[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 136 (Thursday, October 26, 2000)]
[House]
[Pages H11352-H11354]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      ROBERT S. WALKER POST OFFICE

  Mr. McHUGH. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
Senate bill (S. 3194) to designate the facility of the United States 
Postal Service located at 431 North George Street in Millersville, 
Pennsylvania, as the ``Robert S. Walker Post Office''.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                                S. 3194

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

     SECTION 1. DESIGNATION OF ROBERT S. WALKER POST OFFICE.

       (a) In General.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 431 North George Street in Millersville, 
     Pennsylvania, shall be known and designated as the ``Robert 
     S. Walker Post Office''.
       (b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
     facility referred to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be 
     a reference to the Robert S. Walker Post Office.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. McHugh) and the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Brown) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York (Mr. McHugh).


                             General Leave

  Mr. McHUGH. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on 
the Senate bill, S. 3194.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. McHUGH. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  As we just heard the Clerk read, Mr. Speaker, this bill does 
designate the facility of the United States Postal Service at 431 
George Street, Millersville, Pennsylvania, as the Robert S. Walker Post 
Office, and we owe our thanks to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. 
Pitts), who introduced an identical bill, H.R. 5418, into the House on 
October 6. That bill is indeed cosponsored by all the Members of the 
House delegation from the great State of Pennsylvania.
  Many of us certainly know Bob Walker well and know him personally and 
served with him. Bob represented the people of Millersville and the 
people of the 16th District of Pennsylvania for 20 years before he did 
decide to retire from the House.
  Simply put, Bob became a member of the Republican leadership during 
his years here in Washington, and he was known, for a very good reason, 
as a master strategist, tactician, and an expert on the parliamentary 
process. He was the floor manager, the chairman of the Republican 
leadership, and chief deputy minority whip simply because of these 
great strengths.
  For more than a decade, Bob was a major player in all those decisions 
made by the House Republican leadership. After the party gained the 
majority in the House, Bob became the chairman of the House Committee 
on Science, and the vice chairman of the Committee on the Budget.
  The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, NASA, awarded him 
its highest honor, the Distinguished Service Medal, in 1966, for his 
leadership in advancing the Nation's space program, particularly 
commercial space endeavors. And I think it is very important to note 
that he was the first sitting House Member in the history of this 
country to receive that award.
  Though Bob retired from the House, he does to this day remain a 
strategist and continues his interest and participation in the area of 
public policy, particularly in science and space and technology. To 
this day he serves on the boards of trustees of the Aerospace 
Corporation, the United States Capitol Historical Society, and the 
United States Space Foundation, among many, many other activities.
  It is always an honor to have the opportunity to participate in one 
of these namings; but, Mr. Speaker, I would add

[[Page H11353]]

