[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 116 (Wednesday, July 29, 2009)]
[House]
[Pages H8986-H8988]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           RAISING A QUESTION OF THE PRIVILEGES OF THE HOUSE

  Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Speaker, I have a privileged resolution at the desk.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the resolution.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                              H. Res. 690

       Whereas page 5 of the ``Regulations on the Use of the 
     CONGRESSIONAL FRANK By

[[Page H8987]]

     Members of the House of Representatives'' states, ``It is the 
     policy of the Congress that the privilege of sending mail as 
     franked mail shall be established under this section in order 
     to assist and expedite the conduct of the official business, 
     activities and duties of the Congress of the United States. 
     It is the intent of the Congress that such official business, 
     activities and duties cover all matters which directly or 
     indirectly pertain to the legislative process or to any 
     congressional representative functions generally, or to the 
     functioning, working, or operating of the Congress and the 
     performance of official duties in connection therewith, and 
     shall include, but not be limited to, the conveying of 
     information to the public, the requesting of the views of the 
     public, or the views and information of other authority of 
     government, as a guide or a means of assistance in the 
     performance of those functions.'';
       Whereas clause 5 of rule XXIV of the Rules of the House of 
     Representatives provides, ``Before making a mass mailing, a 
     Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner shall submit a 
     sample or description of the mail matter involved to the 
     House Commission on Congressional Mailing Standards for an 
     advisory opinion as to whether the proposed mailing is in 
     compliance with applicable provisions of law, rule, or 
     regulation.'';
       Whereas the House Commission on Congressional Mailing 
     Standards, authorized in Public Law 91-191, is commonly 
     referred to as the ``Franking Commission'';
       Whereas the Democratic staff director and Republican staff 
     director of the Franking Commission have served in their 
     respective positions for more than a decade and report to the 
     Democratic and Republican members of the Franking Commission, 
     respectively;
       Whereas during the 111th Congress the members of the 
     Franking Commission are Representatives Susan Davis (D-CA), 
     chairwoman; Rep. Dan Lungren (R-CA), ranking Republican 
     member; Rep. Donna Edwards (D-MD), Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-
     CA), Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA) and Rep. Tom Price (R-GA);
       Whereas the aforementioned Franking Commission advisory 
     opinions required for Members seeking approval to send mass 
     mailings, or their electronic equivalents, are routinely 
     signed on behalf of the Commission by its Democratic and 
     Republican staff directors or their designees;
       Whereas no Member may receive Franking Commission approval 
     without signatures from both majority and minority staff;
       Whereas the Commission's Democratic staff director has been 
     permitted by the Commission's Democratic Members to abuse her 
     position during the current Congress by willfully and 
     knowingly applying different standards to material submitted 
     for Franking Commission approval by Republican Members than 
     she applies to material submitted by Democratic Members;
       Whereas on July 27, 2009 the Commission's Democratic staff 
     director refused to approve a mailing proposed by 
     Representative Joe Barton of Texas which included the words 
     ``Democrat majority'', but indicated she would approve the 
     mailing if Representative Barton instead substituted the 
     words ``congressional majority'', yet on August 3, 2006 the 
     same Democratic staff director signed a Franking Commission 
     approval document for a mailing issued by then-Minority 
     Leader Nancy Pelosi that included the following sentence, 
     ``But too many here and across our nation are paying the 
     price for the Republican Congressional majority's special 
     interest agenda . . .''
       Whereas the Democratic staff director has refused to grant 
     permission to Republican Members wishing to provide their 
     constituents with copies of a chart intended to illustrate in 
     graphic form many of the provisions of the Democrats' 
