[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 115 (Wednesday, September 22, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H7388-H7390]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




ENCOURAGING INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE TO SELECT NEW YORK CITY AS 
                       SITE OF 2012 OLYMPIC GAMES

  Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and 
agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 475) encouraging the 
International Olympic Committee to select New York City as the site of 
the 2012 Olympic Games.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                            H. Con. Res. 475

       Whereas the Olympic Games further the cause of world peace 
     and understanding;
       Whereas the country hosting the Olympic Games performs an 
     act of international goodwill;
       Whereas if New York City were chosen to host the 2012 
     Olympic Games there would be a substantial local, regional, 
     and national economic impact, which would include 7 years of 
     international sports events, meetings, and related nationwide 
     tourism activity;
       Whereas the Olympic movement celebrates competition, fair 
     play, and the pursuit of dreams;
       Whereas the United States and, in particular, New York City 
     celebrate these same ideals; and
       Whereas New York City has never hosted the Olympic Games: 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
     concurring), That Congress--
       (1) encourages the International Olympic Committee to 
     choose New York City as the site of the 2012 Olympic Games; 
     and
       (2) hopes that the United States will be selected as the 
     host country of the 2012 Olympic Games, and pledges its 
     cooperation and support for their successful fulfillment in 
     the highest Olympic tradition.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. King) and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Meeks) each will 
control 20 minutes.

[[Page H7389]]

  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York (Mr. King).


                             General Leave

  Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their 
remarks and include extraneous material on House Concurrent Resolution 
475, the concurrent resolution under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Con. Res. 475. This 
resolution encourages the International Olympic Committee to select New 
York City as the site for the 2012 Olympic Games and supports New York 
City's desire to host those 2012 Games.
  Mr. Speaker, earlier this year, the International Olympic Committee 
narrowed the selection for the 2012 Games to five cities, New York City 
being one of them. And in July of next year, they will make their final 
decision. As a New Yorker, but also as an American, I really urge the 
Congress to adopt this resolution asserting and expressing the support 
of the Congress for New York City to be given these Games.
  There are any number of reasons, Mr. Speaker, but, first of all, I am 
sure while my colleague, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Meeks), and I 
do not agree on every issue in this House of Representatives, we agree 
that New York certainly is the best place in the world and where the 
Olympic Games should be held in any year, especially 2012.
  In many ways, New York City personifies what the Olympics are all 
about. I was looking at the numbers, and there were 202 countries in 
the last Olympics. There are students or children representing 199 of 
those countries in New York City's public schools. That is 199 out of 
the 202 countries who will have representation in New York City. 
Virtually every country coming to the Olympics, in effect, will be a 
home team in New York City.
  It is that diversity, that strength and also the facilities that make 
New York so perfect. The facilities are available; more are being 
constructed. The Mayor and the city officials, the State officials will 
do whatever has to be done to make sure that all of the events can be 
accommodated. New York City certainly showed, just last month, during 
the Republican convention the level of security its police force can 
provide, the safety and security and hospitality to people from all 
over the country, and certainly, they will show in 2012 that they can 
do it for people all over the world. We have the mass transit, and 
really, we have whatever has to be there for the Olympics.
  Also, if we can say, this will be one final step, one further step 
away from September 11, 2001, showing that New York has come all the 
way back, not just in the eyes of the city, the State and the country 
but, indeed, in the world.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. MEEKS of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume, and I rise in strong support of this resolution.
  Mr. Speaker, I would first like to commend my good friend and 
colleague, the gentleman from New York (Mr. King), on the other side. 
As he said, we may not agree on much, but we do agree on New York being 
the best place for this. I also would like to commend my friend and 
colleague, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Rangel), for introducing 
this important resolution. His leadership on behalf of the interests of 
New York City is greatly appreciated.
  Mr. Speaker, the 2004 Olympic games in Athens recently unfolded 
before the eyes of hundreds of millions of people around the world, 
some watching in person but many more on television every night. It is 
fair to say, Mr. Speaker, that the Athens Games were an unqualified 
success. Despite fears of terrorism or that key Olympic venues would 
not be ready, Athens was more than prepared to receive over 16,000 
athletes and officials from around the world, and the Olympic spirit 
thrived as athletes lived out their dreams.
  This resolution before the House seeks to bring that Olympic spirit 
we witnessed in Athens here to America for the first time since 1996, 
when they were held in Atlanta. This measure urges the International 
Olympic Committee to choose the entry of the United States, New York 
City, to host the 2012 Summer Olympics.
  Mr. Speaker, the Olympics brings together people from all over the 
world, and when they arrive in the city so great they had to name it 
twice, New York, New York, they will find that virtually every 
nationality that competes in the Olympic Games is represented among the 
people of New York City. Of the 202 countries that participated in the 
Athens Olympics, immigrant children of 199 of them attend New York City 
schools. Even the smallest Nation attending Olympic Games in New York 
will find their own cheering section.
  New York City already has a developed transportation infrastructure 
to ensure that athletes and spectators can easily get to all Olympic 
venues and practice facilities. The Olympic village will also be 
centrally located, and over 500 acres of parks will be created or 
improved. New York has detailed plans to first-class sports facilities 
throughout the city to host the Olympics in an effort that will help to 
revitalize New York's waterfront.
  While the Olympics will have an economic impact of over $11 billion 
and will create over 135,000 jobs, they will have a longer-term impact 
upon the blueprint of the city and its ability to host international 
sporting events for decades to come.
  Mr. Speaker, New York is blessed with some of the best financial, 
creative, marketing and corporate resources in the world. New York is 
committed to applying these talents to creating the best Games in the 
history of the Olympics. When the International Olympic Committee meets 
next July to choose the site of the 2012 Summer Games, I urge committee 
members to choose New York City, the Empire State.
  Mr. Speaker, I strongly support this resolution.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. 
Nadler), my friend and colleague.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me this 
time, and I rise in support of this concurrent resolution. New York is 
eminently suited to host the Olympic Games, and I certainly urge the 
International Olympic Committee to select New York as the site for the 
2012 Games.
  I want to say, however, that support for this resolution should not 
be construed as support for the construction of the Olympic stadium 
planned for the West Side of Manhattan. There is much opposition to 
that stadium. Many of us think it is in the wrong place. We support the 
Olympics, because we trust that common sense will reign and that 
eventually people will realize that the Olympic stadium should be in 
Queens or in Shea Stadium.
  In any event, we support the Olympics, we support this concurrent 
resolution, but that support should not be construed as support for 
construction of a new stadium for the Olympics or for the Jets on the 
West Side of Manhattan.
  Mr. MEEKS of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume to thank the gentleman for his statement. The question of the 
stadium is something we will deal with, but we are all together in that 
we want the Olympics in New York.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back 
the balance of my time.
  Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume in closing to just commend the author of this resolution, the 
gentleman from New York (Mr. Rangel), for the tremendous job he is 
doing on this and on so many other issues affecting New York, and also 
the Mayor of New York, Michael Bloomberg, who has shown tremendous 
leadership on this.
  Again, this is the essence of bipartisanship, a Republican mayor 
working with a Democratic congressman, the gentleman from New York (Mr. 
Rangel), and the entire New York delegation stands behind this, 
including the gentleman from New York (Mr. Fossella), who is a prime 
co-sponsor of the resolution.

