[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 42 (Tuesday, April 12, 2005)]
[House]
[Pages H1886-H1891]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
HONORING THE LIFE OF FORMER CONGRESSMAN WILLIAM LEHMAN
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Fortenberry). Under the Speaker's
announced policy of January 4, 2005, the gentleman from Florida (Mr.
Meek) is recognized for 60 minutes.
Mr. MEEK of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the Members
of the House and also the Democratic leader for allowing me to have
this time tonight.
General Leave
Mr. MEEK of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all
Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend
their remarks on the life of Congressman Bill Lehman, the subject of my
Special Order this evening.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Florida?
There was no objection.
Mr. MEEK of Florida. Mr. Speaker, a few weeks ago, a great man who
served in this House for 20 years went on to glory. On March 16, 2005,
former U.S. Congressman Bill Lehman passed away peacefully in the
presence of his family and a few close friends in Miami, Florida. He
was ninety-one years old, and for 20 of those years he served in this
great institution, the U.S. House of Representatives.
We are here this evening to pay tribute to Congressman Bill Lehman
who served with great dignity and integrity, who the Miami Herald
described as a ``legendary figure in south Florida politics considered
a visionary on racial issues and public transit.''
Only three people have ever served in the 17th Congressional District
of Florida, former Congressman Bill Lehman,
[[Page H1887]]
former Congresswoman Carrie Meek and myself, Mr. Speaker. For this
reason, it is a great honor for me to honor him today.
By any measure, Mr. Lehman was an extraordinary man. He was a
successful businessman who went back to college, got his teaching
degree and taught in the Miami Dade County schools. He also was a
school board member and a chairman of the school board, and he led his
school system through a very difficult time, the end of segregation in
schools.
Congressman Lehman was a Member of Congress universally known for
fairness, kindness and compassion. He had strong relationships on both
sides of the aisle and guided national transportation policy through
the 1980's.
Congressman Lehman started out as a used car dealer in Miami, and his
nickname was ``Alabama Bill'' because Congressman Lehman was born in
Selma, Alabama, and I think that it was very appropriate at that time
for him to be in leadership, but he was a special kind of businessman
even then. He developed a reputation as a used car dealer that you
could trust, and that is something that is very uncommon these days,
Mr. Speaker.
My constituents still tell stories about ``Alabama Bill.'' One person
said that he bought a car from Mr. Lehman but the battery died a few
days later after he drove it home, and for Mr. Lehman, the solution was
very easy, give him a new battery, something very common.
Another person told the story of how she wanted to go to the prom
with her boyfriend, but because they did not have a car, Mr. Lehman
thought that it was fit for him to lend them a car for the evening.
This was a very common man, but a man who walked softly and was a giant
in this Nation.
Mr. Lehman's customers were loyal and he never forgot them. Once at a
town hall meeting as a Congressman, a constituent showed up and said
that he bought a car from Mr. Lehman 35 years ago. He asked Mr. Lehman,
``Do you remember me?'' Silence fell over the crowd as the two men
looked at each other, and Mr. Lehman said, ``Your name is Willie,'' and
the man said, ``No, that was my brother.'' Mr. Lehman remembered them
both, and he had a great memory and that is something we do not see
common in public service.
Mr. Lehman had a restless mind and could not be confined to business.
His IQ was high enough to qualify him for membership in Mensa, a
society formed in 1946 to promote intelligent exchange between very
bright people. Mr. Lehman said later that he went to a few meetings of
Mensa but soon stopped because he found the people there very boring.
So, after he got his business started, he went back to college and
earned his teaching certificate and became an English literature
teacher in the Miami Dade public schools. He would often quote
Shakespeare and other English writers in his talks.
His foray into education led him into an interest in school politics.
He ran for the school board and won, the first of an unbroken string of
electoral victories at all levels of government.
Later, he would become the school board chairman, just as the Federal
courts ordered busing to end racial segregation in the Miami Dade
County schools.
Mr. Lehman described attending meetings of parents so angry that he
had to have police guards escort him in and out, but his personal
courage and his uncanny skill at easing tensions helped him win the day
and the schools were integrated.
In 1972, the rapid growth in south Florida led to a new congressional
district which was Congressional District 17. Mr. Lehman ran for it.
Seven Democrats ran for that seat, and nobody ever gave Mr. Lehman much
of a chance because he insisted on supporting busing to end racial
discrimination in schools. But he came in a surprising second in that
election against a well-known front runner and came in a surprising
first in the run-off election that followed.