     proposed health care legislation;
       Whereas charts similar in form and general purpose have for 
     many years been approved routinely by the Commission's 
     Democratic staff director in mailings produced by Members on 
     both sides of the aisle;
       Whereas on December 12, 1993, the Franking Commission 
     granted approval to Rep. David Levy of New York to 
     disseminate a similar chart, intended to illustrate 
     graphically the provisions of comprehensive health care 
     legislation proposed by the Clinton Administration;
       Whereas the Commission's Democratic staff director has 
     refused to approve requests by Republican Members to 
     informally characterize certain features of the Democrats' 
     pending health care proposal as ``government run health 
     care'' but has approved requests by Democratic Members to 
     informally characterize the same aspects of the bill as ``the 
     public option'';
       Whereas the Commission's Democratic staff director has 
     refused to approve more than twenty requests by Republican 
     Members to use the phrase ``cap and tax'' to describe a 
     Democratic proposal to reduce carbon emissions by imposing 
     new fees, taxes and higher costs on American consumers and 
     businesses;
       Whereas a search for the term ``cap and tax'' on the Google 
     internet search engine yielded at least 4,478,000 appearances 
     of this commonly used phrase;
       Whereas an article in the April 27, 2009 edition of 
     ``Politico'' newspaper quoted the most senior Member of the 
     House, Democratic Representative John Dingell of Michigan, 
     the former chairman of the House Committee on Energy and 
     Commerce, as saying, ``Nobody in this country realizes that 
     cap and trade is a tax, and it's a great big one.'';
       Whereas the Commission's Democratic staff director has 
     dismissed the proposed descriptive term, ``cap and tax'' as 
     an informal and inappropriate characterization of the 
     legislation, while at the same time granting approval to 
     Democratic Members seeking to use the phrase ``cap and 
     trade'' to informally and inappropriately characterize the 
     same bill;
       Whereas the Commission's Democratic staff director has 
     refused to approve material submitted by Republican Members 
     seeking to convey to the public those Members' concern about 
     substantial job losses expected to result if the Democrats' 
     proposed national energy tax is enacted, while at the same 
     time approving mailings submitted by Democratic Members 
     informing the public about large numbers of new jobs the 
     Democrats claim will be created by the same legislation;
       Whereas the Democratic staff director's actions have 
     prompted a steady stream of media reports describing a 
     climate of partisan censorship imposed on the House by the 
     Democratic majority;
       Whereas an article in the July 23, 2009 edition of Roll 
     Call newspaper stated, ``A dispute over the right of House 
     Republicans to use the chamber's official franking service to 
     send a mailer critical of Democratic health care plans has 
     escalated beyond the Franking Commission to `high levels on 
     the Democratic side,' Franking Commission member Rep. Dan 
     Lungren (R-CA) said at a Thursday press conference. Asked 
     whether he believed the matter had been referred to Rep. 
     Pelosis (D-CA) office, Lungren, the ranking member of the 
     House Administration Committee, said, 'All I've been told is 
     that its above the Franking Commission and that it appears to 
     be above our committee, so I don't know where you go after 
     that'.'';
       Whereas by permitting the Commission's Democratic staff 
     director to carry out her duties in a partisan and unfair 
     manner, the Democratic Members of the Franking Commission 
     have brought discredit on the House; and,
       Whereas clause 1 of rule XXIII of the Rules of the House of 
     Representatives, also known as the Code of Official Conduct, 
     provides ``A Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, 
     officer, or employee of the House shall behave at all times 
     in a manner that shall reflect creditably on the House'': 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the House views with disapproval the failure 
     of the Democratic Members of the Franking Commission to 
     ensure that the Commission's Democratic staff carries out its 
     important responsibilities in a professional, fair, and 
     impartial manner.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The resolution presents a question of 
privilege.


