tv Key Capitol Hill Hearings CSPAN October 30, 2015 12:00am-2:01am EDT
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the speaker: thank you very much. thank you. thank you. thank you, madam leader. before i begin i would like to thank all of my family and friends who flew in from wisconsin and from all over for being here today. in the gallery i have my mom, betty, my sister, janet, my brothers stan and tobaccoin, and more cousins than i can ount on a few hands.
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25 years he served it. not many people can match his accomplishments. the offices he held, the laws he passed, but what really sets john apart is he's a man of character, a true class act. he is without a question the gentleman from ohio. so please join me in saying one last time, thank you speaker boehner.
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now i know how he felt. it's not until you hold this gavel, stand in this spot, look out and see all 435 members of this house as if all america's sitting right in front of you. it's not till then that you feel it. the weight of responsibility. the grambity of the moment. you -- graphity of the moment. as i stand here i can't help but think of something harry truman once said. the day after franklin roosevelt died, truman became president and he told a group of reporters, if you ever pray, pray for me now. when they told me yesterday what had happened, i felt like the moon, the stars, and all the planets had fallen on me. we should all feel that way. a lot is on our shoulders. so if you ever pray, let's pray
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for each other. republicans, for democrats, and emocrats for republicans. and i don't mean pray for a conversion, all right. pray for a deeper understanding because when you're up here, you see it so clearly. wherever you come from, whatever you believe, we are all in the same boat. i never thought i'd be speaker. but early in my life, i wanted to serve this house. i thought this place was exhilarating because here, you
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can make a difference. if you had a good idea, if you worked hard, you could make it happen. you could improve people's lives. to me, the house of representatives represents what's best of america. the boundless opportunity to do ood. but let's be frank. the house is broken. we're not solving problems, we're adding to them. and i am not interested in laying blame. we are not settling scores. we are wiping the slate clean. neither the members nor the
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eople are satisfied with how things are going. we need to make some changes, starting with how the house does business. we need to let every member contribute, not once they've earned their stripes but now. i come at this job as a two-time committee chair. the committees should retake the lead in drafting all major legislation. if you know the issue, you should write the bill. let's open up the process. let people participate. and they might change their mind. a neglected minority will gum up the works. a respected minority will work in good faith. instead of trying to stop the majority, they might try to become the majority.
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in other words, we need to return to regular order. now, i know this sounds like process. it's actually a matter of principle. we are the body closest to the people. every two years, we face the voters and sometimes face the music. but we do not echo the people, we represent the people. we are supposed to study up and do the homework they cannot do. so when we do not follow regular order, when we rush to pass bills that a lot of us don't understand, we are not doing our job. only a fully functioning house can truly represent the people. and if there are ever a time for us to step up, this would be that time.
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america does not feel strong anymore. because the working people of america do not feel strong anymore. i'm talking about the people who mind the store, and grow the food, and walk the beat, and pay the taxes, and raise the family. they do not sit in this house. they do not have fancy titles. but they are the people who make this country work, and this ouse should work for them. here's the problem. they're working hard, they're paying a lot, they're trying to do right by their families, and
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they're going nowhere fast. they never get a raise they never get a break, the bills keep filing up and the taxes and the debt. they're working harder than ever before to get ahead, yet they're falling further behind. they feel robbed. they feel cheated by their birth right, of their birth right. they're not asking for any favors. they just want a fair chance. and they're losing faith that they'll ever get it. then, they look at washington and all they see is chaos. what a relief to them it would be if we finally got our acts together. what a weight off their shoulders. how reassuring it would be if we actually fixed the tax code, put patients in charge of their health care, grew our economy, strengthened our military, lifted people out of poverty and
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aid down our debt. at this point, nothing could be more inspiring than a job well done. nothing could stir the heart more than real, concrete results. the cynics will scoff. they'll say it's not possible. you better believe we're going to try. we will not duck the tough issues. we will take them head on. we are going to do all we can do so that working people get their strength back and people not working get their lives back. no more fares for the few. opportunity for all. that is our motto.
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you know, i often talk about a need for revision. -- for a vision. i'm not sure i ever really said what i meant. we saw problems -- we solve problems here, yes. we create a lot of them too. but at bottom, we vindicate a way of life. we show by our work that free people can govern themselves. they can solve their own problems. they can make their own decisions. they can deliberate, collaborate and get the job done. we show that self-government is not only more efficient and more effective, it's more fulfilling. in fact, we show it as that struggle, that hard work, that
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very achievement itself that makes us free. that is what we do here. and we will not always agree. not all of us, not all of the time. but we should not hide our disagreements. we should embrace them. we have nothing to fear from honest differences, honestly tated. if you have ideas, let's hear them. i believe that a greater clarity between us can lead to greater charity among us. and there's every reason to have hope. when the first speaker took the gavel, he looked out at a room of 30 people. representing a nation of three million. today, as i look out at each and every one of you, we represent a nation of 300 million.
