[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 2] [Senate] [Pages 2974-2975] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]SENATOR GEORGE SMATHERS Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize the life and achievements of Senator George Smathers. I delivered remarks at his memorial service on January 29. I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record the remarks. There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows: It is fitting that we gather in this community, in this state, to honor George A. Smathers--an outstanding American, and one of the great sons of Miami and Florida. Because it was here that George Smathers grew up. It was here that he became president of the student bodies at Miami Senior High School and his beloved University of Florida, where he also was captain of the basketball, track and debate teams. It was here that he joined the Marines, faking appendicitis so he could avoid a Navy desk job and see combat in World War II. And it was here that the handsome young Miamian broke into public service as an assistant prosecutor, after which he kept ascending and never looked back. This community, this state--this is where George Smathers devoted so much of his life. I am honored that his family asked me to pay him tribute. He has two wonderful sons, John and Bruce, and is survived by his devoted wife Carolyn. The fact of the matter is--my life has intersected with the family for 45 years. Even today, my desk in the chamber of the United States Senate is the one used by George Smathers. I first met the Smathers' family when I was a college intern in the senator's office. But it is the friendship of one of George Smathers' sons that has been especially important in my life. At a time in my young life when I lost both parents, Bruce was more than a friend, he was a brother. Bruce is always faithful, never waivers, always encourages. He is a loyal friend--a Smathers' trait. Bruce and I even introduced each other to our wives. And ``little'' Bruce is my godson. As a kid, I'll never forget attending the funeral of President Kennedy with the senator and his sons, watching the rider-less horse with the boots turned backward, following the caisson down Pennsylvania Ave., and across Memorial Bridge for the burial at Arlington. In the nine days since George Smathers has left us, many people have paused to remember. The senator had become quite a successful businessman and philanthropist, giving the University of Florida $20 million for its libraries, and the University of Miami $10 million for its Wellness Center. He was, in the words of his biographer, Brian Crispell, ``congenial, humorous, and respected as a highly effective orator and legislator.'' He also has been described as prophetic. Indeed, he was so sure years ago that Miami would become a major international city and gateway to the rest of the hemisphere, that he insisted his sons learn to speak Spanish. The year was 1946 when he set his sights on Congress. That's when he took on a four-term incumbent U.S. congressman--and, with a group of young turks in Miami he beat the odds. That was quite a class that went to Washington with him. It included the late Jacob Javits and Hale Boggs. The young congressman from South Florida soon became close with President Truman, as the president would visit the Key West White House for his retreats. No one will ever forget one of Smathers' earliest accomplishments, which was helping to create the Everglades National Park. While he was in the House of Representatives, he also developed a passion for the politics and peoples of Latin America, making some 14 trips there. Many years later in the Senate, his colleagues would refer to him, in jest, as the Senator from Latin America. Everyone would laugh, and Senator Smathers would go along. But he would offer a disclaimer: Sure he had a specialty in foreign affairs in the Western Hemisphere, but his first duty was being the senator from Florida. In 1948, the senator from Florida met Fidel Castro. And in a private conversation, Fidel told him he was going to take over Cuba. Smathers always was leery of Castro. And sure enough, 11 years later, Castro overthrew Batista. While so many in America thought that was a good thing-- ousting the hated dictator Batista--Smathers was one of the strongest anti-Castro voices around, saying, ``Watch out for this fellow. You better be careful.'' Leading up to the elections of 1950, President Truman called Smathers to the White House and asked him to run against Florida's incumbent Senator Claude Pepper. Apparently there had been a misunderstanding between Truman and Pepper, and the president still was angry. Up to that point, Smathers had not seriously considered the Senate. That 1950 campaign still is noted for remarks supposedly made to play on the ignorance of certain voters. Years later, Smathers decided to debunk the myth by offering a $10,000 personal reward to anyone who could authenticate and verify his alleged comments. Nobody could. When he went to the Senate, George Smathers joined the ``club.'' There were giants. Symington of Missouri, Johnson of Texas, Dirksen of Illinois, Kerr of Oklahoma, Kennedy of Massachusetts. And right there with them were Smathers and Holland, of Florida. Smathers became close friends with John Kennedy, and was one of the best men in the wedding party when JFK married Jacqueline Bouvier. LBJ depended on George Smathers, too, even though they differed on a number of issues. When there was a vacancy in the assistant majority leader, Lyndon Johnson asked Smathers to fill that position. And then, when Johnson suffered his heart attack and was out for seven months, Smathers filled in as the acting majority leader. When LBJ resumed his duties running the Senate, he asked his friend from Florida to be his permanent assistant majority leader. [[Page 2975]] Johnson, who was not accustomed to hearing the word no, had to accept just that from his friend from Florida. In 1956, the senator was considered for vice president, for the first of two times. During his Senate career, he chaired the Senate Democratic Campaign Committee and is credited with passing legislation to help small businesses, reform immigration and advance tourism for Florida. He helped upgrade transportation, and fought for what would become, under JFK, the Alliance for Progress in Latin America. He also helped eliminate the poll tax, establish the Kennedy Space Center, set up the Permanent Select Committee on Aging and, of course, set aside that natural wonder, Everglades National Park, the ``River of Grass'' that means so much to us in Florida. In 1960, he was the southern chairman for Kennedy and Johnson; and that same year he created a new judicial district for southern Florida to handle an increasing case load. In the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, Smathers Beach in Key West, named after the senator, was an antimissile battery. The world now knows just how close we came to a nuclear exchange in the Cuban Missile Crisis. Few know that George Smathers helped President Kennedy write the speech that warned the Soviet Union that any attack upon the United States from Cuba would be considered an attack by the Soviet Union. After the Kennedy assassination, Smathers became a regular at the Johnson White House and an adviser to LBJ. In 1968, he turned down presidential nominee Hubert Humphrey's offer of being his vice presidential running mate. The next year, he stepped out of public service and into private life, ending three terms in the Senate and two terms in the House. Among the many accolades he received, perhaps the one he prized most came from Louisiana's Senator Russell Long. George Smathers, in Long's words, ``was a statesman.'' During a lifetime of public service, he also was a good husband and father, a Marine, a prosecutor, congressman, senator--a leader. In later years, George Smathers said when asked, that he'd like to be remembered as a fellow ``who worked hard for the people he represented and did his best for his country.'' That he will be and much more. Senator Smathers, thank you on behalf of a grateful nation. ____________________