[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 58 (Thursday, May 9, 2002)]
[House]
[Pages H2237-H2245]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                RECEPTION OF FORMER MEMBERS OF CONGRESS

  The Speaker of the House presided.

[[Page H2238]]

  The SPEAKER. On behalf of the House of Representatives, it gives me 
great pleasure to welcome to the Chamber today the former Members of 
Congress for their annual meeting. Of course, many of you are personal 
friends from both sides of the aisle, and it is important that you are 
here to renew those friendships.
  As the report from your President will indicate, you honor this House 
and the Nation by continuing your efforts to export the concept of 
representative democracy to countries all over the world and to college 
campuses and universities throughout this Nation. I endorse those 
efforts and I ask for their continuation.
  Later today we will honor the memory of a past recipient of your 
Distinguished Service Award, the former Chaplain Jim Ford, and at 2 
p.m. a memorial service will be held in HC-5 to which you are all 
invited.
  I especially endorse your wise choice of former Speaker and 
Ambassador Tom Foley as this year's recipient of the Distinguished 
Service Award. Speaker Foley served this House with grace and dignity, 
and I am honored to be here today to help recognize that service.
  At this time I would request my friend, the gentleman from Idaho, Mr. 
LaRocco, the vice president of the Former Members Association, to take 
the chair.
  Mr. LaROCCO (presiding). The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Frost).
  Mr. FROST. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
  On behalf of the Democratic Caucus, I would like to welcome all of 
you. It is good to see many of you I served with, and some of you I did 
not. You will be welcomed, I believe, in a few minutes also by the 
current majority leader, Mr. Armey, who will be a former Member next 
year. Mr. Armey is not running for reelection.
  The work that you do on college campuses I think is particularly 
important. I know a number of you have devoted a great deal of time to 
that. I was just with former Speaker Jim Wright this last weekend, who 
teaches a course at TCU in Fort Worth; and each year he keeps saying he 
is not going to do it again. But I asked him is he going to go back 
next fall, and he said, yes, he is. I can tell you, I am one of his 
guest lecturers. He lets me come in and speak to one of his classes 
once a year. I have gotten some very good former students of his 
working on my staff both in Washington and in my Texas office. So I 
want to encourage all of you to continue to do this.
  I know our former colleague, Dan Glickman, is taking this to the 
extreme. He will be at Harvard 4 days a week starting in August, and 
maybe some of us will come up and visit Dan in that capacity.
  Again, I want to thank you for the work you do when called upon to 
help us in the House of Representatives. Former Speaker Foley, as well 
as some other former Members, is currently working on a task force that 
Chris Cox and I will chair dealing with the question of what happens if 
the unthinkable should occur and that there would be a disaster in 
which a large number of Members of Congress would be killed all at one 
time and how would the government continue. We hope that never happens, 
of course. But having the guidance of former Members, particularly 
former Speakers, is very helpful as we contemplate how the country 
would continue in the event that occurred.
  Again, I want to greet all of you and welcome you here. It is good to 
see so many of you. I know you will have a great day here. All of the 
current Members value your help, value your knowledge and your 
experience and guidance for us. Thank you very much.
  Mr. LaROCCO. Are there other Members of the House leadership that 
wish to be recognized?
  If not, the Clerk will now call the roll of former Members of 
Congress.
  The Clerk called the roll of the former Members of Congress, and the 
following former Members answered to their names:


  Rollcall of Former Members of Congress Attending 32nd Annual Spring 
                          Meeting, May 9, 2002

      The United States Association of Former Members of Congress

  Bill Barrett (Nebraska);
  J. Glenn Beall (Maryland);
  Tom Bevill (Alabama);
  Donald G. Brotzman (Colorado);
  Jack Buechner (Missouri);
  James T. Broyhill (North Carolina);
  William F. Clinger (Pennsylvania);
  Norman E. D'Amours (New Hampshire);
  John Erienborn (Illinois);
  Thomas W. Ewing (Illinois);
  Thomas S. Foley (Washington);
  Louis Frey, Jr. (Florida);
  Dan Glickman (Kansas);
  Robert P. Hanrahan (Illinois);
  Ralph R. Harding (Idaho);
  Dennis Hertel (Michigan);
  George Hochbrueckner (New York);
  Marjorie Sewell Holt (Maryland);
  William J. Hughes (New Jersey);
  David S. King (Utah);
  Ernest Konnyu (California);
  Peter N. Kyros (Maine);
  Larry LaRocco (Idaho);
  Norman F. Lent (New York);
  Jim Lloyd (California);
  Cathy Long (Louisiana);
  C. Thomas McMillen (Maryland);
  Lloyd Meeds (Washington);
  Robert H. Michel (Illinois);
  Clarence Miller (Ohio);
  John S. Monagan (Connecticut);
  Jim Moody (Wisconsin);
  Stanford E. Parris (Virginia);
  John J. Rhodes (Arizona);
  John J. Rhodes, III (Arizona);
  George E. Sangmeister (Illinois);
  Ronald A. Sarasin (Connecticut);
  Bill Sarpalius (Texas);
  David E. Skaggs (Colorado);
  James W. Symington (Missouri);
  Harold Volkmer (Missouri);
  Charles W. Whalen, Jr. (Ohio);
  Harris Wofford (Pennsylvania);
  Samuel H. Young (Illinois);
  Roger G. Zion (Indiana);
  John Buchanan (Alabama);
  Howard Pollock (Alaska);
  Peter Hoagland (Nebraska);
  William Carney (New York);
  Kikidula Garza (Texas);
  Robin Tallon (South Carolina);
  Glen Browder (Alabama);
  Bob McEwen (Ohio);
  Tony Roth (Wisconsin);
  Bob Garcia (New York);
  Jay Johnson (Wisconsin);
  G.V. ``Sonny'' Montgomery (Mississippi);
  Bill Alexander (Arkansas).
  Mr. LaROCCO. At this time the Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Illinois, the Honorable John Erlenborn, President of our Association.
  Mr. ERLENBORN. My thanks to our Speaker pro tem and all of you for 
being with us this morning. We are especially grateful to the Speaker, 
Dennis Hastert, for taking time from his busy schedule to greet us, and 
to Martin Frost for his warm welcome.
  It is always a privilege to return to this institution, which we 
revere and where we shared so many memorable experiences. Service in 
Congress is both a joy and a heavy responsibility, and, whatever our 
party affiliation, we have great admiration for those who continue to 
serve our country in this place. We thank them all for once again 
giving us this opportunity to report on the activities of our 
Association of former Members of Congress.
  This is our 32nd Annual Report to Congress, and I ask unanimous 
consent that all Members be permitted to revise and extend their 
remarks.
  Mr. LaROCCO. Without objection, so ordered.
  Mr. ERLENBORN. Our Association is nonpartisan. To sort of prove that, 
I would call your attention to the fact that a year ago when I was 
making this report, I spoke from the other side of the aisle. I wanted 
to be even-handed, so today I am back on the Republican side of the 
aisle. We have no partisanship in the Association.
  Our Association is nonpartisan. It has been chartered, but not 
funded, by the Congress. We have a wide variety of domestic and 
international programs, which several other Members and I will discuss 
briefly this morning. Our membership numbers approximately 550, and our 
purpose is to continue in some small measure the service to this 
country that we began during our terms in the Senate and House of 
Representatives.
  Our most significant domestic activity is our Congress to Campus 
Program. This is an effort on a bipartisan basis to share with college 
students throughout the country our insights into the workings of the 
U.S. Congress and the political process more generally.
  A team of former Members, one Republican, one Democrat, spend up to 
2.5