Bill Lehman started out as a member of the House Education and Labor
Committee, but his work in Congress is most closely associated with his
service on the House Appropriations Committee, his chairmanship of
the Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee and his membership on
the Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee.
As a member of the Foreign Operations Appropriations Committee, Mr.
Lehman used his position to help improve the lives and relieve human
suffering throughout the world.
An example is his work in 1980, when the flood of hundreds of
thousands of Cuban refugees, known as the Mariel Boat Lift threatened
to overwhelm all of south Florida. Financially, Mr. Lehman managed to
get $100 million in Cuban refugee resettlement aid included in a
foreign aid bill, only to see it later stripped from the legislation.
Mr. Lehman did not give up then. He tried for the refugee money again
and again until finally it got included in another bill.
Today, a whole generation of Cuban Americans who came to seek freedom
in this country owe Bill Lehman for looking out for their needs when
they first arrived in this country.
In 1988, Mr. Lehman used his congressional contacts to work with the
Castro regime in Cuba to obtain the release of three Cuban political
prisoners who had spent more than 20 years in jail for opposing the
Cuban government. Lehman bargained behind the scenes through informal
diplomatic back channels. He eventually traveled to Cuba and met
secretly with Castro himself to win their freedom. It was a victory
that only a person like Bill Lehman could achieve.
Bill Lehman only tried to use the power of government to help people
who had no other recourse and often no hope. Just a few examples, Mr.
Speaker: In 1991, Lehman engineered the release of a 16-year-old girl
who was arrested and imprisoned by the repressive government of
Argentina at the time. Lehman's personal diplomacy, along with a
promise to the Argentine government that he would not publicize the
case in a way that would embarrass the regime, led to her release which
she is grateful for today and attended his funeral.
When a constituent who was a single woman wanted to adopt a foreign-
born baby but found that the Federal Government prohibited her from
doing so, Mr. Lehman introduced legislation to change it. The
legislation became law, and now such adoptions are common.
On a visit to a Federal agency in 1986, Mr. Lehman was told about two
employees, a husband and a wife, who both worked in the same agency.
The wife had inoperable cancer and a few months to live. They had young
children, and she had only a couple of months to live. They had used
all of their sick and vacation time on the treatments and care. Their
fellow employees wanted to donate their unused time to the couple but
found that the Federal law prohibited that from happening. Mr. Lehman
introduced legislation to make it legal and started what is known as
leave sharing, which is today an established Federal policy.
When he learned in 1987 that the Communist government in East Germany
would not allow Jews in East Berlin to have a permanent rabbi, Mr.
Lehman made contacts with the U.S. ambassador to East Germany and the
East German government and won approval for the first resident rabbi
since World War II.
Congressman Lehman learned through hearings about ``golden Hour'' for
accident victims. If an injured person gets proper care within an hour
of an accident, he has a much better chance of living or of recovery.
That is called trauma care. Mr. Lehman was one of the major champions
here in this institution for that and could be given credit for trauma
care throughout the Nation and definitely in south Florida.
He enlisted the help of then-Transportation Secretary Elizabeth Dole,
now Senator Dole, and pushed through the establishment of the Miami
Dade trauma center, which is known as the Ryder Center that is working
today. The Bill Lehman Trauma Research Center in Miami is a testimonial
to his work.
These are just a few stories of the kind of man that Bill Lehman was
and how he tried to use the power of government not for personal or
political advantage but to help the lives of others. Perhaps one of the
reasons Congressman Lehman was so effective is that he knew what others
were going through through his own tragedy and trials in his own life.
[[Page H1888]]
His beloved daughter Kathy died of a brain tumor. He was diagnosed
with cancer and underwent surgery and rehabilitation therapy. Because
of the surgery that cut some of the nerves that can allow him to speak,
he had to take speech lessons to learn how to talk again. He used to
joke he was the only politician that could only talk out of one side of
his mouth.
He also suffered a stroke that effectively ended his active
lifestyle, which included tennis and various other activities that he
maintained well into his seventies.
Yet through it all, he was an example of grace, endurance and
perseverance. His mind remained as sharp and as quick as ever, and he
always had a sense of humor.
The many lives that Congressman Lehman touched, he touched deeply.
Our hearts go out to his wife of 66 years, Joan Lehman; his sons,
Bill Lehman, Junior, and Tom; and their families and grandchildren and
his grandchildren.
