[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 123 (Wednesday, September 28, 2005)]
[House]
[Pages H8489-H8491]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
HONORING CHRIS COX
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the
gentleman from California (Mr. Dreier) is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, on the 2nd of June our very distinguished
colleague, Chris Cox, was nominated by President Bush to become the
chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission. On July 29, the
Senate voted unanimously to confirm Chris as the 28th chairman of the
SEC. His nomination was widely heralded. That economic guru, Larry
Kudlow, said, ``Chris Cox's keen intellect and free market view point
will provide a breath of fresh air at the Securities and Exchange
Commission.''
{time} 1900
The majority leader in the Senate said, ``Chris Cox will bring an
experienced and steady hand to the Securities and Exchange
Commission.''
Stanford law professor, who is a former SEC commissioner, Joseph
Grundfest, said, ``We should give a great deal of respect and deference
to Chris Cox's tremendous intellectual abilities and political
skills.''
Mr. Speaker, I mention this praise because it so clearly shows that
the gain at the Securities and Exchange Commission is a significant
loss for us here in the House of Representatives. As his colleagues in
Congress, we will all miss working with Chris.
Chairman Cox was first elected to the House in 1988 to represent
Orange County, California. During his nine terms in office, he gained a
well-deserved reputation as a hardworking, action-oriented, fair and
bipartisan Member. In fact, he said one time, ``The well-worn partisan
rut is not a place where you are going to get a lot of work done.''
Chairman Cox did not spend a lot of time in that rut. He was an
integral part of our California delegation, served on important
committees and delved into critical issues facing our Nation. He served
on the Committee on Energy and Commerce, the Committee on Financial
Services, the Committee on Government Reform and the Committee on the
Budget. He served as a member of the majority leadership for over 10
years as Chairman of the House Policy Committee.
Most recently, we all know Chris served as chairman of the Committee
on Homeland Security when we established this new committee. Throughout
his involvement in national security issues, he was very intimately
involved in those throughout his entire 17 years in Congress. He was a
tireless advocate for our men and women in uniform, a vocal anti-
Communist, an active proponent of California's military bases, and an
ardent supporter of the global war on terror.
As Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, Mr. Speaker, Chris
pushed for common-sense reform to ensure that we spent homeland
security dollars based on actual risk, and he left a legacy of very
vigorous oversight at the Department of Homeland Security.
Additionally, as a representative from California, Chairman Cox was
intimately involved in the effort to secure our border and give the
border patrol the tools needed to apprehend anyone seeking to enter our
country illegally, particularly those wishing to do our Nation harm.
It is fitting that he is now the country's top cop for the securities
markets because he has long been committed to improving and supporting
the free market.
Whether it was ending the double taxation on shareholder dividends or
supporting innovative technologies with the Internet Tax Freedom Act or
standing up for free trade by voting for permanent normal trade
relations for the People's Republic of China or protecting investors
from junk lawsuits with the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act,
Chairman Cox has been in the forefront of making sure capitalism and
financial markets work on their own when they can but, most important,
work within the law around the clock.
When accepting the nomination to chair the SEC, Chairman Cox had this
to say about the U.S. economy: ``The natural enemies of this economic
marvel are fraud and unfair dealing.'' At the SEC, he will continue,
Mr. Speaker, to do what he practiced here in the Congress, instilling
faith in the financial markets by targeting bad actors and protecting
investors.
Throughout his life, Chairman Cox has held firm to his conservative
beliefs; his faith in democracy; and his pro-growth, free market
principles, even when his views were not always popular. When he was at
Harvard in the early 1970s, where he earned a business and law degree,
he placed a Ronald Reagan bumper sticker on his car, only to have his
car repeatedly vandalized.
There was little that could intimidate Chairman Cox, and that was
particularly due to the confidence he derived from his political
lodestar, the man whose name was on that bumper sticker, Ronald Reagan.
Chris and I both share an intense admiration for Ronald Reagan.
President Reagan taught our country to stand tall, to believe in and
trust the virtues of democracy, the power of the individual, the
promise of entrepreneurship, and the might of our military.