[[Page H2239]]

days on college campuses throughout the United States, meeting formally 
and informally with students, but also members of the faculty and local 
community. This is a great experience for our members, but our primary 
goal is to generate a deeper appreciation for our democratic form of 
government and the need to participate actively.
  Since the program's inception in 1976, 129 former Members of Congress 
have reached more than 150,000 students through 281 visits to 192 
campuses in 49 States and the District of Columbia. In recent years, we 
have conducted the program jointly with the Stennis Center for Public 
Service at Mississippi State University. The former Members donate 
their time to this program. The Stennis Center pays our transportation 
costs and the host institution provides room and board.
  At this point, I would like to yield to a colleague, Bill Carney, the 
gentleman from New York, to discuss his participation in the Congress 
to Campus Program.
  Mr. LaROCCO. The gentleman from New York is recognized.
  Mr. CARNEY. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
  Mr. Speaker, as John said, recently I had the pleasure of 
participating in the Congress to Campus Program with my friend and 
colleague, the gentleman from Arkansas, Mr. Beryl Anthony. We traveled 
to the Tar Heel State to visit two of the finest education facilities 
in North Carolina, Cape Fear Community College and the University of 
North Carolina at Wilmington.
  This visit was facilitated by another colleague of ours, the 
gentleman from North Carolina, Mr. Martin Lancaster, who serves as the 
President of the North Carolina Community College System. I now have 
the honor of reporting to you on this trip on both behalf of myself and 
Mr. Anthony, as he has personal business to attend to today.
  One could judge the success of the Congress to Campus Program by many 
measures, the least of which should be the personal benefit and 
satisfaction of the Members participating. At the start of our trip, 
Mr. Anthony and I shared uncertain expectations. We presumed that we 
were to impart our knowledge and experience upon the students. What was 
truly amazing was how much we took away from this opportunity.
  At both of the institutions we had the occasion to meet with 
students, faculty and the boards of trustees. There were many things 
that impressed us. We interacted with the students in numerous forums, 
including many classes. The reception from the students was courteous 
and inquisitive. Beryl and I consistently offered different viewpoints. 
During our point-counterpoint presentations the students were engaged 
and demonstrated an incredible grasp of the topics.

  The Boards of Trustees and faculties' commitment to the students left 
us with a renewed confidence in our educational system. Equally 
impressive was the local citizens' commitment to the students at both 
schools, as demonstrated by their generosity to the institutions and to 
individuals through the scholarship programs.
  For the first time the itinerary included activities at both a 
community college and a university. The contrast demonstrated the 
distinct and vital contributions each institution provides to the 
students and their community. The contributions of the university 
system have long been acknowledged. The community college offers our 
youths the skills and training to be the future captains of our fishing 
fleets, dental hygienists to care for our teeth, registered nurses, 
licensed plumbers and electricians, as well as enabling students to 
earn credits to a full Bachelor's Degree.
  There were many people instrumental to the success of this program, 
and I would like to take a moment to recognize and salute the great 
work of a few.
  The professionalism and commitment of Dr. Eric McKeithan, President 
of Cape Fear Community College, and Chancellor James Leutzi of the 
University of North Carolina at Wilmington is evident in the success at 
both schools. Ms. Allison Rankin, the Associate Dean for Business, 
Industry and Government at Cape Fear Community College also deserves 
our utmost appreciation, as does Dr. Walt DeVries of the Institute of 
Political Leadership at the University.
  I must close by strongly commending this worthwhile program to my 
colleagues and encourage all former Members presented with an 
opportunity to participate in the Congress to Campus Program to do so.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back.
  Mr. ERLENBORN. Thank you, Bill.
  One outgrowth of the Congress to Campus Program was the interest in 
producing a book that would take an inside look at Congress from 
different viewpoints. There are many fine books written by individual 
Members of Congress, but, to our knowledge, there was no compendium 
that goes behind the scenes in a very personal way. So, a past 
President of the Association, Lou Frey, recruited 34 Members, a 
Congressional spouse, two former Congressional staff members and a 
former member of the Canadian Parliament, to write chapters for a book 
on Congress.
  Lou and the head of the Political Science Department at Colgate 
University, Professor Michael Hayes, co-edited the book, ``Inside the 
House: Former Members Reveal How Congress Really Works,'' which was 
published in March 2001. The book has been very well received and 
already is in its third printing. We hope that you and others will find 
it interesting and informative. Lou will tell you more about the book a 
bit later.
  Mr. Speaker, behind the events we organize in the United States, the 
Association is very active in sponsoring programs that are 
international in scope. Over the years, we have gained considerable 
experience in fostering interaction between the leaders of the other 
nations and the United States. We have arranged more than 445 special 
events at the U.S. Capitol for international delegations from 85 
countries and the European Parliament, programmed short-term visits for 
individual members of parliaments and the long-term visits for 
parliamentary staff, hosted 48 policy seminars in nine countries 
involving more than 1,500 former and current parliamentarians, and 
conducted 19 study tours abroad for former Members of Congress.
  The Association serves as the Secretariat for the Congressional Study 
Group on Germany, the largest and most active exchange program between 
the U.S. Congress and the Parliament of another country. Founded in 
1987 in the House and 1988 in the Senate, it is a bipartisan group 
involving 180 Representatives and Senators. They are afforded the 
opportunity to meet with their counterparts in the German Bundestag to 
enhance understanding and greater cooperation.
  Ongoing study group activities include conducting a Distinguished 
Visitors Program at the U.S. Capitol for guests from Germany; 
sponsoring annual seminars involving Members of Congress and the 
Bundestag; providing information to participants in the Congress-
Bundestag Youth Exchange Program to appropriate Members of Congress; 
and arranging for members of the Bundestag to visit Congressional 
districts with Members of Congress.
  New activities are being explored to enhance these opportunities. The 
Congressional Study Group on Germany is funded primarily by the German 
Marshall Fund of the United States. Additional funding to assist with 
administrative expenses also has been received from nine corporations, 
whose representatives now serve as the Business Advisory Council to the 
Study Group, which is chaired by former Member Tom Coleman who served 
as the Chairman of the Study Group in the House in 1989.
  I would now like to yield to the gentleman from Idaho, Larry LaRocco, 
to report on the activities of the Congressional Study Group on Germany 
and the 19th Annual Congress-Bundestag Seminar held in Galveston, 
Texas. This year's Chairman of the Study Group in the House, Nick 
Lampson, was the host, and we were there from March 24 to March 29. Mr. 
LaRocco.
  Mr. LaROCCO. Mr. President, it gives me great pleasure to report on 
the activities of the Congressional Study Group on Germany. The Study 
Group has established itself as the most productive means of 
communication between the U.S. Congress and the German Bundestag. It 
was founded nearly 20 years ago to give Members of Congress the 
opportunity to have in-depth and focused discussions with their German 
counterparts.

