Thanking Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers for Her Service

Floor Speech

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Mrs. CAMMACK. Mr. Speaker, I thank my distinguished colleague and friend from the great State of Tennessee for yielding to me.

Tonight we gather to honor and bid farewell to an extraordinary leader and friend, Energy and Commerce Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers. Tonight we say good-bye, as she concludes her remarkable tenure in Congress. Serving under her leadership on the Energy and Commerce Committee has truly been a privilege and an honor.

I first met Cathy when I was a chief of staff. It was 2013, and I came to meet with her as she was the Conference chair at the time. I was shaking I was so intimidated, and I just remember she exuded a cool calmness, an openness, and, most importantly, a warmth that was immediately putting me at ease. As someone who was brand new to the Hill, someone who was a very young woman at the time who didn't know much of anything, she still made me feel like my opinion mattered. That is one of her many gifts.

Fast forward as a Member of Congress with the honor and privilege to serve here, I will never forget the night that I was in the Cloakroom and Cathy comes up to me and says, Kat, I think you would be good for the Energy and Commerce Committee. I am shaking and intimidated like, holy crap, the chairwoman is asking me to serve on the best damn committee in Congress.

It was her faith in me that really gave me an insight into how she would be as a leader, as someone who we would look to as we navigated some of the toughest pieces of legislation and controversial issues.

I later recall, after having joined the committee, attending a speech where she was asked by the moderator to give her life story. Any Member of Congress will start spouting off that I was born here, I did this, and I am that. No. Cathy stopped, and she said, I will give you my life story and who I am in 10 words. She used the following words to describe her commitment to service, who she was, who she is: a pioneer, trailblazer, leader, working mom of three, wife, ability advocate, and trust builder.

In my time serving with her, I have learned that not only does she embrace these words, but she lives them every single day.

As a pioneer and trailblazer, she is the first woman to lead the Energy and Commerce Committee, paving the way for many others to follow. She has forged paths in policy areas that were complex, controversial, tough, but, most importantly, critical to saving our Nation's future.

As a leader, she was a unifying force and continues to unify within the Energy and Commerce Committee. She has an exceptional ability to bring together Members with diverse viewpoints--which as we know here in Congress, there are many--ensuring that everyone has that feeling of being valued and also being heard.

As a wife and mother, she has balanced the responsibilities of public service and motherhood, which we all know is no easy task. She has managed it with grace and unwavering dedication.

As an ability advocate, she has been an unwavering voice for those with disabilities, advocating for policies that promote inclusion and opportunity, knowing the experience firsthand. We expect to see Cole on this House floor in many, many more years to come. He is going to be here.

As a trust builder, her honesty, transparency, and commitment to doing what is right have earned her respect in every single room that she has entered.

Chairwoman Rodgers' legacy in Congress will continue to inspire us all. I thank her for her service, her leadership, and her example. We wish her every success and happiness in the future.

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