move towards saying yes because right now the system of the electoral college really creates 50 separate states which -- plus district of columbia, 51 separate elections of where effectively it means only about a half dozen states from a political perspective. a nationwide election for president with nationwide standards on voting, eligibility, and things like that, would encourage what? perhaps presidents to represent the entire country and not just what? a segment or party. host: we'd like to thank david schultz. hamline political science professor for coming on this morning and talking about the rise in executive power. david, thank you so much for your time. guest: my pleasure, thank you to the audience for listening. host: we'd like to thank all of our viewers and callers this morning. we are going to go directly to the house of representatives as they meet today at the u.s. capitol. thanks for watching, everyone. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2020] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute,

which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of repres entives.]

house will be e in order. pursuant to the order of january 7, 2020, the chair will now recognize members from lists submitted by the majority and minority leaders for morning hour debate. the chair will alternate recognition between the parties. with time equally allocated between parties and each member other than the majority and

minority leaders and minority whip limited to five minutes. but in no event shall debate continue beyond 11:50 a.m. the chair recognizes the missouri, mrs. hartzler. . mrs. hartzler: i rise today to honor the doctors and nurses of the fourth district who have witnessed the effects of the coronavirus pandemic on a daily basis. these frontline health care workers cope with the deaths and illnesses brought on by this virus and witnesses to the heartbreaking losses family members experience whose loved onesed pass away without benefit of that final embrace before saying goodbye. for these noble and selfless individuals the impact of covid-19 isn't restricted to emotion wounds opened through witnessing the suffering of others, but by the personal, physical health risks posed by being on the frontlines to conduct their day-to-day activities.

these frontline workers in our nursing homes and long-term care facilities are heroes. who have chosen to possibly put themselves in peril by answering the call. they have been the source of encouragement, hope, and help to our nation's greatest generation. a lifeline amidst a challenging time. on behalf of myself and the caring families of missouri's fourth district, thank you. we appreciate you. and we pray god blesses you in a very special way during this special time of season and throughout the year. yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the chair recognizes the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. mcgovern, for five minutes. mr. mcgovern: mr. speaker, as the co-chair of the tom lantos human rights commission, chairman of the congressional executive commission on china, someone who cares deeply about human rights and democratic principles, and as a proud

member of this house i rise to express my deep concern about the damage being done to america's moral authority by those who refuse to accept the legitimate outcome of november's election and who continue to deliberately spread lies and manufacture conspiracy theories that have no basis of fact in an attempt to overturn the will of the american people. as americans, we see ourselves as a beacon to the world as that shining city upon the hill. we believe our political experiment to create a country united by ideals rather than blood and soil is unique and exceptional. we promote democracy as a pillar of our foreign policy, confident in our own example. we say we are a nation of laws not men. yet since november 3, a widespread effort to overturn the results of the presidential election have been openly endorsed by some high-ranking leaders and facilitated by the

silence of many more. for the record, joe biden and kamala harris won by more than seven million votes. they received 81 million votes, 51.3% of the total cast. on monday, president-elect biden won 306 electoral college votes, two more than president trump in 2016. there is no question that joe biden and kamala harris won the election resoundingly. those who believe otherwise first allege massive fraud. then claimed election procedures were unfair. but when granted the opportunity in courts of law to present evidence of fraud, they couldn't do it. there simply is no proof of fraud in any significant scale. the attacks against voting by mail, signature matching, and the like notably selective to begin with, had mostly already been litigated. mr. speaker, it is critically important that americans trust our elections.

that is why credible claims of fraud or irregularities must be investigated and corrective action taken. that has happened. there have been multiple recounts. three in georgia alone. those who -- those seeking to overturn the election results have lost 59 times in courts across seven states and twice before this supreme court. at least 86 judges, many appointed by republicans, have rejected at least one post election lawsuit. all three supreme court justices nominated by president trump ruled against him. mr. speaker, the fact is that the november elections were free and fair. the cyber security and infrastructure security agency said that the election was the most secure in american history. and there is no evidence that any voting system deleted or lost votes, changed votes, or in any way compromised. attorney general barr, of all people, said that the justice department has uncovered no voting fraud on a scale that

could be -- could have affected a different outcome in the election. using his words. the election is over. yet president trump still refuses to concede and his allies continue to look for ways to throw out the votes of millions of americans. mr. speaker, this is crazy. it is undemocratic and un-american. and degrades democracy in every corner of the world. if this were happening in another contry, our government would rightfully demand that the results of free and fair elections be respected. mr. speaker, some may criticize my remarks today because i objected to certifying the electoral college results in 2017. let me be clear. i do not oppose using established constitutional procedures. i object when those procedures are not used to further the truth but to undermine it. in 2017, eight u.s. intelligence agencies, eight said that russia had engaged in an unprecedented attempt to interfere in our elections in favor of donald trump. i sought the kind of assurance about the security of the 2016

election that has already been provided for 2020. it was not forthcoming. mr. speaker, america's institutions will survive the test the last few weeks due to the quiet courage and commitment of thousands of volunteer election workers, local and state election officials, some facing threats and intimidation, and the integrity of our courts the clear choice of the people will be respected. but i worry we are becoming what we condemn elsewhere. democracy is not guaranteed. each of us has to choose democracy every day and wait we conduct our politics. either we choose to enforce democratic rules of the game or we don't. either we choose to accept the losses alongside the wins or we don't. either we choose to tell the truth or we don't. mr. speaker, today i urge my colleagues to proceed with caution. if our politics belie our values, we will be lost at home and ignored abroad. i believe we are an exceptional country. let's act like it. thank you.

