[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 122 (Tuesday, September 15, 1998)]
[House]
[Pages H7773-H7774]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    MAX WEINER POST OFFICE BUILDING

  Mr. McHUGH. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 4003) to designate the United States Postal Service building 
located at 2037 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as the 
``Max Weiner Post Office Building''.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 4003

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

     SECTION 1. MAX WEINER POST OFFICE BUILDING.

       (a) Designation.--The United States Postal Service building 
     located at 2037 Chestnut Street, in Philadelphia, 
     Pennsylvania, shall be known and designated as the ``Max 
     Weiner Post Office Building''.
       (b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
     building referred to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be 
     a reference to the ``Max Weiner Post Office Building''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. McHugh) and the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fattah) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York (Mr. McHugh).


                             General Leave

  Mr. McHUGH. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks 
on H.R. 4003, the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. McHUGH. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, it may seem somewhat anticlimactic, because this bill 
is, at least in form, if not identical very similar to the one we just 
considered. But the individual we seek to honor is truly unique, and 
once again, as I said, the gentleman from Pennsylvania is to be thanked 
for his leadership, for his careful consideration of the nominee of Max 
Weiner for the designation of this particular postal facility at the 
address of 2037 Chestnut Street in the great city of Philadelphia, 
Pennsylvania. And, again, as a matter of record, pursuant to the 
committee rules, this bill enjoys the sponsorship of the entire 
delegation from the State of Pennsylvania.
  Mr. Speaker, Mr. Weiner was truly, by everything that I have seen, a 
tremendously energetic worker for consumer rights and for consumer 
protection. He fought hard, so very hard, for literally thousands of 
Pennsylvanians who might otherwise have found themselves in so many 
difficult, challenging positions and situations: The loss of their 
homes, the loss of heat during the extraordinarily cold weather that 
can sometimes visit those of us who feel lucky enough to live in the 
northeast. He fought to protect the privacy of the underprivileged and 
for greater access for them to the mass transit system.
  And in his endeavors he did much else as well, Mr. Speaker. He was 
the founder of the Consumers Education and Protective Association and 
the Independent Consumer Party. In short, Mr. Speaker, just time and 
time again the sort of individual who remained in their community, who 
fought hard, who worked hard not for power or glory, certainly not for 
money, but because, simply, they cared about their communities, but 
most of all cared about their neighbors and wished to make their lives 
a little better today than yesterday and, hopefully, their live a 
little better tomorrow than it was today.
  Again, I will yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania who has 
brought this bill to us, and with that I would thank him for his 
leadership and urge all of my colleagues once again, please, to support 
this very worthy nomination.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. FATTAH. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume, 
and I rise in support of H.R. 4003.
  Mr. Speaker, let me thank the gentleman from New York for his kind 
remarks, and let me assure him that if Max Weiner was around today and 
here he would probably be outside protesting all of us for some reason 
or another.
  Literally no less than a thousand times he has been out on the 
battlefield. He has filed in his lifetime probably more lawsuits 
against the Philadelphia Gas Works, the Philadelphia Electric Company, 
the Philadelphia Water Department, every State agency imaginable, 
fighting aggressively on behalf of individuals, and as class actions, 
consumers who, by some set of circumstance, based on the review of his 
organization, had been cheated either by the outcome or by a process, 
or somehow, nonetheless, even if the decision-making was correct, 
somehow still could not meet the burden that was being asked of them, 
and he would fight on their behalf.
  For many, many decades he led the Consumer Education and Protective 
Association of Philadelphia, and one could always be assured that at 
least on 6 days out of a 7-day-week he would be out in front of city 
hall with a table, with petitions, for some cause or another. And in 
his latter years, well into his 70s, he started to actually have some 
of his greatest success at winning lawsuits against and stopping of 
rate increases from various utilities, and forcing people to comply 
with various rules and regulations and statutory requirements that had 
been put upon them by municipal utilities.
  He also exercised his right to vote, but not as a member of the 
Democratic party or Republican Party. He formed his own party, the 
Consumer Party, and ran as their standard bearer for every conceivable 
office that we could imagine that was ever on the ballot in 
Philadelphia. But he was loved by all. Even those who he opposed knew 
that in his heart he was speaking on behalf of those who he felt needed 
someone to speak for them.
  Even though he has been gone for many years now, it is his spirit, 
and the public spiritedness of his work that brings me to the point of 
offering this bill. I am thankful for having the support of all my 
colleagues from Pennsylvania. I think all of us probably have in our 
districts a Max Weiner. And if we do not, we need one, because there is 
often a necessity for someone to operate somewhat outside of the box 
and to speak on behalf of those whose voices otherwise may have been 
marginalized. Max Weiner did that in Philadelphia, and his work and his 
legacy is something that all of us from the Philadelphia community will 
always respect and remember.

                              {time}  1745

  Again, I am sure he would probably be even somehow railing against 
this Congress or the State and Senate or the Council if he was with us 
today about something. In the final analysis, he would probably be 
right, at least in the spirit of his remarks.

[[Page H7774]]

  I thank the gentleman from New York for his cooperation and the 
Speaker and the majority leader to have these bills scheduled and 
moved. I truly appreciate their efforts.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. McHUGH. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. 
In closing, I could not add to the very eloquent statement of the 
ranking member. We indeed all need a Max Weiner in our lives. Although 
we are not obviously in a position to enjoy the guidance and the light 
that he shed during his very, very illustrious career, we can perhaps 
through this naming inscribe his name above the pillars of the Postal 
Service and remind us all of the good things that he did in his life. I 
thank the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fattah).
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Hefley). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from New York (Mr. McHugh) that the House 
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 4003.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________