[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 15]
[Senate]
[Pages 20562-20563]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




HONORING FORMER PRESIDENT JAMES EARL (JIMMY) CARTER ON THE OCCASION OF 
                           HIS 80TH BIRTHDAY

  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 446, submitted 
earlier today by Senator Reid of Nevada.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the resolution by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 446) honoring former President James 
     Earl (Jimmy) Carter on the occasion of his 80th birthday.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize President Jimmy 
Carter on the occasion of his 80th birthday.
  The people of Nevada elected me to the U.S. House in 1982, so I 
arrived in Congress after President Carter had already left the White 
House. I did not have a chance to work with him.
  But I have had, and I continue to have the pleasure of observing his 
great leadership on many important projects and issues.
  What I admire most about President Carter is that he has never 
forgotten where he came from. Jimmy Carter was brought up on his 
family's peanut farm outside the small town of Plains, GA. His family 
home lacked electricity and indoor plumbing.
  He is a product of the American dream, ascending from the red clay 
fields of Georgia to the most powerful office in the world.
  I have heard a story that when he told his mother he was going to run 
for President, she replied, ``President of what?''
  After graduating as valedictorian of his high school class, a young 
Jimmy Carter enrolled in the U.S. Naval Academy. He graduated in 1946 
in the top tenth of his class, and signed on as an officer under the 
tough but inspirational Captain Hyman Rickover in the Navy's first 
experimental nuclear submarine.
  Due to his service, a submarine was named for him: The USS Jimmy 
Carter. This is one of the very few US Navy vessels to be named for a 
person still alive at the time of the commissioning.
  President Carter's presidency was distinguished by his strong 
commitment to human rights in the world, and his commitment to justice 
and protection of the environment at home.
  As the governor of Georgia, he had reorganized the State government 
to make it more responsive to the needs of the people. He did the same 
thing as president, separating the Department of Health, Education and 
Welfare into the Department of Education and the Department of Health 
and Human Services. He also recognized the importance of establishing a 
strong national energy policy by creating a new cabinet-level 
department, the United States Department of Energy.
  The Carter administration's foreign policy is best remembered for the 
peace treaty he brokered between the states of Israel and Egypt with 
the Camp David Accord. The unfortunate assassination of President Sadat 
only underscored the deep-seated animosity in that part of the world, 
which made this agreement so remarkable.
  He also brokered the SALT II treaty with the Soviet Union to control 
the proliferation of nuclear weapons. At the same time, he aggressively 
developed weapons systems like cruise missiles and stealth bombers, 
which are still a vital part of our military arsenal.
  Since leaving the White House, Jimmy Carter has redefined the role of 
an ex-President, using his status and standing to mediate for peace and 
fight disease worldwide.
  He has been involved in a number of public policy, human rights, and 
charitable causes. His work in international public policy and conflict 
resolution is largely through the Carter Center, which also focuses on 
worldwide health care and includes a campaign to eliminate guinea worm 
disease.
  Outside of the Carter Center, President Carter conducts diplomatic 
missions as an elder statesman. In 2002 the Nobel committee recognized 
his efforts at Camp David and the accomplishments of his post-
presidency by awarding him the Nobel Peace Prize.
  In addition to promoting peace and human rights through the world, 
President Carter has been involved with the non-profit group Habitat 
for Humanity since 1984.
  Habitat is an ecumenical Christian housing ministry dedicated to 
eliminating substandard housing. Habitat volunteers have built more 
than 100,000 houses worldwide, providing decent and affordable homes 
for grateful families,

[[Page 20563]]

including some in my home State of Nevada.
  Unlike some public figures who support good causes merely by lending 
their name, President Carter gives his sweat to Habitat for Humanity. 
He hammers nails and cuts boards. Each year he leads a work project, 
and he and his wife Rosalyn donate a week of their time to this 
wonderful cause.
  The late educator Booker T. Washington once said, ``There are two 
ways of exerting one's strength: one is pushing down, the other is 
pulling up.''
  President Carter's life has been a testament to the latter. The value 
of his life's work cannot be measured or quantified by the years he 
served as President, but by the scope of all his deeds, political as 
well as humanitarian.
  I have visited the President at his home in Plains. I have attended 
his Sunday School class. I am honored to have served as his Nevada 
finance chairman when he ran for President. President Carter is my 
friend, for which I am grateful.
  President Carter leads by example. Living modestly and decently, he 
continues to stand up for the weak, the less fortunate, and those whose 
God-given rights have been denied.
  It is my honor to wish the Naval lieutenant, Nobel Prize recipient, 
and 39th President of our United States, James Earl Carter, a happy 
80th birthday.
  I have submitted a resolution to commemorate this occasion, and 
Congressman Lewis has introduced the accompanying resolution in the 
House. I urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting this 
measure.
  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
resolution and preamble be agreed to en bloc, the motion to reconsider 
be laid upon the table, and that any statements be printed in the 
Record without intervening action or debate.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 446) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follow:

                              S. Res. 446

       Whereas Jimmy Carter was born in Plains, Georgia, on 
     October 1, 1924;
       Whereas Jimmy Carter attended Georgia Southwestern College 
     and the Georgia Institute of Technology, and received a B.S. 
     degree from the United States Naval Academy in 1946;
       Whereas Jimmy Carter served honorably as a submariner in 
     the United States Navy in both the Atlantic and Pacific 
     fleets, working under Admiral Hyman Rickover in the 
     development of the nuclear submarine program;
       Whereas Jimmy Carter continued his commitment to public 
     service, serving as Georgia State Senator and Governor of 
     Georgia;
       Whereas Jimmy Carter was elected the 39th President of the 
     United States on November 2, 1976;
       Whereas Jimmy Carter created both the Departments of 
     Education and Energy and implemented major education policies 
     and a comprehensive national energy program;
       Whereas Jimmy Carter oversaw deregulation of the airline, 
     energy, and banking industries;
       Whereas Jimmy Carter promoted human rights as a tenet of 
     American foreign policy and pressed nations to uphold basic 
     human rights;
       Whereas Jimmy Carter furthered diplomatic relations with 
     the People's Republic of China;
       Whereas Jimmy Carter was instrumental in the negotiation 
     and signing of the Camp David Accord between Israel and 
     Egypt, signaling a new era of peace between those 2 
     countries;
       Whereas Jimmy Carter has continued his service to his 
     country since leaving the Presidency by championing safe and 
     affordable housing, human rights, and disease prevention;
       Whereas Jimmy Carter remains actively committed to 
     promoting peace and democracy abroad, supervising elections 
     in fledgling democracies, and helping to defuse international 
     crises in North Korea, Somalia, and Haiti; his decades of 
     untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international 
     conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to 
     promote economic and social development; and
       Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate honors former President Jimmy 
     Carter on the occasion of his 80th birthday and extends best 
     wishes to him and his family.

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