Political Quotes

“I urge a ``no'' vote on the previous question, and I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I am sorry the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Mitchell) left the floor, but I know Mr. Newhouse is still here, and I am complimented by the fact that they quote me so much. But I want to quote me, too, because I am going through what I have said about open rules and about the way this House should be run. On November 14 on the floor I said: And I am not suggesting that every rule needs to be an open rule or that there is never a time for a closed rule, but there is never a time for more than 100 closed rules. There is no justification for that. That is me. And on April 24, I said: I am under no illusion that every bill has to be an open rule; although it would be nice to have at least one symbolic open rule before the year is out. On April 13, I said: I can't promise that every rule is going to be an open rule, but I can say that there would be a greater attempt to try to accommodate Members. On September 2, I said: Now, Mr. Speaker, I am not suggesting that everything that the House considers should be under an open rule. There are times when a closed rule might be necessary. But more than 100 closed rules? There is no justification for that. So I think I am being pretty consistent here, because I have actually voted for closed rules on this floor that have been suggested in times of emergency.…”