[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 129 (Wednesday, September 18, 1996)]
[House]
[Pages H10580-H10588]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TRIBUTE TO THE HONORABLE SAM GIBBONS AND THE HONORABLE GLEN BROWDER
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. McInnis). Under the Speaker's announced
policy of May 12, 1995, the gentleman from Alabama [Mr. Callahan] is
recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader.
WATCH FOR ELECTION-YEAR SPIN IN HOUSE FLOOR SPEECHES
Mr. CALLAHAN. Mr. Speaker, it must be confusing to the people who are
watching this, both in the gallery and on C-SPAN, about what we are
talking about today. During this time of our political careers in
history, it is an election year. It is like selling Coca-Cola and
Pepsi-Cola. You have one side that says Pepsi-Cola is better, and one
side that says Coca-Cola is better. What we do is create spin efforts.
We try to convince the American people that one side is going to do all
of these evil things, and the sky is going to fall if indeed a certain
individual is elected President.
You hear things about cutting Medicare. There is not a provision
anywhere in Washington where anybody has introduced or even suggested
that we cut Medicare. All of this is partisan politics, trying to
convince you, trying to manipulate you, the audience, into believing
their side or our side of any particular issue.
They just talked about the environment. We are not going to destroy
the environment. Not one individual in this entire body wants to do
anything to do harm to the environment.
So as you go through these little periods of speeches on the floor of
the House, keep in mind that it is that time of year. You are
intelligent people. You can make your own mind up. Base it on
character, base it on history, base it upon the future, base it on
whatever you want. But keep in mind that these are like television ads.
They are just a few minutes dedicated to the Members of the House to
come here and express their views, and to try to convince you that the
future lies in someone else's hands, or the future lies in the hands of
those that have it today.
Spin is interesting here in Washington, because, you know, I heard
the Secretary of Defense went over to Kuwait. I think all of us in the
House knew, and certainly everybody in television land knew, and
certainly, Mr. Speaker, you knew, that the Kuwaitis decided they did
not want us there, even though we sent 500,000 men over there to save
their country. When we tried to send 3,500 men there, they balked. But
in any event, the Secretary went over there and he explained it.
Finally, they let us come in.
But the spin that came out of it, and I quote the Washington Post,
Mr. Speaker, it said that the Kuwaitis are inviting us over there to
protect their interests. That is spin.
But for the next hour, we are not going to be partisan. We are not
going to be Republicans, we are not going to be Democrats. We are going
to be telling you some of the things that have taken place during the
last several sessions of the Congress, and about two or three
individuals that have been an integral part of that. They are two
Democrats, and I am a Republican, but there are two Democratic Members
of the House who are retiring from Congress this year.
I have requested 1 hour of this time to come in a nonpartisan sense
to talk about these two individuals, these two Members of Congress that
have made a tremendous contribution to this country during the time
that they have served.
We have not always agreed. We agreed generally only on those things
that were very beneficial to Alabama, because in the Alabama
delegation, unlike some of the other delegations in this Congress, we
work together, whether we are Democrats or Republicans. If we have a
problem, if we have a need in the State of Alabama, the delegation
meets on a monthly basis and we discuss with each other the needs, and
why we need it.
I had a home port in Mobile that I was trying to get and got it,
because I brought it to our delegation. I said, I need the help of all
seven of you. We have things in Huntsville, we had an Army base in
Anniston that one of our Members had some problems with. We always work
together.
Some States do not work together on anything. Some Democrats never
work with Republicans, and some Republicans never work with Democrats.
But in Alabama we have been blessed,
[[Page H10581]]
blessed to have seven members of our delegation who do work together;
who do not always agree on the national issues, who do not always agree
on individual bills, but who do have a guidance and a direction that
moves toward a better America and a better Alabama.
The gentleman from Alabama, Mr. Tom Bevill, from Alabama's Fourth
Congressional District, married to Lou, has three lovely children; born
in Townley, AL, the son of a coal miner, he attained the rank of
captain in the U.S. Army while serving in the European theater during
World War II.
{time} 1545
He holds an LL.B. degree from the University of Alabama School of
Law. He was first elected to the House of Representatives in 1966.
He was chairman for most of this time of the Appropriations
Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, from 1977 to 1994. As
chairman, Congressman Bevill encouraged substantial development of
Alabama's waterways and the Port of Mobile and all the waterways and
all of the ports of this entire Nation. For example, he was
instrumental in the development of the Tennessee-Tombigbee Canal. This
development allowed the United States to assert its full power in
international trade. He remains the ranking member of the Subcommittee
on Energy and Water Development even today.
The other Member retiring is Glen Browder from the Third
Congressional District of the State of Alabama, married to Becky. They
have one daughter, I think a student at Auburn. At least they live near
Auburn. He holds a Ph.D. in political science from Emory University in
Atlanta. He served as a political science professor at Jacksonville
State University, served for 4 years in the Alabana State House of
Representatives, and was elected to Congress in a special election in
1989. He serves on the House Committees on Budget and National
Security. While serving on these committees in the House, Congressman
Browder has exerted an influential, fiscally responsible philosophy. As
I have said, we did not always agree on some national issues. But you
could never, never worry about the integrity of these two individuals,
or about the word of these two individuals. If they told you they were
not going to vote for you, you just as well put it in your hat to know
they were not going to vote for you, not because they disliked you, not
because I was a Republican, but because they disagreed with me. And
that is the way this body works. It is made up of 435 individual men
and women from all walks of life, from all of the States. All of us
have had some degree of success in our other lives or we would not be
here today. You do not elect unsuccessful people to Congress. You elect
people that have been responsible people and leaders in their
community.
So while there is bickering between these two on all these partisan
issues trying to convince you through their statements to vote for
either Bob Dole or for Bill Clinton or to tell you that there ought to
be a Republican majority versus a Democratic majority in the House,
keep in mind that all of that is partisan spin politics. You are the
people who make that decision, and I trust your decision.
We have only 1 hour today to talk about these two individuals, these
two great Americans, and dozens of people have called and dozens have
asked to come and to share with me this 1 hour that we have to pay
tribute to these two great American people.
The first is a friend of mine from Indiana, Congressman John Myers.
He is going to retire as well, but now he is chairman of the same
subcommittee that Tom Bevill once chaired.
Mr. MYERS of Indiana. Mr. Speaker, we thank our friend, the gentleman
from Alabama, Sonny Callahan, for taking this hour to remember and
honor 30 years of service of our colleague.
On November 8, 1966, 72 new Members were elected to Congress, 59
Republicans and 13 Democrats. Today, there are three of us in that
class remaining in the House of Representatives, and as has been
mentioned already, all three of us have chosen this 30th year in
Congress to retire: Congressman Montgomery from Mississippi; the person
we are honoring this afternoon, Tom Bevill of Alabama; and I am from
Indiana.
