[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 49 (Wednesday, March 21, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E593]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               HONORING FORMER CONGRESSMAN THOMAS KLEPPE

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. EARL POMEROY

                            of north dakota

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 20, 2007

  Mr. POMEROY. Madam Speaker, our Nation lost a great American and this 
House lost a most distinguished former Member with the passing of 
Thomas Kleppe at age 87 on March 2, 2007. Tom Kleppe was elected from 
the 2nd district of North Dakota in 1966 and 1968.
  Tom was probably best known to the Nation for his service as 
Secretary of the Interior under President Ford, however he was best 
known to his home State of North Dakota for his service in Congress 
from 1966 to 1970. Tom was a trailblazer in North Dakota, being elected 
as the youngest-ever mayor of Bismarck at the age of 30 and the first 
native of North Dakota to ever serve in a Presidential cabinet when he 
was appointed Interior Secretary in 1975.
  Tom exemplified the definition of the ``Greatest Generation,'' having 
served his country as a warrant officer in the U.S. Army for 4 years 
during World War II. Shortly before being honorably discharged in 1946, 
Tom turned down an offer from the St. Louis Cardinals to return to his 
native North Dakota, and our State is the better for it.
  As the son of homesteaders in Kintyre, ND, Tom was instilled with the 
enterprising spirit and work ethic that have made North Dakota prosper. 
By the time he was a teenager, Tom was working for his father's grain 
elevator business. He went on to work in bookkeeping and banking before 
entering public service, where he served as the mayor of Bismarck and 
later served two terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. There Tom 
was known as a strong advocate for North Dakota's farmers and ranchers 
on the Agriculture Committee.
  Kleppe was appointed to head the Small Business Administration by 
President Nixon, a post he held from 1971-1975, when President Ford 
appointed him Interior Secretary. Tom served in this position for the 
remainder of Ford's term. During his tenure, Kleppe proved an able 
steward of the Nation's land and wildlife. Even long after moving to 
Washington, DC, Tom never lost touch with his prairie roots, and 
continued to ride horses well into his 80s.
  Tom is survived by his wife of 48 years, Glendora Kleppe, and his 4 
children, 11 grandchildren and 4 great-grandchildren. The State of 
North Dakota mourns the loss of a great public servant.

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