky),

[[Page H4]]

  The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Johnson), and
  The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kirk).
  The committee will retire from the Chamber to escort the Speaker-
elect to the chair.

                              {time}  1345

  The Sergeant at Arms announced the Speaker-elect of the House of 
Representatives of the 107th Congress, who was escorted to the chair by 
the Committee of Escort.
  Mr. GEPHARDT. Members of the House, families of House Members, 
honored guests, ladies and gentlemen. First, I want to say that I 
thought a few moments ago about asking for a recount, but I decided 
against it.
  This is a day of celebration for candidates and our families, and it 
is also a day of celebration of our continuing experiment in democracy, 
which we again have successfully achieved, even in the face of a very 
close election. What sets America apart is that despite very difficult 
events, we decide elections by the rule of law, and we have peaceful 
transitions of power.
  Mr. Speaker, I called you after the election to congratulate you, and 
all of us on the Democratic side extend our congratulations to you and 
your Members today.
  We hope for a bipartisan atmosphere in this new Congress, and we 
understand that this requires not just words, but deeds and actions. We 
know that our differences on issues are heartfelt and real, but I hope 
the closeness of the margin between our parties in the Congress will be 
viewed as an opportunity, not a hindrance. This is the people's House, 
and we are all proud to be part of it. It is not a Republican House; it 
is not a Democratic House. As a recognition of that principle, it is 
our hope that in gestures, both small and large, on the part of each of 
us as individuals and as leaders, we will make that principle a daily 
reality.
  Mr. Speaker, on behalf of my Democratic colleagues, we honor your 
leadership and we respect your majority. Our pledge is to meet you 
halfway and, in return, we hope that great things in these 2 years can 
be accomplished for the American people that we serve.
  Ladies and gentlemen of the House, it is my honor to present the 
Speaker of the House of the 107th Congress, the gentleman from 
Illinois, Dennis Hastert.
  Mr. HASTERT. I guess I really should not hammer it down while I am 
still getting applause, but I want to thank Dick Gephardt for his 
gracious remarks. Dick Gephardt has been a great leader of the House 
Democrats. He has unified his Democrat Caucus over the last 2 years 
with unusual effectiveness. He has criss-crossed the Nation, doing his 
best to help his candidates take a majority in the House. He has worked 
day and night with a singular determination. I know how hard he has 
worked, because I had to do my best just to keep up with him.
  Dick, let me say that I respect your commitment to your principles, I 
respect and deeply admire your competitive spirit, and thank you so 
much for your heartfelt comments today. Thank you very much.
  Now that the campaign is over, I know you will put the same energy 
and determination that you demonstrated during the campaign in working 
with me to do the people's business. Thank you all, Democrats, 
Republicans, for this honor, to be Speaker of the whole House.
  Today, I stand before you at the beginning of a new year, some say 
the beginning of a new millennium, and certainly, the beginning of a 
new Congress. Today, we swear in 41 new Members in the House. One of 
our new Members is one of the greatest football coaches in college 
football history, Tom Osborne. On the Senate side, we welcome nine new 
Senators, including the first First Lady ever to run for public office.

