[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 19]
[House]
[Pages 26905-26909]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




EXPRESSING THE CONDOLENCES OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ON THE DEATH 
OF THE HONORABLE JO ANN DAVIS, A REPRESENTATIVE OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF 
                                VIRGINIA

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the order of the House of today, 
proceedings will now resume on House Resolution 717.
  The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. When proceedings were postponed earlier 
today, 28 minutes remained in debate.
  The gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Wolf) has 11 minutes remaining and 
the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Scott) has 17 minutes remaining.
  Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos), the chairman of the Foreign 
Affairs Committee of which Jo Ann Davis was a member.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, as chairman of the Foreign Affairs 
Committee, I never speak for the whole committee, only for myself, but 
this is an exception.
  Jo Ann Davis was respected and admired across the total political 
spectrum, and as I was listening to my colleagues paying tribute to 
this extraordinary woman, to this remarkable Member of Congress, to 
this unique public servant, I, of course, agreed with everything they 
said. But there is one aspect of Jo Ann's life that has not yet

[[Page 26906]]

been mentioned, and that is what I would like to address.
  She loved her district, she loved the State of Virginia, but she was 
also one of the great Atlantises in this body. She was passionately 
committed to rebuilding the alliance between Europe and the United 
States, and she did an extraordinary job over a long period of time 
successfully doing this.
  My predecessor, Henry Hyde, and I had many conversations about her 
little-noticed, but enormously important, work on behalf of our 
effective foreign policy, on behalf of rebuilding so many of the ties 
that over the years had been weakened by a variety of actions.
  Jo Ann will be missed in all of her endeavors, but those of us on the 
Foreign Affairs Committee will particularly miss her enormous 
contribution to building alliances for the United States, for being a 
multilateralist, for recognizing that while we may be the one remaining 
superpower, we are a superpower in need of allies and friends and 
collaborators.
  I want to express my deepest condolences to her family and I want to 
express on behalf of all of my colleagues on the Foreign Affairs 
Committee our respect, our admiration and our love for our dear 
colleague Jo Ann Davis.
  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. 
Aderholt).
  Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Speaker, I join my colleagues in mourning the loss 
of one of our own, it's been mentioned here tonight, Representative Jo 
Ann Davis. Representative Davis, as has been said and as we have 
discussed tonight, battled cancer for several years, and of course, as 
we know, lost her battle Saturday morning.
  At a time when others would have considered retirement, Jo Ann Davis 
continued to represent the people of the First District of Virginia 
with distinction. Through her service she set an example of courage in 
the face of adversity. She refused to allow a disease that afflicts far 
too many affect her life and take her away from the work that she loved 
so dearly.
  As the first female elected to the House of Representatives from the 
Commonwealth of Virginia, Jo Ann was a leader and example to all of us. 
But of all of Jo Ann's accomplishments, of all the roles she played, 
she would not be ashamed to tell you that her decision to follow Jesus 
Christ was the most important decision for her.
  The people of Virginia were privileged to have known her as a public 
servant. The Members of this Congress were honored to share her as a 
colleague. I was honored to consider her a friend.
  Our thoughts and prayers are with her husband, Chuck; her sons, 
Charlie and Chris; along with her granddaughter, Charlotte. May God 
give each of them an extra measure of peace during this time.
  Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the 
gentlelady from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur).
  Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I thank the distinguished Member from 
Virginia (Mr. Scott) for yielding me this time, and on behalf of the 
people of the State of Ohio and myself, the senior woman in this House, 
I would like to express deepest condolences to the people of the 
Commonwealth of Virginia on the passing of Jo Ann Davis, our very, very 
respected colleague, from this life.
  To her husband, Chuck, to her two sons, to her granddaughter, we 
respected Jo Ann as a woman, as a Member, as a wife, as a mother, as a 
grandmother. We also respected her because she was an heroic Member of 
this Congress.
  There are some people in life who teach us how to live, and then 
there are those rare few who teach us how to die. Jo Ann Davis was such 
an individual. She held herself with great courage.
  As a woman, I might like to put on the Record that in the entire 
history of this institution there have been very few women that have 
actually served here. Out of a little over 11,000 Members of our 
Republic who have been elected to Congress, about 200 or so have been 
elected as women. And so we know that with every woman who is elected, 
a new page in history is written. It may seem easy, but it is very, 
very hard. Jo Ann Davis was a part of that new page in history of this 
Republic.
  Others have stated, of course, she was the first Republican woman to 
have been elected from Virginia, and so we know in having met her, we 
met a pioneering woman, a woman who truly is a first. That took great 
stamina; it took rare courage and great perseverance.
  She had other careers before she came here, as a Realtor, as a member 
of her own State legislature, and upon being elected here, she was then 
elected to some of the most weighty committees in this institution: To 
Defense, Foreign Affairs, Intelligence, always a woman who stood tall 
for those in the uniformed service of our country.
  She had a warm and radiant smile, and she held herself erect and with 
a stalwart stance that revealed the strength of character that 
represented Jo Ann Davis's entire life. You knew she would meet all of 
life's challenges, and she did.
  Her faith imbued her with that strength, and it also imbued the 
kindness that she demonstrated to every Member of this institution, a 
warm cordiality, and also in her closing days on Earth, great dignity 
in her heroic struggle.
  It was my privilege to know her and to be allowed to serve with her 
during the years that she gave to the people of this great Republic.
  May she rest in peace.
  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlelady from Florida (Ms. 
Ginny Brown-Waite).
  Ms. GINNY BROWN-WAITE of Florida. I thank the gentleman.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a friend and a colleague, Jo Ann 
Davis from the great State of Virginia. When I was first elected in 
2002, came to this body in 2003, Jo Ann was one of the first people to 
approach me and say, what can I do to help you, can I help you look for 
staff, what can I do. Jo Ann was always known for being a very willing, 
helpful person.
  She never offered advice, but if you asked her for advice, you better 
be prepared for frankness, and she would strongly suggest that you 
follow that advice. She'd say you asked for it. And she was always very 
frank and very candid when she gave advice but always very gentle, 
always a lady.
  I would have to say that Jo Ann Davis epitomized the Golden Rule. She 
followed the Golden Rule. She was a fighter and she was a woman who, 
although diminutive in size, demonstrated great, great strength, 
whether it was fighting cancer, that she beat back once, and then we 
all know it came back a second time to take her from us, but she was 
always a fighter and always with a smile on her face.
  It can safely be said that Jo Ann loved God, and her country, as well 
as her beloved family.