Mr. Speaker, I just would like to say that Congressman Lehman, they
only walk this way once or twice in our lifetime, someone that was
willing to lead at the appropriate time in the history of this country
and definitely within the 17th District of Florida.
{time} 2215
Mr. Speaker, the entire Florida delegation sends their heartfelt
thoughts not only to the family but also to his friends who had a great
appreciation for his existence. We are forever grateful as a humble
country of having his family share his life with us.
I personally feel the key to public service is helping those who
cannot help themselves, and Mr. Lehman was an example of that.
Mr. Speaker, there are many Members of the Florida delegation and
Members of this Congress that will be adding their comments and
memories.
Finally, I want to end this Special Order with this quote from a book
of poetry that Congressman Lehman wrote in his spare time. He was a
well-read, well-written man. This book of poetry was called ``Hear
Today,'' and the poem is called ``Recognition.''
``We all have our problems,
But my acquiring wealth
Was not the cure.
Though I knew, sure as hell,
I didn't want to be poor.
Recognition was the thing
I knew I needed,
And before it's all over,
I may have succeeded.''
Mr. Speaker, I speak for my colleagues in the House of
Representatives and for the people of South Florida and around the
world whose lives were touched in recognizing Congressman Lehman this
evening.
Mr. Speaker, I submit the following articles for the Record at this
time:
[From the Miami Herald, Mar. 17, 2005]
William Lehman, 1913-2005
(By Amy Driscoll)
Former U.S. Rep. William Lehman, a legendary figure of
South Florida politics considered a visionary on racial
issues and public transit, died Wednesday at Mount Sinai
Medical Center in Miami Beach.
He was 91. He died of heart failure, his family said.
A used-car salesman, teacher, school board chairman and
powerful congressman who exercised broad authority over
transportation spending in the United States, Lehman was
remembered by friends and former staffers as a compassionate
soul and a progressive voice who helped shape South Florida.
He was an Alabama-born Jew who opened a business in a black
neighborhood in Miami and once traveled to Cuba to rescue
political prisoners. Known at home as the father of the
Metrorail and Metromover systems, he was part of a renowned
generation of Democratic politicians, including U.S. Reps.
Dante Fascell and Claude Pepper, who delivered uncommon clout
to Florida.
``A person like this can only come along in a community
once in a century, twice in a century if you're lucky,'' said
John Schelble, once Lehman's press spokesman and now chief of
staff to Miami Democratic U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek. ``He was
truly colorblind.''
At the news of his passing, condolences poured forth, from
Miami to Washington.
a real `folk hero'
Former U.S. Rep. Carrie Meek called him a ``real
humanitarian and folk hero'' in Miami's poor communities. She
recalled his car dealership, set in the heart of black Miami,
and his fight as a school board member in support of
mandatory busing to integrate schools.
``He felt very strongly about the people in the black
community, and that wasn't just pious platitudes. He showed
it in all the things he did. He showed it when he built his
dealership. He showed it when he was on the school board,''
she said.
Mike Abrams, lobbyist and former state representative who
had known Lehman since the 1970s, said the former congressman
was guided by an unshakable sense of right and wrong.
``He was the most moral man I ever knew in politics--and
I've known a lot of men in politics. He was clearly guided by
his personal principles,'' Abrams said. ``But that didn't
mean he didn't know how to use his knuckles in the process.
If he didn't think you had character, forget it. He was a
character man all the way.''
Lehman's ability to reach people wasn't ruled by politics.
U.S. Reps. Clay Shaw and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, both
Republicans, counted Lehman as a friend.
``He was a Democrat through and through, and I'm a
Republican, but that never interfered with our friendship,''
Shaw said.
Ros-Lehtinen characterized him as ``a gentleman to his last
breath.''
Lehman was born Oct. 5, 1913, in Selma, Ala., the son of
candy factory owners. He graduated from the University of
Alabama, and married the former Joan Feibelman in 1939. They
became the parents of three children--two sons and a
daughter, Kathryn, who died of a brain tumor in 1979. She had
been a high school English teacher like her father.
`alabama bill'
He spent 30 years as a used car dealer, calling himself
``Alabama Bill'' in advertisements, before he got into
politics. Lehman was elected to the Dade County School Board
in 1966 and became chairman in 1971. His first election to
Congress to represent a Northeast Dade district came in 1972.
The Biscayne Park Democrat was known for his low-key
manner, for the Southern drawl he never lost--and for his
political power.
