Pete Sessions

I would not stand up here if I were for fear of one second of not being able to understand you and you understand me. I understand you.

I would like to politely offer a viewpoint. I believe that we do not view that the issue was discrimination. We have the viewpoint that, earlier in the week, we brought forth a bill that passed 40-2 in the Committee on Armed Services, and…

Reclaiming my time, that issue was handled--and the gentleman knows this--in committee. I yield to the gentleman.

I do respect the gentleman for his right to come and offer under an open rule, in a different bill, his objections to what occurred last night. Last night, the House of Representatives passed the bill. And today, the gentleman is offering…

I want to take time to recognize the gentleman from New Jersey, representing the Energy and Commerce Committee, and the gentlewoman from Indiana (Mrs. Brooks) for their service not only to this conference, but also to the issues and the…

I have an amendment at the desk. The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment. The text of the amendment is as follows: Page 6, after line 25, insert the following (and redesignate the subsequent subsections accordingly): (e)…

You are witnessing here a colloquy on the floor between groups of people who can work together. Mrs. Lowey, Mr. McGovern, Judge Hastings, Ms. Slaughter, and Mr. Polis represent not just the Democratic Party, but millions of people across…

I am delighted that the gentlewoman from New York, who is a regular visitor to the Rules Committee and who really, I believe, adequately and fairly not only represents the needs of this Nation, but really argues many times on behalf of…

I do appreciate the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern) bringing up these issues. We try and talk about these issues up at the Rules Committee. There is always a wide-ranging list of not only issues and ideas, but I certainly know…

If this were at the Department of Justice, would we allow that to happen? Why is this not a bipartisan issue? Why can't we get together and say: Mr. Koskinen, you are the Commissioner of the IRS. We respectfully would like to see you…

I want to thank the gentlewoman from Hamlin County, South Dakota, a very dear friend not only of every Member of Congress, but, in particular, a great Representative representing South Dakota at a time when South Dakota needs not only…

This morning, the Rules Committee issued an announcement outlining the amendment process for H.R. 4498, the HALOS Act. The amendment deadline has been set for Monday, April 25, at 3 p.m. For the text of the bill as reported by the…

Well, I agree with that. Once again, I don't ask the question, but the IRS should.

The gentleman makes a very important point. I would respond back by saying it is probably my fault and Members' fault. We do not ask that question. I do not have a determination. I generally do not do a full background check. I do not have…

Yes, sir. In fact, I do. But I also recognize--and the gentleman knows this. You are making a very, very good point. They did not use it for something they were not authorized to do. My point is that I think what we are trying to say is we…

I appreciate the gentleman engaging me in a colloquy. In fact, on a bipartisan basis, that was achieved, and the President of the United States signed the legislation. That was because of the gross examples of the IRS' conduct as it was…

So what we are trying to say today, which we would like to do on a bipartisan basis, which we would like to do straight up and look right at the IRS, is say: We would like to meet you in a way to where you know what we think. We would like…

I appreciate the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Stivers), who is a member of the Rules Committee, for not only yielding me the time, but also for the service that he gives to the Rules Committee, the hours of deliberate work, reading, and…

Yesterday, the Rules Committee issued four announcements outlining the amendment processes for: H.R. 1206, No Hires for the Delinquent IRS Act; H.R. 3724, Ensuring Integrity in the IRS Workforce Act; H.R. 4885, IRS Oversight While…

I thank my colleagues on the other side of the aisle. I believe what happened up in the Rules Committee was going through regular order-- regular order to hear the original jurisdiction and regular order as we were discussing, debating…

Consistent with the Republican message today, one of our other senior Members who is a former chairman of the Judiciary Committee now serves as the chairman of the Science, Space, and Technology Committee. He is a gentleman who has devoted…

I recognize that there are people in this body who are frustrated, and I have engaged a number of those people very thoughtfully, and they have tried to engage me, I think, thoughtfully. But the essence of what today's argument is about is…

At this time you will see that our Republican Members that will come and speak are men and women not only with extensive legal experience, grounded in the law and the Constitution of the United States but will make their arguments from a…

The questions presented in the case are really extraordinarily significant to the House of Representatives. In particular, this case raises issues related to the limits on executive discretion not to enforce laws enacted by Congress as…

I thank the gentlewoman from New York for her engagement on this important issue and for her leadership on the Rules Committee. Mr. Speaker, most of all, what we are doing here is acknowledging that the Supreme Court of the United States…