[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 141 (Monday, October 18, 1999)]
[House]
[Pages H10138-H10139]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     PERMITTING USE OF ROTUNDA OF THE CAPITOL FOR PRESENTATION OF 
     CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL TO PRESIDENT AND MRS. GERALD R. FORD

  Mr. THOMAS. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to 
the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 196) permitting the use of the 
rotunda of the Capitol for the presentation of the Congressional Gold 
Medal to President and Mrs. Gerald R. Ford.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                            H. Con. Res. 196

       Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
     concurring), That the rotunda of the Capitol is authorized to 
     be used on October 27, 1999, for the presentation of the 
     Congressional Gold Medal to President and Mrs. Gerald R. 
     Ford. Physical preparations for the ceremony shall be carried 
     out in accordance with such conditions as the Architect of 
     the Capitol may prescribe.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Thomas) and the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Kildee) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California (Mr. Thomas).
  Mr. THOMAS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Madam Speaker, I am moving this resolution for the gentleman from 
Michigan (Mr. Ehlers) who represents the area of Grand Rapids, which 
was the area that Gerald R. Ford represented as a Member of the House 
of Representatives and as its minority leader.
  I think it is entirely appropriate that the Presidential 
Congressional Gold Medal be awarded to President and Mrs. Ford.
  Congressman Ford wound up President Ford in one of the most unique 
series of events in the history of the United States. Congressman Ford 
was appointed Vice President of the United States according to the 25th 
Amendment, and then Vice President Ford became President Ford upon the 
resignation of President Nixon.
  I will soon conclude my time and the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. 
Kildee) will have an opportunity to talk about this particular 
representative from Michigan.
  I have known President Ford for some time. I knew him briefly before 
he became President, and I have known him for some time after he became 
President. He is one of those individuals of which we have many on the 
floor of the House who are professionals. That is, they go about the 
business of representing their constituents in a professional fashion.
  That is one of the reasons Jerry Ford rose to be minority leader and 
why when there was a need to fill the vice presidential slot in a time 
of national trouble that they turned to Jerry Ford and that, in one of 
the saddest periods I believe that, notwithstanding his being appointed 
to the two highest offices in the land, he conducted himself and his 
presidency in exemplar fashion, and that he should have been rewarded, 
in the humble opinion of this gentleman from California, the presidency 
through the electoral process.
  That was not to be. But the people of the United States owe President 
Ford a great debt of gratitude on the way in which he conducted himself 
as an appointed Vice President and as an appointed President.
  It is entirely appropriate that, in the rotunda on October 27, 
President Ford and Mrs. Ford will receive the Congressional Gold Medal.
  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. KILDEE. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  (Mr. KILDEE asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. KILDEE. Madam Speaker, President Gerald and Mrs. Betty Ford are 
two of the finest people I have ever known. They came, as I do, from 
Michigan, great citizens of Michigan.
  I happen to have had the great pleasure of serving with the brother 
of President Gerald Ford, Tom Ford, in the Michigan Legislature; and, 
in that fashion, I met Gerald Ford many, many times when he was 
minority leader here in the House where he conducted himself very, very 
well, was chosen, in a wise decision, to become the Vice President of 
the United States, and then succeeded to the presidency of the United 
States.
  He and his wife brought to the White House exactly what America 
needed at that time. They brought decency and a concern and helped heal 
this Nation. This Nation and I personally are grateful to President 
Gerald and Mrs. Betty Ford for what they have done for this country. 
They certainly deserve this medal and certainly deserve this ceremony 
in the rotunda.
  Madam Speaker, I rise in support of House Concurrent Resolution 196, 
to reserve the Rotunda of the Capitol for a ceremony to present a 
Congressional Gold Medal to our distinguished former President, Gerald 
R. Ford, and our former First Lady, Betty Ford, for their ``dedicated 
public service and outstanding humanitarian contributions to the people 
of the United States.''
  I was among the more than 300 cosponsors of legislation, enacted on 
October 21, 1998, to authorize this honor.
  Since the American Revolution, Congress has commissioned Gold Medals 
as its highest expression of national appreciation for distinguished 
achievements and contributions. Each medal is individually struck to 
honor a particular individual or individuals, institution, or notable 
event.
  President Ford is the first former President to be so honored during 
his lifetime, and this is also the first time that a President and 
First Lady have been honored jointly.
  Congress has awarded Gold Medals to several distinguished men during 
their military careers who would later go on to become Presidents of 
the United States:
  George Washington, by the Continental Congress before the 
Revolutionary War began