                              {time}  1400

  We have a new President in the White House who won in the closest 
election in our Nation's history. While times in the past 2 years have 
been difficult, this time of new beginnings provides us with new 
opportunity to reach out and to work with all of our colleagues to get 
the people's work done.
  This will be my second term as Speaker of the House, but I could not 
have done this without the voters of Illinois' 14th District. This past 
November they elected me to my eighth term in the House of 
Representatives. I want to thank those people from the Fox Valley and 
environs of Illinois for trusting me year after year to represent them 
in this, the people's House, in the Nation's Capitol.
  I also appreciate the bipartisan support that I receive from our 
Illinois leadership. With us today we have the Governor of the State of 
Illinois, we have the mayor of the great city of Chicago, Richard 
Daley, along with Governor Ryan. We also have the Republican leader in 
the Illinois House of Representatives. I thank them for joining us 
today.
  To my family, my wife, Jean, my two sons, Josh and Ethan, I thank you 
for your love, your encouragement, your understanding. Jean, thank you 
for providing me with a good dose of midwestern common sense every time 
I need it. And in this job, I need it often.
  As I said 2 years ago and it is still true, the Fox River, not the 
Potomac River, is still my home. My family reminds me of that fact 
every day.
  Two years ago I stood here as the Speaker of this House, untested and 
largely unknown. While Hastert may still not be a household name, I 
hope that I have earned your respect as a fair and just Speaker of this 
House. By this election today, I am reassured that I have performed the 
duties that have been asked of me to lead this House and do the will of 
the people.
  To all those Democrats who have gone out of their way to support me 
over the last 2 years, I value your respect and your loyalty because I 
had to work harder to earn it. And for the rest of my Democratic 
colleagues, if I have not earned your respect in the last 2 years, I 
hope I can earn it in the next 2. I know it is not easy to have a rival 
party lead the House's agenda. After all, I, too, used to be in the 
minority. But I gave my word that I would go out of my way to make sure 
your voices are heard, and my word is my bond.
  Our political system has endured a trial. This trial has exposed many 
warts in our political process. It has also exposed the great strength 
of our democracy. After all, our system is based upon laws, not on 
personalities, and ultimately, our Constitution triumphs.
  Our democracy is stronger also because we have two strong political 
parties and a vibrant opposition. Make no mistake, the system of checks 
and balances originally devised by our Founding Fathers works, and it 
will continue to work to protect the freedom of our citizens.
  Many have commented about the deep wounds caused by this latest 
political competition, but it serves no purpose to dwell on the past. 
After all, our country is at peace. Our economy is still fundamentally 
strong. Our people are united with a strength of purpose and by a 
desire to live the American dream. It is only in Washington where many 
still have a lingering animosity over the political parties.
  We need to get over it. We need to work together to revitalize this 
democracy. We need to get to the people's business. I have a great 
faith that we can do so. This Nation has faced greater trials, and we 
have persevered and prospered.
  A former Speaker, a gentleman from Texas by the name of Sam Rayburn, 
once said, ``I do believe when critical hours arise, the Members of 
this House will do as they have done in the past: Rise to the occasion, 
and show to the world that whether Republicans or Democrats, we are all 
Americans, and love and want to protect and defend and perpetuate the 
institutions of this, the best, the mightiest, and the freest 
government that ever blessed mankind in all the world.''
  He was right then, and his words ring true today. Let us show people 
that even those who disagree can reach reasonable solutions for the 
sake of a nation.
  Our new president was elected on an agenda to promote prosperity, 
opportunity, and security for all Americans. We have a duty to consider 
his agenda and to help him lead America in this next Congress.
  Two years ago I stood before you and said that every child should 
have the right to a good education and a safe school. We have made some 
progress, but we have a long way to go.

[[Page H5]]

  In a sense, this election was all about the education of our 
children. Improving education still represents one of the Nation's 
greatest challenges. Every child must have access to a good education 
and a safe environment. Every school must be more accountable. Every 
parent must have faith that his or her child is getting the best 
education possible.

