[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 197 (Thursday, December 13, 2018)]
[House]
[Pages H10206-H10208]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          FAREWELL TO CONGRESS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 3, 2017, the Chair recognizes the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. 
Yoder) for 30 minutes.
  Mr. YODER. Mr. Speaker, I rise for perhaps the last time to address 
the United States Congress. I stand before this esteemed body, honored 
to have been part of the people's House.
  Our work here is a noble pursuit: debating, deliberating, and 
ultimately deciding issues of critical importance to the great people 
of the United States of America.
  From a young age, Mr. Speaker, my parents taught me the value of 
service and the importance of our responsibility to contribute to our 
community, to leave things better than we found them. This is, frankly, 
part of the American tradition. We feel a commitment and a compassion 
to our neighbors.
  Each American plays a role in weaving the fabric that makes this 
country so enduring and so strong. E pluribus unum--out of many, one--
reflects not only the Federalist system of our Nation, but the great 
diversity and rich cultures that make us strong, each of us, with God-
given, inalienable rights, protected by the Constitution--a truly 
exceptional Nation, a Nation that stands as a beacon, a shining example 
of democracy and freedom and unity, a Nation built on sacrifice and 
service and commitment to preserving our ideals. That is the Nation I 
love, and that is the Nation I was honored to serve in this United 
States Congress.
  Now, like all Americans, I have my own story, my own heritage, my own 
upbringing. I grew up on a farm in central Kansas. It was a grain and 
livestock farm. We grew wheat, corn, soybeans, and milo. We raised 
cattle, hogs, sheep, and chickens. I grew up in the 1980s, and life was 
hard on American farms back then, still is in some ways, and some of 
our neighbors were going bankrupt.
  We didn't have much, and commodity prices never rose to the point of 
profit. My parents pinched pennies hard, but they made a life for us. 
They taught us that education was the best way to create opportunity 
for yourself and that there is no substitute for an old-fashioned hard 
day's work.
  My family has been farming in rural Kansas for generations. It is a 
way to make a living, but it is also a culture, a set of values that 
helped build this country. They are the values that made me who I am 
today, the values I now teach my own children, and the values that I 
brought with me to Washington as I travelled here each week since 
January 2011.
  My grandparents, Orie and Edna Yoder, they embodied the prairie 
spirit. They carved a life out of the rich Kansas soil. They were hard 
workers whose faith in God and love of family drove them through good 
times and bad. My grandmother, Edna, passed last year at 105, and it 
was always a treasure to wish her a happy birthday from the House 
floor.
  My grandparents, Bill and Jane Alexander, were from Wilmette, 
Illinois, where my mother grew up as well.

[[Page H10207]]

They were pillars of their community. My grandfather was mayor of his 
village and a respected attorney. I respect all my grandparents so much 
for what they stood for because they helped build this great Nation, 
and I hope, if they were here today, they would be proud of their 
grandson.
  My parents are Wayne and Susan. My father farmed his entire life. He 
taught me to work hard and to stand up for what I believe in. He was 
passionate about his beliefs. I spent a lot of time sitting with him in 
coffee shops when he would take a break from being in the field, and I 
would listen to the farmers debate and argue about things. I can tell 
you that no one can argue better than a farmer about something, and 
they would sit there and debate the issues of the day, and they would 
debate a lot of politics, and I think somewhere along the line, that is 
where I picked up the political bug that brought me into a life of 
serving in office.