[[Page H10139]]

in 1776; Andrew Jackson in 1815; William Henry Harrison, in 1818; 
Zachary Taylor, three times, in 1846, 1847, and 1848; and Ulysses S. 
Grant, in 1863.
  President Harry S. Truman was honored posthumously in 1984.
  Mrs. Ford will be the second First Lady to be so honored; the first 
was Lady Bird Johnson in 1984.
  Gerald Ford is, of course, best known for his service as the 38th 
President of the United States who attempted to move the Nation past 
the scars left by the Watergate scandal.
  He was the first person in history to have been appointed Vice 
President of the United States to fill a vacancy, pursuant to the 25th 
amendment to the Constitution.
  He was confirmed in that office by vote of this House and of the 
Senate.
  He was also the first person to have assumed the Presidency, in 1974, 
without having been elected to national office. As such, Gerald Ford 
served the Nation for two years and five months as President under very 
trying political circumstances.
  But Gerald Ford is best known to this chamber as a ``Man of the 
House'', who served from 1949 to 1973 as a Representative from Michigan 
and from 1965 to 1973 as minority leader of the House.
  While Representative Ford could be tough and partisan, he represented 
a tradition of bipartisanship and friendship across the aisle which 
served the House and the Nation well for many years. His accession to 
the Presidency was welcomed with joy by Members of Congress from both 
parties.
  In his retirement, the former President has often spoken out against 
the divisiveness and harsh partisanship which have enveloped our 
political institutions in the decades after he left office, and which 
have so damaged the national interest.
  Betty Ford, a model of an outspoken and courageous First Lady in the 
White House, is perhaps best known since her retirement for showing 
Americans who suffer from personal despair that recovery is possible.
  She established the Betty Ford Center, to help those seeking to 
reestablish productive lives after suffering from drug dependency.
  She has been active in many philanthropic causes.
  Madam Speaker, the Fords were perhaps the first modern ``First 
Family'' to jointly lead both active public and private lives once out 
of office, and they established a pattern for other Presidents and 
spouses to follow in the future.
  They set a worthy example of service to America, and I am pleased to 
support our action today in approving this ceremony to recognize their 
achievements.
  Ms. STABENOW. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Con. Res. 
196, which will allow us to use the Rotunda to present a fitting 
tribute to President and Mrs. Gerald Ford--the Congressional Golf 
Medal. I would like to thank Mr. Ehlers, who now represents the Grand 
Rapids area, for his work on this measure.
  We are all aware of President Ford's political accomplishments: a 25 
year career in the House of Representatives, serving as vice-president 
and then president. Throughout his career he represented Michigan and 
this country with dignity and was a great example to those that have 
followed in his footsteps in this House. He will forever be associated 
with the University of Michigan, and he always carried this pedigree 
proudly. President Ford ascended to the highest office in the land 
during one of the most turbulent periods in our political history, and 
it is the grace that he and his wife Betty comported themselves that is 
perhaps their greatest legacy. President Ford restored a sense of 
stability to the office that was absolutely essential for both domestic 
and foreign relations. Among her many accomplishments, Mrs. Ford's 
dedication to helping others fight the terrible effects of breast 
cancer and substance abuse is well-known, and is illustrative of the 
caring decency this family came to represent.
  Madam Speaker, Gerald Ford answered the call when his country needed 
it most. His example of professionalism in the worst of circumstances 
helped the United States through one of its worst constitutional 
crises. I look forward to seeing this wonderful couple receive this 
well-deserved award, and I join my colleagues and the citizens of this 
country in thanking them for their devoted service.
  Mr. KILDEE. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. THOMAS. Madam Speaker, I have no other requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Thomas) that the House suspend the rules 
and agree to the concurrent resolution, H. Con. Res. 196.
  The question was taken.
  Mr. THOMAS. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

                          ____________________