[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.
____________________