[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 45 (Friday, April 15, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E672]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  ROBERT MATSUI COURTHOUSE RESOLUTION

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                           HON. NANCY PELOSI

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 13, 2005

  Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of this 
resolution to name the United States courthouse in Sacramento, 
California after my dear friend and our beloved former colleague, Bob 
Matsui, who passed away so suddenly on New Year's night.
  Time and time again, Bob's constituents elected him to serve as their 
Representative in the United States Congress. As all of us know, he 
rose to national prominence as a senior member of the powerful Ways and 
Means Committee, a national spokesman for Social Security, and as the 
first Asian American in leadership of the Congress.
  Bob was a living combination of intellect and passion--someone who 
understood the complexities of the Social Security system, and who 
never forgot what it meant to the lives of America's seniors. As an 
architect for a better America, Bob expanded opportunities for our 
county's children, built a more secure future, and protected precious 
freedoms for all of us.
  In our more than 30 years of friendship, I deeply admired Bob's 
personal courage. Despite being imprisoned in an internment camp as a 
very young boy during WorId War II, Bob always had hope in the promise 
of America. He loved America enough to want to make it better. In fact, 
he worked tirelessly to pass legislation that awarded payments and an 
apology from the government to Japanese Americans who had been sent to 
internment camps.
  When it came to politics, Bob was a maestro, orchestrating campaigns 
across the country that addressed the aspirations of the American 
people, particularly on his signature issues of economic opportunity, 
civil liberties, and retirement security.
  It seems like only yesterday that Bob was among us, doing the 
people's work here in Congress. Bob's spirit and energy have been 
greatly missed. We are saddened by the loss of our dear friend and 
colleague, but we are fortunate to have his wife Doris here to continue 
and build on Bob's outstanding work.
  President Bush rightly called him a ``dedicated public servant and a 
good and decent man who served with distinction and integrity.'' I know 
that our friends on the other side of the aisle miss Bob as well, and 
join in paying him this tribute.
  Bob Matsui was a true patriot who had a dream for a better America. I 
urge my colleagues to support naming this courthouse in his beloved 
Sacramento in his honor.

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