[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 147 (Thursday, November 14, 2002)]
[House]
[Pages H8822-H8824]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO TERRY MORRIS

  (Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor our friend, 
my neighbor, Terry Morris, the Tally Clerk of the House, who is going 
to retire this December after 33 years of service to the House of 
Representatives.

[[Page H8823]]

  Mr. Speaker, Terry accepted a position as Assistant Tally Clerk 33 
years ago, and 16 years later he took over the helm as the Chief Tally 
Clerk, responsible for all votes in the House of Representatives. At 
the time of his retirement, Terry will have served longer in the House 
than all but 5 of the 435 currently serving Members.
  During Terry Morris' tenure, the House has voted on the Gulf War, 
giving 18-year-olds the right to vote, impeachment, on antiterrorism 
measures in the wake of the attacks on September 11, and on authorizing 
the President to use military force against the threat of weapons of 
mass destruction from Iraq.
  Terry's professional objectivity and down-to-earth style have made 
him many friends among Members on both sides of the aisle, particularly 
among new Members, whom he assists in familiarizing themselves with 
voting procedures. Terry's service has spanned both Democratic and 
Republican majorities, during which time his goal has always been to 
serve the whole House of Representatives, regardless of party.
  Perhaps Terry's most unusual and important day as Tally Clerk came on 
December 19, 1998, when the House took four votes over a period of 2 
hours on four separate articles of impeachment, two of which passed and 
two of which failed. Terry has been quoted as saying, ``Of the 
thousands of votes I had taken in my career, I knew this would be the 
most significant.''
  Terry is originally from Madison, Wisconsin, where he majored in 
political science at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. Terry and 
his wife, Barbara, have two sons, Tim, a senior at Mary Washington 
College in Fredericksburg, Virginia, and Christopher, a sophomore at 
Bishop O'Connell High School in Arlington, Virginia. Terry is an avid 
golfer and tennis player, and one of the founders of the Capitol Hill 
Tennis Club. In his retirement, Terry intends to spend more time 
golfing, playing tennis and visiting friends around the country.
  So we wish you Godspeed, Terry. We thank you for everything that you 
have given of yourself to this institution. We are the better for 
having known you, and the poorer for your leaving. We will not forget 
you.
  Mr. OBEY. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. I yield to the gentleman from Wisconsin.
  Mr. OBEY. Mr. Speaker, let me simply say in addition to being 
educated at the University of Wisconsin, where he did receive a degree 
in political science, I would point out that I knew him before he 
worked here when he was a page in the Wisconsin Legislature, when he 
looked just a little bit younger than both he and I look tonight.
  I just want to say that I know that every day the American people 
look in on this institution on C-SPAN and they see these faces at the 
desk, they have no idea who these people are and what they do. They 
have no idea the contribution they make to the Republic. Terry has done 
everything except the one thing which is impossible: It has been 
impossible for him to make us look better than we deserve, and so we 
are going to have to let it go at that.
  Terry, we wish you luck in retirement.
  Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. I yield to the gentlewoman from 
California.
  Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I would just like to take a moment to add to 
the words of my colleagues about a most unusual man.
  Terry Morris sits at that desk, impeccable in his dress, never a hair 
out of place, a smile on his face, serving day in and day out. He goes 
so far as to remind Members they have not voted by looking for them in 
every imaginable way, connecting with his eyes, reminding Members they 
have voted twice and they should not do that. He is perhaps one of the 
friendliest clerks and assistant that we have in this House. He helps 
Members regardless of party, and he has made friends on both sides of 
the aisle.
  One of my joys in this House is coming in and seeing his face, 
speaking with him, exchanging a few words and just knowing he is going 
to be there for me and all of us. I am sorry to see him leave. He is 
one of those persons we would like to have stay forever; but after 33 
years he deserves to retire. I wish him well.
  Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. I yield to the gentleman from Virginia.
  Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, as the gentleman from Virginia 
(Mr. Tom Davis) has mentioned all of the specifics of Terry Morris' 
life, I would just add that he is a constituent of mine. I am proud 
that is the case. But in so many ways, he is a constituent of this 
entire United States Congress. This is where he chose to spend most of 
his life, 33 years. Imagine, he has been up there for 33 years, 16 
years as Assistant Clerk, and the last 17 as the Chief Tally Clerk.
  As our colleague just stated, we take it for granted, every time we 
pass in that vote, Terry is smiling. He is looking professional. He is 
even looking alert. Here it is after midnight, and he is still smiling 
and looking alert. I do not know that we can do it. He does it day in 
and day out in such a way that we take it for granted. That is the kind 
of professionalism that the American public counts on.