[[Page H2240]]

  This Congressional session, a record 180 Members of Congress belonged 
to the Congressional Study Group on Germany, 36 Senators and 144 
Members of the House. The Study Group facilitates this vital dialogue 
with one of our most NATO allies and trade partners in many ways.
  The most visible activity of the group is its Distinguished Visitors 
Program, which brings high-ranking German elected officials to Capitol 
Hill to meet with members of the group. Just last week, the Study Group 
hosted Minister Joschka Fischer, Germany's Federal Minister of Foreign 
Affairs and Vice Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany.
  Another high-profile event hosted and organized by the Congressional 
Study Group on Germany is its annual seminar. Every year the Study 
Group brings Members of Congress together with German legislators for 4 
days of focused discussion on a predetermined agenda. The 
parliamentarians usually are joined by several former Members, 
officials of the two federal governments, think-tank and foundation 
representatives and members of the German-American corporate community.
  This year's meeting, the 19th seminar we have organized, was held in 
the district of the Study Group's 2002 House Chairman, Representative 
Nick Lampson, in Galveston, Texas. During the last week of May, almost 
60 seminar participants met to have discussions about child custody 
disputes between the two countries, the upcoming elections in Germany 
and the United States, the war against terrorism, and international 
trade. Our discussions were frank and open-minded. We agreed to 
disagree on some issues, and we even discussed steel quotas. We found 
common ground where we expected disputes, for example, when the 
discussion turned to Saddam Hussein and Iraq.
  In addition to the four rounds of discussion, the Study Group 
arranged a very impressive program of additional meetings. We were able 
to tour a BASF facility which had just opened earlier this year and is 
a marvel of new technology in the chemical production field. We also 
enjoyed an outstanding afternoon at the University of Texas Medical 
Branch, where we had a very impressive demonstration about telemedicine 
and its application in the care of patients who are geographically far 
removed from the nearest medical facility. The staff at the University 
of Texas also prepared for us a very educational and sometimes chilling 
presentation on bioterrorism and a global response to a terrorist act.
  The highlight of the trip, however, was a behind-the-scenes tour of 
NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. We received quite an education 
from NASA astronauts and engineers, and were able to visit some of the 
training facilities, both for the Space Shuttle and the International 
Space Station. For me, personally, the trip was even more rewarding, 
since I was able to visit with Barbara Morgan, a friend and former 
constituent who is training at NASA to be the next teacher in space. It 
may not have been a coincidence that shortly after our visit to NASA, 
the administration announced that Barbara will participate in one of 
the next scheduled launches, I believe in 2004.
  The seminar in Galveston was an outstanding means of accomplishing 
the goals of the Congressional Study Group on Germany. Legislators from 
the two countries were able to become acquainted on a very personal 
level, to have focused and in-depth discussions on some very important 
issues, and were educated by other seminar participants on some of the 
nuances that shape U.S.-German relations. It truly was one of the best 
foreign policy-oriented events I have ever witnessed, and I think the 
Study Group furnishes sitting Members with a tremendously important 
service.
  A report about the activities of the Congressional Study Group on 
Germany would be incomplete without thanking its financial supporters. 
First and foremost, one needs to thank Craig Kennedy and the German 
Marshall Fund of the United States, since without him and his 
foundation the Study Group could not function at its present level of 
activity.
  Also one must not forget former Member Tom Coleman of Missouri, who 
chairs the Business Advisory Council to the Study Group. His tireless 
efforts have raised much-needed funds to support the administrative 
side of the Study Group. He has put together a group of companies that 
deserve our gratitude for giving their aid and support to the 
organization. They are BASF, DaimlerChrysler, Deutsche Telekom, J.P. 
Morgan Chase, SAP, Volkswagen, and the group's two newest members, 
Lockheed Martin and Fireman's Fund/Allianz Group.
  The Congressional Study Group on Germany is an excellent example of 
how the Former Members Association can provide a service to current 
Members that is unequaled in Washington and is one of the utmost 
importance to the foreign relations of this country. I think the former 
Members can be very proud of the work they do to make this group 
possible, and I look forward to being an active participant in the 
activities of the Congressional Study Group on Germany for many years 
to come.
  Thank you, Mr. President.
  Mr. ERLENBORN. The Association also serves as the Secretariat for the 
Congressional Study Group on Japan. Founded in 1993 in cooperation with 
the East-West Center in Hawaii, it is a bipartisan group of 86 Members 
of the House and Senate, with an additional 49 Members having asked to 
be kept informed of the Study Group activities.
  In addition to providing substantive opportunities for Members of 
Congress to meet with their counterparts in the Japanese Diet, the 
Study Group arranges monthly briefings when Congress is in session for 
Members to hear from American and Japanese experts about various 
aspects of the U.S.-Japan relationship. The Congressional Study Group 
on Japan is funded primarily by the Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission.
  In 1999, the Association began a parliamentary exchange program with 
the People's Republic of China. In October of that year, with funding 
from the U.S. Information Agency, the Association hosted a delegation 
of nine members of the National People's Congress of China in 
Washington. This program marked the inauguration of the U.S.-China 
Inter-Parliamentary Exchange Group, whose members were appointed by the 
Speaker. The visit included in-depth discussions between members of the 
two Congresses as well as meetings by members of the Chinese delegation 
and high level Executive Branch representatives, academics and business 
representatives.
  In 2000, the Association received a grant from the Department of 
State to continue this exchange program by arranging a visit to China 
by members of the Exchange Group. The trip to China originally was 
scheduled to take place in August 2001, but was postponed in December 
because of the EP-3 incident. Unfortunately because of the September 11 
terrorist attacks, Congress still was in session in December, so the 
trip had to be postponed until early January 2002. When it did occur, 
because it was the first visit to China by a Congressional delegation 
since September 11, the delegation was treated with extraordinary 
hospitality by the Chinese, who continuously emphasized the importance 
of a sound bilateral relationship between China and the United States.
  I was hoping to call on the gentlewoman from Maryland, Beverly Byron, 
who participated in this fascinating trip to tell you about it. 
Unfortunately, Bev is unable to be with us this morning, so has asked 
me to give the report on her behalf about the trip, the forthcoming 
visit in June by a delegation of members of the National People's 
Congress of China and the initiation of the Congressional Study Group 
on China.
  Representative Donald Manzullo of Illinois, Chairman of the U.S.-
China Inter-Parliamentary Exchange Group and the Congressional Study 
Group on China, led the delegation to Beijing and Shanghai from January 
5 to January 12 at the invitation of the Foreign Affairs Committee of 
the National People's Congress of China.
  In addition to Beverly, the delegation consisted of former 
Congressman Beau Boulter from Texas, who was in China on other business 
and who joined in the delegation's discussions; the Association's 
Executive Director, Linda Reed; Wayne Morrison, a Specialist in 
International Trade and Finance at the Congressional Research Service; 
and two of Congressman Manzullo's staff members, Jennifer Osika and 
Matt

