[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 8]
[House]
[Page 9947]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     QUESTIONING THE HOUSE SCHEDULE

  (Mr. EMANUEL asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, this is, since April 1, the 16th day the 
House has been in session. And here is a sample of what we have done: 
we have named 11 post offices, recognized the Garden Club of America, 
recognized the importance of music education in America, and authorized 
the use of the Capitol grounds for the Soap Box Derby.
  What has happened to our troops in Iraq in that time? We lost 184 
Americans, our loved ones, bringing the total to 785. As we name post 
offices, our constituents are asking questions of the whys and hows of 
Iraq and want us to get the answers.
  This week how are we handling the controversies in Iraq? We are going 
to name three more post offices; authorize the use of the Capitol 
grounds, appropriately, for the World War II memorial services; and 
consider the Paperwork Reduction Act. Then we are going on recess.
  This House has surrendered its oversight role, which is 
constitutionally enacted and guaranteed, by rubber-stamping the policy 
in Iraq without asking the questions our constituents are asking and 
not seeking the answers they need.
  As President Kennedy once said, ``To govern is to choose.'' We need 
to make choices here.

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