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so when i hear that america doesn't have it, we're done, we're spent, i don't believe it. i believe with every fiber of my being that we can renew the american idea. now our task is to make us all believe. my friends, you have done me a great honor. the people of this country, they've done all of us a great honor. now let's prove ourselves worthy of it. let's seize the moment. let's rise to the occasion. and when we are den, let us say that we left the people, all the people, more united, happy, and
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mr. conyers: if the gentleman from wisconsin would please raise his right hand. do you, sir, solemnly swear or affirm that you will support and defend the constitution of the united states against all enemies, foreign and domestic, that you will bear true faith and allegiance to the same, that you take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion, and that you will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which you are about to enter, so help you god? r. ryan: i do. the speaker: thank you. thank you.
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>> secretary-treasurer of the afl-cio discusses issues affecting women living in -- working in low-wage jobs. washington journal is live with phone calls, tweets and facebook continents -- comments every morning on c-span. being ladylike does not require silence. why should my husband's job, or being prevent us from ourselves? i do not believe that being first lady should prevent me from expressing my ideas.
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[applause] that he ford spoke her mind with pro-choice and a supporter of the equal rights amendment. she and president gerald ford openly discussed her battle with breast cancer. her public life, she struggled with drug and alcohol dependency. confessing her addicted to find -- confronting her addictions defined her last years. betty ford on c-span's original series, "first ladies: influence an image" examining the first ladies and a influence on presidency, from martha washington to michelle obama. sunday at 8:00 p.m. eastern, on american history tv on c-span3. a signature feature of the tv is all-day coverage of book fairs and festivals from across the country, with top nonfiction
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authors. here is our schedule beginning this weekend. we will be in nashville for the southern festival of books. at the start of november we are back on the east coast for the boston book festival. in the middle of the month is the louisiana book festival in baton rouge, and at the end of november we are live for the 18th year in a row from florida or the miami book fair international. and the national book awards from new york city. just some of the fairs and festivals this fall on c-span twos the tv. -- book tv. the u.s. has elected wisconsin congressman paul ryan, the 54th speaker of the house with 236 votes. in its the house session entirety, beginning with john boehner for the last time. he delivered farewell remarks. we also hear from minority -- nancyncy palazzi pelosi and speaker elect ryan. this is two hours and 45 minutes.
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>> let us pray. lord god, you know our needs. you have entrusted to us a great nation founded on life and liberty. we stand before you ready to fulfill the mission that will give glory to your name and ensure the dignity of all humanity. we plead for your wisdom. give us the courage to open our eyes to see. give us the fortitude to endure when the demands of our office seem overwhelming.
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bless us with prudence when all pathways seem troublesome. help us to discern and seek the common good when comfort and expedience tempt and beckon. challenge our minds and steady our hand and remind us that all good things come from you. transform our lives, and we will remember that life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness is the greatest work we will perform on behalf of all people. amen. >> the chair examines the last day proceedings and announces the approval care of -- thereof. the pledge of allegiance would be led from the gentleman from ohio. >> i would ask that everyone
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joins in the pledge to our nation's flag. allegiance] the speaker: props t grooved speaker boehner: will the gentleman from ohio rise. >> mr. speaker, pursuant to clause 7 of rule 20, i move a call of the house. speaker boehner: without objection a call of the house is , ordered. members will record their presence by electronic device.
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>> a special day in the u.s. house. they are electing a new speaker today. outgoing house speaker just initiating the roll call to come to the floor and begin the process of electing a new speaker. he is likely to be paul ryan from janesville, wisconsin. his pastor opened up the morning session with the prayer this
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morning. speaker boehner gaveled the house in sharply at 9:00 eastern. here on c-span drought today, little bit of a different look. you might notice the different angles. we have our cameras in the chamber in addition to the cameras from the house. this call of the house, the quorum, all pretty much the same kind of thing. it will probably last half an hour, maybe a little as. the proceedings will get underway. all live here on c-span.
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>> congressman ryan on the floor of the house. the chamber is in the call, a quorum gathering for the election of the speaker coming up. being surrounded by fellow members, the electorate will get underway just a bit later on as the health -- as the house gathers. live coverage. we are joined by the senior staff writer.