``The fact that he was so demonstrably Southern probably
gave him an ability to play a conciliatory and constructive
role in some of Florida's toughest times,'' said former U.S.
Sen. Bob Graham.
In the years when the Democrats held sway in Congress, he
rose to a position of great influence, a member of the so-
called ``college of cardinals'' in the House. With an
unpolished speaking style and quiet strength, he controlled
billions of dollars for transportation as chairman for 10
years of the House Appropriations Committee's subcommittee
overseeing highways, seaports and mass-transit systems.
millions for transit
He brought a significant portion of that money home to
South Florida, with some $800 million going to the
construction of the Metrorail transit system. Millions
secured by Lehman also went to build bridges and improve the
region's seaports and airports.
``Anyone who rides a bus or takes a train in this area,
they owe it to Mr. Lehman,'' Carrie Meek said. ``That's the
way poor people get around and he chose to make that his
priority.''
Other favorite causes included support for Israel and the
resettlement of Soviet Jews.
Sergio Bendixen, a Miami-based pollster who worked in
Lehman's Washington office as press secretary and executive
assistant from 1979 to 1982, said the congressman didn't need
the trappings of success to boost his ego.
small office
``He chose the smallest office--a cubbyhole, really,''
Bendixen recalled. ``He was a congressman. He knew he was
powerful. He didn't need all the plaques on the wall and the
symbols that seemed to make other members of Congress happy.
He was secure.''
Lehman was an unabashed liberal who voted against a
constitutional amendment banning flag-burning, against
military aid to the rebels fighting to topple Nicaragua's
leftist Sandinista government and against sending troops to
the Persian Gulf during the first Gulf War.
prisoner release
But he won respect among conservative Cuban exiles in 1988
when he went to Cuba and negotiated the release of three
political prisoners.
It wasn't his first effort for victims of political
repression: In 1981, he won release of a political prisoner
in Argentina, and in 1984, he smuggled a synthetic heart
valve to a young patient in a hospital in the Soviet Union.
He was also a strong advocate for Haitian refugees.
``I'm a congressman,'' he told an aide inquiring about the
danger of venturing into the Soviet Union. ``If they catch
me, what are they going to do?''
down-to-earth
Despite his power, Lehman retained his down-to-earth
sensibilities. He was a breakfast regular for years at
Jimmy's restaurant on Northeast 125th Street in North Miami.
His two sons remembered him Wednesday as someone who never
raised his voice but taught them the value of working for
others.
``He'd get involved in things and he wouldn't skim the
surface--he'd get down to the very bottom,'' said Bill Lehman
Jr.
``He just took great pleasure in being a friend to
anyone.''
Their father always listened to his internal compass,
financing cars for black customers in the '40s and '50s, when
few other white car dealers would, they said.
``He would look at a man's arms and if they had salt on
them, from sweating, he would know that was a working man,''
said Thomas Lehman. ``That was his credit check.''
Surgery for jaw cancer in 1983 left Lehman's speech
slurred. But he stayed in Congress for another decade, until
his surprise
[[Page H1889]]
decision in 1992 not to seek reelection when his influence
was at its height.
Friends say that even as he struggled with his speech and
other health problems, Lehman maintained a sense of humor.
``I'm the only politician who can only speak out of one
side of his mouth,'' he once joked, referring to treatment
that left part of his mouth paralyzed.
But Lehman said he made up his mind to retire in 1992 for
health reasons: He said he had ``a sudden realization'' that
a 1991 stroke had made him a less effective legislator.
end of era
His passing marks the end of a political era, said lobbyist
Ron Book.
``They don't make 'em like that anymore--him, Claude Pepper
and Dante Fascell--they're all gone now.''
Lehman is survived by his wife of 66 years, Joan; sons Bill
Jr. and Thomas, and six grandchildren.
The funeral will be at Temple Israel at 1 p.m. Sunday. In
lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the William
Lehman Injury Research Center, University of Miami Miller
School of Medicine, P.O. Box 016960 (D-55), Miami, FL 33101.
____
A Man of the People
It is customary to bestow praise on the newly departed,
some of it well deserved, but in the case of former U.S. Rep.
Bill Lehman there is no need to depart from the unembellished
truth. He was a man of the people, and he had a gift for
politics. To those who knew him well and, indeed, to anyone
who encountered him even briefly, Mr. Lehman's humanity and
decency radiated like sunshine.