Chris had the distinct privilege of serving President Reagan as a
White
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House counsel. He worked behind the scenes to promote Ronald Reagan's
muscular foreign policy and effective, limited government domestic
policy.
In 1988, during Chris's first campaign for Congress, President Reagan
said, ``I could always count on Chris Cox to push our agenda forward
and to keep his sights on why we were in Washington.'' Mr. Speaker,
those words still ring true today. Chairman Cox is a man of powerful
intellect, whose selfless service of his constituents and of his
country has earned the respect of everyone he has worked with, and he
has never lost sight of why he was here.
I know he will continue to serve the people of the United States with
unfailing dedication and the utmost integrity. That is how his
colleagues in Congress knew him, and that is how his new colleagues at
the SEC will come to know him.
President Bush gave Chairman Cox this mission to the SEC: ``To
continue to strengthen public trust in our markets so the American
economy can continue to grow and create jobs.'' Mr. Speaker, if the
success of his congressional career is any guide, there is no doubt
that Chairman Cox will accomplish this mission.
I offer my sincere thanks to Chris for the pleasure of working with
him as a member of the California delegation, as a dedicated disciple
of President Reagan and as a force for progress here in the House of
Representatives. I wish him the very best as he embarks on this new
path.
Mr. RADANOVICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay honor and
congratulate a now former colleague of mine, Congressman Christopher
Cox. Mr. Cox has served the U.S. House of Representatives with great
distinction for six terms. For 10 years Mr. Cox displayed his
tremendous leadership capability as chairman of the House Policy
Committee, and most recently as the founding Chairman of the House
Committee on Homeland Security.
In June of 2005, the President of the United States had the foresight
to recognize Mr. Cox's leadership ability and subsequently appointed
Mr. Cox, Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Mr.
President, you made a very fine choice. Mr. Cox holds an M.B.A. from
Harvard Business School, as well as a J.D. from Harvard School of Law.
He has taught Federal income tax courses at his alma mater. During
former President Reagan's second term, Mr. Cox served as his Senior
Associate Counsel. While serving in the U.S. House of Representatives
Mr. Cox served in a capacity of leadership in every committee with
jurisdiction over investor protection and U.S. capital markets. It
seems obvious to me, as I'm sure it does to the rest of my colleagues
that Mr. Cox is very well qualified for his new position.
While the citizens of Mr. Cox's 48th District will surely miss his
commitment, I am sure they share my sentiments of congratulation to Mr.
Cox for receiving this new appointment. I have thoroughly enjoyed my
time as a colleague of Mr. Cox and look forward to working with him in
his new capacity.
Mr. THOMAS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor my friend and former
colleague from California, Christopher Cox, for his excellent service
as a Member of the House of Representatives and to wish him well in his
tenure as Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC.
I commend the President for selecting Chris to serve in that capacity
because Chris has the proven leadership ability, intelligence,
fairness, and experience necessary to successfully manage the SEC,
which has an integral role in ensuring our Nation's continued economic
growth and prosperity. I have had the great pleasure of working with
Chris as he exhibited his leadership abilities in the House through his
service for over a decade as the Chairman of the House Republican
Policy Committee and most recently as Chairman of the Committee on
Homeland Security.
As many of you know, Chris has impressive academic credentials, which
include earning both an M.B.A. and law degree from Harvard, where he
also served as an editor of the prestigious Harvard Law Review. These
credentials were supplemented through his service as a Federal
appellate law clerk and as Senior Associate Counsel to the late
President Reagan.
Moreover, Chris' experience has provided him with a broad and deep
understanding of how our Nation's capital markets operate. As an
attorney with an international law firm, Chris specialized in venture
capital and corporate finance, and in his 18 years of service as a
Member of the House, Chris served on the Energy and Commerce, Financial
Services, and Government Reform Committees. During his House career,
Chris was an ardent proponent of legislation to improve the budget
process, eliminate the double tax on shareholder dividends, reform
medical malpractice litigation, and repeal the estate tax. I worked
with Chris on these issues and I am pleased that we were able to enact
legislation to address capital gains, dividends, and estate taxation.
