[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 140 (Tuesday, September 10, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H5140-H5146]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       REMEMBERING AND HONORING REPRESENTATIVE BILL PASCRELL, JR.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 9, 2023, the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Kelly) is 
recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader.


                             General Leave

  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent 
that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and 
extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the topic of 
this Special Order.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Pennsylvania?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, when I got the message of 
Mr. Pascrell's death, it was, like, that can't be. He was just that 
type of person that when you looked at him every day, he embodied 
everything that this Chamber stands for.
  Paterson, New Jersey, could not have had a better champion than Bill 
Pascrell because they were one and the same. He never, ever changed his 
mind on anything because he never made up his mind casually. He knew 
who he was. He knew where he was from. He knew what he stood for, and 
he knew everything about the people he represented.
  When you first get here, you don't know anybody, but I remember 
walking down the hall and saw this person being interviewed. I said: 
Who is this guy? They said: That is Bill Paterson--I mean, Bill 
Pascrell. Well, it is the same thing: Bill Paterson, Bill Pascrell. I 
said: He is something else.
  Then I got a chance to serve on the same committee as he did. I don't 
think you could find a finer example of what it means to be a 
Representative of a certain place at a certain time, and he embodied it 
in every simple way you could possibly do it.
  As we go through life, there are people you are never going to 
forget. And as long as one of us is alive, we are never going to forget 
Bill Paterson--I keep calling him Paterson--Bill Pascrell--because I am 
just so used to him talking about Paterson all the time.
  Every time I came into committee--Mr. Neal and I were talking about 
this--the first thing he would ask me is: ``Hey, Kell, how is your 
wife? I know she hasn't been doing really well.'' I said: ``She is 
fine, Billy. She is fine. How about you?'' He said: ``You know what? 
She is down here with me right now, so I think it is working. I think 
it is working all right.''
  Bill's concern was always for somebody else, not for him. It is so 
hard today to find, in this Chamber, especially, because we have 
forgotten who it is that we are. We simply represent three-quarters of 
a million people and what they stand for. You could not find another 
Member whose heart beat every moment of his life as Bill Pascrell.
  Because of where I am in my life, I am saying good-bye to people more 
often than hello. I have watched a lot of my friends pass, and I keep 
going back to how sad it is to lose them. More importantly, it would 
have been much sadder if they had never existed.
  If Bill Pascrell had not sat over there, if we hadn't sat in 
committee together, if we hadn't been able to talk about the issues--he 
never spoke casually about anything. He knew what he was talking about, 
and he made sure you understood him. I could not be more proud and more 
sorrowful today to have had a friend who was so loyal and a colleague 
who you could count on. He was somebody who you knew, at the end of 
every day, his concern, when he finally put his head on the pillow and 
went to sleep, was for the people he represented, not for himself.
  I never expected him not to be here. Now, we will look across the 
dais, and I will see that empty chair. I will think: He may not be in 
that chair, but his words are still in this Chamber and always will be.
  Mr. Neal and I, I think, would probably disappoint some of the 
Members that are here now, the new people, that we get along really 
well. For some reason, in today's world, you are not allowed to get 
along with people from the other side, and I think that is unusual.
  Everything in our lives is depending on each other to come up with 
the right solutions all the time. I really cherish the time I have been 
here. I am going to miss this guy incredibly because he was so 
concerned about other people.
  We could talk for hours about this, but I keep thinking the same 
thing. As tragic as it is that Bill will not be here, the greater 
tragedy would have been if

[[Page H5141]]

he never was here because he truly embodies everything that a 
Representative should be. He was solid as a rock all the time.
  Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. 
Neal), my good friend, to talk about our good friend and remember a 
little bit about those hours and minutes and times that we have spent 
together.

