[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 82 (Tuesday, June 11, 2013)]
[House]
[Pages H3271-H3274]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
MOURNING THE PASSING OF SENATOR FRANK LAUTENBERG
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mrs. Brooks of Indiana). Under the Speaker's
announced policy of January 3, 2013, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr.
Smith) is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority
leader.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Madam Speaker, last week New Jersey lost its
senior Senator, and the Senate lost its last remaining World War II
veteran when Senator Frank Lautenberg passed away at the age of 89. He
died from complications from viral pneumonia in New York Presbyterian
Hospital.
Since then, on this floor on multiple occasions, in the United States
Senate, throughout the State of New Jersey, and, frankly, across the
Nation, all of us have paused to express our deepest respect for
Senator Lautenberg and sorrow on his passing. To Senator Lautenberg's
family--his wife, Bonnie, his six children, and his 13 grandchildren--
please accept our deepest condolences and our prayers.
Senator Lautenberg served five terms in the U.S. Senate on behalf of
the people of the State of New Jersey. He was first elected to the
Senate in 1982, reelected in 1988 and 1994. After a brief retirement,
Senator Lautenberg made
[[Page H3272]]
an unexpected comeback and won a fourth term in 2002 and was again
reelected in 2008.
In December 20ll, he cast his 9,000th vote and now holds the record
for the most votes ever cast by a New Jersey Senator.
While serving in the Senate, Frank Lautenberg became a leader of
public health and safety issues. He led the effort to ban smoking on
airplanes with the enactment of Public Law 101-164, and will forever be
remembered for his efforts to protect individuals and children from
secondhand smoke.
Frank Lautenberg also fought for transportation improvements and
chemical plant safety. As the author of the Lautenberg amendment, he
worked to assist members from historically persecuted groups with a
credible fear of persecution to qualify for refugee status, including
religiously persecuted Soviet Jews. He also fought for relief for the
victims of terrorist attacks, including the first responders who
experienced health complications after the 9/11 attacks, and for the
families and communities across our State recently devastated by
Superstorm Sandy.
Senator Lautenberg was the last veteran of World War II--part of the
Greatest Generation--to serve in the U.S. Senate. The son of poor
immigrants, he enlisted in the Army to serve his country in uniform,
went to school on the GI Bill, began a successful business, and then
ran for the Senate to, in his words, ``pursue a career in public
service and to give back to the country that helped give him so much.''
Senator Lautenberg has been a mainstay of New Jersey politics for
decades, and with his passing, the Senate and our State has lost a
dedicated public servant.
I now yield to the former mayor of Paterson, a good friend and
colleague, Congressman Bill Pascrell.
Mr. PASCRELL. Thank you, Congressman Smith, for your great service to
your State and your country.
Madam Speaker, we've lost a great man. When Senator Lautenberg passed
away Monday morning, last Monday, I lost a good friend. The Silk City
has produced many great individuals and characters alike, but few, if
any, have a life story like that of Frank Lautenberg.
Like me, Frank grew up on the streets of Paterson--literally. Both of
us came from families of immigrants who came to Paterson, like
pilgrims, like Plymouth Rock. It was Paterson/Plymouth Rock. That's
what it was, when you come down to it.
We had the same dreams. Many thousands in our city had the same
dream. Through hard work and determination, we learned that you could
provide your children with a better life and a successful future.
Despite all their dreams for their young son, I don't think that Sam
and Molly Lautenberg, Frank's dutiful parents, deceased, ever could
have imagined all that Frank would eventually achieve. Only in America.
But then again, Frank never forgot the sacrifices family made for
him. He learned what real hard work was from his father, who labored
into the silk mills of Paterson to provide for his family. He learned
how to persevere from his mother, who raised him in the face of
poverty. They lived in four or five different places in Paterson as
they moved around.
His dad passed away when his dad was 43 years of age. In the face of
poverty, at the age of 19, Frank Lautenberg had to summon all those
lessons and more when his father passed away leaving him to support the
entire family. He never forgot those hard lessons. They served him well
throughout all the journeys of his life.
He spoke about those journeys every time he came before a classroom
in Paterson, New Jersey. He visited, revisited, and revisited and
brought computers. He brought computers. And, of course, ADP was one of
the great corporations in America, formed in a garage in the back of a
house in Paterson, New Jersey.
