[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 56 (Tuesday, April 20, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E586-E587]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  IN HONOR AND MEMORY OF LECH ALEKSANDER KACZYNSKI, PRESIDENT OF THE 
 REPUBLIC OF POLAND, AND HIS WIFE, MARIA KACZYNSKI, FIRST LADY OF THE 
                           REPUBLIC OF POLAND

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. DENNIS J. KUCINICH

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 20, 2010

  Mr. KUCINICH. Madam Speaker, I rise today in honor and memory of Lech 
Aleksander Kaczynski, President of the Republic of Poland, and his 
wife, Maria Kaczynski, First Lady of the Republic of Poland and a 
respected economist. President Kaczynski, his wife, and 95 others died 
suddenly and tragically in a plane crash while attempting to land at 
Smolensk-North airport in Russia on April 10, 2010.
  President Kaczynski's legacy reflects his lifelong dedication to 
freedom for the people of

[[Page E587]]

Poland. In 1980, President Kaczynski and his twin brother, Jaroslaw 
Kaczynski, who would later become the Prime Minister of Poland, were 
active participants in a workers' strike at Gdansk Shipyard. The 
strike, led by Solidarity leader and future Polish President Lech 
Walesa, was supported around the world; it sparked the beginning of the 
Solidarity movement in Poland and marked the beginning of the end of 
communist rule in Central and Eastern Europe.
  Following the workers' strike in Gdansk, the Kaczynski brothers 
emerged as leaders in the Solidarity movement and built a strong 
national following. In 2002, President Kaczynski was elected Mayor of 
Warsaw by a large margin. In March of 2005, President Kaczynski 
declared his candidacy for president and won election in December of 
that year. As President, he worked to end government corruption, 
strengthen foreign partnerships, and empower the citizens of Poland.
  Madam Speaker, please join me in honor and remembrance of Lech 
Kaczynski, President of the Republic of Poland, his wife, Maria 
Kaczynski, and all those who perished with them. I offer my deep 
condolences to their daughter, Marta, their granddaughter, to President 
Kaczynski's brother, and to the people of Poland. My district in 
Northeast Ohio is home to several generations of Polish immigrants, and 
we maintain strong ties to the country of Poland. Those who lost their 
lives in tragedy on April 10, 2010 shall be remembered in the greater 
Cleveland area and around the world.

                          ____________________