[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 63 (Tuesday, May 4, 1999)]
[House]
[Pages H2591-H2592]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       WILLIAM H. NATCHER BRIDGE

  Mr. FRANKS of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules 
and pass the bill (H.R. 1162) to designate the bridge on United States 
Route 231 that crosses the Ohio River between Maceo, Kentucky, and 
Rockport, Indiana, as the ``William H. Natcher Bridge.''
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 1162

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

     SECTION 1. DESIGNATION.

       The bridge on United States Route 231 that crosses the Ohio 
     River between Maceo, Kentucky, and Rockport, Indiana, shall 
     be known and designated as the ``William H. Natcher Bridge''.

     SEC. 2. REFERENCES.

       Any reference in a law, map, regulation, document, paper, 
     or other record of the United States to the bridge referred 
     to in section 1 shall be deemed to be a reference to the 
     ``William H. Natcher Bridge''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New 
Jersey (Mr. Franks) and the gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Shows) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Franks).
  Mr. FRANKS of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 1162 designates the bridge on U.S. Route 231 over 
the Ohio River near Owensboro, Kentucky, as the ``William H. Natcher 
Bridge'' in honor of our late and former colleague William Natcher.
  Identical legislation was passed unanimously by this House on June 
18, 1996, and on September 22, 1994, but was never enacted.
  Representative Natcher was born in Bowling Green, Kentucky, in 1909 
and was educated at Western Kentucky College and the Ohio State 
University Law School. His life was dedicated to public service, 
serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II and holding a series of 
local and State offices before being elected to Congress. He moved up 
the ranks of the Committee on Appropriations, eventually assuming 
chairmanship of the full Committee in 1993.
  I am proud to have had the privilege of serving in the House with 
Congressman Natcher. Although well-known for having cast 18,401 
consecutive votes during his 40 years here, Congressman Natcher's 
accomplishments are much more than his extraordinary voting record. He 
put an extremely high value on public service and set a very high 
standard for himself.
  Bill Natcher was always an inspiration to me and I know to many other 
Members, as well. He was a gentleman, a statesman, and a man of 
unquestioned integrity who served this House and his constituents in 
Kentucky from 1954 until his death in 1994 with quiet, unfailing 
dedication.
  The naming of this bridge for Bill Natcher is a fitting and lasting 
memorial to our friend and former colleague. I support this bill and 
urge my colleagues to support it, as well.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. SHOWS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I would simply like to associate my remarks with many of 
those of my colleagues who have had the honor to have known and served 
with Mr. Natcher. The distinguished gentleman from Kentucky represented 
the people of Kentucky in Congress for over 40 years.
  This bill, H.R. 1162, has the full support of the Kentucky 
delegation. It would designate a bridge on U.S. Route 231 over the Ohio 
River between Maceo, Kentucky, and Rockport, Indiana, as the ``William 
H. Natcher Bridge.'' This legislation acknowledges the efforts of Mr. 
Natcher to construct this bridge.
  Mr. Speaker, similar legislation passed the House in both the 103rd 
and 104th Congress but failed to be enacted. I urge a unanimous vote in 
approving this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. FRANKS of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as he may 
consume to my colleague, the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Lewis).
  Mr. LEWIS of Kentucky. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my 
support for H.R. 1162, which designates a new bridge under construction 
in Owensboro, Kentucky, the ``William H. Natcher Bridge.'' The House 
passed similar legislation in both the 103rd and 104th Congresses. 
Unfortunately, the other body never acted on these bills.
  During consideration of those bills, however, many Members from both 
sides of the aisle shared their experiences about working with Mr. 
Natcher. They talked about the dedication and hard work of my 
predecessor.
  I encourage my colleagues to take a moment to look at some of those 
comments. As most Members who served with Mr. Natcher can attest, he 
was a statesman and a true gentleman. While he will always be 
remembered on Capitol Hill for never missing a vote during his many 
years in service, he will be known in the Second District for his hard 
work on behalf of his constituents.
  Mr. Natcher was dedicated to making this bridge a reality due to the 
benefits it would bring to the Second District. He guided this project 
through Congress and laid the groundwork to assure its completion.
  The Commonwealth of Kentucky has already designated this bridge in 
honor of Mr. Natcher. Now it is our responsibility in Washington to do 
the same. This bill gives us the chance to recognize his efforts at the 
Federal level and provide a visible reminder of this true friend to 
Kentucky.
  I hope my colleagues will join me and the members of the Kentucky 
House delegation in supporting this legislation.
  Mr. SHOWS. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. FRANKS of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as he may 
consume to my colleague, the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Rogers).
  Mr. ROGERS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New Jersey for 
yielding me the time.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this resolution. I want to commend 
our colleague, the gentleman from the Second District of Kentucky (Mr. 
Ron Lewis) for offering this legislation. His predecessor in the Second 
District, Bill Natcher, most all of us served with here in this great 
body, and knew him

