[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 36 (Tuesday, March 28, 2000)]
[House]
[Pages H1426-H1428]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
E. ROSS ADAIR FEDERAL BUILDING AND UNITED STATES COURTHOUSE
Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 2412) to designate the Federal building and United States
courthouse located at 1300 South Harrison Street in Fort Wayne,
Indiana, as the ``E. Ross Adair Federal Building and United States
Courthouse''.
The Clerk read as follows:
H.R. 2412
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. DESIGNATION.
The Federal building and United States courthouse located
at 1300 South Harrison Street in Fort Wayne, Indiana, shall
be known and designated as the ``E. Ross Adair Federal
Building and United States Courthouse''.
SEC. 2. REFERENCES.
Any reference in a law, map, regulation, document, paper,
or other record of the United States to the Federal building
and United States courthouse referred to in section 1 shall
be deemed to be a reference to the ``E. Ross Adair Federal
Building and United States Courthouse''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Ohio (Mr. LaTourette) and the gentlewoman from Nevada (Ms. Berkley)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. LaTourette).
Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2412 designates the Federal building and United
States courthouse in Fort Wayne, Indiana as the ``E. Ross Adair Federal
Building and United States Courthouse.''
Edwin Ross Adair was born in 1907, attended public schools and
graduated from Hillsdale College and the George Washington University
Law School. Adair volunteered as a lieutenant in World War II and was
awarded battle stars for the Normandy, Northern France, Ardennes, Rhine
and Central European campaigns. Congressman Adair was first elected to
the 82nd Congress and served for 20 years in the United States House of
Representatives. He became the ranking member on the Committee on
Foreign Affairs and was active on the Committee on Veterans' Affairs
and on the Committee on Committees.
After his service in the United States House of Representatives,
President Nixon appointed Adair ambassador to Ethiopia, and he served
as ambassador until 1974.
This is a fitting honor for this dedicated public servant. I fully
support this bill, and I urge all of my colleagues to support it as
well.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. BERKLEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2412 is a bill to designate the Federal building
and United States courthouse in Fort Wayne, Indiana, as the ``E. Ross
Adair Federal Building and United States Courthouse.''
Congressman E. Ross Adair served his country and his State with
bravery and distinction for almost his entire life. He was a dedicated
teacher, decorated war hero, conscientious civil servant and diplomat.
He served in the House of Representatives for 20 years, from 1951, the
year that I was born, until 1971, representing the citizens of the 4th
District of Indiana. In 1972, President Nixon appointed him as
ambassador to Ethiopia, where he was posted until 1974. In 1976, Adair
served on the Indiana State Privacy Commission, and in 1976 he was
appointed to President Ford's reelection campaign. He was active in
many civic organizations as well as in his church.
Mr. Speaker, it is fitting and proper to acknowledge the
accomplishments of Congressman Adair with this designation. I support
H.R. 2412 and urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to
the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Souder), the prime sponsor of the
legislation.
(Mr. SOUDER asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. SOUDER. Mr. Speaker, it is a great honor for me today to be here
with this bill to name the Federal building and U.S. courthouse in Fort
Wayne, Indiana, my hometown, after northeast Indiana's longest serving
Congressman, E. Ross Adair. He served 20 years in the district, getting
elected the year I was born in 1950, and served until 1970, when he was
appointed ambassador to Ethiopia.
It is also with great personal satisfaction that I have the honor of
doing this, because as a young political activist, when I was still at
Leo High School and moving to Indiana Purdue University at Fort Wayne,
my first campaign was in Ross Adair's 1968 reelection effort when
redistricting had put two Congressmen into the same district. The group
that we developed was at that time the second largest youth group ever
put together in the country, and as my colleagues can see from this old
poster, E. Ross Adair was not necessarily who one would think would
attract a lot of young people. In fact, one of my friends, Lauren
Smith, did a campaign for Winston Prouty, a Senator in Vermont, and
Winston Prouty dressed up in all of these fancy clothes and it said, do
we elect Winston Prouty because he is a swinger? You open it up and it
says, no, it is because he does a good honest job of representing the
people of his district.