This wonderful man who did so much for the people of South
Florida died Wednesday at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami
Beach. He was 91.
Mr. Lehman will be remembered for the power he wielded as a
congressman. He was chairman of the House Appropriations
subcommittee that oversaw spending for mass-transit, highways
and seaports. He developed an expertise on transportation
issues that few could rival, and he used his legislative
clout to bring transportation dollars to the state,
especially to South Florida.
Mr. Lehman often used his power to help ordinary people. He
negotiated the release of a political prisoner in Argentina
in 1981 and did the same thing for three political refugees
in Cuba in 1988. And once, he brazenly smuggled a synthetic
heart valve to a patient in the Soviet Union.
For all his political achievements--and they were
legendary--Mr. Lehman will be remembered best for his genuine
warmth and generous spirit. Born in Selma, Ala., Mr. Lehman
embraced liberal values. He voted against a proposed
constitutional amendment to ban flag-burning; he opposed
sending military aid to the contras in Nicaragua; and he did
not favor sending troops to the Persian Gulf in the first
Gulf War.
Mr. Lehman used his power to build community and promote
fellowship. Our community is richer for having had him among
us.
____
A Lifetime of Service
Highlights of William Lehman's life in politics:
1966: Elected to the Dade County School Board, where he
helped desegregate public schools in the late 1960s and early
'70s.
1971: Elected chairman of the School Board.
1972: Elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, where
he later became chairman of the transportation subcommittee
of the House Appropriations Committee.
1980s: Won about $800 million for construction of the
Metrorail system.
1981: Negotiated the release of a political prisoner in
Argentina.
1984: Smuggled into the Soviet Union a life-saving heart
valve for a teenager.
1986: Despite opposition of the Department of
Transportation, won full funding for two extensions to the
downtown Miami Metromover system.
1987: Thanks to Lehman's work, a rabbi was able to
celebrate Passover in what was then communist East Germany.
1988: Flew to Cuba and picked up three Cuban political
prisoners whose freedom he had secured from Fidel Castro.
1992: Retired from Congress.
____
[From the Sun Sentinel, Mar. 17, 2005]
William Lehman, Dead at 91, Leaves Legacy in S. Florida
(By Buddy Nevins)
South Floridians can see former U.S. Rep. William Lehman's
legacy through their car windshields or out the windows of
their trains: Tri-Rail, Metrorail, the downtown Miami
Metromover, Interstate 595 and I-95 and dozens of other
bridges and roads.
Rep. Lehman, once one of the most powerful congressmen to
hold a firm grip on the nation's transportation spending,
died Wednesday at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach.
He was 91.
Although the hospital did not announce the cause of death,
Rep. Lehman had suffered from a number of illnesses including
cancer and a disabling stroke in his senior years, according
to his family.
During his 20 years representing north and central Miami-
Dade County, Rep. Lehman's passion was moving people, whether
he was selling them cars from one of his auto dealerships, or
building them a modern road and transit system.
Rep. Lehman was the last living member of the trio of
liberal Democrats who wielded enormous clout in Washington
and brought attention and billions of dollars in federal aid
to South Florida. In the 1970s and 1980s Rep. Lehman, along
with U.S. Reps. Dante Fascell and Claude Pepper of Miami,
made the Florida delegation one of the most influential in
the House.
``Public transit was always important to Bill Lehman, as he
knew it was a lifeline to employment, grocery shopping,
doctor visits and other necessary services for poor and
working-class citizens,'' said U.S. Rep. Alcee Hastings, D-
Miramar. ``Bill Lehman was known as an `unbending liberal.'
This is one of many characteristics that endeared him to
me.''
As Florida Speaker of the House in the late 1980s, Tom
Gustafson worked with the congressman to kick-start I-595 and
the Tri-Rail transit system, which carries passengers from
Miami to West Palm Beach.
``He was the go-to guy for any money for transportation. If
you needed federal money, you went to Bill Lehman,''
Gustafson recalled.
From his perch as chairman of the subcommittee on
transportation appropriations, Rep. Lehman threw money at
South Florida projects.
``I-595 was Bill Lehman. The Clay Shaw Bridge [on the 17th
Street Causeway in Fort Lauderdale] was Bill Lehman. Tri-Rail
was Bill Lehman. This is a guy who has more monuments to him
than anyone I know,'' said U.S. Rep. Clay Shaw, R-Fort
Lauderdale.
