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“TRIBUTE TO THE HONORABLE JOHN E. PORTER, MEMBER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES” mentioning the U.S. Dept of State was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H10242-H10254 on Oct. 18, 2000.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
TRIBUTE TO THE HONORABLE JOHN E. PORTER, MEMBER OF THE HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Simpson). Under the Speaker's announced policy of January 6, 1999, the gentlewoman from Illinois (Mrs. Biggert) is recognized for 60 minutes.
General Leave
Mrs. BIGGERT. 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 subject of the Porter special order.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentlewoman from Illinois?
There was no objection.
Mrs. BIGGERT. Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to host this special order tonight for the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Porter), and I want to thank the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. McInnis) for giving up his time to allow us to honor this very special gentleman tonight.
The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Porter) is retiring, after serving in Congress for 21 years. It is difficult for those of us who are gathered to honor John tonight to sum up in the short time everything that he has done for the 10th Congressional District of Illinois and for his country since joining this body in 1980. It is my hope, based on the words that my colleagues and I will offer tonight, that all who are within the sound of our voices will understand the tremendous character of this man and all that he has accomplished, most notably in the areas of human rights, health research, and protecting the environment.
It is also my hope that based on our comments John Porter will know how well-respected he is, not only by his congressional colleagues but by the elected officials of his home State and district, his staff, former staff, his constituents, and the many groups who have had the pleasure of working with him throughout the years.
Tonight, Mr. Speaker, we will hear of the legacy John has created during his years of service in this body. We will hear a small part of the large impact he has made on his district, his State, his country, and the world.
I have a confession to make. I am an unabashed John Porter fan. It is not because I have lived for many years in his district and know how well his leadership and his views suit those of his constituents there, nor is it because of the small kindnesses he has always personally shown to me. Those are reasons enough to sing the praises of this wonderful man. Like hundreds of thousands of men and women in Illinois, throughout the United States and around the four corners of this globe, I know and love this man for his great humanity, his concern for the underdog, and his unquestioned commitment to making this world a better place in which to live.
When I was elected in 1998, to serve the people of the 13th District of Illinois here in Congress, I knew that it would be helpful for me to look at the other members of the Illinois delegation for guidance. Knowing his excellent reputation, John Porter was the first person I sought out. Asking him for input was easy, given our similar political ideologies. However, I doubt John, and the ease with which he provided advice, fully understood how much guidance he truly gave.
With that, Mr. Speaker, I am going to turn to some of my colleagues so that they too can share their thoughts on our dear friend. And I will first yield to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. LaHood). As my colleagues know, before his election, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. LaHood) served as the chief of staff to then House minority leader, Bob Michel of Illinois. In this capacity he had the opportunity to work on a number of issues with John Porter and, as a result, probably knows him as well or better than any other Member in this body.
I yield to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. LaHood).
Mr. LaHOOD. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the time that has been set aside here by the gentlewoman from Illinois (Mrs. Biggert) to honor our colleague, John Porter.
Mr. Speaker, John deserves to be honored. John has been an outstanding Member of this body. Prior to coming to the House of Representatives, he served with great distinction in the Illinois House of Representatives.
John has known political turmoil in his life because he has been through some very, very tough elections. I think people who have not really followed his career should know that John is probably as good a politician as there is. In order to get to this body, one has to be a politician, and John has been, particularly in the early days of his election to the House of Representatives, come through some very, very close elections in the district that he represents.
John represents a district north of Chicago, primarily Lake and McHenry County, Lake County primarily, and it is an area that is not really considered a suburban area of Chicago but kind of an entity unto its own. His district runs right up against the Wisconsin border. John has done so well in representing his district that the last several years, he has had elections that were less contentious and the people of his district have recognized the many good things that he has been able to do.
Serving on the Committee on Appropriations, John is known as a cardinal. What that means is that he is a chairman of a subcommittee. If not the most important, certainly one of the most important subcommittees of the Committee on Appropriations, the Labor-HHS subcommittee, which is the subcommittee that really looks very carefully at dollars that are provided for medical care and dollars that are provided for research. And John has really set a legacy for himself in terms of his commitment to cancer research, to Alzheimer's research, to AIDS research, and to so many of the real, real serious kinds of diseases that face our country.
John Porter has been at the forefront of making a commitment of dollars to really find cures for these dreaded diseases; as I said, whether it be cancer or Alzheimer's or AIDS, or any other number of diseases. So he has been a leader in this area. And I really think it will be his legacy that he will be remembered for the enormous commitment that he made to research and particularly research to the National Institutes of Health, the National Cancer Institute, and so many of these programs here in Washington that try to reach out and find the very best people in America to help us find cures for these dreaded diseases.
John has been a wonderful public servant not only for the 10th district but also for the State of Illinois and for the country. He has been a strong, strong leader in human rights and has lead the cause of human rights in many different parts of the world that go unrecognized in so many ways because they do not always get the headlines. But I think those people that have worked with John on human rights issues recognize the leadership that he has provided in that area.
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So an outstanding career, an outstanding career of leadership, an outstanding career of commitment to the people of Illinois, to the people of the 10th district, and to the people of this country.
John has also been a regular attender of our delegation lunches. And those of us that attend those very regularly, as I know the gentlewoman from Illinois (Mrs. Biggert) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Ewing) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus), do enjoy sharing our apple pie with John. Because of all I guess the funny things I will remember about John is that he loves apple pie, and he cannot sit through a lunch with just one piece of apple pie. And so the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Ewing) or myself or somebody is always passing him an additional piece of apple pie. That is something that I think I will always remember about John in terms of sort of the funny things, the humorous things, the human things that happen in this business.
So we will miss John for his leadership and his commitment. I am delighted to have had a chance to say a word or two about his leadership, and I thank the gentlewoman from Illinois for setting aside this time to do that.
I know that all of us wish John Porter good luck and Godspeed in whatever he does. We will surely miss him.
Mrs. BIGGERT. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his comments. Is it not curious that it is always the thinnest people that can eat two pieces of pie while the rest of us try to avoid them so we can pass them on to him?
Mr. LaHOOD. I would agree.
Mrs. BIGGERT. Mr. Speaker, the other area that the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. LaHood) and I see a lot of the gentleman from Illinois
(Mr. Porter) is at the ``Tuesday Lunch Bunch That Meets on Wednesday But Does Not Have Lunch Group.'' We spent meetings once a week to discuss issues that are important to those of us that belong in that group what we call the ``Republican Moderates.''
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to recognize my friend and colleague, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus).
I should note that the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus) will hold a similar special order next week for another Member from Illinois who is retiring from the 106th Congress, the gentleman from Illinois
(Mr. Ewing), who we will hear from in just a few minutes. But, unfortunately, we are losing two great members of the Illinois delegation due to retirement this year, and it is our pleasure to honor both of them.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus).
Mr. SHIMKUS. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the gentlewoman from Illinois (Mrs. Biggert) for arranging this special order. I wish we did not have to have our next one next week. I wish we were finished with our business. But I look forward to taking up that cause next week.
Of course we are here to pay tribute to who has become a good friend of mine, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Porter), who is retiring. It has really been an honor and a privilege to serve with him in the House of Representatives.
I have always been impressed by his commitment to his ideas and his beliefs. He has always been a gentleman and treated even newbies like myself as a colleague and as an equal. I have learned much about the process in this House of Representatives by observing how John Porter has gone about doing his business, and I appreciated his tutelage and his friendship.
Most important, however, is that I have a newfound respect for our Nation's efforts and ongoing need for medical research. As we all know here, and it is nice to be able to publicly acclaim the ongoing efforts of the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Porter) to increase Federal funding for medical research as our colleague and friend, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. LaHood), just mentioned.
Prior to coming to Congress, I had little knowledge of how much our Government played in the fight against diseases and how much it emphasized medical research. Thanks to John, I now not only understand that role, but I am now an advocate for expanding it.
Far too many of us do not think of sickness or diseases until we have a loved one who is faced with it. We are lucky and the Nation is lucky to have a person like John Porter who has worked hard to ensure that quality health care will be available when we need it.
There are many people involved in providing health care, whether it is the hospitals, big inner-city hospitals or rural hospitals, community health centers, home health, visiting nurses, you name it, there are many people working diligently in the fields. Most of them are working long hours for little to no pay. They have an advocate here in Washington, D.C., who has also worked numerous long hours, sometimes without recognition, a champion in health care and health care delivery and medical research. And that is Mr. John Porter.
We have benefited from his time here in this body. We have benefited as a people. We have benefited as colleagues. We have benefited as a Nation. I have benefited personally from observing his leadership and his thoughtful, deliberate process to help in the benefit of all.
I would really like to thank the gentlewoman from Illinois (Mrs. Biggert) for arranging this special order and paying tribute to our colleague, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Porter). It is an important thing to do before we adjourn in this Congress, and her thoughtfulness in remembering him goes a long way and adds to her credentials as being a great new Member who we are glad to have here.
Mrs. BIGGERT. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his comments.
Mr. Speaker, it really is a pleasure to be on the Illinois delegation. I think that we have had such a unique opportunity for both sides of the aisle to work so carefully together. So I think that we are going to miss the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Porter) so much because of his contribution to that Illinois delegation.
We have another Member, as I mentioned before, from Illinois. So I am pleased to recognize the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Ewing), my friend and colleague. Unfortunately, like the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Porter), the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Ewing) is stepping down at the end of this Congress. That is not the only thing that these two men have in common, however.
Much, like they have been in this body for 9 years together. The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Ewing) and the gentleman from Illinois
(Mr. Porter) served together in the Illinois General Assembly in the mid-1970s. So they have been traveling on the same circuit for a long time. I am happy to have the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Ewing) here to say something about the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Porter).
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Ewing).
Mr. EWING. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman very much for putting this special order together for our friend, the gentleman from Illinois
(Mr. Porter), and for allowing me to take a few minutes to talk about John and some of the experiences that we have experienced over the years.