[[Page H2241]]

Szymanski. The delegation was joined in Shanghai by Congressman Tom 
Lantos of California.
  Because all but one of the five members of the National People's 
Congress who attended the sessions in Beijing also had participated in 
the initial exchange in Washington in October of 1999, there was a 
camaraderie that allowed an open discussion and give-and-take dialogue 
of issues that included trade, China's accession to the World Trade 
Organization, the fight against terrorism, religious freedom, human 
rights and Taiwan.
  The importance placed by the Chinese on the relationship with the 
United States further was indicated by the meeting the delegation had 
with President Jiang Zemin, which lasted 1 hour and 25 minutes, well 
beyond the allotted time. The session was informal, with much jovial 
bantering between the President and the delegation members, as well as 
discussion about substantive issues. In the end, President Jiang said 
he had enjoyed the visit very much.
  Additional high-level meetings in Beijing were held with NPC Chairman 
Li Peng and the First Minister of the Ministry of Foreign Trade and 
Economic Cooperation. In Shanghai, the delegation met with: The Acting 
Mayor; Members of the Shanghai Municipal People's Congress; the 
Chairman of the Shanghai WTO Affairs Consultation Center; the Deputy 
Chief Commissioner of the Shanghai Pudong New Area People's Government; 
and foreign policy experts at the Shanghai Institute of International 
Studies. In addition, they had an unexpectedly frank and stimulating 
meeting with students in the U.S. Congressional Studies Program at 
Fudan University, which proved to be one of the highlights of the 
visit.
  Although the delegation was small, all reports received from staff at 
the U.S. Embassy in Beijing and the U.S. Consulate General in Shanghai 
afterward indicated that the visit had a very positive effect on U.S.-
China relations. As the delegation's Control Officer in Beijing wrote, 
``In terms of substance, at least in Beijing, CODEL Manzullo's 
leadership meetings were the most positive I have been in. I think 
Congressman Manzullo set a tone for enhanced cooperation that has 
helped pave the way for the recent dissident releases and, more 
broadly, a successful upcoming visit by President Bush.''

  The delegation's Control Office in Shanghai wrote, ``I think your 
trip did do its part in advancing the relationship. I defer to Beijing 
on what transpired there, but you left a mark, especially at Fudan 
University, and in Shanghai as well. The visit to Fudan seems to have 
been a small hit, due in no small part to the Members' ability to 
connect with the students.''
  A second visit to Washington, D.C., will be made by a delegation of 
Members of the National People's Congress from June 4 to June 9, 2002, 
so this important dialogue between U.S. and Chinese legislators can be 
continued to further strengthen the U.S.-China relationship.
  There will be sessions with Members of Congress and meetings with 
Executive Branch representatives, including, hopefully, President Bush. 
The Association recently submitted a proposal to the Department of 
State requesting funding to send a delegation of Members of Congress to 
China for a second visit in the summer of 2003 as the next step in this 
interchange process.
  These annual visits will be continued, but the Congressional leaders 
of the U.S.-China Inter-Parliamentary Exchange Group believe they 
should not be the sole source of information regarding U.S.-China 
relations. Therefore, the Association received funding from the Boeing 
Company to initiate the Congressional Study Group on China in July 2001 
to facilitate and augment the official Congressional exchange program 
by offering opportunities for ongoing communication about vital aspects 
of this relationship.
  Currently, the Study Group is composed of 65 Members of the House, 
although it may be expanded to include Senators as well at a later 
date. Modeled after the Association's highly successful Congressional 
Study Groups on Germany and Japan, this Study Group will hold monthly 
meetings while Congress is in session so that its members may meet with 
U.S. and Chinese experts to be briefed about and discuss key issues of 
a concern to both countries. The Study Group most recently hosted a 
luncheon meeting with Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Jon Huntsman to 
talk about China's ability to comply with WTO regulations.
  Moving to another part of the world, the U.S. Congress and the 
Congress of Mexico have been conducting annual seminars for 41 years 
under the auspices of the U.S.-Mexico Inter-Parliamentary Group. 
However, there is little interaction between legislators from these two 
countries during the rest of the year. The Association is in the 
process of initiating a Congressional Study Group on Mexico with 
funding from the Tinker Foundation so that Members of Congress can meet 
on a regular basis with visiting Mexican dignitaries and other experts 
about various aspects of the important U.S.-Mexico relationship. It is 
anticipated that the initial meeting of the Study Group will be a 
session with the current Mexican Ambassador to the United States, His 
Excellency Juan Jose Bremer, in June or July.
  In the aftermath of political changes in Europe, the Association 
began a series of programs in 1989 to assist the emerging democracies 
of Central and Eastern Europe. With funding from the U.S. Information 
Agency the Association sent bipartisan teams of former Members of 
Congress, accompanied by either a Congressional or country expert, to 
the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Poland for up to 2 weeks.
  They conducted workshops and provided instruction on legislative 
issues for new Members of Parliament, their staffs and other persons 
involved in the legislative process. They also made public appearances 
to discuss the American political process. In addition, the Association 
brought delegations of Members of Parliament from those countries to 
the United States for 2-week visits.
  Also, with funding from USIA, the Association sent a technical 
adviser to the Hungarian Parliament from 1991 to 1993. With financial 
support from the Pew Charitable Trusts in 1994, the Association 
assigned technical advisers to the Slovak and Ukrainian Parliaments. 
This initial support was supplemented by other grants to enable the 
Congressional Fellows to extend their stays.
  From 1995 through 2000, with funding from the U.S. Agency for 
International Development and the Eurasia Foundation, the Association 
managed a highly successful program that placed outstanding Ukrainian 
students in internships with committees, legislative support offices 
and leadership offices of the Parliament of Ukraine. This program met 
not only the Parliament's short-term need of having well-educated, 
motivated, professionally trained staff to conduct its current 
legislative work effectively, but also the longer term need to develop 
a cadre of trained professionals. Former Members of Congress visited 
Ukraine from time to time to assist with these efforts by meeting with 
the students involved in the program as well as with Ukrainian 
government leaders.