{time} 1920
And I say, Madam Speaker, how many people must be kicking themselves
for not having invested way back when they thought it was a wild idea,
taking care of people's payroll.
It's not easy to grow up on the streets of Paterson, New Jersey. Take
it from me personally, Congressman Smith. You have to fight for every
inch in order to get ahead.
Frank truly embodied what it means to be a fighter. That's what made
him such a successful representative from New Jersey. You've heard the
Congressman, Congressman Smith, specify all of the issues that he was
involved in; and when he was involved, he was totally immersed in the
subject therein to help Americans.
It didn't matter what nationality, what ethnicity, what color. It
didn't matter what religion. It mattered that you were a human being in
the greatest country in the world. He talked about it often.
When he came back from the service, he talked about it. He served his
country in the Second World War.
Regardless of how you feel on issues, you don't take on the gun lobby
to ban firearms for domestic violence offenders, you don't take on Big
Tobacco to ban smoking on airplanes without getting a few scars in the
process.
The thing Frank's opponents didn't realize was that he got his scars
long ago, growing up on the streets of Paterson, New Jersey. His roots
are exactly what made Frank so successful, first in the Army, then in
the private sector, and, finally, in the hallowed Halls of the U.S.
Senate.
But despite all that he achieved, he never forgot where he came from.
That's the secret. When you forget where you come from, when you forget
your roots, when you forget the street you lived on, the guys and the
gals that you talked to, your mom and dad, how they sweated it out
every day, I mean, when you worked in those silk mills it was no day at
the beach, not by any stretch of the imagination.
We, many times, forget our roots, Congressman Smith, and you know
that. We forget where we came from. We think we're better. If you're a
Congressman, oh, God. He never forgot where he came from. Despite all
that, what he achieved, he knew his roots.
One of the proudest moments of my career was standing shoulder-to-
shoulder with him when we were able to successfully pass legislation to
finally establish the Great Falls National Historic Park in Paterson,
New Jersey. It's our Yellowstone. It's our Grand Canyon. It doesn't
take up nearly the amount of space, but it meant so much to not only
Patersonians, but people in that area, Paterson, the third largest
city, first industrial city.
Alexander Hamilton knew what he was doing. Frank Lautenberg knew what
he was doing.
We'd been pushing many, many years for Federal recognition. In fact,
I still have a picture hanging in my office of Senator Lautenberg and
me touring the Great Falls when I was the mayor of that city. In the
true Paterson spirit, despite opposition from the Park Service--we
weren't getting off to a good start--and opponents in Congress who
never wanted to see an urban national park, we never stopped fighting.
And just a few years ago, we finally reached our dream to get the
Great Falls the Federal designation it deserves. Members of both sides
of the aisle came together. And on that day, when Secretary Salazar was
there, Democrats and Republicans joined together where industry started
in this great Nation.
The park is now in the first stages of its development, and I believe
one day it will be a crown jewel in the National Park System, thanks in
no small part to our great Senator. It's a fitting legacy for him to
leave to the city he loved so much.
These last few months, with his health getting weaker, necessitating
long absences from the Senate, Frank never lost his passion for the
issues he had spent his entire life defending. Despite his health, he
came to Washington to cast a critical vote on a bill to expand
background checks. No one was going to stop Frank Lautenberg from
fighting to make this world a better place. Even the limitations of his
own body couldn't hold him back.
I join my friends and neighbors in Paterson, where he used to cut his
hair, Pasadena Pete's, where he used to stop at the markets, and he'd
stop in to a coffee shop downtown. We mourn this tremendous loss of one
of our favorite sons, one of our patriots.
He was a person first. He was a legislator second. He was the same
man on the street that he was on the Senate floor. You always got the
genuine article.
[[Page H3273]]
Frank Lautenberg was not a spectator to life. Frank Lautenberg was a
leader, a loving husband, a loving father, a trusted friend, and a true
Patersonian.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Pascrell, I want to thank you for your
eloquent, very eloquent remembrances of Senator Frank Lautenberg and
for your wonderful insights, especially as the former mayor and someone
who has known him so intimately and so well for so many years. Thank
you very much for that.