I must say that the gentlewoman is a wonderful addition to our delegation and she is such a good participant in all that we do here and I appreciate that and I will miss working with her.
The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Porter) though has spent 11 terms here in this body. That is hard to believe, but that is 22 years.
Prior to that, as the gentlewoman said, he was in the Illinois Assembly. I was kind of looking back at my figures here and I realized that John came 2 years before I did. He will have had a career of 28 years in public office. And at the end of my term, I will have put in 26 years.
Besides that, John and I had offices next to each other in Springfield in, I think it is, the Illinois State Office Building behind the Capitol. So we shared a great many things. I do not think we had to share a secretary, as many members do share a secretary, but we did not have the same one. But we would be in there late at night, which is the way the legislature operated back then, and we would have a lot of time to visit about family and our children and those things. So John and I reached a deep friendship early on in our political career.
John then ran for Congress. I do not know exactly how that was, but he ran three times to get to Congress for one term. And there was, I think, an election he lost and than a special election. And then by the time he had done those two elections, it was time for the next election to get him a full term here. So he worked very hard to become a Member of Congress.
After he got here, he went on the Committee on Appropriations. And as he leaves, he leaves as one of the 13 cardinals of that committee, which is an attainment that many here would like to emulate. Few get the opportunity to be one of the cardinals in the appropriations process.
I have heard my other colleagues, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. LaHood) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus), talk about some of his priorities there. And I know that John has had a very kind heart. He is certainly a compassionate conservative in the best sense of the word.
John is a very quiet man. His area now is Labor HHS, one of the hardest of the appropriation bills to pass. And while I know that that sometimes worries John greatly at the end of the sessions, I have seen him go through that, he is always so mild mannered about it. I do not know if I could keep my restraint as much as John does in handling that bill and all the rhetoric that goes on on this floor about that bill.
But he has done many other things in his career here. He has been a great supporter of the Pottawattamie Airport and the Waukegan Regional Airport. And through those efforts, those institutions in his area, his district, have grown and they brought air service to northern Illinois and he has helped secure the funding for very important improvements there.
The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Porter) also worked to help local school districts particularly address the shortfall in impact in Federal aid. This may seem like kind of a strange thing to talk about, but that is very important to school districts. Because when they do not get that Federal aid, they have got to reach into their pocket and take it out of the money that they normally would have to spend for education that they get out of their local tax dollars. And that Federal aid comes because of the military people who were in those school districts, and that is very important.
He has been an advocate for strengthening ethics in Government and reforming the way this institution, the U.S. Congress, operates.
The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Porter) has advanced legislation to make urgently needed improvements in Congress's internal standards, and I think that we should thank him for that. That is a thankless job but one that we have to continue to work on always.
He has been a fighter against drunk driving and instrumental in the passage of legislation mandating a 21-year-old drinking age in this country.
He has worked to prevent the spread of chemical weapons. He authored the Chemical and Biological Weapons Nonproliferation Act and directed the Secretary of Commerce to develop effective export controls to prevent the spread of deadly chemical and biological weapons to other nations.
He has been a leading voice in support of human rights and democratic reforms in China and Hong Kong. He led the successful effort to defend the Great Lakes Naval Training Center against the threat of closure during the most recent round of cutbacks considered by the Base Realignment and Closure Commission. The decision to keep this center open is expected to bring 8,000 jobs to his area.
Did my colleagues know that that is the only base we have in Illinois? Many States have a number of military installations. Sometimes we talk about how much comes back to our State in tax dollars. Well, one reason we are a little behind some of our sister States is that we only have one major military installation left in our State, where we used to have a number of them. The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Porter) is to receive the thanks for protecting that important installation.
I would just say in closing that I consider John Porter a true friend, a real gentleman, a fine legislator, and I know that he will go on to do many, many other fine things in service of his country and his State.
I thank the gentlewoman very much for allowing me the time to talk about my friend.
Mrs. BIGGERT. Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to hear what the gentleman had to say about him. I know that he is both of our friends, and we will miss him. It is nice that the gentleman has expressed that so eloquently.
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We will now move to Arkansas. I am pleased to yield the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Dickey). The gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Dickey) serves on the Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education of which John Porter is the chairman. So given the attention and controversy that our appropriation bill always seems to attract, I know that John Porter and the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Dickey) have gone through some interesting battles together. So I am happy that the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Dickey) could join us tonight to honor our friend John Porter.
Mr. DICKEY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Illinois (Mrs. Biggert) for her thoughtfulness in remembering this fine gentleman.
I would like to state a little bit for the listeners and the viewers just exactly what type of a committee he has been the chairman of. The Committee on Appropriations has 13 subcommittees. One subcommittee is called the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education. It has over maybe 820 agencies or programs that it administers. John Porter is the chairman, and I have been a committee member now for 6 years. This will be my sixth year.
A chairman and the subcommittee members get to know each other quite well. They first of all have to jockey for positions to see who is doing what and what positions we have and what favors and corresponding votes that you give and take, and then you set about trying to find out exactly what the purpose of the committee is.
John Porter took this chairmanship as if he was made for it. It is the most amazing match I have ever seen. Of course, he had been on it as a minority member for some time but as chairman I have sat and watched him and listened to story after story after story of pain, suffering and human misery. He has done it always with attention and he has asked questions. We sometimes in this committee get what is called compassion fatigue. We hear these sad stories and all of these circumstances where people are just left out alone and this committee is the one with the heart, as I call it, of the Committee on Appropriations and we are the ones that go out and try to help others.
John Edward, as I call him, has been just a wonderful, patient listener and been an active participant in trying to help use the Federal resources to help the people who are suffering.
As that chairman, he has shown a great gift in bipartisanship, and that is one of the reasons why he can come to this floor and pass these bills. We sometimes have to pass them with just Republican votes, sometimes with Republican and Democrat votes, but mainly it is because of the controversy in the legislation, it is generally considered liberal. The appropriations are considered liberal. He goes and he tells the story and he does not do it in a bragging sort of way or in an emotional sort of way, and maybe he is not even charismatic in his approach but he just methodically explains each part of the bill and he answers questions and he gets the rhetoric from the other side, the loyal opposition as we call it, and I think it is a great thing to watch him go about it.
He led me quite a bit in health care, in that I could not quite understand what our commitment was and the number of dollars that we were spending, let us say on the National Institutes of Health. He kept saying, no, this is the thing we ought to do and this will be something that you will look back over the years as being the best thing that you have done on any of these committees; and he is probably right.
Dr. Francis Collins came to Hot Springs, Arkansas, in my district not long ago and explained the human genome project. That would not have been done, in my opinion, without John Edward Porter being there trying to in a five-year period of time double the budget of the National Institutes of Health. He had a vision for what that institute, the National Institutes of Health, could do and then he stayed with it.
He was constantly going over there. He was taking us over there. He was having their staff come and explain things to us, but without his leadership and understanding I do not think it would have ever worked.
I have also had an opportunity to go with him on a human rights and health mission to China and Cambodia and Hong Kong and other places, and I not only watched how he was able to speak to the people of those countries and in a knowing way he had been there before or he had talked to them or they had been to America and he had visited with them there and he was an outstanding spokesman. The chairman of the CODEL, as we call it, always leads the introduction and always gives the acceptance to the welcome in each country and he was an outstanding ambassador for our country. I mean, he was so well spoken and calm and did such a good job representing what we consider the best of our country, and that is our concern for people who are suffering and who need care.
Some of the things that we worked on besides the NIH was TRIO, where we rescued the program from a cut. TRIO is a program that encourages kids who are not from a family whose parents are college graduates and which says if you want to stay after school, if you want to stay on the weekends, if you want to come back and have extra work in the summer, we will match your ambition with assistance. Money has been added for the TRIO program year after year after year.
AHEC, which is a program providing for health care to rural areas, has seen a dramatic increase. Head Start has seen a dramatic increase in our committee. All of this shows what John Edward Porter was doing as a leader.
There are some problems that I have had with him, of course. In the early days, a chairman just kind of controls things. He is kind of upset about it so I was always badgering him and keeping him with amendments and he was having to deal with my activist type of approach. He is completely different in that respect, and he is always well prepared, always thinks out his product and it is kind of hard for him to see some of us who were just firing off in several different directions at once. One time in particular it was late at night, I can remember, like 11:00 or 12:00 at night and everybody was talking in the committee and I just stood up kind of kiddingly and said, Mr. Chairman, I think you have lost control of this meeting, and he said one reason I have lost control is you are standing up. Why do you not sit down?
He had that way of doing it. So I sat down and we got on with the business, but he got a kick out of that.
I think one of the reasons, and he will not admit it, but one of the reasons he is leaving is because we have term limits in the chairmanships. We have imposed that on ourselves in the House rules. He has a term limit. He knows that he could not go to another committee that would be as satisfying in his heart and his soul as this one. He knows if he went to another committee he could be chairman, but that he might want to stay here and not being chairman is a factor. I think this might be laid at the feet of term limits, the term limits program; but he probably would not say it. He is too much of a gentleman to say something like that.
I am going to miss him. It might surprise him for me to say that because we have really fought hard on several different issues and compromised and worked out our differences as we have had them, but he is such a fine gentleman. It is a pleasure for me to participate in this special order for John Edward Porter. We will miss you, John.
Mrs. BIGGERT. I thank the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Dickey) for his comments. It is nice to hear from somebody who has worked so closely with Mr. Porter and had such a wonderful experience from it.
