[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 12]
[House]
[Page 17395]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




           THANKING THE PEOPLE OF THE 23RD DISTRICT OF TEXAS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Gallego) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. GALLEGO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to say thank you to the 
wonderful people of the 23rd District of Texas who, for the last 2 
years, have given me the great privilege of serving as their voice here 
in the people's House.
  I am living proof that this is a nation of opportunity and that the 
American Dream still exists. God has blessed me in many ways. I was 
born into a warm and loving family. My parents, Pete and Elena, taught 
me to work hard and respect others. I am married to a wonderful wife, 
Maria Elena, who has stood with me through the peaks and valleys of the 
last 25 years. We are the parents of a phenomenal son, Nicolas Miguel, 
who has brought us joy we never knew possible and has taught us the 
true meaning of love. In addition, though my roots are humble, I have 
had the privilege of working in this Chamber. Few people get the 
privilege to serve here.
  Yet Congress isn't what it once was. Agreements are few, partisan 
rancor is common, statesmanship is rare. Who are the giants of history 
among us? Where are the statesmen and -women who accomplished historic 
feats through significant signature legislative achievements?
  But we know that progress is still possible. We saw this session that 
when Congress puts party labels aside and gets to work, like we did on 
VA reform, we can accomplish some great things for the American people. 
But those occasions were far too rare.
  More often, this Chamber saw bickering and pettiness, and this 
Congress made history as the least productive and most unpopular 
Congress in the history of this proud Nation. The American people 
responded by making history of their own. On election day, a record 
number of them simply threw up their hands, wondered what is the point, 
and didn't go to the polls.
  It is easy to see why Americans are so tired of politics, to 
understand why many of us don't check in on election day; when our 
democracy needs us the most, we check out.
  Polarization, discontent, dissatisfaction, disappointment, dismay--
all now normal in the course of our public discourse. Old-fashioned 
values like truth and good manners and respect for others' views and 
appreciation are no longer in vogue. Candidates and officeholders and 
super-PACs are shrill and mean--and yes, for some, the word would be 
even un-Christian--to one another.
  Politicians distort truth and attempt to stampede people with fear, 
and many times our fears or our lack of faith win out. We fail to 
realize how really truly lucky we are as Americans.
  Before chiding people for not meeting their civic responsibilities, 
Congress as a body should reflect on whether it has been meeting its 
own responsibility because even Congress complains about Congress, yet 
it does nothing to change. Most Americans are somewhere in the middle, 
but that is not where Congress is. In our current system, super-PACs 
attack those Members who stake out middle grounds.
  The American people deserve better than they are getting. Our country 
deserves better. Our future and our children's future is too important. 
Both Congress and our country must rise to the occasion and confront 
and conquer our own internal paralysis. Patriotism must trump 
partisanship.
  A robust democracy requires active participation. Congress--indeed, 
America--needs all of us. It needs Democrats and Republicans and 
Libertarians and Latinos and Anglos and African Americans and Asians--
Americans all.
  Soon I will have the highest title that any American can have--not 
the title of an elected official, but the title of citizen. And as a 
citizen, I hope to continue to remind Congress of the importance of 
governing well and our fellow Americans of the importance of 
participating in our electoral system.
  I have faith that ours is a resilient Nation blessed by God. Despite 
our frustrations and our fears and our failings, despite ourselves, we 
still live in the greatest Nation the world has ever known.
  Sure, times are tough, but they were tougher for our parents and our 
grandparents. If you think back a moment and you compare your life to 
theirs, you can see how far you and all of us have come.
  The job now is not to be mad about and continually relive the old 
battles of the past nor to be afraid of the future, but to look forward 
and to build our future together.
  I leave this institution with no regrets and many accomplishments for 
the people of home, particularly grateful for the opportunity to work 
with and serve our veterans and our Active Duty military and amazed at 
the incredible and still untapped potential of our amazing democracy.
  I want to say thank you to each of my employees and thank you again 
to all the people of the 23rd District of Texas, especially to those I 
have had the privilege of representing since I first became a State 
legislator in 1991.
  I wish my successor well, and I offer my prayers for all the Members 
of the 114th Congress. You are capable of doing great things for 
America when you remember to put people and policy ahead of 
partisanship and politics.
  May God bless Texas, and may God bless the United States of America.

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