  At the end of the year 2000, the Association turned over the 
administration of the program to local Ukrainian management to ensure 
its long-term viability. The Ukrainian program proved to be an 
excellent pilot that was worth replication in other emerging 
democracies, particularly in the Central/East European and other areas.
  In late 1999 and early 2000, under a grant from the National 
Democratic Institute for International Affairs, with funding from the 
Agency for International Development, the Association sent a 
Congressional staff member to Macedonia for 6 months. They selected 
university students and recent graduates in that country and trained 
them to provide research and drafting services for the Members of 
Parliament who lacked such resources. A young Macedonian lawyer worked 
with our Congressional Fellow and assumed the management of the program 
upon his return to the United States. I was privileged to have traveled 
to Macedonia in January of 2000 to confer with the Members of the 
Macedonian Parliament concerning the intern program that we had 
established for them.
  I believe that one of the most important programs the Association has 
undertaken is providing help to emerging democracies, especially their 
parliaments. The transition from the old

[[Page H2242]]

ways to democratic governments is a basic test of the success of the 
newly emerging democracies. Similar problems are being faced by all of 
them, with varying success. I believe the intern projects that we have 
initiated are necessary to help the legislatures transition to 
independent and meaningful roles if the voice of the people is to be 
heard, as it must in a democracy.
  The U.S. Association of Former Members of Congress is uniquely 
qualified to provide the resources for the education of the legislators 
in the emerging democracies. Former Members have experience in State 
legislatures and the Congress. We cannot expect other countries to 
adopt our ways, but we can help them identify the basic elements of a 
free, representative government.
  The Association also has been interested in assisting with U.S.-Cuban 
relations. In December 1996, we sent a delegation of current and former 
Members of Congress to Cuba on a study mission to assess the situation 
there and analyze the effectiveness of U.S. policies toward Cuba. Upon 
its return, the delegation wrote a report of its findings, which was 
widely disseminated through the media and made available to Members of 
Congress as well as to personnel in the Executive Branch.
  The Association organizes study tours for its Members and their 
spouses who at their own expense have participated in educational and 
cultural experiences in Australia, Canada, China, New Zealand, the 
former Soviet Union, Vietnam, Western and Eastern Europe, the Middle 
East and South America.
  In September 2001, we arranged a study tour to Turkey, which included 
visits to Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir and Ephesus, with an optional cruise 
along the southern coast at the end.
  I would now like to yield to the gentleman from New York, Norm Lent, 
who led the trip with the gentleman from Pennsylvania, Dick Schulze, to 
report on the visit to Turkey and its historical end.
  Mr. LENT. I thank the gentleman for yielding. I will try to be as 
brief as I can.
  Ladies and gentlemen, from September 1 through September 8, Dick 
Schulze and I led this delegation of 20 Association members and spouses 
on the Association's study tour of Turkey. In Istanbul, historic sites 
were visited, such as the Blue Mosque and the Dolmabahce Palace, and so 
forth. Our three nights in Istanbul were spent in a beautiful hotel 
overlooking the Bosphorus.
  We were briefed on the current economic situation in Turkey by a 
number of Turkish businessmen, including the Vice Chairman of the 
Turkish-U.S. Business Council. Our meeting with the Vice Chairman was 
arranged with the assistance of our colleague Bob Livingston and his 
staff.
  We next flew to Ankara, Turkey's capital, where participants were 
hosted by the then Undersecretary of the Foreign Ministry, Faruk 
Logoglu, who is now here in Washington, D.C., stationed as the Turkish 
Ambassador to the United States.
  After a meeting at the Eurasia Strategic Research Center, a briefing 
and reception were hosted for our delegation by U.S. Ambassador to 
Turkey, W. Robert Pearson, at his beautiful residence. The briefing 
gave delegation members some excellent insights into the U.S. 
relationship with our strategic ally, Turkey. The reception provided a, 
I might say, delightful opportunity to meet many of the Turkish 
political leaders, including the President of the Turkish 
Parliamentarians Union and the Foundation of Turkish Parliamentarians, 
which is our Association's counterpart organization in Turkey.