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presidency, behind, of course, the vice president. there is a lot of activity on the hill right now. paul ryan -- i just bumped into him at downstairs at the capital. he was greeting family members. he was engaged in a pretty fun conversation with governor sam brownback, one of his former mentors in the house of representatives. there is a lot of activity, a lot of people, a lot of energy right now in the house. >> on the floor, not just paul ryan, but others as well. we are hearing that is former running mate, mitt romney, and his wife will be in the gallery today. >> that is exactly right. mitt romney and his wife will be in the chamber later today. along with all of his family members -- paul ryan's mother, betty douglas will be there, all of his siblings. they are getting the band back together again, i suppose you could say, with romney, the former 2012 presidential gop nominee. >> move us forward just a little bit. once the quorum happens, how does the election take place? there was some word that daniel webster would not run today, would take his name out of consideration. what are you hearing?
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>> what i am hearing is -- he acknowledges that paul ryan probably has 218 votes necessary to be elected speaker of the house floor. however, what he has a is that he cannot control members from shouting out his name on the house floors. we are expecting some webster loyalists who are disenchanted with the establishment, disenchanted with, you know, not only speaker boehner, but his leadership. remember, most of the leadership team will not change. we still have a majority leader kevin mccarthy, majority whip. the only person that will change is the person at the top. we are expecting probably a dozen or so folks who will perhaps vote for daniel webster. that is roughly what he got in january in his race against speaker boehner. >> moments ago, our species been -- our c-span viewers saw daniel webster speaking with jim jordan, the head of the freedom
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caucus. what is the relationship between paul ryan and jim jordan, and other conservatives, particularly the 43 or so that supported congressman webster? >> it is one of respect. i spoke to jim jordan yesterday. there is a mutual respect. he is obviously -- paul ryan is very much a policy person. he's not engaged on the political side, although he is a talented politician. what we have seen in the last couple weeks here is paul ryan reaching out to disenchanted conservatives saying, i am open to all of these ideas of rules reforms, i would like to get more members involved in the process when it comes to bringing those floors in terms of revamping the steering committee that uses which members -- that chooses which members are assigned to
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committees and which members will receive chairmanships. all these discussions will be taking place over the next few weeks. we are told that paul ryan, yesterday in his meeting with house republicans, told them that he wants to get many of these rules finalized before thanksgiving. >> that is scott wong, reporting from capitol hill, covering the election of the house speaker. a senior staff writer with "the hill" thehill.com. thanks for joining us so much. looking live on the house floor. this is the quorum. we are covering it in a number of ways. you are seeing some different camera angles. there is daniel webster. in addition to the house with -- house cameras, c-span's cameras are here today. the dean of the house, john conyers will square in the news -- the new speaker. last dean was john dingell.
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tweaking daniel webster is urging republicans not to vote for him as speaker. he's in the back of the chamber, speaking with steve king. daniel webster asked not to be nominated on the floor for gop speaker. the house is gathering for the election of the new speaker. this is the call of the house, the rollcall of members. we expect next, in about 15 minutes or so, the speaker will announce the establishment of a quorum, and proceedings will get underway.
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look up to the speaker's box and you'll see congressman ryan's wife. also his three kids are there. his kids are liza, charlie, and sam. his mother, betty douglas. in addition, the former running mate of paul ryan, governor mitt romney and his wife anne will be in the speaker's box. live coverage of the election of the house speaker set underway shortly as the house gathers. the quorum is called. paul ryan greeting members on the house floor. bridget bowman of rollcall tweets that candice miller says she, kevin brady, and marcy kaptur will be teller for speaker vote counters.
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of texas making his way through the chamber. he is one of the two congressmen mentioned as a replacement for paul ryan on the ways and means committee. also pat barry of ohio a member of that committee. the house gaveling in, the rollcall well underway. "we are still waiting for about 45 members to check in for quorum call." the "p" next to the name means present.
