Rob Andrews: “I oppose what is a good bill. I oppose it because there is a larger principle at stake here, and that is the reasonable…”

“I oppose what is a good bill. I oppose it because there is a larger principle at stake here, and that is the reasonable right of the minority to have its say in the process of writing legislation. The House has been here before, Mr. Speaker. Exactly 11 years and 1 day ago, a Member of this House came to the floor and protested a procedure and used these words: ``This rule might aptly be called the representative democracy displacement rule since its substitutes the judgment of the majority leadership for that of the 435 freely elected Members of this House. It is ironic, Mr. Speaker, that as dictatorial governments around the world are allowing democracy to flourish, democracy does not flourish in the House of Representatives.'' That speaker was not a Democrat disenchanted with the present majority, it was the present chairman of the Committee on Rules, the gentleman from California (Mr. Dreier), who used those words 11 years ago.”