I'd like to now yield to my friend and colleague, Mr. Payne.
Mr. PAYNE. Thank you. I want to thank my colleague, Congressman
Smith, for hosting this Special Order today.
Madam Speaker, I come before you today saddened by the passing of a
fellow New Jerseyan. He was a dear friend and colleague, the honorable
and venerated Senator from New Jersey, Senator Frank Lautenberg.
If anyone could embody the actual definition of the American Dream,
it would be Frank Lautenberg. Born the son of Russian and Polish
immigrants in Paterson, New Jersey, he grew up during the Great
Depression.
When war hit our shores, he bravely served the country he loved in
World War II, and he was the last of our Senators to do so.
When he returned home from war, Senator Lautenberg earned his degree
on the GI Bill, which he later staunchly advocated for the extension of
for our current men and women in uniform.
And never taking for granted the opportunities that lay before him,
after his graduation, he and three of his friends, with just an idea
and an entrepreneurial spirit, began an extremely successful company,
ADP. If you get a payroll check these days, it is likely ADP printed
your check. I guess you could say Senator Lautenberg was the proof that
anything is possible if you firmly believe in what you're doing and
what you put your mind to.
Later, he seamlessly transitioned from CEO of ADP to public servant,
often demonstrating determination, grit, and leadership throughout his
time in office that came to define Frank Lautenberg.
Throughout his five terms in office, Senator Lautenberg never forgot
his roots. He was a committed advocate for the working middle class
that he was the product of. As Senator Lautenberg knew best, We've got
to open doors and not slam them shut. And he always practiced this
outlook, no matter what he set out to achieve.
He tirelessly worked to make health care and higher education more
affordable for working and middle class families. Even into his later
years, Senator Lautenberg was one of the leading progressives on social
issues. Thanks to Senator Lautenberg and his tremendous environmental
work, we have cleaner water to drink and cleaner air to breathe.
He also recognized early on the proliferation of gun violence in our
communities and the damage it was doing to our children and families.
As a champion of gun-safety legislation, he made our neighborhoods a
safer place to work and live.
{time} 1930
And nothing was going to keep Senator Lautenberg from casting a
critical vote on background checks on gun purchases this past spring.
Though the late Senator did not get to witness the successful passage
of this legislation, the fight in Washington will continue as we carry
out the work of Senator Lautenberg's vision to keep our families and
our children safer.
In closing, I want to extend my deepest sympathies to Bonnie, his
daughter who I was able to meet last week, and his grandchildren. I had
the honor of attending Senator Lautenberg's final tribute last week,
and it was clear from that beautiful ceremony the incredible impact
Senator Lautenberg has had on so many lives.
Senator Frank Lautenberg had a love of life and a commitment to the
people in New Jersey that will be deeply missed in the Halls of
Congress and in New Jersey. He was a great mentor to me, especially as
the newest member of the New Jersey delegation. I will forever be
grateful for his guidance and for all his tremendous work he did for
New Jersey and our great Nation. We owe him an immense debt of
gratitude for making New Jersey a better place to live. There is no
doubt Senator Lautenberg will certainly be missed.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Payne, thank you very much for your
moving words and sentiments expressed today.
General Leave
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. I would ask unanimous consent that all
Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their
remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of this Special
Order.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from New Jersey?
There was no objection.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. FRELINGHUYSEN. Madam Speaker, I am honored to join my colleagues
from New Jersey in paying tribute to our late senior Senator, Frank R.
Lautenberg.
For the past several days, America has been reintroduced to Senator
Lautenberg, and it is a story worth repeating here.
He came from a family of working-class immigrants from Eastern
Europe--Russia and Poland.
When he was 18, during the middle of World War II, Frank Lautenberg
enlisted in the U.S. Army where he served with distinction in the
Signal Corps.
He was very proud of his military service. In fact, when he passed
last week, he was the last World War II veteran serving in the United
States Senate.
When he came home from the European Theater, he attended Columbia on
the GI Bill--just as so many other Americans did.
What distinguished him from many other returning soldiers is that
through hard-work and perseverance he founded his own company. And
under his leadership, that firm, grew into the largest computing
company of its kind in the world.
So working his way from humble beginnings to a prosperous career as a
chief executive in New Jersey's private sector, he lived the American
Dream.