  Mr. NEAL. Madam Speaker, let me thank the gentleman from Pennsylvania 
(Mr. Kelly) for doing this and helping bring us along this evening.
  There is nobody that went at it with Mr. Kelly more vigorously in the 
Ways and Means Committee than Bill Pascrell. After the battle, the 
ensuing argument, we would be out to dinner that night, and Bill would 
have a drink and would say: Kelly is all right. I like Kelly.
  I think that is the way he saw the Ways and Means Committee and, in 
fact, the way he saw the world.
  This Special Order is in honor of our very important colleague, so we 
rise tonight in honor of Bill. By the way, Mike, calling him Bill 
Paterson, that is appropriate. Anybody that has ever been to Paterson, 
they were just like him. Nobody talked softly. I was there two or three 
times. Everybody yelled. I thought that is the order of the day; that 
is the way they discuss issues there.
  He was from Paterson. I remember when he jumped out of his seat when 
the Secretary General of NATO mentioned Paterson, New Jersey. That is 
exactly who he was. If you came to Paterson, you had to visit the sites 
where Alexander Hamilton had been. Even though we were doubtful that he 
had been to all those sites, Bill said he was, so we went to visit.
  There were humorous moments. After he came back with a pretty bad 
diagnosis a couple years ago from a doctor, he said: They told me to 
stop smoking cigars.
  A couple nights later, I saw him smoking a cigar. I said: ``Billy, I 
thought the doctor told you to stop smoking cigars.'' To which he said: 
``He did. He died.''
  You can't make it up here with these people that come to Congress, 
and that is the joy of being here in a representative democracy.
  I worked with him for 16 years on the committee and for 25 years in 
this House. He was, in so many ways, a reflection of the heart of this 
committee and this institution that we revere.
  In the end, he was beloved by all. He was a regular American, Army 
veteran, graduate of Fordham University, who represented the good 
people of Paterson, New Jersey.
  He spoke their language, and he fought day after day to better their 
lives. He said to me once: ``I am in the toughest political race of my 
life.''
  A couple of days after the election, I said: ``What was your vote 
total?'' He said: ``I only got 82 percent.''
  That was him. I admired very much how he leaned into difficult 
conversations and complicated issues, and you could depend on him for 
saying what was on his mind every day.
  As I said in The Washington Post obituary, nobody ever walked away 
from Bill Pascrell and said: I think he is undecided.
  He brought a fierce advocacy to what he did. He was fueled by what he 
believed was his God-given purpose. He was a man of great faith. The 
righteous fight of doing right for loved ones, constituents, country, 
and family was part of his DNA. He always fought for fairness. He had 
the back of the little guy in America.
  When he set his eye on something, he was relentless, as difficult 
with Democrats as he could be with Republicans. People quaked when he 
took over as Democratic leader of the Subcommittee on Oversight because 
you knew you could be in for a difficult day. He took that 
responsibility quite earnestly. He called balls and strikes, and as I 
said, never once undecided.
  When I had the privilege of visiting him in Paterson, I got the full 
Pascrell special: Police escorts, firefighters lining up to share a 
drink with him, and a lot of characters along the way.
  He certainly was, as we often say, one-of-a-kind, but beloved as only 
he could be.
  We send our deepest condolences to Elsie, his sons, their families, 
his constituents, and his staff, who are among the most dedicated I 
have ever noted on Capitol Hill.
  Many of his staff are with us this evening, and I notice that his 
chief, Ben Rich, is here. You have been assured a place in Heaven after 
working for him for 25 years, I can tell you that. I know there are 
others in the gallery, as well, but your service to your boss should 
warrant the same standing that he offered to all of you.
  Thanks for sharing this treasure with the Congress and the Nation, 
and I hope that he will rest peacefully because I am sure he is 
watching and listening to every word saying: Well, Neal could have said 
this or Neal could have said that, because he was pretty good at not 
only critiquing, as I said, Republicans, but he reserved time for 
Democrats, too.
  Billy, we miss you. We are going to see you along the way. Paterson 
lost a great man, and America lost a great friend.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman 
from Missouri (Mr. Smith), the chairman of the Ways and Means 
Committee.
  Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Madam Speaker, I thank Mr. Kelly for yielding.
  Madam Speaker, I rise today to join my colleagues in remembering the 
life and legacy of our good friend, our colleague, Mr. Pascrell.
  I had the honor of working with Bill over the years as a member of 
the Ways and Means Committee, and I can tell you that no one brought 
more passion or more of a presence in our committee room than Mr. 
Pascrell.

                              {time}  1815

  Anyone who has been on the right side or the wrong side of a point of 
view or opinion that Bill had knows what a tireless advocate he was for 
the communities that he represented. His life was dedicated to service, 
from his time in the New Jersey General Assembly, to mayor of his 
hometown of Paterson, to a senior Member of this House of 
Representatives.
  While he and I certainly did not always see eye to eye on a lot of 
the policy debates we had in the Ways and Means Committee or here on 
the floor of the House, Bill was not shy or afraid of working across 
the aisle to find common cause.
  I know I speak for the entire Ways and Means Committee when I say 
that Bill will be profoundly missed, not just for his passion and 
friendship but for his knowledge of the issues.
  Our thoughts and prayers go out to Bill's family and his staff during 
this difficult time. His service to this Nation and his passion and 
commitment to those he served will continue to be an example for us 
all.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman 
from Washington (Ms. DelBene).
  Ms. DelBENE. Madam Speaker, I am honored to be here with all of my 
colleagues to celebrate the life and legacy of Congressman Bill 
Pascrell, Jr.
  Madam Speaker, there are those people who stand out, who leave an 
indelible mark on you. You just hear their name, and you think that 
voice, the passion, the determination. Bill Pascrell--Billy, as we knew 
him--was one of those people.
  I had the honor of working with him on the Ways and Means Committee 
and also on his Oversight Subcommittee and calling him a friend and 
colleague. We worked together on issues from standing up against tax 
cheats to worker-friendly trade policy.
  He was always strong-willed and ready to fight, fight for what he 
believed in, and we all know he loved a good fight.
  He deeply loved his hometown of Paterson, with one t, in New Jersey 
and was a tireless advocate for his constituents in these Halls.
  My thoughts and condolences are also with his family, his incredible 
staff, and his loved ones. We are all fortunate to share in his memory.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman 
from Ohio (Mr. Wenstrup).
  Mr. WENSTRUP. Madam Speaker, I go back with Bill before I was on the 
Ways and Means Committee. My mom is all Italian, so I got involved with 
the other dagos here in Congress and would go to the Italian events. 
That is where I got to meet this feisty gentleman who was all Italian. 
We were very proud of our Italian heritage, as you could tell.
  Here is a guy that, as I got to know him, was one of those you just 
couldn't take down. It didn't help that his colleagues kept having his 
ninetieth