  President-elect Bush spoke of ending the soft bigotry of low 
expectations. We must expect more of our teachers, more of our parents, 
more of our students, and more of our schools. We must make sure they 
have the resources to do the job without wasting money on more Federal 
bureaucracy.
  I taught government and history at a small high school in northern 
Illinois for 16 years. My wife taught in that same town for 34 years. I 
know firsthand some of the problems that our public schools face: 
declining test scores, rising dropout rates, complacency, decreasing 
graduation rates. Yet, I know hundreds of teachers personally, and I 
know there are hundreds of thousands of dedicated teachers who want to 
see our children succeed.
  The hundreds of Federal programs created to remedy the problems are 
not helping. We need local solutions. If we really want to help 
children learn, we need to send more dollars and decisions to the 
parents, the teachers, and the folks who run the schools. We need to 
cut Washington red tape.
  To show the Nation our commitment to better schools, I will reserve 
the first House bill, H.R. 1, for President-elect Bush's education 
proposal. Together, let us pledge to improve education for all of our 
students.
  Retirement security is another challenge that Congress must face. Let 
me begin about social security. Social security is a sacred trust. Our 
challenge is now to keep it working far into the future.
  In the last session of Congress we put Americans' social security 
dollars in a lockbox so that government could no longer raid those 
funds and threaten the future of the program. That helped social 
security in the short term. Now we must look to the long term. The 
American people deserve better than a fraction of 1 percent return on 
their social security investment. If this program does not do better, 
it will not survive.
  The new President and the Congress have both promised to save social 
security. Now is the time to make good on that promise. Together we 
must search for a solution to a long-term problem.
  Retirement security also means health care. Medicare must be 
modernized, and that process must include prescription drug coverage 
for all of our senior citizens. No senior should be forced to choose 
between putting food on the table and having access to lifesaving 
drugs. Together, we can work to modernize Medicare.
  National security is another challenge that the 107th Congress must 
face. We have done a good job of providing for more resources for our 
men and women in uniform, but we can do better. It is still a dangerous 
world out there, and our defensive capabilities must improve to keep 
our citizens safe.
  President-elect Bush pledged to work with the Congress to support our 
national missile defense program and provide our military with the 
funds they need to stay strong. This will be a top priority of the 
107th Congress. Together we can work with the President to improve our 
Nation's security and to keep our citizens safe from international 
threats.
  Finally, we have a duty to be fiscally responsible and to take steps 
to keep our economy strong. The last Congress paid off more debt than 
any other Congress in history. That is an amazing achievement. You 
helped make that happen. We are on the road to pay off our public debt 
by the year 2013. By continuing to pay off debt, we keep our economy 
strong. We need to also have the responsibility to return surplus money 
back to the taxpayers with commonsense tax relief.
  We need to restore fairness to our Tax Code. It is not fair to tax 
people for being married. It is not fair to tax people on every penny 
they earn while they are living, and then tax them on what they have 
left over when they die. In the last Congress we made progress on these 
two tax fairness initiatives. This year, let us get it done.
  Also, there are troubling signs that our economy is slowing down. 
President-elect Bush has proposed a tax relief package that will 
stimulate economic growth. I believe we have a duty to our constituents 
and this country to consider this proposal. Together we can work with 
the new President to keep our economy strong and to give tax relief to 
all Americans.
  More than 20 years ago, I stood as a high school teacher before the 
classes of my high school day in and day out. I taught them about the 
promises and the possibilities of this Nation, this country we call 
America. I taught them that in America, people work hard to achieve 
their dreams for their families, for their careers, and for their 
communities. I told each student they could fulfill almost even their 
wildest dreams if they were willing to sacrifice and to work for that 
dream.
  Little did I know then how fate would bring me to this place and to 
this position, the Speaker of the House. But fate has also brought all 
of you here. You all have sacrificed your time and your effort, and 
your families have sacrificed with you, for a chance to serve in this 
body. You have done so because you believe that you can get good things 
done for your constituents and for all the American people, and that by 
your efforts, you can make this even a better Nation.

                              {time}  1415

  Together we have a great opportunity to work for the American people 
as their representatives. There is no higher honor and there is no 
greater responsibility. As we promise in solemn ceremony to uphold the 
Constitution by taking the oath of office, let us do so with the 
conviction that we renew the American government with each new 
Congress; that we will renew our efforts by working together, fighting 
about principle and searching for truth through debate.
  Today, we are sworn in to represent the people. We participate in the 
greatest ongoing democratic ritual in the world. Let us always be 
mindful of our duties to our constituents and respectful of the 
traditions of this institution. Let us pray that God guides us in all 
that we do in these halls; that he gives us the knowledge to do the 
people's work, the strength to persevere, and the wisdom to know when 
to listen to what others say on this floor. May God bless this House.
  Now, it is my time to do the people's business, and it is my great 
honor to recognize my good friend and colleague from the Committee on 
Commerce, whose legislative skills I admire so much.
  I ask the Dean of the House of Representatives, the honorable 
gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell) to administer the oath.
  Mr. DINGELL then administered the oath of office to Mr. Hastert of 
Illinois, as follows:
  Do you solemnly swear that you will support and defend the 
Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and 
domestic; that you will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; 
that you take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or 
purpose of evasion, and that you will well and faithfully discharge the 
duties of the office on which you are about to enter. So help you God.
  Mr. DINGELL. Congratulations.

                          ____________________