Vote Notes: H.R. 5532, Reconstruction Era National Historical Park Act

Statement

Last month, the House passed H.R. 5532, the Reconstruction Era National Historical Park Act, which will redesignate Beaufort's Reconstruction Era National Monument as a Historical Park and allow for the creation of a national "Historic Network." This bill will build upon the recently created park that celebrates South Carolina's importance in our nation's Reconstruction era by celebrating locations like the Camp Saxton Site in Port Royal, the Brick Baptist Church, and the Penn School.

Outside of the historical significance that this bill attempts to commemorate, highlight, and protect, here are a few things that are important about this bill that Rep. James E. Clyburn and I passed through the House.

One, it's going about the protection of land in the right way. I believe that the Antiquities Act has been abused by Republicans and Democrats alike. It has shifted power from the legislative body, which should control the purse strings of our country, to the executive branch so that a president can by proclamation protect areas of our country. Doing so is at odds with the legislative tug of war that our Founding Fathers intended when we go to committing your and my financial resources as taxpayers. So though protection of Penn Center began with President Obama's use of the Antiquities Act, this bill attempted to codify what happened there with actual legislation. And I believe that's the right way to protect natural and historic resources of our country.

Two, it was bipartisan. It goes without saying that Rep. Clyburn and I have disagreed on more than a few policy matters over the years…and that's okay. We have different starting points philosophically, and that difference of opinion is what the Founding Fathers envisioned in their setting of the legislative body. Of late, we've seen too much partisan rancor wherein policymakers seem unable to leave aside their differences and find areas of common ground.

Three, the bill expressly prohibits condemnation action by the federal government as a means of growing the footprint for the reconstruction site. This too is important in curbing the amazing and significant powers of our federal government. If we want more of something as a federal body, we should sit down with private landholders and negotiate rather than simply coming in and saying that we want it, and we'll take it.

I could go on, but I was pleased to see this legislation pass in the House. I think it's important to commemorate and preserve pieces of one's past so that they have a better vision and perspective on where they go next. This is true in our individual lives, and this is true for us as a people. What happened on St. Helena Island, Beaufort, Hilton Head Island, and, for that matter, many of the sea islands of the Lowcountry is amazing for how rich its history is and for how much we can learn from it.

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