[[Page H5142]]

birthday for, like, 10 years when he wasn't 90 yet. I thought he was 
older than he was when I first got to know him, but he was up there. He 
was up there. I figured by that age--this guy, he just keeps on going--
I mean, he must be immune to everything at this time.
  Certainly, we were all shocked and saddened when we lost Bill 
Pascrell. I would hear him pontificating a lot of times, and the chair 
would often tell him his time had expired. He didn't hear it. If he 
did, he ignored it. He always had something to say.
  You could disagree with whatever he had to say out there, and 
sometimes you disagreed in the Chamber. Other times, though, you would 
get in the back and nothing was bitter. You had your conversation.
  That is why I considered him a true friend because you could disagree 
without any personal anger. That is one of the things I loved about 
him. No matter what the political difference, it could be discussed in 
the back room, for sure.
  We have a common love for our Italian heritage, for sure. I don't do 
it as much as my forefathers from Italy, but you talk with your hands, 
and you point with your fingers. I was glad I knew that when I first 
got on Ways and Means because he was doing that a lot. I took no 
offense to it because I got it. I know how it works.
  Both of us with our Italian heritage, I know that we are both more 
proud as Americans than anything else but proud of our heritage, as 
well.
  I want to tell a story. We didn't always disagree, right? We agreed a 
lot. I remember one time I had just stated something, and he followed 
me and said, I would like to associate myself with the words of the 
doctor from Ohio.
  I went up to him afterward, and I said, Bill, you just got me a 
primary. Thanks a lot.
  Anyway, I really considered him a true friend in agreement and in 
disagreement, proud to have served with this great American with a long 
history of being a great American, and as a proud Italian, I am glad to 
have served with this other Italian-American.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman 
from California (Mr. Thompson).
  Mr. THOMPSON of California. Madam Speaker, there have been many great 
women and men who served in this Congress, walked these Halls, and cast 
votes on this floor, but today, we are here to reflect on the life and 
service of one of those great Members, Bill Pascrell.
  I had the honor of serving with Bill on the Ways and Means Committee 
for the 15 years that he served on the committee, and he served 
recently as the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Trade. He always 
served with incredible passion. In every debate, markup, hearing, and 
vote, Bill never backed down from doing what he knew was right and what 
he knew was fair.
  In his nearly three decades in Congress, law enforcement and 
firefighters didn't have a better friend. His constituents couldn't 
have asked for a better fighter working every day for them.
  For Bill, there was no adversary too powerful to challenge. There was 
no wrong too small to right. When he took on an issue, he left it all 
on the field. He brought 110 percent to the arena.
  Bill was a great husband, father, Army veteran, and schoolteacher. He 
loved baseball, and he absolutely loved his Italian heritage.

