[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 113 (Thursday, July 10, 2008)]
[House]
[Page H6390]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                ADDRESSING THE CHALLENGES FACING AMERICA

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Dreier) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. DREIER. Madam Speaker, last week the House went on recess to 
spend time in our districts commemorating our independence as a Nation. 
These celebrations every 4th of July are always a time to remember and 
honor the history of this great country. We think of the great moments 
when the United States of America shone as an unparalleled leader in 
liberty and achievement; the brave men who stormed the beaches of 
Normandy, followed by the Marshall Plan and the Berlin airlift; the 
Wright Brothers becoming first in flight; or, of course, Neil Armstrong 
taking that giant leap for mankind.
  Perhaps above all, though, Madam Speaker, America's great moments 
have been expressions of great ideas. Our Nation was born out of the 
ideals of the Declaration of Independence. It established an enduring 
national philosophy based on the truth that we are all created equal 
and endowed by our Creator with inalienable rights.
  Since that beginning, bold ideas have defined our Nation; the idea 
that government must be of the people, by the people, and for the 
people; the idea that checks and balances must be built into the very 
structure of government to ensure its responsiveness to the American 
people; the idea that every man, woman and child has the right to 
freely practice their faith; the idea that all ideas should be allowed 
to be freely expressed. This is our history and our heritage.
  But Independence Day is not just a time to reflect on our past. It is 
also an opportunity to consider where we are headed. I believe that 
today, we as Americans are currently grappling with very fundamental 
philosophical questions, and answers to these questions will present 
complex challenges in their implementation.
  A central question is how to apply our core principles to the new 
challenges that we face. How do we secure ourselves against new threats 
without diminishing the civil liberties that we hold dear. How do we 
wage a war against Islamic extremism without appearing to treat those 
of the Muslim faith with the very intolerance that fuels extremism. How 
do we end the scourge of illegal immigration, while continuing to be 
that shining city on the hill to the many legal immigrants who have 
always helped to make this country the great Nation that it is.

                              {time}  1745

  How do we engage in the worldwide marketplace while ensuring that 
Americans can successfully compete in a very dynamic economic 
environment?
  Madam Speaker, there are those who say that America is bitterly 
divided today over these questions. It is certainly true that there is 
great diversity of opinion in how to address the security and economic 
challenges that we face. But if we are willing to engage each other in 
honest and open debate, this diversity of opinion is our great 
strength, not our weakness.
  We as a Nation are facing substantial new challenges that demand a 
great clash of ideas, just as our Founders intended. Unfortunately, the 
recitation of inflammatory talking points has supplanted sincere and 
honest debate. The shrill voices of talking heads are no substitute for 
true engagement.
  I believe Americans have grown weary of politics as usual, of the 
endless fighting that takes place here in Washington. But not because 
of the existence of opposing views. Americans have grown weary of the 
obstinacy, the hardened positions and intolerance of differing 
opinions, the refusal to truly engage in an open and substantive way.
  Madam Speaker, in a country of over 300 million people, there will 
never be uniformity of opinion, but there can and should be a deep 
respect for that clash of ideas and an interest in reaching broad 
consensus on the great issues of our day. This is the essence of the 
United States of America, and it is the essence of why we last Friday 
celebrated our Nation's independence, the freedom of ideas, all ideas, 
to be debated, debunked, or developed in this messy process of 
democracy.
  Madam Speaker, I truly believe that our country will rise to the 
challenges we face today, just as we have always done. And we will 
accomplish this through open, sometimes heated and passionate, but 
always respectful debate. The celebration of our independence is always 
at least a temporary unifier of America. But this year, we cannot 
afford to confine this unity to one day, the Fourth of July. I believe 
we should use this time to renew our belief in a country that is bound 
together, not driven apart, by the clash of ideas out of which our 
great country was born.

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