[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 74 (Thursday, May 20, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Page S5774]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          TRIBUTE TO JOHN TIEN

 Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, I rise to salute the work and 
dedication of Major John Tien, a distinguished White House Fellow from 
Long Beach, CA.
  Major Tien was chosen as one of the selected few to participate in 
the distinguished 1998-99 White House Fellowship Program. Since 1965, 
the program has offered outstanding individuals, like Major Tien, the 
opportunity to apply their considerable talents to public service. Past 
U.S. Army White House Fellow alumni, including former Chairman of the 
Joint Chiefs of Staff General Colin L. Powell, have emerged as great 
military leaders, and I have no doubt that Major Tien will be 
successful in his future endeavors.
  As a White House Fellow, Major Tien has been assigned to the Office 
of the U.S. Trade Representative. He conducts research on consumer, 
labor, and environmental groups in an effort to educate the American 
public about the benefits of international trade. Other 
responsibilities include coordinating partnerships with important 
business groups, including the National Association of Manufacturers, 
the Business Round Table, and the President's Export Council, to 
develop trade education ideas and advance a free trade agenda. He is a 
member of the lead team for planning the Third Ministerial Conference 
of the World Trade Organization in Seattle, Washington. He is also a 
member of the steel import crisis response team, where he is 
responsible for drafting reports for the Congressional Steel Caucus. 
Major Tien is the special assistant to the Deputy U.S. Trade 
Representative on all WTO matters.
  Major Tien was an assistant professor in the Department of Social 
Sciences at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He received his 
bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering from West Point, where he was 
the top-ranked military cadet in his class. He later attended Oxford 
University as a Rhodes Scholar. As a veteran of Operation Desert Storm, 
he was among the first soldiers to cross the Saudi Arabia-Iraq border. 
He has commanded an M1A1 main battle tank company and a headquarters 
company, and has served as the chief logistics officer for a thousand-
soldier brigade. Additionally, Major Tien has successfully balanced 
several extracurricular activities with his military commitments. For 
example, he has served as a volunteer tutor for inner-city elementary 
and high school youth, as a co-organizer of the New York, Orange County 
Special Olympics and as a youth league soccer and baseball coach.
  Mr. President, the importance of the public service should be 
recognized, and Major Tien stands as an especially admirable role model 
in this regard. For his efforts, and in recognition of the well-
deserved honor of serving as a White House Fellow, I am privileged to 
commend and pay tribute to Major John Tien.

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