That is what E. Ross Adair did, and that is why many, 2,000 young
people got involved in that youth campaign to elect him and he won a
very close and, quite frankly, unexpected victory in 1968. This
particular poster, I collect a lot of Indiana memorabilia, and it is in
the 1952 campaign when he still had hair. He lost his hair not too many
campaigns after that, as politics is prone to do.
Let me give my colleagues a little bit of his bio. He was born in
Albion, Indiana, a small town northwest of Fort Wayne in 1907 to
parents Lue and Alice Adair. His mother and father were both educators.
His father was a school superintendent and newspaper editor and his
mother a school teacher. That newspaper, by the way, still exists in
Albion. Ross's parents emphasized the importance of education and
encouraged him to be an avid reader. In fact, the family home contained
one room solely dedicated to books, which later became the first
lending library in Albion. Albion now has one of the most beautiful
small-town libraries in the country.
After attending public schools in Noble County, he attended Hillsdale
College in Michigan, receiving an AB degree in history in 1928. He was
an active member of the debate team, served as fraternity president,
was selected to receive a Rhodes Scholarship. But, instead of going
abroad, he chose to attend George Washington University School of Law
here in Washington from which he received a law degree in 1933. When he
was not studying, he actually served as a Capitol Hill police officer,
a very honorable profession. In 1934 at age 28, he returned to Indiana
to teach history in Noble County before devoting himself full-time to
the practice of law in Fort Wayne.
In addition to practicing law, he was a lecturer, giving commencement
and holiday addresses. His father was proud of his son, describing him
as a country boy living a good and clean life in the city.
Adair later serving as probate commissioner in Albion County until he
volunteered on September 15, 1941, to serve in the Army as a second
lieutenant in the U.S. Officers Reserve. As my
[[Page H1427]]
colleagues have heard, he received multiple medals, five battle stars
for Normandy, Northern France, Ardennes, Rhine, and the Central
European campaigns during World War II.
After the war, he returned to Indiana to first serve again as Allen
County probate commissioner and the practice of private law and began
political networking, starting his political campaign first as GOP city
chairman in Fort Wayne and later as a precinct committee man. In 1950
at the age of 43 he announced his candidacy for the Republican 4th
District Congressman. The Adair campaign became a family affair, run by
the Adair Family Enterprise, Incorporated. The partnership included
Ross's wife, Marian; the two Adair children, Carol, age 11, and
Stephen, age 7. The children were common fixtures at political events,
passing out campaign literature and urging folks to vote for their dad.
Marian, who is 92 years old and who is watching us on television
today, was a dynamo, not only in that campaign and all the campaigns
afterwards, but later in Washington; and she is still quite the
organizer even at 92. His granddaughter, Amy Adair Horton, is my
legislative director, continuing the Adair tradition here in
Washington.
His early campaign themes focused on honesty, decency, economy in
government, and a definitive foreign policy to not unduly jeopardize
American servicemen and that would promote just and lasting peace; and
he won that election over incumbent Congressman Ed Kruse.
In 1951 he began serving 20 years, and nobody else in our district
has ever served more than 10. Ross' first office was in 433 Cannon,
then called the ``Old House Building.'' Back then, Members received
$12,500 annually and had a total of only three to six staff members.
Even in 1968, when I was helping his campaign, he had one part-time
staff person, Rosemary Hillis, in the district office and added a full-
time staff person in 1969, Al Harvey, for field work. That shows my
colleagues how much it has changed.
He was elected president of the 82nd Club, which consisted of the 45
Republicans who were elected in 1950. He also wrote to the student
newspaper at Indiana Purdue in Fort Wayne in 1953 about his daily
professional responsibilities:
``The average Congressman works diligently. We maintain unusual
office hours and many times are called upon to attend business or
social affairs in the evening. It is not infrequent for us to take
material home with us at night to study in preparation for the next
day's work. It is a very active and varied life. This is a matter of
handling the correspondence and dealing with problems of the people in
our district as representatives, in addition to studying legislation
and attending meetings of committees. The latter occupies an important
place in the life of a Congressman, as legislation is studied and many
times redrafted by the committees of the House and Senate.''