Some of the facilities in Miami-Dade named for Rep. Lehman
illustrate the breadth of his impact: an elementary school, a
causeway, a transit maintenance building, a research center
at the Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital.
As news of his death reached the community, tributes poured
in.
``He didn't just make government work, he brought people
together,'' said U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek, the Miami Democrat
who occupies Rep. Lehman's seat.
``Mr. Lehman clearly left his mark on the South Florida
community,'' said Mayor Carlos Alvarez of Miami-Dade. ``His
pioneering works will be a fixture in Miami-Dade County for
many years to come. My thoughts and prayers are with his
family during this difficult time.''
Rep. Lehman's liberal voting record included opposing a
constitutional amendment banning flag-burning, voting against
military aid to Nicaragua's contra rebels, and voting against
sending troops to the Persian Gulf in the first Iraq war. He
went to Cuba in 1988 to negotiate the release of three
political prisoners and was an advocate for Haitian refugees.
Born on Oct. 5, 1913 in Selma, Ala., Rep. Lehman's roots
were far from the underprivileged he would champion in
Congress.
His father was a wealthy candy manufacturer. His mother was
a housewife and the young Bill Lehman would ride in the
family's chauffeur-driven Cadillac, family members said
Wednesday.
Rep. Lehman's liberal philosophy sprang from the
realization early in life that his small Southern town was
filled with the less fortunate who could make it in life only
with the help of the government, said Tom Lehman, his son and
a Miami-Dade lawyer.
``He saw that, especially during the Depression, all that
the federal government could do,'' Tom Lehman said. ``He was
a big believer in the role of government in peoples' lives.''
Moving to Miami in the 1930s, Rep. Lehman sold used cars,
billing himself as ``Alabama Bill'' He developed the unusual
reputation for a car dealer as a gentleman who respected his
customers and he carried that into politics.
``He was admired, respected and loved, and you can't say
that about a lot of members of Congress,'' said U.S. Rep.
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Miami.
Bill Lehman Jr. recalled that his father never lost the
common touch.
``He was as comfortable talking to Ted Kennedy as he was
talking to a car porter at the dealership.''
After a stint as a public school teacher, Rep. Lehman
entered politics in 1966, winning a seat on the Dade County
School Board. Six years later he went to Congress. Rep.
Lehman left Washington in 1992 after suffering a stroke, but
also as he faced the possibility of being thrown into the
same congressional district as Fascell when boundaries were
redrawn.
Services for Rep. Lehman are at 1 p.m. Sunday at Temple
Israel of Greater Miami. He is survived by Joan, his wife of
66 years, two sons and six grandchildren.
____
[From the Washington Post, Mar. 17, 2005]
William Lehman, Fla. Congressman and Car Dealer, 91
(By Adam Bernstein)
William Lehman, 91, a used-car dealer who later served 20
years in the U.S. House of Representatives and became a force
on transportation legislation, died March 16 at a hospital in
Miami Beach. His heart was weakened from a recent bout with
pneumonia.
Mr. Lehman, known as ``Alabama Bill'' when he was in
business, owed his nickname to his birthplace. But he spent
most of his car-sales career in Miami, a district he served
as a Democrat in the House from 1973 to 1993.
He was a member of the Appropriations Committee and chaired
its transportation subcommittee, which controlled billions of
dollars in federal projects.
[[Page H1890]]
Soft-spoken and adroit, as a politician he was not at all
the caricature of the flamboyant, hard-sell salesman. Long
gone were the days when he appeared in advertisements sitting
on cotton bales and ``making deals as solid as a bale of
Alabama cotton.''
He was much more subtle in the House. As a member of the
so-called ``college of cardinals,'' so named for their
seniority, he worked quietly to pass bills with the least
resistance.
His attentiveness to his constituents, in the form of
authorizing public works projects for South Florida,
occasionally caused turf disputes with the House Public Works
Committee. When the committee's then-chairman, Rep. James J.
Howard (D-N.J.), called ``egregious'' Mr. Lehman's efforts to
approve a large mass-transit funding bill, the Floridian
backed down.
That is to say, he found another way to get his projects
approved--through an omnibus spending package.
William Marx Lehman was born Oct. 5, 1913, in Selma, Ala.,
where his father owned the American Candy Co. A 1934 graduate
of the University of Alabama, he focused on business at his
father's behest.
Early in his career, he worked for CIT Corp., an industrial
finance company, in New York. He went to Miami on a job to
finance auto dealerships and soon decided he would take some
family money to finance a car-sales venture himself.