                              {time}  1930

  We will miss Jo Ann Davis because of what she brought to this body, 
because of her spirit, because of her ever, ever-winning smile.
  Jo Ann Davis had the honor of being respected by people on both sides 
of the aisle. They respected her, and they knew that she worked very 
hard to represent her district in Virginia.
  We extend our sympathies to her husband, Chuck, her sons, Charlie and 
Chris, as well as her granddaughter, Charlotte.
  Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the 
gentleman from Missouri, who served with Jo Ann as joint president of 
the Congressional Prayer Breakfast, Mr. Cleaver.
  Mr. CLEAVER. I thank the gentleman from Virginia.
  Mr. Speaker, one of the first individuals I met when I was elected to 
Congress was Jo Ann Davis. I actually met her, along with the gentleman 
from Virginia, at our prayer breakfast and immediately had the 
opportunity to get to know her and to work with her. I sat beside her 
on each Thursday; and over the course of a year, we got a chance to 
know each other and began to tease each other, play with each other, 
have fun with each other, and then we ended up as the cochairs of the 
prayer breakfast for this past year.
  On the night before the prayer breakfast, I was called in my 
apartment and

[[Page 26907]]

told that Congresswoman Davis was not feeling well enough for us to 
jointly lead the prayer breakfast. I knew of her physical problems, and 
so I knew that things had to have gotten worse, but I had the 
opportunity to say to her something that I really, really feel strongly 
about. My goal is not to hate a single individual, and I get up each 
morning with a goal of not even trying to resemble, in my actions, 
something that would be related to hate.
  But I told her, and I will say it here, I hate cancer, I hate it. I 
have seen it wreak havoc in the lives of men and women almost all of my 
life.
  When Jo Ann tried to come back to Congress, this body that she loved, 
I was able to go over and sit down beside her. I wasn't going to have a 
gloomy conversation. She said, you know, you don't recognize me, do 
you, because I have lost so much weight. We had a relationship where we 
could tease each other, and I kept in contact with her office staff and 
the prayer breakfast. As the gentleman from Virginia and the gentleman 
from Tennessee will recall, we sent flowers to her about 3 months ago, 
which she was very thankful for.
  But I would like to say this, Jo Ann Davis and I didn't agree on a 
lot of things politically; but we were able to sit together, talk 
together, eat breakfast together, eat lunch together and enjoy this 
world together. If there is anything I think we ought to be able to 
remember about her, I think it is in spite of political differences, 
ideological differences, this woman from Virginia, this tiny woman, was 
able to put all that aside in terms of personal relationships.
  Thank you for this opportunity to share my thoughts about one of my 
colleagues, someone I cared a lot about.
  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I recognize the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. 
Goodlatte) for as much time as he may consume.
  Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlemen from Virginia, Mr. 
Wolf and Mr. Scott, for leading this tribute to a great and courageous 
woman, Congresswoman Jo Ann Davis.
  I had the opportunity first to meet Jo Ann Davis when she was a 
member of the Virginia General Assembly. She showed there the same 
courage, determination and hard work that she has shown here during her 
service in the United States Congress. Right through to her final week 
here, she was still working for the people of the First Congressional 
District of Virginia. She was very proud of her representation of those 
great people and often talked about her district as being America's 
First Congressional District because it contained Jamestown and 
Yorktown and Williamsburg, and worked very hard for the past year or 
more as we prepared for this year's celebration of the 400th 
anniversary of the settlement of Jamestown.
  She also was a member of three very important committees here in the 
Congress, the Armed Services Committee, the International Relations 
Committee and the Intelligence Committee, all very much related to our 
Nation's national security and working with other countries around the 
world in our war against terror and was very, very dedicated to our 
Armed Services, the men and women who served there and our veterans. 
She stood up for them time and time again.
  When I arrived at my office today, I found in my in-box a copy of a 
bill that she introduced just last Tuesday, October 2. It may well be 