that in this case the opportunity to participate in extending to a 
former colleague, and to many of us still a friend and someone in whom 
we hold the highest respect and admiration, it is a particular honor.
  Again, I want to thank the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Pitts) 
for his efforts, and I urge our colleagues to support this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 3194.
  Mr. Speaker, S. 3194, which names a post office in Millersville, 
Pennsylvania, after ``Robert S. Walker'', was introduced by Senator 
Rick Santorum on October 12, 2000. This measure is identical to H.R. 
5418, which was introduced by Representative Pitts (R-PA) on October 6, 
2000.
  Robert Walker was born in Bradford, Pennsylvania, in 1942 and 
educated in public schools in Millersville, Pennsylvania. He attended 
William and Mary, Millersville University, and the University of 
Delaware. Mr. Walker taught school for three years, then went on to 
serve in the Pennsylvania National Guard. He was elected as a 
Republican to the 95th Congress and served until 1997.
  In addition to serving as the Chairman of the Committee on Science, 
Congressman Walker will be forever known and remembered as a master of 
parliamentary procedure. Currently, he serves as a Professor at 
Millersville University and a political consultant.
  I urge the swift passage of this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back 
the balance of my time.
  Mr. McHUGH. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Pitts), the sponsor of the House 
version of this bill, and who, as I mentioned, we are indebted to for 
his work in honoring one of our former colleagues, Bob Walker.
  Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me this 
time.
  I rise today in strong support of S. 3194. Bob Walker is a great 
American. During 20 years in Congress, his commitment to his community 
back home and to America showed through everything he did. Like the 
county he came from, he is a strong conservative who believes in the 
values and principles this Nation was founded on. After decades in the 
minority, he helped lead the Republican Party to the majority in 
Congress, allowing us for the first time in decades to balance the 
budget and begin paying down public debt.
  Bob grew up in a small university town in Pennsylvania called 
Millersville. His home is just a few miles up the road in East 
Petersburg. His father was a history professor at Millersville 
University, and he grew up exposed not only to the life of the mind but 
also to the simple bedrock values mainstream America believes in. When 
he came to Congress, that is exactly how he legislated.
  He believed America was capable of great things. As chairman of the 
Committee on Science, he was a passionate advocate of space 
exploration. As a member of the Republican conference, he believed 
regaining the majority was possible.
  As an American, he believed in the power of the American people to be 
great problem solvers and innovators. As our Congressman, my neighbors 
and I always trusted Bob to do the right thing, and I still trust Bob 
for wise advice and counsel whenever I need it.
  It is because Bob inspired so many of us that I think naming the 
Millersville post office for him is exactly the right thing to do. 
Bob's family has been connected with Millersville for decades. His 
father, as I said, was a professor at Millersville University. Bob's 
archives are there at Millersville University as well.
  Lancaster County owes a lot to Bob Walker for 20 years of service. 
America, I think, owes no less to him for his adherence to principle, 
even when the right thing to do was not always the popular thing.
  Naming this post office for Bob is a fitting thank you to a truly 
great American, and I urge my colleagues to vote for this bill to say 
thanks to Bob Walker for being such a fine example to us all.
  Mr. McHUGH. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Goodling), another member of the 
Pennsylvania delegation who I know worked with the gentleman from 
Pennsylvania (Mr. Pitts) in bringing this bill forward, and who, I know 
as well not only served with Bob Walker but is someone who considers 
him to this day a friend.
  (Mr. GOODLING asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. GOODLING. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me this 
time, and I am pleased to rise this evening to support this legislation 
naming the Millersville post office for my good friend, Bob Walker, who 
hails from the congressional district neighboring mine.
  Bob and I served together in the Pennsylvania delegation for many 
years. I have always known him to be one of the most dedicated public 
servants with whom I have served. There is certainly not a Member on 
our side of the aisle that does not credit Bob for his instrumental 
role in helping us gain the majority in 1994.
  When we were in the minority, and Bob served as chief deputy minority 
whip, he was very well respected and recognized as one of the 
Republicans' chief strategists, tacticians, and experts on the 
parliamentary process. Bob was always on the floor of the House making 
sure that parliamentary procedure was being followed every step of the 
way and ensuring that no one tried to pull a fast one. Whenever there 
was any controversy on the minority, if the minority wanted to be 
heard, Bob was the man to see. He was truly a master.
  Many do not know that Bob served as a congressional staffer for many 
years before he was elected to the Congress. I believe that is where he 
mastered the procedures and rules of the House, and I suppose that is 
one of the reasons why his staff was so loyal and so fond of him over 
the years. He never expected his staff to do anything that he did not 
do as a staffer. He always showed them the utmost respect and 
challenged them every step of the way.
  Bob has long been dedicated to the field of education. He graduated 
from Millersville College with a Bachelor's degree in education and 
went on to teach high school science. He knew the importance of science 
education, and when he became chairman of the House Committee on 
Science, he dedicated himself to the advancement of the space program, 
knowing of the important educational benefits that that program 
offered.
  I had the pleasure of working closely with Bob not only on science 
and technology issues but on just about every issue of importance to 
our constituents in Pennsylvania: Superfund, keeping our military bases 
open, attracting businesses and jobs to south central Pennsylvania, 
taking care of the Amish community, which primarily resides in the 
Lancaster area. All of those issues were first and foremost on the mind 
of Bob Walker. It was always service first.
  Mr. Speaker, it is my sincere pleasure to join my colleagues from 
Pennsylvania in honoring Congressman Robert Walker by naming this post 
office for him. He is truly deserving of this honor after all his 
dedicated years of public service to our Nation and the people of the 
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
  Mr. McHUGH. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume to 
give a final urging to all our colleagues to join us in supporting this 
very worthy piece of legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back 
the balance of my time.

                              {time}  2200

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Coburn). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from New York (Mr. McHugh) that the House 
suspend the rules and pass the Senate bill, S. 3194.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of 
those present have voted in the affirmative.
  Ms. BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground 
that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum 
is not present.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further

[[Page H11354]]

 proceedings on this motion will be postponed.
  The point of no quorum is considered withdrawn.

                          ____________________