mr. speaker , i yield myself such time as i may consume . 
i have great respect for the gentleman from california ( mr. dreier ) xz4001150 , and i know that he knows that the 17th amendment of the united states constitution speaks to continuity . 
i also know that he knows that the congress , for purposes of preserving our institutions , allowed for the development of a continuity-of-government commission . 
on that commission a significant number of outstanding individuals from america , a broad cross-section of them , came up with the notion that it was critical that we have a constitutional amendment to go forward . 
let me name some of the people that were on that commission : lloyd cutler ; alan simpson ; philip chase bobbitt ; kenneth duberstein ; tom foley , former speaker of the house ; robert michel , minority leader ; newt gingrich , former speaker of the house ; nicholas b. katzenbach ; jamie gorelick ; robert katzmann ; kweisi mfume ; lynn martin ; donna shalala ; and their senior counselors were norman orenstein and thomas mann . 
what they said in the very preamble of their document is the following : we held two public meetings where we heard testimony from experts , and in the course of our investigation , we explored a wide range of options short of a constitutional amendment to ameliorate or solve these problems . 
the commissioners , all of those persons that i just identified , shared distaste for frivolous or unnecessary amendments to the constitution . 
unfortunately , because the constitution dictates the way that vacancies are to be filled in the house and senate , there is no way to establish a procedure to quickly fill mass vacancies without a constitutional amendment . 
no less authorities than robert michel and newt gingrich and tom foley and lloyd cutler , folks who have studied the constitution , actively came to that conclusion . 
i tend to share their view . 
and the chairman of the committee on rules spoke of james madison . 
no greater or eminent scholar that laid the foundation perhaps , other than jefferson , dealt with all of the issues that they contemplated in their time . 
but i wonder if mr. madison would deem it fair that the house operates with closed rules rather than open rules . 
we had a vote on whether or not there should be an open rule in this important process for america , and we had an amendment offered by a distinguished member of this body , the gentleman from minnesota ( mr. sabo ) xz4003540 , requiring states to offer same-day voter registration for special elections held in accordance with this bill . 
seems reasonable that people would be scattered and other things on their minds in a crisis such as we had experienced on 9/11 . 
my colleague from new york ( mr. nadler ) xz4002890 , who lost more people than all of us combined in the 9/11 tragedy , offered a measure to prohibit deceiving any person as to the time , place , or eligibility requirements of special elections held in accordance with this bill . 
and the gentleman from michigan ( mr. conyers ) xz4000800 , the ranking member of the committee on the judiciary , offered an amendment that would require states to equally and fairly distribute election personnel and equipment when it conducts the special elections contemplated in this bill . 
all three of those civil rights measures went down the tube with the closed rule . 
when we open up this institution , we will be able to address matters in a more meaningful way so that the minority can have their amendments contemplated in good kind . 
i end by saying that thomas mann of the brookings institution , who was one of the lead authors of the continuity commission 's report , stated in front of the committee on house administration the following : `` the inability to swiftly constitute the house and senate would deprive the country of a fully functioning first branch of government at a time of grave national crisis . 
unable to achieve a quorum , or relying on a questionable quorum interpretation allowing a small minority , possibly a handful of surviving members to act for the full chamber , congress would be unable to legitimately elect a new speaker or confirm a new vice president , both critical links in presidential succession . 
they will be unable to declare war , appropriate funds , pass legislation needed to deal with the attack , confirm supreme court and cabinet appointments , oversee an executive branch possibly run by someone largely unknown to the country , and reassure a stunned nation that their constitutional democracy is alive and well. '' constitutional democracy , not statutory democracy as we are offering here today . 
mr. madison offered the 17th amendment to the united states constitution that has held well through the years with reference to continuity , and we owe no less responsibility to those founders to be mindful of our responsibilities in that regard by offering up to the american people an appropriate constitutional amendment to be debated and decided by the people of this great country . 
mr. speaker , i yield back the balance of my time . 
