Sense of the House Regarding Postponement of a Presidential Election

SENSE OF THE HOUSE REGARDING POSTPONEMENT OF A PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION -- (House of Representatives - July 20, 2004)

Mr. NEY. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 728) expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the actions of terrorists will never cause the date of any Presidential election to be postponed and that no single individual or agency should be given the authority to postpone the date of a Presidential election.

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Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I wish to associate myself with the remarks of the gentleman from Ohio (Chairman Ney), my good friend.

I rise today in support of this resolution to reaffirm that our Federal elections should not be postponed in the event of terrorist attacks, as our chairman has eloquently stated in his remarks. I stand in support of this resolution because of the matters contained in the resolving clauses. Number one, the actions of terrorists will never cause the date of any Presidential election to be postponed; and, number two, no single individual or agency should be given the authority to postpone the date of a Presidential election. This is the meat of this resolution.

I further join with the gentlewoman (Ms. Pelosi), our distinguished leader, in calling for the United States to be an example for democracies around the world, and that means holding our elections on schedule. I would also like to thank the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Turner), ranking member of the Select Committee on Homeland Security, who spoke out so eloquently on this issue, and the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Woolsey), who has already circulated in the immediate comments following some of the press with respect to this issue and garnered more than 150 signatures, as the chairman has indicated, along bipartisan lines.

The Union has stood for over 225 years and has never had a Federal election postponed or cancelled. Not in time of war, not in time of economic turmoil, and not in time of natural disaster. We should not start now. We as a country will not bend in the face of threats to our democracy. The United States was founded on the ideas of hope and freedom. Those who believe that they will break those pillars with the threat of terror are misguided.

I have requested a briefing from Department of Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge to learn how his Department plans to work with Congress to safeguard the November elections and on reducing the risk of attack. I join with the committee chairman and we share the concerns, and we all hope and pray and abide that no such attacks will occur, and yet we must be prepared for those contingencies. I would suggest that while we are mindful of security and the safety of voters, we should not focus on these issues to the extent that they damage democracy by frightening voters away from the polls. Americans should go to the polls in record numbers to show our determination that we take our democracy seriously.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. LARSON. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I just wanted to comment, as well, that I appreciate the spirit of my colleague's comments and what he had to say, and I think that votes being conducted does truly matter.

In the legislative process, would it be that every time we passed a piece of legislation did we not think the problem had been solved? So I agree that we have to continue to follow through on this issue.

But I think the chairman is correct in terms of looking at the gravity of this situation and an individual, and, as the gentleman pointed out in his remarks as well, understanding completely that that authority should derive with the United States Congress.
Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Baird).

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Mr. LARSON. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the distinguished gentlewoman, and I again want to add both my praise and thanks for the leadership of our distinguished chairman, the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Ney), in bringing this resolution to the floor.

We are the greatest country on the face of the Earth. We are known throughout the globe for our great strength and resolve.
We are known for the great strength of our military and our armies and the shock and awe that they create.

But the most awesome thing that we have, the thing that sticks out in everybody's minds, what makes us the Nation that we are, is our freedom of expression and our right to vote. That is why this is such an important resolution and such an important issue.

In the final analysis, it will not be the strength of our armies; it will be the strength of the individual and collective thoughts of our citizens that are expressed on the day we vote that makes us the Nation that we are.

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Ohio for his leadership.

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Madam Speaker, today I rise in support of this resolution to reaffirm that our Federal elections should not be postponed in the event of terrorist attack. I would like to associate myself with the remarks of the Chairman and thank his staff for drafting this resolution. I stand in support of this resolution because of the matters contained in the resolving clauses (1) the actions of terrorists will never cause the date of any Presidential election to be postponed; and (2) no single individual or agency should be given the authority to postpone the date of a Presidential election. This is the meat of the resolution, and others can debate about the meaning of the "whereas" clauses-and I am sure there will be lots of different interpretations.

I further join with Leader Pelosi in calling for "the United States to be an example for democracies around the world, and that means holding our elections as scheduled." I would also like to thank the ranking minority member of the Homeland Security subcommittee Jim Turner and Representative Lynn Woolsey for their leadership on this very important issue. This union has stood for over 225 years and has never had a Federal election postponed or cancelled. Not in time of war; not in time of economic turmoil and not in time of natural disaster. We should not start now! We as a country will not bend in the face of threats to our democracy. The United States was founded on the ideals of Hope and Freedom! Those who believe that they will break those pillars with the threat of terror are misguided.

I have requested a briefing from Homeland Security Secretary Thomas Ridge to learn how his department plans to work with Congress to safeguard the November elections and on reducing the risk of an attack.

I would suggest that while we must be mindful of the security and safety of voters, we should not focus on these issues to the extent that it damages democracy by frightening voters away from the polls. Americans should go to the polls in record numbers to show our determination that we take democracy seriously.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this resolution.

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Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.