That class, there was another Member who went on, had trouble keeping
a job here, served only 4 years in the House, but I talked with him
this morning, former Vice President and former President of the United
States, George Bush, said for me to extend best wishes and
congratulations to Tom Bevill and Sonny Montgomery for their 30 years
of service.
Tom, as I call him, has served 16 years as chairman of the
subcommittee where we both have served those 16 years, and I served
those 16 years as his ranking member; and the past 2 years, because of
the election, I have been given the honor of holding the chairmanship
and Tom has been the ranking member. But the relationship never
changed; it is completely, absolutely nonpartisan.
Tom is a gentleman. Nothing went into a bill unless we both agreed,
when he was chairman. The last 2 years, with the confrontation of a few
people, partisanship does not play a role in our subcommittee; it
continued the same way. The country was more important.
Tom grew up in Alabama, was born in Alabama. His family had a little
country store, and Tom worked as a clerk in that country store, growing
up. It was a coal mining area. He went on to graduate from Walker
County High School in Alabama, went on to the University of Alabama,
where he got his law degree, and then served in Europe in World War II.
He came back and practiced law for 16 years in Jasper, AL, where they
still claim home. But the thing in Alabama, and I have visited his
district many, many times, both Democrats and Republicans voted for Tom
Bevill because they knew they had a person that was fair, and just as
the gentleman from Alabama [Mr. Callahan] mentioned here, would tell
you the truth and you knew you were not getting doubletalk. They loved
Tom Bevill and they still love Tom Bevill.
So he is going to go back home, I understand, and be an Alabamian
once again, go back with his wife, Lou. His wife, Lou, my wife, Carol,
the two couples have been friends for the 30 years we have had the
honor of serving together in this Congress, but Tom and Lou Bevill are
true great people. Their three children and their grandchildren, I know
they are going to enjoy.
So today I am pleased to be able to join the many friends that Tom
Bevill has to say thank you, Tom, for your years of service and thank
you for your courtesy. Thanks for being a gentleman all of those years
when we served together.
Mr. CALLAHAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Mississippi,
Sonny Montgomery, another gentleman that is retiring this year, who was
just mentioned by the gentleman from Indiana [Mr. Myers].
Mr. MONTGOMERY. I thank the gentleman from Alabama [Mr. Callahan] for
giving me this opportunity, and I would like to pay tribute to both Tom
Bevill and Glen Browder on their retirements.
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to speak today about our longtime friend,
Tom Bevill. Tom and I both, as mentioned by John Myers, started as
freshmen together. We have been friends ever since. That was 30 years
ago. During that time, I have to say that there has never been a better
representative for Alabama or for this Nation than Tom Bevill.
Mr. Speaker, he served in the European theater during World War II
and attained the rank of captain. We three, Tom Bevill, John Myers and
I, all three served in the European theater. We did not serve together,
but we were there at the same time. So coming to Washington for Tom
Bevill was not a tough, big problem; because he had been in the war, he
knew that he could handle the job.
His constituents are very proud of him. He has had an excellent
record with the people of his State and his congressional district. Mr.
Speaker, he might have had a tough race the first time he ran, the
first 2 years, but after that, he has been elected without opposition
and really has had no problems coming to the Congress again.
As has been mentioned, he is the senior member of the House Committee
on Appropriations and served as chairman of the Subcommittee on Energy
and Water Development from 1977 to 1994. He is now the ranking member,
as we all know, and he and John Myers
[[Page H10582]]
worked together so well. He did have a lot to do with the Tenn-Tom
waterway system which goes between our two States, Alabama and
Mississippi.
Mr. Speaker, on the Tenn-Tom, there is a lock and dam that bears the
name of Tom Bevill Lock and Dam. And our congressional districts adjoin
each other. But the biggest sign in my congressional district is Tom
Bevill Lock and Dam and the sign points that way. I tease him a lot
about that, but it is the biggest sign in my congressional district.
I have enjoyed having Tom Bevill be a part of the prayer breakfast
group, and Pete Geren of Texas asked that I would mention about Tom
Bevill, he is known as the assistant to the assistant chaplain at our
prayer breakfast. He does not get to act much, but he does come a lot,
and we have enjoyed very much working together.
So about Tom, Lou has been wonderful. He has got three wonderful
children. I wish him the best.
Moving to Glen Browder, we are very proud of Glen and what he has
done since he has been in the Congress. I serve with him on the
Committee on National Security, and he has performed his duties as well
as any Member I know. Fort McClellan, AL, is in his congressional
district. He has actually himself, with help from the other Members of
the Alabama delegation, saved Fort McClellan, AL, from being closed.
Fort McClellan has been on the base closure list for a number of years.
I know for sure he has saved it for 2 years in a row.
We wish Glen, his wife, Becky, and their daughter, Jenny Rebecca, the
best in the future. Glen, Washington and the House of Representatives
will miss you.
Mr. CALLAHAN. Mr. Speaker, I would like to yield just a few minutes
to one of the individuals we are retiring. To show you what kind of
individual he is, he is here to give praise to the other Member we are
talking about, Congressman Tom Bevill of Alabama.
Mr. BEVILL. Mr. Speaker, I thank my good friend and colleague,
Congressman Callahan.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to my good friend and
colleague from Alabama, Congressman Glen Browder.
Glen is leaving office with a fine record of service to Alabama's
Third Congressional District since 1989. As you know, Glen was elected
after the death of our long-time colleague Bill Nichols.
While no one could replace Bill Nichols, Glen certainly has done an
outstanding job picking up where Congressman Nichols left off. He has
made a name for himself as a quietly determined, highly intelligent and
well-focused Member of Congress.
Like Bill Nichols, Glen Browder won a seat on the House National
Security Committee where he has become a very effective advocate on a
wide range of military issues. He fought to keep Fort McClellan off the
base closure list and developed broad expertise on the use and storage
of chemical weapons.
He has worked diligently on behalf of Persian Gulf veterans who have
suffered strange symptoms since returning from the conflict with Iraq.
Glen has pushed the Pentagon to provide more information on their
potential exposure to chemical agents.
Glen Browder has always been fiscally conservative and has provided
outstanding leadership on campaign reform issues and budget matters.
I have thoroughly enjoyed working with Glen Browder, especially on
projects of concern to Alabama. He has always been very dedicated, not
only to his district, but also to our entire State of Alabama and our
Nation.
Whatever course Glen Browder chooses to pursue, I am confident he
will be highly successful. Meanwhile, his accomplishments here in the
Congress will always be remembered and appreciated.