i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the chair recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. thompson, for five minutes. mr. thompson: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i rise today to remind us all of the great american red cross program, holidays for heroes. an opportunity to thank and support our military, veterans, and their families throughout this holiday season. we all look forward to gathering with family and friends and loved ones this time of year for our service members, that is a luxury that all too often is not able to happen. these men and women spend many nths at a time, times over a year, and in their service years, away from their families. that's difficult no matter what time of year it is, but it is for them the holidays their

sacrifice is magnified. i'd like to encourage everyone to reach out to their local red cross chapters to find out how to send a card, how to volunteer, or get involved wherever they see fit to spread some holiday cheer to our heroes. even a small gesture can brighten a holiday season for those that are employed -- deployed. that they are remembered, appreciated every day. but especially during this holiday season. take a moment out of your day today to let a soldier know just how much you appreciate them. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair now recognizes the gentleman from new york, mr. tonko, for five minutes. mr. tonko: good morning, thank you, mr. speaker. millions of america's restaurants are on the edge of financial collapse. if we do not get them a lifeline

now, we will lose these pillars of community as economic vitality that have long stood throughout our nation. and we will pay an even steeper price as millions more americans lose their jobs and families are left stranded with nowhere to turn. more than 110,000 of america's restaurants have already closed during this very difficult pandemic. restaurateurs have adapted. they have reinvented. they have dug deep to hold on this long. but more than a third say they won't survive the next six months without federal help. in my home state of new york, that figure is closer to more than one half. we can and we must act to save these cherished main street establishments before it's too late.

the house already passed a bipartisan bill. a bill that gets the job done. with more than 200 bipartisan co-sponsors, h.r. 7197, the restaurants act, would create a $120 billion revitalization fund. a fund that would rescue america's independent restaurants. i urge my colleagues in the senate to join us, join us in this bipartisan effort and pass the restaurants act. our main street businesses have always delivered for us. let us make sure that we deliver for them now when they need it so desperately. with that, mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. he chair recognizes the --

maryland, mr. brown, for five minutes. mr. brown: thank you, mr. speaker. want to recognize the service of my former chief of staff. mella has been an inddispensable advisor and confidant to me for more than a decade. including my first days in congress and during my tenure as maryland's lieutenant governor. it's fair to say that i wouldn't be here today without her extraordinary counsel. i can count on her day and night to get the job done. she brought in unmatched level of commitment to every issue, every challenge, every single fight, every constituent case no matter how big or small. throughout our time together, she's provided strategic advice

and clear-eyed leadership on national security and defense. transportation and infrastructure. maia served as my key liaison to the congressional black caucus and democratic leadership on core issues to me and the people of maryland. her deep understanding of the issues, candid advice, insightful opinions, and passionate drive for serving others has helped me deliver for my state, my constituents, our service members, and our country. maia served as a mentor for my team both in my district office and on capitol hill. she led my staff to always put the needs of our constituents first and work hard to enact real change. i look forward to seeing the great work that maia will do as she takes on new challenges and no doubt excels.

maia, thank you very much for your years of service. you have made a difference in the lives of many. and i know that you will continue to do so in the years ahead. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back the balance of my time. . the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from georgia, mr. hall, for five minutes. hall: i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend. mr. speaker, i draw the to the s attention legislation i introduced yesterday. towould initiate the process bring innovative mass transit side.s to the south it was the first of bringing often development to neglected areas within the metro atlanta region without of long time residents. loop.hn lewis d.o.t.

addition, in transform the first transit roject and bring economic justice to established neighborhoods and businesses in n area where representative john lewis lived for decades. corridor tions in the senior ve a future citizen center named for john lewis. the lives of ve esidents while reducing our co-2 emissions. another step s toward revitalizing parts of atlanta. the overall, it has potential to spur $5 billion in economic development across thousands of acres in low to middle-income communities. i urge the congress to pass this legislation, launch the study this transit corridor one step closer to reality.

mr. speaker, i rise to celebrate the lives of four great important to georgia's fifth congressional district who away. one was a pillar of the greater long time educator with the atlanta school systems. bottoms touched the lives many. she was a graduate of spelman of ege, was the mother derrick. mother-in-law of atlanta's mayor, keisha lance bottoms. honor the life of her. oseph arrington sr. was a generation d atlantaan. law degree and masters of public health from pittsburgh.ty of

a member of kappa alpha cy from joseph airingson sr. ill be -- arrington will be remembered as a person honor. o dr. smith dedicated her life to greater atlanta. and her family is one of the atlanta.members of dr. smith will never be forgotten. and last and certainly not we remember the least -- delise ragsdale who hailed from tennessee, and graduate of spelman. she dedicated her life to lives g and enrichg the of others. -- enrichg the lives of lives of enriches the

others. sigma theta delta sorority. know i speak for the fifth district of georgia when i say she will be dearly missed. these memories of all departed souls be a blessing. thank you, mr. speaker, and with that i yield back. the peaker pro tempore: gentleman from georgia yields back. pursuant to clause 12-a of rule 1, the chair declares the house until noon today.