[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 94 (Tuesday, June 17, 2014)]
[House]
[Page H5376]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      THADDEUS STEVENS POST OFFICE

  Mr. MEADOWS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 1865) to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 35 Park Street in Danville, Vermont, as the 
``Thaddeus Stevens Post Office''.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 1865

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

     SECTION 1. THADDEUS STEVENS POST OFFICE.

         (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States 
     Postal Service located at 35 Park Street in Danville, 
     Vermont, shall be known and designated as the ``Thaddeus 
     Stevens Post Office''.
         (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 ``Thaddeus Stevens Post Office''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
North Carolina (Mr. Meadows) and the gentleman from Vermont (Mr. Welch) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from North Carolina.


                             General Leave

  Mr. MEADOWS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks 
and to include extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from North Carolina?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. MEADOWS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I rise today to urge support of H.R. 1865, introduced by 
Representative Welch, my good friend from Vermont, which would 
designate the postal facility located at 35 Park Street in Danville, 
Vermont, as the Thaddeus Stevens Post Office.
  Thaddeus Stevens was born in Danville, Vermont, on April 4, 1792. He 
attended nearby Peacham Academy and went on to study at the University 
of Vermont and Dartmouth College. After graduating from Dartmouth, 
Stevens moved to Pennsylvania to study law. He practiced law in 
Gettysburg and spent 4 years as a member of the Pennsylvania State 
legislature.
  Thaddeus Stevens served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 
1849 to 1853 and from 1859 until his death in 1868. He is best 
remembered for being a fierce opponent of slavery and discrimination 
against African Americans. He was instrumental in the passage of the 
14th Amendment to the Constitution and fought for African American 
rights during Reconstruction.
  I ask my colleagues to honor the courageous actions and momentous 
contributions of this great American by voting in favor of H.R. 1865.
  I reserve the balance of my time.

                              {time}  1445

  Mr. WELCH. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I thank my colleague, Mr. Meadows. You spoke very well and eloquently 
about how Vermonters are very proud of Thaddeus Stevens. You gave so 
much of his biography that I am going to just embrace what you said, 
but I am going to give you one pronunciation hint: it is Peacham, 
Vermont. We are going to bring you up there and show you where Thaddeus 
Stevens was born.
  Again, thank you so much for your very gracious remarks about 
Thaddeus Stevens. We in Vermont are very proud of him, as I think 
Americans are, for many reasons.
  Vermont was the 14th State. We were the first State that banned 
slavery in its constitution. We were also the first independent 
republic that had become part of the Union.
  Thaddeus Stevens, we would like to think, carried on what was a 
Vermont conviction about the freedom of men and women, regardless of 
race. That conviction was to fight against slavery throughout the most 
tumultuous times of our republic: the years going up to the Civil War, 
the years during the Civil War, and then the post-Civil War 
Reconstruction period.
  Some of the most important contributions by the United States 
Congress occurred after the Civil War, with the passage of, among other 
things, the 14th Amendment. Thaddeus Stevens was a leading proponent of 
that 14th Amendment that guaranteed due process of law to all of our 
citizens, regardless of race. This has been extremely important in our 
Constitution.
  Thaddeus Stevens was a self-made person. He went to a local school. 
He attended Dartmouth and then went to Pennsylvania to make his mark. 
He becomes a State legislator. He was elected to Congress in one party, 
but he later changed. He began in the Anti-Masonic Party, later changed 
to the Whig Party, and then eventually joined the Republican Party.
  All the while, he was guided by a conviction that all men and women 
are created equal. That is the test that each of us faces: How can we 
bring to life that constitutional commitment that all of us have 
embraced?
  I would like to thank Senator Sanders for his leadership in working 
with the Danville community to draft this bill. Senator Sanders was 
also a transplant from Brooklyn, New York. He lived in the Danville 
area. He has been a lifelong admirer of Thaddeus Stevens.
  Senator Leahy, of course, was also a steadfast supporter in the 
Senate.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge the passage of this bill to acknowledge Thaddeus 
Stevens' public service and the steadfast dedication that his life 
represents to the equality of our citizens, regardless of race.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. MEADOWS. Mr. Speaker, my apologies to the residents of Peacham, 
Vermont. I thank my good friend from Vermont.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no other speakers. I urge all Members to support 
H.R. 1865, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Meadows) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1865.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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