Interview with U.S. Congressman James Langevin

Q. What do you think has been the main impact of you being a person with a disability in a position of power and do you see your position as advancing the agenda of individuals with disabilities?

A. I certainly do see my presence here, my election to Congress, as furthering the role of people with disabilities in society and being able to serve in government. In many ways perhaps my being here is the next phase of what the founders or the authors of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) had envisioned in terms of including disabled people in all aspects of life, including service in government. My presence here in Congress, my election to Congress, has probably served to achieve three things. First, it has forced the Congress to be better prepared for individuals with disabilities to serve in Congress. There have been physical things-- changes-- that have had to be made since I arrived here, such as renovating my office, making some changes on the House floor, adding a new speaker's lectern in the well of the House, removing seats on the floor of the House of Representatives. So, for the first time since the body was created, I would have a place to pull into on the floor of the House. When I originally was speaking, I just spoke using a lapel mike, and then they changed the lectern so that I could use the same podium that everyone uses. The lectern easily raises and lowers to anyone's height and I can pull right up and can speak right from the well like anyone else and get my feet underneath the podium so I can be close to the microphone.

I would also hope that my election to Congress has served to inspire and motivate other disabled people to serve in government, to know that they can achieve an election to office, or any goal or desire they have to work in any field. I hope and like to believe that many of the lives that I touch, I may never even meet these people, but maybe just seeing me doing what I'm doing and seeing that I have gone after my dreams and seen them achieved, that hopefully will help them to know that they can do the same thing.

Consciousness-raising
The third thing that it [my position] does is it is a consciousness-raising issue among my colleagues. Certainly my being here has prepared the Congress for other individuals with disabilities to serve here. Hopefully it has inspired people out in the world or around this country to serve in government or do other things, but also it's been a consciousness-raising issue I know for my colleagues, they've told me. They come up to me and say, "thank you for being here. Just your presence is an eye-opener." Just by observing the challenges that I face has been a consciousness-raising issue for them. But it's also an opportunity, so the fourth thing I guess I would say, is that it gives me an opportunity to further the agenda of opening the doors for disabled individuals. It gives me an opportunity to continue to make a difference and open the doors even further then those who first authored the ADA had envisioned, and I hope that I am making a difference. It's allowed me to do things like create the Bipartisan Disabilities Caucus. It has helped me to promote and speak with authority on disabilities legislation. Certainly when I speak on disabilities legislation, I have credibility on the issue. I don't have to convince people on the floor that I know what I'm talking about or that this is something that will help the disability community. It's one of those things where, you know it's like a woman speaking on women's issues or an African-American speaking on minority issues. I live disabilities, I grew up with a disability, so therefore I can convey my experience, not just what I think about it, but my experience, on the issue to my colleagues. They have been very receptive to supporting the things that I've pushed for, both sides of the aisle. Now, election reform is another thing. So, I guess those are the four areas where my service here has hopefully made a difference.

Q. Are you the first Member of Congress to have a disability?

A. I'm the first quadriplegic to serve in the United States House of Representatives and the first one to permanently require the use of a wheelchair.

Q. Have there been others who were hearing-impaired or blind or had other types of disabilities, do you know?

A. There have been Members from time to time who have temporarily been in a wheelchair because of a stroke or something like that. Charlie Rangel was just in a motorized wheelchair for a little bit because he blew his knee out. Max Cleland [who was] in the Senate is a triple amputee. But in terms of someone who is blind, I'm not sure.

Q. And, of course there was Senator [Robert] Dole?

A. Yes, and also Senator [Daniel] Inouye is an amputee.

Q. In terms of policies, you talked about the influence you have had on a personal level, both with your constituents and others throughout the country, and also on your colleagues. But in terms of policies per se, have you been able to be influential because of your disability in terms of policies, new legislation, etc.?

Influence on legislation & policy
A. The first two that come to mind are the Help America Vote Act, ensuring accessible equipment is available at the polls for people with disabilities as well as physical access to the polls. Those two things were major achievements. And the other is making sure that we are using reconstruction funds in such a way that ensures that accessibility [for people with disabilities] - is a forethought rather than an afterthought as we are using funds to reconstruct Iraq and Afghanistan.

Q. Do your committee assignments reflect your interest in disability issues? Do you have any choice in the committee assignments?