  Of course, Bill was a lifelong Patersonian. I have a Navy shipyard in 
my old district, and we had a Navy ship come in for repairs, and I 
stopped by to visit with the troops. The captain of that ship was 
impressed. He said, you are the second Member of Congress that I have 
met. The first one was my hometown Congressman, and what a great guy.
  I said, where are you from? He said, Paterson, New Jersey. I said, 
Bill Pascrell. He said, absolutely, he was wonderful. The entire 
community loved him.
  They loved him for a long time. A number of my colleagues have 
mentioned that he served for a long time, and we were all amazed by the 
tenaciousness and the stay-with-it that Bill had, and I can tell you 
why. Many times on the floor, he would come to me and say, I learned 
about a new wine this weekend. What do you know about it? He would tell 
me the name of the winery.
  Case in point here, those long, strong years, it is good to know that 
a good glass of wine will keep you healthy for a long time.
  To Bill's wife, his three kids, and his six grandchildren, we all 
thank them for sharing Bill with us and with the country that he loved 
so much.
  To Ben and the rest of Bill's team, we thank them for all they did. 
They are so lucky to have been able to share that time with just a 
great guy.
  Bill, thank you for your fierce commitment to public service. You are 
dearly missed.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman 
from Connecticut (Mr. Larson), probably one of Bill's best friends in 
all of Congress.
  Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Madam Speaker, I thank Mr. Neal for 
putting this together. Mr. Kelly knows how much he loved him, and I 
think it is a great tribute.
  I want to start by saying that we are having a planning meeting 
because we are going to do a longer memorial, and I thank Mr. Neal and 
Mr. Smith. We hope to do it in the Ways and Means Committee room and 
talk about his legislation and his work that is, in and of itself, a 
pretty good list and legacy to be remembered by. This evening, though, 
I want to talk about the man.
  First and foremost, our hearts go out to Elsie, David, and Glenn. I 
am in touch with Bill III regularly, talking about his father.
  Some of you know this story, but Bill III was actually flying out to 
the Democratic convention because his father asked him to, to tell 
everybody that he was okay and was returning. He felt bad that he 
wasn't at his father's side. I said, Bill, that is what your father 
wanted you to do.
  That is the kind of guy Bill Pascrell was, but I don't think anyone 
described him better than Monsignor Silva and the relationship that he 
had with the monsignor in his parish in Paterson, New Jersey.
  After all, they told me that there was a death that took place of a 
dear friend of theirs, and Bill was going to give the keynote. Father 
said, yes, Bill, but make sure--the mass is at 8. He said, yes, don't 
worry. I will be there.
  About 10 till 8, Father gets a call, and it is Bill Pascrell. He 
says, Father, you have to postpone the mass for a half hour. I am 
running behind.
  He said, Bill, I can't postpone a mass like this. He said, what do 
you mean, you can't do that? What kind of authority do you have?
  He was arguing with the priest, and the priest said he argued for 
about 20 minutes, so they were able to start the mass about 5 minutes 
late, and they were able to pull it off. That is Bill Pascrell.
  Bill Pascrell lived in Hill House, where a lot of us started off. I 
was his next-door neighbor. Jan Schakowsky was across the hall. Richie 
was upstairs.
  I said, Billy, what are you doing? I hear a lot of noise over there 
in your room. He said, you know, those Republicans are right across the 
way from me?
  I said, no, I never really thought about that. He said, well, they 
are. I said, well, what do you about it? He said, I will tell you what 
I do about it. You know what I do? I open my blinds every morning, go 
to the window, and I put a pressed ham up against the window and moon 
them every single morning.
  That is Bill Pascrell, the guy that we know and love, the same guy in 
the story at the Swedish Embassy, where there was an elegant event, an 
affair. All these dignitaries are there, and they bring out very 
fancified hors d'oeuvres, and then they highlight it all by bringing 
out their delicacy, Swedish meatballs.
  They bring them, and unfortunately, they set them down in front of 
Bill Pascrell, and he said, you call these meatballs? These are not 
meatballs. These little dinky things, who would possibly eat them?
  He is insulting all of Sweden, but they ended up laughing with him, 
et cetera. That was our guy, Bill Pascrell.
  These characters behind me, this is a picture from our bocce 
tournament. Both Mike Doyle and Mike Capuano could get under his skin 
very easily.
  As you know, Bill was from New Jersey, and Mike Capuano would 
routinely say to him, Billy, if you had any guts--

[[Page H5143]]

you are such a big shot. You are always mouthing off about New York and 
everything.
  If New Jersey had any nerve, why don't you call them the New Jersey 
Giants? That is where the stadium is. It is in New Jersey, but you guys 
don't have the nerve in New Jersey to stand up.
  What is wrong with you and people in New Jersey? You are weak-kneed. 
If you were from Boston, you would have a lot more to say.
  That would, of course, set Pascrell off like you can't believe.

