Washington, D.C. — Today, Congresswoman Annie Kuster (NH-02) delivered her final address to Congress on the Floor of the U.S. House of Representatives, culminating her historic 12-year tenure serving New Hampshire’s Second Congressional District. 

Kuster’s remarks are available HERE and printed below:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I rise today full of gratitude for having had the privilege of representing New Hampshire’s Second Congressional District for the past 12 years.

New Hampshire doesn’t have a national sports team—I’ve long said politics is our pastime, and it has been such a joy to advocate for my friends, family, neighbors, and state in that arena. 

My time in these halls has been many things—rewarding, inspiring, challenging, and, at times, frustrating. But more than anything, it has been the greatest honor of my lifetime.

When I was first elected, I promised to bring a new approach to Washington, reach across the aisle, and build bridges wherever possible. 

As I look back at the end of my time in Congress, I am immensely proud of that record.

Over the past 12 years, I have seen Congress at its most and least efficient. With the clarity of hindsight, I can say that our government really does work best when Republicans and Democrats come together to solve our country’s biggest problems.

I grew up in a Republican household—my father, Malcolm McLane served as the mayor of Concord, and my mother, Susan McLane, served in both chambers of the New Hampshire State Legislature. She even ran for the seat I am retiring from.

I know they would be proud of my and many of my colleagues’ efforts to restore bipartisanship and reach across the aisle to pursue compromise, particularly during times of deep political division.

There will always be new challenges and opportunities for Congress to address, and our work is never truly finished.

But thanks to the support of my colleagues, Republicans and Democrats alike, we have made meaningful progress on a number of issues that don’t always go viral or generate the most clicks online.

I founded the Bipartisan Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Task Force, with my colleague Republican Frank Guinta, to bring Democrats and Republicans together to tackle the addiction and overdose epidemic that has impacted every community across the country. 

Thanks in part to the Task Force’s tireless advocacy in providing resources for communities and making smart policy changes, we are finally beginning to see overdose deaths decline across the country—and I am proud that one of my final votes in this chamber will include vital opioid response legislation in this year’s government funding package.

I also started the Bipartisan Task Force to End Sexual Violence, which has helped shed light on the pervasive culture of sexual violence that has flourished for too long in our schools, our military, and Congress—it was in this very chamber that I first shared my own story of sexual assault publicly, and fought to reform how Congress responds to sexual misconduct among members.

Through respectful conversation and honest dialogue, my Bipartisan Ski and Snowboard Caucus helped bridge the divide between our parties on the need to respond to the environmental and economic threats posed by climate change.

And, as Chair of the New Democrat Coalition, my colleagues and I have repeatedly prioritized country and duty over party and politics, providing the votes to prevent a devastating debt default and a costly government shutdown three times.

Thanks to our focus and commitment to hardworking families, our Coalition will be the largest it’s ever been in the 119th Congress and will make up more than half of the Democratic Caucus.

In each of these endeavors, we made progress—incremental at times, but progress nonetheless.

We didn’t always agree on how to tackle these challenges, but we listened to each other’s positions, debated the ideas on the merits, and focused on the mission of delivering for our constituents.

Unfortunately, my time in these halls has also been defined by extreme partisanship.

As lawmakers, we must reject cynicism and the notion that Congress and our institutions are destined for dysfunction and disorder.

We must not lose sight of our purpose and why we are here—to fight for our communities, to lead by example, and to tackle the biggest challenges facing our country, not create them.

Now, at the end of my tenure, a little older and hopefully a little wiser, I urge my colleagues and the incoming members of the 119th Congress to lead with courage in the face of division and recommit to building bridges, not tearing them down.

Remember: be bold, be brave, and most importantly, be kind.

Onward!

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