Pete Stark: “I rise to join my colleagues gathered here today to honor and memorialize Ways and Means Democratic Staff Economist Al…”

“I rise to join my colleagues gathered here today to honor and memorialize Ways and Means Democratic Staff Economist Al Davis who life was tragically cut short. Al dedicated many years of his life to helping Democrats in the House of Representatives promote policies to improve the lives of America's working families. He did this first when working for the House Budget Committee Democratic staff and more recently with the Ways and Means Committee Democrats as our chief economist. Those of us lucky enough to serve in Congress know how important the role of staff really is. A good staffer is not someone who will just agree with you--though it takes many of us a very long time to discover that reality. The best staffer is someone who understands the facts and helps you use those facts to promote policy that you support or oppose, but will tell you when the facts aren't on your side. Al excelled in this role. He knew the tax code and budgetary impact of any change in law better--and more quickly--than almost anyone. If you needed the facts to support your argument, he was there with a memo to assist you. But, only if your argument was correct and could be substantiated! And, that was why Al will be missed so greatly. He'd tell you if the facts didn't support you--and you couldn't convince him to do otherwise. There are two words that I think best describe Al Davis. The first is ``integrity''.”