                              {time}  1830

  I miss him dearly, as I know everyone here does. There are so many 
Bill Pascrell stories to tell, and hopefully we will have the time to 
do that at another event.
  Again, as Father Sylva said, and I think he really knew Bill, he 
said: When you saw Bill and you saw the anger in him, he said it was a 
justified anger. It wasn't an anger of hatred. It was an anger about 
what he saw was wrong in the world and how he would change it.
  The Father went on to explain that anger and courage are twin 
sisters. Along with the anger about what is wrong comes the courage, 
and that is what Bill Pascrell had, too, to want to step in and make a 
difference. From the General Assembly, to mayor of Paterson, to the 
United States Congress, that is who our guy was. That is why we love 
him and miss him so much.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman 
from Utah (Mr. Moore). I think all of us could speak for an hour 
tonight about Billy. I just want to make sure. We will start talking 
about how much time we are allotting, but that doesn't mean anybody is 
going to follow it, in true Pascrell fashion. Mr. Moore.
  Mr. MOORE of Utah. Madam Speaker, as a newer voice on the committee, 
I didn't even get to serve a full term with Mr. Pascrell, so I will be 
lighter on stories than others, but the amount of impact he had on me 
will carry on for my time in Congress.
  I have no prepared remarks, and I can't think of a better way to 
honor Mr. Pascrell than to have no prepared remarks. I can't say 
whether or not he actually ever had prepared remarks. All I knew was 
that we were going to get yelled at.
  I make a spotlight of a Member in my weekly newsletter. Oftentimes, I 
think the wrong Members don't get highlighted enough back here, and we 
don't get a chance for the people of the First District to know who in 
the world is back in Congress. We oftentimes only hear of certain folks 
that sort of dominate the airwaves.
  In my newsletter, I wrote just a very brief spotlight when I learned 
of his passing, and it said: The only thing bigger than Bill's heart 
and his personality, and I guess I could add voice to that as well, but 
the only thing bigger than his personality and his heart was his sense 
of humor. It carried a lot of the way with us.
  I know that we on the Republican side of the dais always appreciated 
his sense of humor, so much so that I would get caught in a vicious 
cycle every once in a while where he would--everything he did to me was 
always with a little bit of a tinge of humor. I can admit that now that 
he has passed on because I would have been scared to otherwise.
  If he said something, I would have to chuckle, and then during the 
committee hearing he would yell at me for laughing, which only made me 
almost want to laugh more because I knew in 6 minutes when I saw him in 
the back room he would be one of my best friends back here. I knew that 
was the way he reacted.
  It didn't mean he wasn't serious about his issues. It just means he 
cared about people's interactions and personalities. I always knew 
where to find him. I just thought about that. Of course, as I poked my 
head up and looked back in the area where he would always be sitting if 
I ever needed a quick chat, you see those flowers there. It was a neat 
thing.
  Again, very, very little time, but what I do know that I think is 
important to recognize about this place, and what it needs more of--the 
gentleman from Connecticut addressed this just recently, you could tell 
he was his best friend. That was just mentioned about him, and I 
assumed that was always the case--but he went around to every one of 
us, making sure we were going to be at his birthday party. I can say 
now that he has passed on that I am so glad of the persistence of Mr. 
Larson to push us because I learned, and I got more of a take into his 
own life and the amount of service that he did and what he did for his 
community through that event, and I will always be appreciative of 
that.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I now yield to the 
gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer).
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Madam Speaker, I appreciate the gentleman from 
Butler's courtesy. It was my pleasure to sit next to Bill Pascrell for 
16 years. We came to Congress at the same time. We entered the Ways and 
Means Committee at the same time, and he was right there every step of 
the way.
  We have these special moments, learning more about our colleagues. 
Who knew that he had a master's degree in philosophy? You think about 
it, it is not unrealistic. I appreciated   John Larson's three times a 
year celebrating the 10th anniversary of his 90th birthday, and the way 
that Bill took it in stride and brought people together. He was playing 
baseball well into his 60s with energy.
  People talk sometimes about Bill being angry. I don't think so. It 
was passion. He carried a spark of passion for people he cared about, 
for issues he cared about--the unformed firefighters, police officers. 
He had deep concern for people who had suffered traumatic brain injury.
  He had, obviously, special interests. We found out a lot about trade 
and Donald Trump, but he added a human dimension that is too often 
lacking here. I will cherish those memories sitting next to Bill.
  Ben, those times when you couldn't quite contain him as he would 
reveal that passion and get things going, but it adds a dimension to 
this institution that at times is lacking, the human nature. I know the 
chairman has endless stories about his experience here.
  Bill Pascrell is a chapter all by himself, and I feel privileged to 
have served with him and appreciate people coming together to reflect 
on his legacy and his memory. Thank you very much.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I now yield to the 
gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis).
  Mr. Davis, so many people want to talk about Bill, nobody can say 
enough about him in just 3 minutes. I wish we had a whole day, but we 
are going to run short of time.
  Madam Speaker, how much time is remaining, please?
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Pennsylvania has 27 
minutes remaining.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Mr. Davis, you are recognized, sir.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I thank Mr. Kelly. I am pleased 
to join with all my colleagues as we recall, remember, and reflect one 
of the most profound individuals who has ever served in the House of 
Representatives.
  Can you imagine what it would be like to sit between Linda Sanchez 
and Bill Pascrell for 12 years or more? One side, the other side.
  Bill had all of the attributes of a great teacher, and that is great 
teachers learn how to use theater, humor, and profound knowledge to 
hold the attention of whatever it is that they are trying to reach. You 
never had to worry about people listening to Bill Pascrell, and you 
never had to wonder where he stood or where he was going or where he 
had been. It was just great for me to sit there and drink from the 
fountain.
  I would listen to Bill, and that would often give me a little bit of 
direction in terms of where I wanted to go. It was an honor, a 
pleasure, and a great joy to be his seat mate.
  To his family, to his staff, I would see the staff come and bring him 
notes. He would look at the note and then ball it up, and hold it in 
his hand because he knew what he was going to say. He knew what he was 
going to do, and that is what he did.
  Great guy. Great pal, Bill Pascrell.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman 
from California (Ms. Sanchez).
  Ms. SANCHEZ. Madam Speaker, this evening we are honoring a remarkable 
colleague and a dear friend, Congressman Bill Pascrell. A 
quintessential

[[Page H5144]]