                              {time}  1330

  My mother was a social worker. She believed in compassion for others 
and acknowledgment that not everyone has the same opportunities in 
life. She stood up for what she believed in and stood up for women's 
rights. She is someone who still is very passionate about politics. 
Both of my parents are. My father even ran for office a couple of 
times.
  Perhaps one of my proudest moments was the first day I walked on to 
this House Floor as a Member of Congress and took the oath of office, 
raised my right hand, and swore to uphold the Constitution--my wife, 
Brooke, and my father were in the audience--standing here in front of 
my dad, hoping that I had made him proud. It was a great moment.
  I remember after that, I asked my father, when was the last time--
have you ever been to Washington, D.C., before? He told me about the 
story about how, in about 1978, he got on his tractor and drove from 
Kansas all the way to Washington, D.C., and parked it on The Mall, part 
of the American agriculture movement fighting for farmers, fighting to 
ensure that they had the commodity prices that they deserved for the 
hard work, fighting for that rural way of life.
  So both of my parents I am so proud of, and I hope I have worked hard 
to make them proud of me.
  My sisters, Christine and Melanie, have always stood by me even 
though we share completely opposite political beliefs. They have always 
been in my corner, and that has been amazing, and they are family.
  So, as I stand here and deliver this farewell address, I do not do so 
with sadness or regret, but with great pride and a continued sense of 
wonder and amazement that a farm kid from rural Kansas could be part of 
the great United States Congress.
  But America, as a nation, was not a foregone conclusion. When I make 
my way through the Halls of the U.S. Capitol and its great rotunda, I 
often take note of John Trumbull's painting of General George 
Washington Resigning His Commission.
  Perhaps there was no more important moment in our history than when 
this great man, whom the people were willing to entrust all power to 
make him a king, said no. It is an inspiring reminder of the endearing 
values of service and sacrifice we must continue to usher in to new 
generations of Americans.
  I also think of the giants who once walked these same halls, too, 
great Presidents who served in the people's House before ascending to 
the Oval Office, people like Abraham Lincoln, John Kennedy, Lyndon 
Johnson, and George H.W. Bush; Speakers of the House like Sam Rayburn, 
Tip O'Neill, John Boehner, and Paul Ryan; and the man from Russell, 
Kansas, someone I consider a great friend and mentor and one of 
America's great public servants, Bob Dole.
  I think of the Founding Fathers as I walk through the halls each day 
here and I serve the people. I think of the Founding Fathers who had 
the foresight, wisdom, and divine inspiration to place the power of our 
government squarely within the will and consent of the governed.
  As James Madison once said: ``The people are the only legitimate 
fountain of power, and it is from them that the constitutional charter, 
under which the several branches of government hold their power, is 
derived.'' And when Madison put quill to parchment and wrote our great 
Constitution, it was no mistake he chose Article I for the people's 
House.
  Senators, for years, were chosen by State legislatures and exist to 
protect the rights of States in our federalist system, but it is the 
House of Representatives that exists to be the voice of the people. 
Being that voice for the Third District of Kansas has truly been 
incredible.
  I am proud of what we have been able to achieve here in Congress. I 
have worked every day with the philosophy that we should expand liberty 
and freedom and opportunity for all, and that we should make this 
government work better for the people, for all of us.
  For too long, government made life harder on people trying to get 
ahead. They raised taxes. They put more regulations and burdens on 
them, putting up roadblocks to success instead of creating new avenues 
for opportunity.
  In my time in the people's House, we have reversed that course, and 
we have built a stronger and more prosperous United States of America. 
We have passed the most significant tax reform in a generation. We have 
rebuilt our military.
  I, personally, have fought hard to build up important programs like 
Head Start and early childhood education programs so that every child, 
regardless of who they are or where they are from, can have the 
opportunity to succeed.
  I have dedicated my time here to ensuring that medical researchers, 
this generation and future generations of the best and brightest minds, 
will have the resources they need to find cures to the diseases that 
affect us all, regardless of our political views or our race.
  Man or woman, rich or poor, cancer, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's disease, 
and many others strike at the heart of the human body and the human 
spirit, and research at the National Institutes of Health is underway 
to eradicate all of these diseases from the face of the Earth once and 
for all thanks to the efforts of this body over the last several years 
in securing historic funding increases.
  I have had the honor of chairing two subcommittees in the House 
Appropriations Committee:
  On the Legislative Branch Subcommittee, I worked to finally bring 
transparency to CRS reports and keep Congress spending less money;
  On the Homeland Security Subcommittee, I have secured the necessary 
funding to finally provide operational control at our southern border, 
something that politicians have promised to do for decades but have 
failed to deliver.
  My bill devotes much-needed funds for more personnel, technology, and 
barriers to stop drugs and human trafficking from ravaging our 
communities.
  I have worked hard to keep my promises and to make my constituents 
proud, and I could not have done it without help from some of the most 
incredible people working here on Capitol Hill.
  Of the many distinguished Members who have served in this body and 
those who follow in our footsteps, none of them are self-made. First 
and foremost, we need a supportive family.
  To my beautiful wife, Brooke, who is in the gallery with our sweet 
girls, we have had a dream of being able to serve in the Halls of 
Congress, and that dream couldn't have been accomplished without her 
love, help, and support along the way. This has been an incredible 
journey, and I am so blessed to have held her hand, held her paw, along 
the way.
  Since we started this job, we have had two beautiful daughters, 
Caroline Lucille and Eloise Jane. They have grown up going to parades 
and political events, and they have gotten to see their daddy on TV. 
They have even been on TV. They are my greatest treasures, and they 
have always been on my mind each and every day that I have served. And 
while it is bittersweet to leave this body, knowing that I get to spend 
more time with my family and my sweet daughters is a rich reward.
  Each of us has a team, a staff that makes our offices carry out the 
work effectively on behalf of our constituents, and I have been blessed 
with an amazing team of people, people who