During World War II, he learned airplane mechanics and went
to Brazil to help train others aiding the Allied effort.
Mr. Lehman was a member of Mensa International. For years,
he wanted to teach English. After studying at Oxford
University in the early 1960s, he became a high school
English teacher in Miami.
He also won election to the Dade County School Board and
became its chairman. He ran for the U.S. House when a new
district was created.
In Congress, he championed public transportation,
especially light-rail systems in his district. He also helped
shepherd legislation to allow federal workers to donate their
paid leave time to co-workers.
He made several publicized mercy trips.
In 1984, he flew to Moscow and smuggled an artificial heart
valve to an ailing young woman who was related to one of his
constituents.
Describing his part with cloak-and-dagger mystique, he told
Roll Call that he sneaked the device past customs and
immigration authorities.
He then went to a pay phone as arranged, where a voice told
him to be at a certain address and to watch for ``a woman in
red standing next to a short man.'' The woman eventually got
her heart valve.
In 1988, he traveled to Cuba and successfully appealed to
Fidel Castro to release three longtime political prisoners.
Mr. Lehman had a massive stroke in 1991 that hastened his
retirement.
A daughter, Kathryn Weiner, died in 1979.
Survivors include his wife of 66 years, Joan Feibelman
Lehman of Miami; two sons, Bill Lehman Jr. and Thomas Lehman,
both of Miami; six grandchildren; and two great-grandsons.
____
[From Roll Call, Mar. 17, 2005]
Ex-Florida Rep. Bill Lehman Passes Away
(By Jennifer Lash)
Former Rep. Bill Lehman (D-Fla.), considered a strong
advocate on both race and transportation issues, died
Wednesday at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami. He was 91.
Throughout his tenure in Congress, which began in 1972,
Lehman voted against such issues as a constitutional
amendment banning flag burning and sending troops to the
Persian Gulf. He also fought to aid victims of political
repression in areas such as Cuba, Argentina and the Soviet
Union.
Lehman remained in Congress for a decade following a jaw
cancer surgery that left his speech slurred in 1983. Eight
years later, the Florida Democrat suffered a stroke, and in
1992 he announced his decision to retire, citing health
reasons.
Lehman, the son of candy factory owners, was born Oct. 5,
1913, in Selma, Ala. He received his bachelor's from the
University of Alabama in 1934. Three years later, he married
Joan Feibelman. The couple had three children--a daughter,
who died of a brain tumor 1979, and two sons.
Before entering the political arena, Lehman sold used cars
for 30 years, referring to himself as ``Alabama Bill'' in his
advertisements. He also spent time as a teacher and school
board chairman prior to his election to Congress.
Lehman never allowed his Congressional duties to cause him
to lose touch with his Florida district. He regularly ate
breakfast at a restaurant in North Miami, and he resided in
Biscayne Park, Fla., through his final days.
Although Rep. Kendrick Meek (D-Fla.) came to Congress 10
years after Lehman had retired, Meek said he was ``struck''
by the friends Lehman had made on both sides of the aisle.
``Only three people have ever represented Florida's 17th
District in Congress: Bill Lehman in the 80's; Carrie Meek in
the 90's and now me,'' Meek said in a statement. ``I will
always cherish the photo of the three of us together, because
Bill Lehman was my Congressman when I was just a teenager and
it is such a privilege to continue his service here.''
____
[From The Hill, Mar. 17, 2005]
Former Rep. Lehman dies
(By Mark H. Rodeffer)
Former Rep. Bill Lehman (D-Fla.) died yesterday morning at
a Miami Beach hospital. He was 91.
Lehman, who chaired the Appropriations Transportation
Subcommittee until he retired from Congress in 1992, was
known for running the subcommittee by consensus and for a
willingness to earmark money for district projects.
Before his 1972 election to Congress, Lehman was a used-car
salesman for 30 years. ``Even though I came to Congress 10
years after Representative Lehman left it, I was struck by
how many good friends he made, in both the House and the
Senate and among both Democrats and Republicans,'' said Rep.
Kendrick Meek (D-Fla.), who today holds the seat Lehman held.
``He didn't just make government work; he brought people
together.''
Carrie Meek (D) was elected in 1992 to Lehman's north Miami
district. She served until 2002, when she was succeeded by
her son, Kendrick.
