Honoring Congressman Henry Waxman and Congressman George Miller on their Retirement

Floor Speech

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Ms. MATSUI. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from California for
yielding this time to me.

Today, Mr. Speaker, we are here to thank and honor two of
California's greatest congressional legislators and our dear friends,
Henry Waxman and George Miller.

This is an especially, as the Leader has said, bittersweet and
poignant time because they are our dear friends. We are so proud of
them, and we are going to miss them dearly.

The reason why Henry and George are so significant here in this body
are that they are the architects of the most significant legislation of
the last 40 years. You think about anything we have done in this House,
whether it is health care, environment, energy, consumer protection,
communications, workforce protection, education opportunities, it goes
on and on. The reason why they have been so successful and why they are
so dearly respected and loved is that they are men of the House, they
are men of the people. They love this institution and they honor this
institution, and so this institution honors them. They are people,
individuals, who understand this country and understand what makes it
great, understand that it is the people that they are going to be
helping.

Henry has been a dear friend of mine for over 30 years and his
absence will be keenly felt in the Halls of Congress and in the Energy
and Commerce Committee, on which I serve. In his four decades here,
Henry has been a stolid advocate for his constituents in Los Angeles
and for this whole Nation and the world too.

On the Energy and Commerce Committee, I have worked closely with
Henry to tackle a number of critical issues facing the country. The
Affordable Care Act will forever stand out in my mind as one of the
committee's greatest accomplishments, and Henry has been a true leader
in that passage.

We worked together to combat climate change, eliminate the harmful
formaldehyde emissions, promote strong net neutrality rules, and expand
access to Internet services for more Americans. He has been a true
leader.

We are also saying good-bye to my really good friend, George Miller.
During my time in Congress, he has become a trusted friend and
colleague. He led the fight on raising the minimum wage and fighting
for a vibrant education system.

But what I remember the most and cherish the most about him is that
he leaves such a great legacy on water law and policy in California,
from his historic California water reform law that requires the
balanced use of our State's scarce water resources to the many battles
on the floor fending off ill-conceived attempts to drastically change
the distribution of our precious water resources.

With the departure of Henry and George, Congress is losing champions
of the people whose knowledge and passion will not soon be replaced,
but they leave many of us behind who understand how important it is. We
say farewell to them, but we also wish them well, and certainly wish
their families well.

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