A. Yes, I have choices in which committees I'm assigned to, and from time to time, it impacts on my service on the two committees that I serve on. Also, previously, when I was on the Small Business [Committee], I was able to play a role there in terms of bringing awareness of disabilities issues and how it affects and interacts with the business community. We had a hearing, for example, in which we brought in employers who deal with employing people with disabilities in their companies. Their testimony showed how those employees are valuable and dedicated members of the workforce who help companies to grow and be profitable. On Armed Services and Homeland Security Committees where I currently serve (I've taken a leave of absence from Small Business Committee to serve on Homeland Security because you can only serve on two committees at a time), both give me the opportunity to advocate for disabled people from time to time. But you should know that in my service in government, I've never made disability issues my primary focus. Just as being disabled is a part of who I am, it is not who I am. That is reflected more in my service here in Congress. I am working on so many different issues, disability issues are one of them. I don't seek to be the sole spokesman for disability issues, or in a sense the poster-child for those issues. I do recognize that I have a unique perspective on those issues and I have a responsibility to help further the cause. I do take those opportunities when they are presented or I seek them out from time to time, but again it is not the sole focus of who I am or what I do here and I have many other responsibilities that I take very seriously.

Q. Do your colleagues come to you for advice in broader areas, beyond something like National Institutes of Health funding for example? If they were talking about transportation issues or infrastructure issues, would they think to seek your opinion as a person with a disability?

Necessity of building experience and knowledge
A. Yes, although I think when they ask my advice or input on disabilities it's because it's something I have experience with. The more I gain in seniority as I'm here, the more I'm respected on other issues because of my work on the committees. I'm certain my colleagues will interact with me more and seek my opinion more on a wider array of issues. But I think it comes with tenure in service and length of service and getting known for an issue. But yes, I do find my colleagues on occasion do come to me with various interests that they have or concerns that they have, and for my support on bills that don't necessarily have anything to do with disability issues. By way of example, I was a former Secretary of State before I came to Congress and one of the cornerstones of my administration as Secretary of State was to have overhauled our entire election system, back in 1998. There was no one else in Congress who had overhauled an entire election system in a state, so I was able to now help do for America what I did in Rhode Island. To this day, we are still looked to for advice on election systems by various colleagues.

Q. Is there quantifiable progress in the education goals, for example, for people with disabilities in terms of employment or return to work? What are your thoughts about that?

A. Well, the two things that come to mind are IDEA legislation and funding for children. Certainly they have had a measurable effect on how children learn and are prepared to enter the workforce. The other piece of legislation that's important is the Assistive Technology Act that has provided funding and resources for assistive technology so that it helps to level the playing field and helps people with disabilities to be more independent and more productive in the workforce. Vocational rehabilitation is also important. Transportation programs so they can get to and from work have had an effect. And clearly the mother of all the acts and pieces of legislation would be the ADA that has fundamentally changed how society looks at the disabilities issues in general. No longer when you have a ramp or a curb cut or something, no longer is it a courtesy that you are providing for someone with a disability, it's a civil right that you have access to public accommodations and things like that.

Future priorities
Q. What do you personally want to work on concerning your goals to improve the quality of life for disabled individuals, or any other goals that you have? And how do you plan to act on or implement these goals, what's your game plan?

A. Healthcare, transportation, and greater opportunities in terms of people with disabilities entering the workforce. Healthcare is a major need for people with disabilities and the Ticket to Work Program has made some progress in that area in terms of opening up doors, but even the Ticket to Work Program doesn't go far enough. It's a good start, but we need to do better so the people who are on public assistance can go to work and not risk their inclusion to healthcare. That's one of the major obstacles for people who are on public assistance who are disabled, in terms of getting them off of public assistance and helping them to enter the workforce so that they become taxpayers as opposed to consumers of tax dollars. But people with disabilities face extraordinarily high, disproportionately high, medical costs and they cannot afford to lose their health insurance. And, if it means not working so that they keep their health insurance, that's the choice that people unfortunately have to make, and they do make that choice to stay home so they can keep their medical insurance. We shouldn't have individuals with disabilities who are able and willing, and ready to work be forced to stay home and not work because they need to keep their health insurance. We also need to find a way to get them to work. What good is being able to fill out an application if you can't make it to work to do the job? Transportation is a major obstacle and we want to make sure that we continue to chip away at that problem and provide adequate transportation options for people with disabilities. Obviously, through the ADA making sure that workplaces are accessible, we can educate employers about what the ADA is all about so they don't have to be afraid of what the ADA means. It's more about achieving reasonable accommodations for workers with disabilities, not about forcing major expenses to be made, or altering the workplace in such a way that it becomes cost prohibitive. So continuing to open up the workplace for people with disabilities would be a major goal of mine.

Q. Are you concerned about the recent decisions from the Supreme Court that seem to narrow the scope?

A. I am, and the only good decision from the Supreme Court on disabilities is the Olmstead decision. I think people should be able to stay in their home if that's at all possible, as opposed to going to a nursing home, but again that's going to take money. The MiCASSA (Medicaid Community Attendant Services and Supports Act) legislation that is before Congress right now is a major step toward achieving that.

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