[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 20]
[House]
[Page 27579]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



      TRIBUTE TO THE HONORABLE DAVID E. BONIOR, MEMBER OF CONGRESS

  Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to say what a joy it has been in my 
life for 19 years to be able to work with the great gentleman from the 
State of Michigan, Dave Bonior. There must be something in the water of 
Lake Michigan and Lake Erie to produce the Phil Harts of this country 
and the Dave Boniors. I want to thank the Wolverine State for sending 
this incredibly decent human being here to the Congress of the United 
States.
  There are many things I like about Dave Bonior. The first thing I 
like is his wife. I think Judy is just so incredible and what a great 
partnership they do have. But I like the way that he treats her. I like 
the way he treats the Members. I watch the way he treats people, always 
with great love and with affection and with such great passion for the 
work that he does.
  We have had so many fights here that deal with economic justice 
domestically and internationally. Dave Bonior has always been at the 
head of that line. He has always been leading us. I can remember during 
the great fight on the rules that would govern trade in the Americas, 
as he stood here and he talked about what would happen to working 
people on this continent in the factories and on the farms, I was 
sitting out there with tears in my eyes; and I thought, how could he 
have the strength and the intestinal fortitude, knowing what is going 
to happen, to stand there and to be such a strong advocate and to 
maintain his passion and his composure. That was a point in my career 
where I could not have done that.
  I hope that from him I have learned how to do that better, and I 
thank him for what he is, because what he is has kept other Members 
here and running for office because of his beliefs and his 
unwillingness to change who he is and who he represents and how he 
loves people, that it is still possible to be here and to carry those 
values so close to your heart. In fact, they are his heart.
  I just want to say from the Buckeye State, always a competitor to 
those to the north, that we deeply, deeply appreciate your service to 
the people of our country and the world. We appreciate your service as 
a spokesman for those who have no voice or who have less voice. You 
have never wavered, you have always been a gentleman, you have always 
been a leader, you have always been a scholar.
  It has been my deep privilege to serve with you, Congressman Dave 
Bonior of Michigan. May you be Michigan's next governor. I only wish I 
could vote for you. God bless you.
  Mr. WU. Mr. Speaker, will the gentlewoman yield?
  Ms. KAPTUR. I yield to the gentleman from Oregon.
  Mr. WU. I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
  Mr. Speaker, the wonderful thing about being a junior Member is that 
all the large issues are thoroughly addressed by others. I just want to 
focus briefly for one moment on how David Bonior has treated fellow 
Members and me.
  I have seen him defend others with whom he deeply disagrees. I have 
seen his gentle guidance on sensitive votes. And I also wanted to share 
just briefly how well he treated me as a very new Member of Congress. 
With a name that starts with W, I was definitely last in my class. Yet 
he spent a chunk of time with me early on when it was just of benefit 
to me and clearly of no benefit to him.
  But we spent some time together. I learned many, many things, but I 
want to mention three specific things that he said to me: There is a 
small lunchroom where you should share food with other Members and get 
to know them. Be sure to get some exercise. And there is a spiritual 
piece to being here and you should pay attention to that, also.
  It took me 6 months to eat lunch with any regularity. After being 
here for 3 years, I think I am finally getting to the exercise piece. 
And I am working hard toward the spiritual piece. I tell this story 
because I think that it is an allegory for Dave as he goes on to the 
governor's race and far beyond, because as we are eating lunch or 
getting exercise or becoming more spiritual, for Dave Bonior, for this 
country as a whole, it is always the case that the best is yet to be, 
the best of life for which the rest was meant.
  Thank you, Dave, for treating everyone, large, small and in the 
middle with grace and with dignity. Thank you very, very much.
  (By unanimous consent, Ms. Woolsey was allowed to speak out of order 
for 5 minutes.)

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