Constitution Day

CONSTITUTION DAY -- (House of Representatives - September 13, 2005)

(Ms. FOXX asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

Ms. FOXX. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize that this upcoming Saturday is Constitution Day. This annual observance of our Nation's founding charter was made official by President George W. Bush on December 8, 2004. However, Constitution Day has been celebrated for the past 8 years with the recitation of the Preamble by students, military servicemen and -women abroad, and others across the country. This is a special occasion, as it will mark the first simultaneous recitation of the Preamble.

In reciting the Preamble, we join as a Nation to celebrate not only a document but a way of life, and to acknowledge freedoms given by God that no State or power can take away. Our Nation's Founders knew well the need for a government that would not impose burdens upon the people, but would enable them to secure the blessing of liberty.

On this Constitution Day, I remind the Congress of our duty to preserve a strict interpretation of this document. The Framers of the Constitution knew what they were doing. They knew the dangers of a State that grows out of control and imposes its will on the citizenry. We owe it to our constituents to maintain an independent judiciary that is coequal with the other two branches of government, a judiciary that seeks to interpret the law, not write it.

As we observe Constitution Day, let us honor the Constitution's Framers and embrace their foresight and wisdom by teaching this monument to liberty.

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