Glen, I wish you and your lovely wife Becky all the best in your
future endeavors.
Mr. CALLAHAN. Mr. Speaker, at this time I would like to recognize, he
has a conference he must attend, a little bit out of order but
nevertheless not out of order with respect to his vitality to this
conversation, Mr. Alan Mollohan of West Virginia.
Mr. MOLLOHAN. I thank the distinguished gentleman and chairman. I
appreciate very much his making possible this special order.
Mr. Speaker, I thank you for allowing me to take the floor today for
this fitting tribute to our distinguished colleagues from Alabama, Tom
Bevill and Glen Browder. I am pleased to add my personal words of
appreciation for their contributions to this House and to offer my best
wishes to each of them as their terms come to a close and as they look
to their future.
I had the great pleasure of serving with Glen on the Committee on the
Budget. He is particularly distinguished, bright, makes a wonderful
contribution to that committee and brings a lot of common sense to the
process. I know that he will prosper as he leaves the House and I
certainly wish him well.
Naturally as a member of the Committee on Appropriations, I will
acutely feel the absence of the gentleman from Alabama [Mr. Bevill] and
the leadership that he has provided to that committee as chairman and
the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development.
{time} 1600
He is one of the most respected members of our Committee on
Appropriations and the entire U.S. House of Representatives, and it
saddens me greatly to see him go.
For a long number of years, my father, who served in this body,
served with Tom Bevill, and dad always considered him to be as close as
you could come to the ideal of a Member of Congress.
Since taking up the responsibilities of representing the First
Congressional District here, I have found that dad is absolutely right.
Tom Bevill is bright, he is disciplined, he is full of integrity, and
not only courteous but he is kind. These are the qualities that have
made him an effective, popular Representative of the people of
Alabama's Fourth Congressional District. They are the same qualities
that have made him a widely admired Member of the House.
Of course, he has made his mark through his years of leadership of
the Energy and Water Development Subcommittee. That can be a tough job.
There are so many worthy projects brought to the attention of this
subcommittee, real needs, urgent needs in communities all across the
Nation, yet even in the best of times there are simply not enough
resources to go around.
Being able to take up as many of them as possible and blend them into
a thoughtful national policy, well, that is a real legislative art, and
Tom Bevill is the master of it.
Mr. Speaker, I doubt there is a district anywhere that has not
benefited in some measure from Tom Bevill's commitment to meeting
America's energy and water development needs. His good work will be
remembered long after he leaves this body. So, too, will his gracious
manner and the good will he has consistently shown to Members on both
sides of the aisle.
That is a real hallmark of his service. In fact, he has worked hand
in hand in a real bipartisan spirit with another very distinguished and
retiring Member of this House and of this committee, the gentleman from
Indiana, John Myers.
John Myers has been equally an outstanding servant of the people.
They are both wonderful men and a powerful legislative team.
Tom Bevill is a true gentleman, as well as a distinguished
legislator, and he will be missed sorely. Thank you, Mr. Bevill, and
thank you, too, Mr. Browder, for your faithful service to this House
and to the people of West Virginia, and my best personal best wishes go
with you.
I also want to share with you the great expression of appreciation
from the constituents of the First Congressional District of West
Virginia for all your consideration of their needs over these many
years. God bless.
Mr. CALLAHAN. Mr. Speaker, at this time I would like to recognize one
of the gentlemen we are talking about today so he can pay honor to the
other gentleman we are talking about today. I am talking about Mr.
Browder of Alabama.
(Mr. BROWDER asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. BROWDER. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Sonny Callahan, my good
[[Page H10583]]
friend and fellow Alabamian, for arranging this special order and for
all who are participating here.
I was in the gallery with my wife, Mr. Speaker, and I heard Tom
Bevill speaking about me and now it is my turn to speak about him.
For the past 30 years, Tom Bevill has been representing our State and
our country with distinction and dedication. His sincere interest in
the betterment of this great land of ours has meant a great deal to
many of our districts.
In my own district of east Alabama, for example, Tom Bevill has
exercised his leadership to help Alabama, Georgia, and Florida avoid a
nasty scrap over the water resources we share. Because of the work and
studies he sponsored, we seem to be moving toward a regional
understanding on this vital issue.
Tom served 14 years as chairman of the House Appropriations
Committee's Subcommittee on Energy and Water Resources. There is not a
State in this country that is not a better place because of Tom
Bevill's work and his knowledge. Without a doubt he will leave an
indelible imprint on our country that cannot be erased and will not be
duplicated.
Tom has always been a special friend. He introduced me to the House
when I was sworn in as a Member after a special election in 1989. At a
time like that, it is nice to have a man of his stature speaking for
you.
Tom has the respect of Members on both sides of the aisle. He has
earned this respect by his hard work, his attention to detail, and his
willingness to help another Member, even when there is no political
gain for himself.
On this occasion I also want to mention Tom's lovely wife, Lou, who
is as strong and caring a person as Tom. I wish them both the best for
all they have done for Alabama and the rest of the country.
Mr. CALLAHAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Browder for his kind words and
for his service.
I want to now introduce my next-door neighbor, the man who represents
the congressional district next to mine, Congressman Terry Everett, of
Alabama.
Mr. EVERETT. Mr. Speaker, I would like to first thank my colleague,
Sonny Callahan, for giving me and the rest of us this opportunity to
offer a personal tribute to two of my colleagues who leave this House
having earned very distinguished records of service. Tom Bevill, the
Fourth District of Alabama, and Glen Browder, of the Third District,
are well-known to the people of Alabama for their active leadership to
Alabama and the Nation.
Tom Bevill is the dean of the Alabama delegation here in Washington,
having been elected to this body 30 years ago. Tom's gentlemanly
manner, his character, and his great legislative skills have earned him
the respect of his peers.
Having served as a long-time chairman of the House Appropriations
Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, Tom's influence has, as
has already been noted here, today has been felt over the entire Nation
for decades in major energy research development and public works
projects from coast to coast.
At home in Alabama, Chairman Bevill led the drive to build the
Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway. We heard Mr. Montgomery talk about signs
in his district, in Mississippi, naming something after Mr. Bevill.
There is a joke that you cannot travel through a single town in Mr.
Bevill's district in north Alabama without seeing the Bevill name on a
building somewhere. And while that may be true, let it also be known
that there is a Bevill building on the campus of Sparks State Technical
College in Eufaula, AL, down in my district in southeast Alabama.
Tom and his wife, Lou, will be missed here in Washington after
January, but they certainly deserve a much earned rest back home in
Jasper. I wish them both the very best, and I know that Tom will have
more opportunities to meet with my good friend, our mutual friend, Doug
Pearson, for coffee more often.