  One of our members, Dick Nichols, turned out to be an extremely 
talented piano player, and he was joined by Dick Schulze's wife, 
soprano Nancy Schulze, and, with her beautiful voice, led everyone in a 
very moving rendition of God Bless America.
  The next day included a briefing at the Foreign Ministry and a 
meeting with the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Grand 
National Assembly of Turkey at the Parliament Building. For arranging 
these exceptional opportunities, special thanks are extended to our 
former late colleague, Gerald Solomon, and his staff, and the staff at 
the Turkish Embassy in Washington.
  Our next stop was the City of Izmir, from where a day trip was made 
to the impressive ancient City of Ephesus. From Izmir, some our 
participants departed to return back to the United States, but 12 
members of the delegation continued to enjoy a 3-day Blue Voyage Cruise 
on a gulette, or yacht, which was an incredibly relaxing journey 
through the beautiful coves of the Aegean Sea along the southern coast 
of Turkey.
  The last port of call was Fethiye, which was reached late afternoon, 
September 11, 2001. These 12 members of the delegation learned of the 
horrendous terrorist attacks on the New York World Trade Center and the 
Pentagon while on board a private bus traveling from our last port of 
call at Fethiye to the Turkish home of our colleague Steve Solarz and 
his wife Nina.
  Needless to say, everyone that night was in a state of shock. Our 
farewell dinner at the beautiful Solarz residence overlooking the 
Aegean Sea, which was to have been a joyous, festive affair, was a 
greatly subdued affair with much intensive discussion and a prayer led 
by Steve Solarz.
  Our delegation flew to Istanbul the following day and proceeded to 
spend the next several days trying to find ways to return home, as all 
airline flights, you recall, had been canceled. We split up into 
several groups. Everyone, of course, finally made it home successfully, 
their sadness I might add somewhat assuaged by the genuine outpouring 
of sympathy received from many Turkish citizens who passed us by on the 
street, who saw us in the corridors of the hotels or elsewhere, who 
recognized us as Americans and stopped to express their condolences and 
their outrage at what had happened to this country.
  The trip was greatly enhanced, I might add, by the hard work, 
attention to detail, kindness and patience of our Executive Director, 
Linda Reed, who accompanied us. She is here with us this morning, who 
did an absolutely outstanding job for us and is a credit, a genuine 
credit, to our Association. Linda, thank you for being with us this 
morning.
  Even though the trip ended with the tragedy of 9/11, Turkey will long 
be remembered by all participants as an incredibly majestic country of 
very warm, gracious people that must be revisited.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. LaROCCO. The Chair would ask the gentleman from Illinois to 
suspend for a minute while the Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Texas, the distinguished majority leader, for remarks.
  Mr. ARMEY. I thank the gentleman from Illinois for yielding time. I 
thank the Chair for recognizing me. I will not take much time. I really 
do hate to interrupt your proceedings, but I cannot resist saying youth 
must be served.
  Actually I thought that was funnier than that. Thank you. But, at any 
rate, I have very little time left in my life to lay claim to that 
privilege, so I hope you will bear with me today.
  I walked in this morning and saw all you gathered, and I was 
reflecting on the fact some of you may have noticed I too am soon to be 
a retired Member of Congress, and many of these days now as I walk 
these halls and sit in this Chamber, I find myself with the affliction 
of nostalgia, remembering times.
  I remember the time Jamie Whitten beat me soundly. I think I got 35 
votes for an amendment against one of Jamie's bills. I rushed over to 
the chairman, and I said, ``Now, that will teach you to fool with me.'' 
So these sort of nostalgic remembrances of the moments we have had 
together have sort of plagued me. I am sure you remember those in your 
retiring days.
  But as I walked in here today, I noticed I just created a new emotion 
I want to share with you. I am going to label it ``prestalgia.'' So I 
will soon now be joining you.
  As I watch you here this morning, I also see in your work and your 
presence here a lesson of pride that I am just learning, the pride of 
knowing that I was once a Member of this great body, the United States 
House of Representatives, a body that I personally believe and have 
believed for some time is the single most unique institution of 
democracy in the history of the world.
  What a privilege we have had to be a part of this body. It is no 
wonder you come back and just enjoy these times of nostalgia, when we 
can remember

[[Page H2243]]

where we are, and what I also learned here, continue our work as former 
Members.

  I look forward to joining you in just a few short months. I hope you 
will treat me as well as a member of this Association as you treated me 
when we served together in this body. It has always been my great 
privilege, and I hope I have never done anything to embarrass you.
  Thank you.
  Mr. ERLENBORN. Thank you, Congressman Armey.
  Mr. Speaker, as you can see, the Association conducts a wide variety 
of programs and is continuing to expand them. All of this requires 
financial support. At present our funding comes from three primary 
sources, program grants, membership dues and an annual fund-raising 
dinner and auction.
  On March 5 of this year we held our 5th annual Statesman Award 
Dinner, at which our friend and colleague, Vice President Dick Cheney, 
was honored. We presented Dick with the Statesmanship Award in 
recognition of his service as a Member of Congress, as the current Vice 
President of the United States and his other many outstanding 
achievements.
  I would like to thank the gentleman from Florida, Lou Frey, who 
provided the leadership that helped us make our first five dinners so 
successful, and to yield to him to report on this year's dinner, our 
plans for next year, and any additional comments he would like to make 
about the Association's book, Inside the House, which was mentioned 
earlier.
  Mr. FREY. Thank you, Mr. President, and thank you for your leadership 
over the past 2 years.
  I am pleased to report that we did hold a successful dinner on the 
