i hereby appoint the honorable john shimkus to act as speaker pro tempore on this day. tempore: the prayer will be offered by our chaplain, father conroy. chaplain conroy: lord of the universe, we give you thanks for giving us another day. you are the father of us all, divine providence has led this nation in the past and guides all human affairs to this very day. as a nation, we are in need of wisdom to make right decisions, perseverance to build upon the hopes of your people and patience because at times bear an urgency. so today the american people join congress as we call upon your holy name. we pray for vice president joseph biden and for your servant, barack obama, our re-elected 44th president of these united states. may your holy spirit descend upon him that he may see things as you see things. may he be strengthened in his work and grow in understanding as he proves ever attentive to the people. may we respond to the nation's deepest needs and lift up all of us to higher standards of equal justice, true goodness and peaceful union. grant him health and protectio