[[Page H7390]]

  So, Mr. Speaker, I urge the adoption of the resolution.
  Mr. CROWLEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the 
resolution introduced by my good friend from New York, Congressman 
Rangel.
  This resolution encourages the International Olympic Committee to 
choose New York City as the host for the Olympic Games in 2012. 
Congressman Rangel has been relentless on promoting New York as a great 
choice for the Olympics and never shying away from any effort to drive 
this notion. As a member of the New York City delegation, I 
wholeheartedly support the Resolution.
  The United States will not host the Olympic Games for another 8 years 
now, bringing that span to 10 years--in 2012, I trust the Olympic 
Committee will see fit to bestow this honor to our great city. Bringing 
the Games to the United States will not only exert a huge economic 
boost on local, regional, and of course national level, it will also 
create jobs not only the for the Games, but also on the road towards 
them
  New York is uniquely qualified to invite the ``world''. The Olympic 
ideals of competition, fair play, and pursuit of dreams are perfectly 
embodied and thoroughly celebrated in the City. Olympic Games drive 
world wide cultural understanding and exchange and thus promoting 
peace.
  The diverse ethnicity of the City would resonate with all guests--and 
vice versa. Not just since the United Nations, as the epitome of those 
ideals, took root in New York, the City has been a beacon of freedom 
and a meeting-spot for the world. The City was hit hard on 9/11, but it 
never retreated and withdrew in its shelter. It kept embracing the 
world. In 2012, we want to show this yet another time.
  Furthermore, the current plans would allow for extraordinary Olympic 
Games. The so-called ``x-plan'' will bring athletes and guests right 
into the heart of New York, perfectly blending the atmosphere of the 
great New York skyline with the East River riverfront. The Olympic 
Games right next to the United Nations headquarters would be the 
biggest display of international understanding and exchange.
  I urge all my colleagues to join Congressman Rangel in supporting 
this resolution
  Mrs. MALONEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H. Con. 
Res. 475, of which I am a cosponsor, which expresses the sense of 
Congress encouraging the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to 
choose New York City as the site of the 2012 Olympic Games. I would 
like to thank my friends and colleagues Representatives Rangel and 
Fossella for introducing this resolution.
  New York City is the greatest city in the world. As the center of 
arts, business, culture, tourism, architecture, education, and sports, 
New York is an ideal candidate to host the world's greatest athletic 
competition. With its top-notch mass transportation systems, New York 
already has much of the infrastructure in place to transport athletes 
and fans to the athletic events. Because New York is a site for many of 
the world's top sports competitions, including the U.S. Open, and the 
home of several professional sports teams, our city has the necessary 
capabilities to handle large numbers of people along with the 
tremendous security requirements.
  Aside from allowing New York to showcase its beauty and infinite 
attractions to a global audience, hosting an Olympic Games would be a 
tremendous boost to an economy that continues to recover from the 9/11 
terrorist attacks. Our local restaurants and businesses would greatly 
benefit from the potential revenue that the Olympics would bring.
  Greece just hosted one of the greatest Olympic Games ever to be held, 
and I commend them on their success. I am confident that New Yorkers 
would open their arms and welcome the world to our doorstep just as the 
people of Greece welcomed us to the birthplace of the Olympics.
  I look forward to working with my friends in the New York 
congressional delegation and our local officials to bring the 2012 
Olympic Games to New York City
  Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from New York (Mr. King) that the House suspend the rules and 
agree to the concurrent resolution, H. Con. Res. 475.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the concurrent resolution was 
agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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