I would like to enter into the record, as I said before I had some statements, and this is from Governor George Ryan the governor of the State of Illinois. I am going to read some of it. I will not read the whole thing but that will be submitted for the record. This letter says,
Dear John, on behalf of the State of Illinois please accept our heartfelt gratitude for your extraordinary contributions during a lifetime of public service. On the occasion of your retirement from the U.S. Congress, it is fair to recognize and applaud what you have accomplished for your constituents, for people within Illinois and throughout the United States. It is also not an exaggeration to highlight the fact that your leadership in human rights and on environmental issues has benefited people around the world. You are a strong advocate for a thoughtful Federal appropriations process, a clean environment and adequate funding for the arts.
You have earned an influential role among the green Republicans to fight for the Nation's environmental interests in Congress. And you are only one of five House members ever to be appointed to the board of directors of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Your service in Illinois began in the Illinois House of Representatives during 1972 and I am proud that we served together in the State House before you were elected to Congress in 1980. Those of us who were fortunate to work with you then have not been surprised by what you have accomplished since. As a champion and supporter of the National Institutes of Health, your efforts have helped the Institute bring about numerous medical and health advances. You have successfully advocated Federal funding to expand the Metro commuter rails into the northern suburbs of Illinois, including many towns in your district. The 290 acres of open space at Fort Sheridan is an outgrowth of your creative determination and ability to persuade the Federal Government to transfer the land to the Lake County Forest Preserve District when Fort Sheridan was closed. That this land transfer occurred without cost to the district and continues to exist as an open space for all to enjoy is among your most special contributions. The Great Lakes Naval Station remains open, viable and an economic anchor in Illinois because of your efforts. Among the critical military missions conducted here is Navy and Coast Guard training. Your commitment and effectiveness as an advocate of free trade continues to produce immeasurable economic benefits for the people of Illinois. Our farmers have more markets in which to sell their crops and livestock. Our business community has additional opportunities to positively impact their bottom line. Our workers enjoy a more stable work environment with better compensation.
Additional contributions that will not be forgotten include your efforts for comprehensive flood control measures for the north branch of the Chicago River; the enhancement of safety and operational capacities at Waukegan Airport, including new instrument landing equipment and runway improvements. Waukegan Harbor has been cleaned up with Federal resources and payments you helped secure from the firm who did the polluting.
On behalf of my family and our shared constituents within all walks of life in Illinois, thank you for all you have accomplished. Your ideas and experience and voice in Congress will be sorely missed. We wish you the very best in your next endeavor and hope that it brings you all the joy and happiness that you deserve. Please extend our very best regards to your entire family and especially your children, John, Ann, David, Robin and Donna. Sincerely George H. Ryan, Governor.
State of Illinois,
Washington Office,
Washington, DC, October 11, 2000.Hon. John Edward Porter,Chairman, Labor, Health & Human Services and Education
Appropriations Subcommittee, House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
Dear John: On behalf of the State of Illinois, please accept our heartfelt gratitude for your extraordinary contributions during a lifetime of public service.
On the occasion of your retirement from the US Congress, it's fair to recognize and applaud what you have accomplished for your constituents, for people within Illinois and throughout the United States. It's also not an exaggeration to highlight the fact that your leadership in human rights and on environmental issues has benefited people around the world.
You are a strong advocate for a thoughtful federal appropriations process, a clean environment and adequate funding for the arts. You have earned an influential role among the ``Green Republicans'' to fight for the nation's environmental interests in Congress. And you are one of only five House members ever to be appointed to the Board of Directors of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
Your service in Illinois began in the Illinois House of Representatives during 1972 and I'm proud that we served together in the State House before you were elected to Congress in 1980. Those of us who were fortunate to work with you then haven't been surprised by what you have accomplished since.
The National Institutes of Health and biomedical research have been huge beneficiaries of your legislative skills and your leadership as Chairman of the Labor/HHS Appropriation Subcommittee. As a champion and supporter of the NIH, your efforts have helped the Institute bring about numerous medical and health advances.
You have successfully advocated federal funding to expand the METRA Commuter rails into the northern suburbs of Illinois, including many towns in your district. The METRA extension into these areas via the Wisconsin Central tracks has stimulated wide ranging economic expansion. The passenger rail service this expansion made possible connected the northern suburbs to O'Hare International Airport and Chicago's Union Station.
The 290 acres of open space at Fort Sheridan is an outgrowth of your creativity, determining and your ability to persuade the federal government to transfer the land to the Lake County Forest Preserve District when Fort Sheridan was closed. That this land transfer occurred without cost to the District and continues to exist as open space for all to enjoy is among your most special contributions.
The Great Lakes Naval Station remains open, viable and an economic anchor in Illinois because of your efforts. Among the critical military missions conducted here is Navy and Coast Guard training.
Illinois is among the first tier of states benefiting from new opportunities to market our products, produce and ideas internationally. Your commitment and effectiveness as an advocate of free trade continues to produce immeasurable economic benefits for the people of Illinois. Our farmers have more markets in which to sell their crops and livestock. Our business community has additional opportunities to positively impact their bottom line. Our workers enjoy a more stable work environment with better compensation.
Additional contributions that will not be forgotten include your efforts for comprehensive flood control measures for the North Branch of the Chicago River. The enhancement of safety and operational capabilities at Waukegan Airport, including new instrument landing equipment and runway improvements. Waukegan Harbor has been cleaned up with federal resources and payments you helped secure from the firm who did the polluting.
On behalf of my family and our shared constituents from all walks of life within Illinois, thank you for all that you have accomplished. Your ideas, experience and voice in Congress will be sorely missed. We wish you the very best in your next endeavor and hope that it brings you all the joy and happiness that you deserve. Please extend our very best regards to your entire family and especially your children--John, Ann, David, Robin, and Donna.
Sincerely,
George H. Ryan,
Governor.
I think it is amazing all of the correspondence that we have had. The praise from several fellow Illinoians for John Porter's service in Illinois include a couple of members from the Illinois delegation that I would like to summarize what they have submitted. The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Lipinski) points out that not only has John's work resulted in millions of dollars going to fund biomedical research but his legacy will be saving lives. While they have not always agreed on every issue, he commends John for his conservative stance on fiscal issues and his unwavering commitment to eliminating deficits and balancing the Federal budgets. The gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Costello) touts John's efforts to ensure funding for the National Institutes of Health, and his dedication to human rights issues. He expresses his admiration for John's work in the Illinois delegation and on the Committee on Appropriations. He states that his friendship will be missed.
A couple of comments from former chiefs of staff to John Porter. Mark Kirk states that America is not great because we are rich or field the most powerful military. We are great because our Nation has been the largest force for good on this earth. John Porter and the Human Rights Caucus made our values and respect for human rights an essential part of our country's mission to the world. We here in Illinois will miss John Porter's calm, intellectual and dignified service to the Nation.
At this point, I would like to submit his letter.
Mark Steven Kirk
Glenview, Illinois, October 18, 2000.Congresswoman Judy Biggert,U.S. House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Congresswoman Biggert: I want to applaud you for leading today's Special Order for John Porter.
Our country and future generations owe a real debt to Congressman Porter. he led our nation's commitment to double funding for medical research. It was his decision that laid the foundation for the mapping of the human genome, finding the cause of Alzheimer's disease and a cure for some types of diabetes. John Porter's legacy is one of longer, healthier lives, not just for our nation but the world.
John Porter also embodies the values we hold most dear. America is not great because we are rich or field the most powerful military. We are great because our nation has been the largest force for good on this Earth. We enshrined our values in the Bill of Rights and exported them through the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. John Porter and the Human Rights Caucus made our values and respect for human rights an essential part of our country's mission to the world.
After 21 years of John Porter's service to the nation, human freedom has spread throughout Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, turning enemies into allies. The new leaders in many of these countries were once prisoners of conscience whose best friend and advocate was John Edward Porter. The bond they formed in prison cells with their voice and friend in Congress will reap a permanent reward to the United States.
We here in Illinois will miss John Porter's calm, intellectual and dignified service to the nation. He served us all in the highest tradition of public service and commitment to the greater good.
Sincerely,
Mark Kirk.
Another chief of staff, Robert Bradner, who worked for John for 13 years, cites a specific example of John's foresight. Fifteen years ago, before anyone saw it as a problem, John began pointing out the potential problems with Social Security. While many thought it to be an act of political suicide, he had the courage to take on the issue of Social Security reform. Popular wisdom has finally caught up with him.
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Robert further states, ``John's belief in a fair process and his ability to work on the basis of mutual respect with colleagues of widely divergent views allowed him to shepherd difficult legislation through the House over the past 6 years that he has been the chairman of the Labor-HHS Committee, in a manner that confirmed to all the true measure of his policy making talent.''
I continue with Robert Bradner. ``Ultimately, I regard John Porter as a teacher. He taught me and a number of others who passed through his offices about the honor of public service and the importance of ideas.''
October 18, 2000.Hon. Judy Biggert,Member of Congress,Washington, DC.
Dear Judy: I am delighted that you have organized a special order on the eve of John Porter's retirement from the House of Representatives to commemorate his many years of public service.
I had the great honor to work for John Porter for a total of thirteen years, both during the time that he served as a member of the minority party in the House, and later when he rose to an important chairmanship in the majority. A litany of all that he accomplished in that time would run many pages. However, I would like to share a few observations.
During the 1980s, John Porter distinguished himself as a tireless advocate for human rights and the environment, as a defender of the rights of women and an advocate for a common sense approach to family planning, and as a fierce opponent of federal budget deficits. One accomplishment deserves particular note, for it is emblematic of both his intelligence and his political courage. Fifteen years ago, John began pointing out the dangerous growth of unfunded liabilities in the Social Security system and, soon thereafter, he began introducing legislation to provide for individual social security retirement accounts. At the time, such behavior was considered an act of political suicide. But John had the courage to take on the issue, and a constituency that trusted and valued sound judgment over demagoguery. He was well ahead of his time in seeing this problem for what it was. Today, the popular wisdom has finally caught up with where John was well over a decade ago: recognizing this as a serious problem and beginning to come to grips with solutions. Indeed, a very closely related proposal to John's original legislation is playing a very prominent role in the current Presidential election.
