[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 34 (Thursday, March 21, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2307-S2308]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
DEATH OF THE HONORABLE HERMAN E. TALMADGE, FORMERLY A SENATOR FROM THE
STATE OF GEORGIA
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed
to the consideration of S. Res. 231.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the resolution by title.
The legislative clerk read as follows:
A resolution (S. Res. 231) relative to the death of the
Honorable Herman E. Talmadge, formerly a Senator from the
State of Georgia.
There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the
resolution.
Mr. MILLER. Mr. President, I rise today to mourn one of this body's
greatest giants--Herman Eugene Talmadge.
The tallest tree in all the Georgia forest has fallen. And we will
never see another one that stood so tall and had such strength. All of
us in Georgia politics who came after him have worked in his shade.
My heart grieves for his wife Linda, his family and his legion of
loyal friends.
Without question, Herman Talmadge was Georgia's greatest governor of
the 20th Century. He proposed and passed Georgia's first sales tax, and
that ushered in a new day of State services. Nowhere was the impact
greater than in education.
When Herman Talmadge became Governor in 1948, Georgia still had more
than 1,750 one-room school houses. Many other school buildings were in
a dilapidated State.
The major school construction program he launched was badly needed.
It changed the state of education in Georgia.
But he did more than just construct new school buildings. Governor
Talmadge also implemented Georgia's first statewide effort to reform
education. It was called the Minimum Foundation Program for Education.
The result was dramatic improvement in public education in Georgia--
increased funding, better-trained, higher-paid teachers, finally, a 9-
month
[[Page S2308]]
school year, and bus service in rural areas that gave every Georgia
child the opportunity for an education.
And one other thing I can say personally concerning education:
Senator Talmadge certainly educated me.
He beat the tar out of me when I ran against him for the Senate in
1980. And I have often said I learned more from that losing race than I
did in all the others that I won.
This Senator has a Ph.D. from ``Herman Talmadge University.''
Although it took me a few years to realize it, I have been a better
man and a better Governor and a better Senator because of what he
taught me.
For example, I never proposed a program or let anyone else propose
some ``pie in the sky'' without asking, How much does it cost and how
are we going to pay for it?
But we are not here to talk about what he taught me. We are here to
pay tribute to a Georgia icon, a giant political leader, the likes of
which we will never see again.
A man who gave and did so much for our State, our Nation, and our
people.
The Talmadge Administration also left Georgia an economic development
legacy, an unprecedented highway construction program was undertaken.
The Ports Authority and our network of State farmers' markets were
expanded. And the forestry industry benefited from his statewide
program of protection and reforestation.
Governor Talmadge also built a network of hospitals and health
centers throughout Georgia. And he doubled State funding for mental
health.
Two years after he left the Governor's office, he was easily elected
to the U.S. Senate in 1956 to replace the legendary Walter F. George
upon his retirement.
Those were big shoes to fill. But Herman Talmadge immediately
established himself as an authority on agricultural programs. In fact,
he chaired the Agriculture Committee for a decade--from 1971 through
1980.
I will never forget the day I went to my first meeting as a member of
the Agriculture committee. I sat down at the table and right behind me
was the huge magnificent portrait of Senator Talmadge. I wrote him a
note saying that ``he was still in Washington looking over my
shoulder.''
Senator Talmadge was a primary sponsor of the modern School Lunch
Program, and of the 1972 Rural Development Act, which created a system
of rural hospitals.
In welfare reform, Herman Talmadge was ahead of his time. His
Talmadge Work Incentive Training Act provided tax credits as an
incentive to hiring welfare recipients.
In its first two years, this law took more than one million people
off the welfare rolls nationwide. It resulted in a savings of $4
billion dollars. Georgia alone saved more than $400 million.
Without a doubt, his service together, with Senator Richard B.
Russell, who chaired the Armed Forces Committee, gave Georgia the most
powerful presence it has ever had in the U.S. Senate.
I will close with this last observation. The ultimate test of any
statesman is to have a combination of insight and courage.
Herman Eugene Talmadge always possessed both in abundance.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the resolution be
agreed to and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, without
any intervening action or debate.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The resolution (S. Res. 231) was agreed to, as follows:
S. Res. 231
Resolved, That the Senate has heard with profound sorrow
and deep regret the announcement of the death of the
Honorable Herman E. Talmadge, formerly a Senator from the
State of Georgia.
Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate communicate
these resolutions to the House of Representatives and
transmit an enrolled copy thereof to the family of the
deceased.
Resolved, That when the Senate adjourns today, it stand
adjourned as a further mark of respect to the memory of the
deceased Senator.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I did not know Herman Talmadge, but when I
arrived here in Washington his reputation was evident. Even though what
we are doing tonight is somewhat perfunctory, it should not take away
from the many great deeds this man did for the State of Georgia and his
country, as indicated in the statement by Senator Zell Miller.
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