[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 161 (Friday, October 3, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2232]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




RECOGNIZING THE HONORABLE BUD CRAMER AND THE HONORABLE TERRY EVERETT ON 
                     THEIR RETIREMENT FROM CONGRESS

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                          HON. SPENCER BACHUS

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 24, 2008

  Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, the people of Alabama will be losing two 
outstanding public servants at the end of this session with the 
retirements of Congressman Bud Cramer and Congressman Terry Everett.
  During the time that I have served in the House, I have been honored 
to call them both colleagues and friends. They have served the 
constituents in their own districts extraordinarily well, and have been 
a key part of securing the reputation of the Alabama delegation as a 
group that works together on a bipartisan basis for the good of our 
State.
  Congressman Cramer has had a long and distinguished record of 
service. One great legacy is his stalwart support of our space and 
missile defense programs. Whenever questions on those programs came up 
in the House, we looked to Bud Cramer for his knowledge and guidance. 
As a result of his efforts, facilities in the Fifth District like 
NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile 
Command, and the Redstone Arsenal have become not just important 
employers in Alabama but true national assets.
  We admire and respect Bud Cramer for another reason: his great 
compassion for children and deep concern about the tragedy of child 
abuse. Each year, the National Children's Advocacy Center in Huntsville 
that he founded teaches thousands of people how to recognize and help 
at-risk children.
  For years, it has been my pleasure to work with Congressman Terry 
Everett of the Second District. He has always been the type of 
representative who makes this House work. He holds firm to his 
principles, but works across the aisle to find solutions.
  With his duties on the Armed Services and Intelligence Committees, 
Congressman Everett developed a well-earned reputation for expertise in 
defense and intelligence issues. Whenever my staff or I had a question 
about these matters, our response was: ``Ask Terry what he thinks.'' 
His support of the excellent work being done at Fort Rucker and the 
Maxwell-Gunter Air Force Base has benefited both the constituents in 
his district and the people of our country by strengthening the 
national defense.
  All of us in the Alabama delegation have been privileged to work with 
Bud Cramer and Terry Everett. While we'll no longer be congressional 
colleagues, we will always remain friends. Both of these leaders, I 
know, will continue to have much to share with their communities and 
our State of Alabama in the years ahead.

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