Introducing Senator Lugar Post Office Bill

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. CARSON of Indiana. Madam Speaker, I rise to introduce a bill to name a U.S. Post Office in Indianapolis in honor of Senator Richard Lugar. Senator Lugar, who served as mayor of Indianapolis from 1968 to 1975, also represented Indiana honorably in the U.S. Senate from 1977 to 2013. He was a brilliant scholar, a brave member of our armed forces, and a dedicated public servant who championed people and principle over party.

His distinguished life demonstrates the type of leader that Indiana cultivates, and his public service is an unquestionable example of his deep commitment to our country. He was not only a pillar of strength in his local community, but he was also a trusted, unfailing personification of excellence in national leadership.

That excellence pervaded everything that Senator Lugar achieved in life, beginning early in his youth. He participated in youth organizations, reaching the highest achievement attainable in the Boy Scouts of America--the rank of Eagle Scout.

After completing his studies at Denison University, he studied at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar. Following graduation, he served in the United States Navy as an intelligence officer.

His political career began shortly thereafter, upon his return to Indianapolis. He promptly began contributing to the well-being of the community in Indianapolis, serving on the local school board and then becoming mayor in 1968.

Following his mayoral service, Lugar ran for the United State Senate, and he was elected in 1976. It was in the Senate where Richard Lugar truly became the resilient and formidable political leader that we have come to recognize. He served as the Chairman of the Senate Agricultural Committee, where he garnered bipartisan support for farm program reforms, initiated the biofuels research program, reformed the food stamp program, and preserved the federal school lunch program. He also served 34 years on the Senate Foreign Relations committee, including two terms as chair. In this capacity, he was a leader in reducing the threat of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons through the passage and implementation of the Nunn-Lugar program. He also played an essential role in enactment of sanctions against the Apartheid government of South Africa and the U.S. recognition of democratic government in the Philippines. He contributed to the expansion of the NATO Alliance, the implementation of the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) to end the global AIDS epidemic, and the ratification of anti-terrorist treaties. For all he accomplished, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2013. He was awarded 47 honorary degrees and received numerous other awards. When he passed away, he was the President of the Lugar Center, a non-profit organization focusing on global food security, Weapons of Mass Destruction proliferation, aid effectiveness, and bipartisan governance.

His commitment to good governance and diplomacy, particularly his tireless efforts on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, made our world a better, safer place. He won the respect of people across the political spectrum and earned that Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2013 from President Obama--our nation's highest civilian honor.

In our increasingly divided society, everyone can help his legacy live on by pledging to advance the Hoosier values of bipartisanship and cooperation that defined Senator Richard Lugar's life.

This bill is supported by the entire Indiana delegation, and I urge all my colleagues to join me in supporting this effort.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source