[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 149 (Tuesday, November 16, 2010)]
[House]
[Pages H7460-H7461]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              SERGEANT ROBERT BARRETT POST OFFICE BUILDING

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 5758) to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 2 Government Center in Fall River, Massachusetts, as 
the ``Sergeant Robert Barrett Post Office Building''.

[[Page H7461]]

  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 5758

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SERGEANT ROBERT BARRETT POST OFFICE BUILDING.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 2 Government Center in Fall River, 
     Massachusetts, shall be known and designated as the 
     ``Sergeant Robert Barrett Post Office Building''.
       (b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
     facility referred to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be 
     a reference to the ``Sergeant Robert Barrett Post Office 
     Building''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton) and the gentleman from California 
(Mr. Bilbray) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia.


                             General Leave

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from the District of Columbia?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. NORTON. I now yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5758. This measure designates 
the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 2 
Government Center in Fall River, Massachusetts, as the Sergeant Robert 
Barrett Post Office Building.
  H.R. 5758 was introduced by our colleague, the gentleman from 
Massachusetts, Representative Barney Frank, on July 15, 2010. It was 
referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, which 
ordered it reported favorably by unanimous consent on July 28, 2010, 
and enjoys the support of the entire Massachusetts delegation to the 
House.
  Sergeant Robert Barrett was a member of the 1st Battalion, 101st 
Field Artillery Regiment of Fall River. He had served as a commanding 
officer in his high school's junior ROTC and was head of its honor 
guard.
  After graduating, he enlisted in the Army National Guard. He served 
in the honor guard for a time, including at the inauguration of 
President Obama, as a member of the Massachusetts National Honor 
Guard's volunteer regiment.
  Sergeant Barrett was stationed as a part of a 15-member embedded 
training team training an Afghan battalion. While on patrol south of 
Kabul International Airport, Sergeant Barrett was killed by a suicide 
bomber in an attack that also injured eight others in his battalion. He 
was 20 years old.
  Sergeant Barrett is survived by has parents, Paul and Carlene 
Barrett; his older sister Rebecca; and his 2-year-old daughter Sophie 
Alexandra.
  Mr. Speaker, let us now take time to honor the service of Sergeant 
Barrett through the passage of H.R. 5758, which will designate the 
facility of the United States Postal Service located at 2 Government 
Center in Fall River, Massachusetts, in his name. I urge my colleagues 
to join me in supporting the passage of this bill.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BILBRAY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 5758 and strongly 
request support for it.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield such time as he may 
consume to the sponsor of the legislation, my colleague from 
Massachusetts (Mr. Frank).
  Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman. I 
should note that I am speaking on behalf of myself and my colleague 
with whom I share the honor of representing the city of Fall River, Mr. 
McGovern, who is at a doctor's appointment now. But he fully joins in 
these sentiments.
  First, I want to thank the committee. As the gentlewoman noted, this 
bill was introduced at the request of the city government of Fall River 
in July of this year, so this is very prompt action by the committee, 
and I appreciate both sides moving so quickly.
  As the gentlewoman reported, Sergeant Barrett was a 20-year-old 
patriotic American with a 2-year-old daughter and a loving family. I 
can tell you, Mr. Speaker, because I attended this funeral, as I have 
tried to attend the funeral of every one of our service people killed 
in one of our wars, that he was widely respected, admired and in many 
cases loved by the people of the city of Fall River. There was great 
sadness in the city when the news came of his death in the service of 
his country and when the funeral was held. His high school classmates 
were deeply grieved by the loss of someone they greatly admired.
  I was glad to respond when the city very appropriately asked that we 
name this post office in his honor. It is a central facility. As the 
address says, it is the Government Center. It is virtually adjacent to 
the city hall in Fall River. It is at the center of the town, right at 
the end of one our great bridges, the Braga Bridge, which spans the 
Taunton River. Anybody who drives from anywhere outside of 
Massachusetts to Cape Cod will drive along that road and will get to 
see this post office, and I hope will be reminded of the extraordinary 
sacrifice that the young father, son and brother made on behalf of this 
country.
  So I want to again express my appreciation to the committee and send 
again my condolences to Sergeant Barrett's family and friends.
  It is a sobering moment, Mr. Speaker. I will say this. I have tried, 
as I know many Members do, to attend, if it is at all possible, the 
funeral of those killed in our service. It is sometimes necessary for a 
Nation to go to war, there is no question about it. There is in the 
world evil that must be confronted. In Afghanistan, it was an evil that 
led to the murder of thousands of innocent Americans and hundreds of 
innocent Africans a few years before at the hands of a murderous thug 
named Osama bin Laden. But being reminded of the inevitable 
consequences of going to war, the death of among our best young people 
and the pain it inflicts on those who survive them, that is a very 
important part of the education we need to get.
  So I will continue. I hope there won't be many more instances, but I 
will continue whenever I can, if there is a death of someone in the 
district I represent, to attend, to be reminded that war is both 
necessary and terrible. We will do it when we have to, but we should 
always be aware of those consequences.
  Again, to those who survive Sergeant Barrett, there is nothing we can 
do to replace the enormous loss you have suffered with the death of 
this wonderful young man, but I hope you will know that your country at 
least understands the depth of that loss and appreciates it.
  Mr. BILBRAY. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I again urge my colleagues to join me in 
supporting this measure, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton) that the House 
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 5758.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

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