[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 165 (Thursday, November 5, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1613-E1614]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




EXPRESSING SORROW ON THE DEATH OF FORMER CONGRESSMAN JOHN HOWARD COBLE 
                           OF NORTH CAROLINA

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. SHEILA JACKSON LEE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, November 5, 2015

  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to a great 
American and one of the beloved and respected persons ever to serve in 
this body, Howard Coble of North Carolina, who died yesterday evening, 
November 3, 2015, in Greensboro, North Carolina, at the age of 84.
  First elected in 1984 to the 99th Congress by the constituents of the 
6th Congressional District of North Carolina, Howard Coble would go on 
to win reelection to the 14 succeeding Congresses.
  When he retired at the end of the 113th Congress, Howard Coble held 
the distinction of being the longest serving Republican from the state 
of North Carolina to serve in the House.
  Congressman Coble, served in the U.S. House longer than any other 
North Carolina Republican, died late Tuesday. He was a respected member 
of this body and respected by all who knew him. His presence will be 
greatly missed and we all mourn his loss and extend our sincerest 
condolences to his family and friends.
  Born March 18, 1931 in Greensboro, North Carolina, John Howard Coble 
joined the United States Coast Guard one year after graduating high 
school where he served on active duty for five years and an additional 
18 years in the Coast Guard Reserves.
  After his honorable discharge, Howard Coble attended Guilford College 
on the G.I. Bill, from which he graduated in 1958 with an A.B. in 
History, and then went on to earn his J. D. in 1962 from the law 
matriculated to the University of North Carolina School of Law.

[[Page E1614]]

  After graduation, Howard Coble worked briefly as an insurance agent 
before spending much of the next two decades in the private practice of 
law and as an Assistant United States Attorney.
  Before his election to Congress in 1984, Howard Coble served in the 
North Carolina House of Representatives in 1969, and again from 1979-
83, and as Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Revenue from 
1973-1977.
  In Congress, Howard Coble served on the Committee on Transportation 
and Infrastructure, and its Subcommittees on Aviation, Highways, and 
the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation.
  Mr. Speaker, it was my great privilege to serve with Howard Coble for 
20 years on the Judiciary Committee; for many years we were colleagues 
on the Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition, and the 
Internet.
  While we served on different sides of the aisle and were often on 
opposing sides of major issues, there were many times we were able to 
work together to craft sound public policy and advance the public good 
in the areas of patent reform, copyrights and intellectual property, 
and privacy protection.
  Mr. Speaker, a dear colleague has fallen but he will not be 
forgotten.
  I will always remember Howard Coble as a thoughtful, helpful, kind, 
and honorable colleague; a true southern gentlemen.
  Mr. Speaker, Howard Coble was a good man, a good legislator, a great 
friend who was respected by Members on both sides of the aisle.
  He will be missed.

                          ____________________