Recognizing and honoring the lifetime contributions of Rafael Jose Diaz-Balart on the dedication of the Rafael Diaz-Balart Hall at the Florida International University College of Law.

Mr. Speaker, it is an honor to come before the House today in support of Resolution 131, to recognize Rafael Jose Diaz-Balart, grandfather of two of our great colleagues here in this great House, Lincoln and Mario Diaz-Balart.

Rafael Diaz-Balart was a native of Santiago de Cuba and completed his law degree at the University of Havana in 1919. Soon after he joined the bar, Rafael Diaz-Balart became the municipal judge in the city of Palma Soriano, where he served with great distinction. Four years later, he earned a post of civil law notary in the town of Banes in eastern Cuba, where he was later then elected city council president and mayor of the city.

Upon his election to the Cuban House of Representatives, he founded the law firm of Diaz-Balart, Diaz-Balart and Amador in Havana, with his son, Rafael Lincoln, Mario and Lincoln's father, and Rolando Amador. Years later, he earned the post Land Registrar, a prominent achievement for lawyers in Cuba.

After the 1959 coup, Rafael Diaz-Balart lived in exile and became a proud citizen of the United States. In exile, Rafael Jose Diaz-Balart entered law school at the University of Madrid, and in 1965, at age 66, earned his second law degree.

While Rafael Diaz-Balart had many great accomplishments, his greatest of all may have been the honor and sense of duty that he instilled his son Rafael Lincoln and his four grandsons: Lincoln and Mario, whom I proudly serve with here in the House; also Jose, who is a prominent journalist; and Rafael, a successful businessman in Miami.

This week Florida International University Law School will be dedicated in the name of Rafael Diaz-Balart Hall, a tribute to their grandfather. The keynote address will be given by Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader-Ginsburg, and there will be countless Federal, State and local municipal elected officials.

This honor to the Diaz-Balart family is a testimony to the American Dream. Here is a family in a bloodline that left Cuban exile, but came to the United States to make this country better.

The entire family has contributed not only to the south Florida community, but the entire State of Florida, and also this great country of ours, which is the United States of America.

I think the House is full within its right to be able to recognize this great American for what he was able to do in his contributions to those that not only serve here in the House of Representatives, but serve in the fields of journalism and in business. I am honored to bring this to the floor at this time.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to one of my great colleagues from the Florida delegation (Ms. Wasserman Schultz).

Mr. Speaker, I reserve my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, it is very interesting when you look at this resolution, because it is the American Dream. Some Americans don't have the opportunity to have a resolution brought before the House of Representatives honoring the memory of their bloodline, their father and their grandfather and their entire family. But I can tell you that, in the words of my grandmother, saying ``isn't God good,'' this resolution displays the American Dream.

As we start to look at this resolution, as we start to reflect on the contributions of the Diaz-Balart family to the United States of America, to find that it not only didn't start totally with Rafael Jose Diaz-Balart, but he had a lot to do with the pilgrimage to the United States of America and the contributions that his grandchildren have made and that his son made in this society, that have made America better. It has brought us together in many ways.

Understanding a story of some of the issues facing America right now, as some folks may feel about recent immigrants to this country, this is a perfect example to set up on the pedestal of how those that come to our country with the will and desire to serve this country, not to pull from this country, but to serve on behalf of this country, what can happen.

We have four individuals that are the grandchildren of the very man that we are recognizing here in the House of Representatives, this great country of ours, individuals fought to allow us to

salute one flag. Two are contributing to this country, serving at the same time in the U.S. House of Representatives in this Congress and in the last Congress and the Congress before that, and one is at the top of journalism as it relates to Spanish language international television, and another is a prominent businessman in South Florida. I think this is a time that the House is rightfully recognizing these great Americans for what they were able to do.

Mr. Speaker, to Mr. Diaz-Balart and to Mr. Keller and to all of my colleagues here, it is a great honor to bring this before the House, because I believe everyone can understand the reason why we are here, and it is justified. But this could be one of many examples of families that have contributed to our country. I know they will continue to do so, and I know their children's children will continue to do so, and this moment in history will just be one beacon of light to show how appreciative we are for not only the Diaz-Balart family for their contributions but other families like them.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, I just would like to thank Mr. Miller of the Education Committee, also the majority leader's office and the Speaker's office for allowing us to bring this resolution so that it can be timely for the dedication this weekend when the good people of Florida and this great country and the Supreme Court Justice will honor the memory of Rafael Jose Diaz-Balart at the naming of the hall of the law school.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 131, a resolution recognizing and honoring the lifetime contributions of Rafael Jose Diaz-Balart, on the dedication of the Rafael Diaz-Balart Hall at the Florida International University College of Law.

I would like to thank my friend Mr. Meek for introducing this important resolution.

The founding of the Florida International University College of Law did not become possible until 2000. The college of law received full accreditation from the American Bar Association in December 2006.

The law school is home to 382 law students and 25 faculty members. The Rafael Diaz-Balart Hall was designed by the renowned architect and dean of architecture at Yale University, Robert A.M. Stern. It incorporates two interior courtyards, an atrium, a reading room, an auditorium, a legal clinic, and two teaching courtrooms. In addition, the hall will have two additional rooms solely for expanding international and foreign law collections.

Of particular interest to the students and the school are volumes focusing on international organization and Caribbean and Latin American law.