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you don't normally see this on c-span, because you see what we see -- the house cameras. they allowed us today to bring our own c-span cameras into the chambers. nomination for speakers and 15 minutes, the book begins at 10:00 a.m. eastern. 25 more minutes, could be sooner. live coverage here on c-span. [gavel clacks]
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on this rollcall, 421 members have recorded their presence. a quorum is present. house will be in order. to requests that members clear the aisle, and cease all conversation. [gavel clacks] for what purpose does the distinguished speaker seek recognition? speaker boehner: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to speak out of order for one minute. >> without objection. [laughter] [applause]
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the speaker: all right. thank you. mr. speaker, i rise today to inform you that i will resign as speaker of the house effective upon the election of my successor. i will also resign as the representative from ohio's 8th district at the end of this month. i leave with no regrets, no burdens. if anything, i leave the way i started. just a regular guy, humbled by the chance to do a big job. that's what i'm most proud of. i'm still just me. the same guy who came here 25 years ago as a small business
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man and spent all these 25 years trying to just be me. sometimes my staff thought i was too much like me, but it really is i'm most proud of. the same regular guy that came here to try to do a good job for my district and my country. but before i go, i want to express what an honor it's been to serve with all of you. the people's house is in my view the great embodiment of the american dream. everybody here comes from somewhere and everybody here's on some mission. i come from a part of the world where we are used to working. as far back as i can remember, i was working, my staff was asking me the other day, on november 1, you're not going to have a job. when was the last time you didn't have a job? i thought about it and thought about it and thought about it. i thought, i had to be 8 or 9 years old because i was throwing newspapers back then and working at my dad's bar.
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as a matter of fact, i used to work from 5:00 a.m. on saturday morning until 2:00 p.m. for $2. not $2 an hour. $2. i never thought about growing up as the easy way or the hard way. it was just the cincinnati way. you know our city takes its name from a great roman general, a man who answered the call of his nation to lead. and then surrendered his power to go back to his plow. for me it wasn't a farm it was a small business. and it wasn't so much a calling as it was a mission. a mission to strive for a smaller, less costly, and more accountable federal government here in washington. how did we do? here are some facts. for the first time in nearly 20 years we have made some real entitlement reforms. saving trillions of dollars over the long term.
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we have protected 99% of the american people from an increase in their taxes. we are on track to save taxpayers $2.1 trillion over the next 10 years. the most significant spending reductions in modern times. we have banned earmarks all together. sorry. we have protected this institution. we have made it more open to the people. and every day in this capital city there are hundreds of kids from the toughest neighborhoods who are finally getting a hance at a decent education. i'm proud of these things. but the mission is not complete but the truth is it may never be. one thing i came to realize
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over the years that i have been here is that this battle over the size and scope and cost of our government in washington has been going on for more than 200 years. and the forces of the status quo do -- good for an awful lot of trouble to prevent change from happening. real change takes time. yes, freedom makes all things possible, but patience is what makes all things real. so believe in the long slow struggle. believe in this country's ability to meet her challenges and to lead the world. and remember, you can't do a big job alone. especially this one. so i'm grateful to my family, deb and my two girls, my two girls were 3 and 1 when i first ran for office. now they are a lot older. so they have been through a lot. you-all know what your families go through. it's one thing for us to take the boards and
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everything gets thrown at us, but it's another thing for our families. their skin isn't as thick as ours. i'm also grateful to all my colleagues. my fellow leaders, mr. mccarthy, mr. scalise, mrs. , and many on rs my side of the aisle, our committee chairs, people i have worked with for a long time. i'm just as grateful to ms. pelosi, mr. hoyer, mr. clyburn, and becerra, and others for all of the work that we have done together. over these last five years we have done an awful lot of work together. probably more work done across the aisle over the last five years than in the 25 years that i served in this institution. now, as much as i enjoy working with all of you, some of you still could learn to dress etter. ou know who you are.
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i saw one of the culprits, one of the usual suspects that shows up here once in a while without a tie, but this morning he didn't dress very well but he did have a tie on. i'm grateful to the people who work in this institution every day. whether it's the reading clerks - there are a lot of people, thousands of people that allow us to do our jobs and to help make this institution what it is. and whether it's the people you see here today or the people in
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the capitol police or leg counsel, there are thousands of people that do allow us to do our job. i'm grateful to my staff. now, you-all know i'm a big believer in staff. none of this can be what we are without the good staff. i certainly would never have gotten to this job without having built a great team. so really am grateful to my staff as they like to say to each other, once you're part of boehner land, you're always part of boehner land. and that certainly goes for me as well. i'm especially grateful to all my constituents and the volunteers over the years. that includes a student at miami university in oxford, ohio, in 1990, who was putting up campaign signs for me. his name was paul ryan. i don't think he could pronounce my name back -- he
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was putting signs up for me. but cincinnati understood there is a difference between being asked to do something and being called to do something. . ul is being called i know he'll serve with grace and with energy and i want to wish him and his family all the best. my colleagues, i describe my life as a chase for the american dream and that chase began at the bottom of the hill just off the main drag in redding, ohio, right outside cincinnati. top of the hill was a small house with a big family, a shining city in its own right. the hill had twists. the hill had turns, and even a
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few tears. nothing wrong with that. but let me tell you, it was just perfect. never forget we're the luckiest people on the earth. in america, you can do anything that you're willing to work for, willing to work hard at and things -- anything can happen if you're willing to make the necessary sacrifices in life. if you falter, and you will, you can just pick yourself up, dust yourself off and go do it again because hope always brings eternal and if you do the right things for the right reasons, good things will happen. and this, too, can really happen to you. god bless you and god bless our great country.
