[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 22 (Tuesday, March 5, 2002)]
[House]
[Pages H668-H669]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        CELEBRATING THE 167TH BIRTHDAY OF THE REPUBLIC OF TEXAS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Green) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I come to the House floor tonight to 
talk about a special day that happened last Saturday in Texas. March 2, 
2002, marked the 167th birthday of the Republic of Texas.
  Long ago on that date, in 1836, 54 delegates representing settlements 
across Texas gathered for the Constitutional Convention of 1836 in the 
small Village of Washington-on-the-Brazos.
  From the beginning, it was an event marked by haste and urgency. The 
army forces of Mexico under General Santa Anna were closing in on the 
defenders in the Alamo. On March 2nd, the day after the opening of the 
convention, the delegates declared the independence of Texas from 
Mexico.
  Within days of that announcement, on March 6th, the Alamo would fall. 
This was the first in a chain of defeats for the small Texas Army which 
would, nevertheless, emerge victorious at the battle of San Jacinto, 6 
weeks later, on April 21.
  Mr. Speaker, what those brave Texans were fighting for is the same 
thing we are fighting for today. Up to the point when they gathered at 
Washington-on-the-Brazos, it was simply to restore the Mexican Republic 
and the constitution of 1824, which had been suspended by General 
Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. This constitution had granted all citizens 
and subjects of Mexico basic human rights.
  On the night of March 1, however, a group of five men stayed up late 
at night drafting the document that would be approved the next day by 
the full convention. This document, which echoed the lines of its 
American counterpart, was the Texas Declaration of Independence.
  It started off in much the same way as ours, with the words, ``When a 
government has ceased to protect the lives, liberty and property of the 
people.'' It spoke of the numerous injustices inflicted upon the 
settlers of the state then known as Coahuila y Tejas: the elimination 
of the state's legislative body; the denial of religious freedom; the 
elimination of civil justice system; and the confiscation of firearms, 
this last one being the most intolerable, particularly among Texans.
  Finally, it stated that, because the injustices of Santa Anna's 
government, Texans were severing their connection with the Mexican 
nation and declaring themselves a free, sovereign and independent 
republic, fully invested with

[[Page H669]]

all the rights and attributes that belonged to independent nations and 
a declaration that they ``fiercely and confidently'' committed their 
decision to ``the Supreme Arbiter of the destiny of nations.''
  Over the next 2 weeks, a constitution was drafted and an interim 
government was formed, despite daily reports from the front detailing 
the collapse of the Alamo and the subsequent advance of the Mexican 
army through Texas.
  On March 17, 1836, the government was forced to flee Washington-on-
the-Brazos on the news of the approach of Santa Anna. Just over a month 
later, independence was secured in the form of a victory over that same 
army by General Sam Houston, a delegate at that very convention, and 
his courageous fighters at the battle of San Jacinto.
  Mr. Speaker, let me remind folks from my neighboring State of 
Tennessee that Sam Houston, along with another Texas hero, Davy 
Crockett, served in this Congress representing the State of Tennessee. 
In fact, I have told my colleagues from Tennessee that sometimes the 
best of Tennessee immigrated to Texas in the 1830s.
  From that point on, Texas was firmly established in the community of 
nations, and for 10 years she stood as an independent nation, until 
President James K. Polk signed the treaty admitting Texas to the United 
States in 1845.
  Mr. Speaker, last Saturday, March 2nd, was celebrated throughout 
Texas. But, again, as we are a Nation at war now, I hope that this 
Congress and the whole country realize that we did not start this 
country just yesterday. We have a tradition in our Nation of freedom, 
and that freedom not only started with our own independence in the 
1700s but it started with the Texas independence in 1836, and that is 
why we celebrate Texas Independence Day.

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