[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 149 (Tuesday, September 17, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H7745-H7746]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   CALLING FOR EXPANDED CIVICS EDUCATION ON NATIONAL CONSTITUTION DAY

  (Mr. LANGEVIN asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. LANGEVIN. Madam Speaker, I rise today on National Constitution 
Day to renew my call for expanded civics education.

[[Page H7746]]

  The father of our Constitution, James Madison, wrote: ``A popular 
government, without popular information, or the means of acquiring it, 
is but a prologue to a farce or a tragedy; or, perhaps both.''
  Yet, today, it feels as if we are in the middle acts of Madison's 
feared drama.
  Sadly, only 26 percent of Americans can name all three branches of 
government, and 37 percent cannot name a single right guaranteed under 
the First Amendment. Meanwhile, public trust in government and voter 
participation is low, and foreign adversaries have taken advantage of 
this to sow discord among us.
  Madam Speaker, I was proud to include a program in the House-passed 
National Defense Authorization Act to fund further development and 
evaluation of civics education programs, but this is just a first step. 
We must ensure that every child has access to evidence-based civics 
programs. The future of our democracy depends on it.

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