But Frank Lautenberg's true calling was public service and giving
back to his community, our State, and our Nation throughout his life.
In this regard, New Jersey lost a tireless advocate on June 3.
For many years, we worked together as New Jersey's Appropriations
team--looking out for our state's needs on Capitol Hill. I was proud to
work with him on issues so important to the citizens of our state--
transportation, homeland security and open space. In fact, in his final
months, we worked in a bipartisan way to ensure that New Jersey has the
resources to recover from an historic storm.
Yes, we owe much to this dedicated public servant. We have lost a
great fighter who lived a life from which we all could learn.
May the tributes and prayers of so many of his colleagues here today
be a source of strength to his family.
Mr. ANDREWS. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the late Senator
Frank Lautenberg, who spent his life serving this nation and the people
of New Jersey as a member of the military and a five-term Senator. With
Senator Lautenberg's passing, the Senate has lost its last veteran of
World War II.
Senator Lautenberg served his country proudly during World War II,
earning distinction in the United States Army Signal Corps. After being
deployed overseas, he came back home and founded Automatic Data
Processing, a company that grew to become a giant in the payroll
industry.
First elected in 1982, Senator Lautenberg was a champion of the
middle class and left the state of New Jersey stronger for his years of
service. Policies he championed, including public smoking bans, raising
the drinking age, and lowering the DUI limit saved countless lives.
Senator Lautenberg was also a longtime advocate of Amtrak and
transportation infrastructure in New Jersey, helping to grow the state
economy.
Mr. Speaker, I stand with the rest of the New Jersey Congressional
delegation in remembering Senator Lautenberg for his dedication and
tireless work. His death has left a void in the Congress, the state of
New Jersey, and the nation. For Senator Lautenberg, service was not
just a buzzword--it was an ethos and a purpose. All of us gathered in
these hallowed chambers should remember not just the man, but his
legacy, and his example. We join the people of New Jersey and the
United States in remembrance of Senator Frank Lautenberg, an
extraordinary public servant.
Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I rise to honor the life and
accomplishments of Senator Frank Lautenberg. I have known Senator
Lautenberg for decades and I have been honored to call him a colleague
and friend. My heart and thoughts go out to his wife Bonnie, his
children and grandchildren.
Senator Lautenberg always believed that the Congress should be there
for people in need and that there were a lot of problems out
[[Page H3274]]
there, but Congress needed to work together on a bipartisan basis to
solve those problems. In this era of partisanship, it was always
refreshing to have Senator Lautenberg there to bridge gaps and get
things done.
Over the years I had the pleasure of working with him on a number of
critical issues that helped people in New Jersey and across the
country. For example, when I first came to Congress in 1988, Senator
Lautenberg and I worked together to close ocean dumping sites off the
Jersey coast so the water millions of people swim in would be cleaner.
We also worked together on Superfund and Brownfields issues. The
Senator always fought to ensure that polluters, and not taxpayers,
would foot the bill when it came to cleaning up toxic waste sites in
New Jersey. Through his advocacy, numerous toxic sites in New Jersey
have been cleaned up and redeveloped, creating jobs and cleaning the
environment.
I always admired Senator Lautenberg's commitment to helping 'the
little guy' and the way he fought to make sure all Americans were on an
equal ground to work toward the kind of success he achieved in his
life. I particularly respected his tireless efforts to improve the
safety and security of all Americans by working to end gun violence. I
was proud to stand with him in that effort and supported his initiative
to keep our communities safe.
I enjoyed working with him to provide health care for 9/11 first
responders. We both worked hard to pass the James Zadroga 9/11 Health
and Compensation Act of 2010, which pays for the monitoring and
treatment of health conditions that resulted from the 9/11 World Trade
Center attacks for first responders and community residents.
And most recently, he worked tirelessly to advocate for rebuilding
our state after the devastation of Superstorm Sandy. He fought hard to
make sure New Jersey got the disaster relief funding it deserved so
that we could rebuild and recover. He was able to accomplish all of
these things because of the hard work that he put into everything he
did.
Like all New Jerseyans, I am grateful for Senator Lautenberg's
service to our state and our nation. I will miss him dearly and will do
my best to continue working on the issues that were so important to
both of us.
____________________