[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 31 (Saturday, February 17, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2218-S2219]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
RECOGNIZING THE 45TH ANNIVERSARY OF JOHN HERSHEL GLENN, JR.'S HISTORIC
ACHIEVEMENT
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Judiciary
Committee be discharged from further consideration of S. Res. 81 and
the Senate then proceed to its consideration.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The clerk
will report the resolution by title.
The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
A bill (S. Res. 81) recognizing the 45th anniversary of
John Hershel Glenn, Jr's historic achievement in becoming the
first United States astronaut to orbit the Earth.
There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the
resolution.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I know the time is late and a lot of people
want to go a lot of different places, but I have to say that John Glenn
is one of the most amazing people I have ever known, to think that I
had the opportunity to serve with him in this body, a man who was an
ace in World War II, knocking down enemy aircraft in his marine
vehicle. He was an ace in the Korean war and, of course, America's most
famous astronaut.
I will just say in passing, when I first came here as a Senator, at
our Tuesday luncheon, Senator Glenn said: Does anybody want to go with
me? I am going to go out on the USS Kennedy, which is an aircraft
carrier. He said: I am going to watch some landings. I said: Well, gee,
John Glenn, aircraft carrier, which I have never been on. I said: I
will try that. And I did.
It was interesting. We flew out in an airplane. It was stopped very
quickly because a hook grabbed the airplane. Then I watched these new
pilots, who had never landed on an aircraft carrier, coming in, wings
wobbling. They would wave some off: ``Dirty, dirty''--that is the word
they used to get this thing out of there. Lots of them landed.
Then John Glenn got in one of those planes and was catapulted off the
aircraft carrier and came in on a landing himself. He is an amazing
man.
I have one final story about John Glenn. My office was in the Hart
Building. Nevada had the champions in double Dutch jump-roping. They
were out in the atrium of the Hart Building showing me what they could
do. It is amazing--several people jumping at the same time. They asked
me to do it. I made--I wouldn't say a fool of myself, but I couldn't do
it. I didn't realize John Glenn was standing watching this. Here is a
man, at the time had to be 70 years old, and he walked over and said:
Can I try that? He was like one of the kids. An amazing man.
This is a resolution recognizing the 45th anniversary of his historic
achievement. Becoming the first U.S. astronaut to orbit the Earth is
only one of the achievements this great man did--and he is still
healthy and strong--with his wonderful wife Annie.
I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the
preamble be agreed to, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table,
and that any statements relating to the measure be printed in the
Record.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The resolution (S. Res. 81) was agreed to.
The preamble was agreed to.
The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:
S. Res. 81
Whereas John Herschel Glenn, Jr. was born on July 18, 1921,
in Cambridge, Ohio, and grew up in New Concord, a small
college town a few miles from the larger city of Zanesville,
Ohio;
Whereas John Glenn attended New Concord High School and
earned a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering from
Muskingum College, which also awarded him an honorary Doctor
of Science degree in engineering;
Whereas John Glenn enlisted in the Naval Aviation Cadet
Program shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor and was
commissioned in the United States Marine Corps in 1943;
Whereas John Glenn served in combat in the South Pacific
and also requested combat duty during the Korean conflict.
Whereas John Glenn was a dedicated military officer, flying
149 missions during 2 wars;
Whereas John Glenn received many honors for his military
service, among them the Distinguished Flying Cross on 6
occasions, the Air Medal with 18 Clusters, the Asiatic-
Pacific Campaign Medal, the American Campaign Medal, the
World War II Victory Medal, the China Service Medal, the
National Defense Service Medal, and the Korean Service Medal;
Whereas John Glenn served several years as a test pilot on
Navy and Marine Corps jet fighters and attack aircraft;
Whereas, as a test pilot, John Glenn set a transcontinental
speed record in 1957 by completing the first flight to
average supersonic speeds from Los Angeles to New York;
[[Page S2219]]
Whereas John Glenn was a pioneer in the realm of space
exploration and was selected in 1959 as one of the original 7
astronauts in the United States space program, entering the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA)
Project Mercury;
Whereas John Glenn was assigned to the NASA Space Task
Group at Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia;
Whereas, in 1962, the Space Task Group was moved to
Houston, Texas, and became part of the NASA Manned Spacecraft
Center;
Whereas, on February 20, 1962, John Glenn piloted the
Mercury-Atlas 6 ``Friendship 7'' spacecraft on the first
manned orbital mission of the United States;
Whereas, after launching from the Kennedy Space Center in
Florida, John Glenn completed a 3-orbit mission around the
planet, reaching an approximate maximum altitude of 162
statute miles and an approximate orbital velocity of 17,500
miles per hour;
Whereas John Glenn landed Friendship 7 approximately 5
hours later, 800 miles southeast of the Kennedy Space Center
near Grand Turk Island;
Whereas, with that pioneering flight, John Glenn joined his
colleagues Alan Shepard and Virgil Grissom in realizing the
dream of space exploration and engaging the minds and
imaginations of his and future generations in the vast
potential of space exploration;
Whereas, after retiring from the space program, John Glenn
continued his public service as a distinguished member of the
Senate, in which he served for 24 years;
Whereas John Glenn has continued his public service through
his work at the John Glenn Institute at Ohio State
University, which was established to foster public
involvement in the policy-making process, raise public
awareness about key policy issues, and encourage continuous
improvement in the management of public enterprise;
Whereas, in March 1999, Secretary of Education Richard W.
Riley appointed John Glenn as Chair of the newly formed
National Commission on Mathematics and Science Teaching for
the 21st Century;
Whereas the Commission played a pivotal role in improving
the quality of teaching in mathematics and science in the
United States;
Whereas, in 1998, John Glenn returned to space after 36
years as a member of the crew of the space shuttle Discovery,
serving as a payload specialist and as a subject for basic
research on how weightlessness affects the body of an older
person; and
Whereas, combined with his previous missions, John Glenn
logged over 218 hours in space: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) honors the 45th anniversary of John Hershel Glenn,
Jr.'s landmark mission piloting the first manned orbital
mission of the United States; and
(2) recognizes the profound importance of John Glenn's
achievement as a catalyst to space exploration and scientific
advancement in the United States.
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