Mr. Speaker, I also want to speak about another departing colleague,
Glen Browder of Alabama of the Third District. Glen Browder came to
Congress in a special election in 1989 to fill the unexpired term of
the late Congressman Bill Nichols.
Glen, who sits with me on the House Committee on National Security,
quickly proved his mettle in successfully blocking three out of four
Base Closure Commission attempts to close Anniston's Fort McClellan
Army base.
Glen also made a name for himself as a budget hawk by gaining a seat
on the House Committee on the Budget and adding focus to the
congressional effort to reach a balanced budget. Glen's fiscal
conservatism and hard work in support of our Nation's military and
veterans will be very, very much missed.
I wish him and his wife, Becky, the very best as they return to
Jacksonville, AL.
Mr. Speaker, both these gentlemen have given great service to
Alabama and to the Nation and have extended great courtesy to me
personally and I thank them. God go with them.
Mr. CALLAHAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Alabama, and at
this time we are going to go outside the State of Alabama, Mr. Speaker.
I yield time to the gentlewoman from Arkansas, Mrs. Blanche Lincoln.
Mrs. LINCOLN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Alabama for
yielding. I, too, Mr. Speaker, rise today to pay tribute to two fine
gentlemen from the State of Alabama. I am also proud to be here among
the other folks that are here paying tribute. I find myself in
excellent company.
I have had the privilege of serving with these two gentlemen for my
tenure here in the Congress. I feel like it has been a real honor to be
along their side.
Congressman Tom Bevill has served the Fourth District of Alabama with
distinction since 1966, but in many ways he has served all of our
districts at one time or another. As chairman of the Energy and Water
Appropriations Subcommittee from 1967 to 1995, Congressman Bevill has
probably been more instrumental than any Member in protecting,
preserving, and managing America's water resources.
His charge has not been an easy one in distributing an ever-shrinking
amount of funds to an ever-increasing number of worthy projects from
around the Nation. Yet he has always been fair and nonpartisan in his
work, and his word is ironclad.
When I first came to Congress 4 years ago, the appropriations process
was an unintelligible maze to me. In an effort to understand the
process better and to serve my district, I went to Tom Bevill for
advice. It could have been a very intimidating experience, a young
woman, new on Capitol Hill, visiting a powerful chairman, but it was
not. Tom Bevill welcomed me as an equal and treated me with the utmost
of respect. He helped me learn more about the process and was
instrumental in guiding several landmark Arkansas water projects
through the Congress, one on behalf of the people of the First District
of Arkansas. I want to thank him for his hard work on our behalf.
I know that Mr. Bevill's best days are ahead of him as he leaves
Congress to return to his life of a private citizen. I want to wish him
and his wife Lou the best.
There is one story I think that I must share with the rest of my
colleagues, and I think it says a little bit about Mr. Bevill that we
all really know.
Not only has he served the people of this country and of Alabama and
all of our other districts well, he has done so in a very wise and
gentlemanly way, but he has not forgotten the important things in life.
One day as we sat on the floor here, Mr. Bevill and I were visiting,
and I had on a red jacket. And he looked at me and he said: I see you
in that red jacket and, he said, I am reminded. My wife was wearing a
red jacket the day that we first had our--I think it was the day you
proposed to her, perhaps? Or maybe it was your first date.
Tom Bevill does not forget, and he does not forget the most important
things in life. He has served us all very well in this institution. He
served our Nation and the folks of Alabama. We would all do well to
follow the example of his career, commitment, fairness, grace, and
humility. Tom Bevill is the kind of Member and person that we all
strive to be, and I am proud to have served here with him and to have
learned so much.
[[Page H10584]]
Mr. Speaker, I also want to say a word about my fellow Congressman,
Glen Browder, from Alabama's Third District. I have had the true honor
of serving as a blue dog with Glen during the 104th Congress. Glen,
like myself, is a founding member of this notorious band of independent
Democrats. We have worked hard for that name and have had a great deal
of fun with it.
The blue dog mission, however, has been about meeting two principal
goals: balancing the budget in a fiscally responsible as well as a fair
way, and bringing commonsense solutions to Washington, DC.
Since coming to Congress in 1989, Glen has never swayed from those
goals. He was instrumental in crafting the blue dogs' balanced budget
and had an active voice in all of our policy decisions.
I am not sure what Glen's plans are for the future, but I certainly
know he will bring the same dedications and honor to his new endeavors
as he has to his work here in Congress. I join my colleagues in
honoring these two gentlemen, and I wish them Godspeed in the future
ahead for both of them.
Mr. CALLAHAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Arkansas, and
I now recognize the gentleman from north Alabama, Mr. Cramer.
Mr. CRAMER. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Alabama. I, of
course, want to stand here today to pay tribute to two of my best
friends, Tom Bevill and Glen Browder. I joined this Alabama team in
1991, so I have been here for 6 years. During that time the entire
Alabama delegation taught me that Alabama has a notorious reputation
for sticking together. We put Alabama's issues first, we put our party
labels second.
{time} 1615
And they demonstrated that all of the time that I was here. Of
course, Tom Bevill and I represent all of north Alabama. I have many
industries in north Alabama that are dependent for their jobs on
Federal budgets, like the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center and the
Army presence at Redstone Arsenal. I have the Tennessee Valley
Authority in north Alabama, as well.
We have so many connections to the Federal budget that if any part of
it is squeezed, we feel part of the pain from that squeeze. Tom Bevill
jumped from the get-go when I got here to make sure that I had
available to me his position of power, as I would put it, not as he
would put it, there on the Subcommittee on Energy and Water and on the
Committee on Appropriations, as well.
Whenever I needed to fight a battle, I could fight that battle with
the presence of Tom Bevill, literally. Tom and his wife Lou, his
daughters Patty and Susan, and his son Don, are like family members to
me, so it is very difficult for me to think of losing Tom Bevill to
this institution, much less as part of my professional life here in the
Congress.
But as I stand here today in the presence of John Myers, and Sonny
Montgomery who left here, and listen to them talk, as I have both today
and days before today, about their experiences here together and
separately in this Congress, it makes me think that they just do not
make people like that much anymore. They are all three illustrations to
those of us here now that the behavior that we sometimes fall into does
not have to be fallen into.
These are men who work well together. They put their partisan
politics to the side. There is an appropriate place for that, but they
bring into this institution daily a professionalism that would be hard
to match this day and time. We are going to miss all three of them.