Rafael Diaz-Balart, for whom the hall was named, was born in Cuba and earned a law degree from the University of Havana in 1919. He later served as a lawyer, a judge, president of the city council and was eventually elected mayor of the city of Banes and then was elected congressman. Diaz-Balart went into exile in 1959 and earned his second law degree from the University of Madrid in 1965. He died in Miami in

1985. Mr. Diaz-Balart is also the grandfather of two distinguished Members of Congress, Mario and Lincoln Diaz-Balart.

I congratulate the Florida International University College of Law on receiving its full American Bar Association accreditation and the inauguration of this beautiful new hall.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen), the ranking member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, and the first Hispanic woman elected in the history of the United States Congress.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the grandson of Rafael Diaz-Balart, my friend and colleague, the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Mario Diaz-Balart).

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I would totally agree with my colleague, Mr. Meek, that the Diaz-Balart family has made America a much better place for all of our children to grow up. I have been very honored to serve with both Lincoln and Mario Diaz-Balart, and I know they both have a lot of pride in their grandfather.

I am very happy that Mr. Meek introduced this resolution honoring Rafael Diaz-Balart. Mr. Meek also obviously has a lot of pride in the bloodline he has with the famous Congresswoman Carrie Meek. I was reminded of her just this past weekend when I was down in Miami for the football game on Sunday and I parked on Carrie Meek Boulevard down there.

I explained to the parking lot attendant that I served with Carrie Meek and I am friends with her son, Kendrick Meek. He said, Yeah, man. That will be thirty bucks. It only gets you so far. But I have a lot of pride in knowing both of these families.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance my time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. I thank my good friend Mr. Meek of Florida for presenting this resolution for us today.

I rise in strong support of this resolution, which honors the life of Rafael Jose Diaz-Balart, a prominent attorney, an elected official in pre-Castro Cuba, who is also the grandfather, as we have heard, of our esteemed South Florida Congressional colleagues, Lincoln Diaz-Balart and Mario Diaz-Balart, as well as their two other brothers, Jose Diaz- Balart, a very well known television personality and news anchor, and Rafael Diaz-Balart, a prominent South Florida businessman.

Their grandfather, Rafael Jose Diaz-Balart, was a native of Santiago de Cuba, and completed his studies at the University of Havana with a law degree in 1919. While maintaining his law practice, he was also elected city council president and mayor of Banes, and later as a member of the Cuban House of Representatives, similar to our body.

Following the 1959 communist takeover by Fidel Castro, Rafael Jose Diaz-Balart fled to the United States to live in exile with his family. Shortly following, he proudly became a citizen of the United States. Along with his son, Rafael Lincoln, he commenced law school at the University of Madrid, Spain, and in 1965, at the age of 66, earned a second law degree. He sadly passed away in Miami, Florida, in 1985.

He, like my father Enrique Ros and so many others who fled Cuba due to Castro's tyrannical regime in the last 50 years, Rafael dreamt of a free Cuba, a country where human rights are respected, where political prisoners are freed, with a democratic, multi-party political system that flourishes and a free market economy that thrives, thus allowing the Cuban people and their foreign economic partners to own their businesses and to prosper. None of those things are allowed today.

I am so glad that this Saturday, February 10, the Florida International University College of Law will dedicate its new law center as the Rafael Diaz-Balart Hall. We are also proud of the many accomplishments of FIU, Florida International University, my alma mater, and we think this is a positive step forward.

So I ask my colleagues to join us in commemorating the life of a great patriot, Rafael Jose Diaz-Balart, a tremendous mentor, a loving husband, a father and one of the most outstanding members of the South Florida community, a freedom fighter from his first to his last breath.

I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on House Resolution 131.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Florida, Mr. Keller. I want to thank all of those colleagues who have spoken here today. On behalf of my brother, Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart, who is actually now in a committee and cannot be here, I want to particularly thank Congressman Kendrick Meek for this profound and deep honor.

Congressman Meek, I have to tell you, there are not a lot of secrets in this process, but somehow you kept this a secret, and I am not quite sure how you were able to do this, because both my brother and I didn't know about this until very, very recently. That is something that is frankly unusual, for anything to be kept a secret in this process.

I particularly want to thank the sponsor of this resolution for, again, this honor to our grandfather and our family, our entire family, that this House is giving all of us today.

But when I think of families who have public service in their background, our dear friend Congressman Kendrick Meek comes from a family of deep service to our country. As I said recently in a public meeting in Miami, the matriarch of the Florida congressional delegation and particularly the South Florida Members congressional delegation is Congresswoman Carrie Meek, who was not only a fine Member of this institution and also was a member of the Florida legislature for many years, but she is an icon in the history of our Nation. She is one of those who has broken through, her entire life, that glass ceiling, not once, not twice, but many, many times. Then, of course, her son, Kendrick, who is a tough fighter for issues that he believes in and for the people he represents and who I am honored to call a dear friend of mine.

So I am deeply honored, Congressman. I am deeply honored for all of this. On behalf of the Diaz-Balart family, I just want to thank you for this deep honor, this deep privilege. It is a day that we will not soon forget. Again, just thank you all very much.

Mr. Speaker, I thank both of my good friends from Florida, Mr. Keller and Mr. Meek. It is my privilege to join with my colleagues in honoring the life and legacy of the Diaz-Balart family, and particularly Rafael Diaz-Balart, who distinguished himself not just in the Cuban House of Representatives, but by becoming a wonderful citizen of the United States of America and contributing his subsequent generations of his family to the history of the State of Florida and to the United States by lending his two grandsons to the United States House of Representatives.

Mr. Speaker, across this country we have a wonderful history of naming institutions like law centers after our giants, and Florida is no exception. The Shepard Broad Law Center at Nova Southeastern University is named after a Florida giant. The University of Florida Law Center, the Holland Building, is named after a Florida giant. And now the law center at Florida International University will be named after a Cuban-American, a Florida giant, Rafael Diaz-Balart, and it is my privilege to join my colleagues in honoring his legacy and his life today.