Political Quotes

“Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, Juneteenth is an important day, and remembering and celebrating the emancipation of African Americans in the United States is certainly worthy of commemoration. All Americans should celebrate our fight for freedom. It is a fitting tribute first celebrated in the State of Texas to commemorate the day in 1865, when President Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation was recognized in that State. I do plan to vote in favor of this bill that passed unanimously in the Senate yesterday. However, I would be remiss if I did not discuss the procedure leading up to consideration of this legislation. Just a few mere hours ago, the Committee on Oversight and Reform, which has jurisdiction over Federal holidays in the Federal workforce, learned that this legislation would be taken up today. Our committee's job is to ensure the efficient and effective operation of the executive branch agencies. Unfortunately, we have not had ample time to consider the effects of granting the entire Federal workforce another day off work. And we do not know what effect, if any, this bill will have on Federal programs and missions that our government delivers to the American taxpayer each day. For instance, due to the rushed process, we do not yet have an estimate from the Congressional Budget Office of how much this bill will cost.…”