[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 178 (Thursday, December 20, 2001)]
[House]
[Pages H10940-H10941]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        TRIBUTE TO HONORABLE DAVID E. BONIOR, MEMBER OF CONGRESS

  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, I come this afternoon to say thank you to 
the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Bonior). Ten years ago I first came to 
this institution, and at this very place I was given the honor of 
seconding the nomination of David Bonior for whip. I have served with 
him for 10 years. I have known him for 14 years. I learned from him as 
a mentor. I learned the skills of serving as a whip with him. I learned 
the battle for economic and social justice in Central America with him.
  He comes from the earth, he comes from a family of working-class 
Americans, the way so many of us come to this institution. And he came 
here and he accomplished good public policy for the great people of 
this Nation. And in all that time, and in all that time, he never 
faltered. He never was afraid to stand up. He has never been afraid to 
championing the cause of the people of this country. And because of 
that tenacity and that brutal effectiveness, he has changed the lives 
of people in this country.
  No one has fought harder for worker standards, for minimum wage, for 
those things that help people to live their lives because he 
understands their lives. He is a peaceful veteran, and, like myself, a 
Catholic who cares about life in its broader sense. His sense of 
integrity, his sense of honesty and his soul will be missed in this 
institution.
  He will go on to do wonderful things, and we are all here for you, 
David. We will stand with you and do what you want and try to help you 
be the next Governor of Michigan. To you and to Judy and to your 
family, we wish you the best.
  There have been folks who have tried to demonize David Bonior, but 
his genuineness comes through, and they cannot do it. His gentle 
strength will prevail. It prevailed in what he did before he came here, 
it prevailed here, and it will prevail as he serves as Governor of the 
State of Michigan. God bless David Bonior, and I thank the gentleman 
for all that he has given to all of us.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. 
Woolsey).

                              {time}  1215

  Ms. WOOLSEY. David, what am I going to do without you? Good grief. I 
have been here 8 years. After we lost the House in 1994, dithering, all 
of us, frustrated, all of us, I got a call from one of my sons. All of 
my kids tell me what I should be doing here because they are smart and 
they care. My son said, ``Mother, I hope you're listening to Dave 
Bonior.'' I said, ``Well, yeah, what are you saying?'' And he said, 
``He's the only one that's saying anything.''
  So I started listening more closely, because I knew the background 
and what you brought to us all along, but I listened to your message, 
and it became very important to me to get on your team, to be part of 
it. Thank you for putting me on the whip organization so I can do what 
I do best, which is rally and push and nudge and count. It has been a 
pleasure working for you.
  Thank you very much. I have learned more from you than you will ever 
know.
  My nice constituents worry about me here because they think it is 
kind of a mean place and a lot of them will say, ``How can you stand to 
work with all those people?'' And I say, ``Uh-uh, I get to work with 
Dave Bonior.'' They go, oh, yeah, there are good people there too; 
among others, of course.
  Thank you again. I miss you already. Our loss is Michigan's gain for 
sure.
  Ms. DeLAURO. I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. Farr).
  Mr. FARR of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise with deep regret that 
David Bonior is leaving this institution. I arrived here about 9 years 
ago. It was in a special election. But I think of all the people I have 
met, David Bonior was the kindest person I met. What I have learned 
over the years of working here is, this is a tough institution; and to 
survive and to be into leadership, you have got to have tough skin, but 
you have also got to have a kind and soft heart.
  The wonderful thing about David Bonior is how much he gives of 
himself to everybody else's problem. He will come to your district. And 
when he sees a wrong, he is out there trying to right it, whether it is 
in the fields of farm workers in California, whether it is in the 
stockyards, wherever it may be in the United States, where men and 
women are suffering or are not having

[[Page H10941]]

a fair wage, a fair treatment in their workplace, David Bonior is the 
first to be there to understand the problem and the first on the floor 
to talk about righting that wrong.
  The people of Michigan are so fortunate to have this person in 
elective office. I hope they have the good wisdom to select him as 
governor because he is going to be a great leader in this country as a 
governor, as he was a Member of the House of Representatives. He rose 
to a leadership position. Who knows, if he were staying here, he could 
have been Speaker of the House, perhaps Vice President of the country, 
and maybe those days will still come.
  But this is truly one of the great Members serving in a great 
institution at a great time in our history. This institution is going 
to suffer with his leaving, but the people of Michigan I hope will have 
the great wisdom to keep him in the public limelight and keep him in 
public office by electing him as their governor.
  (By unanimous consent, Ms. Kaptur was allowed to speak out of order 
for 5 minutes.)

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