[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 18]
[House]
[Pages 24344-24345]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




      HONORING CONGRESSMAN AMO HOUGHTON AND CONGRESSMAN JACK QUINN

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from New York (Mr. Walsh) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. WALSH. Mr. Speaker, in the rush of events at the end of this 
session, the New York delegation has attempted to set aside some time 
to recognize the distinguished careers of two of our colleagues who are 
retiring at the end of this session. What I intend to do is make a 
brief statement and then reach out to my colleagues, both sides of the 
aisle, to give them the opportunity to provide remarks to acknowledge 
the great service of these two men.
  First, our colleague from Corning, New York, Amo Houghton. Amory 
Houghton came to the Congress in 1986, was appointed to the Committee 
on Ways and Means, has served as a subcommittee chairman and has done 
great work not only on tax policy and health care policy but, also, he 
has been a dedicated global citizen. He has been involved in Africa and 
in other troubled places around the world where his gentle, thoughtful 
approach to problem solving has been respected and has brought great 
credit to not only to him but to our country.
  He has been a great adviser, counselor to me; and his service to our 
State has been no less than remarkable. We will miss him very, very 
much. He will leave a tremendous void in our delegation, and we wish 
him all good health, and a long and enjoyable retirement with his 
beloved wife Priscilla.
  Our other colleague who is completing his career at the end of this 
session is my good friend Jack Quinn, who represented Buffalo, New 
York. His home is in Hamburg, New York, where he served as supervisor. 
He came to the Congress in, I believe, 1992, was appointed to the 
Committee on Transportation, served as the subcommittee chairman on 
railroads for an extended period of time and set very important policy 
regarding our rail lines around the country.

                              {time}  2000

  Jack, as all of us know, has a very personable, delightful 
personality. He is a hard-working, dedicated family man who always 
brought joy and laughter wherever he traveled. He is a close personal 
friend, someone that we all respect, and someone we will all dearly 
miss as he proceeds into his next iteration, whatever that may be. We 
all know he will be successful at whatever he does, and we wish him all 
the best.
  To both my colleagues, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Houghton) and 
the gentleman from New York (Mr. Quinn), we bid them adieu. We know you 
are not going far away. We hope to see you on a regular basis.
  Mr. RANGEL. Mr. Speaker, the House of Representatives is losing an 
extraordinary man in Congressman Amo Houghton. He has been my colleague 
in the House, in the New York Delegation and the Committee on Ways & 
Means. I have been privileged in every way to be his colleague, as 
there is no one who more exemplifies public service.
  Amo Houghton is of a distinguished and affluent family, yet he is 
interested in neither wealth nor leisure, forging a career dedicated to 
serving his fellow man. Throughout his significant career, Mr. Houghton 
represented one of the more economically depressed districts in New 
York State, a fact that never deterred him from trying to improve the 
economy

[[Page 24345]]

of the New York Southern Tier. He was a successful businessman before 
becoming a politician, and it has been said that he would surely have 
become a missionary, had he not been elected.
  Amo Houghton quickly became one of the most beloved Members from 
either side of the aisle, most likely because of his unifying nature; 
Mr. Houghton was not one to participate in partisan sniping, always 
calling for understanding and compromise. Never neglecting any of New 
York's citizens, he pledged his complete attention and support to those 
in New York City, the suburbs and many smaller cities and rural 
communities, like those in his district.
  The House will find itself at a loss without the talents and graces 
of this remarkable man. It will miss his civility and his wisdom, his 
spirit and determination, but it will be his optimism for our Republic 
and his respect for the beauty of human life that will be missed most 
of all.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the career of Representative Jack Quinn, 
one of the most optimistic Members I have met. I have had the pleasure 
of serving with Jack since 1993; he is a man who signified the old 
values of the Republican Party in New York. Mr. Quinn's respect for the 
working class, fiscal responsibility and civil rights are lasting 
testaments to his impressive legacy.
  It could not have been an easy task in representing the City of 
Buffalo, which has suffered so many devastating economic downturns over 
the past few decades, yet Mr. Quinn was constantly re-elected in a 
district overwhelmingly comprised of registered Democrats. This fact is 
a tribute to his keen understanding of the needs of his constituents 
even where they may contradict with the leadership in the House of 
Representatives.
  Jack Quinn is one of those Members for whom no one has a bad word and 
with whom no one has had a bad experience. He has the range to be 
comfortable with factory workers to business leaders to Democrats and 
Republicans alike. His independent nature and policies are deserving of 
the highest mark of honor; a man of Jack Quinn's poise and positive 
energy will be sorely missed in the halls of Congress.

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