[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 120 (Thursday, September 22, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10389-S10390]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
COMMENDING THE JAMES MADISON COUNCIL AND ITS FOUNDING CHAIRMAN, JOHN W.
KLUGE
Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent the Senate now proceed to the
consideration of S. Res. 247, which was submitted earlier today.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the resolution by title.
The legislative clerk read as follows:
A resolution (S. Res. 247) commending the Library of
Congress's private-sector advisory body, the James Madison
Council, and its Founding Chairman, John W. Kluge, on 15
years of exemplary service to Congress and the Nation and
looking forward to the Council's continued success in the
years ahead.
There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the
resolution.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I rise in support of a Senate resolution
which I submitted commending the James Madison Council of the Library
of Congress, which is celebrating its 15th year under the continuing
strong leadership of its founding chairman, John Kluge.
The James Madison Council is the first private sector advisory body
in the history of the Library of Congress. With the approval of the
Joint Committee on the Library, which I have chaired and served on for
many years, Librarian of Congress Jim Billington established the
Council in 1990 as the Library's primary philanthropic body and link to
the business community. It consists of public-spirited citizens
dedicated to helping the Nation receive the full benefits of the
Library of Congress's incomparable educational, scientific,
technological, and cultural resources.
In its 15 years of unprecedented private support of the Library, the
Madison Council has acquired hundreds of items for the collections that
would have otherwise been unattainable through Federal appropriations
alone, including the famous Waldseemuller map, the first map to bear
the name ``America''; the $45 million dollar campaign to launch the
National Digital Library, which provides free internet access to 10
million of the most important materials in the Library's collection;
the Library's bicentennial celebration in 2000 which featured the
recreation of Thomas Jefferson's library; the establishment of the John
Kluge Center, a major scholarly center, and its accompanying Kluge
Prize in the humanities; and the National Book Festival, in conjunction
with First Lady Laura Bush, promoting literacy and the joys of reading,
which is taking place this weekend.
This resolution commends and thanks the James Madison Council,
particularly its chairman, John Kluge, one of the most patriotic and
generous philanthropists I have known, and looks forward to its
continued success in supporting the world's greatest library in the
years ahead.
Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to, the
preamble be agreed to, and the motion to reconsider be laid on the
table.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The resolution (S. Res. 247) was agreed to.
The preamble was agreed to.
The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:
S. Res. 247
Whereas the James Madison Council, the Library of
Congress's first-ever national advisory and support group in
the 205-year history of the Library of Congress is
celebrating its 15th year under the continuing strong
leadership of its Founding Chairman John W. Kluge;
Whereas the James Madison Council remains a loyal group of
friends whose vision and generosity have made possible many
new initiatives within America's oldest Federal cultural
institution;
Whereas John Kluge has energized this group of dedicated
and generous individuals from the private-sector to help this
unique institution that was created by Congress to make added
contributions for the good of the Nation;
Whereas John Kluge's example and leadership has benefitted
not only the Library of Congress and Congress, but also
scholars, researchers, and lifelong learners everywhere, and
has created a new international award at the highest level
for lifetime achievement in the study of humanity;
Whereas building on John Kluge's generosity, the James
Madison Council has strengthened and enriched the world of
scholarship in Washington, District of Columbia, and provided
new on-line educational material for the classrooms of the
Nation and the world;
Whereas the members of the James Madison Council have added
a significant number of rare and historic materials of major
importance to the national collection of the Library of
Congress, such as the 1507 Waldseemuller map of the world,
which was the first map to include America, made possible by
members John Hendricks, Marguerite and Gerry Lenfest, and
David Koch, the restoration of Thomas Jefferson's original
library, which is the cornerstone of the Library's
collections, thanks to Jerry Jones, a major private
collection from members Jean and Jay I. Kislak, which
documents the encounter between European explorers and the
indigenous peoples of North America and, thanks to Jon and
Lillian Lovelace, the Alan Lomax collection, which is the
largest collection of ethnographic material ever assembled by
one person; and
Whereas led by John Kluge, the James Madison Council has
furthered the programs of the Librarian of Congress, James H.
Billington, such as the National Digital Library, which
provides free internet access to 10,000,000 of the most
historically important and educationally valuable primary
materials in the Library's collection, the National Book
Festival, which celebrates the joys of reading, and the
Library's Bicentennial celebration in the year 2000: Now,
therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate commends the Library of
Congress's private-sector advisory body, the James Madison
Council, and its Founding Chairman, John W. Kluge, on 15
years of exemplary service to Congress and the Nation and
looks forward to its continued success in the years ahead.
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