[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 14]
[House]
[Page 18716]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




              MISUSE OF FEDERAL LAW ENFORCEMENT RESOURCES

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Doggett) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Speaker, it is an old truism that the best defense 
is a good offense. We have seen that here this afternoon in a quite 
effective way because Republicans, unable to defend their misuse of the 
United States Capitol Police against Democrats meeting in the Ways and 
Means library, have taken the offense in what I consider a very 
offensive way against our colleague, the gentleman from California (Mr. 
Stark).
  After the gentleman from California (Mr. Stark) was told to ``shut 
up'' by another member of the committee, he responded with an insult, 
perhaps not appropriate, but certainly after significant provocation. 
To suggest that the gentleman from California (Mr. Stark), a man of 72, 
surrounded by 20-plus Republican colleagues of lesser age, posed any 
threat to anyone is ludicrous on its face, and though it is not 
ordinarily done, since it has been done and incompletely by my 
colleague, the transcript uncorrected though it is, of the Committee on 
Ways and Means reflects that after the gentleman from California (Mr. 
Stark) was told to shut up and he insulted his colleague who made that 
comment, that he then proceeded to say, come on, come on over here and 
make me, I dare you.
  The transcript then reflects that laughter occurred and that 
thereafter, after additional comments by the gentleman from California 
(Mr. Stark) that the gentleman from California (Mr. Thomas) declared 
recess is over, the classroom has been resumed.
  Now some Americans and undoubtedly some commentators will be inclined 
to trivialize this entire incident as being mere childish behavior, 
with wrongs on both sides. There were no wrongs on both sides today.
  The Capitol Police were not called out, as the transcript indicates, 
as the gentleman from California's (Mr. Thomas) silence indicates, 
because of anything that the gentleman from California (Mr. Stark) did, 
said, or implied. To suggest otherwise, indeed the suggestion of my 
colleague from Texas (Mr. Brady) that the gentleman from California 
(Mr. Stark) instigated this incident is an outrageous slur on the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Stark) who is a person of integrity, 
even though sometimes of sharply worded comments.
  The Capitol Police were targeted not on the gentleman from California 
(Mr. Stark), but Officer Spriggs, who came into the library, indicated 
they were asked to clear the library where the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Stark) was not even present.
  We cannot allow our Federal law enforcement resources to be diverted 
for partisan political purposes such as occurred today. Even at this 
very moment, the Inspector General to the Department of Justice is 
investigating the misuse of the U.S. Attorney's Office, the Federal 
Bureau of Investigation and the United States Marshal's involvement in 
tracking down courageous Texas State legislators who made a stand 
against a similar partisan power grab. Just as the gentleman from Texas 
(Mr. DeLay) called the Federal Aviation Administration to track down 
those Democrats, just as the Department of Homeland Security went after 
a cotton farmer from Texas to find out about his airplane, the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Thomas) today diverted the Capitol 
Police from their important work in preserving public safety here in 
the Nation's Capital for partisan political purposes.
  This attempt to break up a meeting of Ways and Means Democrats is 
unprecedented for either party I believe in the history of this 
Congress. We did not walk out as our Texas State legislative colleagues 
so justly did. We attempted to walk into the process, having been 
handed moments before a bill that affects the pensions and the 
retirement security of millions of Americans, Republicans and 
Democrats, across this country, but yet as we attempted to walk into 
that process and develop and present our alternatives, the police were 
called here in the Capitol to stop us from doing that job.
  Americans who share the concern of the abuse, indeed of the 
extremism, of the majority need to be concerned about what happened 
here. It was not some fight among Members of Congress acting childish, 
it was a serious infringement on our democracy. Americans who are 
worried about us becoming a Nation of citizens who are supposed to 
choose between saying ``me too'' and shutting up, these Americans 
cannot afford to be silent. No party, no person has a monopoly on the 
truth.
  Dissent is not some inconvenience in this Congress or in this 
country, and it certainly does not warrant calling out the Feds, 
whether it is the gentleman from Texas (Mr. DeLay) calling out for the 
G-men in Texas or the gentleman from California (Mr. Thomas) calling 
out for the Capitol Police in Washington.
  It is the cornerstone of our democracy that we have dissent and 
differences of opinion in this country, and yet it is the strength of 
our democracy. We will not be intimidated. We will not back down. Too 
many Americans, working families who need our help, also need our 
voice.

                          ____________________