Later in his career, John had the opportunity to accede to the Chairmanship of the Labor, Health & Human Services and Education Subcommittee. This was no easy assignment. In recent years, the Labor-HHS bill has been a place where some of the most passionately held beliefs of conservatives and liberals about the shape and size of government and a myriad of emotional social issues collide headlong. And it is the place where, on an annual basis, those disagreements must somehow be resolved. I would argue that John Porter was almost uniquely qualified for this most difficult assignment. This capability stemmed not from his views on any particular issue but rather from the innate decency that he has always shown to his co-workers and his strong belief that the process by which issues are resolved in a democracy is of equal, if not greater, importance than the particular outcome achieved on a particular issue on a particular day. John's belief in a fair process and his ability to work on the basis of mutual respect with colleagues of widely divergent views allowed him to shepherd this most difficult legislation through the House over the past six years in a manner that confirmed to all the true measure of his policy making talent.
Ultimately, I regard John Porter as a teacher. He taught me, and a number of others who passed through his offices, about the honor of public service and the importance of ideas. He encouraged intellectual discourse and vigorous policy discussion within the office toward the goal of developing a better understanding of the issues and a sounder approach to policy. And he showed me that, on the most trying and emotional issues facing the Congress--such as the resolution to authorize hostilities against Iraq--there is no substitute for a member of Congress that exercises, to the best of their ability, independent judgment to ascertain the best course of action and the courage to support that course.
I thank you again for your efforts in organizing this fine tribute to John Porter, and join with you and so many others in wishing John all the best in his future endeavors.
Sincerely,
Robert H. Bradner.
Another Chief of Staff, Gordon MacDougall, cites John's motivation for reducing Federal budget deficits as being ``based on his conviction of public service as a responsibility for perpetuating our free and democratic society.'' He also praises John as being a champion of the ideals upon which our system of governing was originally based. He states that ``today's young Americans and their children will be better off for Congressman Porter's 20 years of devoted service in Congress.''
October 18, 2000.Hon. Judy Biggert,U.S. Representative,Washington, DC.
Dear Congresswoman Biggert: I understand that you have organized a ``Special Order'' to celebrate the career of Congressman John E. Porter, and that you have invited former staff to Congressman Porter to contribute sstatements.
I was fortunate to have been introduced to Congressman Porter in 1983, during his second term in Congress. I was subsequently offered a position as Legislative Assistant in his office beginning in January, 1984. I was promoted to the position of Administrative Assistant in 1995, and served on his staff until early 1997. Since leaving his office I have had the opportunity to continue a professional and a personal relationship with Congressman Porter.
John Porter is an individual of high integrity and deep intellect. He has an unwavering commitment to our open system of representative democracy. I believe that he is one of the finest Members of Congress to serve during the last quarter of the 20th Century.
During the first eighteen years of his career, Congressman Porter devoted the majority of his time to efforts to reduce federal budget deficits. In my view, his motivation was not simple or myopic fiscal conservatism, his motivation was based on his conviction of public services as a responsibility for perpetuating our free and democratic society. Congressman Porter remained focused for the majority of his tenure in Congress on adopting fiscal policies to enable future generations to avoid being burdened with federal debt. Coming generations of Americans will benefit from his steady and deliberate effort to help balance the federal budget. I am pleased for Congressman Porter that he has been able to stay in the House long enough to see a balanced federal budget.
With federal fiscal policy coming into balance during the past two years, Congressman Porter has refocused his efforts on federal programs of significance to future generations of Americans. He has led an effort in the House to increase funding for medical research, an investment which will improve the quality of life for future generations of all mankind. Also during this period he has conscientiously worked to forward proposals to stabilize a Social Security system which, without changes, will not last to serve our children.
John Porter has been a champion of the ideals upon which our system of governing was originally based. He is a unique individual, and his character and demeanor will be missed in future Congresses. Today's young Americans and their children will be better off for Congressman Porter's twenty years of devoted service in Congress. I wish him well.
Sincerely,
Gordon P. MacDougall
We also heard from former Illinois officials, Mr. Speaker. Former Illinois State Representative David Barkhausen from John Porter's district states that ``one has only to look at the example of John Porter to recognize that in him we have truly had an exemplary leader and representative in the mold that our Founding Fathers envisioned. The impact of his many contributions will endure, as will the high standards of public service that he has held high for others to follow.''
Lake Bluff, IL,
October 18, 2000.Re ``Special Orders'' tribute for John Porter.
Hon. Judy Biggert,U.S. Representative,Washington, DC.
Dear Judy: It is my pleasure and privilege to participate in this special tribute to Congressman John Porter from his colleagues and friends.
I am fortunate that my service in the Illinois General Assembly from 1981-1997 (2 years in the House and 14 in the Senate) coincided with most of John's years of service in Washington. He was both a great leader and team player. He also recruited and maintained a staff that was second to none and that was always extremely courteous, cooperative, and effective.
John Porter has been an extraordinarily thoughtful and conscientious Congressman and a model servant. He has combined the characteristics that everyone could hope for in a Congressman from our kind of district. He is a deep and original thinker who has greatly influenced important policies in such areas as health care research. He has reflected and continuously sought the views of his constituents while maintaining an admirable independence of judgment. And he has been extremely attentive to problems and projects of local interest and influential in offering solutions.
In the final Presidential debate last night, the candidates were asked at the end what might help to overcome the cynical and negative views that so many citizens have of their government and its leaders. Cloning John Porter might be one effective solution. One has only to look at the example of John Porter to recognize that, in him, we have truly had an exemplary leader and representative in the mold that our Founding Fathers envisioned. We owe him our deep thanks for the many good years of service he has given us. The impact of his many contributions will endure, as will the high standards of public service that he has held high for others to follow.
I am confident that we can look forward to additional, important contributions from Congressman Porter in the service of his country. For now, I want to join all of you in this heartfelt, if inadequate, praise for his job extraordinarily well done as a member of the United States Congress for the past 21 years.
Sincerely,
David N. Barkhausen.
Illinois State Senator Kathleen Parker worked on John's campaign for state representative, how many years ago was that, and remembers that he once tracked down a cabinet member in an airport to resolve a problem for a constituent. She further states that he was a man of integrity and, above all, a true friend.
Illinois State Senate,
Springfield, IL, October 18, 2000.Hon. Judy Biggert,Cannon House Office Building, Washington, DC.
Dear Representative Biggert: Thank you for the opportunity to be included in a Congressional tribute to John Porter.
It's hard to believe that John will have served for 22 years in Congress. It seems like yesterday when I worked on his campaign for State Representative!
I can tell you that through the years Congressman Porter has been loved by his district. He has never forgotten his constituents. While in Washington John has been ever mindful of local views and issues.
Congressman Porter's staff is, if not the best, tied with the best in the country. They work hard, are always responsive and are a pleasure to work with. They work closely with John enabling him to take personal interest in helping his constituents. In one case that I know of Congressman Porter even went as far as to track down a cabinet member in an airport to resolve a problem for an individual in his district.
Out of the four ways to leave office John is leaving the only good way! He has served the Northshore area of Illinois well. He leaves us with the memory of a true statesman and Congressman that we can always admire and be proud of. A man of integrity and above all a true friend.
We will miss John as our Congressman. However, we are hopeful that there is a future ahead in some capacity he may serve our country again. We will all be better off if that occurs.
Sincerely,
Kathleen K. Parker,
State Senator, 29th District.
Illinois State Representative Jeff Schoenberg recounts the first time he met John Porter was when he was working in his first paid political job for John's election opponent, then Congressman Abner Mikva. Despite these beginnings, Jeff has had an extremely good working relationship with John, and states their offices have maintained a ``seamless cooperation'' in serving the residents of Chicago's North Shore. He agrees that John will best be remembered for his commitment and diligence in bettering the lives of millions of Americans.
His words commending Congressman Porter follow:
Please allow me to join the many others in offering my best wishes to my colleague and constituent, Congressman John Porter, in his future endeavors.
I must concede that I first became acquainted with John when I was hired in 1978 for my first paid position in politics, as a young field organizer for his election opponent, then Congressman Abner Mikva. Nonetheless, despite that less than auspicious beginning to our working relationship, it has been an extraordinary pleasure to work with Congressman Porter to address our mutual constituent concerns and district needs.
For the past ten years, our offices have maintained a seamless cooperation in serving the residents of Chicago's North Shore. And on the issues that matter most to those who we serve--whether it has been funding for health care and medical research, deficit reduction and greater fiscal accountability in government, or most recently, when we worked shoulder-to-shoulder with the United Power for Action and Justice coalition to increase the availability of funding for affordable housing and health insurance for lower-income women and children--John Porter will always be remembered for his commitment and diligence in bettering the lives of millions of Americans.
I wish Congressman Porter the best of luck and hope his tenure in the Illinois legislature and the United States Congress will continue to inspire young people to public service.
May you continue to go from strength to strength, John, in your pursuit of just causes.
Sincerely,
Jeff Schoenberg.
Illinois State Senator Adeline Geo-Karis appreciates how responsive John always was to her constituents, and states how much he will be missed.
Illinois State Senate,
Springfield, IL, October 18, 2000.Congresswoman Judy Biggert,13th Congressional District.
Dear Judy: I worked with John Porter in the Illinois House, and he became my Congressman. He was always very responsive to my District and to my people, and he did a great job for the 10th District.
I wish him the best that life has to offer and I shall miss him.
Sincerely,
Adeline J. Geo-Karis,
Senator--31st District,
Assistant Majority Leader.
Illinois State Representative Elizabeth Coulson states that she will always remember the lessons she learned from John, and that his work on environmental issues was second to none.
Elizabeth Coulson,
State Representative,
Springfield, IL, October 17, 2000.Hon. John Edward Porter,Congressman, 10th District,Deerfield, IL.
