Date: 2007-03-06
Speaker: GENE GREEN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Madam Speaker. as author and sponsor of the bill. I rise in strong support of H.R. 584. I would like to thank both Chairman .OBERSTAR and Chairwoman NORTON and Ranking Member MICA and Ranking Member GRAVES for moving this legislation out of committee. and I like to thank Majority Leader HOYER for bringing it to the floor. A bipartisan group of Texas delegation members introduced this bill to name the Department of Education headquarters building in Washington. D.C. the Lyndon Baines Johnson Federal Building. We now have over 50 cosponsors from around the country. and I am proud to be joined on this legislation by the ranking member of the Energy and Commerce Committee. JOE BARTON. who just spoke. Congressman MIKE McCAUL. and also our dean of the Texas delegation. Congressman SOLOMON ORTIZ. Representative MCCAUL actually represents the Johnson family in Congress. Their bipartisan efforts have helped move this bill to the floor. and I think they should be congratulated for the efforts. I would say one thing. though. Former Congressman Jack Brooks is not deceased. He is still much alive. and Congressman BARTON. I suspect you will be getting a call very shortly from .Jack Brooks. as we all know. former dean of the Texas delegation. I did have the opportunity at a very young age to meetr President Johnson. In January- 1973. I was a young State Representative in Austin. Texas. my first term. President Johnson came to our swearing in my first term in 1973. and I actually got a very candid photo with him that I hang proudly in our office here in Washington. He passed away a week later. and I was honored to be able to go to his funeral and his burial there at the Johnson Ranch. President Johnson was a proud Texan. and back in those days. many of my Republican friends were Democrats as well. President Johnson pioneered issues such as civil rights and voting rights. but his educational leadership stands out even among these accomplishments. President Johnson passed away over 30 years ago. and to this day. he has no Federal buildings in his name in the Capitol area. So we believe the Education Building is a fitting honor. Presidents Reagan and Bush have been honored with the International Trade Center for President Reagan and the Central Intelligence Agency building for President Bush reflecing their priorities and contributions. President Johnson presided during turbulent times in our Nations history. He ascended to the presidency after the Kennedy assassination and faced a difficult conflict in Southeast Asia. President Johnson was a .very human figure. but his legacy is with us in many ways today. Lyndon Johnsons first priority in life was education. He was the first "Education President." Before Johnson. educational opportunity in America was not a national priority. as it continues to be today for both our parties. including current President George W. Bush. In 1927. Lyndon Baines Johnsons career and education began when he went to Southwest Texas State Teachers College in San Marcos. Texas. He earned money as a janitor and taught the fifth. sixth.. and seventh grades at the MexicanAmerican School in the South Texas town of Cotulla. He *taught later at Sam Houston High School. which is part of our congressional district. As a Jeff Davis High School student. which Madam Speaker. you actually visited afew years ago. in 1965 And 1966. I saw the impact of the first Federal dollars that came to my high school firsthand. In his memoirs. President Johnson declared. "There is an old saying that kids is where the money aint." And I need to repeat that. That may be true today. Madam Speaker. "That kids is where the money aint. which summed up one of the major problems confronting the American educational system when I became President." And that is a direct quote. Continuing the quote. "because of these convictions. I made a personal decision during the 1964 Presidential campaign to make education a. fundamental issue and to put it high on the Nations agenda. "I proposed to act on my belief that. regardless of a familys financial condition. education should be available to every child in the United States. as much education as he or she could absorb. I had no intention of walking away from this fight." President Johnson succeeded in his fight to improve education for all Americans. He signed into law 60 education bills. including the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964. which established the Head Start program. the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. the Higher Education Act of The Elementary and Secondary Education Act was the first real Federal assistance to grade school education. and it is widely supported today. The President actually signed that in a oneroom schoolhouse in Stonewall. Texas. with his elementary school teacher. In large part. President Johnsons education priorities are accepted by both political parties. as -some of them were then. The Higher Education Act passed by 36822 in the House and 793 in the Senate. strong bipartisanship votes. In discussing President Johnsons education legacy. we have to recognize First Lady. Lady Bird Johnson. who was also a major contributor and strong advocate for his educational ini� tiatives. During her White House years. Ms. Johnson served as honorary chair of the National Head Start program. the program for underprivileged school children which prepares them to take their places in the classroom on par with their peers. In part for her education efforts. President Ford presented her with the countrys highest civilian award. the Medal of Freedom. Mrs. Johnson turned 94 last December. and hopefully she is listening to this debate. Mrs. Johnson also received the Congressional Gold Medal from President Reagan in 198B. This legislation is a fitting honor for both President Lyndon Baines Johnson and also First Lady. Lady Bird Johnson. - -