Providing for Consideration Of H.R. 5116, America Competes Reauthorization Act Of 2010

Floor Speech

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Mr. McGOVERN. I want to thank my colleague from Colorado for yielding me the time.

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of the rule for the America COMPETES Act, and more importantly, I also rise in strong support and to pay tribute to the staff director of the Rules Committee, Muftiah McCartin, as she finishes up her last week here in the House of Representatives and prepares to move on to a new phase in her life.

Madam Speaker, Muftiah is an amazing woman. She has worked in this body for 34 years, first in the Office of the Parliamentarian, then for the Appropriations Committee, and finally on the Rules Committee. She leaves as the top staffer on the Rules Committee, someone who not only made the trains run on time, but also someone who definitely worked through the dicey political and policy issues that the Rules Committee is required to work through.

Muftiah will be missed here in the House, but I can honestly say this body is better because of her hard work over the past 34 years. Over that time she has shown dedication and passion for this institution. Whether it was advising the presiding officer as parliamentarian, or working for Congressman Obey and Chairwoman Slaughter, Muftiah excelled at her job and helped us do our jobs better. But what we will miss most is the way Muftiah brings everyone together. She unified the Rules professional and associate staff. She made sure we, as Members of Congress, were prepared and ready to do the business at hand. But she also worked as both a mentor to her staff and to the associate staff. I can honestly say that I and my staff do our jobs better today because of Muftiah and the leadership that she has provided over the past few years in the Rules Committee.

And while she has spent the last three decades here in the House, she also has a life outside of this Chamber. She has a wonderful husband, Terry, four children, Marissa, Elaine, Sandra, and Luke. And she just became a grandmother for the first time, a young grandson named Thaddeus.

Madam Speaker, I was a staffer before I was elected to Congress, although I have to say that I started working here a few years after Muftiah started her career on the Hill. But I understand the role the staff play here, and I know this institution would not be the great body it is without the dedicated staff that puts so much of their lives into what we all do here. Muftiah embodies that dedication, and we are going to miss her.

Let me say, Madam Speaker, in conclusion, to Muftiah, I want to thank you for all the incredible work that you have done here. You will be missed, and we love you.

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