[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 54 (Wednesday, April 30, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E791-E792]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             HONORING GEORGE McGOVERN ON HIS 75TH BIRTHDAY

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. JAMES P. McGOVERN

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 30, 1997

  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, on April 8, 1997, a remarkable event took 
place at the U.S. National Archives: a day-long symposium was held on 
the career of former Senator George McGovern on the occasion of his 
75th birthday. The symposium reviewed the times and events that 
surrounded Senator McGovern's life and his role in shaping contemporary 
history. It brought together such diverse commentators and speakers as 
Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., All Neuharth, Townsend Hoopes, Frank 
Mankewiecz, Mary McGrory, Hunter Thompson, Daniel Ellsberg, Lindy 
Boggs, Bob Dole and Tom Daschle.
  My life and my career has been shaped by the commitment and integrity 
of this remarkable man from Avon, SD. He was born on July 19, 1922, the 
son of a Methodist clergyman. As a pilot of a B-24 bomber in the 
European theater during World War II, he flew 35 missions and was 
decorated with the Distinguished Flying Cross. After the War, he 
returned home and earned a Ph.D. in history and government at 
Northwestern University and served as professor of history at Dakota 
Wesleyan University.
  Few of these facts are remembered today because the Senator from 
South Dakota, elected to the House of Representatives in 1956 and to 
the U.S. Senate in 1962, and the Democratic Party 1972 Presidential 
candidate, is known for his integrity and the stands he took on such 
issues as combating hunger, opposing the war in Vietnam, promoting 
disarmament, and working diligently on behalf of peace. But his early 
religious life, his experiences during World War II, and his discipline 
as an academic, and his devotion to his family were ever the 
touchstones of his spiritual life and values.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to enter into the Record a copy of the 
remarks made by Senator Edward M. Kennedy during the April 8 symposium, 
along with the program of speakers and topics that describe the life of 
George McGovern and his place in American history.

    Senator Kennedy's Remarks at the George McGovern 75th Birthday 
              Symposium, National Archives, April 8, 1997

       I want to thank Douglas Brinkley for that generous 
     introduction. Doug has done great work as Director of Dwight 
     D. Eisenhower Center at the University of New Orleans.
       I also want to thank John Carlin for that warm 
     introduction. John has done an exceptional job as Archivist 
     of The United States. We are all grateful that our nation's 
     records and history and legacy are in his and the entire 
     staff at the National Archives' capable hands.
       It's a very special privilege to join in honoring a very 
     special friend on his 7th birthday.
       George McGovern and I came to the Senate the same year, and 
     we've been great friends ever since.
       In 1961, President Kennedy named George as the director of 
     Food for Peace. The program had been relegated to secondary 
     status for years, but Jack was determined to make it a 
     priority. George was the perfect choice to do it.
       His first major project was the widespread starvation in 
     Brazil. George went there, saw it first hand, and did 
     something about it. He arranged for 60 million pounds of 
     powdered milk for a child feeding program and 30,000 tons of 
     other commodities. The powdered milk alone fed two million 
     people a day for an entire year.
       Under George, Food for Peace expanded its efforts to all 
     parts of the world. The people of Afghanistan, the Congo, 
     Korea, Indonesia, and Colombia all became the beneficiaries 
     of this New Frontier initiative. In Peru, a million school 
     children were fed daily by U.S. commodities. In India, vast 
     shiploads of wheat, rice, corn, and soybeans were sent to 
     help alleviate that nation's suffering.
       Returning from India in 1962, George came through Rome and 
     met Pope Paul the 23rd. The Pope said, ``When you meet your 
     Maker and He asks, `Have you fed the hungry, given drink to 
     the thirsty, and cared for the lonely?' You can answer, `Yes' 
     ''.
       As a Senator, George never stopped being a tireless 
     crusader against hunger. As Chairman of the Committee on 
     Nutrition, he made an enormous difference. In the Nixon 
     years, when the White House attacked him for using the issue 
     for political purposes, he had the perfect answer--``Hunger 
     knows no politics.'' The strong school lunch program we have 
     in place today is there because of George McGovern.
       Two years ago, as you may recall, some ``know-nothings'' in 
     Congress tried to slash George's program. They were routed by 
     a firestorm of criticism, and a new verb entered the 
     dictionary. ``Watch out,'' they said. ``We don't want to get 
     `school-lunched' ever again.'' So they tried to slash 
     Medicare and education instead--with similar results. When 
     George McGovern plants something, it stays planted.
       And then, of course, there was Vietnam. Before almost 
     anyone else in the Senate, George McGovern spoke out against 
     the failure of our policy. By 1965, he had seen enough. He 
     knew that the ongoing crisis in Vietnam was the result of 
     Vietnam's internal problems, and was no military threat to 
     the United States. He called for an end to the widespread 
     carpet bombings that were producing negligible military 
     results but were having a devastating effect on the lives of 
     millions of innocent Vietnamese civilians.
       The war was the issue, and it was natural that George would 
     run for President in 1972. A watershed election became the 
     Watergate election and in the eyes of history, George emerged 
     as the true winner--even if he wasn't the Electoral College 
     winner. But I still have my bumper sticker that says, ``Don't 
     blame me--I'm from Massachusetts.''
       Few Americans have contributed more to their fellow 
     citizens and their country than George McGovern. Few 
     Americans have done more to improve the lot of the hungry and 
     the poor than George McGovern. And few Americans have held 
     our country to a higher standard or contributed more than 
     George McGovern.
       For a memorable four-years from 1964 to 1968, George and I 
     and Robert Kennedy were all serving together in the Senate. 
     In a sense, we were three brothers again.
       As Bobby once said, ``There is no one I feel more genuine 
     about and about the importance of their contribution, than 
     George McGovern. Of all my colleagues in the United States 
     Senate, the person who has the most feeling and does things 
     in the most genuine way is George McGovern. He is so highly 
     admired by all his colleagues, not just for his ability but 
     because of the kind of man he is. That is truer of him than 
     of any man in the United States Senate.'' That says it all 
     about our friend.
       Finally, I still remember the night--July 13--or was it the 
     14th, 1972, 3 A.M., Miami, Florida, the Democratic 
     Convention. I had the privilege of introducing George, and I 
     brought along a little tape to play here.
       We love you George--I still think you'd have won, if you'd 
     given your acceptance speech about six hours earlier that 
     night.
                                                                    ____