New Jersey politician, I think he really exemplified the grit and the 
determination that really defines his working-class hometown of 
Paterson, New Jersey.
  He was such a champion for his constituents, and he never backed away 
from a fight if he thought that the cause was good and just.
  Some might call Bill brash, blunt, and feisty maybe. All of those 
were true, but those words only tell a part of the story because he was 
also profoundly kind and a dear and caring person to others, and 
somebody that I really consider myself fortunate to have known and to 
have learned under as a Member of Congress.
  Our friendship was a little unlikely, the New Jersey grandson of 
Italian immigrants and the California daughter of Mexican immigrants. 
Although our worlds were thousands of miles apart, we quickly 
discovered that we had much in common.
  Bill and I most famously bonded over our love of baseball. He 
participated in the Congressional Baseball Game every year that he was 
in office, either as a player or later as a coach. Every year you could 
find him in the dugout or prowling the first baseline in his trademark 
Fordham baseball jersey. He was our batting coach, and his batting tips 
were legendary: ``Hit the back of the ball, guys, hit the back of the 
ball.'' Now, none of us really knew what that meant, but we all tried.
  It is only fitting that one of the last times I saw him was at this 
year's game. He was in the dugout helping me coach our team, which was 
exactly where he wanted to be, and I know that our dugout is going to 
be a little emptier next year without Silky there to fill that void.
  Baseball is really only where our friendship began. Shortly after I 
joined the Ways and Means Committee, I moved up and got to sit near to 
him. As Mr. Davis said, Billy was two seats up. For years, I had a 
front-row seat to seeing him fight tirelessly for working-class people.
  Bill could work himself up into a lather, and when he did that, our 
chairman, Richie Neal, would look over at me and give me the look, 
like, hey, Linda, you have got to rein him in. He expected me to 
babysit Bill Pascrell. If anybody knows anything, you can't control 
that man.
  He was such a champion, whether it was advocating for affordable 
healthcare or protecting Social Security or pushing for more support 
for our firefighters and first responders, Bill never lost sight of 
where he came from or why he was there and why he served.
  Few people can really match his legacy of public service. He was a 
sergeant, a teacher, an assemblyman, a mayor, and a Congressman. His 
life, I think, is a real testament to the difference that one person 
can make when they are driven by a deep sense of community and 
compassion.
  As we remember Congressman Pascrell, let's honor his legacy by 
continuing to fight for the values that he championed--justice, equity, 
and an unwavering support for those who need it the most. He will be 
sorely missed.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, just in courtesy, there are 
so many guys who want to speak, honestly, Richie, we could be here all 
week and never get enough said. We are not really clocking it the way 
we should, and I am taking up too much time right now. I want you all 
to have a chance to talk.
  I yield to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Kildee), a close friend 
of Mr. Pascrell's.
  Mr. KILDEE. Madam Speaker, I will be uncharacteristically brief.
  This is tough. We all come here to do the hard work of representing 
our districts. I don't think a lot of folks understand that one of the 
things that makes this often difficult job tolerable in some ways and 
actually sometimes even enjoyable are the relationships that we develop 
with one another. It doesn't mean we agree on everything.
  When I first got here 12 years ago, I got to know Billy right away 
because I was a member of that baseball team. I, too, am still trying 
to figure out how I am supposed to hit the back of the ball. I didn't 
know that a ball had a front or back or sides--it is round--but Billy 
was convinced that we had to hit the back of that ball, and I am going 
to keep working on that one.

                              {time}  1845

  Then I joined the Ways and Means Committee. We spent a lot of time 
together on the Ways and Means Committee, and I got to know him in a 
different way.
  I won't tell the whole story--maybe the ranking member might at some 
point--but one particular moment that I will keep with me for a long 
time was when a few of us traveled to Mexico City to meet with the 
President of Mexico in the late hours of the USMCA negotiation.
  Without getting into the details, let me just say that the experience 
that we have all had with Bill Pascrell is now an experience that the 
President of Mexico also had. It was a moment to watch. I will keep 
that with me for as long as I live.
  I am glad that I was able to spend so much time with him at the 
Democratic Club. I must have had I don't know how many hundred dinners 
with Billy, often hoping there would be a handful of other Members 
around, but on those few occasions when I showed up and it was just 
Bill sitting there and I was able to sit with him and have a drink or 
two and enjoy dinner with him, I got to know him.
  Lastly, I guess the real testament of his goodness, you know, earlier 
this year my family suffered a terrible tragedy. Bill Pascrell called 
me. In those early days, he called me every single day. I am sure he 
pulled out that flip phone and dialed my number, and he called me every 
day just to check on me. He said to me--and I have one of those 
voicemails where he said: Danny, whatever you need, and I mean it. And 
I know he meant it.
  He was a friend. He was a colleague. He was a fighter for his people. 
He was a poet. I hope someday we publish some of that poetry. He was 
just a good guy, and I really will miss him.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. I yield to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. 
Schweikert).
  Mr. SCHWEIKERT. Madam Speaker, I may have a slightly different 
experience. Bill was my senior Democrat for my subcommittee. You 
actually could not stop yourself from at least liking him because he 
was just brutally honest with you. He would say: David, I really think 
that is stupid, or on occasion, which was actually joyful: David, we 
can make that work.
  Why this is important is so, often particularly in the Ways and Means 
Committee, which I still believe is culturally a unique committee--you 
know, we are tough on each other, but I think actually we are sort of 
intellectually fair. A number of the oversight hearings we have had 
even this year, they weren't adversarial.
  Something that is important that I want to make sure I say before I 
ramble on too much, Bill's staff really should get some special kudos 
because even when you could tell he wasn't feeling well, when he was 
sort of in angst, his staff did a remarkable job of keeping an eye out 
on him, keeping him ready to go because you always knew, no matter what 
you said, he had an answer to it.
  It was really a neat experience, as this is the first time I have 
chaired something in Ways and Means, to have my counterpart be someone 
with that history who was tough as nails on me. When he thought I was 
doing something fair for working men and women, he was all in with me. 
He wanted to move forward. When he wasn't happy with it, yes, he would 
beat the crap out of you.
  Actually, in a weird way he epitomized what, in my mind, was the 
classic defender of working-class Americans. He is the image I have in 
my head because that is what he was.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. I yield to the gentleman from Illinois 
(Mr. Schneider).
  Mr. SCHNEIDER. Madam Speaker, we are gathered tonight as the Ways and 
Means family to honor the memory of our friend and colleague, Bill 
Pascrell.
  Bill was a giant. He was a fighter. He was a champion. He was a 
mentor. He was our friend. He cared about each and every one of us just 
as he cared about each and every one of his constituents.
  What we know about Bill is he was caring. He was passionate. He was 
tenacious. He was funny. He was tough. He was honest. He was sometimes 
loud, but he was always, always beloved.