Dear Congressman Porter: Congratulations on eleven terms in the United States House. We will miss your compassion and good judgment in our 10th District.
As a State Representative, I have often looked to your leadership as an example. I watch with great interest your lead on the Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Subcommittees. Your work on environmental issues is second to none. Again, we will miss you.
You will always be remembered for your independent thinking. As I continue my career in Government I will remember the lessons that I learned from you. I wish you the best of luck in your future endeavors!
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Coulson,
State Representative, 57th District.
I would like to take a moment to highlight one of John's most notable achievements, and that is his commitment to biomedical research. He is truly a champion in this field, as has been noted by so many who I have quoted. His work on the National Institutes of Health deserves particular mention.
When he became chairman of the Labor-HHS appropriations subcommittee in 1995, NIH had been appropriated $11.3 billion for the previous fiscal year. While that is hardly small chump change, John recognized that NIH is responsible for so many of our country's scientific advances and could be responsible for so much more with additional funding.
As a Congress we set out a few years ago, with the guidance of John, to double the funding for the NIH, and John has done this almost all by himself during his tenure. In the long-awaited conference report for Labor-HHS bill, he has set aside $20.5 billion for NIH. That is a 15 percent increase over last year, and an astounding 81 percent increase during his chairmanship.
These increases in funding for NIH mean good things for so many people. It will, we hope, lead to cures for cancer, AIDS, heart disease, diabetes, depression, Alzheimer's and so many others. In fact, earlier this year in the Wall Street Journal, Al Hunt wrote that this funding increase ``may be the most significant achievement of this GOP Congress.''
The chairman of Research America, a former representative, Paul Rogers, said in the same article that achieving the consensus necessary for this increase ``would have been very difficult without John Porter. He has been the main purpose in this effort.'' With that praise, Mr. Rogers perhaps understated John Porter's role: He was the single motivating force.
This, of course, is not the only praise that John has received, and I could use up the entire hour reciting the organizations that have honored John for his support for biomedical research. Suffice it to say, it is a long and noteworthy list, from the American Medical Association, to the American Society of Microbiology. So, on behalf of the American public who benefits from this critical research done at the NIH, I know we thank John Porter.
I would also like to take a moment to pay tribute to John Porter's outstanding human rights record. In 1983, after witnessing the severity of human right violations in the former Soviet Union, John helped to form the Congressional Human Rights Caucus. He knew that applying Congressional pressure on foreign governments could be a significant step towards ending human rights abuses around the world.
I doubt that even John Porter anticipated how successful the caucus would ultimately turn out to be, with a bipartisan membership now totaling 257 Members. Under John's solid leadership, the Human Rights Caucus thoroughly reviewed the actions of and subsequently condemned Chinese authorities for the 1989 Tiananmen Square incident. Under John's leadership the caucus has held regular briefings on important human rights issues, including religious freedom in China, the oppressive regime of the late Nigerian dictator Sani Abacha, the plight of North Korean refugees living in China, and the abhorrent use of children soldiers, just to name a few.
In addition to his work with the caucus, John has been heavily involved personally in human rights work. He has provided a clear and loud voice for the oppressed, and has strongly supported human rights and democratic reform all over the world.
John also cosponsored a Congressional fast and prayer vigil in which numerous Members of Congress fasted on behalf of specific oppressed individuals. Because of his leadership in this area, Representative Porter received the Anatoly Shcharansky Freedom Award from the Chicago Action for Soviet Jewry, who described him aptly as ``a champion of human rights and a powerful ally in the struggle against oppression and the fight for basic human freedoms.''
John introduced legislation to create a Radio Free China, a broadcasting service to bring uncensored news reports directly to the Chinese people without government intrusion. He then jointly introduced Radio Free Asia to serve China, North Korea, Burma, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. Congress authorized the program and John quickly secured funding for the new service.
A Member of Congress who has served more than 20 years can amass a great deal of influence. John Porter as chairman of an influential appropriations subcommittee is certainly no exception. However, John has bucked the trend and has not used his power and influence for his own personal gain or enrichment. He has used his influence to help those less fortunate than himself, those less fortunate than most Americans.
Gerald LeMelle, Deputy Executive Director for Amnesty International USA, eloquently summed this up when he said of Representative Porter at a recent farewell reception, ``Whether from your keynote speech at the Latin American Ambassadors Colloquium in 1991, or your steadfast support on issue after issue, you have always been there for us and for human rights, with integrity and principle.''
I agree. John Porter has always been beside those who could not fight for themselves. For this I admire him.
John Porter has been a leader in so many areas, and in the middle of our testimonies to him on health care, human rights and health research, it is also important to emphasize his active interest and leadership on issues involving the environment. His record is clear enough on this point and long enough to document his strong and consistent support for major environmental legislation, including the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, the Wilderness Protection Act, the National Park Protection Act and the Land and Water Conservation Fund.
But the fine print of his record also reflects his love of animals and his love of the outdoors. For instance, he voted for the Endangered Species Act and against the inhumane use of animals in product testing and the use of cruel leghold traps. Ten years ago John successfully stopped the radical destruction of tropical rain forests in developing nations by tying future lending to conservation efforts to protect the forests and the wetlands.
Today he is fighting for the protection of the American bear with legislation to stop the illegal poaching of bears for their paws and gallbladders, which has garnered the support of 142 other Members of Congress. For these and many other efforts, he has received awards, honors and accolades from national and international environment groups like the Sierra Club, the Audubon Society, the United Nations Environmental Program and Conservation International.
John is even the recipient of the prestigious Lorax Award from the Global Tomorrow Coalition, a group representing over 100 environmental organizations. But, most important to the people of the Tenth District of Illinois, have been John's efforts to protect human health and the environment at home.
He orchestrated an agreement between the government and the polluters of Waukegan Harbor on Lake Michigan to clean it up. He led an effort to preserve the 290 acres of open space on the northern part of Fort Sheridan and make it available for recreation by transferring it from the army to the Lake County Forest Preserve District at no cost.
He sought and found effective solutions to help area residents and businesses along the North Branch of the Chicago River who suffered from flood damage. Thanks to his efforts, flood waters are now diverted from people's basements to a number of large reservoirs.
John also has been a leading supporter of environmental projects that benefit all the residents of northeastern Illinois. He obtained funding to study Lake Michigan's shoreline erosion and to stabilize it. He introduced legislation to alleviate high water levels in Lake Michigan by increasing water diversion down the Illinois River and secured additional funding for wetland preservation.
So whether you are a resident of John Porter's district, the City of Chicago and any of its suburbs, or the tropical rain forests of any developing nation, your environment has been positively impacted by the efforts of a great environmental advocate, our friend, John Porter.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to add that I also have received a statement from the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Frelinghuysen), and I would like to just say that he also applauds his work to increase funding for the National Institutes of Health and biomedical research, and says that believing that more funds would lead to more cures for disease and other medical advances. Chairman Porter embarked on an ambitious program to double the NIH budget.
I would like to also say that he particularly remembers his work with John Porter as a Member of the Subcommittee on Foreign Operations. In particular, he recalls one battle that was waged with Mr. Porter. They worked together, in 1997, when they opposed certain provisions of the fiscal year 1998 foreign operations appropriation bill that they thought should not have been included. He says the one thing that he could say about John Porter is that he always he always stands up for his principles, and, in this particular case, like so many others, he prevailed in the end because he knew the facts and he knew the cause was just.
The gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Maloney) says that she had had the privilege of working with Mr. Porter on such a wide variety of issues; women's rights, health care, human rights, family planning, the environment and many, many more.
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He was always a tremendous advocate for bipartisan cooperation. Over the years, they often worked together to forge common sense solutions to important issues facing our Nation. She says that she knows that there are many Members of Congress who would join her in this sentiment, and she believes that that alone is an outstanding tribute to any Member of the U.S. House of Representatives. In the case of Congressman Porter, it is an exceptionally fitting tribute.
She had the distinct pleasure of working with Mr. Porter on international family planning issues and stood together in opposition to any antidemocratic gag rules which would interfere with the availability of family planning around the world.
On this issue, as with so many others, Congressman Porter has touched so many lives; it is hard to measure the full impact of his efforts.
I would like to then turn to some remarks which I think are very fitting, and that is a thank you to Mr. Porter from his staff. And they have said that the House of Representatives and the 10th District of Illinois will not be the same next year as Congressman John Porter sets off on a new career path. Members of his staff would like to take this opportunity to express their gratitude for the journey that they have traveled with him over the past 21 years.
Mr. Speaker, I will quote:
Some of us have worked for the Congressman almost his entire time in office. Our longevity is a testament to the respect and appreciation we have for his honesty, integrity, and leadership. The Boss, as we affectionately called him, has been the one constant amidst the hectic pace of a congressional office caught in a whirlwind of issues, including a government shutdown and impeachment hearings.
He has vigorously pursued those issues of greatest interest to him, including biomedical research, human rights, and environmental conservation. He has never wavered from his duty to fairly represent the people of Illinois' 10th Congressional District.
Congressman Porter rarely lets an occasion go by without acknowledging his appreciation for what he calls ``the best congressional staff in America.'' However, leadership and success come from the top.
Congressman Porter has set service to his constituents as the highest priority. From his impeccable manners, to his insistence that no constituent request goes without response, he has taught us that everyone is to be treated equally.
The honor of working for Congressman John Porter has enriched our lives in more ways than we can ever express.
In the communities of Illinois' wonderful 10th Congressional District, it is a name that commands respect. We know this because we hear his praises sung daily. Even constituents who disagree with his vote respect his judgment and his courage to vote his conscience.
So as you move on, Boss, we wish you the great success in your next endeavor. We know that you will continue to contribute your many talents to helping the people of this great Nation. Thank you, Congressman Porter for setting the standard that others follow. Thank you for giving us the joy of working in this exciting environment that allows us to learn something new each day and be of service to others.