[[Page H10208]]

have dedicated their lives to my office and to the constituents we 
serve.
  Here in Washington, D.C., my chief of staff, Dave Natonski, and his 
team--Haley Brady, Maddie Jurden, Michael Brooks, Taylor Huhn, and Eli 
Woerpel--have been great. They have worked hard.
  My district team holds a distinction that, up until the last few 
months, we have never had one staffer leave in over 8 years, all of 
them staying: Molly Haase, my district director, and her team: Susan 
Metsker, Cheyne Worley, Heidi Cashman, and Ethan Patterson.
  Of course, great thanks to my communications director, CJ Grover, who 
helped me write this speech and is still working to this day on many 
projects, and my original staffer, my original staffer back from my 
legislative days who is still with me, Cate Duerst.
  Cate has been my scheduler multiple times. She has helped me run 
campaigns. We have had a lot of good times. She has been my right-hand 
gal making everything in this office run smoothly, and I couldn't have 
done this job without her and everyone on this team.
  Of course, there is my first chief of staff, Travis Smith, and my 
long-serving legislative directors, Patrick Carroll and Joe Eanello, 
and others who have worked so hard along the way, Amanda Hand and 
Jennifer Dreiling, have helped work on campaigns and, of course, my 
first campaign chairman, Cord Maxwell. I have had a great group of 
people that have been in my corner.
  My road began of humble roots and it took me all the way to the 
United States House.
  I am a proud Kansan and I am a proud Jayhawk. Probably one of my most 
proud service opportunities I have ever had was to serve as Student 
Body President of my university at KU, and I have always been a 
faithful Jayhawk ever since.
  I have believed in service to others, from my days back in the Kansas 
Legislature, where I served with great colleagues like Jason Watkins or 
Mike O'Neal, to my time here in the U.S. House with my friends Bob Dole 
and Ben Quayle and so many others who are great treasures.
  I have been blessed with friendships and met so many wonderful people 
along the way. That is perhaps what I will miss the most: the people 
you serve with.
  Congress gets a bad rap, but I can attest that some of the most 
dedicated, passionate people who love this country, both Democrats and 
Republicans, are some of the finest, kindest, and sincere people you 
will ever meet.
  To my colleagues in this distinguished body, it has been an honor of 
a lifetime to serve with you.
  And to my constituents, the voters of the Third District, thank you 
for trusting in me to serve you.
  To my supporters, those who have helped me campaign, who made it 
possible for me to serve, thank you for your faith. I believe the Third 
District is the best district in America, and I was so proud to be a 
voice for you, and I am truly humbled to have had the opportunity for 
these 8 years.
  So as I leave Congress in a few days and I cast a vote for the final 
time on behalf of the people of Kansas, I will do so being grateful for 
having served. I will leave more hopeful and more optimistic for the 
future of our great Nation, for God has blessed me with this moment to 
serve, and I am forever thankful.
  May God bless this Congress, and may God always bless the United 
States of America.
  For the last time, Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

                          ____________________