the last bill that she introduced in the Congress, House Concurrent 
Resolution 222, cosponsored by myself and all the other Members on both 
sides of the aisle, commending the National Aeronautics and Space 
Administration, Langley Research Center in her district, on the 
celebration of its 90th anniversary later this month.
  I can think of no better tribute to Congresswoman Davis and to the 
men and women of the NASA Langley Research Center, the premier 
aeronautic space and research facility in the country. I would commend 
to the Speaker and to the chairman of the Committee on Science and 
Technology where this bill has been referred to pass it, not only in 
tribute to those great workers at that great facility, but also a 
tribute to a great Member of Congress, Congresswoman Jo Ann Davis, who 
worked in this body in a very bipartisan spirit.
  Every month the Virginia congressional delegation meets, both the 
Senators and the House Members, the Republicans and the Democrats, in a 
bipartisan fashion. We talk about the issues that we are dealing with 
here in the Congress, particularly those that have a great impact on 
the Commonwealth of Virginia.
  She was an active and vocal participant in all of those discussions 
looking after the interests of Virginia and her congressional district. 
But she also loved to get away from here to her home in Gloucester, to 
her horses, to her family, her wonderful husband, Chuck, her children 
and grandchildren, where she was when she passed on at the end of last 
week.
  We will all miss her. Our hearts go out to her family, to her 
constituents. It is my hope that we will all take heart from this brave 
and courageous woman to her last days serving the people of her 
district with distinction and courage and great honor and 
determination.
  Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the 
gentlelady from California (Mrs. Davis), a member of the Armed Services 
Committee who served with Jo Ann Davis.
  Mrs. DAVIS of California. I want to thank my colleagues from Virginia 
for having this time set aside for all of us to come to the floor today 
and express our real sadness in losing our friend, Jo Ann Davis.
  Mr. Speaker, in many ways Jo Ann was not just my friend, but in some 
ways my sister here. I came to the Congress in 2001 with Jo Ann; and at 
the beginning, because our names are the same, we got a little 
confused. In fact, people confused one particular bill with our names, 
and it took us awhile to sort that out. We had a good laugh over that 
because sometimes we didn't always agree on everything.
  But I can say that of so many people that I have met and had a chance 
to spend time with, I really enjoyed my time with Jo Ann. She was just 
such a strong woman who didn't always have an easy time, particularly 
as we saw her suffer through cancer.
  But she was so desirous, I think, of telling people a little bit 
about how she was doing and yet at the same time letting us know that 
she was okay. Well, you know, she wasn't always okay, but she wanted us 
to know that.
  The first experience that I had with Jo Ann is when we had an 
opportunity to travel to Afghanistan together, and one of the first 
codels, soon after we had a chance to go in and see how our military 
was doing there, and what was happening and trying to help develop the 
new Afghani Army.
  We had quite an amazing trip. In spending all that time in the air 
and on the ground and really having a chance to talk, I felt like I got 
to know her as a true individual with great values, connected with 
family, and someone who was so devoted to her community. We both 
represent a military community, and I think we shared a great deal of 
that together.
  I wanted to just say thank you for what Jo Ann gave me over these 
last years and helping me to also talk about my values and what is 
important to me. Family was very important to her. My husband and I 
reach out to Chuck and the family, and we wish them all the condolences 
in the world that we can bring to them and thank them for being the 
wonderful family that they are.
  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I recognize the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. 
Goode).
  Mr. GOODE. I too want to thank Congressman Wolf and Congressman Scott 
for arranging this Special Order on behalf of Congresswoman Jo Ann 
Davis.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to the service of my friend and 
colleague, Jo Ann Davis. She worked tirelessly on behalf of Virginians 
in the General Assembly and in the United States House of 
Representatives. Jo Ann was a stalwart defender of the rights of the 
unborn and a leader on numerous other commonsense issues.
  In 2000, Jo Ann surprised many political pundits and prognosticators 
by

