[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 108 (Wednesday, July 21, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1392-E1393]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              LETTER FROM PAUL DEBRI, OF GRAND RAPIDS, MI

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. VERNON J. EHLERS

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 21, 2010

  Mr. EHLERS. Madam Speaker, I recently received a letter from a 
constituent, Mr. Paul Debri, who expressed concerns about the welfare 
of our country. In particular, Mr. Debri decried a lack of 
responsibility accepted by Members of Congress, and conveyed his 
anxiety over partisanship. Mr. Debri's letter offered a sobering 
perspective of how our daily actions in Washington are viewed by the 
people we are elected to represent.
  Of note, the correspondence which I received included a copy of the 
Congressional Record (Cong. Rec. 1 Sept. 1950: A6328) from Friday, 
September 1, 1950 and the extended remarks of my predecessor, the 
Honorable Gerald R. Ford, Jr. The attitude toward Congress expressed by 
Mr. Debri was shared by his grandfather, Mr. Irwin Koropas, who

[[Page E1393]]

wrote then to Representative Ford with similar reservations and a 
challenge to share those sentiments with the Congress, which 
Representative Ford did.
  I share Mr. Debri's concerns about the lack of civility and personal 
responsibility in Congress. Throughout my seventeen years in 
Washington, I have strived to follow the call of Micah 6:8 ``to act 
justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.'' Mr. 
Debri's letter is a good reminder of the humility and civility needed 
in Congress. I have also sought to follow the advice of Edmund Burke, a 
noted British parliamentarian, who said ``The only thing necessary for 
the triumph of evil is for good people to do nothing.''
  For the edification of my colleagues, Mr. Debris' letter is below:

                                   Grand Rapids, MI, May 31, 2010.
       Representative Ehlers, I have just returned home on this 
     stormy Memorial Day morning after spending time with a member 
     of my family. While driving home I realized that I needed to 
     voice my concern with you over the welfare of our country. 
     More specifically on the ineptness of the Legislative Branch 
     to work in harmony with one another to strengthen and unite 
     this country.
       Yes, I have voted for you in past elections and consider 
     myself a Republican, but I have also voted for Democrats on 
     more than one occasion. What is so special about this country 
     is that I have the right to choose the men and women that are 
     sent to Washington D.C. Unfortunately, after the polls close 
     and the elected officials, Republican or Democrat, take their 
     oath they seem to serve only one person. That person being 
     themself.
       It seems as though not a day goes by when a politician is 
     in the news double talking their way around a simple 
     question, pushing blame off to another person or political 
     party, or making promises to the American people by saying 
     one thing and not even doing anything to resolve the issue. 
     When asked a question, give a straight forward answer. When 
     confronted with wrong doing, take responsibility. Don't blame 
     others. When making promises, act with integrity and 
     accomplish what you set forth to do with no complaints.
       Included is a copy of a letter from Mr. Irwin Koropas to 
     former Representative Gerald R. Ford back in 1950. Mr. 
     Koropas was concerned with the inability of Congress to work 
     together by getting off their proverbial high horse to 
     preserve this great country. Sadly, the same concern holds 
     true today. Sixty years have passed and Congress still does 
     not understand what the American people want. Do what you 
     were elected to do...work for the American people, not 
     yourself.
       Mr. Irwin Koropas served his country proudly. He loved his 
     wife and daughter and modeled examples of honesty, respect, 
     and patriotism to his three grandchildren. The good Lord 
     called him home some years ago, but he is never forgotten. 
     Every Memorial Day I visit him. I visit my grandpa. I will 
     never be embarrassed to be an American or to call this great 
     land home. However, I am embarrassed by the elected 
     politicians serving in the nation's capital. Who will be the 
     first politician to put aside political partisanship and 
     honestly and faithfully put the needs of Americans ahead of 
     their own personal agenda?
       I'll close this letter with the words my grandpa wrote to 
     then Representative Ford sixty years ago. Representative 
     Ehlers, ``Please read this to Congress if you got the guts, 
     which I think you have.''
           Respectfully,
                                                       Paul Debri,
     Grand Rapids, MI.

                          ____________________