                            Motion to Table

  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I move that the resolution be laid on the 
table.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion to table.
  The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that 
the ayes appeared to have it.
  Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, this 15-
minute vote on the motion to table will be followed by a 5-minute vote 
on the motion to suspend the rules on S. 1513.
  The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--yeas 244, 
nays 173, answered ``present'' 11, not voting 5, as follows:

                             [Roll No. 656]

                               YEAS--244

     Abercrombie
     Ackerman
     Adler (NJ)
     Altmire
     Andrews
     Arcuri
     Baca
     Baird
     Baldwin
     Barrow
     Bean
     Becerra
     Berkley
     Berman
     Berry
     Bishop (GA)
     Bishop (NY)
     Blumenauer
     Boccieri
     Boren
     Boswell
     Boucher
     Boyd
     Brady (PA)
     Braley (IA)
     Bright
     Brown, Corrine
     Capps
     Capuano
     Cardoza
     Carnahan
     Carney
     Carson (IN)
     Childers
     Chu
     Clarke
     Clay
     Cleaver
     Clyburn
     Cohen
     Connolly (VA)
     Conyers
     Cooper
     Costa
     Costello
     Courtney
     Crowley
     Cuellar
     Cummings
     Dahlkemper
     Davis (AL)
     Davis (IL)
     Davis (TN)
     DeFazio
     DeGette
     Delahunt
     DeLauro
     Dicks
     Dingell
     Doggett
     Donnelly (IN)
     Doyle
     Driehaus
     Edwards (TX)
     Ellison
     Ellsworth
     Engel
     Eshoo
     Etheridge
     Farr
     Fattah
     Filner
     Foster
     Frank (MA)
     Fudge
     Giffords
     Gonzalez
     Gordon (TN)
     Grayson
     Green, Al
     Green, Gene
     Griffith
     Grijalva
     Gutierrez
     Hall (NY)
     Halvorson
     Hare
     Harman
     Hastings (FL)
     Heinrich
     Herseth Sandlin
     Higgins
     Hill
     Himes
     Hinchey
     Hinojosa
     Hirono
     Hodes
     Holden
     Holt
     Honda
     Hoyer
     Inslee
     Israel
     Jackson (IL)
     Jackson-Lee (TX)
     Johnson (GA)
     Johnson, E. B.
     Kagen
     Kanjorski
     Kaptur
     Kennedy
     Kildee
     Kilpatrick (MI)
     Kilroy
     Kind
     Kirkpatrick (AZ)
     Kissell
     Klein (FL)
     Kosmas
     Kratovil
     Langevin
     Larsen (WA)
     Larson (CT)
     Lee (CA)
     Levin
     Lewis (GA)
     Lipinski
     Loebsack
     Lowey
     Lujan

[[Page H8988]]


     Lynch
     Maffei
     Maloney
     Markey (CO)
     Markey (MA)
     Marshall
     Massa
     Matheson
     Matsui
     McCollum
     McDermott
     McGovern
     McIntyre
     McMahon
     McNerney
     Meek (FL)
     Meeks (NY)
     Melancon
     Michaud
     Miller (NC)
     Miller, George
     Minnick
     Mitchell
     Mollohan
     Moore (KS)
     Moore (WI)
     Moran (VA)
     Murphy (CT)
     Murphy (NY)
     Murphy, Patrick
     Murtha
     Nadler (NY)
     Napolitano
     Neal (MA)
     Nye
     Oberstar
     Obey
     Olver
     Ortiz
     Pallone
     Pascrell
     Pastor (AZ)
     Payne
     Perlmutter
     Perriello
     Peters
     Peterson
     Pingree (ME)
     Polis (CO)
     Pomeroy
     Price (NC)
     Quigley
     Rahall
     Rangel
     Reyes
     Richardson
     Rodriguez
     Ross
     Rothman (NJ)
     Roybal-Allard
     Ruppersberger
     Rush
     Ryan (OH)
     Salazar
     Sanchez, Linda T.
     Sanchez, Loretta
     Sarbanes
     Schakowsky
     Schauer
     Schiff
     Schrader
     Schwartz
     Scott (GA)
     Scott (VA)
     Serrano
     Sestak
     Shea-Porter
     Shuler
     Sires
     Skelton
     Slaughter
     Smith (WA)
     Snyder
     Space
     Speier
     Spratt
     Stark
     Stupak
     Sutton
     Tanner
     Taylor
     Teague
     Thompson (CA)
     Thompson (MS)
     Tierney
     Titus
     Tonko
     Towns
     Tsongas
     Van Hollen
     Velazquez
     Visclosky
     Walz
     Wasserman Schultz
     Waters
     Watt
     Waxman
     Weiner
     Wexler
     Wilson (OH)
     Woolsey
     Wu
     Yarmuth

