Chris Bell

Mr. Speaker, as the Democratic leader pointed out earlier, this year marked the 50th anniversary of the historic Brown v. Board of Education decision, and thinking about that decision in the context of today's debate, I think we have to ask ourselves what if some of our segregationist forefathers who felt every bit as strongly about the issue of race as many people here today feel about the issue of gay marriage, what if they had succeeded in passing some radical legislation to prevent any Federal court challenge to the law of separate but equal?

Well, obviously, the progress that we have witnessed in the area of civil rights would have been at the very least stymied and most likely prevented altogether. And the real question is they might have no problem with the law that they seek to protect today, but they might have very big problems with the law that they seek to protect tomorrow; and ladies and gentlemen, we cannot cherry-pick. We cannot control what might come forth in the future, because once this genie is out of the bottle, it is out for good.

And the bottom line is, this is not. This is not how our country works. Just how far are we going to let extremists go in tearing down what makes this country great?

And, yes, open courts, open courts where free people can go in and fight for what they believe is right are a part of what makes this country great; and just because it is an election year, just because it is an election year and some wish to fan the flames of an incredibly controversial issue, let us not make the unforgivable mistake of closing off our courts. It is un-American; it is wrong. Vote ``no.''

Mr. Speaker, are there no boundaries?-

Earlier today several Republicans came to the floor of this House of Representatives to attack the military record of Senator John Kerry, to attack the military record of an individual whose medals alone would take almost all of my allotted time to name, to attack the military record of a man who risked his very young life for his country in Vietnam and was wounded on three different occasions, a man who risked his life to save others; and then when we he came home to the United States, decided he was not finished saving lives. Instead, he decided to stand with thousands of other Americans and question a war that had clearly lost direction.

John Kerry's appearance before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations back then was a turning point in the debate on Vietnam, and he showed the same level of patriotism by taking that stand here at home as he did with his act of bravery in Vietnam. To attack him in this manner is simply shameful. But I guess in this day and age of politics, there are no boundaries, and regretfully we should not be surprised.

Mr. Speaker, due to critical official business in the 25th Congressional District of Texas I was unable to record my votes Thursday, February 26, 2004. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on Rollcall Vote No. 30, the Lofgren substitute amendment to H.R. 1997, and I would have voted ``nay'' on Rollcall Vote No. 31, the final passage of H.R. 1997.