[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 472 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 472

Honoring Dr. James Schlesinger, former Secretary of Defense, Secretary 
            of Energy, and Director of Central Intelligence.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 11, 2014

Mr. Sessions (for himself, Mr. Udall of Colorado, Mr. Inhofe, Mr. Reed, 
   Mr. McCain, Mrs. Fischer, and Mr. Leahy) submitted the following 
             resolution; which was considered and agreed to

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Honoring Dr. James Schlesinger, former Secretary of Defense, Secretary 
            of Energy, and Director of Central Intelligence.

Whereas the Honorable Dr. James Rodney Schlesinger was born in New York City, 
        New York, on February 15, 1929, and died in Baltimore, Maryland, on 
        March 27, 2014, at the age of 85;
Whereas Dr. Schlesinger married Rachel Line Mellinger in 1954 and remained her 
        devoted husband until her death in 1995;
Whereas Dr. Schlesinger is survived by his 8 children, Cora Schlesinger, Charles 
        Schlesinger, Ann Schlesinger, William Schlesinger, Emily Schlesinger, 
        Thomas Schlesinger, Clara Schlesinger, and James Schlesinger, Jr., and 
        11 grandchildren;
Whereas, in 1950, Dr. Schlesinger graduated summa cum laude from Harvard 
        University, where he was elected Phi Beta Kappa and awarded the 
        Frederick Sheldon Travel Fellowship;
Whereas Dr. Schlesinger subsequently earned master's and doctoral degrees in 
        economics from Harvard University;
Whereas Dr. Schlesinger was a generous patron of the arts, and was instrumental 
        in establishing the Rachel M. Schlesinger Concert Hall and Arts Center 
        in Alexandria, Virginia;
Whereas Dr. Schlesinger was a generous sponsor of higher education, serving on 
        the International Council at the Belfer Center for Science and 
        International Affairs of Harvard University, endowing the Julius 
        Schlesinger Professorship of Operations Management at New York 
        University Stern School of Business and the James R. Schlesinger 
        Distinguished Professorship at the Miller Center of Public Affairs at 
        the University of Virginia, and sponsoring an ongoing music scholarship 
        at Harvard College in honor of his beloved wife;
Whereas Dr. Schlesinger was a distinguished statesman-scholar of great 
        integrity, intellect, and insight who dedicated his life to protecting 
        the security and liberty of the United States and the people of the 
        United States throughout a highly-decorated and distinguished career 
        that spanned 7 decades;
Whereas Dr. Schlesinger's intellectual contributions to the fields of economics 
        and national security include serving as professor of economics at the 
        University of Virginia from 1955 until 1963, serving at the RAND 
        Corporation from 1963 until 1969, including a term as the director of 
        strategic studies, and authoring numerous important scholarly 
        publications, such as The Political Economy of National Security: A 
        Study of the Economic Aspect of the Contemporary Power Struggle (1960), 
        Defense Planning and Budgeting: The Issue of Centralized Control (1968), 
        American Security and Energy Policy (1980), America at Century's End 
        (1989), and, most recently, Minimum Deterrence: Examining the Evidence 
        (2013);
Whereas Dr. Schlesinger's service in the Federal Government began in 1969, when 
        he took a lead role on defense matters as the assistant director and 
        acting deputy director of the United States Bureau of the Budget;
Whereas Dr. Schlesinger served as a member and chairman of the Atomic Energy 
        Commission (AEC) from 1971 until 1973, working tirelessly to implement 
        extensive organizational and management changes to strengthen the 
        regulatory performance of the Commission;
Whereas, as Director of Central Intelligence in 1973, Dr. Schlesinger focused on 
        the agency's adherence to its legislative charter;
Whereas Dr. Schlesinger was confirmed as the Secretary of Defense in 1973 at age 
        44, a position he held until 1975;
Whereas, during his tenure as Secretary of Defense, Dr. Schlesinger contributed 
        to the national security of the United States by authoring the 
        ``Schlesinger Doctrine'', which instituted important reforms 
        strengthening the flexibility and credibility of the United States 
        nuclear deterrent to prevent war, reassure the allies of the United 
        States, and protect the liberties of all people of the United States, 
        and by taking action, including overseeing the successful development of 
        the A-10 close-air support aircraft and the F-16 fighter aircraft, to 
        ensure that the United States maintained ``essential equivalence'' with 
        the Soviet Union's conventional military forces and surging nuclear 
        capabilities;
Whereas Dr. Schlesinger was highly regarded by the uniformed services, and led 
        the Department of Defense with great skill and prescience through 
        numerous challenges, including the 1973 Yom Kippur War, in which he was 
        key to the United States airlift that, according to Israeli Prime 
        Minister Golda Meir, ``meant life for our people'', the 1974 Cyprus 
        Crisis, the closing phase of the Indochina conflict, and the 1975 
        Mayaguez incident, in which his actions helped save the lives of United 
        States citizens held by the Khmer Rouge, the withdrawal of the United 
        States Armed Forces from Vietnam, and cuts to the budget of the 
        Department of Defense;
Whereas, in light of his realistic views of the power and intentions of the 
        Soviet Union, Dr. Schlesinger was invited to China as a private citizen 
        in 1975 at the personal request of Mao Zedong, Chairman of the Chinese 
