[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 1]
[House]
[Page 1068]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                PUNXSUTAWNEY PHIL PREDICTS EARLY SPRING

  (Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I rise today with good 
news. Early this morning in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, located in the 
Commonwealth's Fifth Congressional District, Punxsutawney Phil 
predicted an early spring.
  In the 130 years Phil has predicted the weather on February 2, this 
is only the 18th time that he has called for an early spring. Now, I 
know that I join many of my colleagues from across the Nation in a 
bipartisan fashion in hoping that this prediction comes true.
  Groundhog Day means so much to Punxsutawney and the communities which 
surround it. This tradition has its roots which go back centuries, but 
the celebration in Punxsutawney got a start in 1886, one year before 
the first trek to the celebration's official home of Gobbler's Knob.
  Since the start of the celebration, Phil has been joined on February 
2 by movie stars such as Bill Murray and several Governors of 
Pennsylvania. And, yes, I have attended the festivities a few times. 
Phil even visited President Ronald Reagan at the White House.
  It is wonderful to see such dedication from the people of 
Punxsutawney to this great tradition, which brings in visitors from 
across the world to Pennsylvania.

                          ____________________