[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 192 (Wednesday, December 5, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7321-S7322]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 SENATE RESOLUTION 715--HONORING THE LIFE OF PRESIDENT GEORGE HERBERT 
                              WALKER BUSH

  Mr. CORNYN (for himself, Mr. Cruz, Mr. McConnell, Mr. Schumer, Mr. 
Alexander, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Barrasso, Mr. Bennet, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. 
Blunt, Mr. Booker, Mr. Boozman, Mr. Brown, Mr. Burr, Ms. Cantwell, Mrs. 
Capito, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Carper, Mr. Casey, Mr. Cassidy, Ms. Collins, 
Mr. Coons, Mr. Corker, Ms. Cortez Masto, Mr. Cotton, Mr. Crapo, Mr. 
Daines, Mr. Donnelly, Ms. Duckworth, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Enzi, Mrs. Ernst, 
Mrs. Feinstein, Mrs. Fischer, Mr. Flake, Mr. Gardner, Mrs. Gillibrand, 
Mr. Graham, Mr. Grassley, Ms. Harris, Ms. Hassan, Mr. Hatch, Mr. 
Heinrich, Ms. Heitkamp, Mr. Heller, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Hoeven, Mrs. Hyde-
Smith, Mr. Inhofe, Mr. Isakson, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Jones, Mr. Kaine, Mr. 
Kennedy, Mr. King, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Kyl, Mr. Lankford, Mr. Leahy, Mr. 
Lee, Mr. Manchin, Mr. Markey, Mrs. McCaskill, Mr. Menendez, Mr. 
Merkley, Mr. Moran, Ms. Murkowski, Mr. Murphy, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Nelson, 
Mr. Paul, Mr. Perdue, Mr. Peters, Mr. Portman, Mr. Reed, Mr. Risch, Mr. 
Roberts, Mr. Rounds, Mr. Rubio, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Sasse, Mr. Schatz, Mr. 
Scott, Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. Shelby, Ms. Smith, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. Sullivan, 
Mr. Tester, Mr. Thune, Mr. Tillis, Mr. Toomey, Mr. Udall, Mr. Van 
Hollen, Mr. Warner, Ms. Warren, Mr. Whitehouse, Mr. Wicker, Mr. Wyden, 
and Mr. Young) submitted the following resolution; which was considered 
and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 715

       Whereas George Herbert Walker Bush, the 41st President of 
     the United States, was born on June 12, 1924, in Milton, 
     Massachusetts, to former Senator Prescott Bush and Dorothy 
     Walker Bush;
       Whereas George H.W. Bush was raised in Greenwich, 
     Connecticut, and was active in leadership and athletics 
     during high school;
       Whereas, after the attack on Pearl Harbor, George H.W. Bush 
     enlisted in the United States Naval Reserve in 1942 on his 
     18th birthday, was assigned to a torpedo squadron as a 
     photographic officer, and went on to become one of the 
     youngest aviators in the Navy during World War II;
       Whereas, during an attack against Chichi Jima, a heavily 
     fortified island held by Japanese forces, the aircraft George 
     H.W. Bush was flying was damaged by Japanese anti-aircraft 
     fire, however, George H.W. Bush released his payload against 
     his target before ejecting from the aircraft and being 
     rescued by the USS Finback, a lifeguard submarine;
       Whereas George H.W. Bush served the United States honorably 
     as a naval pilot during World War II, logging 1,228 hours of 
     flight time, 126 carrier landings, and 58 combat missions;
       Whereas George H.W. Bush was awarded the United States Navy 
     Air Medal with 2 gold stars and the Distinguished Flying 
     Cross for bravery in action;
       Whereas, on January 6, 1945, George H.W. Bush married his 
     great love and best friend, Barbara Pierce, and their 
     marriage lasted 73 years, the longest presidential marriage 
     in the history of the United States;
       Whereas, while enrolled at Yale University following World 
     War II, George H.W. Bush played in 2 College World Series 
     games as a left-handed first baseman and met Babe Ruth before 
     graduating in 1948 with a degree in economics and moving to 
     Texas with Barbara and his eldest son, George W. Bush;
       Whereas upon moving to West Texas, George H.W. Bush became 
     a successful businessman, establishing himself in the oil and 
     gas industry before being elected to the House of 
     Representatives in 1966;
       Whereas George H.W. Bush served 2 terms in the House of 
     Representatives as Congressman from the 7th District of 
     Texas;
       Whereas George H.W. Bush served as United States Ambassador 
     to the United Nations from 1971 to 1973, which led to the 
     appointment of George H.W. Bush as Chief of the United States 
     Liaison Office in the People's Republic of China in 1974, 
     improving relations between the United States and China 
     during his 14-month tenure;
       Whereas President Gerald Ford appointed George H.W. Bush to 
     serve as the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency in 
     1976;
       Whereas George H.W. Bush served as Vice President of the 
     United States for 8 years under President Ronald Reagan, 
     managing Federal deregulation, championing anti-drug efforts, 
     combatting terrorism, and leading North Atlantic Treaty 
     Organization negotiations during the Cold War;
       Whereas, in 1988, the people of the United States elected 
     Vice President George H.W. Bush to serve as the 41st 
     President of the United States, the first serving Vice 
     President to be elected President since 1836;
       Whereas President George H.W. Bush appointed Justice 
     Clarence Thomas and Justice David Souter to the Supreme Court 
     of the United States;
       Whereas President George H.W. Bush worked closely with his 
     international counterparts throughout his Presidency and 
     oversaw the end of the Cold War, the fall of the Berlin Wall, 
     and the reunification of Germany, and worked with Soviet 
     leader Mikhail Gorbachev to sign 2 treaties reducing the 
     threat of nuclear war;
       Whereas the efforts of President George H.W. Bush to 
     negotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement led to the 
     adoption of that Agreement in 1993;

