[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 93 (Thursday, June 11, 2015)]
[House]
[Page H4170]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             MAGNA CARTA: PRESERVING THE LEGACY OF FREEDOM

  (Mr. BYRNE asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. BYRNE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the 800th 
anniversary of one of the world's most important documents, the Magna 
Carta.
  On June 15, 1215, King John added his seal to the Magna Carta after 
it was drafted by barons in England who were tired of continued attacks 
on their freedoms and rights by a tyrannical king.
  The Magna Carta, which is Latin for ``the great charter,'' 
established the rule of law in England and served as an inspiration for 
the American revolution and the basis for the Declaration of 
Independence and our Bill of Rights.
  As Thomas Paine said in 1776: ``In free countries, the law ought to 
be king; and there ought to be no other.''
  Mr. Speaker, it seems that far too often our problem is we don't 
fully understand our history, and that is why we stray from it.
  We are currently dealing with a President who has shown a willingness 
to change the laws through executive fiat. I believe it is vitally 
important that we remember the Magna Carta, which is based on the idea 
that no person, regardless of their position, will ever be above the 
law.
  People from all over the world have fought for centuries in order to 
preserve and defend this basic principle, and that fight can never end. 
So on this 800th anniversary, I call on this body to remember the Magna 
Carta and work every day to carry forward the torch of freedom.

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