My colleague, Glen Browder, was slightly behind me in his tenure
here. I should say ahead of me; he came here slightly before I came
here. And Glen was, as well, an Alabama team member available to me
when I got here; from Jacksonville State University, where he served on
the faculty at that fine Alabama educational institution. He served
also in the Alabama State House. He was Alabama Secretary of State as
well. He brought that Alabama background to our Alabama team.
Of course, when you come to Congress you do not get to be on every
committee you want to be on. Glen was on the Armed Services Committee
and, as I said, with our presence in north Alabama at the Redstone
Arsenal, with the jobs that we had there, often I had to go to Glen and
say, ``We in the Fifth District need your help.'' And he was available
to me just as the rest of the Alabama team was available to me. And
because I have the kind of district that I have, I was often turning to
Glen for advice about how do I get ready to fight NASA's battles on the
floor or how do I help my district with the weather service issues that
we constantly have there? And he was always available to help me,
whether that meant meeting with constituents there or whether it was
joining with me to lobby on the floor to win the victories that we
needed to win.
Glen, to you and your wife Becky, and daughter, I will lose you as
family members, as well. I have enjoyed your presence and your moral
support here in Congress. You, as well as Tom Bevill, represent the
kind of personality and professionalism that I want to be a part of
while I am here. We will miss you, but we will look forward to seeing
you and working with you in different ways. Tom Bevill, Glen Browder,
we will miss you. Alabama thanks you, as we should.
Mr. CALLAHAN. Mr. Speaker, I now yield time to the gentleman from
Kentucky [Mr. Rogers].
Mr. ROGERS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding and for
taking out this special order to honor two of the very distinguished
Members of this body who happen to be from the great State of Alabama.
Glen Browder, whom we have known since he came here, one of the great
and distinguished Members of this body who has served our country so
very, very well in his tenure. And Glen, we wish for you the best in
your future endeavors, and we are going to miss your service around
here. We hope we do not miss your company. We hope you will come back
and be with us all the time that you can.
Of course, the other Member who is being honored here today, Tom
Bevill, whom I have had the pleasure of serving with not only in this
body but in the committee and on his subcommittee of recent years, I do
not know how I can summarize this man's life in Congress in 2 or 3
minutes. In fact, I do not think I can. But I am reminded of something
that was written some years ago that I think applies to Tom Bevill as
well as anything that I could say, and I am just going to quote it.
The writing was, ``Real generosity is doing something nice for
someone who will never find it out.''
And, Mr. Speaker, there are thousands of people in my district and in
every district in this country who would not know Tom Bevill's name and
yet who have benefited magnificently from his work here in this body.
He has been so many things to so many people, touching the lives of
millions of people who would not know his name if they heard it and
likely never will.
And that is the nature of the labors of Tom Bevill. To his
colleagues, he is both the quiet, genteel, gentle man who served as
chairman of a very powerful subcommittee of this body, and he is a very
caring southern gentleman in the corridors of this Capitol.
To his constituents back home, he was and is a man and leader who
rose to one of the most powerful positions in the Federal Government
and yet never forgot where he came from, where he lives, who he is, who
sent him here, and what he could do for his district and his Nation.
And as has been said, the evidence of his devotion to his people back
home is evident in every corner of his district in Alabama. And not
just in his home district, as Terry has said, but throughout the State
of Alabama and certainly throughout the Nation.
His support for higher education is symbolized by the tremendous
assistance he has been to the University of Alabama. His appreciation
for his State's lands and rivers. I mentioned the Little River Canyon
National Preserve as one star in his crown. And, of course, as has been
mentioned, the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway. I will not forget going
down to the dedication of that great economic boost to the entirety of
the Southeast United States, and being so proud to stand there as Tom
Bevill was lauded by the people of his home region and the rest of this
country for that signal improvement to the Southeast.
And of course I have been a very close friend with Tom over the years
on
[[Page H10585]]
so many fronts, but one comes to mind immediately, and that is his
tremendous work on behalf of the Appalachian Regional Commission, a
region that we share, and the ARC would not exist today had it not been
for the work of Tom Bevill. It would have been done away with years
ago; certainly the funding would have been sliced to a negligible
amount.
The same can be said of the Tennessee Valley Authority, which has
meant so much to the economic growth of the entire South. And since Tom
Bevill has been here, the TVA has had no bigger and better or more
effective supporter and promoter than Tom Bevill.
We could talk about the silent work that he has done for which there
is no notoriety or credit, even dating back to his very first days in
the Congress, on this committee responsible, among other things, for
the Nation's nuclear capability. It is this subcommittee that Tom
Bevill chaired for so many years that funded the Nation's nuclear
weaponry, and of course that had to be done in supersecrecy.
And I know personally of the long hours that Tom Bevill has sat and
worked with the most powerful weaponry known to mankind, being sure
that this Nation was prepared in the eventuality of that awful event of
Armageddon. And through most of the cold war era it was Tom Bevill who
sat in the hall and decided how much money would be spent and for what
in the Nation's preparation for our nuclear protection. That is a
thankless job that Tom Bevill did with great effectiveness and pride.
But my personal point of view, my district's point of view, there are
literally thousands of people today in my district who are now
protected from the ravages of nature, flooding, that Tom Bevill saw to.
And I suspect a great many Members of this body can say exactly the
same thing, but I can say it with feeling, as can they, that Tom, our
people thank you for your dedication to their well-being; people who
never saw, people probably that would not recognize your name, except
when I tell them who did it, that are now protected from these almost
annual ravages of having their homes washed away, their family Bibles
destroyed, their family pictures washed away. Everything they have
would be gone. Today they can say they are safe because of your service
to your country and to them in this great body. The infrastructure of
our country has done well because of your tenure.
I am reminded of two stonecutters who were asked the same question,
and I say this because Tom Bevill kept in mind why he was here all the
while. He did not waiver. He did not wander, he was always there. Two
stonecutters were asked the same question: What are you doing? The
first one said, ``I am cutting this block into two pieces.'' The second
one, though, said, ``I am on a team and we are building a cathedral.''
Tom has been on the team, and he has been building not a cathedral
but a much, much better America, and for that we are eternally thankful
to him.
I have to say this in closing, too. His wife, Lou, was one of my and
my late wife Shirley's best friends. These two people, as his close
friends and even distant friends know, are two of the best people that
God ever created. Lou, an accomplished musician among other things in
her life, is a true American and a great American, and someone that we
are going to miss almost as much as Tom, if not more so. But we are
going to miss the service of a gentle man. He was gentle, and yet when
it came to the things that he believed in, a better America, he was
tenacious and he persevered and at times was even ferocious in his
defense of these things so important to him, his district, and our
people across the country.
I know that Tom and Lou are going to enjoy the next phase of their
life. We hope for the very, very best. We hope that they will at least
come back and honor us with their presence, because we are going to
sorely miss their personal friendship in their absence from us for what
time they are absent.
