Rep. Kendra Horn Farewell Address

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to reflect on what has been the greatest honor of my life: the opportunity to represent my home State and Oklahoma's Fifth Congressional District here in the people's House. This is not an honor that I take lightly, nor is it a responsibility that I could have carried alone.

First and foremost, I begin by saying thank you.

Thank you to my family, to my parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, my friends, and all of those who have supported me throughout my life, who taught me the lessons about caring for our community, lessons about hard work and determination, about living the Golden Rule--the Oklahoma standard. Thank you to all my teachers and guiding voices who showed me, through words and actions, the value of service, the importance of showing up for each other and standing up for what is right. Thank you to Oklahomans who have shown up to make their voices heard. It is because of you we were able to accomplish everything we did. It is because of you that we were able to do what others said could not be done. Mr. Speaker, I express my gratitude for my staff, who worked day and night to serve the Fifth District: my legislative team who made sure that, with every vote I took, I did what was right for Oklahoma; my caseworkers, who were nothing short of lifesavers. Their work to help veterans and seniors, to help workers and small businesses and struggling families during this pandemic literally saved lives. Each and every one of my staff pushed themselves, not for my personal end, not to make a political point, but to serve a district and people that they care about, to help people who need it, and to make Oklahomans heard in Congress. After all, that is why we are here. Members and staff alike, we are here to serve, and public service means putting the best interest of others before ourselves. Service means listening to and working with others, even when we disagree.

Service is not about winning at all costs. It is not about us versus them. It is about all of us working together. Service means leaving the world and our country a better place than we found it.

I still believe that we can do that, that we must do that, that we must leave this country better than we found it. And, no, it is not easy. It takes work, but it is worth it. Mr. Speaker, during the 116th Congress, I held 54 townhalls, a record for Oklahoma's Fifth District. I met with thousand of Oklahomans: individuals, businesses, and organizations. It was worth it because connecting with constituents and making sure their voices are heard is a critical part of this job.

One of the most frequent questions I had heard time and again--one that broke my heart--was when people would ask me if it was even worth it to work across the aisle to try to get things done, whether it was even possible to find compromise and common ground in today's bitter political climate. My answer was the same every time: Absolutely. We can and we must. We have done it before. Compromise takes hard work because it is always easier to walk away from the table, to point fingers, than it is to find a path forward. But finding common ground is worth it every time because, when we talk about service and working on behalf of our districts, to me, the best service we can provide here in Congress is putting politics aside and getting the work done for the people we represent. It is with hard work and commitment to talking to each other that we can do that, and we have proven it over and over again here in the 116th Congress. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to say that, in this Congress, that is what I have done. I have had 25 bipartisan bills signed into law in the midst of a divided government, those that make a real difference for our country and the people of Oklahoma's Fifth District, legislation like my Military Tenant's Bill of Rights and the Military HOMES Act, which work to address substandard and unsafe housing on our military bases; bills like the PPP Flexibility Act, which extends financial support to small businesses during this pandemic; and legislation like the USMCA trade deal and the CARES Act, which all needed bipartisan support to pass. These things made a difference. They were accomplished because we worked together. We were able to get them signed into law. We have accomplished real things over the past 2 years in service to our country, but only by working together.

And there is so much more left to be done. We have work to do to deliver quality, affordable healthcare to all Americans. We have to strengthen our public education system. We have to work to create economic opportunity for all. And we must face the realities of inequity and injustice and systemic racism, and the work that has yet to be done to build a stronger America.

There are no easy answers to these challenges. Simply put, there is no silver bullet or hashtag that will solve these deep-seated issues, but there is a right way to work towards a solution: by working together.

Mr. Speaker, at this moment of fear and division, we have a choice: to retreat into our corners and find ourselves pitted against each other, to fall further into this well of darkness, or to come together and find a pathway back to civility, to remember that our neighbors' fears and struggles and challenges are not that different from our own. Mr. Speaker, this is a choice each of us must make, and we must urge our Nation's leaders to make the choice correctly. We need leaders who will solve problems rather than create them, who will remind us of what we can accomplish together when we try. At this moment in time, we need leaders who will renew our commitment to unity and public service because there is so much at stake. Mr. Speaker, we have more in common than we have that is different. We have more that unites us than divides us. And to make this great experiment that is our Nation work, we must recognize a fundamental truth: We are a government of the people, and that means we have to work for everyone. We are a government by the people--not by a party, not by two separate peoples, by the people. Mr. Speaker, to move ourselves forward for the people, to keep our democracy strong, we must recognize the humanity in each other. Our Nation's future hangs in the balance.