[[Page H5145]]

  Bill loved his own hometown of Paterson, New Jersey--Paterson with 
one T. He loved the people he represented. He loved this House--the 
House, not so much the Senate. He loved every one of us, and we loved 
him.
  In his absence, I suspect we are likely to ask a question that not 
one of us ever had to ask while he was alive. We will find ourselves 
asking: I wonder what Bill Pascrell would think about this?
  Bill always spoke his mind, and he always spoke his heart. His heart 
was always with the people of his hometown of Paterson and always with 
the best interests of the United States.
  We will miss Bill.
  We will forever remember Bill.
  May his memory be a blessing for his wife, his three kids, and his 
six grandchildren, for all of us who worked with him, and for our great 
Nation.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman 
from California (Mr. Gomez).
  Mr. GOMEZ. Madam Speaker, I rise in memory of Bill Pascrell. When we 
talk about the people's House, he epitomized that saying, that the idea 
that anybody from any part of our country could rise up to represent 
their community, their constituents in a way that does honor to them 
but also to the idea of we the people, that the consent is earned from 
the governed, and Billy was the epitome of that idea.
  When I think of him, I think that he was a character, that he was a 
fighter, that there would never be another Bill Pascrell in this place. 
He was one of a kind, but he also had a kind soul. He was a hell of a 
fighter and somebody that didn't give up on working America.
  How does this help the working man and woman in his district and 
across the country?
  One of the first things I did when I was on the committee when I was 
really green is I called out another Member on the other side of the 
aisle by name and took a good whack because I came from the Oversight 
Committee, and that is how we do it over there. We kind of have brass-
knuckle fights. I was asked--which kind broke decorum a little bit--but 
I was asked to make amends with the other gentleman, which I did, but 
when I left, a few days after that incident Billy said: You did a great 
job in that hearing. He loved those fights because he felt that 
passion.