So, Tom, in your next phase of your life, we wish you Godspeed.
Mr. CALLAHAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Kentucky. And I
now recognize the gentleman from Alabama [Mr. Bachus].
Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Callahan.
Mr. Cramer mentioned the Alabama delegation and what a special group
I think we are. I think he said it better than I would have said it
when he said that party labels come second. We put the interest of the
State first.
We have not had the partisan wrangling that we have sort of seen in
this Congress in our delegation. We really like each other, we work
well together, we cooperate together. It is the sort of bipartisanship
that this country needs, and you see it in the Alabama delegation. And
I think that the two gentleman we are here to give tribute to today are
two of the big reasons for that.
Glen Browder and Tom Bevill, you all were here before I came. You
worked well together. You worked well with Sonny Callahan and Bill
Dickenson, and you sort of established that tradition in the Alabama
delegation, something that I benefited from, something that the State
of Alabama has benefited from, our delegation, working together for the
good of the State and for the Nation. And, first of all, I think that
is a legacy that you all will leave with those who stay behind, that we
will continue as an Alabama delegation to put aside petty politics and
party labels for the best interests of our State.
{time} 1630
So I compliment you first for that.
Second, I compliment you for the fact that you have been a good
example to me, both of you. When I came here, I came into a Congress
where I was a Member of a minority party. And probably the first month
I was here, the first legislation that I decided to sponsor, a little
piece of legislation, saved a little bit of money in the total picture,
but I went to Tom Bevill. I am not sure at that time I appreciated that
he was a powerful cardinal on appropriations. I probably did not even
know that I was not supposed to be approaching him at the time, but I
approached him and I asked him to cosponsor my bill with me.
He could have said, I am not going to cosponsor a bill with you. You
are a little Republican freshman and I am not going to give you the
benefit of my reputation. It is too small a bill. It is just too
inconsequential. I am working on important issues that affect this
country every day. I do not want to give a young Republican Congressman
anything that might give him an advantage.
But, no, Mr. Speaker, he put all of that aside. He saw that it was
good legislation, and he cosponsored it with me. I was able to get
Members on both sides of the aisle to join with me in that legislation
because Tom Bevill's name was on that legislation.
I will never forget that, Tom. Mr. Rogers from Kentucky, his district
and your district are very much alike. One is in Kentucky; one is in
Alabama. But they are Appalachia. They are hard-working people. They
are God-fearing people. And he much better than I could describe, he
served with you here longer. He has known you and Lou, he and his late
wife Shirley. You all were good friends. He knows you man to man. He
can much better talk about your legacy than I can. I enjoyed listening
to that. I can simply say that I second everything that he said in that
regard. He certainly gave a wonderful tribute to you.
I would only add to that by saying that I have been so impressed with
your wife, Lou Bevill. She sort of, I guess if you pick out someone
that you want your wife to sort of use as a role model, because she is
here, she is up here and she, as my wife is, they are both here with us
during the week. I am so impressed with her, her and Mike Heflin. It is
hard to talk about Glen Browder and Tom Bevill without thinking about
Senator Heflin because that is sort of a dynamic trio that we are going
to be without. I am going to miss you; I am going to miss Lou. I am
going to miss Senator Heflin, and I am going to miss Mike. It is hard
to think of you without thinking of Lou. It is hard to think about
Senator Heflin without thinking about Mike. I wanted to tell you how
much I appreciated her and her example.
Mr. Everett mentioned the joke about every building in north Alabama
having a Bevill center. I told you about a year ago at a reception that
we had, I was actually trying to describe a town in your district to
someone. And
[[Page H10586]]
I described it as having a railroad that ran through it and about two
traffic lights. It was on Highway 78. That really did not give them
much of an indication.
I remembered that there was a building in the town that said the
Bevill Building. I said, it has a building named after Tom Bevill. And
actually this person's remark back to me was, You have not eliminated
one town on Highway 78 by saying it had a Bevill Building in it.
So you have left behind in your district a better place and something
that you can be proud of.
They mentioned the University of Alabama. You have been committed
also to our community colleges in Alabama. Even as a member of the
State legislature, Glen and I preceded you several years later, but you
were one of the first in Alabama to recognize that not everybody could
go to the University of Alabama; not everybody could go 120 miles to
Auburn University. So some people had to go in their communities. If
they had to travel over 20 or 30 or 40 miles, they simply would not get
an education. And you were one of the people in Alabama who led the
fight for community colleges. Thousands and literally millions of
Alabamians owe that part of their education to your insight and your
wisdom and your participation in that.
Glen Browder, I will tell you a tribute, once a man asked me if I
would recommend him for a job. I said that I would recommend him
because he had coached my little boy in Little League and he had done a
good job. You learn something about somebody when they coach your son
in Little League baseball. You get a real insight into them. And I
remember that when I came up here and Glen Browder and I were going to
serve together, I knew Glen, as we had been in the State legislature
together. You had been a constitutional officer in the State. I had
been. But I knew you as capable. I knew you as articulate. I knew you
as a good man. But Randy Dempsey, one of my law partners, he had been
in your class. You taught him at Jacksonville State. And you had
evidently been a mentor to him and you had encouraged him.
He shared with me what a fine teacher you were and how you really
cared about your students and how your students really enjoyed your
classes. You did a good job and you really cared about the students.
Glen, that has always impressed me, that someone who was there in your
classroom had such a wonderful opinion of you.
Becky, your wife, people like Becky, people are impressed with Becky.
There, again, both of you, you all have several similarities. One is
that you are committed to your family. You are committed to your
marriages. I commend you. You are a good example in that regard.
Glen, you are going to leave a legacy to our gulf war veterans. That
is something that I came about 25 minutes ago and I had not heard
anybody mention. But I am not sure if you are not the first person to
go over to the Pentagon and say, we have got people that have returned
from the gulf war. They are sick.
Mr. CALLAHAN. Mr. Speaker, I hate to interrupt the gentleman from
Birmingham, but we only have 4 minutes left and we have two more
distinguished speakers.
Mr. BACHUS. I will simply say this, Glen. That is a devastating
illness. You have been at the forefront of that and you are to be
commended on that. And all our gulf veterans and all of us who support
the military owe you a debt of gratitude for that.
Mr. CALLAHAN. I certainly hate to interrupt the gentleman.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Minnesota, Mr. Vento.
Mr. VENTO. I thank the gentleman, Mr. Callahan, for this special
order and wanted to commend my friends and colleagues, Congressmen Tom
Bevill and Glen Browder. I think that what we see epitomized in these
two good national policymakers is the magic of what happens in
Congress.
