[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 19]
[House]
[Page 25185]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                             108TH CONGRESS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Pence) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. PENCE. Mr. Speaker, the 108th Congress is coming to a close. The 
Congress has essentially finished its work, although we may reconvene, 
hope springs eternal, and move an intelligence reform bill before 
Christmas arrives. But, in essence, we are done with much of what we 
have come to do.
  Before we adjourn for rest and reflection with family and friends on 
Thanksgiving, I thought it would be helpful to reflect on what we have 
to be thankful for in the 108th Congress, and it is much.
  I begin my remarks with two ancient references, one from the sacred 
texts of the Bible where one generation spoke to another, words of 
admonition in leadership with these words, ``be strong and courageous 
and do the work.'' The Founders of this country in 1787 in that summer 
in Philadelphia crafted these words that are essentially a mission 
statement for the government of the United States, stating that we the 
people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, 
establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, provide the common 
defense, promote the general welfare and secure the blessings of 
liberty to ourselves in our prosperity, do ordain and establish this 
Constitution.
  Mr. Speaker, I would argue, against both of those timeless standards, 
the 108th Congress has excelled. We have been strong and courageous and 
done the work. We have provided for the common defense. We have 
promoted the general welfare, and we have secured the blessings of the 
liberty for ourselves in our posterity.
  In the area of providing for the common defense, it scarcely seems 
that it was just 2 years ago, but in this Congress, following on the 
heels of having given the President the authority to confront the 
menacing dictatorship in Iraq, Operation Iraqi Freedom was launched, 
and Congress was there to support our troops, provide the resources 
they needed to get the job done in a stunning victory in the spring of 
last year, but also financing reconstruction in the War Supplemental 
Appropriations Act and providing our troops the resources that they 
need to finish the hard work of liberty in the streets of Baghdad and 
Fallujah.
  We have also seen freedom come to other countries like Afghanistan, 
that elected its first national leader in its 5,000 year history of the 
region.
  We saw daylight come to the regime of Mohammar Khadafi, who responded 
to U.S. and coalition action in other theaters in the Middle East to 
give up his weapons of mass destruction program, and in a multilateral 
way we supported the administration efforts to confront North Korea's 
head-long effort to expand its own weapons of mass destruction program.
  We have stood by our ally Israel, defending her right of self-defense 
in construction of the security fence, and we condemned the United 
Nations' World Court for similarly condemning Israel.
  In short, we have in so many ways provided for the common defense and 
stood by our allies. We have been not only a beacon of freedom but we 
have been the arsenal of democracy that America calls us to be. This 
Congress did that.
  We have also promoted the general welfare by cutting taxes on working 
families, small businesses and family farms and extending the tax 
relief previously effected in the 107th Congress. The 108th Congress 
pursued economic policies, both in tax relief and in trade, that caused 
the creation of nearly 2 million jobs in the last year.
  Our economy is expanding. Our economy in the world is expanding with 
new trade agreements in Morocco and in Australia. And even just today, 
we managed to complete our work on a budget. Beyond spending on 
national defense and homeland security, even the omnibus spending bill 
we passed today represents a freeze in nondefense discretionary 
spending. It is a small return to fiscal discipline on Capitol Hill, 
but it is a beginning and I applaud it.
  We have also secured the blessings of liberty for ourselves and our 
posterity. And what are the blessings of the liberty, but the faith and 
family values that make this Nation great. We have stood by the right 
of Americans to refer to the Creator God in our Pledge of Allegiance. 
We have passed legislation banning the moral abomination known as 
partial birth abortion. We have passed the Unborn Victims of Violence 
Act, reaffirming our belief in the sanctity of unborn human life.
  Mr. Speaker, the list goes on, most notably passing on this floor by 
a majority a constitutional amendment to defend marriage. We have done 
our work, and we have been strong and courageous, and I rise to commend 
the 108th Congress of which it has been my privilege to be a part.

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