the life of edmund pettus bridge occupies an important part in american history. it was dedicated as a symbol of white supremacy but within a generation, his history became reversed. it went from becoming a place of racial separation to being a place of racial liberation. in 1965, this became the setting for one of the most important moments of the civil rights movement. the had decided this was place he would make a pitch for voting rights. was part ofe segregation but also liberation. this was one modern marvel both bequeathed to the memory of white supremacy the became a different thing when king and his supporters cross that bridge to go to montgomery and demand their votes. -- like manyced cities that experienced tremendous violence, someone was grappling with what do you do with the name of the edmund pettus bridge, knowing that pettis himself supported white supremacy and that this bridge became such a powerful and literal passageway from segregation to inspiration. want toand, you don't forget the past, you want to teach it to your children and have that p

that injunction that allowed marchers such as our colleague john lewis to march across the edmund pettus bridge, which brought us the voting rights act of 1965. where is our courage today, i ask the gentleman from pennsylvania? we have to stand up in the face of such overt partisanship and speak out against it. . the balance of the court is so important. so many of the progress we have seen in our nation, we have been one justice on the supreme court from that progress being eroded. it is with great sadness i see justice kennedy leave but it is with greater sadness i see the nominee, kavanaugh, coming before this -- coming before the senate for confirmation as the next federal justice. i do know that politics and elections have consequences but i think that when i think about the scale of progress and what effects that progress -- what affects that progress, nothing is more telling, nothing is more important than the supreme court. i would hope that a person irrespect i of their gender, irrespective of their race, and who they love, that they can come before the supreme court and get a f

they probably wouldn't have crossed the edmund pettus bridge if there had been a wait for the polls. i'm so glad that people of good will will stand up to bigotry. will take a stand. they don't let political expediency trump the moral imperative to speak out and speak up. i'm so glad that there are people who put the moral imperative above political expediency. and finally this. for those of you who worship at the altar of polls, when president clinton was impeached, 29% of the people thought that he should be impeached. 29%. there are some people who are not guided by polls. i am one of them. bigotry emanating from the presidency is impeachable because of the harm that it's doing to society. impeachment is not dead. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. and members are reminded to refrain from engaging in personalities towards the president. the chair recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. kelly, for five minutes. you, mr. thank speaker. obviously we live in alternative universes. mr. speaker, americ

on march 7, 1965, i gave a little blood on the edmund pettus bridge for the right to vote. before the voting rights act of 1965 was passed, some people had jelly the number of beans in a jar and all across america today when people go out to attempt to vote, they stand in long, immoveable lines. that's not right. it's not fair. and it's not just. we can do better and we must do better. we have a moral obligation, a mission and a mandate to empower all of the american people, not just a select few. we must do what is right, what is fair, and what is just. today our democracy is under attack by forces within and forces abroad. we need to fix it and fix it now. for these reasons and -- i'm proud to sponsor h.r. 12, the voter empowerment act, with my friends and my colleagues. t.s.a. good bill, a necessary bill, and a patriotic bill to protect and to preserve our voting system. i urge each and every one of you to support the previous question and i yield back. thank you, mr. mcgovern. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts reserves. the gentleman from washing