People are elected with many different talents and they assume
responsibility here, and although they are not specialists in national
security or specialists in the role, they grow into that role and do
yeoman's service. That certainly is the case with our friend Glen
Browder, and Tom Bevill has grown really to be a giant in the work he
has done in trying to hold together programs like the Corps of
Engineers.
Over 30 years we have seen that evolve from a far different role than
what it has played before. It really shows up when you work with him on
a different project, as we did with a park unit in his district. It was
one of the easier jobs I have had chairing the committee because I did
not have to ask anyone to help. Tom did all the work, and he had helped
so many Members of Congress and had had such an impact that it was
obviously with acclaim that that was enacted. Tom, it was a tough job
for you but we commend you and Lou and Glen and Becky, and we wish you
well. I know in the case of Glen it is just an interruption in terms of
his public service. We look to see him back in action quite soon. Best
wishes to you all. Thank you for your services for the country.
Mr. Speaker, let me congratulate Tom Bevill and thank his colleague
from Alabama for sponsoring this special order in Tom Bevill's and Glen
Browder's honor. These are really two good Members who will be missed
and reflect very positively upon the Congress, their good State of
Alabama, and the Nation.
Glen Browder a teacher, farmer, Alabama State legislator, and State
official served in Congress for 8 years, and has made an impressive
contribution in national security and congressional reform issues. Glen
sought election to the other body, and for the moment is sidelined from
public service but I've every expectation that our friend Glen Browder
will be back in public service in the near future. My best to Glen,
Becky, and their family as they make a transition within public
service.
Tom Bevill for over 30 years has labored and contributed in his role
of representing the people of Alabama in the U.S. House. His work on
the Appropriations Committee has been very important, in the last years
he has reformed and guided this program of projects based on merit not
just legislative clout.
Tom has been my neighbor in the Rayburn Office Building these past 10
years. We've spent many days walking back and forth to the floor to
vote, he has been a good counselor and friend. I was pleased to work
with Tom on the Little River Canyon National Park Unit in the
authorizing process as I led the Parks and Public Lands Subcommittee,
one of the easier tasks I had because Tom really did the heavy lifting.
He had more friends, both Democrats and Republicans, that were
interested in helping which is a real tribute for Tom Bevill. Naturally
this become the first national park unit in Alabama, a legacy that will
hopefully be in Alabama forever a testament to Congressman Bevill.
My colleague, my friend, you have well earned your place in our
affection and best wishes to you Tom, Lou and the family in the years
ahead as you enjoy your free time from the duties of service in the
Congress.
Mr. CALLAHAN. I yield to the gentleman from Maryland [Mr. Hoyer].
Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend, Cardinal Callahan, for
yielding.
Mr. CALLAHAN. You may approach.
Mr. HOYER. I have just a few minutes. Two decent Americans are
leaving the service of the people's House at the end of this year. This
House will be a lesser body for their departure. Alabama will have
suffered a significant loss.
Each of us individually in this House will have lost good friends.
Glen Browder is a relative newcomer relative to Mr. Bevill but then
again, most of us are relative newcomers relative to Mr. Bevill. Glen
Browder, as Spence Bachus indicated, is someone who cares about people,
who is a capable, able, regular guy that you would be proud to have as
your dad or your brother or your uncle or as your Congressman. I have
been honored to serve with him.
Tom Bevill is a giant. Tom Bevill helped America invest in its
future. One of the first votes I cast was on the Tennessee-Tombigbee
when I came here to Congress. It was a controversial vote. It was the
right vote. Tom Bevill stood and said if America is to grow, if we are
to create jobs, if we are to have economic viability and be competitive
in world markets, we need to invest in America.
Tom Bevill is my friend and he is an historic figure in this body.
Few Members who have ever served in this House will be able to look
back on their record of making America better. That is Tom Bevill's.
God bless you, Tom.
Mr. CALLAHAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Alabama, Mr.
Hilliard.
Mr. HILLIARD. Mr. Speaker, I am very appreciative for the time to
both
[[Page H10587]]
of my friends, Tom Bevill as well as Glen Browder. I am very happy to
have had the pleasure to serve with both of them. I have known Glen
Browder for about 20 years. We served together in the Alabama State
Legislature, and it was indeed a pleasure to have had the opportunity
to serve with him there as well as here.
But to my good friend Tom Bevill, he has been a true Alabamian, he
has been a true American. He has been true to the cause. He has been
fantastic in what he has done for this country. I congratulate him for
his length of service, and I thank you for giving me the opportunity of
being here with you.
I will surely miss both Tom Bevill and Glen Browder. We have been
lucky, and yes, blessed, to have had two such strong Congressmen as
these men, they are able and true. First, I must mention my good
friend, Tom Bevill of Alabama's Fourth District. Mr. Bevill, as
chairman of the Appropriations' Energy and Water Development
Subcommittee created the Tenn-Tomm Waterway which flows through the
length of my district. Just last week, Tom helped me in my efforts to
stop the flooding along Birmingham's Village Creek, an area which is
not even close to Mr. Bevill's district, but that is the kind of man he
is, kind and caring, a real gentleman.
Also, Mr. Speaker, allow me to say how much I will also miss
Alabama's Glen Browder, of the Third District. Glen, a former political
science professor, as well as a member of the Alabama Legislature,
brought a professionalism to the House and to the Armed Services
Committee which is hard to beat.
We will miss both of you, Congressman Bevill and Mr. Browder.
Mr. CALLAHAN. Mr. Speaker, in closing, let me thank the Speaker for
his patience. I recognize our time has expired. The gentleman from
Louisiana, I think, is next going to be recognized and he has indicated
since so many Members want to pay homage to Tom that he may yield some
time to them. But this is not a eulogy. This is just an appreciation
ceremony to two great Americans.
Mr. STOKES. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague, the
distinguished gentleman from Alabama, Sonny Callahan, for reserving
this special order. We gather today to pay tribute to retiring members
of the Alabama congressional delegation. I am honored to join my
colleagues in saluting Congressman Glen Browder, who represents the
Third Congressional District of Alabama.
Glen Bowder was elected to the U.S. Congress in a special election in
1989. Prior to his election, Glen served in the Alabama State House of
Representatives from 1982 to 1986. In 1986, Glen Browder won election
as Alabama's Secretary of State, and served with distinction in that
capacity. Thus, he came to this legislative body armed with strong
political skills and a commitment to public service. During his 7-year
tenure in the Congress, the Nation has benefited as a result of his
leadership on important issues.
Mr. Speaker, Glen Browder has served with distinction on the National
Security Committee where he is a member of the Subcommittee on Military
Installations and Facilities, and Military Readiness. In addition, he
is the ranking minority member of the Subcommittee on Morale, Welfare
and Recreation. Glen has also served with distinction as a member of
the House Budget Committee.