        Communist Party, and upon Mao's death, was the only foreigner invited by 
        the Chinese leadership to lay a wreath at Mao's bier;
Whereas, in 1976, during a difficult period of oil embargoes and fuel shortages, 
        President-elect Jimmy Carter invited Dr. Schlesinger to serve as his 
        special advisor on energy to establish a national energy policy and 
        create the charter for the Department of Energy;
Whereas President Carter appointed Dr. Schlesinger as the first Secretary of 
        Energy in 1977, and in this role Dr. Schlesinger successfully initiated 
        new conservation standards, the gradual deregulation of oil and natural 
        gas industries, and the unification of United States policies with 
        respect to energy and national security;
Whereas following his return to private life in 1979, Dr. Schlesinger continued 
        to work tirelessly in a wide array of public service and civic 
        positions, including as a member of President Ronald Reagan's Commission 
        on Strategic Forces, a member of Virginia Governor Charles Robb's 
        Commission on Virginia's Future, chairman of the board of trustees for 
        the Mitre Corporation, a member of the Defense Policy Board and co-chair 
        of studies for the Defense Science Board, chairman of the National 
        Space-Based Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) Board, a director 
        of the Sandia National Corporation, a trustee of the Atlantic Council, a 
        trustee of the Nixon Center, a trustee of the Henry M. Jackson 
        Foundation, and an original member of the Secretary of State's 
        International Security Advisory Board;
Whereas, in the recent past, Dr. Schlesinger was appointed by President George 
        W. Bush to the Homeland Security Advisory Board, invited by Secretary of 
        Defense Robert Gates to lead the Schlesinger Task Force to recommend 
        measures to ensure the highest levels of competence and control of the 
        nuclear forces of the United States, and invited by Congress to serve as 
        the Vice Chairman of the Congressional Commission on the Strategic 
        Posture of the United States, which produced the 2009 study ``America's 
        Strategic Posture'' that served as the blueprint for the 2010 Nuclear 
        Posture Review of the Department of Defense;
Whereas in addition to Dr. Schlesinger's earned doctorate from Harvard 
        University, he was awarded 13 honorary doctorates, and was the recipient 
        of numerous prestigious medals and awards, including the National 
        Security Medal (presented by President Carter), the Defense Science 
        Board's Eugene G. Fubini Award, the United States Army Association's 
        George Catlett Marshall Medal, the Air Force Association's H. H. Arnold 
        Award, the Navy League's National Meritorious Citation, the Society of 
        Experimental Test Pilots' James H. Doolittle Award, the Military Order 
        of World Wars' Distinguished Service Medal, the Air Force Association's 
        Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Henry M. Jackson Foundation's Henry 
        M. Jackson Award for Distinguished Public Service; and
Whereas Dr. Schlesinger's monumental contributions to the security and liberty 
        of the United States and Western civilization, and to the betterment of 
        his local community, should serve as an example to all people of the 
        United States: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) has heard with profound sorrow and deep regret the 
        announcement of the death of the Honorable Dr. James R. 
        Schlesinger, former Secretary of Defense, Secretary of Energy, 
        and Director of Central Intelligence;
            (2) honors the legacy of Dr. Schlesinger's commitment to 
        the liberty and security of the United States and Western 
        civilization, the betterment of his local community, and his 
        loving family;
            (3) extends its deepest condolences and sympathy to the 
        family, friends, and colleagues of Dr. Schlesinger who have 
        lost a beloved father, grandfather, and leader;
            (4) honors Dr. Schlesinger's wisdom, discernment, 
        scholarship, and dedication to public service that greatly 
        benefited his community, country, and Western civilization;
            (5) recognizes with great appreciation that, while serving 
        as a public servant under President Nixon, President Ford, and 
        President Carter, Dr. Schlesinger contributed significantly, 
        thoughtfully, and directly to the betterment of the policies 
        and practices of the United States in the areas of national 
        defense, energy, and intelligence;
            (6) recognizes with great appreciation that, after 
        returning to private life, Dr. Schlesinger continued to serve 
        the United States selflessly through bipartisan contributions 
        to the reasoned public discourse of issues and his leadership 
        on high-level studies sponsored by the Executive, the 
        Department of Defense, the Department of State, and the 
        Congress;
            (7) recognizes with great appreciation Dr. Schlesinger's 
        exemplary life, which was guided by his commitment to the 
        continuing security and liberty of the United States, and by 
        his honor, duty, and devotion to country, family, scholarship, 
        and personal moral integrity;
            (8) expresses profound respect and admiration for Dr. 
        Schlesinger and his extraordinary legacy of commitment to the 
        people of the United States, United States military personnel, 
        and all those who help safeguard the Nation; and
            (9) directs the Secretary of the Senate to transmit an 
        enrolled copy of this resolution to the family of the Honorable 
        Dr. James R. Schlesinger.
                                 <all>