                              {time}  0050

  When they have seen him on C-SPAN, I know he has just been sort of 
part of the institution, but the people listening in and who may one 
day read the Congressional Record ought to know that in many ways there 
is no more prized servant of the American people than Terry Morris has 
proven himself to be.
  And so for the person you are and for what you have contributed to 
this institution, Terry, we will forever be grateful. Thank you.
  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from 
Michigan (Mr. Dingell).
  Mr. DINGELL. Mr. Speaker, I thank the distinguished gentleman from 
Virginia for yielding. I rise today to pay tribute to Terry Morris, who 
is retiring after 33 years of distinguished service to this House of 
Representatives. He has served as an assistant tally clerk and has 
fulfilled the duties of chief tally clerk for the past 16 years and 
more with great distinction. He is one of those who quietly and in an 
unassuming fashion makes this House of Representatives work.
  In a body which is characterized by high levels of partisanship and 
by strong feelings, I would note that he has not only served with 
distinction but with fairness, and he has served well. He is known for 
his professional and friendly personality and for the fact that he has 
carried out his responsibilities with dignity, with respect for the 
institution, and with good faith towards all of the Members of this 
body. He has been an officer of this House for 33 years. He has seen 
history made. He has worked on many difficult and complex issues with 
fairness and impartiality. His service has spanned the careers of five 
Democratic Speakers and two Republican Speakers of this House. I speak 
not only on my own behalf but on behalf of his many friends in this 
institution when I commend him for his work and for his effort.
  All of us here offer our best wishes and gratitude to him for his 
service and to his wife, Barbara. We wish them great happiness and the 
best of all things as they embark on a new chapter in their lives. All 
of us say to Terry Morris, not only thank you, but well done, Terry. We 
are grateful for what you have done for us.
  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from 
Wisconsin (Mr. Kind).
  Mr. KIND. I thank my friend for yielding. As someone who hails from 
our neck of the woods and whose family is still sprinkled in many of 
our congressional districts, it is with special pride that we are here 
to honor you and to thank you for your many years of service in this 
great House, Terry. I was just 5 years old when you started your career 
here. Not to date you, but you have lived through eight administrations 
and seven separate Speakers of the House of Representatives. So I think 
it is safe to say that you are a great repository of a lot of the 
institutional memory that exists in this place. Besides you and 
Charlie, I think you two are the only two who probably recall the 
Members whose names we are honoring on courthouses and post offices 
throughout this country virtually every week out here. But I also want 
to thank you for what you mean for our government.

[[Page H8824]]

  There is a lot of cynicism in regards to our political system today, 
and a lot of times that is because the only thing people back home see 
is the partisan clashes and the heated debates that we have. I feel it 
is part of our obligation to go home and report to people who do not 
see what we get to see how well our government functions and the fact 
that we have thousands of employees, in the Federal agencies, in our 
offices, in this House who wake up every morning with the sole goal of 
trying to improve this great country of ours. You do it with honor, you 
do it with integrity, and you do it with a lot of style and a lot of 
class. That is why I, after my third term, am even more hopeful and 
optimistic about this great government of ours, because of people like 
you.
  I just have one request before you do leave, and that is to make sure 
that you download all the information that is in your brain and make 
sure it is all written so that we do not have to re-create the wheel. I 
will never forget the story you told me that after one of the late 
tally votes, which is seldom held around here anymore, someone asked 
you where the written procedure is for the tally vote, and you looked 
at them with a blank expression and said, ``There is no written 
procedure. It's right here.'' Everyone was shocked and horrified that 
you were going to go home that night being the only one with the 
knowledge on how to do this type of work. So you sat down before you 
went home and actually wrote out what the procedure is like.
  Again, we thank you for your great service. I personally thank you 
for all the conversations and the advice that you have given me. We 
wish you and Barbara and the two boys all the best in your retirement. 
Thank you very much.
  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from 
Michigan (Mr. Kildee).
  Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Speaker, a very loyal and distinguished member of the 
House staff is retiring after 33 years. I personally owe much to him 
for helping me preserve my longtime voting record. More than once he 
has advised the Speaker that I had not yet arrived. I am grateful to 
him for that. Terry's service has spanned five Democratic Speakers and 
two Republican Speakers of the House. Many people can spend 33 years 
here and never have to vote on the awesome question of war or 
impeachment. He has experienced both of those awesome questions here in 
his responsibility.
  Terry and his wife, Barbara, have two sons: Tim, a senior at Mary 
Washington College in Fredericksburg, Virginia, and Christopher, a 
sophomore at Bishop O'Connell High School in Arlington, Virginia.
  Terry will be greatly missed. He is a friend of this House. He is a 
personal friend of mine. I am a better person because of Terry Morris.
  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman 
from Wisconsin (Ms. Baldwin).
  Ms. BALDWIN. Terry, as a fellow Madisonian and a fellow Wisconsinite, 
you have made us very proud. Terry reminds me of what is great about 
the people of Wisconsin. We are actively involved in our democracy and 
government, and we have an outstanding work ethic. Wisconsinites 
understand what it means to serve their country; and Terry Morris has 
done so impeccably, in both his capacity as assistant tally clerk and 
as chief tally clerk. He has been a good friend to me in our frequent 
reminiscences about Wisconsin and Madison. I will miss you very much. 
Terry, thank you so very much for your service to this House and this 
Nation. You make Wisconsin proud. You make all of us proud. Best wishes 
in your retirement.
  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from 
Maryland (Mr. Hoyer).
  Mr. HOYER. Terry, your service has been recalled and set before us. 
All of us appreciate your service, that is clear. I think you are 
emblematic of the fine service that is given by those of you who do not 
get to speak on this floor, those of you whose names do not scroll 
across the screen, those of you who work anonymously but so effectively 
on behalf of the American public. Terry, I wanted to add my thanks and 
the thanks of all the Members of this side of the aisle, along with Tom 
on behalf of all the Members on that side of the aisle, because you 
work not in a partisan sense but you work for this institution to 
ensure that the people's House functions as the people would like. As 
Tom Davis said, we will miss you. You have served your country well. 
God bless you.

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