5th of March, and we have one of the previous recipients, former Member 
and Secretary of Agriculture, Dan Glickman, here. We had given the 
award previously to Lee Hamilton, Lynn Martin and Norm Mineta.
  We sold over 450 tickets for the dinner. The Vice President actually 
came early, out of hiding, and he was there, shook hands for about a 
half-hour, 45 minutes, made a nice speech. I did get a kick out of, for 
those of you who were not there, one line. He pointed to us and said, 
``You know, we all know a lot, we have been around a lot, but there is 
one thing I want to remind you: If someone important asks you to head a 
search committee, do it.'' I guess he came out pretty well doing that.
  The dinner is unique. We have a Congressional and a presidential 
auction and our colleague Jimmy Hayes does that as an a vocation. He 
spends a year collecting all the different things for us for the 
auction. It is really some wonderful things that we have at the 
auction. Of course, we have a live auction, where Larry LaRocco and 
Jimmy Hayes run it. They both talk so fast, but it seems to work. We 
keep selling things at the live auction, so we are going to continue 
that.
  We get items other than presidential donated for the live auction, 
such as a 3-night stay at the beautiful Adare Manor Hotel and Golf Club 
in Adare, Ireland, given by owners Thomas and Judy Kane and arranged by 
our colleague Margaret Heckler. Jimmy Symington gives us four tickets 
to a Redskins game, and now that they have a coach from Florida, you 
have to watch those Redskins. And Bob Carr helped to get us some first 
class American Airline tickets. So everybody really pitches in to make 
the dinner a success.
  This is our only fund-raising dinner of the year. It goes for the 
general purposes of the program and the Congress to Campus Program. I 
want to report that we have at the present time netted over $100,000, 
and I hope it will be a little more from the dinner. So thanks to all 
the Executive Committee and the people that helped on that, to Barbara 
Boggs and to Linda Reed. A special thanks to Verizon, who has been one 
of our sponsors, and also to our new sponsor, Lockheed Martin.
  It is a team effort, a lot of hard work, that paid off. Next year it 
will be held, we hope, on the 5th of March. We have extended the 
opportunity for the Secretary of Defense, our former colleague, Don 
Rumsfeld, to come by. So with John's help and Bob Michel's help on 
that, I hope we can get ``Rummy'' to come by and accept the award.
  Just one brief thing about the book. It is a good book. It is really 
fun to read. It is an interesting book. I have taught from it at the 
University of Central Florida. I know it is being used in Monterey. I 
think Glen is using it out at the War College. I think the University 
of Kentucky is using it. I know Colgate is using it.
  We have had some good reviews on C-SPAN. They covered it pretty well. 
But what we really need is for each of you, number one, to buy a book 
or two. Do not be so cheap. It helps everybody. Funding goes back to 
the Association.
  Secondly, what we need you to do is to talk to the people in your old 
area. I have done talks at the library, at the clubs and so forth, at 
the schools. It is really a fun thing to do, and people like the book. 
Buy a couple of copies. Send it to your old school or high school and 
get it out there. A lot of work has been done by a lot of people to 
make this worthwhile.
  One last thing, we have been asked by the editors if we would 
consider in a year or two updating. So those of you who have written 
chapters, you are going to be asked to re-look at your chapter. I know 
it is wonderful, but maybe you can make it a little more wonderful. 
Those of you left out, like Bob, some of you who did not get a chapter 
in, you are going to get another chance to do it.
  But, seriously, please help with the book. It took a lot of work, a 
lot of effort. It is really good. We could use more and more sales. The 
money goes back to the Association.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. ERLENBORN. Thank you very much, Lou. I will echo what Lou said 
about the book. It is an excellent book. I read one chapter every day. 
It is the chapter I wrote.
  Mr. Speaker, in addition to financial support, the Association 
benefits enormously from the effort and leadership of many people. I 
want to thank the officers of the Association, Larry LaRocco, Jack 
Buechner, Jim Slattery and Matt McHugh, and the members of our Board of 
Directors and our Counselors for providing the excellent guidance and 
support necessary to oversee these activities.
  In addition, we are assisted by the Auxiliary of the Association, now 
led by Carol Sarpalius. We are particularly grateful for their help 
with the Life After Congress seminars, which are held each election 
year, and our annual dinners.
  Needless to say, our programs could not be so effectively run without 
the exceptional support of our staff: Linda Reed, who has already been 
mentioned, but deserves a second mention, our Executive Director, Peter 
Weichlein, Program Director, with special responsibility for the 
Congressional Study Group on Germany; Katrinka Stringfield, Executive 
Assistant; and Todd Thompson, Office Assistant. Many thanks to all of 
you.
  The Association also maintains close relations with the counterpart 
Associations of Former Members of Parliament in other countries. I am 
pleased to recognize and welcome Aideen Nicholson, Vice President of 
the Canadian Association of Former Parliamentarians, and Adrian 
Cunningham, Secretary of the newly formed Association of Former Members 
of the European Parliament, who are with us today. Would you rise to be 
recognized?
  Thank you.
  Mr. Speaker, it is now my sad duty to inform the House of those 
persons who have served in Congress and have passed away since our 
report last year. The deceased Members of Congress are:
  Thomas Alford, Arkansas;
  Frank Annunzio, Illinois;
  Jaime Benitez, Puerto Rico;
  Edward Boland, Massachusetts;
  Howard Cannon, Nevada;
  James Corman, California;
  Lawrence Coughlin, Pennsylvania;
  David Dennison, Ohio;
  Isidore Dollinger, New York;
  Thomas Downing, Virginia;
  Robert Eckhardt, Texas;
  Paul Fannin, Arizona;
  John Foley, Maryland;
  Richard Hanna, California;
  Michael Mansfield, Montana;
  Edwin May, Jr., Connecticut;
  Clinton Kinnon, California;
  Harold McSween, Louisiana;
  Joe Moakley, Massachusetts;
  Henry Reuss, Wisconsin;
  Walter Rogers, Texas;

