[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 112 (Tuesday, August 3, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1735]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


      HONORING ALAN KARCHER, ARCHITECT OF NEW JERSEY'S LEGISLATURE

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. RUSH D. HOLT

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, August 3, 1999

  Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to direct the attention of my 
colleagues to the accomplishments of Central New Jersey's Alan Karcher, 
who died on Monday, July 26 at the age of 56.
  Mr. Karcher, a dedicated member of the Democratic Party, represented 
the city of New Brunswick and the rest of the 19th Legislative District 
in the New Jersey Assembly for seventeen years.
  His years of service had a lasting impact on the politics of my 
state. As Lou Rainone, a friend, aide, and law partner to Mr. Karcher, 
has said, Mr. Karcher was ``the architect of the modern legislature in 
New Jersey. He made the Legislature an equal branch of government with 
the Governor's administration.''
  Governor Christine Todd Whitman agrees. On Tuesday, she ordered state 
government flags flown at half-staff for the remainder of the week, and 
remarked that Mr. Karcher ``was a worthy and capable adversary who 
truly embodied the spirit of the loyal opposition.''
  Mr. Karcher began his remarkable political career early in life. In 
1966, while still a student at Rutgers University Law School, Mr. 
Karcher served as Secretary to the President of the New Jersey Senate. 
After several more years of staff service to the legislature, Mr. 
Karcher was elected to office himself in 1973. Mr. Karcher went on to 
become Majority Leader in 1980 and Speaker of the Assembly in 1981.
  A political upset in 1985 brought the Republicans a majority in the 
assembly and removed Mr. Karcher from the Speaker's chair. Yet Mr. 
Karcher continued to serve in New Jersey politics, campaigning 
unsuccessfully for the Democratic Governor's nomination in 1989 and 
serving in the Democratic National Convention in 1984 and 1988. Mr. 
Karcher retired from the New Jersey Assembly in 1990.
  Mr. Karcher's service to his state and country did not end there. In 
1990, Mr. Karcher accepted an appointment as a fellow in residence at 
the Institute of Politics at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy 
School of Government. He wrote two books on political issues and helped 
found the successful Sayreville law practice of Karcher & Rainone. In 
1987, he served as an appellate counsel for Mary Beth Whitehead-Gould 
in the historic ``Baby M'' surrogate-mother case which was successfully 
argued before the New Jersey Supreme Court.
  After retiring to Princeton, New Jersey several years ago, Mr. 
Karcher's last great accomplishment was to rebuild the Democratic party 
of Mercer County, where in 1998 he helped to bring about my own upset 
victory against a favored incumbent.
  Mr. Speaker, Alan Karcher's life was a model of public service, 
commitment, and political integrity. He stands as an example to us all, 
regardless of party and persuasion. I hope that my colleagues in the 
House will join me and other Central New Jerseyans in extending our 
gratitude and condolences to Mr. Karcher's friends and family.

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