From: Rep. Greg Pence
Columbus
For the better part of the last two years, the United States House of Representatives – the People’s House – has been closed to the American public.
Citizens, advocates, concerned constituents and even tourists have found the halls of the House and the very symbol of our great Republic – the Capitol building – inaccessible.
And to make matters worse, recent reporting has alluded to the fact that the select few who have been afforded the opportunity to visit have been subjects of covert background checks without their knowledge.
The result of this closure has only served to further isolate the American people from their representatives in government and the very people members of Congress serve.
Inaccessibility to the Capitol is exacerbating the distrust between citizens and their government and consolidates power among the select few politicians who occupy positions of leadership in the current House Democratic majority.
One of our most famous Founding Fathers once said of the House, “Here, sir, the people govern: Here they act by their immediate representatives.”
Today, House Democrats seem unconcerned with governing in the way Hamilton described and prefer ruling under the gavel — and iron fist — of Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Committee hearings in the House are closed to everyday Americans who want their voices heard in the halls of Congress. As such, almost every bill is written behind closed doors by Democrats with no opportunity for input from Republicans and little room for amendments.
It is no wonder that bills are rarely passed on a bipartisan basis.
Furthermore, many members of Congress now vote by proxy — giving their vote away to someone who has likely never even set foot in their home district.
This is not how the House should work and the American people deserve a better, more transparent, and more accessible government.
That starts with reopening the United States House of Representatives and the United States Capitol.
