[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1303 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 1303

Recognizing the close friendship and historical ties between the United 
                     Kingdom and the United States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 27, 2010

   Mr. Lincoln Diaz-Balart of Florida (for himself, Ms. Watson, Mr. 
Campbell, Mr. Kind, Mr. Sestak, Mr. McIntyre, Mr. Issa, and Mr. Engel) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
                           on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Recognizing the close friendship and historical ties between the United 
                     Kingdom and the United States.

Whereas the Magna Carta, which subjected the English monarch and his subjects to 
        the rule of law and is considered one of the most important documents in 
        the legal history of the United Kingdom and the United States, was 
        recognized in 1957 by the American Bar Association for its importance to 
        United States law and constitutionalism and remains on permanent display 
        at the National Archives and Records Administration Building in 
        Washington, DC;
Whereas the English philosopher John Locke, through his monumental works on 
        social contract theory and natural law entitled ``An Essay Concerning 
        Human Understanding'', ``First Treatise on Government'', and ``Second 
        Treatise on Government'', greatly influenced the American Revolution;
Whereas English philosopher Thomas Paine, through his work ``The Rights of 
        Man'', influenced the Founding Fathers in their drafting of the United 
        States Constitution;
Whereas Scottish economist Adam Smith's ``Wealth of Nations'' greatly 
        contributed to the competition and free market principles of the United 
        States;
Whereas the English lawyer Sir William Blackstone's ``Commentaries on the Laws 
        of England'' had a lasting influence on the development of United States 
        common law and legal institutions;
Whereas the arrival of more than 1,500,000 members of the United States Armed 
        Forces in the United Kingdom in the 1940s was a turning point in World 
        War II that further solidified the close friendship between the United 
        Kingdom and the United States;
Whereas Sir Winston Churchill, who heroically and skillfully guided the United 
        Kingdom through World War II, articulated the close ties between the 
        United Kingdom and the United States when he was honored by becoming the 
        first Honorary Citizen of the United States on April 9, 1963, stating, 
        ``In this century of storm and tragedy I contemplate with high 
        satisfaction the constant factor of the interwoven and upward progress 
        of our peoples. Our comradeship and our brotherhood in war were 
        unexampled. We stood together, and because of that fact the free world 
        now stands. Nor has our partnership any exclusive nature: the Atlantic 
        community is a dream that can well be fulfilled to the detriment of none 
        and to the enduring benefit and honour of the great democracies.'';
Whereas, on August 14, 1941, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Prime 
        Minister Winston Churchill signed the Atlantic Charter which set forward 
        principles that would serve as the precursor for the formation of the 
        United Nations;
Whereas when Sir Winston Churchill resigned from his second tour of duty as 
        Prime Minster of the United Kingdom, he warned his cabinet to ``never be 
        separated from the Americans'';
Whereas the United Kingdom and the United States were founding Members of the 
        North Atlantic Treaty Organization and were 2 of the original 12 
        countries to sign the North Atlantic Treaty on April 4, 1949, in 
        Washington, DC;
Whereas the special relationship between the United Kingdom and the United 
        States was further strengthened by the coordination of Prime Minister 
        Margaret Thatcher and President Ronald Reagan whose firm opposition to 
        communism ultimately led to the fall of the Union of Soviet Socialist 
        Republics and the Iron Curtain;
Whereas after the September 11, 2001, attacks, Prime Minister Tony Blair 
        immediately flew to the United States to express solidarity with the 
        United States and President George W. Bush declared in a speech before 
        Congress that the United States ``has no truer friend than Great 
        Britain'';
Whereas the United States and the United Kingdom joined forces against the 
        Taliban in Afghanistan as part of Operation Enduring Freedom from the 
        first attacks in October 2001 and permitted the United States to fly 
        missions from Diego Garcia, part of the British Indian Ocean Territory;
Whereas, since March 15, 2010, a total of 273 United Kingdom military and 
        civilian personnel have died while serving in Afghanistan since the 
        start of operations;
Whereas there are approximately 1,700 United Kingdom military and civilian 
        personnel currently deployed to assist with the military and 
        reconstruction efforts in Iraq;
Whereas the United Kingdom has pledged 744,000,000 British pounds toward 
        reconstruction efforts;
Whereas 179 United Kingdom military and civilian personnel have died in Iraq 
        since the beginning of the campaign in March 2003;
Whereas, on August 17, 2006, the United States and the United Kingdom introduced 
        a draft United Nations Security Council resolution for the ``expeditious 
        deployment'' of a United Nations peacekeeping force in Darfur, Sudan;
Whereas the United Kingdom Foreign & Commonwealth Office reports that the United 
        States is the largest source of foreign direct investment in the United 
        Kingdom's economy, while the United Kingdom is the largest single 
        investor in the United States economy;
Whereas the United States Trade Representative states that the United Kingdom is 
        one of the European Union countries with the largest foreign direct 
        investment in the United States; and
Whereas the United Kingdom and the United States share a commitment to free 
        speech, democracy, and the rule of law based on the rich history of a 
        longstanding friendship and shared ideals: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes the profound friendship between the United 
        Kingdom and the United States;
            (2) expresses sincere gratitude to the people of the United 
        Kingdom for their generosity, camaraderie, and cooperation with 
        the people of the United States in military operations, foreign 
        assistance, and other joint efforts throughout the world;
            (3) acknowledges the importance of the United Kingdom's 
        political philosophy, law, and history on the cultural, 
        political, and legal institutions of the United States; and
            (4) looks forward to continued, deepening ties of 
        friendship between the peoples of the United Kingdom and the 
        United States.
                                 <all>