[[Page 26908]]

winning a hard-fought primary in which she was heavily outspent by her 
opponents. She was easily reelected in subsequent campaigns because of 
her devotion to the constituents in her district and her focus on the 
concerns of the citizens in the eastern part of Virginia.
  She was a feisty fighter and frequently reminded others in Virginia 
and around the country that she represented not only Virginia's First 
District, but also America's first district, as it includes Jamestown, 
Virginia, where our Nation's first settlement was founded in 1607. She 
was a vigorous proponent of celebrating the 400th anniversary of 
Jamestown and made sure it received notice throughout Virginia, the 
United States and around the world.
  As evidenced by the comments and tributes made here this evening, she 
touched everyone on both sides of the aisle. Her good works and her 
fighting on behalf of this great Nation will be long remembered.
  Her husband, Chuck, and her family are in our thoughts and prayers. 
It was an honor to have served the Commonwealth of Virginia and this 
Nation with Jo Ann Davis.
  Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I recognize the gentlelady from Ohio (Mrs. 
Schmidt) for the balance of the time.
  Mrs. SCHMIDT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the life of a 
very dear friend of mine, Jo Ann Davis.
  When I came here a little over 2 years ago, I walked into a room 
filled with strangers, and I quickly looked for the smiles. She was one 
of those smiles. She quickly took me under her wings. In addition to 
helping me through the maze of Congress, she also invited me to come to 
the best hour of the week, the prayer breakfast on Thursday. It's an 
event I rarely, rarely miss.
  She not only was a fighter for her district and a fighter for her 
country, but she was a woman that truly loved her family and loved the 
Lord, and it showed in each and every day and in each and every way of 
her life. To her husband, Chuck, to her two sons, to her darling 
granddaughter, my heart goes out to you.
  Every day since I learned of her cancer, I have been praying for her. 
I shall continue those prayers for you. May God bless all of you.