In 1959 he sent a postcard: ``When you elect a man to Congress,
actually you send a family to represent you. This is my family at our
home in Washington. Please let us know if we can be of service in any
way, either at home or in Washington.''
Despite being from the Midwest, the home of isolationism, he began
building a professional expertise in foreign affairs and began his
assignment to the House Committee on Foreign Relations.
At the same time, his wife, Marian, was honing her diplomatic skills
socially. In 1959 Mrs. Adair organized and founded a program designed
to give hospitality and special interest activities to wives of foreign
diplomats. Her earlier organization of six international clubs between
1953 and 1957 grew to 170 members who were spouses of Congressmen,
diplomats and government and business officials. These clubs were
described in Congressional Quarterly as places where ``first names and
small talk made for pretty good foreign relations.''
In 1962 he toured Asia, meeting with high-ranking officials in
Taiwan, Pakistan, and Turkey to gauge their loyalty to the West and
opposition to the Communist menace in Asia. South Vietnam, he thought,
was in trouble because Communist infiltration could not be stopped.
He was also selected as a delegate to the annual sessions of the
Interparliamentary Union in 1959, 1963, 1964, and 1965.
During his congressional service, he rose to ranking Republican
member on House Veterans by 1966 in the Committee on Foreign Affairs
and was also in the Committee on Committees.
Some of his legislative victories, including ushering President
Nixon's major proposals on pollution control, introducing legislation
to provide tax incentives for voluntary efforts to curb pollution, and
assisting the city of Fort Wayne in obtaining funds for storm sewers.
He also introduced and helped pass the Peace With Justice resolution, a
resolution condemning the treatment of American prisoners of war by the
North Vietnamese Communists and a bill to implement President Nixon's
plan to curb plane hijacking. He also led efforts which he bragged
about in every campaign to slash millions of dollars of wasteful
foreign-aid spending.
He lost his final campaign in 1970, but Senator Hruska paid a final
tribute to him by saying, ``Ross Adair made his mark as a Congressman's
Congressman, quiet, hard-working and effective. One of the great things
about Adair was his ability to conciliate differences and effect
agreements between bitter political enemies.''
After his departure from Congress, President Nixon appointed Adair as
U.S. ambassador to Ethiopia, a post he held until 1974, just before the
Ethiopian revolution erupted, deposing American ally, His Majesty,
Haile Selassie.
{time} 1500
Thereafter, he returned to Indiana, where he continued his practice
as a senior partner in the law firm of Adair, Perry, Beers, McAlister,
and Mallers.
He was also tapped in 1976 by former Governor Otis R. Bowen to serve
on the Governor's Privacy Commission, and he also served on an advisory
committee for President Ford's re-election campaign.
Ros Adair received honorary Doctor of Laws degrees from Indiana
University of Technology in 1964 and from Indiana University in 1982.
He was a member of the Southgate Masonic Lodge, Forest Park Methodist
Church, Mizpah Temple, and Scottish Rite Cathedral. In 1966, he
received the 33rd Degree, the highest honor in Scottish Rite. He died
in Fort Wayne in October of 1983.
I have also received a few letters from some of his long-time friends
I want to read.
``Ross Adair spent most of his adult life in service to his country
and its citizens. He was a lawyer, soldier, Representative, ambassador.
It seems fitting that a Federal building be named to honor his service
and his loyalty.''
That was from Susan Prickett, the wife of his longtime chief of
staff. She edited the Albion paper after her husband died, and she
passed away just a few months ago. I was hoping she would be able to
see us name this building. I am glad we got to put her tribute in the
Record.
Orvas Beers, his longtime law partner, cousin, and close friend,
wrote ``I am writing in support of this legislation to designate the
Federal building after E. Ross Adair. I think this is a great idea.
``National recognition of our former congressman and United States
Ambassador to Ethiopia is long overdue. He dedicated well over 20 years
of his life to public service in both Congress and as ambassador. His
accomplishments . . . were outstanding. His integrity and statesmanship
are unmatched. Ross was among the finest Congressmen ever to represent
Northeast Indiana. As a former law partner of Ross, and former chairman
of the Republican party of Allen County, I am proud to have known him
and worked for his elections.
