[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 121 (Thursday, August 12, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6995-S6996]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
REMEMBERING SENATOR THEODORE ``TED'' FULTON STEVENS
Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate
proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 617, submitted
earlier today.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, the clerk will
report the resolution by title.
[[Page S6996]]
The legislative clerk read as follows:
A resolution (S. Res. 617) relative to the death of the
Honorable Theodore ``Ted'' Fulton Stevens, former Senator for
the State of Alaska.
There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the
resolution.
Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I would like to take this opportunity,
and I think I speak on behalf of all of our colleagues, certainly in
sentiment if not my exact words, about our friend and former colleague,
Ted Stevens. On Tuesday we were all deeply saddened to learn about his
tragic passing.
Ted's dedication to his Nation began with his valiant service in
World War II and endured through six decades of public service. Ted
helped secure statehood for his beloved Alaska and never stopped
fighting for the people of the Pioneer State for over 40 years as its
senior Senator.
Our thoughts are with Ted's wife Catherine and the entire Stevens
family and all of those who lost their lives and were injured in this
week's sad accident.
Mr. President, I want to personally add the thoughts of Senator Reid.
I spoke with him last night. We spoke about Senator Stevens and
remembered him fondly. Senator Reid particularly noted to me one of his
prize possessions was a Hulk tie that Senator Stevens had given him,
and he proudly still has it with him.
Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, in the history of our country, no one
man has done more for one State than Ted Stevens. His commitment to the
people of Alaska and his nation spanned decades, and he left a lasting
mark on both. From his early military service as a pilot in World War
II, to his involvement in the statehood of `The Last Frontier,' to his
fierce support and defense of our Nation's military, Ted Stevens was
always there, fighting for what he believed in, and usually winning. He
was a force to be reckoned with, and we will miss him greatly. We
extend our deepest sympathies to Catherine and the entire Stevens
family, and to the families of the friends who were lost in this
terrible accident.
Mr. SCHUMER. I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed
to, the preamble be agreed to, the motions to reconsider be laid on the
table en bloc, and that any statements relating to the resolution be
printed in the Record.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so
ordered.
The resolution (S. Res. 617) was agreed to.
The preamble was agreed to.
The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:
S. Res. 617
Whereas Theodore ``Ted'' Fulton Stevens, who began serving
in the Senate 8 years after Alaska was admitted to Statehood,
represented the people of the State of Alaska with
distinction in the Senate from 1968 to 2009 and played a
significant role in the transformation of the State of Alaska
from an impoverished territory to a full-fledged State
through the assistance he provided in building energy
facilities, hospitals and clinics, roads, docks, ferry
terminals and airports, water and sewer facilities, schools,
and other community facilities in the State of Alaska, which
earned him recognition as ``Alaskan of the Century'' from the
Alaska Legislature in 2000;
Whereas Ted Stevens distinguished himself as a transport
pilot during World War II in support of the ``Flying Tigers''
of the Army Air Forces, flying supplies to China over the
treacherous ``Hump'' route in the eastern Himalayan mountains
and earning 2 Distinguished Flying Crosses and other
decorations for his skill and bravery;
Whereas Ted Stevens, after serving as a United States
Attorney in the territory of Alaska, came to Washington,
District of Columbia in 1956 to serve in the Eisenhower
Administration in the Department of the Interior, where he
was a leading force in securing the legislation that led to
the admission of Alaska as the 49th State on January 3, 1959,
and then as Solicitor of the Department of the Interior;
Whereas, in 1961, Ted Stevens returned to the State of
Alaska and, in 1964, was elected to the Alaska House of
Representatives, where he was subsequently elected as Speaker
pro tempore and majority leader until his appointment to the
Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Senator
E.L. Bartlett on December 24, 1968;
Whereas Ted Stevens, the longest-serving Republican Senator
in the history of the Senate, served as President pro tempore
of the Senate from 2003 through 2007 and as President pro
tempore emeritus from 2008 to 2009, and over the course of
his career in the Senate, Ted Stevens served as assistant
majority leader, Chairman of the Select Committee on Ethics,
Chairman of the Committee on Rules and Administration,
Chairman of the Committee on Governmental Affairs, Chairman
of the Committee on Appropriations, and Chairman of the
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation;
Whereas Ted Stevens worked tirelessly for the enactment of
the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et
seq.), which provided for the return of approximately
44,000,000 acres of land in the State of Alaska to the Aleut,
Eskimo, and Indian peoples and created Native Corporations to
secure the long-term economic, cultural, and political
empowerment of the Native peoples of the State of Alaska;
Whereas Ted Stevens was a leader in shaping the
communications policies of the United States, as he helped to
establish the spectrum auction policy, negotiated the
Telecommunications Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-104; 110 Stat.
56), authored the Digital Television Transition and Public
Safety Act of 2005 (47 U.S.C. 309 note; Public Law 109-171),
and passionately advocated for the connection of rural
America to the rest of the world and to improve the lives of
the people of the United States through the use of
telemedicine and distance learning;
Whereas Ted Stevens was a conservationist who championed
the safe development of the natural resources of the United
States, as illustrated by his authorship of the Trans-Alaska
Pipeline Authorization Act (43 U.S.C. 1651 et seq.), the
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16
U.S.C. 1801 et seq.), which established the 200-mile
exclusive economic zone and led to a reduction in the
dominance of foreign fishing fleets in the fisheries of the
United States, the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Reauthorization Act of 2006 (Public Law 109-479;
120 Stat. 3575), which established conservation measures
designed to end overfishing, and the High Seas Driftnet
Fisheries Enforcement Act (16 U.S.C. 1826a et seq.), which
provided for the denial of entry into ports of the United
States and the imposition of sanctions on vessels carrying
out large-scale driftnet fishing beyond the exclusive
economic zone of any nation;
Whereas Ted Stevens was an advocate for physical fitness in
his personal life and in his legislative accomplishments, as
illustrated by his authorship of the Ted Stevens Amateur and
Olympic Sports Act (36 U.S.C. 220501 et seq.), his
encouragement of providing equality to female athletes
through the enactment of title IX of the Education Amendments
of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.), and his leadership in
improving physical education programs in schools by ushering
through the Carol M. White Physical Education Program (20
U.S.C. 7261 et seq.);
Whereas Ted Stevens unconditionally supported the needs of
the Armed Forces of the United States through visits to
soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines in ever major military
conflict and war zone where United States military personnel
have been assigned, including Vietnam, Kuwait, Bosnia,
Kosovo, Iraq, and Afghanistan, and in his role as Chairman
and Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Defense
Appropriations for more than 20 years; and
Whereas Ted Stevens was well respected for reaching across
the aisle to forge bipartisan alliances and enjoyed many
close friendships with colleagues in both political parties
and with his staff, who were deeply loyal to him: Now,
therefore, be it
Resolved, That--
(1) the Senate has heard with profound sorrow and deep
regret the announcement of the death of the Honorable
Theodore ``Ted'' Fulton Stevens, former member of the Senate;
(2) the Secretary of the Senate communicate this resolution
to the House of Representatives and transmit an enrolled copy
of this resolution to the family of the deceased; and
(3) when the Senate adjourns today, the Senate stands
adjourned as a further mark of respect to the memory of the
Honorable Theodore ``Ted'' Fulton Stevens.
____________________