                               NAYS--173

     Aderholt
     Akin
     Alexander
     Austria
     Bachmann
     Bachus
     Bartlett
     Barton (TX)
     Biggert
     Bilbray
     Bilirakis
     Bishop (UT)
     Blackburn
     Blunt
     Boehner
     Bono Mack
     Boozman
     Boustany
     Brady (TX)
     Broun (GA)
     Brown (SC)
     Brown-Waite, Ginny
     Buchanan
     Burgess
     Burton (IN)
     Buyer
     Calvert
     Camp
     Campbell
     Cantor
     Cao
     Capito
     Carter
     Cassidy
     Castle
     Chaffetz
     Coble
     Coffman (CO)
     Cole
     Crenshaw
     Culberson
     Davis (KY)
     Deal (GA)
     Diaz-Balart, L.
     Diaz-Balart, M.
     Dreier
     Duncan
     Ehlers
     Emerson
     Fallin
     Flake
     Fleming
     Forbes
     Fortenberry
     Foxx
     Franks (AZ)
     Frelinghuysen
     Gallegly
     Garrett (NJ)
     Gingrey (GA)
     Gohmert
     Goodlatte
     Granger
     Graves
     Guthrie
     Hall (TX)
     Hastings (WA)
     Heller
     Hensarling
     Herger
     Hoekstra
     Hunter
     Inglis
     Issa
     Jenkins
     Johnson (IL)
     Johnson, Sam
     Jones
     Jordan (OH)
     King (IA)
     King (NY)
     Kingston
     Kirk
     Kline (MN)
     Kucinich
     Lamborn
     Lance
     Latham
     LaTourette
     Latta
     Lee (NY)
     Lewis (CA)
     Linder
     LoBiondo
     Lucas
     Luetkemeyer
     Lummis
     Lungren, Daniel E.
     Mack
     Manzullo
     Marchant
     McCarthy (CA)
     McCaul
     McClintock
     McCotter
     McHenry
     McHugh
     McKeon
     McMorris Rodgers
     Mica
     Miller (FL)
     Miller (MI)
     Miller, Gary
     Moran (KS)
     Murphy, Tim
     Myrick
     Neugebauer
     Nunes
     Olson
     Paul
     Paulsen
     Pence
     Petri
     Pitts
     Platts
     Poe (TX)
     Posey
     Price (GA)
     Putnam
     Radanovich
     Rehberg
     Reichert
     Roe (TN)
     Rogers (AL)
     Rogers (KY)
     Rogers (MI)
     Rohrabacher
     Rooney
     Ros-Lehtinen
     Roskam
     Royce
     Ryan (WI)
     Scalise
     Schmidt
     Schock
     Sensenbrenner
     Sessions
     Shadegg
     Shimkus
     Shuster
     Simpson
     Smith (NE)
     Smith (NJ)
     Smith (TX)
     Souder
     Stearns
     Sullivan
     Terry
     Thompson (PA)
     Thornberry
     Tiahrt
     Tiberi
     Turner
     Upton
     Walden
     Wamp
     Westmoreland
     Whitfield
     Wilson (SC)
     Wittman
     Wolf
     Young (AK)
     Young (FL)

                        ANSWERED ``PRESENT''--11

     Butterfield
     Castor (FL)
     Chandler
     Conaway
     Davis (CA)
     Dent
     Edwards (MD)
     Harper
     Lofgren, Zoe
     Sherman
     Welch

                             NOT VOTING--5

     Barrett (SC)
     Bonner
     Gerlach
     McCarthy (NY)
     Watson

                              {time}  1347

  Mr. KUCINICH changed his vote from ``yea'' to ``nay.''
  Mr. BRIGHT changed his vote from ``nay'' to ``yea.''
  Mr. CHANDLER, Ms. CASTOR of Florida and Mr. WELCH changed their vote 
from ``yea'' to ``present.''
  Mr. HARPER changed his vote from ``nay'' to ``present.''
  Mr. LATHAM changed his vote from ``present'' to ``nay.''
  So the motion to table was agreed to.
  The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________