[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 33 (Tuesday, February 27, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E405-E406]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           REMBERING STATE SENATOR ADELARD L. ``ABE'' BRAULT

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. FRANK R. WOLF

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, February 27, 2007

  Mr. WOLF. Madam Speaker, I rise today to bring the attention of the 
House to the passing of Virginia State Senator Abe Brault on February 
13, 2007. Senator Brault served in the Virginia General Assembly for 18 
years, including a term as majority leader from 1976 to 1980.
  A Navy veteran who served during WWII, Abe opened a law practice in 
Fairfax County during the 1950s and dedicated his life to serving those 
in Fairfax and the surrounding area. He was a good man who served 
Virginia well and I was honored to know him. A family man and true 
Virginia gentleman, Abe died at the age of 97 and is survived by his 
wife, three children, and nine grandchildren, and 14 great-
grandchildren.
  Madam Speaker, I insert for the Record an obituary published in The 
Washington Post which details the many accomplishments of Senator 
Brault.

                [From Washingtonpost.com, Feb. 14, 2007]

        Adelard L. `Abe' Brault, 97; Influential N. Va. Senator

                          (By Adam Bernstein)

       Adelard L. ``Abe'' Brault, 97, a feisty Fairfax County 
     Democrat who retired in 1983 after 18 years in the Virginia 
     Senate, including a term as majority leader, died Feb. 13 at 
     his home in Front Royal, Va. He had pneumonia.

[[Page E406]]

       For years, Mr. Brault was considered dean of the Northern 
     Virginia delegation, and he used his authority to push 
     through funding for the Metro system, George Mason University 
     and Northern Virginia Community College.
       He and Sen. Omer L. Hirst (D-Fairfax-Falls Church) helped 
     shape legislation and financing for the 13-mile Dulles Toll 
     Road, built in 1984 to link Interstate 66 and the Capital 
     Beltway with Dulles International Airport.
       Mr. Brault was the majority leader from 1976 to 1980, 
     largely because of a moderate-liberal coalition that 
     successfully challenged the more conservative elements of the 
     Senate. A conservative faction led by Hunter B. Andrews (D-
     Hampton) eventually removed Mr. Brault from the leadership. 
     He described his loss as a ``power play'' meant to weaken 
     Northern Virginia's influence.
       Mr. Brault was known for blunt and critical commentary that 
     he regarded as honesty and others sometimes found 
     uncollegial. As a result, then-Gov. Charles S. Robb (D) 
     appointed Mr. Brault to the State Board of Education in 1985, 
     a year later than expected. The delay was attributed to Mr. 
     Brault's criticism of the leadership ability of Sen. Clive L. 
     DuVal II (D-Fairfax).
       Adelard Lionel Brault was born in Winsted, Conn., on April 
     6, 1909. He grew up in Washington, where he was a 1927 
     graduate of Gonzaga College High School and a 1933 graduate 
     of Columbus Law School, now part of Catholic University. He 
     served in the Navy in the North Atlantic during World War II.
       He had a private law practice in Washington before the war 
     and opened a practice in Fairfax County in the early 1950s, 
     where he specialized in representing insurance companies. He 
     was president of the Fairfax County Bar Association when he 
     was appointed to the county Board of Supervisors in 1962 to 
     fill the unexpired term of James Keith, who years later 
     became a Virginia Circuit Court judge.
       Mr. Brault did not seek reelection to the Senate in 1983, 
     saying at the time, ``Y'all can do what you want to next 
     year. I'll be in Florida.''
       In 1991, state legislators renamed the Dulles Toll Road the 
     Omer L. Hirst-Adelard L. Brault Expressway, which, having met 
     the fate of many other such renamings of roads, bridges and 
     buildings, has not readily been adopted by commuters.
       Survivors include his wife, Clarice Covington ``Percy'' 
     Brault of Front Royal; 3 children, Adelard L. Brault, Jr., of 
     Fairfax County, Nancy Supples of Front Royal and Mary Lynn 
     Coleman of Moscow; 9 grandchildren; and 14 great-
     grandchildren.

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