[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 7]
[House]
[Page 9725]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      STANDING BEHIND THE SPEAKER

  (Mr. PUTNAM asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PUTNAM. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to follow my good friend, 
Coach Osborne, to also address the malignment of our Speaker of this 
great House. No one cares more about the institution of this House than 
Denny Hastert. No one believes in the integrity of this House more than 
Denny Hastert. No Member is more aware of the need for us to be worthy 
of the respect and dignity that voters place in us when they elect us 
to serve in this House.
  I want to reiterate that the Department of Justice for the second 
time has affirmed that there is no investigation into the Speaker of 
this House. And I quote from their release from Deputy Attorney General 
Paul McNulty, ``With regard to reports suggesting that the Speaker of 
House is under investigation or `in the mix' as stated by ABC News, I 
reconfirm, as stated by the Department earlier this evening, that these 
reports are untrue.''
  Two separate statements now from the Department of Justice 
exonerating the Speaker, saying that he is not under investigation, and 
yet ABC news continues to malign his good name and his reputation. 
Stand behind the Speaker of the House.

                          ____________________