[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 183 (Tuesday, November 29, 2022)]
[House]
[Page H8641]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
RON WRIGHT POST OFFICE BUILDING
Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend
the rules and pass the bill (S. 3825) to designate the facility of the
United States Postal Service located at 3903 Melear Drive in Arlington,
Texas, as the ``Ron Wright Post Office Building''.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
S. 3825
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. RON WRIGHT POST OFFICE BUILDING.
(a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal
Service located at 3903 Melear Drive in Arlington, Texas,
shall be known and designated as the ``Ron Wright Post Office
Building''.
(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 ``Ron Wright Post Office Building''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from
New York (Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr.
Fallon) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from New York.
General Leave
Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous
consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and
extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on this
measure.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from New York?
There was no objection.
Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York. Madam Speaker, I yield myself
such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of S. 3825, a bill to
designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at
3903 Melear Drive in Arlington, Texas, as the Ron Wright Post Office
Building.
Former Representative Ron Wright was born on April 8, 1953, in
Jacksonville, Texas, and went on to attend the University of Texas at
Arlington for 2 years, studying history, psychology, and political
science.
From 2000 to 2008, he served on the Arlington City Council and as
Mayor Pro-Tem of Arlington from 2004 to 2008. He then served as
district director for Congressman Joe Barton for 9 years.
In 2018, Representative Wright ran for Texas' Sixth Congressional
District. During his tenure, he served on the House Committee on
Foreign Affairs and the House Committee on Education and Labor.
I encourage my colleagues to join me in honoring the life and service
of Representative Wright by naming a Post Office in Arlington, Texas,
after him.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. FALLON. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I rise today in strong support of S. 3825, which
honors the late Congressman Ron Wright of Texas, a great American and a
gentle soul. Many of us in the House of Representatives today served
with Congressman Wright in the 116th and 117th Congresses.
A native Texan, Congressman Wright proudly represented Texas' Sixth
Congressional District, stretching from Arlington down past Mansfield
toward Corsicana. He kept up rigorous work schedules in D.C. and back
in Texas, in his district, and he was fondly received; while
simultaneously serving in Congress, he was being treated for lung
cancer.
Prior to his election to Congress he served North Texans as the
Tarrant County Tax Collector, Chief of Staff for Congressman Joe
Barton, and Mayor Pro-Tem of the city of Arlington, Texas.
He was reelected to Congress for a second term in November of 2020
but, sadly, died February 7, 2021, just 1 month into this new Congress.
Congressman Wright was a true public servant, a good friend, and a
loyal American. I encourage my colleagues to support this bill.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York. Madam Speaker, I reserve the
balance of my time.
Mr. FALLON. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Texas (Mr. Ellzey), my good friend, a Naval aviator, a former Texas
House member, a Southwest Airlines pilot, a great American, and one
heck of a flag football player.
Mr. ELLZEY. Madam Speaker, I thank Madam Chair for the kind remarks,
as well as my friend, Congressman Fallon, for those kind remarks about
my predecessor.
It is with a great deal of pride that I get to hear Ron Wright's name
spoken on the floor in order to support this renaming. So I rise to
address the House in support of S. 3825, designating the United States
Postal Service facility located at 3903 Melear Drive in Arlington,
Texas, as the Ron Wright Post Office Building.
I thank Senator Cornyn for authoring this bill, as well as my friend,
Senator Cruz, for cosponsoring.
Congressman Ron Wright dedicated his life to the people of Texas.
While starting his career working for Ceramic Cooling, it did not take
him long to begin serving his community.
In 2000, he was elected to the city council in Arlington, Texas.
During that time, he served as Congressman Joe Barton's district
director and later, as his Chief of Staff. From there, he was appointed
Tarrant County Tax Assessor Collector, where he served from 2011 to
2018, before beating me and getting elected to Congress.
Congressman Wright was a pillar in the community that he served, and
there is not an event in Tarrant County in which his name is not
mentioned today.
So I thank Ron for all that he has done for the people of Texas and
for the people of the United States. We will all miss Ron; and I hope
that Susan, his bride, and his children and grandchildren will take a
great deal of pride in the fact that this will be named after him. He
was a gentleman and a gentle man, and we will all miss him.
Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York. Madam Speaker, I reserve the
balance of my time.
Mr. FALLON. Madam Speaker, I encourage all of our colleagues to
support this bill honoring a loyal, public servant, and as
Representative Ellzey just said, a gentleman and a gentle man, Ron
Wright.
I yield back the balance of my time.
Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York. Madam Speaker, I urge passage of
S. 3825, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. JOHNSON of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of S. 3825,
led by Senator Cornyn in the Senate, to name a Post Office in Arlington
in honor of my dear friend, former Congressman Ron Wright, who was
sadly taken from us last year as he served his second term as a member
of this body.
Congressman Wright had a passion for public service. He served as the
District Director and Chief of Staff to another dear friend of mine,
former Congressman Joe Barton, before stepping into the spotlight and
utilizing the valuable experience he gained in local government to be
the face of the federal government to hundreds of thousands of North
Texans residing in Tarrant, Ellis, and Navarro Counties. He worked hard
as a staffer and member to be a positive force and ensure bills passed
in Congress that he believed would benefit the constituents of the
Sixth Congressional district of Texas, regardless of politics or party
affiliation.
Having a Post Office named after Congressman Wright in Arlington,
where he's spent so much of his life, from attending the University of
Texas at Arlington to serving on the Arlington City Council, is a
fitting way to honor the life and legacy of a public servant who has
meant and done so much for his community. I urge my colleagues to
support this legislation so President Biden can sign this into law.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney) that the House
suspend the rules and pass the bill, S. 3825.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York. Madam Speaker, on that I demand
the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.
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