[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 71 (Tuesday, May 2, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H4483-H4484]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                  IN HONOR OF SENATOR JOHN C. STENNIS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Mississippi [Mr. Montgomery] is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mr. MONTGOMERY. Mr. Speaker, former Mississippi Senator John C. 
Stennis died on April 23 at the age of 93. He retired from the Senate 
in 1989. In the passage of time, we sometimes forget events and 
accomplishments, but we will not forget Senator Stennis.
  [[Page H4484]] History will record Senator Stennis as one of the 
great statesmen of the 20th century. He was so well respected in 
Washington as a southern gentleman and as a man of unquestioned 
integrity and character. But along with his courtly southern manner, 
Senator Stennis was an effective leader who was tough when it came to 
maintaining a strong national defense and in looking out for his native 
State. Through more than 40 years in the Nation's Capital, his first 
priority was to put Mississippi first.
  The legacy of John Stennis can be seen throughout the State of 
Mississippi, from the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway in the north, to 
Meridian's Naval Air Station to the Stennis Space Center on the gulf 
coast. At points in between, he was responsible for bringing Federal 
funds for water systems and economic development projects that helped 
improve the lives of his fellow Mississippians.
  As chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, he felt the 
United States should always deal from a position of military strength. 
He worked hard to see that our fighting men and women, both in the 
active forces and the National Guard and Reserve, had the equipment and 
training they needed to do the job.
  In honor of Senator Stennis' commitment to the military, Ronald 
Reagan announced during his Presidency that the Navy's next aircraft 
carrier would be named the U.S.S. John C. Stennis. The ship is 
undergoing sea trials this spring and summer and will be officially 
commissioned later this year.
  Senator Stennis always called me ``his congressman'' since I 
represented his hometown of De Kalb in Kemper County. It was a great 
honor to serve as his Congressman for 28 years and his colleague for 
23. He was a remarkable man whose legacy will live on, here in 
Washington and in his beloved Mississippi.


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