While I will miss working with Chris in the House, I look forward to
working with him in his new role. Accordingly, I ask my colleagues to
join me in wishing him well as he continues to serve as a free-market
advocate in his new capacity.
Mr. GARY G. MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor
our former colleague and my good friend, the Honorable Christopher Cox.
For almost 20 years, Chris Cox has served his country nobly,
admirably, and to the best of his ability as a public official and
legislator. Now President Bush has tapped him for a new chapter in his
public service career as the next Chairman of the Securities and
Exchange Commission.
In making this choice, the President could not have picked a more
qualified, a more determined, and a more able candidate. Chris Cox has
extensive experience as an attorney specializing in venture capital and
corporate finance and a lecturer at Harvard Business School where he
taught Federal income tax law. He began his service to our nation as a
Senior Associate Counsel to President Reagan, advising the President on
a range of issues. Now he will continue this service in a different
capacity as the Chairman of the SEC, where he will have a platform to
encourage corporate responsibility and raise investor confidence.
From 1988, until very recently, Chairman Cox represented Orange
County faithfully in the U.S. Congress. In this body, his leadership
was essential in authoring the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
and the Internet Tax Freedom Act. Chairman Cox was also instrumental in
the creation of a permanent Homeland Security Committee, on which he
served as the first Chairman. No matter his role in this House, he
continuously worked for a smaller and more efficient government, a
fiscally responsible budget, and an overall better America.
For the last 7 years, I had the great privilege of being his
colleague in this House. Here I witnessed firsthand the depth of his
intellect and the extent of his devotion to our nation. I also
witnessed his compassion and care for the residents of south Orange
County. He represented them loyally and they rewarded him with eight
consecutive reelections to the House of Representatives.
As Chairman Cox leaves these halls to continue his public service at
the SEC, I can say with certainty that he will be missed by his fellow
lawmakers, his constituents, and the American people. We can take
solace, however, in his call to a higher duty. In this time of war and
economic uncertainty, America needs capable leaders--leaders with
experience, with knowledge, with determination--leaders like
Christopher Cox.
As Chris Cox begins his new challenge as Chairman of the SEC, I am
confident that the qualities that made him such a great Congressman
will likewise make him an excellent Chairman.
Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to thank
my colleague, Chris Cox, for his service to this House, and to Orange
County California, a region we both had the privilege and the
responsibility to represent.
I would also like to take this opportunity to wish now Commissioner
Cox good luck in his new position at the Securities Exchange
Commission, SEC.
As a former constituent, a member of the investment banking
community, I know how important Mr. Cox's new job is to the health and
security to our Nation's economy.
The job of the SEC is to maintain investor confidence in our
financial markets. I would urge my friend to invest more resources in
maintaining that confidence. That would include going after insider-
trading cases, and preventing scandals, like Enron and WorldCom, that
undermine our system. We shouldn't forget that it's the small
investors, and workers depending on their pensions, that get hit the
hardest by these scandals.
I would also urge the Commissioner also to think about the future and
to help reform the New York Stock Exchange, and other exchanges, to
bring them into the 21st Century. Instant trading is a fact in the
market. It needs to be brought to the floor of the NYSE.
In closing, I would like to thank Chris Cox again for his service and
wish him all the best at the SEC. I look forward to working with him
and helping to make our nation's future, safe, fair and secure.
Mr. GALLEGLY. Mr. Speaker, I rise in honor of my friend, former
colleague, fellow Californian and Securities and Exchange Commission
Chairman Christopher Cox.
A capable and affable leader, Chris is well-suited to be the 28th SEC
chairman. While in Congress, he served as a senior member of every
committee with jurisdiction over investor
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protection and capital markets, including the House Energy and Commerce
Committee, the Financial Services Committee, the Government Reform
Committee and the Budget Committee. He also served as chairman of the
Task Force on Budget Reform. He authored the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act and the Internet Tax Freedom Act.
It was no surprise that the Senate unanimously confirmed his SEC
chairmanship on July 29,2005.
Mr. Speaker, I know my colleagues will join me in honoring Chris Cox
for his service in the U.S. House of Representatives and wish him
Godspeed at the SEC.
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