Welcoming The Honorable Mary Gay Scanlon To The House Of Representatives
Mr. Speaker, Members of the 115th Congress, I am honored to have this opportunity to serve our country. Mr. Speaker, I chose tonight to be sworn in on our Constitution, a document that begins with our uniquely American creed, ``We the…
Mr. Speaker, Members of the 115th Congress, I am honored to have this opportunity to serve our country.
Mr. Speaker, I chose tonight to be sworn in on our Constitution, a document that begins with our uniquely American creed, ``We the people,'' a charge and a challenge to faithfully represent the people of my district and the entire country, a charge I promise to honor every day with all of my might.
I am particularly honored to serve as the advance guard not just for Madeleine Dean, Chrissy Houlahan, and Susan Wild, who will soon join me and our brethren in the Pennsylvania delegation, but also as an advance guard for the army of new Members who will join us for the 116th Congress, a Congress that may look substantially different than the one we see today.
I am eager to continue doing the work that we, the people, entrust to the equal branches of this government:
To ensure that fairness, civility, and opportunity are available to all and to right the wrongs that hold far too many back;
To make sure that the people get a fair shake, whether in their jobs, in our classrooms, in the courts, or in the voting booth;
To treat others with civility, particularly here in our Nation's capital, as we work in service to the people of this great country;
To ensure opportunity and safeguard the world we pass on to the next generation.
I promise to continue fighting for the underserved, for children and families, for seniors and veterans--to bend the arc of justice for those in need; for students like those on my mock trial team from Constitution High School in Philadelphia, who are the next generation of civic leaders; for veterans like Bob in Media or Pixie in Philadelphia, who want assurance that their benefits will not be treated as simply a line item in our budgets; for families like Malcolm's in Chester, whose lives have been forever changed by gun violence; and for my friend Hawa Salah, a human rights activist from Darfur who was forced to flee her homeland after her advocacy for oppressed people led to her kidnapping and torture by her own government.
I am eager to continue this work right here with all of you.
Finally, I am grateful to the voters, to my friends and family, and particularly my husband, Mark, for believing in me, and I hope that I make him proud.