[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 177 (Thursday, October 26, 2023)]
[House]
[Page H5154]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    DISCUSSING THE NEW HOUSE SPEAKER

  (Mr. PAYNE asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to discuss the new House 
Speaker, Representative Mike Johnson.
  In doing some research, not knowing the gentleman very well, I have 
come to find out that he is not the moderate unifier that we need right 
now.
  Speaker Johnson was a key player in Trump's plot to overthrow our 
democracy. He worked to justify the tragic January 6 insurrection, an 
attack that threatened the lives of my House colleagues, Republican and 
Democrat alike.
  Speaker Johnson wants the government to control a woman's right to 
her healthcare decisions. He wants the government to control who 
Americans can marry. He wants the government to ban interracial 
marriage.
  He also wants to slash funding for Social Security, Medicare, and 
Medicaid and deny critical healthcare to vulnerable seniors.
  Americans reject these extreme agenda items, yet Republicans voted 
for him to lead the people's House. Once again, they are putting 
politics over the American people.

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