[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 130 (Saturday, August 5, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1660]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


            TRIBUTE TO SECRETARY OF COMMERCE RONALD H. BROWN

                                 ______


                          HON. JULIAN C. DIXON

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, August 4, 1995
  Mr. DIXON. Mr. Speaker, As we prepare to return to our districts 
where many of us will be meeting with community and business leaders 
concerned about economic development opportunities in our 
neighborhoods, I want to use this occasion to salute the outstanding 
accomplishments of a gentleman who has worked tirelessly to promote the 
cause of business and economic opportunity throughout the United States 
and abroad. The Honorable Ronald H. Brown, our distinguished commerce 
secretary, is to be applauded and commended for the outstanding job 
that he has done in serving as the administration's enormously adept 
``Pied Piper'' of economic opportunity and empowerment.
  Ron Brown is the 30th United States Secretary of Commerce. In 
nominating him to this auspicious post, President Bill Clinton noted 
that ``American business will know that the Department of Commerce has 
a strong and independent leader and a forceful advocate.'' Those of us 
who have been privileged to know Ron can attest to his outstanding 
leadership acumen and his tenacity and considerable powers of 
persuasion. His is a skillful negotiator and an indefatigable advocate 
on behalf of America's economic interests abroad as he seeks to expand 
and open markets for American made products around the globe.
  Ron's career has been structured around public service and helping to 
make America a better place for all of her citizens. A native 
Washingtonian, he grew up in New York where his parents managed 
Harlem's famous St. Theresa's Hotel. He attended Middlebury College in 
Vermont and received his law degree from St. John's University. He is a 
member of the New York Bar, the District of Columbia Bar, and is 
admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court.
  A veteran of the United States Army, Ron saw tours of duty in Germany 
and Korea.
  Secretary Brown has had an eclectic career. He spent 12 years with 
the National Urban League, serving as Deputy Executive Director, and 
General Counsel and Vice President for the organization's Washington 
operations. He also served as Chief Counsel for the Senate Judiciary 
Committee. He is a former partner in the Washington, DC law firm of 
Patton, Boggs, and Blow. And who among us does not remember the 
brilliant job that he did as the Chairman of the Democratic National 
Committee and 1993 Inaugural Committee.
  As Secretary of Commerce, Ron has travelled extensively, promoting 
the administration's trade policies and forging sound private/public 
sector partnerships. Following the Los Angeles, Northridge earthquake 
in January 1994, Ron was one of the first cabinet officials on the 
scene, working with local, state, and federal officials to identify and 
earmark funding sources for
 businesses severely damaged and/or destroyed in the quake. He has 
since returned to the quake damaged areas on several occasions to 
survey the progress made by programs implemented under this aegis.

  Ron maintains a schedule that would tire men half of his age. Yet he 
is always prepared to go wherever he is needed, and he always does it 
with aplomb and with a spirit of unyielding optimism that inspires all 
around him to achieve the same level of commitment.
  In addition to his weighty responsibilities as Commerce Secretary, 
Ron serves on several presidential boards and councils. He is a member 
of the President's National Economic Council, the Domestic Policy 
Council, and the Task Force on National Health Care Reform. He serves a 
Co-Chair of the U.S.-China Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade, the 
U.S.-Russia Business Development Committee, and the U.S.-Israel Science 
and Technology Commission.
  Secretary Brown is also a member of the Board of Trustees for 
Middlebury College and is chair of the Senior Advisory Committee of the 
Institute of Politics at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at 
Harvard University.
  Mr. Speaker, I am proud and honored to have this opportunity to 
commend my good friend Secretary Ronald H. Brown on the fine job that 
he is doing as our Secretary of Commerce. He has led an exemplary 
career, and I have no doubt that he will continue to lead and inspire. 
Please join me in applauding him on an outstanding career, and in 
extending to him, his wife Alma, and their two children, attorneys 
Michael and Tracy, continued success in the future.


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