[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 2]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 1768]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          PERSONAL EXPLANATION

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. ELIZABETH H. ESTY

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, February 26, 2013

  Ms. ESTY. Mr. Speaker, I want to state that on February 15, I missed 
several rollcall votes due to the Citizens Medal ceremony honoring the 
following constituents, Rachel Davino, Anne Marie Murphy, Lauren 
Rousseau, Victoria Soto, Mary Sherlach, and Dawn Hochsprung. These six 
extraordinarily talented and courageous teachers and administrators 
dedicated their lives to education and to the children of Sandy Hook 
Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut. When unimaginable tragedy struck, 
they gave their lives protecting those same children. As a community, 
Newtown will always feel their loss. As a country, we will always look 
to their courage. Had I been present I would have voted:
  I. Nay--H. Con. Res. 15--Adjournment Resolution: I would have voted 
``nay'' as the House should stay in session and work to find a 
reasonable alternative to the irrational, across-the-board spending 
cuts in the pending sequester.
  2. Aye--Final Passage of H.R. 273: I would have voted ``aye'' to 
prevent a pay increase for Members of Congress in 2013 and am an 
original cosponsor of a bill to prevent a pay increase for Members of 
Congress for the entire 113th Congress. In these tough economic times 
and until the budget is balanced, it's not fair for Members of Congress 
to receive any form of pay increase when others are asked to cut their 
budgets.
  3. Aye--Final Passage of H. Res. 65: Condemning the Government of 
North Korea for its flagrant and repeated violations of multiple United 
Nations Security Council resolutions, for its repeated provocations 
that threaten international peace and stability, and for its February 
12, 2013 test of a nuclear device.