Sheila Jackson Lee: “A few minutes ago, in Detroit, the dean of the United States Congress offered his retirement immediately. He has asked…”

“A few minutes ago, in Detroit, the dean of the United States Congress offered his retirement immediately. He has asked me, a member of the Judiciary Committee, to offer his words to his colleagues and to put his statement in the Record that indicates that he has notified Speaker Ryan, Leader Pelosi, and Governor Snyder of his retirement from the United States House of Representatives. It is important to note, as I begin, that there is no difference or no undermining of the rights of women and the abhorrence of sexual harassment and sexual assault. But this is a statement that I believe should be read on behalf of the dean of the United States Congress, Mr. John Conyers. {time} 1100 As a Member of Congress, I have known Mr. Conyers to not shy away from a legislative challenge. In addition to being the first Member to introduce the Martin Luther King holiday bill, he was the first to hold hearings on police misconduct, the first to examine the problem of solitary confinement, the first to offer racial profiling legislation, the first to introduce legislation protecting against disenfranchisement of ex-felons, and the first to pursue legislation protecting Black farmers from discrimination, among many other civil rights measures. In 2007, Representative Conyers stood up for the prerogatives of the House of Representatives and successfully brought a suit against the former President Bush White House for failing to comply with subpoenas relating to a U.S.…”