                George McGovern 75th Birthday Symposium

       (National Archives Theater, Washington, DC, April 8, 1997)

     8:15-9:00  Registration in the National Archives Theater 
         Lobby. Coffee.

[[Page E792]]

     9:00-10:00  Welcome: John Carlin, Archivist of the United 
         States, Douglas Brinkley, Director, Eisenhower Center for 
         American Studies, University of New Orleans.
     Morning Address: Hon. Edward M. Kennedy
     Remarks: Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., Stephen Ambrose
     Musical Birthday Welcome: David Amram
     10:00-11:30  McGovern and South Dakota Politics--Moderator: 
         Jack Ewing, President, Dakota Wesleyan University; Jon K. 
         Lauck, University of Iowa--McGovern and the New Deal 
         Order: South Dakota Politics 1953-1962; Comment: Al 
         Neuharth, founder of Freedom Forum.
     10:30-11:00  McGovern and Food and Peace--Moderator: Rodney 
         Leonard, Executive Director, Community Nutrition 
         Institute; Thomas Knock, Southern Methodist University--
         McGovern and Food for Peace; Comment: Harvey Sloane.
     11:00-12:30  McGovern and the Vietnam War--Moderator: Arthur 
         Schlesinger, Jr., Robert Mann, author The Walls of 
         Jericho--McGovern and the Tragedy of Vietnam; Larry 
         Berman, University of California, Davis--McGovern, 
         Johnson, and Vietnam; H.W. Brands, Texas A&M--George 
         McGovern and Lyndon Johnson; Comments: Townsend Hoopes.
     12:30-2:00  Lunch
     2:00-2:30  McGovern and the Anti-War Movement--Moderator: 
         Verne Newton, Director, Franklin D. Roosevelt Library; 
         Randall Woods, University of Arkansas--McGovern and the 
         Anti-War Movement.
     2:30-4:15  McGovern and the 1972 Campaign--Moderator: Douglas 
         Brinkley; Steve Ward, American University--McGovern and 
         the Promise of a New Democrat: Reform and Electoral 
         Politics in the Democratic Party, 1968-1970; Frank 
         Mankewiecz, vice chairman, Hill & Knowlton--The Road to 
         '72; Discussion: Morris Dees, Mary McGrory, Stanley 
         Kaplan, Robert M. Shrum, John Holum, and Hunter S. 
         Thompson.
     4:15-4:30  Break
     4:30-5:30  McGovern and Congress--Moderator: William 
         VandenHeuvel, Director, The Franklin and Eleanor 
         Roosevelt Institute; Hon. Lindy Boggs, Hon. John Culver, 
         Hon. Thomas Daschle, Hon. Jim McGovern, Hon. Paul 
         Wellstone.
     5:30  Conclusion.

                          ____________________