[[Page H2244]]

  Eldon Rudd, Arizona;
  Gerald Solomon, New York;
  Floyd Spence, South Carolina;
  Lynn Stalbaum, Wisconsin;
  William Stanton, Ohio;
  Herman Talmadge, Georgia;
  Victor Veysey, California;
  Harrison Williams, Jr., New Jersey;
  Lewis Wyman, New Hampshire;
  John Young, Texas.
  I respectfully ask that all of you rise for a moment of silence in 
their memory.
  Thank you.
  As you know, each year the Association presents a Distinguished 
Service Award to an outstanding public servant. The award normally 
rotates between the parties, as do our officers. Last year we presented 
the award to a remarkable Republican, Jack Kemp. This year we 
are pleased to be honoring an extraordinary Democrat, Tom Foley.

  Tom is a native of Spokane, Washington, and a graduate of the 
University of Washington and its School of Law. He was elected to 
represent the State of Washington's Fifth Congressional District in the 
House of Representatives 15 times, serving his constituents for 30 
years, from January 1965 to January 1995.
  Prior to being elected the 49th Speaker of the House on June 6, 1989, 
Tom served as Majority Leader and, from 1981 to 1987, as Majority Whip. 
During his illustrious career in the House, he was a member of the 
Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, the Committee on the 
Budget, the Select Committee to Investigate Covert Arms Transactions 
with Iran, the Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs, and chaired 
the Committee on Agriculture, the Committee on Standards of Official 
Conduct and the House Geneva Arms Talks Observer Team. In addition, he 
was chairman of both the House Democratic Caucus and the Democratic 
Study Group.
  When he left Congress, Tom joined the law firm of Akin, Gump, 
Strauss, Hauer & Feld in Washington, D.C. as a partner. He was Chairman 
of the President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board until his 
appointment as the 25th U.S. Ambassador to Japan in November 1997, a 
post he held until 2001.
  Upon his return to Washington, he rejoined Akin, Gump, where he 
advises clients on matters of legal and corporate strategy. Tom 
currently is Chairman of the Trilateral Commission.
  Tom has served on a number of private and public boards of directors 
and has received numerous honors, including the Cross of the Order of 
Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany, and, from the Government of 
Japan, the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun, Paulowina 
Flowers, in recognition of his service to the U.S. House of 
Representatives and the important impact he had on facilitating 
harmonious U.S.-Japan relations and promoting understanding of Japan in 
the United States.
  Tom, you have been very patient waiting all this time. Now let me ask 
you to come up so that I can present you with the award.
  Mr. FOLEY. Thank you very much, Mr. President, Mr. Speaker, Mr. 
Chairman, Members of Congress, my colleagues, former Members, guests, 
ladies and gentlemen.
  I am very honored by this award. When Ronald Reagan was President, he 
received many awards. One time he received an award and he said, ``I 
don't deserve this, but I also have arthritis and I don't deserve that 
either.''
  We all in our lives are honored by many things. We are honored by the 
support and affection and loyalty of our families, our spouses, our 
friends, and we are honored by those with whom we have had the 
opportunity to work, particularly those who work in public service.
  I think the greatest honor of my life was the willingness of my wife 
Heather to allow me to join her life. She had to leave, but she was 
here earlier. Second to that, probably the honor that was bestowed on 
me, as it was on all of you, by hundreds of thousands of constituents, 
who were willing to trust your judgment and your responsibility in 
representing them in the House of Representatives. That is truly a 
great honor because, as it was said 200 years ago from the gallery, 
``Here, sir, the people govern.''
  When I was a young Member of Congress, John McCormick said one time 
when he was Speaker to us that if the day came when you were not 
thrilled, deeply honored and deeply moved as you came to the Capitol, 
whether it was a stormy or sunny day and any season of the year, and 
you did not have that great sense of responsibility and honor to be 
allowed to serve so many of your fellow constituents, he said if that 
day comes, quit. Quit. You have stayed too long.
  When I was a very young Member of Congress, brand new, not yet sworn 
in, we, as were Republican Members, were given briefings by our seniors 
and betters. John McCormick was Speaker when I was a newly-elected 
Member, and he addressed the Members of the 89th Congress by saying 
that some of us might have been elected seriously, others by accident, 
and he would only know and the leadership would only know after 2 years 
time if we were reelected. In the meantime, he wished us well.
  We were then addressed by a very powerful member of the 
Appropriations Committee, Mr. Irwin, who said that he wanted to warn us 
against the single greatest danger that could occur to a new Member of 
Congress beginning his or her service. We leaned forward to hear what 
that was, some ethical trap or other we thought perhaps.
  He said, ``That great danger, above all others, is thinking for 
yourselves.'' He said, ``Don't do that.'' He said, ``For heavens sake, 
don't do that.'' He said, ``Trust the subcommittee chairmen, trust the 
committee chairmen, trust the chairman of the Democratic Caucus, trust 
and support the Whip, the Majority Leader,'' and he said, ``Above all 
else, above all else, trust, support and follow the Speaker.''
  I remember being outraged, deeply offended that a senior member of my 
party should suggest that I subcontract my judgment to the leadership 
when I had been elected, I thought, as one of a number of young new 
members, Lloyd Meeds and I, from the State of Washington to come and do 
my part to see if we could help our constituents, our State and our 
Nation.
  He went on to say, Mr. Irwin, that more people had gotten into 
trouble in this body by thinking for themselves than by stealing money. 
That outrageous statement was absolutely beyond sufferance.
  Later on, however, it was my honor to be a subcommittee chairman and 
later, with Kika de la Garza, our committee chairman and the Democratic 
Whip and the Majority Leader and, finally, in June of 1989, the Speaker 
of the House. As I took the oath as Speaker, the wise words of Mr. 
Irwin came across a generation of time, and I thought how right he was, 
how right he was, Members should support, follow and accept in all ways 
the leadership of the Speaker. But, of course, that does not happen. 
Then and now, people of all parties, of all regions, of all 
circumstances that serve here follow their own best judgment as to how 
they can best serve their citizen constituents.
  I think that it is an enduring honor to have served in this body, and 
for, I think, the thousands who have served here it is certainly one of 
the most significant things that happens in their lives.
  After I left here I had an additional honor of being asked by 
President Clinton to serve as Ambassador to Japan, and I remember very 
distinctly the moment when I presented my credentials to the Emperor 
and was proud to say I have been selected, Your Majesty, as the 
Ambassador of the United States of America to Japan. I herewith present 
my credentials of office and my predecessor's letter of withdrawal. 
That was a fascinating opportunity for me, again a great honor, to 
represent our country to America's strongest ally in the Pacific, and 
to follow, again, a very distinguished group of Ambassadors who have 
served there before, including the late Mike Mansfield.
  As I returned from Japan after being asked to stay for a short term 
during President Bush's administration because of the tragic sinking of 
the Ehime Maru by a U.S. submarine, I left on the very day that was 
mentioned by our President, and on April 1, when the Chief of Station 
told me, as I was getting in the car to go to the airport, that we have 
an aircraft down from Kadena in Hainan Island, China. But those events 
and the tension that followed have passed and the United States has 
resumed a constructive relationship in China.

[[Page H2245]]

  And I want to say a word of praise for this organization and its 
constant work to use the opportunity of former parliamentarians here to 
meet with parliamentarians in other countries and in other regions. The 
study group for Germany and Japan and the one soon to be established 
for China, the parliamentary exchanges with Mexico and with Canada, 
with Eastern Europe and elsewhere have allowed the United States 
Congress and the United States former Members to share their 
experiences with parliamentarians, distinguished parliamentarians in 
other parts of the world, and I think together we advance the cause of 
democracy by that effort. I do not think there is any higher calling 
that a former Member of Congress can aspire to than to use whatever 
experience he or she has in the service of our constituents and in 
parliamentary democracy to advance it throughout the world.
  Again, with great thanks to all of you for the honor you have given 
me today.
  Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks 
and I leave the floor. But before I do, let me say one final thing of 
appreciation to one other Member here today, Bob Michel, with whom I 
had the great honor of serving all the time I was here and especially 
when I was Speaker during the time when he was the distinguished 
Republican leader of the House. If circumstances had been a little 
different and the electoral cycle a little different, Bob Michel would 
have been one of the great Speakers of this House, and I am proud to 
know him. Thank you very much.
  Mr. LaROCCO. Without objection, so ordered.
  Mr. ERLENBORN. You may be wondering, since I missed a line in my 
introduction of Tom Foley, what he was doing here today, and that was 
he was receiving the Statesmanship award. The Distinguished Service 
Award is being given to Tom Foley. I did not want him to hold the award 
during his speech, but I have a copy of it here and here is what it 
says: ``Presented by the U.S. Association of Former Members of Congress 
to the Honorable Thomas S. Foley for his many years of distinguished 
service to the Nation as U.S. Ambassador to Japan and as a Member of 
United States Congress for 30 years, including his extraordinary 
leadership as Democratic Whip, Majority Leader and Speaker of the House 
of Representative. Washington, D.C., May 9, 2002.''
  So now you know.
  Thank you again, Tom, for your leadership and service.
  Mr. Speaker and members of the Association, we are honored and proud 
to serve in the U.S. Congress. We are continuing our service to our 
Nation in other ways now, but hopefully ones that are equally as 
effective. Again, thank you for letting us return today to this 
Chamber.
  This concludes our 32nd annual report by the U.S. Association of 
Former Members of Congress, and thank you all.
  Mr. LaROCCO. The Chair would like to recognize the gentleman from 
Illinois for the following purpose: If the former Members would join me 
in giving our President, John Erlenborn, an expression of appreciation 
for his service. Thank you, John.
  The Chair again wishes to thank the former Members of the House for 
their presence here today. Before terminating these proceedings, the 
Chair would like to invite those former Members who cannot respond when 
the roll was called to give their names to the Reading Clerk for 
inclusion on the roll. The Chair wishes to thank the other Members of 
the House for their presence here today. Good luck to all.
  The Chair announces that the House will reconvene at 10:40 a.m.
  Accordingly (at 10 o'clock and 25 minutes a.m.) the House continued 
in recess.

                          ____________________