[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 76 (Monday, June 3, 2013)]
[House]
[Pages H3001-H3003]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 EXPRESSING SORROW OF THE HOUSE AT THE DEATH OF THE HONORABLE FRANK R. 
           LAUTENBERG, A SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF NEW JERSEY

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I offer a privileged 
resolution, and ask for its immediate consideration.
  The Clerk read the resolution, as follows:

                              H. Res. 242

       Resolved, That the House has heard with profound sorrow of 
     the death of the Honorable Frank R. Lautenberg, a Senator 
     from the State of New Jersey.
       Resolved, That a committee of such Members of the House as 
     the Speaker may designate, together with such Members of the 
     Senate as may be joined, be appointed to attend the funeral.
       Resolved, That the Clerk communicate these resolutions to 
     the Senate and transmit a copy thereof to the family of the 
     deceased.
       Resolved, That when the House adjourns today, it adjourn as 
     a further mark of respect to the memory of the deceased 
     Senator.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from New Jersey is recognized 
for 1 hour.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker and Members of the House, it is 
my sad duty to inform you that Senator Frank Lautenberg has passed 
away. He died from complications from viral pneumonia this morning at 
New York-Presbyterian Hospital. Frank Lautenberg was 89 years old.
  I join with my friends and colleagues from our delegation--and, I 
know, with

[[Page H3002]]

