[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 3]
[House]
[Pages 3705-3706]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




  WELCOMING THE HONORABLE BILL FOSTER TO THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

  The SPEAKER. Without objection, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. 
Costello) is recognized for 1 minute.
  There was no objection.
  Mr. COSTELLO. Madam Speaker, on behalf of the Illinois delegation, I 
am pleased to introduce the newest member of our delegation in the 
House, Congressman Bill Foster, from the 14th District of Illinois. 
Bill resides in Geneva, Illinois, and has lived in the Fox Valley for 
almost 25 years.
  Bill has a diverse background in both business and science. He 
started a very successful theater lighting business with his younger 
brother when he was only 19 years old, and he went on to receive his 
Ph.D. in physics from

[[Page 3706]]

Harvard. Bill worked at Fermilab for 22 years, where he designed 
research projects and built the latest round of the particle 
accelerators.
  Bill comes from a family with a strong history of working for the 
public good, and we look forward to working with him on behalf of his 
constituents and the Nation.
  Madam Speaker and Members of the House, please welcome our newest 
colleague, Congressman Bill Foster from the 14th District of Illinois.
  Mr. FOSTER. Thank you, Madam Speaker. It is an honor to stand here in 
the well of this body as the Representative of the Illinois 14th 
District. My predecessor in this role is a friend to many here and led 
this House and represented the people of my district honorably for over 
20 years. I know that my colleagues will join me in once again thanking 
Speaker Dennis Hastert for his service.
  Madam Speaker, fellow Members of Congress, I am a scientist, not a 
politician. When it comes to the issues that we face in this Nation, I 
plan on approaching them as a scientist, and that means examining the 
facts, listening to both sides, and doing what is right for the people 
of Illinois and America.
  During my campaign, many people told me that Congress should be 
acting differently. At a time of crisis around the world and economic 
trouble at home, Americans want us to end the divisions between us and 
work together to solve the problems we face. I believe that there are 
huge opportunities to change this country for the better if we can make 
the right decisions, and real risks if we keep squabbling and making 
the wrong ones.
  And now, as you can probably already tell, we scientists aren't known 
for our fiery rhetoric. But as I stand before you today, it is my 
solemn hope that with less bickering and word twisting in Washington, 
that there will be more problem solving. We need to work together for 
energy independence, for tax cuts for middle-class families, to expand 
health care for more children, for a return to fiscal discipline, and, 
as importantly as anything, for a new direction in Iraq.
  Together we can fulfill our pledge to the next generation to leave 
Washington and this Nation better on the day that we leave it than it 
was on the day that we came into it.
  I look forward to meeting my new colleagues, Democrats and 
Republicans, and to getting right to work on behalf of the families we 
represent.
  Thank you to my colleagues in the Illinois delegation, and thank you, 
Madam Speaker. This is truly an honor.
  Mr. COSTELLO. Madam Speaker, I yield to our colleague from Illinois 
(Mr. Manzullo).
  Mr. MANZULLO. Madam Speaker, as the dean of the Illinois Republican 
delegation, I want to take this opportunity to extend to our newest 
colleague from Illinois, with whom I share two counties, welcome to the 
big city. I look forward to working with you. I have always wanted a 
scientific mind, and maybe I can learn from yours. Thank you and 
welcome to Congress.

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