                              {time}  1945


                             General Leave

  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous materials on H. Res. 717.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Virginia?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman, my 
colleague from Virginia, for introducing the resolution. I ask for 
support for the resolution, and will yield the gentleman, my colleague, 
the balance of my time.
  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I think for those who are watching, you've 
seen this Congress at its best, to see people from both sides of the 
aisle come together, and that is a tribute to Jo Ann.
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. I rise to pay tribute to a great American 
and a member of this House. Jo Ann Davis was a veteran legislator, 
businesswoman, and Member of Congress from Virginia's First 
Congressional District. Her district, which stretches from the 
Washington suburbs to the Hampton Roads area, is often called 
``America's 1st District; the site of the Jamestown settlement is 
located there.
  Congresswoman Davis was the second woman from Virginia, and the first 
Virginia Republican woman, elected to the House in her own right. She 
was reelected by substantial margins in 2002, 2004, and to her fourth 
term in 2006. She was a productive member of three very important 
committees in the House: Armed Services, Intelligence, and Foreign 
Affairs. She was the ranking Republican on the House Intelligence 
Subcommittee on Intelligence Policy.
  Jo Ann Davis was born in Rowan County North Carolina, but lived in 
Virginia since she was 9 years old. She attended Hampton Roads Business 
College and worked in real estate before she was elected to the 
Virginia House of Delegates in 1997. She was reelected in 1999, where 
she served until her election to Congress.
  Congresswoman Davis died on Saturday, October 6, 2007 and was a 
respected member of this body and respected by all who knew her. She 
was a legislator's legislator. She was known to often to put aside 
partisan politics and reach across the aisle to legislate in a 
bipartisan manner for the best interests of the American people.
  Her presence will be greatly missed and we all mourn her loss and 
extend our sincerest condolences to her husband Chuck and her children 
and grandchild.
  Mr. Speaker, a dear colleague has fallen but she will not be 
forgotten. We are all saddened by our loss but we are happy to have 
served with her. Our prayers and condolences go out to her husband, 
Chuck, her children, and to thousands of friends around the Nation. She 
touched so many lives during her tenure in this body and she will be 
missed very much by the people she represented so ably.
  Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express deepest 
condolences on the passing of my fellow colleague from Virginia, the 
Honorable Jo Ann Davis.
  During her time in Congress, Jo Ann was a strong advocate for her 
constituents and an active voice on issues affecting the Commonwealth.
  As Ranking Member of the House Armed Services Readiness Subcommittee, 
Jo Ann was well-positioned and a successful advocate for her district's 
economic bread and butter--the shipbuilding and national defense 
industry.
  Regarding our joint efforts to grant federal recognition to 
Virginia's six state-recognized tribes, Jo Ann was a passionate and 
helpful ally. Her familiarity with the tribes' issues and her testament 
as to their traditional values and practices helped pave the way for 
the recognition bill's passage in the House. I am grateful that, 
despite her failing health, she lived to see the bill receive the 
unanimous support of her colleagues.
  Jo Ann will be deeply missed both within Congress and the Virginia 
delegation. Our hearts and prayers go out to her husband Chuck Davis, 
her 2 sons, and their entire extended family as they cope with the loss 
of their beloved wife, mother and citizen legislator.
  Mr. BACA. Mr. Speaker, I stand here today in support of H. Res. 717, 
the ``Privileged Resolution on the Passing of the Honorable Jo Ann 
Davis''.
  Today we stand in remembrance of a distinguished member of the 110th 
Congress, Congresswoman Jo Ann Davis, who after a 2 year battle with 
Breast Cancer has passed away.
  Her husband, Chuck Davis, battalion chief for the Hampton Fire 
Department; 2 sons, Christopher and Charles Davis, and extended family 
survive her, remembering the incredible legacy Congresswoman Davis has 
left behind her.
  A woman of modest beginnings, Congresswoman Davis knew the meaning of 
hard work and proved headstrong and committed as she worked her way to 
becoming the first Republican woman to lead the First District of 
Virginia. She would maintain her leadership there for 7 years.
  She has been praised for her commitment to Armed Services, and 
commended for her commitment to researching and pursuing legislative 
reform.
  Her determination to pursue change and prevail over hardships knew no 
bounds, even in her fight against breast cancer.
  Even in this moment of memorial, her presence and upstanding 
character is reflected as we discuss a recommitment of H.R. 1124--a 
bill providing financial assistance to low-income students and ensuring 
a brighter future for all Virginian youth.
  Because of the Congresswoman's ongoing commitment to preserving life 
on a social and political level, my colleagues and I will make great 
strides to continue supporting breast cancer awareness and the 
wellbeing of all Americans.
  In her memory we will continue to uphold two priorities to which she 
was greatly dedicated.
  While it is with sadness that we say goodbye to an incredible woman, 
we think of her with joy and fondness as we remember her devotion to 
creating a better America.
  The use of her life to benefit ``America's First District of 
Virginia'' is unquestionable and has served to ensure a sense of 
responsibility among her fellow colleagues in the 109th and 100th 
Congress.
  I thank Congresswoman Davis for dedicating her life to service on the 
behalf of the 1st District of Virginia. I am honored to have worked 
with her and I truly appreciate all she has given.
  Her efforts have touched many lives and her exceptional impact upon 
our country will create a lasting legacy for generations to come.

[[Page 26909]]

  Congresswoman Davis will be greatly missed.
  Mrs. MYRICK. Mr. Speaker, we've lost another great American who 
always put others before herself. She was devoted to her husband, 
Chuck, her two boys, Charlie and Chris, and her granddaughter, 
Charlotte, as well as all of the people she served. She and I were 
close friends--we talked about everything--and I, along with others 
here in Congress, will miss her dearly. Jo Ann never gave up--she 
fought hard until the end.
  She had her priorities right--God is going to be very good to Jo Ann 
Davis.
  Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the 
life of Jo Ann Davis--a friend and colleague who served the people of 
Virginia for 7 years in the House of Representatives.
  As the first female Republican elected to the House from Virginia, Jo 
Ann was dedicated to representing her constituents with a genuine 
leadership and passion for public service. She was committed to 
fighting government waste and strengthening our national defense and 
remained devoted to her duty despite her illness. As fellow members of 
the House Armed Services Committee and the Committee on Foreign 
Affairs, I am grateful to have known and worked with Jo Ann. I am 
especially grateful for the 3 years we sat together on Thursdays at the 
Congressional Prayer Breakfast which she ultimately so devotedly 
chaired.
  During this difficult time, our thoughts and prayers are with Jo 
Ann's husband, Chuck, their 2 sons, her granddaughter, and the entire 
Davis family.
  In conclusion, God bless our troops, and we will never forget 
September 11th.
  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Without objection, the previous question is 
ordered on the resolution.
  There was no objection.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the resolution.
  The resolution was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________