the entire House--in expressing our profound sorrow to his family--his 
wife, Bonnie, his six children, and his 13 grandchildren. Senator 
Lautenberg will be deeply missed.
  We will have a Special Order to honor this wonderful man, but just 
one point: that with his passing he is the last of World War II--of the 
Greatest Generation--to serve in the United States Senate, and I want 
everyone to know he will be deeply missed. I, personally, worked very 
closely with him on a number of issues, in particular on combating 
anti-Semitism, so I just want to say that we are all in sorrow for his 
passing. We pray for him and for his family.
  I would like to yield to my good friend and colleague from New Jersey 
(Mr. Pallone) for any comments he might have.
  Mr. PALLONE. I want to thank my colleague.
  It's really with a great deal of sadness that we come to the well 
this evening to announce--or to comment, if you will--on Senator 
Lautenberg's passing.
  I really can't imagine the Congress without him. I worked on his 
campaign from the very first day in 1982, and he was the longest-
serving Member of the U.S. Senate from the State of New Jersey in our 
entire history.
  The fact of the matter is that Senator Lautenberg was always there 
for the little guy. Many of you know that he was a wealthy individual, 
but he never forgot his roots, and they were very humble roots. He 
always believed that the Congress should be there for people in need 
and that the American Dream required that everyone had an equal 
opportunity and that Congress could do things. Frank Lautenberg 
understood that there were a lot of problems out there, but he felt 
that Congress needed to work together on a bipartisan basis to solve 
those problems.
  There are so many that I can mention, but I won't. Whether it was the 
Nation's infrastructure, mass transit, all of the environmental 
concerns, whether he wanted to clean up the ocean or clean the air or 
clean the water for the next generation, he really believed that things 
could get done here, and he worked hard to get things done. We know, 
more than anybody else, he was able to accomplish a lot because of the 
hard work that he put into it.
  So I just want to thank him for all of that and for his legacy, and I 
want to express sympathy, obviously, to Bonnie and his family. He will 
be missed for what he accomplished and also for what he told us about 
what our job is when we're here--to get things done and to worry about 
the little guy and to make sure that we are always out there, working 
every day to make this a better country.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. I yield to my colleague from New Jersey (Mr. 
Lance).
  Mr. LANCE. Thank you, Congressman Pallone, and thank you, Congressman 
Smith, the dean of the delegation.
  Senator Lautenberg was a tenacious fighter for the 9 million 
residents of the State of New Jersey, and tenacity was at the heart of 
his public service. New Jersey is a State that is complex and that is 
comprised of many different ethnicities, and Senator Lautenberg 
represented all of us extremely well. The only person in history of the 
State to serve five terms in the United States Senate, Senator 
Lautenberg died with his boots on in the saddle as he would have 
wished.
  He was extremely proud of his roots in Paterson, a great industrial 
city in this Nation, where he was born and raised; and at age 18 he 
went off to war, World War II, as one of the Greatest Generation. 
Senator Lautenberg was the beneficiary of the GI Bill of Rights, and he 
was able to attend Columbia University from which he graduated after 
the Second World War, and his brilliant career in the private sector at 
ADP is a hallmark to the entrepreneurial spirit of the American people; 
but he recognized that he could do more for the people of our State and 
of the Nation when he was elected to the United States Senate in 1982, 
reelected in 1988 and reelected again in 1994, a hiatus of 2 years, 
then elected for a fourth term in 2002, and again for a fifth term in 
2008. He was a person of perseverance.
  To Mrs. Lautenberg and the Lautenberg children and family, we extend 
our profound sympathy. The people of New Jersey and, might I suggest, 
the Nation are saddened by his death.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey 
(Mr. Andrews).
  Mr. ANDREWS. I thank my friends and colleagues for joining in this 
moment of solemn remembrance.
  There is not a corner of our State that does not bear the 
manifestation of the greatness of Senator Lautenberg's career. Some of 
the manifestations are functional and somewhat ordinary--bridges and 
exit ramps--but so many of the things are things of beauty and 
splendor. This is a person who risked his life for his country in the 
Second World War and who gave his life to building a successful 
business and building a great State and a great country.
  We are profoundly saddened by his loss, but we are heartened by his 
example, and I thank all of us on both sides of the aisle for 
remembering him. Our prayers go to his family, and our thanks go to him 
for a great life well led.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey 
(Mr. Pascrell).
  Mr. PASCRELL. Frank Lautenberg was my friend for 45 years. We drank 
the same water in Paterson, New Jersey. He was a person of very small 
means when you looked at his mom and dad. They worked in the factories 
in Paterson, New Jersey, as so many other people did. His father died 
when he was 43 years of age. He got sick from the jobs that he had when 
there was no protection for workers, not like it is now.
  Now, can you picture this in a garage in Paterson, New Jersey, off of 
Carroll Street, four guys together, putting a company together, that if 
you didn't invest in it you kicked yourself after that, ADP?
  He had a business acumen, a business sense, that went beyond votes on 
the floor of the Senate. He was a good guy, and I know that the talking 
heads would say he was a liberal's liberal. Frank Lautenberg was a very 
basic, conservative guy when it came to our values in this country. He 
was not a spectator by any stretch. He was in there. He was in the 
battle. He came back to School No. 6 on Mercer Street in Paterson to 
take care of those kids, to give them computers and to say make sure 
you take care of those computers because this is going to get you, 
perhaps, on a path to something better in life for you and your family. 
He didn't forget it. A lot of people say he didn't forget his roots. 
That's a wave. That's a passing by. He was not that kind of a person.
  So, to Bonnie and to his beautiful family, our best, best, deepest 
feelings of condolences and sorrow.
  We don't know what we've lost--we never do--but we pray that everyone 
begins to understand, at least now, that each of us is significant, 
that each of us is important and, as Frank would say, that no one is 
better than anyone else.
  God bless Frank Lautenberg.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey 
(Mr. Holt).
  Mr. HOLT. We mark with sorrow and with admiration the loss of Frank 
Lautenberg--a loss to Bonnie and his family, a loss to this Congress, a 
loss to New Jersey, a loss to America.
  He served in the Army as a youngster. His father died while he was 
serving in the Second World War--and ``serve'' is the right word. He 
saw service as his duty, as his life--serving other people, never 
forgetting the common person and the common good. Whether he was 
working for public health or individual health care or education or was 
helping prevent bullying in schools or was teaching foreign languages 
or was providing for safety in chemical plants, he was thinking about 
the ordinary person. He never forgot that, he never stopped fighting, 
and the people of New Jersey knew that. They knew they had somebody in 
the Senate who was looking out for them.
  What I think of most is his work that he did on the Transportation 
Subcommittee about the blood alcohol level and drunk driving. He did 
more than any other single person in this country to prevent drunk 
driving. You could fill many football stadiums with

[[Page H3003]]

