[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 75 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 75

 Honoring the life, achievements, and distinguished public service of 
 John David Dingell, Jr., and expressing condolences to his family on 
                              his passing.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           February 14, 2019

  Ms. Stabenow (for herself, Mr. Peters, Mr. Blunt, Mr. Schumer, Mr. 
    Markey, Mr. Casey, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Booker, Mr. Carper, Ms. 
     Klobuchar, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Brown, Mr. Leahy, Ms. Harris, Mrs. 
    Feinstein, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Reed, Mrs. Blackburn, and Mr. Burr) 
 submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Honoring the life, achievements, and distinguished public service of 
 John David Dingell, Jr., and expressing condolences to his family on 
                              his passing.

Whereas, on February 8, 2019, the death of Representative John David Dingell, 
        Jr. (referred to in this preamble as ``John Dingell''), former Chairman 
        of the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives, 
        brought a sense of deep personal loss--

    (1) to his family, including his wife, Representative Deborah 
``Debbie'' Dingell of the 12\th\ congressional district of Michigan, and 
his children and grandchildren;

    (2) to his many former colleagues and friends;

    (3) to Members of Congress; and

    (4) to the people of the United States;

Whereas John Dingell represented the people of southeastern Michigan with 
        distinction in the House of Representatives for 59 years, from December 
        13, 1955, to January 3, 2015, making John Dingell the longest serving 
        Member of either chamber of Congress in the history of the United 
        States;
Whereas the father of John Dingell, the late John David Dingell, Sr., preceded 
        John Dingell in service as a Member of the House of Representatives from 
        March 4, 1933, to September 19, 1955;
Whereas the wife of John Dingell, Deborah Dingell, succeeded John Dingell on 
        January 3, 2015, and continues to serve as a Member of the House of 
        Representatives;
Whereas the people of southeastern Michigan have entrusted John David Dingell, 
        Sr., John Dingell, and Deborah Dingell together to serve as their voice 
        in Congress for the past 86 years;
Whereas John Dingell was raised from the age of 6 in southeast Michigan, the 
        home State of the parents of John Dingell, and the State that John David 
        Dingell, Sr., was elected to serve in the 73\rd\ Congress;
Whereas John Dingell was fiercely proud of his Polish-American roots and 
        throughout his life shared the joys of his heritage with others, 
        including by delivering paczki pastries to colleagues, staff of the 
        House of Representatives, and visitors to the Capitol;
Whereas John Dingell had his first taste of public service and participation in 
        government as a page for the House of Representatives;
Whereas John Dingell, while serving as a page for the House of Representatives, 
        in the Hall of the House of Representatives on December 8, 1941, 
        witnessed President Franklin Roosevelt deliver the iconic address asking 
        for a declaration of war against Japan following the bombing of Pearl 
        Harbor;
Whereas John Dingell was drafted into the United States Army at the age of 18 
        and served honorably;
Whereas John Dingell received a Bachelor of Science degree and a Juris Doctor 
        degree from Georgetown University;
Whereas, prior to being elected to the House of Representatives, John Dingell 
        worked--

    (1) in private law practice;

    (2) as a park ranger with the National Park Service; and

    (3) as an assistant prosecutor;

Whereas John Dingell was elected to the House of Representatives following the 
        death of John David Dingell, Sr., in 1955 and was reelected 29 times;
Whereas John Dingell--

    (1) advocated for affordable health insurance coverage for seniors in 
the United States, a cause championed by John David Dingell, Sr.; and

    (2) worked to secure the enactment of the Medicare program under title 
XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.) in 1965, 
presiding over the passage of the Social Security Amendments of 1965 
(Public Law 89-97; 79 Stat. 286) in the House of Representatives;

Whereas John Dingell witnessed President Lyndon B. Johnson sign into law the 
        Social Security Amendments of 1965 (Public Law 89-97; 79 Stat. 286), 
        which enacted the Medicare program under title XVIII of the Social 
        Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.);
Whereas John Dingell was a crusader for the environment, helping to author and 
        shepherd to passage--

    (1) the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.);

    (2) the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 
seq.);

    (3) the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972 (Public 
Law 92-500; 86 Stat. 816), which formed the basis of the modern Federal 
Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.);

    (4) the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); and

    (5) the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300f et seq.);

Whereas John Dingell fought to make civil rights a part of the platform of the 
        Democratic Party in 1960, standing up to people who believed it would 
        alienate certain voters and declaring that making civil rights a 
        platform issue was the right thing to do;
Whereas John Dingell was a strong supporter in the House of Representatives of--

    (1) the Civil Rights Act of 1957 (Public Law 85-315; 71 Stat. 634);

    (2) the Civil Rights Act of 1960 (Public Law 86-449; 74 Stat. 86);

    (3) the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000a et seq.); and

    (4) the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.);

Whereas John Dingell served as chairman of the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
        of the House of Representatives from January 3, 1981, to January 3, 
        1995, and again from January 3, 2007, to January 3, 2009, and served as 
        the ranking minority member during the years in between, making John 
        Dingell the senior Democratic member on that Committee for 26 years;
Whereas, during every Congress in which he served, John Dingell introduced 
        legislation to provide universal access to health care;
Whereas, in 2010, John Dingell invited Speaker Nancy Pelosi to use the gavel 
        with which he presided over passage of the Social Security Amendments of 
        1965 (Public Law 89-97; 79 Stat. 286), which included the Medicare 
        program under title XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et 
        seq.), to preside over passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable 
        Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18001 et seq.) in the House of Representatives;
Whereas John Dingell, over the course of his tenure in the House of 
        Representatives, served with the following 11 Presidents: Dwight D. 
        Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, Gerald 
        Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, 
        George W. Bush, and Barack Obama;
Whereas John Dingell served as Dean of the House of Representatives from January 
        3, 1995, to January 3, 2015;
Whereas John Dingell retired from the House of Representatives in 2015 and was 
        succeeded by his beloved wife, Deborah, whom he referred to as his 
        ``lovely Deborah'';
Whereas Deborah Dingell carries on the legacy of John Dingell and now serves as 
        co-chair of the Democratic Policy and Communications Committee in the 
        Democratic Caucus;
Whereas, in 2014, President Barack Obama awarded John Dingell the Presidential 
        Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor of the United States;
Whereas John Dingell, both before and after retirement, gathered a large 
        following on Twitter, where he demonstrated wit, wisdom, and clever 
        commentary on politics in the United States while promoting greater 
        civility, patriotism, tolerance, justice, and inclusion; and
Whereas John Dingell was held in the highest esteem by Members of Congress from 
        both parties because of his record tenure in office, sharp intellect, 
        good humor, congeniality, and belief in working together to achieve 
        consensus through trust and camaraderie: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) honors the life, achievements, and distinguished public 
        service of John David Dingell, Jr.; and
            (2) expresses condolences to the family of John David 
        Dingell, Jr., on his passing.
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