Glenn Grothman: “I will bring up three things that are very wrong with proxy voting that I don't think have been brought up today. First…”

“I will bring up three things that are very wrong with proxy voting that I don't think have been brought up today. First of all, one of the problems we have in this building is, even though we all represent 700,000 people, there are some Congressmen who are a great deal more powerful than others, and this bill will greatly increase the power of leadership. Right now, people run into each other in the halls, talk to each other in the Cloakroom, question parts of the bill, and sometimes question leadership's narrative. This bill says everybody is going to be back at home, which greatly strengthens the power of leadership because people aren't around to question the bill. Secondly, it lessens bipartisanship. When we are gone, we do have conference calls with other Republicans, but I find I talk to Democrats much more when we are in this building; and by taking people out of this building, you will decrease bipartisanship as you make proxy voting the norm. Finally, you are penalizing the press. We should all be available to the press after these votes so they get a variety of perspectives. We are going to work our way down to the point where it is the Speaker and a few other Democrats around, and the press are not going to be able to talk to us all. It is an insult to the press. Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.…”