[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 199 (Tuesday, November 16, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S8243]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





SENATE RESOLUTION 451--HONORING THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF THE LATE SENATOR 
                              MAX CLELAND

  Mr. WARNOCK (for himself, Mr. Ossoff, Mr. Schumer, Mr. McConnell, Ms. 
Baldwin, Mr. Barrasso, Mr. Bennet, Mrs. Blackburn, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. 
Blunt, Mr. Booker, Mr. Boozman, Mr. Braun, Mr. Brown, Mr. Burr, Ms. 
Cantwell, Mrs. Capito, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Carper, Mr. Casey, Mr. Cassidy, 
Ms. Collins, Mr. Coons, Mr. Cornyn, Ms. Cortez Masto, Mr. Cotton, Mr. 
Cramer, Mr. Crapo, Mr. Cruz, Mr. Daines, Ms. Duckworth, Mr. Durbin, Ms. 
Ernst, Mrs. Feinstein, Mrs. Fischer, Mrs. Gillibrand, Mr. Graham, Mr. 
Grassley, Mr. Hagerty, Ms. Hassan, Mr. Hawley, Mr. Heinrich, Mr. 
Hickenlooper, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Hoeven, Mrs. Hyde-Smith, Mr. Inhofe, Mr. 
Johnson, Mr. Kaine, Mr. Kelly, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. King, Ms. Klobuchar, 
Mr. Lankford, Mr. Leahy, Mr. Lee, Mr. Lujan, Ms. Lummis, Mr. Manchin, 
Mr. Markey, Mr. Marshall, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Merkley, Mr. Moran, Ms. 
Murkowski, Mr. Murphy, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Padilla, Mr. Paul, Mr. Peters, 
Mr. Portman, Mr. Reed, Mr. Risch, Mr. Romney, Ms. Rosen, Mr. Rounds, 
Mr. Rubio, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Sasse, Mr. Schatz, Mr. Scott of Florida, 
Mr. Scott of South Carolina, Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. Shelby, Ms. Sinema, Ms. 
Smith, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. Sullivan, Mr. Tester, Mr. Thune, Mr. Tillis, 
Mr. Toomey, Mr. Tuberville, 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. 451

       Whereas Joseph Maxwell Cleland was born August 24, 1942, in 
     Atlanta, Georgia, the child of Juanita Kesler Cleland and 
     Joseph Hughie Cleland, a World War II veteran, and grew up in 
     Lithonia, Georgia;
       Whereas Joseph Maxwell Cleland graduated from Stetson 
     University in Florida in 1964, and received his Master's 
     Degree in history from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia;
       Whereas, following his graduation from Stetson University, 
     Joseph Maxwell Cleland received a Second Lieutenant's 
     Commission in the Army through its Reserve Officers' Training 
     Corps program;
       Whereas Joseph Maxwell Cleland volunteered for duty in the 
     Vietnam War in 1967, serving with the 1st Cavalry Division;
       Whereas, on April 8, 1968, during combat at the mountain 
     base at Khe Sanh, Joseph Maxwell Cleland was gravely injured 
     by the blast of a grenade, eventually losing both his legs 
     and right arm;
       Whereas Joseph Maxwell Cleland was awarded the Bronze Star 
     for meritorious service and the Silver Star for gallantry in 
     action;
       Whereas, in 1970, Joseph Maxwell Cleland was elected to the 
     Georgia Senate as the youngest member and the only Vietnam 
     veteran, where he served until 1975;
       Whereas, as a Georgia State Senator, Joseph Maxwell Cleland 
     authored and advanced legislation to ensure access to public 
     facilities in Georgia for elderly and handicapped 
     individuals;
       Whereas, in 1976, Joseph Maxwell Cleland began serving as a 
     staffer on the United States Senate Committee on Veterans 
     Affairs;
       Whereas, in 1977, Joseph Maxwell Cleland was appointed by 
     President Jimmy Carter to lead the Veterans Administration;
       Whereas he was the youngest Administrator of the United 
     States Veterans Administration ever and the first Vietnam 
     veteran to head the agency;
       Whereas he served as a champion for veterans and led the 
     Veterans Administration to recognize, and begin to treat, 
     post-traumatic stress disorder in veterans suffering the 
     invisible wounds of war;
       Whereas Joseph Maxwell Cleland was elected in 1982 as 
     Georgia's Secretary of State, the youngest individual to hold 
     the office, and served in that position for 14 years;
       Whereas, in 1996, Joseph Maxwell Cleland was elected to the 
     United States Senate representing Georgia;
       Whereas as a member of the Committee on Armed Services, 
     Joseph Maxwell Cleland advocated for Georgia's military 
     bases, servicemembers, and veterans, including by championing 
     key personnel issues, playing a critical role in the effort 
     to allow servicemembers to pass their GI Bill education 
     benefits to their children, and establishing a new veterans 
     cemetery in Canton, Georgia;
       Whereas, in 2002, Joseph Maxwell Cleland was appointed to 
     the 9/11 Commission;
       Whereas, in 2003, Joseph Maxwell Cleland was appointed by 
     President George W. Bush to the Board of Directors for the 
     Export-Import Bank of the United States, where he served 
     until 2007;
       Whereas, in 2009, Joseph Maxwell Cleland was appointed by 
     President Barack Obama as Secretary of the American Battle 
     Monuments Commission overseeing United States military 
     cemeteries and monuments overseas, where he served until 
     2017;
       Whereas Joseph Maxwell Cleland authored 3 books: Strong at 
     the Broken Places, Going for the Max: 12 Principles for 
     Living Life to the Fullest, and Heart of a Patriot;
       Whereas Joseph Maxwell Cleland received numerous honors and 
     awards over the course of his long and distinguished career;
       Whereas Joseph Maxwell Cleland was a patriot, veteran, and 
     lifelong civil servant who proudly served Georgia, the United 
     States, and all veterans and servicemembers of the United 
     States; and
       Whereas, on November 9, 2021, at the age of 79, Joseph 
     Maxwell Cleland died, leaving behind a legacy of service, 
     sacrifice, and joy: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That--
       (1) the Senate--
       (A) has heard with profound sorrow and deep regret the 
     announcement of the death of Joseph Maxwell Cleland;
       (B) honors the life and legacy of the late Senator Joseph 
     Maxwell Cleland for his--
       (i) courage and sacrifice in combat in the Vietnam War;
       (ii) unwavering dedication to Georgia as a State Senator, 
     Secretary of State, and Senator; and
       (iii) honorable service to the United States and veterans 
     of the United States through his lifetime of public service 
     and tenure as Administrator of the Veterans Administration;
       (C) proclaims that Joseph Maxwell Cleland--
       (i) represented the best of Georgia's commitment to the 
     United States; and
       (ii) served continually for more than 50 years with an 
     unwavering commitment to public service; and
       (D) respectfully requests that the Secretary of the 
     Senate--
       (i) communicate this resolution to the House of 
     Representatives; and
       (ii) transmit an enrolled copy of this resolution to the 
     family of Joseph Maxwell Cleland; and
       (2) when the Senate adjourns today, it stand adjourned as a 
     further mark of respect to the memory of Joseph Maxwell 
     Cleland.

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