Thank you for standing by us during the ups and downs we have experienced in our personal lives over the past 21 years. Most of all, thank you for letting us be members of the Porter family, to work for you and be with you. We have loved every minute.
Signed Linda Maneck, Dee Jay Kweder, Ed Kelly, Ginny Hotaling, Carol Joy Cunningham, Mary Jane Partridge, Nancy Johnson, Linda Mae Carlson, Jerri Lohman, Katharine Fisher, Spencer Perlman, Jeannette Windon, Michael Liles, Erik Rasmussen, Jori Frahler and David Fabrycky.''
Is that not a nice tribute to have from the members of your staff?
Mr. Speaker, much has been written during this presidential election year of legacy of what a public servant bequests to his succeeding generations, not just on his last days in office, but over the entirety of his career.
Let me close tonight's special order by summing up the sentiments expressed by my colleagues regarding the legacy of our esteemed colleague, John Edward Porter.
What we have heard tonight is that John Porter has not sought out glory or tried to advance his name at any cost. John is the kind of Congressman that will leave a long record of accomplishments when he walks out of this Chamber as we adjourn sine die.
First, John leaves a great legacy to the 10th District in the State of Illinois. As our governor, State senators and representatives mentioned in their letters and as my colleagues from Illinois attested tonight, John's contributions are without equal. Among the many projects for which he will be remembered, his funding for the METRA Commuter rails that link the northern suburbs of Illinois with downtown Chicago and O'Hare Airport.
Second, John leaves a great legacy to this country. His crusade to increase NIH funding will no doubt lead one day to the cures for the diseases that will save millions of lives. His work on behalf of women's and children's health issues, it is unparalleled.
John leaves a great legacy for our world community. He has represented those around the world who are not able to represent themselves. John fights not only for the most popular crusades, but also for the countries and people forgotten by the glare of CNN. This is a proud legacy.
Perhaps most importantly, John leaves a great legacy for the people whose lives he has personally and directly touched. The thoughtful and loving testimony shared here tonight by his staff and former staff members speak out volumes on the quality and decency of this fine man.
Tonight we heard of the legacy that John has created during his years of service in this body. We heard but a small part of the large impact he has made on his district, his State, his country, and the world.
But tonight is not a leave-taking. It is the exciting commencement of the next stage of John's career. We will all watch with great pride and interest the new challenges that John will decide to tackle in the months and years to come. We all will know that whatever cause or causes he chooses to take on in his next career will be benefited and blessed by his fine touch.
They say there is no limit to the amount of good that a man can do in this world if he does not care who gets the credit. Well, John never cares and never has cared who has gotten the credit, and John can never be credited sufficiently for the great good he has done in this world.
We will all miss John Porter a great deal, but we are all honored to have been able to serve with a leader of such integrity, dedication, and commitment to principle.
Tonight we celebrate his legacy, we delight in his friendship, and we wish John Edward Porter the very best that life has to offer.
Mr. Speaker, I include for the Record the following speech:
Speech Delivered by Gerald LeMelle, Deputy Executive Director for Amnesty International USA, on the Occasion of a Farewell Reception for
Representative John Porter, Co-Chairman of the Congressional Human
Rights Caucus, October 3, 2000
Distinguished members of Congress, distinguished staff, dear friends and colleagues, it is my bittersweet pleasure to be here to bid farewell to our dear friend and Co-Chairman of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, Congressman John Porter.
Chairman Porter has been a key leader in ensuring that the Congressional Human Rights Caucus did not just survive the abolition of caucuses, but has managed to thrive--even
``thrive'' might be an understatement! Today, the Human Rights Caucus has an almost frantic pace of briefings--Guatemala, Burma, Sudan, Algeria, East Timor, Turkey--it matters not the range of countries or even issues, all these countries are covered in a week, with recognized experts or with the activists who are on the front line of these issues! But the Caucus does not cover only countries in the headlines but countries and peoples forgotten by the glare of CNN. The Caucus is here to ensure that human rights around the world remain a focal point for congressional activity--even when Congress gets caught up in other business. And for that, sir, we salute you.
But Chairman Porter has gone beyond the Caucus in his pursuit of human rights. When Native American leaders converged on Washington earlier this year to call for the release of Leonard Peltier, they found a receptive ear in Chairman Porter who hosted an important briefing in which we in Amnesty International were honored to participate. When the Turkish government has gone on a public relations offensive, or when the Administration despite its wiser counsel has decided to pursue arms transfers to that NATO ally, it is Congressman Porter who has been publicly on the side of human rights.
In 1995, at a briefing organized by the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, when Nigeria was suffering under the oppression of the late dictator Sani Abacha, Chairman Porter was one of the few voices calling Abacha what he was--a dictator--and one of the lone voices blasting the Administration's policy.
And of course we cannot talk about the Chairman without talking about Kathryn Porter, a human rights activist in her own right. While her work on behalf of the Kurdish people and Afghani women is widely recognized and celebrated, we also remember the singular courage she exhibited when she spent some time with Jennifer Harbury in Guatemala, on a lonely stretch of rural road outside an Army base.
While a politician might boast of the state dinners he or she has attended, Chairman Porter attended a ``stateless'' dinner on behalf of Chinese dissidents. While politics is well tuned to the powerful and the popular, Chairman Porter has stood by the underdogs, supporting the rights of religious and ethnic minorities throughout the world, including the Armenians and the Ba'hais. While many in Congress have shunned the challenge of confronting the violations by powerful allies such as Saudi Arabia, Chairman Porter seems to embrace such opportunities. While governments and their representatives tend to have relationships with other governments, we can safely say that Chairman Porter has built relationships with peoples.
We in Amnesty International USA with its 300,000 members in the United states and more than a million members worldwide can say that we are a grateful people for your leadership and your support. I should also add, if I want my staff not to kill me, that your staff has also been fabulous, including Rachel Helfand, Karen Davis, Heidi Gasch, Katharine Fisher, Kelly Currie, and Jeannette Windon. We have grown to respect and rely on them as well.
Whether from your keynote speech at the Latin American Ambassadors Colloquium in 1991 or your steadfast support in issue after issue, you have always been there for us and for human rights, with integrity and principle that is second to none. Dear Chairman Porter, it's not just staffers who voted you number one Congressperson who will be missed most--we also read Washingtonian magazine--we too will miss you deeply.
Thank you sir for your wonderful example and contribution to human rights. You are a real hero to us.
Mr. FRELINGHUYSEN. Mr. Speaker, today we salute the very distinguished gentleman from Illinois, Mr. John Edward Porter, as he prepares to retire after 20 years of dedicated service in the House of Representatives, to the people of Illinois, and to our Nation. I rise to join my colleagues in paying tribute to him and the legacy he leaves behind.
Mr. Porter embodies a unique blend of fiscal conservatism and social moderation. He is known as a most thoughtful, articulate, and responsible member of the Appropriations Committee, a consistent advocate for human rights for all people, a protector of volunteers to encourage their greater participation in their communities, and a supporter of programs that help men, women, and children in need to have full and productive lives.
It has been my honor to serve with Mr. Porter as a member of the House Appropriations Committee for the past six years. As Chairman of its Labor, Health and Human Services, Education Subcommittee, he has had the Herculean task of shepherding the largest domestic spending bill through our committee and this Chamber. Not only does this bill contain a substantial amount of money, it also contains a substantial amount of controversial policy issues. Mr. Porter has done an excellent job of balancing all the competing interests as he worked to craft his annual bill.
In this regard, I applaud especially his work to increase funding for the National Institutes of Health and biomedical research. Believing that more funds would lead to more cures for diseases and other medical advances, Chairman Porter embarked on an ambitious program to double the NIH budget over five years. Against all odds, and under tight budget constraints, he has managed to increase NIH funding by 15 percent a year for the past three years. At this rate, Congress would meet his goal of doubling that budget in five years. I hope that my colleagues would continue toward that objective and that his leadership with the NIH will be remembered as one of his greatest legacies.
On a more personal note, I particularly remember our work as members of the Foreign Operations Subcommittee. In particular, I recall one battle we waged together in 1997 when we opposed certain provisions of the Fiscal Year 1998 Foreign Operations Appropriations bill that we thought should not have been included. One thing you can say about John Porter, he always stands up for his principles. In this particular case, like so many others, he prevailed in the end because he knew the facts and the cause was just.
My work with Mr. Porter was not just confined to the Appropriations Committee, as both of us have been members of the Tuesday Lunch Bunch. Here we consumed a lot of pizza and discussed issues facing us in Congress that deserved extra attention and deliberation.
While we are saddened to see Mr. Porter retire, we join in wishing him well in the future and thanking him for the high standard he has set for all of us.
Mrs. MALONEY of New York. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the Illinois delegation for organizing this Special Order tonight, and I want to thank my friend Judy Biggert for coordinating this particular effort honoring Congressman John Edward Porter.
I am here to honor my friend, Chairman John Porter, who is retiring at the end of this session of Congress. Mr. Porter has been a good friend, he has been a terrific legislative partner, and he has been a superior legislator.
I have had the privilege of working with Mr. Porter on such a wide variety of issues--women's rights, health care, human rights, family planning, the environment, and many, many more. He has always been a tremendous advocate for bipartisan cooperation. Over the years, we have often worked together to forge commonsense solutions to important issues facing our Nation. And I know that there are many Members of Congress who would join me in this sentiment. I believe that alone is an outstanding tribute to any Member of this House. In the case of Congressman Porter, it is an exceptionally fitting tribute.
I had the distinct pleasure of working with Mr. Porter on international family planning issues. We stood together in opposition to any anti-democratic gag rules, which interfere with the availability of family planning around the world. On this issue, as with so many others, Congressman John Porter has touched so many lives, it is hard to measure the full impact of his efforts.