[[Page H2592]]

and knew him to be the epitome of rectitude and the very model of what 
a U.S. Congressman ought to be.
  Bill Natcher was a combined Lou Gehrig and Cal Ripken. He was the Lou 
Gehrig and Cal Ripken of Congress. Forty-one years of service in this 
body.
  As has been mentioned, he holds the record for consecutive votes 
cast, 18,401 over that 41 years of service, never having missed a 
single vote, a record that I am going to say never will be matched. It 
is technically possible but not very likely.
  But Bill Natcher, as we all know, was more than a consecutive voting 
streak; he was a patriot and a statesman. He was a man of the highest 
character. He prided himself in dutifully serving his district, his 
great Kentucky, and the Nation.
  As has been mentioned, he was a very long time member of the 
Committee on Appropriations. He served for 18 years as the chairman of 
the District of Columbia Subcommittee, 18 years, and during that time 
became known as the mayor of Washington. In those days, the chairman of 
that subcommittee held great sway in the running of this city.
  And then, of course, we know he served as chairman of the 
Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services and Education, and 
that is where he really made his mark. His tenure was marked by a 
strong commitment to programs that benefitted the general welfare of 
our population. He was a man of commitment.
  I am going to quote him here. He said, ``I have always believed that 
if you take care of the health of your people and educate your 
children, you continue living in the strongest country in the world.''
  In 1992, at the age of 83, he ascended to become chairman of the full 
Committee on Appropriations. He liked to laughingly say that he had sat 
next to the chairman waiting to assume the seat for some, I think, 25 
years, Jamie Whitten. And finally, in 1992, he assumed that chair. He 
continued his reputation as a fair and responsible lawmaker.

                              {time}  1800

  Bill Natcher's contributions to this country, to Kentucky, and to 
this body were so many, we never may fully appreciate all that he did 
and meant to all of us.
  But one contribution that will certainly be appreciated by the 
residents of the Second District of Kentucky is that bridge extending 
over the Ohio River into Indiana. Methodically Bill Natcher labored to 
erect that bridge for his constituents and for the betterment of the 
State, and it was unable to be finished, of course, during his 
lifetime, unfortunately. But the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Lewis) 
has taken up the task, and he has persistently fought to get the money 
and the authorization and the wherewithal to finish what bill Natcher 
had begun.
  I want to commend the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Lewis), Bill 
Natcher's very worthy successor, for continuing Bill Natcher's legacy 
and diligently working for the people of that great district and 
especially to finish the construction on this bridge, and now to name 
that bridge the William H. Natcher Bridge, something that all of us 
will be proud of until the day we die and our kids will continue 
believing is worthy of that name for many, many decades to come. It 
will be a daily reminder to Bill Natcher's former beloved constituents 
of his tremendous service to our Nation.
  This is a fitting tribute to Kentucky's former dean, and I am honored 
to urge support unanimously of this measure.
  Mr. FRANKS of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may 
consume to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Duncan).
  Mr. DUNCAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New Jersey for 
yielding me this time. I wanted to take just a minute to express my 
appreciation to him and to the Speaker and to others who have brought 
this bill to the floor of the House here tonight.
  I had the great privilege of knowing Congressman Natcher personally 
and working closely with him for several years.
  What is interesting to me is just this morning I had a group from the 
First Baptist Church of Athens, Tennessee, on the floor of the House, 
showing them around the Capitol. I showed them the voting card that we 
each have and told them how we voted in the names, how they light up on 
the wall and so forth. One of the women in that group asked me about 
the man who broke the record, having the most consecutive votes, and so 
I told them about Congressman Bill Natcher, and that is who they were 
talking about.
  Because I know, as has already been mentioned, he did not miss a 
rollcall vote for more than 40 years. He had a record that will never 
be broken. It will never be surpassed. He was so dedicated to this 
institution and so dedicated to this country.
  He did many, many wonderful things for the District of Columbia 
during his time that he chaired the D.C. Appropriations Subcommittee. 
In fact, I think for a while he was called or frequently referred to as 
the Mayor of the District of Columbia for many years.
  But he did many, many other things, also, in his work for the 
Committee on Appropriations. In this time of such big spending on 
campaigns, I remember that he used to pride himself in the fact that he 
spent I think only about $10 or $15 or something on some of his 
campaigns. He would spend a little gas money driving around the 
district.
  It was phenomenal what he did in his campaigns and in his voting 
record, never missing a vote. I remember one time hearing that his wife 
was sick at home. Maybe somebody has already mentioned this. But his 
wife was sick in the hospital in Bowling Green. He flew for like 2 
straight weeks each night after the House would get out of session. He 
would fly home to Nashville, drive I think 60 miles or so to Bowling 
Green or 70 miles, spend the night with her, fly back the next morning, 
and then do the same thing over again the next day and did that for 2 
weeks. The lengths that he went to to keep up this record.
  He was a great American. I do not think that we really could pay 
enough honor and tribute to William Natcher, who was the epitome of 
what a United States Congressman should be. I strongly support this 
legislation.
  Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this bill. I 
think it only appropriate to honor our late friend and colleague by 
designating in his name this bridge, for which he fought so hard during 
his legendary tenure in this Chamber.
  Bill Natcher will always be remembered for his determination and 
longevity, but it was his commitment to the people of the second 
district of Kentucky and his love and respect for this body that 
inspired us all.
  Today we have the opportunity to create a lasting memorial honoring 
Bill Natcher's name.
  I strongly urge that we pass H.R. 1162 and do just that.
  Mr. FRANKS of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Coble). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Franks) that the House 
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1162.
  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.

                          ____________________