[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 20]
[House]
[Page 27458]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     CONGRESS AND THE CONSTITUTION

  (Mr. YARMUTH asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. YARMUTH. Mr. Speaker, 220 years ago when the Founding Fathers 
wrote the Constitution of the United States, they chose to create the 
United States Congress in its first article. That was their way of 
ensuring that we did try to form a more perfect Union.
  Over the last few decades, Presidents and Congresses of both parties, 
through action and inaction, have allowed our system of checks and 
balances to go quite askew. Many of us believe that it has reached a 
tipping point. That is why we will over the next few weeks and months 
talk about article I, the article of the Constitution which vests all 
legislative power in a Congress of the United States elected by the 
people.
  The Founding Fathers did not want to see peoples' lives be decided by 
one decider. They vested their power in the people through their 
representatives. Over the next few months, we hope to help reassert the 
authority that the Founding Fathers envisioned for this body.

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