He is a leader on protecting the environment. As co-chair of the Human Rights Caucus, he has been a leader on human rights. As Chairman of the Labor-HHS Subcommittee, he has been a leader on biomedical research.
This year, I am proud to serve as the co-chair of the Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues. And every year, the Women's Caucus testified before his subcommittee.
Congresswomen would line up to testify about a whole host of issues--
family planning, women's health, title IX, biomedical research, education funding, diabetes, cancer, heart disease, obesity, long-term health care, breast cancer, teen pregnancy, mental health, AIDS, osteoporosis, STD's, child care, homelessness, Head Start, pediatric asthma, violence against women, and many more subjects.
Chairman Porter often said it was his favorite day in the subcommittee. Mr. Porter was always interested, attentive, informed, and compassionate. We always knew we had a real advocate and friend on so many of these important issues in Chairman Porter. He will be sorely missed by the Women's Caucus, he will be missed by the entire Congress, and his leadership will be missed by countless Americans whose lives have been touched by his work.
Mr. REGULA. Mr. Speaker, I know John Porter as a friend and as a member of the Appropriations Committee. We have served together on the committee during his entire twenty year tenure in Congress.
John Porter will be remembered as one of the most consistent fiscal conservatives on the Appropriations Committee during his service in office. During his first fourteen years as a minority member of the Labor-Health-and-Human Resources Subcommittee, John worked tirelessly to assure strict oversight of the agencies under his jurisdiction. During that period, we looked to his leadership to hold the line on excessive spending by that subcommittee.
Also during our period together in the minority, John worked hard to reform a budget process which he thought contributed to excessive Federal spending. As a member of the majority, John has continued fighting to reform the budget process during the past six years. He has argued throughout his career that adopting a bipartisan budget resolution in March of each year would help restrain domestic spending at the end of each year. We will remember his thoughtful and wise counsel on how to use the budget process to control Federal spending.
As Chairman of the Labor-HHS Subcommittee John has worked closely with the minority. He is respected equally by both Republicans and Democrats on the committee for his bipartisan approach. John has worked effectively with the minority to manage and control Federal appropriations, and to establish and impose performance measures on Federal agencies. He has gained the respect of all of those who have worked closely with him.
Some of our colleagues will remember John for his strong commitment to medical research. John has championed medical research because of his belief in a better society for our children. His leadership on funding for medical research reflects his concern for the well being of all people.
He has used his position on the Appropriations Committee to make the Federal Government more accountable to taxpayers. John has insisted, like his subcommittee predecessor Bill Natcher, on attending every oversight and public hearing. In order to ensure that all of his colleagues have a chance to amend the Labor-HHS bill, he has insisted on bringing the bill to the House floor every year. John has managed the Labor-HHS in a manner which reflects the principles of our representative democracy.
We will miss John's integrity and his independence. John's work in Congress during the past twenty years will contribute to a stronger democracy for future generations. We will miss him as a leading member of the Appropriations Committee, and we hope that he will stay in close contact with all of his former colleagues on both sides of the aisle.
Mr. HOBSON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to an outstanding Member of Congress and an individual who has helped make this Nation a better place for families, our veterans, and our armed forces.
Mr. Porter first came to Congress in 1980. Since that time he has become a recognized leader in health care issues. He has always done a commendable job in working in a bipartisan manner to fund valuable programs through the most difficult of situations. His keen interest in supporting health care, education and labor issues, has helped set Federal priorities in those critical areas which further the best interests of our country.
Mr. Porter and I share an interest in health care issues, which I developed in my days in the Ohio State Senate. I have always appreciated Chairman Porter's leadership in supporting needed programs in the Labor/Health and Human Services bill to benefit pediatric care, physician training, mental health services, and other important health programs.
As a former Army Reservist, Mr. Porter has approved a valued member of the Military Construction Appropriations Subcommittee, where I serve as Chairman. Mr. Porter has always been a strong advocate for improving the living and working conditions for our military personnel and their families and he will be missed on our subcommittee.
Today, as we honor Mr. Porter, I am pleased to join with his friends and colleagues, his wife, Kathryn, and his children, in wishing him all the best in the years to come and to thank him for his years of dedicated service to our Nation.
As Ohio's Seventh District Representative to the Congress of the United States, I take this opportunity to join with members of the Ohio delegation and other members of the Appropriations Committee to honor the efforts and the many outstanding achievements of Representative John Porter. His many contributions as a member of the House of Representatives and leadership as a valued Committee Chairman will be remembered.
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Mr. RUSH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a great Illinoisan and a dedicated Congressman. My colleague, Congressman John Edward Porter, dedicated 20 years of his life to serve as the Representative from Illinois' Tenth Congressional District. At the helm of the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations Subcommittee, Congressman Porter worked diligently to forge bipartisanship in the appropriations process.
Over the course of Congressman Porter's tenure in the House of Representatives, he has taken a leadership role on health care issues. As Chairman of the Labor, HHS and Education appropriations since 1995, he was successful in making biomedical research one of our Nation's highest priorities. This is evidenced in the fact that during his tenure as Chairman, Congressman Porter doubled funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Congressman Porter understands the great promise that NIH's research holds for saving lives and conquering diseases such as cancer, diabetes, Parkinson's disease, heart disease, and many others. In addition, he worked tirelessly to provide more funding for community health centers that serve the indigent poor.
I can speak endlessly on Representative Porter's accomplishments, but I would be remiss if I did not point out that beyond his stellar accomplishments, he is a man of honor and integrity. And as Congressman Porter enters into retirement, I am grateful to have served with a Member of such high esteem.
Mr. COSTELLO. Mr. Speaker, it is an honor for me to rise today to join my colleagues in paying special tribute to my good friend and colleague from Illinois, Mr. John Porter. Mr. Porter and I have worked on many bipartisan issues to improve our nation and home state of Illinois including many health care initiatives. Since coming to Congress, I have appreciated his friendship and admired his work within the Illinois delegation and on the House Appropriations Committee.
Mr. Porter began his distinguished career as an attorney, having graduated from the University of Michigan in 1961. John Porter has represented the 10th District and the State of Illinois well. He has dedicated himself to representing the citizens of the Great State of Illinois and has been tireless in his efforts to ensure medical research at NIH will continue and is adequately funded. In addition, he has helped countless people in the United States and around the world in an effort to resolve human rights issues.
Mr. Speaker, John Porter has served this institution well and he will be greatly missed. I wish Mr. Porter and his family well in the years to come.
Mr. CRANE. Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure for me to give this tribute to my good friend and colleague John Porter. John has served with distinction and honor with me for nearly 22 years in the United States House of Representatives.
John is retiring this year as a senior member of the House Appropriations Committee, Vice-Chairman of the Foreign Operations Subcommittee, and Chairman of the Labor, Health & Human Services and Education Subcommittee. He also serves on the Military Construction Subcommittee.
Like all Congressmen, he on occasion has had things happen to bring him back down to earth. Several years ago when flying into O'Hare he stopped to freshen up before leaving the airport. After washing his hands he went to dry them. The hand dryer had a note attached to it that read: ``Press here for a message from your Congressman.''
On a more serious note, John is founder and co-chairman of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, a voluntary bipartisan association of members of Congress working to identify, monitor and end human rights violations worldwide.
John also has nearly as large a kennel of bulldogs called Watchdogs of the Treasury from the National Taxpayers Union as I have in my office.
But John has a record we should all be envious of--in 1992, he was one of only six out of 435 House members named a ``Taxpayer Superhero'' by the Grace Commission's Citizens Against Government Waste.
In 1994, he was one of only 35 members of the House to be cited by the Grace Commission for his votes against higher spending and taxes.
In 1997, John had the best score of any House member in the bipartisan Concord Coalition's analysis of spending votes, earning him a place on the Coalition's ``Honor Roll'' of members with the strongest commitment to eliminating deficits and balancing the budget. The Concord Coalition placed him on its ``Honor Roll'' again for his 1998 voting record.
John is regarded as one of the leaders of the ``Green Republicans'' in the House. A supporter of the Clean Air and Clean Water Act, he has enacted landmark legislation to stop destruction of tropical rainforests, fought to prevent unregulated export of waste, and has advocated new standards for recycling and energy efficiency.
A strong supporter of the arts and humanities, John was appointed to the Board of Directors of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in 1999, one of only five House members to receive this honor.
We all know John loves golf almost as much as politics. John will now have more time to spending working on his swing on the golf course. It is indeed an honor for me to salute Congressman John Porter.
Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today with a heavy heart to say good-
bye to one of my dearest friends in this Chamber. I know that the entire House shares my sense of loss in the departure of one of the truly great legislators who has served this body for now over 20 years, the gentleman from Illinois, my friend John Edward Porter, I know that not only the 10th District of Illinois will miss him sorely.
Mr. Speaker, when I was a very junior Member of this House, I one day received a request from a young but already distinguished Republican, who wanted to meet with me. As you can imagine, I was impressed and honored to receive such a request, and I happily agreed to this meeting. I still remember vividly that day in my office with John, his wife Katharine Cameron Porter, and my wife Annette. What resulted from this meeting was not only the start of our long friendship with John and Katharine Porter, but also that John and Katharine suggested the creation of what I consider one of the most important entities in this body--the Congressional Human Rights Caucus. John and Katharine both experienced government harassment first hand, when the female members of their congressional delegation to the former Soviet Union were strip searched.
Mr. Speaker, John and I have proudly co-chaired the Congressional Human Rights Caucus since its inception in 1983, and have seen it grow into easily the most active working group on any issue on the Hill with currently over 257 Members from both sides of the aisle. No one can ever measure how many countless people John Porter has helped, how many people he has given hope, how many times he has spoken out in the defense of human rights, how often he has fought human rights violations wherever they occurred. The Caucus Mandate states, that the purpose of our organization is to ``focus bipartisan attention on the most fundamental American values: the sanctity of the individual and the inalienable rights on which the Founders created our country,'' In doing that, and in continuing to do that, John Porter is a true American hero.
