[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 51 (Wednesday, March 28, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E461]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 HONORING THE SERVICE OF JOHN V. SULLIVAN, HOUSE PARLIAMENTARIAN, UPON 
                             HIS RETIREMENT

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                          HON. DAVID E. PRICE

                           of north carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 27, 2012

  Mr. PRICE of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker thanks to Mr. Dreier, Mr. 
LaTourette and Mr. Dingell for organizing this special order in 
recognition of John Sullivan, the House's Parliamentarian since 2004, 
and Deputy or Assistant Parliamentarian since 1987.
  For these 25 years, John has been a familiar face on the floor of the 
House of Representatives, helping presiding officers maintain order and 
the flow of business. He has done his work with reassuring steadiness 
and competence, impartiality and fairness, even when tempers were 
flaring and ingenious, sometimes disingenuous, arguments were flying 
all around him.
  John and the parliamentary staff he oversees have also been 
invaluable sources of advice and counsel for this institution's 
members, officers, and committees. Their institutional memory--both in 
their personal capacity and in the reference and retrieval system they 
have developed--is beyond compare. John perfected his own skills under 
illustrious predecessors--Charles Johnson and Bill Brown--and has 
administered and advanced the office superbly. This institution is 
currently facing serious strains and challenges. But in the area of 
parliamentary experience and control, we are operating from a position 
of great strength, thanks to the work of John and his colleagues.
  John Sullivan's work is enhanced by his historical and comparative 
parliamentary knowledge, and I want especially to commend him for his 
willingness to share that knowledge with our colleagues in parliaments 
with which we cooperate around the world. I particularly remember his 
participation with the House Democracy Partnership in a mission to two 
partner legislatures, Liberia and Kenya, in 2010. He engaged 
enthusiastically and helpfully with these parliaments as they developed 
their own parliamentary rules and standards under trying conditions. 
John has done this repeatedly, meeting countless times with visiting 
parliamentary and staff delegations and generously extending his 
counsel and encouragement.
  In short, John Sullivan has been an exemplary public servant and an 
invaluable resource for this institution and our sister institutions 
around the world. I am happy to join with colleagues in thanking him 
for his service and wishing him well in retirement.

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