[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 203 (Monday, December 18, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H14984-H14985]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                ALBERT V. BRYAN UNITED STATES COURTHOUSE

  Mr. GILCHREST. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
Senate bill (S. 965) to designate the United States courthouse for the 
eastern district of Virginia in Alexandria, VA, as the Albert V. Bryan 
United States Courthouse.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                                 S. 965

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. DESIGNATION OF ALBERT V. BRYAN UNITED STATES 
                   COURTHOUSE.

       (a) New Courthouse.--
       (1) In general.--The Federal building located at Courthouse 
     Square South and Jamieson Avenue in Alexandria, Virginia, 
     shall be known and designated as the ``Albert V. Bryan United 
     States Courthouse''.
       (2) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
     Federal building referred to in paragraph (1) shall be deemed 
     to be a reference to the ``Albert V. Bryan United States 
     Courthouse''.
       (b) Old Courthouse.--
       (1) In general.--The Federal building located at 200 South 
     Washington Street in Alexandria, Virginia,shall not be known 
     and designated as the ``Albert V. Bryan United States 
     Courthouse''.
       (2) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
     Federal building known and designated prior to the effective 
     date of this section as the ``Albert 

[[Page H14985]]
     V. Bryan United States Courthouse'' shall be deemed to be a reference 
     to the Federal building referred to in paragraph (1).
       (c) Effective Date.--This section shall become effective on 
     the date of the completion of the construction of the Federal 
     building referred to in subsection (a)(1).

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Maryland [Mr. Gilchrest] will be recognized for 20 minutes, and the 
gentleman from Ohio [Mr. Traficant] will be recognized for 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Maryland [Mr. Gilchrest].
  Mr. GILCHREST. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, Judge Bryan is a legend in the judicial community. He 
was first appointed to the U.S. district court in 1947 by President 
Truman and in 1961 he joined the court of appeals. He is best known for 
his 1958 order that four African-American students be enrolled in a 
northern Virginia all-white junior high school. This resulted in the 
first desegregated school in Virginia history. This bill has broad 
bipartisan support having passed the other body earlier this year. A 
companion bill was introduced and considered by the Subcommittee on 
Public Buildings and Economic Development earlier this year wherein we 
heard testimony from the Honorable Jim Moran, who is a distinguished 
Member from the other side.
  It is fitting that Congress name this new courthouse in Alexandria 
VA, in Judge Bryan's honor. I urge support for this legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

                              {time}  1415

  Mr. TRAFICANT. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, Judge Albert V. Bryan's judicial career covered 37 
years. It was characterized by fairness, firmness, and thoroughness. He 
was admired by his colleagues for his modesty and gentleness, and 
nobody could forget the dry wit. Everyone greatly respected his 
intelligence and integrity. His landmark work, as stated by the 
gentleman from Maryland [Mr. Gilchrest], to support integration of 
public schools in Virginia, was ultimately incorporated into the 
historic Supreme Court decision Brown versus Board of Education.
  The gentleman from Virginia [Mr. Moran], a highly respected member of 
our caucus, has done yeoman's work in bringing this legislation to the 
floor. Without his help we may not have been having it here today.
  I want to commend the gentleman from Virginia [Mr. Moran] for his 
leadership in a lot of areas in this Congress. He is to be commended 
for his support of this bill, and I join the gentleman in supporting 
this bill, to honor the life and career of Judge Bryan by designating 
the new courthouse to be dedicated in Alexandria, VA, as the Albert V. 
Bryan United States Courthouse.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the distinguished 
gentleman from Virginia [Mr. Moran].
  Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the very distinguished ranking 
minority member of this subcommittee from Ohio, who I may also say is a 
good friend, and I thank him for his thoroughness and fairness as well. 
The gentleman is someone Judge Bryan would greatly enjoy and respect.
  I want to thank my good friend as well, the very distinguished 
chairman of this subcommittee, the gentleman from Maryland [Mr. 
Gilchrest]. The gentleman does a wonderful job representing his 
constituency, but also the interests not only under his subcommittee, 
but of the country, and has done the kind of terrific work, 
particularly in the environmental area, which is just what Judge Bryan 
would care about.
  In his 37 years on the Federal bench, Judge Bryan built a record as a 
legal conservative and a strict constructionist. That is why he was 
able to bring about the very dramatic changes in terms of school 
desegregation in Virginia, because of the respect that he had earned 
throughout his career. He was renowned for his fairness, his firmness, 
and his thoroughness. As has been said, of the 322 opinions written as 
a Circuit Judge and the 18 opinions written as a U.S. District Judge, 
he was reversed in only four cases. That is a record that very, very 
few can equal.
  His colleagues knew him as a courtly, conservative Virginia 
gentleman, whose personal style was low-key, modest and polite, often 
with a dry wit. According to his son, U.S. District Judge Albert V. 
Bryan, Jr., Judge Bryan, Sr., thought of the court as a jewel of the 
Constitution.
  Following through on the jewel metaphor, the Washington Post 
editorial that marked the death of Judge Bryan stated:

       that those who knew the senior Judge Bryan might well add 
     that this appraisal came from an expert who valued that gem 
     and protected it with integrity and eloquence.

  With great reverence and pride, I am very pleased to be part of 
something that would have mattered a great deal to him, to have his 
name on a Federal Courthouse. I know it matters a great deal to his 
family and to the community that he served.
  That courthouse will open next month. I hope the distinguished 
gentleman from Maryland and the distinguished gentleman from Ohio can 
join us, if they can, and even the very distinguished staff. If they 
can make it, we would love to have join us. I very much appreciate this 
legislation going forward today.
  Mr. TRAFICANT. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I concur with the comments made by the gentleman from 
Virginia [Mr. Moran] and our distinguished chairman. I want to echo 
those comments as far as conservation work done by the distinguished 
chairman. I wanted to thank the gentleman for helping with this 
legislation today.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back 
the balance of my time.
  Mr. GILCHREST. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, when I say thank you, I do not want people to take it 
lightly, because it is a depth that is pretty deep, when I add my 
thanks to the gentleman from Ohio [Mr. Traficant] for his help and work 
on this subcommittee and this legislation. I thank the gentleman from 
Virginia [Mr. Moran] for bringing this to our attention, because the 
gentleman from Virginia knows all too well that this Nation is better 
as a result of Judge Bryan. I strongly urge the support of this 
legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back 
the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Hayworth). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from Maryland [Mr. Gilchrest] that the House 
suspend the rules and pass the Senate bill, S. 965
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the Senate bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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