I am grateful that John Porter invited me to serve with him as co-
chairman of the Human Rights Caucus. Annette and I are proud and honored to be his friends, and I know that he and I will continue to work on human rights issues. Farewell and Godspeed, and good luck in all your future endeavors.
Mr. Speaker, a few days ago the Congressional Human Rights Caucus formerly said good-bye to our outstanding Co-Chairman in a moving reception. Let there be no mistake, John Porter is still needed, and I know that he will always be closely involved with the human rights community in whatever capacity. For those Members of the Caucus who unfortunately could not attend our farewell to John, let me just say that it was one of the most moving events the Caucus has held. Leaders of the human rights community representing organizations from around the world came to pay tribute to his outstanding leadership. Mr. Speaker, I submit for the Record two of the most moving tributes.
The first one is by our outstanding Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, Harold Hongju Koh, and the second by Gerald LeMelle, Deputy Executive Director for Amnesty International USA.
Statement for the Record by Assistant Secretary Harold Hongju Koh
I am honored to join Members of Congress in this special tribute to the remarkable Rep. John Porter. A friend and ally to human rights activists and survivors, John has used his extraordinary talents and his time in Congress for decades to bring human rights issues and concerns to their rightful place on the national agenda. The work of John and the brilliant Tom Lantos in forming the Congressional Human Rights Caucus captures everything we seek in an American human rights policy: bipartisan, principled, global, executed by a genuine partnership between the executive and legislative branches, and deeply committed not just to addressing broad policy questions, but to improving the plight of individual people.
Those of us in the Department of State, in particular at the Bureau for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, are blessed because our work receives such strong bipartisan support on Capitol Hill. There are many Members, on both sides of the aisle, who care deeply and passionately about human rights and fundamental freedoms. But passion needs a leader. And John, along with Tom Lantos, has been more than their leader--he has been their inspiration. Let me also take this occasion to pay tribute to John's own inspiration--Katharine Porter--who by her own witness, has given so much of herself for so many years to improving human rights for so many.
To highlight John's many accomplishments would take the rest of the evening. Let me say only that Congressional leadership on human rights issues has largely been the result of John's and Tom's joint vision, activism, and hard work. John not only established himself as a leader in the struggle for human dignity, by calling upon Colleagues to join the Caucus, he has focused their combined energies on a range of human rights issues that others said were losing propositions. From East Berlin to East Timor, the positive developments of the past seventeen years demonstrated again and again just how wrong John's critics were. Together with Katherine and their partners in this endeavor, Tom and Annette Lantos, John has challenged all of us to season after season of work on behalf of human rights victims. He initiated briefings, speeches, letters, phone calls, prayer vigils, and even fasts so that cause after cause was heard. He challenged us to remain dedicated to the principle that the cause of liberty is always worth the effort.
John Porter has been the conscience of the Congress on human rights. Although he now changes venue, whatever path he now chooses, he will surely remain a powerful ally in the struggle for human rights. As the Assistant Secretary for Democracy, however, I have half a mind to move to his district and exercise my vote, repeatedly, to force him to stay in office! Congressman Porter, Katharine: Good Luck and Godspeed.
Speech Delivered by Gerald LeMelle, Deputy Executive Director for
Amnesty International USA
Distinguished member of Congress, distinguished staff, dear friends and colleagues, it is my bittersweet pleasure to be here to bid farewell to our dear friend and Co-Chairman of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, Congressman John Porter.
Chairman Porter has been a key leader in ensuring that the Congressional Human Rights Caucus did not just survive the abolition of caucuses, but has managed to thrive--even
``thrive'' might be an understatement! Today, the Human Rights Caucus has an almost frantic pace of briefings--Guatemala, Burma, Algeria, East Timor, Turkey--it matters not the range of countries or even issues, all these countries are covered in a week, with recognized experts or with the activists who are on the front line of these issues! But the Caucus does not cover only countries in the headlines but countries and peoples forgotten by the glare of CNN. The Caucus is here to ensure that human rights around the world remain a focal point for congressional activity--even when Congress gets caught up in other business. And for that, we salute you.
But Chairman Porter has gone beyond the Caucus in his pursuit of human rights. When Native American leaders converged on Washington earlier this year to call for the release of Leonard Peltier, they found a receptive ear in Chairman Porter who posted an important briefing in which we in Amnesty International were honored to participate. When the Turkish government has gone on a public relations offensive, or when the Administration despite its wiser counsel had decided to pursue arms transfers to that NATO ally, it is Chairman Porter who has been publicly on the side of human rights.
In 1995, at a briefing organized by the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, when Nigeria was suffering under the oppression of the late dictator Sani Abacha, Chairman Porter was one of few voices calling Abacha what he was--a dictator--and one of the lone voices blasting the Administration's policy.
And of course we cannot talk about the Chairman without talking about Kathryn Porter, a human rights activist in her own right. While her work on behalf of the Kurdish people and Afghani women is widely recognized and celebrated, we also remember the singular courage she exhibited when she spent time with Jennifer Harbury in Guatemala, on a lonely stretch of rural road outside an Army base.
While a politician might boast of the state dinners he or she has attended, Chairman Porter attended a ``stateless'' dinner on behalf of Chinese dissidents. While politics is well tuned to the powerful and the popular, Chairman Porter has stood by the underdogs, supporting the rights of religious and ethnic minorities throughout the world, including the Armenians and the Ba'hais. While many in Congress have shunned the challenge of confronting the violations by powerful allies such as Saudi Arabia, Chairman Porter seems to embrace such opportunities. While governments and their representatives tend to have relationships with other governments, we can safely say that Chairman Porter has built relationships with peoples.
We in Amnesty International USA with its 30,000 members in the United States and more than a million members worldwide can say that we are greatful people for your leadership and your support. I should also add, if I want my staff not to kill me, that your staff has also been fabulous, including Rachel Helfand, Karen Davis, Heidi Gasch, Katharine Fisher, Kelly Currie, and Jeanette Windon. We have grown to respect and rely on them as well.
Whether from your keynote speech at the Latin American Ambassadors Colloquium in 1991 or your steadfast support in issue after issue, you have always been there for us and for human rights, with integrity and principle that is second to none. Dear Chairman Porter, it's not just staffers who voted you number one Congressperson who will be missed most--we also read Washingtonian magazine--we too will miss you deeply.
Thank you sir for your wonderful example and contribution to human rights. You are a real hero to us.
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I consider it a privilege to rise to honor the retirement of a colleague who has been an outstanding leader of this body.
I have had the opportunity to work with John Porter since he first came to this Chamber back in 1980. He brought with him honor to this job, and has shown great commitment and dedication to his country.
Prior to his election to Congress, John practiced law and served in the Illinois House of Representatives for eight years. He brought with him a great deal of legislative experience and has shown a rich understanding of the legislative process. The leadership skills that have allowed him to accomplish so much are inspiring.
John has accomplished a great deal while serving as Chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education. He has diligently worked to allocate funds for family planning and for Medicaid.
John has worked to revitalize involvement in the political process, trying to draw voters in, to take part in the legislative process. He has been an advocate for education. He has also worked tirelessly to increase spending on medical research, recognizing the need to find cures for many life-threatening diseases.
As Chairman of the International Relations Committee, I am pleased to note that John Porter co-founded the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, and has in that capacity worked to raise awareness of the injustices that have been occurring in other countries.
John Porter has been a reformer who has crossed party lines on many issues. He has earned the respect of his colleagues on both sides of the aisle. His courage, and his dedication to his constituents is to be commended.
To John's wife, Kathryn, and their five children, we wish you all the best. I am sure you are as proud as we are of the many great years of service John has given to his office, to his constituents, and to our nation.
John Porter has been a great asset to this body, having fought hard for the people of his Congressional district and our nation. We all wish John good health and happiness in his retirement.
Mr. LIPINSKI. Mr. Speaker, I rise this evening to pay tribute to my friend and colleague, Chairman John Porter. John Porter is retiring from the U.S. House of Representatives after eleven impressive terms. Although I am sure that John will continue to be active on issues such as health care, the environment, and human rights, his presence will be missed by the House of Representatives as a whole and by the Illinois delegation in particular.
As Chairman of the Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Appropriations Subcommittee, John has been a tireless advocate of the Centers for Disease Control and the National Institutes of Health. In fact, John has worked to increase funding for the National Institutes of Health, with a goal of doubling spending from fiscal year 1997 to 2002. Because of John's efforts, Congress is on track to meet this important goal. By increasing funding for biomedical research into effective treatments and possible cures for diabetes, cancer, AIDS, and other life-threatening diseases, John is helping to save lives. He is also helping to save our nation billions of dollars in health care costs. This is a proud legacy to leave behind.
In addition, John can be proud of his active involvement in protecting and promoting human rights around the world. John is the founder and co-chairman of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, a voluntary bipartisan association of Members of Congress working to identify, monitor and end human rights violations worldwide. I am proud to be one of the 250 Members of Congress who participate in this important caucus. John cares deeply about the plight of the persecuted around the world and has regularly engaged in fasts and prayer vigils to bring needed national attention to the issue of human rights. Although John's leadership and active participation will be sorely missed, the Congressional Human Rights Caucus will continue John's crusade to protect and promote human rights around the globe. Again, this a proud legacy to leave behind.
Finally, although John and I do not always agree on all issues, I have always admired his conservative stance on fiscal issues. I also consider myself a fiscal conservative and admire John's unwavering commitment to eliminating deficits and balancing the federal budget. He should be proud that he is leaving Congress in an era of balanced budgets and record budget surpluses.
Again, although I am sure that John will remain active on issues like health care, the environment, and human rights, he will be missed here in the House of Representatives. He has served his constituents and the nation well. I wish John the best of luck in all of his future endeavors.
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