Oh, how, thank you, mister Speaker, uh. You have no idea how great this feels to be back here at work in the people's House Has you can imagine these last three and a half months have been pretty challenging times for me and my family. Uh, but if you look at the outpouring of love of warm of prayer uh oh my gosh jennifer I've been overwhelmed with all of that outpouring it's given us the strength to get through all of this and to get to this point today and it starts with God When I was laying out on the ball field, the first thing I did once I was down and I couldn't move anymore as I start to pray and and I will tell you gave me an unbelievable sense of calm knowing that at that point, it was in god's hands but I prayed for very specific things and I will tell you uh pretty much every one of those prayers was answered and then there were some pretty challenge and prayers. I was putting hand but uh. He. He really did deliver for me and my family and it just gives you that renewed faith in understanding that the power of prayer, something that you just cannot underestimate So I am definitely a living example that miracles really do happen. Um the first place. I wanna go to to thank true Angels, along the way. It starts with the United States Capitol police When I was elected majority whip as you know, the elected leadership has a security detail and if anybody ever wondered why we're sign security detail, uh I surely found out that day and let me tell you, I want to specifically mention crystal greiner and David bailey Crystal and David were signed to my security detail that morning and day in and day out there they're part of our family, jennifer. I truly do treat them as part of our family with us everywhere. We go and on that day was no different on June fourteenth. They came six 30 in the morning. We arrived at the baseball field just to play and practice for a game of baseball and uh. Nobody would suspected what, in soon and yet, as soon as the shots were fired I'll tell you when I was laying on the ground, one of the things I prayed for Or is that David crystal would be successful in carrying out their duties and both David and crystal incredibly well trained. Incredibly for professional but when I was laying there not long after the first couple of shots were fired. I could hear a different caliber weapon and that told me that they had immediately engage the shooter and let me tell you, if dated max so quickly and even after being shot, both themselves continue to engage the shooter and ultimately, God him down, which not only save my life but save the life of a lot of other people that are here in this Today, crystal couldn't be with us today, but David bailey is with us David. You are my hero. You saved my life number. Thank you so much Taco blood um I also thank those thanks to a lot of people are on the field with me right after the shooter was down a lot of my colleagues came and ran to come, check on me and one I wanna mention in particular, is one of those things that jennifer and I call the the little miracles that happened that day and throughout the next few months of our recovery happen have read one Strip on the field that day and he was the first to come to my side and, as you know, brad is not only a doctor but he's a decorated army ranger The serving combat in one of his roles and missions was to take care of people that were wanted before they went off on the helicopter to go, get prepared, who would have thought that God would put brad out there on that field with me because the Turner he applied many will tell you save my life so that I can actually make it to the hospital in time with all the blood loss so brad where you, at right now, but I don't Once I arrived at med star hospital, I was a little bit out of that. That point, but luckily, I ended up in the trusted hands of doctor Jack and his great team over at med star uh. They gave me a second chance at life and through many, many surgeries uh where my life is truly in the balance, a few of those they did a wonderful job at making sure that I was well taken care of and ultimately made it through that point so I could get to a Dr golden and his team who actually put me back together again, which was quite a task To the point where I am actually able to relearn how to walk again, so doctor judge doctor, Dr golden. Thank you for being here and thanks for your teams we're Above all else, I wanna thank my lovely wife, jennifer Those you know where no, how strong jennifer is. Uh she's, an incredibly warm and loving wife and she's an incredible mother to our children and some how, through the late nights and the surgeries and all the other thing she manage to hold our family together to make sure that Paris in Madison we're cared for as well and still to this day she's not only by my side but she's also serving as a great mother I'm lucky to have you thanks for being here love you sweetheart And while it's been a challenging time for my family, uh the thing that really overwhelmed this from the start was the outpouring of love and warmth and prayers. Uh from Southeast Louisiana, the district. I represent, we saw blood drives at saint catherine. We saw prayer group set first United methodist church in slide they'll, but we also saw were pretty ups and well wishes being given from people that we never met before throughout all of your district and you share it with me And it was one of those things that was hard for us to completely comprehend that you have people from all walks of life. That have never met me before and yet they saw what happen and they just want to offer prayers and let me tell you to each and everyone of you and please convey it to your constituents and I sure convey it to my constituents back home and that warmth and love give us just incredible strength that you can't imagine during some really really difficult times and so that is one more example of the power prayer, something else. I saw first hand And what's, in a surprise to me, but it was the out pouring of love from you, my colleagues, both Republican and Democrat uh. I know right after the shoot, we were practicing on the Republican side. The Democrats for practice into and my collagen friend and sometimes arch rival in baseball from back home in new Orleans. Unfortunately, the star of the game too many times cedric richmond somehow figured out, which hospital, how was sent to and uh got they're, probably the first person there on the scene in his baseball uniform to check on me and so many others of you Again, both Republican and Democrat reached out in ways that I can express the gratitude and how much it means to me. Jennifer our whole family. Uh. It really does show the warm side of Congress that very few people get to see and so I wanna thank each and everyone of you for that you don't know how much it meant to me and when I come back into this chamber here today, just seeing the faces of all of you. It just means more to me than you can imagine so, thanks for all of that love and support. oh A lot of people ask did this event change. You and think those you know me know how many I'm an optimistic person. Um. You know just a fun loving person. I'm from South Louisiana. We believe you work hard and you play hard and just wanted to be uh is an event like this gonna really change that and the first thing I can tell you is yes, a change me, but not in the ways you might think it's only strengthened. My faith in God and it's really crystallized what what shows up is the goodness in people. I got to see That goodness in people and so while some people might focus on a tragic event and an evil act to me all, I remember are the thousands of acts of kindness and love and warmth that came out of this and kept me going through all of it and again just reinforce size, just how wonderful most people are and how, how much compassion there is out there and finally, I want to talk about something that I guess hit me and probably struck me Like more than anything that I was not expecting and that was the outpouring of love and support from world leaders, uh people, I've met and known you, Benjamin Netanyahu and I have it's some incredible conversations from the hospital to risa may me reached out the King of dual of Jordan who's so many of of us, of met, reached out, but other world leaders also reached out uh people. I never met before and that touch me in a different way because each and everyone of us we come here in And we fight for the things that we believe in. I have passionate beliefs, uh for some reason, some of you don't agree with all of those, but it's so important. We come up here. We are the people's House. This is the place where these ideas are supposed to be debated and we fight through those issues, but ultimately we come together on whatever the board shows, 200 and eighteen. If you can put the majority together that's what rules the day it's so important is we're having Knows political battles we don't make a personal because one of the things I saw, I guess this is the thing that that really kept coming back to me as I try to to make sense of all this and in comprehend the outpouring of love that I saw it kept coming back to those world leaders in why would leaders from around the world that I never met before reach out and say Steve. We hope you can get back to work. We hope you can come through this and what it says sure they cared about my well-being, but more Then that they saw this is an attack on all of us. They saw this is an attack on the institution of the United States Congress in our government and they really calling on us to be successful. Look. We all know the United States is the leader of the free world. It's something that we frankly had the honor as a country to hold as a distinction for generations and yet, when you look at that title, what it really means is that they're people all around the world that want free to maybe that have freedom, but they know the United States being strong Is critical to the rest of the world. Having the opportunity for freedom and That's why I'm so excited to be back because, as we're fighting through the issues of the day, let's just keep in mind that we rise above the challenges of the day and understand that it's not just us and our constituents and the route the country the United States that's accounting being successful. People all around the world. I believe in freedom, accounting on us as well, and we will deliver form that's why I am so honored to be back here in the House serving with you, God bless each and everyone of you and God, bless the United States of America