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Adopting the Rules of the House of Representatives for the 116th Congress

Floor Speech

Date: Jan. 4, 2019
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Government Operations

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Mr. McGOVERN. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Hastings), for yielding to me and for his leadership on the Rules Committee. I am looking forward to working with him as a member of the majority in this Congress.

Madam Speaker, we started an important conversation about how to improve this House as the rules package was developed. Members on both sides of the aisle brought forward ideas. Many of them were included in the final package. But these rules shouldn't be the end of the dialogue. They should be only a start.

I know that there are many Members who will have even more good ideas in the coming weeks and months, and this Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress is a unique opportunity to continue the conversation.

It is a truly bipartisan way to consider ideas on how to promote a more modern and efficient Congress and procedures to develop the next generation of leaders, increase staff diversity, and improve technology and innovation. It is also a way for this Congress to hold ourselves accountable, to ensure our work to reform this House is delivering on behalf of the American people.

I especially thank Representatives Kilmer, Lipinski, and Sarbanes, as well as the New Democrat Coalition, for this idea. It is a step that this House can take, and it is a step that this House, quite frankly, should take.

Madam Speaker, finally, I just want to say, as the gentleman from Oklahoma pointed out, this select committee is truly bipartisan, and the ideas that come out of this select committee will be truly bipartisan.

We can improve the way this House is run. We can improve the way we do things here. I think the American people are hoping we will move in that direction, and I think we have an opportunity to do that.

I say to the gentleman from Oklahoma, I really appreciate his tone and his support for this initiative. We all talk about new beginnings and about ways to make things better, and I think we are off to a good start. For that, I thank the gentleman from Florida.

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