[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 8]
[House]
[Page 10873]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        IT'S THE FOURTH OF JULY

  (Mr. POE of Texas asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, there were 56 of them. They pledged 
their lives, their fortunes, their sacred honor in the signing of the 
document that proclaimed that all people are endowed by their Creator 
with certain, absolute rights--life, liberty, the pursuit of 
happiness--and governments are instituted to preserve those rights.
  It was Philadelphia.
  It was July 4, 1776.
  It was the Declaration of Independence.
  Then, after 8 years of war, this ``rabble,'' as the British called 
the colonists, defeated King George III.
  We went our own way.
  ``Independence''--I like the sound of that word. It means that we the 
people have rule over government, and government will be our servant 
rather than our being government's serf.
  Liberty, freedom, independence. These three noble words are a reality 
in this, the greatest of all nations. As a Son of the American 
Revolution, I thank the patriots who gave us independence.
  So, Mr. Speaker, next week on this special day, fly the flag, listen 
to the band play ``Stars and Stripes Forever,'' and thank the good Lord 
for shedding His grace on the United States of America.
  And that's just the way it is.

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