people who are alive today because of Frank Lautenberg. The interesting 
thing is that not one of them would know who they are.
  We have a lot to be grateful for to Frank Lautenberg, and his legacy 
is something that we should work hard to continue.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey 
(Mr. Garrett).
  Mr. GARRETT. To the dean of the delegation and to the rest of my 
colleagues from New Jersey, Washington, D.C., the Senate, the Chambers 
will not be the same without Frank Lautenberg walking about.
  He is and he was a man who lived truly an extraordinary life. You've 
heard of his humble beginnings that Bill, I guess, knows pretty well, 
of his growing up in that neighborhood and going on to fight through 
World War II, as Leonard points out; and of that extraordinary 
entrepreneurial spirit. In all of those ways, he lived an extraordinary 
life that left an extraordinary impact upon the people of his community 
and the State and on all of those people who benefited from his 
business acumen--to be able to use that service--to the jobs that he 
provided and then to take that and bring it here to Washington and the 
benefits that he provided even far beyond his own humble beginnings 
back in Paterson, New Jersey, but across the country as well.
  So we come here today, joined in the thought that our prayers are 
with him, his family, his children, and grandchildren. We just hope 
that through this difficult time that they must be going that they can 
find some solace in the fact that so many people who have come here 
today and who are back in New Jersey respect him and appreciate him and 
thank him for what he did for the State.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey 
(Mr. Sires).
  Mr. SIRES. I want to thank my colleagues for being here today and for 
expressing the sentiment towards a friend.
  I knew Frank Lautenberg for a long time. I was a mayor when I first 
met him. He never changed. He was a fighter. He was a real product of 
New Jersey in his coming from Paterson, serving in the service, 
starting a business. He became one of the best Senators we ever had in 
New Jersey. He was a man who had a vision, because he was one of the 
first ones who saw that riding on a plane and having somebody smoking 
next to you was not healthy. Frank fought that fight, and President 
Reagan signed it into law.
  So, today, New Jersey is sad. It's sad because one of its own is not 
going to be with us any more. Right down to the end, Frank fought. I 
will remember him fighting Governor Christie. I remember him fighting 
for the tunnel. So we are all sad in New Jersey today.
  To the whole family, we extend our condolences.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey 
(Mr. Runyan).
  Mr. RUNYAN. I, too, want to reflect on all of the kind and gracious 
words that my colleagues have expressed up here.
  I, only being in my second term, can't say that I knew Frank that 
well, but I want to point out one thing: that it's unfortunate that 
sometimes it takes someone's passing to realize all of the great things 
he did in his life. I've learned in coming here to Washington sometimes 
that people forget they are people who come here to represent the 
people back home, and you forget about the good deeds, the hard work. 
When you look at what Frank did, working every single day until today, 
that is something that, I think, we as Americans do--take that work 
ethic into everything we do every single day. That's what makes us the 
greatest country in the world.
  With Frank's obviously being that type of role model, I think we are 
all saddened by his passing. We will miss him. Again, our condolences 
go out to his family, and I thank you all for taking time out to 
recognize him as an individual because, I think, sometimes that is 
lost.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey 
(Mr. Payne).
  Mr. PAYNE. Thank you to my colleagues from New Jersey and in the 
House of Representatives.
  Once again, I stand here in almost over a year with sorrow in my 
heart. The New Jersey delegation has lost another great member.
  Senator Lautenberg had been an example to me over the course of his 
career. I'd seen him in many instances in Newark and in other settings, 
and he always had a common message to young people. It was that there 
was nothing special about me that you could not do this yourself. If 
you applied yourself in school, worked hard, honored your country, and 
did the things that were right, one day you could be in this position 
as well.
  Frank Lautenberg embodies what a New Jerseyan is. So look at his 
career. Look at his life. He is a true New Jerseyan. He will sorely be 
missed in this delegation, in this House, in this Congress, and in this 
country. My condolences to his family on this sad occasion.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, Frank Lautenberg will be 
missed. As you could hear from my colleagues on both sides of the 
aisle, it is a great loss for the State of New Jersey. We will have a 
Special Order next Tuesday to speak even more to his legacy.
  With that, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Speaker, today, our country mourns the loss of 
Senator Frank Lautenberg--a man whose life embodied the American Dream 
and who dedicated his career to putting that dream in reach for all 
Americans. The longest-serving senator in New Jersey's history and the 
last remaining World War II veteran in the Senate, he served us all 
with the strength, perseverance, and compassion that exemplifies the 
greatest generation.
  A proud son of hard-working immigrants, Senator Lautenberg rose from 
humble beginnings to meet great success in business and public service. 
He was an entrepreneur who turned a small business into one of the 
largest computing services companies in the world. He was a soldier who 
put his life on the line to protect our country. He was a Senator who 
helped ban smoking in airplanes and around children, who worked to 
ensure parents could take time off to care for sick family members, who 
helped modernize the G.I. bill to ensure today's veterans could benefit 
from the same opportunity that he received,
  Senator Lautenberg spent each day fighting to protect and improve the 
health, security, and well-being of every American. His lifetime of 
service leaves a legacy we must follow, and an expectation we must 
meet. We only hope it is a comfort to his wife Bonnie, his children and 
grandchildren that so many mourn their loss at this sad time.
  The previous question was ordered.
  The resolution was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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