[[Page S7322]]

       Whereas President George H.W. Bush protected the Panama 
     Canal from a corrupt regime, assembled a multinational force 
     to compel the withdrawal of Iraq from Kuwait in the Persian 
     Gulf War, and convened the Madrid Peace Conference in 1991;
       Whereas President George H.W. Bush worked with Congress to 
     enact the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 
     12101 et seq.) and Public Law 101-549 (commonly known as the 
     ``Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990'') (104 Stat. 2399), 
     hosted an education summit with Governors from all 50 States 
     in the pursuit of systemic education reform, and capped 
     discretionary spending that led to historic deficit cuts;
       Whereas President George H.W. Bush believed ``there could 
     be no definition of a successful life that does not include 
     service to others'' and therefore, as President, launched the 
     Points of Light initiative to promote volunteerism and 
     community service across America and, while in office, 
     awarded 1,020 Daily Points of Light to Americans representing 
     all 50 States;
       Whereas, after leaving office, President George H.W. Bush 
     remained dedicated to volunteerism and community service, 
     raising hundreds of millions of dollars for charity;
       Whereas President George H.W. Bush was the father of the 
     43rd President of the United States, George W. Bush, who was 
     also the former Governor of Texas, and former Governor of 
     Florida John (Jeb) Bush;
       Whereas, in 2009, the USS George H.W. Bush, a United States 
     naval supercarrier, was commissioned and named after 
     President George H.W. Bush with the Motto ``Freedom at 
     Work'';
       Whereas President George H.W. Bush accepted the 
     Presidential Medal of Freedom on February 15, 2011, from 
     President Barack Obama;
       Whereas President George H.W. Bush never lost his zeal for 
     life and adventure and commemorated his 75th, 80th, 85th, and 
     90th birthdays with parachute jumps, the latter two with 
     former Sergeant First Class Elliot of the United States Army 
     Golden Knights parachute team;
       Whereas, President George H.W. Bush was a dedicated family 
     man and husband of 73 years who, with Barbara, had 6 
     children, 17 grandchildren, and 8 great-grandchildren, and 
     resided in Houston, Texas and Kennebunkport, Maine; and
       Whereas President George H.W. Bush showed unwavering love 
     and devotion to his family, the United States, and the world: 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) notes with deep sorrow and solemn mourning the death of 
     President George H.W. Bush;
       (2) extends heartfelt sympathy to President George W. Bush 
     and the entire family of President George H.W. Bush;
       (3) honors and, on behalf of the United States, expresses 
     deep appreciation for the outstanding and important service 
     of President George H.W. Bush to his country;
       (4) respectfully requests that the Secretary of the Senate 
     communicate this resolution to the House of Representatives 
     and transmit an enrolled copy of this resolution to the 
     family of President George H.W. Bush; and
       (5) when it adjourns on December 5, 2018, stands adjourned 
     as a further mark of respect to the memory of President 
     George H.W. Bush.

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