  Billy is somebody that is going to be missed, but I know that his 
legacy in this place and in his district will never be forgotten.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman 
from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, (Mr. Boyle).
  Mr. BOYLE of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my 
fellow Pennsylvanian, Mr. Kelly, for yielding me time, and I thank 
Chairman Neal and the staff and everyone who put this together. I offer 
my personal condolences to all of the Pascrell staff.
  This has truly been a wonderful evening, and for anyone who may be at 
home watching on C-SPAN, I hope it gives you actually a taste of a part 
of the House of Representatives culture that you may not see, and you 
certainly don't see on cable TV news. There is a lot more heart and 
soul to this place than sometimes meets the eye.
  Billy was about a 70-mile drive up the New Jersey Turnpike from where 
I live in Philadelphia, but in so many ways we were from the same 
neighborhood. While Bill was one of a kind, there are many people 
similar to Billy in my community, that is for sure. We spoke the same 
language.
  I think tonight, if you didn't know Mr. Pascrell, if you didn't know 
Billy, you are getting a flavor for who he was, and truly, he was a 
character. But don't let that obscure this fact: He was a character 
with character. He had a lot of heart, a lot of tenacity. He knew who 
he was. He knew who he was fighting for. He was truly a special person.
  It might sound odd to say about an 87-year-old, but I am still in 
shock that he is actually gone. I have been here 10 years. I often sat 
next to or near Billy. This place is not the same now that he is gone. 
Somewhere up in the sky he is getting ready to celebrate another 90th 
birthday party, except instead of with John Larson and the rest of us, 
it is with Saint Peter.
  I just know that this place is better for the fact that Billy 
Pascrell served.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman 
from New York (Mr. Suozzi).
  Mr. SUOZZI. Madam Speaker, I thank Mr. Kelly for yielding.
  Madam Speaker, I am surprised nobody mentioned Billy's stamina. He 
could keep going and going and going. We would spend time with him, and 
the next day he would be going just as strong as ever. He was a 
remarkable guy.
  The death of Bill Pascrell and his absence from the Chamber could 
really represent the beginning of the end of an era. In this day and 
age of hyperbole and histrionics, in this time of performance politics 
without accomplishing things, Bill Pascrell's attitude of get something 
done for the people we serve will be sorely missed.
  Don't get me wrong. As we heard from everybody here tonight, Bill was 
a performer. He loved to sing. He loved to read poetry, write poetry. 
His outsized personality and his in-your-face attitude were very 
memorable, but Bill would always focus on getting things done for his 
constituents.
  There is an old Italian expression: ``Guarda le mani, non ascoltare 
la bocca.'' ``Watch the hands, don't listen to the mouth.'' Bill's 
hands got a lot of things done for a lot of people.
  I was lucky to have a great relationship with Bill, despite only 
serving in Congress for less than 7 years and he for 28 years, but we 
immediately bonded over our shared Italian heritage, our shared 
experience as small-town mayors, our shared alma mater of Fordham, our 
shared advocacy for labor, law enforcement, and most publicly, our 
shared advocacy for the restoration of the State and local tax 
deduction.
  As a result, he was always more generous to me than I deserved. I 
loved Bill Pascrell. He always reminded me of the old-school political 
leaders in my family and from my hometown.
  As the demographics of his district changed over the 28 years since 
he served as mayor to this day, today in Congress, he still won all of 
his primaries and all of his general elections overwhelmingly because 
his constituents would always ``guarda le mani,'' ``watch the hands'' 
and what he got done for the people. He always worked for the people.
  Rest well, good and faithful servant.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman 
from Illinois (Ms. Schakowsky).
  Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding to 
me for the privilege of saying a few words about Bill Pascrell.
  I love Bill Pascrell. I say that in the present tense because every 
time I think of him he makes me smile, not because he was a funny guy--
oh, no, he was serious. He was intense. He is the most honest, and I am 
going to have to say he did not have a phony bone in his body.

                              {time}  1900

  I was a neighbor of his at Hill House, and I would see him sometimes 
coming and going. One time when   John Larson and I knocked on his 
door, he opened that door and I guess to describe what he was wearing 
or not wearing, I will say shorts, but he didn't flinch. I didn't 
flinch. I was happy to see him, and he didn't care because he is his 
natural self.
  Let me just say that honesty and clarity was what he was about. There 
was nothing that was contrived about this man. There aren't that many 
people who I know that I could say that about.
  I miss him so much. I think about him every day, and I am honored to 
say I loved him.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for 
her remarks.
  We have some time remaining, but there is nobody closer to Billy than 
Mr. Neal.
  Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. 
Neal).
  Mr. NEAL. Madam Speaker, the public doesn't oftentimes get to see 
this part of Congress where Republicans and Democrats come together to 
honor a true friend on days on which we agreed and disagreed, but I 
think Jan Schakowsky summed up the earnestness of our pal and Tom 
Suozzi, as well,

[[Page H5146]]

in describing the sincerity of Bill Pascrell.
  As we close out this memoriam to him tonight, my memories of him will 
always be with his Frank Sinatra coat on that sparkled. He loved the 
Sinatra song, ``The Summer Wind,'' a glass of red wine, and a good 
cigar. Nobody could say al dente the way that he did with food.
  If you were out with him in a restaurant, he would share with the 
waiter the quality of the food and sometimes go back into his favorite 
restaurant, La Perla, to give them advice on how the pasta should be 
made.
  He was really proud of being Italian. He spoke parts of the language, 
and as noted here, poetry. He was well-read, he read everything. 
Sometimes you would not have thought of that as he eviscerated somebody 
he didn't like and then call them a friend 15 minutes later.
  I call attention because I do think that during my time here in the 
Congress there are fewer people like Bill Pascrell, and I think we can 
lament that as a fact. I think that there was nothing about him that 
was performative, there was nothing about him that was theater, and he 
never thought that for 1 minute his job was to entertain the American 
people. He thought his job was to inform them and from time to time 
criticize them if they didn't see things the way that he saw them.
  Again, to those who might be watching, thanks to   Mike Kelly for 
helping us to organize this event with the understanding that the 
public doesn't often see this part of Congress where we honor a 
cherished friend who every single day came to work to do what he 
thought was in the best interests of the American people.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, at this point, it is when 
you reach a certain age it is never a goodbye, it is just until we meet 
again, and that is truly the case here with Billy. This was truly a 
great night talking about a great man who was a great friend.
  With that, that will end for tonight, but it will never ever end the 
memories we have of Bill Pascrell. God bless.
  Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

                          ____________________