[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 7]
[House]
[Pages 9557-9558]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         ED PASTOR POST OFFICE

  Mr. BLUM. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 4010) to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 522 North Central Avenue in Phoenix, Arizona, as the 
``Ed Pastor Post Office''.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 4010

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. ED PASTOR POST OFFICE.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 522 North Central Avenue in Phoenix, 
     Arizona, shall be known and designated as the ``Ed Pastor 
     Post Office''.
       (b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
     facility referred to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be 
     a reference to the ``Ed Pastor Post Office''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Iowa (Mr. Blum) and the gentlewoman from Michigan (Mrs. Lawrence) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Iowa.


                             General Leave

  Mr. BLUM. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
to include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Iowa?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. BLUM. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I rise in support of H.R. 4010, introduced by Representative Ruben 
Gallego of Arizona. The bill designates a post office in Phoenix, 
Arizona, as the Ed Pastor Post Office. Former Representative Ed Pastor 
served in the House of Representatives for 24 years, from 1991 until 
last year.
  I look forward to hearing more about Representative Pastor from the 
bill's sponsor and my distinguished colleague, Representative Gallego. 
For now, I urge Members to support this bill.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. LAWRENCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  I am pleased to join my colleagues in the consideration of H.R. 4010, 
a bill to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service in 
Phoenix, Arizona, as the Ed Pastor Post Office.
  Ed Pastor dedicated his life to public service. After working for 
Arizona Governor Raul Castro and after having served three terms on the 
County Board of Supervisors, Ed Pastor was elected to this very Chamber 
in 1991. Congressman Pastor was a founding member of the Progressive 
Caucus, was chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus in the 104th 
Congress, and served as the deputy whip of the Democratic Caucus. 
Congressman Pastor retired following his 12th term in the U.S. House of 
Representatives.
  Mr. Speaker, we should pass this bill to recognize the many years Ed 
Pastor spent in advocating on behalf of his constituents and in working 
to improve the lives of all Americans. I urge the passage of H.R. 4010.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BLUM. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. LAWRENCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to 
the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Gallego).
  Mr. GALLEGO. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of a bill that, in a 
small but significant way, honors the legacy of a Latino trailblazer 
and a great Arizonan, Congressman Ed Pastor.
  Congressman Pastor dedicated his life to fighting for working 
families. Renaming a post office in the district he represented with 
distinction for 12 terms is the very least we can do to recognize his 
more than three decades of outstanding public service.
  I thank my colleagues in the Arizona delegation for their 
enthusiastic support of this bill. I am also grateful to Chairman 
Chaffetz and to Ranking Member Cummings for enabling this bill to come 
to the floor today.
  Mr. Speaker, Congressman Ed Pastor's life embodies the American 
Dream. Throughout his time in Congress, Mr. Pastor fought to make the 
dream accessible to everyone, including to the most vulnerable in our 
society. As Leader Pelosi once wrote: Ed Pastor never forgot his roots 
and always worked to build a brighter future for the children of our 
Nation.
  The son of a miner, Mr. Pastor was the first member of his family to 
go to college and receive his bachelor's degree from Arizona State 
University in 1966. After graduation, he taught at North High School in 
Phoenix before returning to ASU in 1971 to earn his law degree. Mr. 
Pastor subsequently worked on the staff of Arizona's first Latino 
Governor, Raul Castro--a job that cemented his lifelong commitment to 
public service. Mr. Pastor later served three terms on the Maricopa 
County Board of Supervisors before being elected to the 102nd Congress 
in a special election in 1991. Congressman Pastor spent 24 years in 
this body and earned a reputation as a tireless advocate for the people 
of Arizona.
  I am proud to say that Mr. Pastor was the first Latino to be elected 
to Congress from our great State. He was also one of the founding 
members of the Progressive Caucus and chaired the Congressional 
Hispanic Caucus in the 104th Congress. In addition, he served on the 
House Appropriations Committee and as chief deputy whip of the 
Democratic Caucus.
  Throughout his career, Congressman Pastor was a passionate advocate 
for fixing our broken immigration system, for investing in our Nation's 
transportation infrastructure, and for protecting the civil rights of 
every American. Perhaps, even more importantly, as President Obama 
noted, Congressman Pastor served as a mentor and as a role model to 
young Latinos and Latinas throughout Arizona and our country. He was 
supported in this groundbreaking work by his loving wife, Verma. 
Congressman Pastor retired in 2014, and he remains a beloved and 
respected figure in the city of Phoenix.
  I am incredibly proud to follow in his footsteps as the Seventh 
Congressional District's Representative here in Washington. The Ed 
Pastor Post Office will join the Ed Pastor Elementary School and the Ed 
Pastor Center for Politics and Public Service at ASU as monuments to 
his outstanding service to our Nation. Congressman Pastor's legacy 
lives on, not just in these buildings, but in the transportation 
projects he championed, in the legislation he authored, in the working 
families he helped, and in the young people he inspired.
  Mr. Speaker, I respectfully request the support of every Member in 
recognizing a legendary Arizonan, Congressman Ed Pastor.
  Mrs. LAWRENCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. BLUM. Mr. Speaker, I urge the adoption of the bill.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 4010, a bill 
``To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located 
at 522 North Central Avenue in Phoenix, Arizona, as the `Ed Pastor Post 
Office'''.
  I support this bill because it honors the service of Ed Pastor, the 
first Latino congressman from Arizona.
  During Congressman Pastor's 12 terms in Congress, he committed 
himself to serving thousands of constituents from the 2nd, 4th, and 7th 
districts in Arizona and all across the country.
  As a dedicated and active member of the U.S. House of 
Representatives, Congressman Pastor served as a member of the Committee 
on Appropriations, the Congressional Progressive Caucus, the 
Congressional Hispanic Caucus, the International Conservation Caucus, 
and the Sportsmen's Caucus.
  Congressman Pastor is also known for his influence in promoting 
American arts, for protecting nature, and for protecting the civil 
rights of Americans.

[[Page 9558]]

  As members of Congress, it is vital that we continue to fight for the 
rights of our constituents and for all Americans as we actively 
conserve our precious land and indigenous cultures.
  As I am a strong advocate of protecting human and civil rights, I 
fully support the designation of the United States Postal Service 
facility as the ``Ed Pastor Post Office'' in honor of his services to 
both his country and to his constituents.
  I urge all members to join me in passing H.R. 4010 as it rightfully 
commemorates Ed Pastor's outstanding service.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Iowa (Mr. Blum) that the House suspend the rules and 
pass the bill, H.R. 4010.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________