During his career in the House, we recall Glen Browder's efforts to
serve his constituents by keeping Fort McClellan Army Base operational.
He has pushed the Defense Department to be more forthcoming on the use
of chemical weapons during the Persian Gulf war. Glen Browder has also
gained respect for spearheading efforts to reform our Nation's campaign
finance regulations. His hard work has earned him the respect and
admiration of his colleagues and others across the Nation.
Mr. Speaker, as he departs this legislative Chamber, we pause to pay
tribute to Glen Browder. He is a skilled legislator whose voice will be
missed in the Halls of Congress. We also extend our good wishes to his
wife, Becky, and members of the Browder family. Glen is a good friend
who will always be remembered.
Mr. RICHARDSON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join my colleagues in
acknowledging one of the finest Members of the House of
Representatives, Tom Bevill.
As a Member of this House since 1966, Tom has been a respected and
intellectual leader. His work as chairman of the Subcommittee on Energy
and Water Appropriations has produced the Nation's major energy
research programs and America's water resource projects. Tom has also
been a true advocate for senior citizens by working hard in defense of
Social Security.
I want to specifically mention that Tom always found time amidst his
extremely busy schedule to consider the concerns of other Members. I
remember a time when Tom came to my home State of New Mexico to study
the irrigation needs of the Hispanic communities in my district.
Because of Tom's assistance and support, many of New Mexico's centuries
old irrigation ditches, so-called acequias, have received critical
congressional funding for needed repair and restoration. Not only did
Tom devote his energy and skill to his constituents, but he also found
time to care about mine.
Tom added dignity to this House by working in the spirit of
bipartisanship, and he will definitely be missed. Good luck, Tom and
thank you for all you have done for this great institution.
Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I feel particularly privileged to be able to
say farewell to Representatives Tom Bevill and Glen Browder of Alabama
as friends as well as beloved colleagues in the House. I have learned
much from them, and I appreciate their having allowed me to grow as a
Member by drawing from the wealth of their experience and their
knowledge.
Tom Bevill was elected a full 10 years ahead of my election to the
House, in 1966, and he has been reelected by overwhelming margins ever
since by the folks he represents in Alabama's Fourth Congressional
District.
As chairman of the Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee, Tom
has stood with me many, many times on behalf of the people I serve in
southern West Virginia as we worked together to facilitate development
of West Virginia's waterways and energy development projects. My
constituents have benefited greatly through Tom's willingness to listen
and to understand and to respond to the needs of my congressional
district with respect to water resources development and Corps of
Engineers projects throughout southern West Virginia.
Tom Bevill's mastery of the appropriations process is legendary. The
people of the Fourth Congressional District of Alabama are indeed
fortunate to have had such a champion fighting for their needs all
these years, and he will be long remembered by all of us who remain
behind here in this body as the man who helped each of us better serve
our own constituents. He is a man who believed that every dollar he
ever appropriated was spent on a worthy cause--to help someone down on
his luck, to help a community grow, to help a university educate its
young people, to ensure that a small child had enough to eat. And he
believed that money for these purposes needed to be spent in Alabama,
and in West Virginia, and in every State in the Union.
Tom Bevill has served with distinction, pride, integrity and style.
He will be sorely missed in the years to come by this House of
Representatives.
Glen Browder, elected in 1989, has served with distinction on the
National Security Committee, formerly the Armed Services Committee,
where he has labored to fulfill a responsibility to assure that our
Nation's military readiness is second to none in the world.
While many of us in the House never served on committees with
jurisdiction over out national security, I knew, and my colleagues
knew, that we could rely upon Glen's knowledge and expertise in the
area of national defense in keeping us strong as a nation and ready to
defend our country, its people, and our allies abroad. We knew that
Glen's thoroughness and his vast knowledge about our armed services and
military readiness, would lead to a reasonable and responsible use of
our vast military resources where they would do the most good.
Glen also served his constituents in the Third Congressional District
of Alabama, not only by making wise decisions of our Nation's security,
but by taking great care to see to the domestic needs of the people in
Alabama's Third Congressional District. He combined his natural
leadership skills with his innate sensitivity to their socioeconomic
circumstances in order to improve the lives of his people.
Above all, both Tom and Glen deeply believed in good Government
throughout their tenures in the House, and their years of service and
commitment to good government is visible across this great country. I
commend them for their diligent service to Alabama and to the United
States.
I wish them both Godspeed.
Mr. STOKES. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague, the
distinguished gentleman from Alabama, Sonny Callahan, for reserving
this special order. We gather today to pay tribute to retiring members
of the Alabama congressional delegation. I am honored to join my
colleagues in paying special tribute to Tom Bevill, who will depart the
U.S. Congress at the end of this legislative session.
Tom Bevill was first elected to the U.S. Congress on November 8,
1966. His retirement brings to a close a 30-year career in public
service. I share the sentiments of many others who state that Tom is
one of the most respected and effective Members to have served in this
legislative body.
Mr. Speaker, Tom Bevill is a senior member of the House
Appropriations Committee
[[Page H10588]]
and the former chairman of its Subcommittee on Energy and Water
Development. He is also a member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on
the Interior. Through these assignments, Tom Bevill has been
instrumental in funding the Nation's major energy research programs and
our Nation's water resource development projects.
The Fourth Congressional District of Alabama has benefited as a
result of Tom Bevill's commitment and hard work. I recall working
closely with Tom Bevill on the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway project. It
was an important initiative that could not have gone forward without
his strong leadership. During his tenure in Congress, Tom has also
demonstrated a steadfast commitment to education. A leading defender of
Social Security and Medicare, as well as a a strong advocate for health
care, Tom has earned the support of our Nation's seniors.
Mr. Speaker, I have been privileged to serve in the Congress with Tom
Bevill. He is a skilled lawmaker and a dedicated public servant. He is
also a gentleman and a close personal friend. Throughout our
Appropriations Committee and floor deliberations, he as been the voice
of reason and compassion. Members on both sides of the aisle will agree
that over the years, Tom Bevill has taught us valuable lessons about
working together and public service. I am proud to share a very special
relationship with Tom Bevill. He is someone whom I greatly admire and
respect.
Mr. Speaker, as he departs this legislative Chamber, I join my
colleagues in saluting Tom Bevill for a job well done. I also extend my
best wishes to his charming wife, Lou, and members of the Bevill
family. Tom Bevill will be missed in the Halls of Congress. We take
pride in knowing, however, that he leaves behind a record of
legislative achievement and service that will stand in the years to
come.
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