``I will always cherish the photo of the three of us
together because Bill Lehman was my congressman when I was
just a teenager, and it is such a privilege to continue his
service here,'' Kendrick Meek said.
Mr. SHAW. Mr. Speaker, my wife, Emilie, and I are deeply saddened to
learn of the passing of Congressman Bill Lehman. I will always remember
his good sense of humor, his leadership and his unrivaled sense of
duty. He had a reputation of having the courage and conviction to do
what was right for his constituents, and his country.
Bill was a good friend, and was a political mentor when I first came
to Washington. He led a remarkable life; from his service to his
community to his strong leadership in Congress. Bill was the Chairman
of the Transportation Subcommittee of the House Appropriations
Committee. Many of the transportation facilities in South Florida are a
direct result of his tireless efforts as Subcommittee Chairman.
Bill will be missed by so many, but has left an extraordinary legacy.
His family will remain in our thoughts and prayers.
Mr. TOWNS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to our former
colleague, the late William ``Bill'' Lehman, who recently passed away
in his home state of Florida.
Bill represented the 17th Congressional District of Florida from 1973
to 1992. While he was a great advocate for transportation, foreign
affairs issues, and racial equality in education, he has received very
little or no recognition for his work on behalf of Haitian refugees. In
1979, Haitian refugees faced significant due process violations by the
Federal government. At the time, he represented almost all of the
fledgling Haitian community in South Florida. Bill felt very strongly
that he could not successfully oppose the onerous civil rights
violations faced by Haitians, because of their national origin, without
additional political support. It was at his urging that the
Congressional Black Caucus formed the CBC Task Force on Haitian
refugees. The Task Force eventually succeeded, accompanied by various
legal victories, in establishing an immigration designation, ``Cuban-
Haitian entrant status'', that permitted Haitians seeking political
asylum to remain in the country while they pursued their asylum claims.
Without his personal intervention and commitment on their behalf, the
Haitian community in South Florida may have never received some form of
equitable treatment under our immigration laws. With his passing, our
colleague, Bill Lehman's contributions to improved immigration laws in
this country should not be forgotten. I am proud to have served with
him during his last 10 years in Congress.
Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I rise to remember and honor my friend and
distinguished former colleague Bill Lehman.
Bill Lehman represented South Florida in the House of Representatives
for twenty years beginning in 1972. Bill and I came to Congress
together that year. It is with sadness that I stand to pay tribute to
him today as one of the last remaining members of the class of '72.
Though Bill left Congress in 1993, he and I kept in touch. It was
less than a month ago when we last corresponded. He noted my name in an
article in the Miami Herald and wrote to encourage me to keep up the
fight. I'm going to miss those notes and his many years of friendship.
Bill was unique. He was special among those who've served in this
institution. He was an individual of great principle and compassion
beloved by the community he represented. As his hometown paper the
Miami Herald eulogized him, Bill Lehman was a ``legendary figure of
South Florida politics considered a visionary on racial issues and
public transit.''
Bill Lehman was legendary in this House where he served ten years as
Chairman of the powerful Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation.
He was a tireless advocate of progressive causes at home and abroad,
known for taking principled stands on international and constitutional
issues.
Bill Lehman had another distinction, too. He's the only politician I
ever met that, when
[[Page H1891]]
compared to a used car salesman, he was proud to be a used car
salesman.
Born in Selma, Alabama in 1913, he took the moniker ``Alabama Bill''
when he moved to South Florida and opened a used auto dealership in
Miami in 1936. Playing country music in his advertising, ``Alabama
Bill'' earned a modest reputation as a country western singer. That
original business has grown into one of South Florida's largest auto
dealerships carried on today by his son Bill Lehman, Jr.
After nearly 30 years in the used car business, Bill Lehman went off
to Oxford University. In the early 1960s, he returned to Miami and
began a second career teaching high school English. In 1966, he began
yet a third career running for and winning a seat on the Dade County
School Board and went on to serve as Board Chairman in 1971. A year
later he was elected to Congress.
I was greatly saddened to hear of Bill Lehman's passing on March 16
of this year and commend my colleagues for dedicating this evening in
his honor.
My thoughts are with Bill's wife Joan, to whom he was married for 66
years, their two sons Bill Jr. and Tom, and their 6 grand children and
2 great-grandsons.
Bill's years of dedicated public service in this House will never be
forgotten. His spirit and the principle and compassion he brought to
the job will continue to be greatly admired by those of us who knew
him.
____________________