Recognizing Congressman Hal Rogers As Dean of the House of Representatives

Floor Speech

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Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, yesterday, I had the honor of introducing Alaska's newly elected Representative after she took her oath of office.

Representative Peltola makes history in joining the House, and we are very glad to have her. The seat to which she was elected, however, became vacant because of an event for which we are all very, very saddened. The passing of our friend, a great friend of this institution, Representative Don Young, marked the end of an era for this House.

Don was a repository of institutional knowledge and a keeper of the House's traditions. He was our dean, the most senior Member of either party.

Today, as we reflect upon that loss for the House, for Alaska, and for all of us who were his friends, we recognize a new dean to succeed Don in that role. I join the Republican leader in congratulating Representative Hal Rogers.

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Rogers of Kentucky has achieved that distinction to become our new dean of the House. It is humbling to think that our dean is from the same freshman class as I am. He was here just shy of 5 months before me, as does the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith). When we arrived here, we met the dean of the House, Jamie Whitten of Mississippi, who served in the House 122 years. I don't want to offend anyone from Mississippi. I know it was short of that time, but it was a long time.

Mr. Whitten had been elected first in 1941. He, himself, came to the office when the dean of the House had been elected in 1907, and the person who had been dean at that time was elected in 1879, which is to say there aren't a lot of deans of the House. And the day that Member ended as freshman, Abraham Lincoln was first sworn in as President of the United States. Fewer deans, by far, than Presidents of the United States.

So we are connected to the 37th Congress of the United States and the Lincoln Presidency by just four individual Members' span of service.

Hal Rogers now inherits the title once held by former President John Quincy Adams, Speaker Sam Rayburn, and my dear friend, Debbie Dingell's husband, John Dingell.

Those of us who know Hal can testify to the respect and love he has for this institution and for the role of dean. He will surely uphold its traditions and continue to carry forward this chain of history for the House and for our democracy.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to congratulate the dean of the House, Hal Rogers of Kentucky.

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Mr. HOYER.

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