[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 1]
[House]
[Page 100]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



         TODAY IS A DAY OF STATESMANSHIP, CIVILITY, AND RESPECT

  (Mr. DREIER asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, just 24 days ago, an agonizingly close, long 
Presidential election came to a close. Regardless of partisanship or 
ideology, Americans were touched by Vice President Gore's gracious and 
heartfelt concession speech. That night he recalled the words of 
Senator Steven Douglas from nearly a century and a half ago. Following 
his loss to Abraham Lincoln, Douglass said partisan feeling must yield 
to patriotism. I am with you, Mr. President, and God bless.
  Those words were spoken at a time when divisions in the United States 
were so severe that the next 5 years saw nearly 700,000 Americans give 
their lives in a great Civil War. Certainly today, even with the 
partisan rancor that accompanies such a close election, we can stand 
together.
  The traditions of our forefathers, the honor of our constitutional 
democracy, and the spirit of the words of Vice President Gore call for 
this to be a day of statesmanship, civility, and respect.

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