Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas House Bill HR1989 Compare Versions

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1	1	H.R. No. 1989
2	2
3	3
4	4	R E S O L U T I O N
5	5	WHEREAS, Senator John G. Tower, whose career of exceptional
6	6	public service spanned nearly five decades, is being honored by
7	7	family and friends with the dedication of a memorial marker at the
8	8	Texas State Cemetery on May 13, 2009; and
9	9	WHEREAS, Born in Houston in 1925, John Tower joined the navy
10	10	at the age of 17 and served for three years in the Western Pacific
11	11	during World War II; following his discharge from active duty in
12	12	1946, he served in the navy reserve until 1989, when he retired with
13	13	the rank of master chief boatswain's mate; and
14	14	WHEREAS, Drawn to politics and government from his youth,
15	15	Senator Tower earned a bachelor's degree in political science from
16	16	Southwestern University in 1948 and a master's degree from Southern
17	17	Methodist University in 1953; while a graduate student, he also
18	18	attended the London School of Economics; and
19	19	WHEREAS, From 1951 to 1960, John Tower served on the faculty
20	20	of Midwestern State University and became increasingly involved in
21	21	the state Republican Party; in 1961, at the age of 35, he scored a
22	22	surprise upset in the race to fill Vice President Lyndon
23	23	B. Johnson's newly vacated seat in the U.S. Senate; with his
24	24	victory, John Tower became the first Republican to be elected to the
25	25	senate from Texas since Reconstruction; he won reelection three
26	26	times before deciding not to run for a fifth term in 1984; and
27	27	WHEREAS, While in Congress, Senator Tower became
28	28	particularly knowledgeable and influential in matters relating to
29	29	the military and national defense; he served from 1965 until his
30	30	retirement on the Senate Armed Services Committee and chaired that
31	31	committee from 1981 to 1985; he also served for 14 years on the
32	32	Joint Committee on Defense Production and served throughout his
33	33	senate career on the Banking and Currency Committee, which became
34	34	the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs; and
35	35	WHEREAS, Widely respected for his legislative skills,
36	36	Senator Tower worked to strengthen financial institutions, improve
37	37	transportation systems, expand opportunities for small businesses,
38	38	increase U.S. exports, and promote many sectors of the economy that
39	39	are of major importance to Texas, including the agricultural,
40	40	energy, fishing, and maritime industries; he was also a leading
41	41	proponent of efforts to modernize and expand the military; and
42	42	WHEREAS, Senator Tower continued to hold positions of public
43	43	trust after leaving the senate; from January 1985 to April 1986, he
44	44	served as the chief U.S. negotiator in the Strategic Arms Reduction
45	45	Talks with the Soviet Union in Geneva, and from 1986 to 1987 he
46	46	chaired a panel known as the Tower Commission, which investigated
47	47	the Iran-Contra affair; he was appointed to the President's Foreign
48	48	Intelligence Advisory Board in 1987 and three years later became
49	49	the chair of that group, a post he held until his untimely death in
50	50	1991; and
51	51	WHEREAS, The author of two books, Senator Tower published A
52	52	Program for Conservatives in 1962 and Consequences: A Personal and
53	53	Political Memoir just months before he died; and
54	54	WHEREAS, Southwestern University long benefited from Senator
55	55	Tower's active leadership as a member of its board of trustees and
56	56	is now the repository for his papers; in appreciation of his
57	57	enduring support for the school and his outstanding contributions
58	58	in the public realm, the university conferred on Senator Tower both
59	59	an honorary doctor of literature degree and a Distinguished Alumnus
60	60	award and named a chair of political science in his honor; and
61	61	WHEREAS, John Tower devoted his life to the service of his
62	62	country, and this nation and the State of Texas gained immeasurably
63	63	from his zest for his work, his consummate ability, and his profound
64	64	patriotism; now, therefore, be it
65	65	RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 81st Texas
66	66	Legislature hereby pay tribute to the life and public service of
67	67	Senator John G. Tower and commemorate the installation of a
68	68	memorial marker in his honor at the Texas State Cemetery; and, be it
69	69	further
70	70	RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
71	71	prepared for his family and that when the Texas House of
72	72	Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Senator
73	73	John G. Tower.
74	74	Branch
75	75	______________________________
76	76	Speaker of the House
77	77	I certify that H.R. No. 1989 was unanimously adopted by a
78	78	rising vote of the House on May 19, 2009.
79	79	______________________________
80	80	Chief Clerk of the House