Jim Sensenbrenner

I have long believed that civil liberties and national security need not be in conflict, and I hope to work with my colleagues to strike that balance in a responsible and effective manner.

I would say that, in many cases, you have vindicated many of the assertions that I made, both as the author of the PATRIOT Act in 2001 as well as the author of the PATRIOT Act reauthorization, which was signed by the President in March of…

Now, if it isn't unconstitutional, and it's working, then really, I don't think that we should break something that doesn't need fixing.

We have lived through several years now of secret law from the Office of Legal Counsel. It has been a national disgrace.

We really all ought to see the Office of Legal Counsel opinion. That is this Administration's view of what due process entails.

You can't have a discussion--and I think no Member of the House should--can be expected to act responsibly, to vote responsibly and intelligently on pending legislation without access to that opinion.

Right-minded people such as Dawn Johnson, whose nomination, surprisingly, is still pending in the other body, has worked to reform the Office of Legal Counsel, reform that process and keep it on a very solid, professional footing.

Legislation passed by Mr. Sensenbrenner was also enacted to require States to hold special House elections when extraordinary circumstances cause mass vacancies in the House.

Just a few years ago, Congress acted in an overwhelmingly bipartisan fashion and passed the Continuity and Representative Act by huge margins that included the support of over two-thirds of the Democratic Caucus.

I live in Alexandria and there was a vacancy in the House of Delegates in Alexandria and Governor Kaine called an election 16 days...

But what we worry about is the extraordinary circumstance where we fear there will be no House or no Senate...

I have no doubt that the bond of the spirit of the American people will ensure that democracy prevails even in the most pressing conditions.

A study conducted by The Elections Center, a nonpartisan organization representing the Nation's election officials, has shown that expedited special elections can be conducted within a 45-day time frame.

House Joint Resolution 53 would solve all of these constitutional problems by providing that each person who is elected to the House of Representatives or the Senate must be elected in combination with an alternate.

It should be consisted of only elected Representatives, and the fact that as a practical matter you can't elect people quickly.

Without an elected House, the entire Federal Government could be run, laws could be written, without a single branch representing the popular will.

I think that Mr. Baird's proposal and my own proposal will go a long way to making this country less vulnerable as it stands right now.

I would just suggest that having an alternate for a House and Senate Member would provide... for an elected Representative just always to be here in case of an emergency.

James Madison used the strongest of terms when stating the House must be composed of only those elected by the people.

I think the message was given when the House voted down the Baird amendment by a vote of 63 yes to 353 no, that the House overwhelmingly opposed having appointed members, period.

Today it appears the Obama administration is increasingly retreating to this failed approach.

What happened to those 500 that left? I heard my friend from Texas talk about how 71 have returned to the battlefield.

And this was the guy that was released from GTMO to the Afghans because of, quote, world pressure, unquote, that was ginned up by people who disagree with the American policy in fighting terrorism. Am I right on that?

Between 1993 and 2001, this country took the approach of prosecuting terrorism in courtrooms as criminal defendants rather than fighting them on the battlefield as foreign enemies.

What we are hearing today is a continuation of the assault by the American political left on the entire institution of Guantanamo Bay and the people who have been sent to Guantanamo Bay.