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the speaker: thankfully i had a gavel. pursuant to the speaker's announcement, the chair will receive nominations for office of the speaker. and the chair recognizes the gentlelady from washington tate, mrs. mcmorris rodgers. mr. cmorris rodgers: speaker, today in the people's house, it gives me great honor to nominate the people's speaker. you don't need to look any further than the architecture of washington, d.c., to see
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what our founders envisioned. it's not by mistake that the dome over the congress is the very center of the federal city. the white house and the supreme court are set about us. satellite to the supreme power of the people expressed in this legislative body. in the house we are eager for a fresh start that will make us more effective to fulfill our obligation to reflect the will of the people and to re-establish the balance of power. and there's no better person to lead us in that calling than the man i am about to nominate. he was first elected to the house at the ripe old age of 28 and he's served here now for 17 years. we all remember when he led the house budget committee, the visionary proposals, the lengthy debates and who could forget those powerpoints. he's now the chairman of the house ways and means committee, but he's more than a chairman to us. he's more than a colleague.
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he's our friend. he's a leader, and through it all he's never forgotten his roots. he lived on the same block he grew up in jamesville, wisconsin. there's no place he'd rather be than at home with his family. he will continue to put the people of this country first, and i can say in all candor, he did not seek this office. the office sought him. as chair of the house republican conference, i am directed by a vote of that conference to present for election to the office of speaker for the house of representatives for the 114th congress, the representative from the state of wisconsin, the man from jamesville, the onorable paul d. ryan.
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-- the man from janesville, the onorable paul d. ryan. spoirk the chair now recognizes the gentleman from -- the speaker: the chair now recognizes the gentleman from california, mr. becerra. mr. becerra: thank you, mr. speaker. i offer my congratulations to my friend, the gentleman from wisconsin, mr. ryan, on his nomination by his colleagues. and at this time as chairman of the democratic caucus of this house, i wish to place in nomination the name of a proven leader for the office of speaker of the house of representatives. a leader who has accomplished in this chamber and for this country what few can match, a leader who as speaker of this house secured passage of
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landmark economic recovery package legislation in 2009 which transformed a diving economy losing 100,000 jobs each month to one that's created more than 13 million 60 over the last consecutive months of job growth. a leader who has speaker accomplished what 70 years of congresses could not, enactment of our lifesaving health security law which has put 18 million more americans in control of their and their hildren's health care. a leader who had the foresight in 2008 to fight for the biggest investment in our troops since world war ii with
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the passage of the post-9/11 g.i. bill and the largest investment in our veterans' health care and benefits in the 7-year history of the v.a. a leader who was not afraid to take on the challenge of fixing our broken immigration system and secured passage of the dream act in 2010. mr. speaker, leadership is about making the tough choices and getting things done. it means knowing how to bill the majority, not just with the members of your own political party but with the 435 elected members of the house of representatives so we can get things done. this leader understands that and knows how to get things done. even while serving in the minority in this house. that's why less than 24 hours ago this leader succeeded in
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breaking through the gridlock in this house and secured the votes needed to avert a senseless government shutdown and a perilous default on the ayment of america's bills. thanks to this leader, 16 1/2 million seniors will not suffer a $55 a month increase in their medicare premiums and congress will not cut the social ecurity benefits by 20%. mr. speaker, that's leadership and that's what americans expect from those they elect. that is why it is my privilege as chairman of the house democratic caucus and as directed by the colleagues of the democratic caucus, i nominate for election to the office of speaker of the house of representatives from the 12th district of the great
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state of california, the norable nancy patricia 'alesandro pelosi. the speaker: the names of the honorable paul d. ryan and representative from the state of wisconsin and the honorable nancy pelosi, a representative from the state of california have been placed in nomination. are there further nominations? there being no further nominations, the chair appoints the following tellers. the gentlewoman from michigan, mrs. miller, the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. brady, the gentlewoman from ohio, ms. kaptur, the gentlewoman from florida, ms. ros-lehtinen.
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