Ross Adair's word was as good as his name. He meant what he said, and
said what he meant. A handshake and his word closed many solid
agreements. He served our country during a time when political machines
were a big part of how this Nation functioned. Yet, Ross's honesty and
integrity were never questioned. He was a fine man. Republicans and
Democrats alike were well represented by Ross Adair.''
Ken Meyers writes that E. Ross Adair will finally get the recognition
he deserved. He tells a story. He was a Republican County Chairman of
Steuben
[[Page H1428]]
County, a county to the north of Fort Wayne, in 1950.
He said, at the time Ross was nominated he was not familiar ``outside
Allen and Noble Counties--but not for long. His sincere friendly
campaigning won him the nomination and election in November.
``E. Ross Adair represented all the people in the district;
Republican, Democrat, or Independent received the same attention and
consideration. On important legislative matters he was in constant
contact with his constituents. He read and studied the legislation
before the House.
``One personal incident proved to me that he did his `homework.' A
popular piece of legislation was before the House that would be
beneficial to his district. Ross voted against it. As county chairman,
I questioned his vote. His reply was, `Ken, a last-minute amendment was
attached to it that made it unacceptable.' When he explained what the
amendment was and what it would do, I was proud he was our Congressman.
``The election in 1958 was an indication of his popularity in Steuben
County. Statewide, the 1958 election was a disaster for Republicans in
Indiana. Ross was roughly 1,100 votes behind until little Steuben
County's 1,400 plurality sent him back to Washington, where he remained
for 12 more years.
``E. Ross Adair's morals and integrity were of the highest. I have
often wondered what our country would be like if all 535 Members of
Congress and yes, the President, too, had the same level of morals,
integrity, and dedication as E. Ross Adair.''
Walter Helmke, a longtime State Senator, father of the immediate past
mayor of Fort Wayne and son of the former district chairman and
congressional candidate, wrote, ``Congressman Adair served the Fourth
Congressional District with high distinction . . . having been elected
10 times to the office of Fourth District Representative. I knew him
well during the entire 20-year period that he served. He was always
responsive to his constituents, and, I believe, represented the
sentiments and beliefs of his constituents to an extraordinary degree.
``During 8 of the 20 years that Ross served as Congressman, I served
as Prosecuting Attorney of Allen County, and had occasion to call on
him for assistance and information a number of times. He always
provided me with assistance and support without hesitation.
``After his distinguished career in the United States Congress, he
ably served the United States government as the U.S. ambassador to
Ethiopia until the emperor of Ethiopia was deposed.''
The last letter I would like to read is from Marta Gabre-Tsadick. She
is the only female senator to have ever served when Haile Selassie was
head of Ethiopia. She writes, ``We at Project Mercy,'' a project that
continues today based and working out of Fort Wayne to help those
impoverished people who need health care and other things in Ethiopia,
``wholeheartedly support this initiative to commemorate a man who not
only gave 20 years of his life to serving his country as Congressman,
but reached international boundaries as a great Ambassador to Ethiopia.
His service there impacted all African countries through his
interaction with the Organization of African Unity, headquartered at
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. We are grateful for his service.
``In retrospect, I can think of no one who has contributed more to
this area, or anyone who could possibly deserve this honor more than
our mutual friend and mentor, E. Ross Adair.''
When Haile Selassie fell, roughly one-third of the senate in Ethiopia
came to Fort Wayne, Indiana, because Ross Adair meant to them America,
and where freedom was. I and many others heard the stories of peoples'
heads being chopped off and watching their kids die. Ross Adair
represented the values, as do so many of our ambassadors, of America
abroad, not only here in this Chamber.
It is a tremendous honor and distinction for me today to be the
United States Congressman from the Fourth District to sponsor this bill
to have our Federal building and courthouse named after E. Ross Adair.
Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Petri). The question is on the motion
offered by the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. LaTourette) that the House
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2412.
The question was taken.
Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. 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.
____________________