Floor Statements

Mr. President, I wish to pay tribute to the memory of Kevork S. Hovnanian, a friend and New Jersey businessman and community leader. A hard working Armenian immigrant, Mr. Hovnanian embodied the American dream. Already the owner of a successful construction company in Iraq in 1959, Mr. Hovnanian was forced to flee Iraq and arrived in New Jersey to rebuild his life, and rebuild it he did.

He started another construction company and, along with his brothers, committed himself to making affordable housing available to young families and first-time home buyers--first in New Jersey, then nationwide. He built a successful business and, at the same time, gave something back to the community, to New Jersey, and to the Nation. Through his chosen profession, he shared his realization of the American dream by helping others establish themselves in their own homes and took pride in having helped. As his business grew, Mr. Hovnanian never forgot his adopted community and generously supported numerous charities and organizations. His philanthropy touched the lives of all of us in New Jersey. Every child who enters the K. Hovnanian Children's Hospital at Jersey Shore University Medical Center benefits from his generosity. Every worshiper who enters St. Stepanos Armenian Church in Elberon, New Jersey knows Kevork Hovnanian generously supported its construction in memory of his mother. He remained committed to bringing the Armenian genocide to light and supporting Armenian autonomy. He was a man who worked hard, achieved his dreams, but always believed in the concept of community, each of us working together for the betterment of all.

As we celebrate Kevork Hovnanian's life and memory, our heartfelt thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends, his beloved wife Sirwart, and his sons, daughters, and grandchildren who will miss his love and laughter. May he rest in peace.

Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. President, today I wish to recognize a man from New Jersey who, through his leadership and commitment to service, has given much back to the country and to his community. This month Frank McDonough is retiring as president of the New York Shipping Association where his leadership will be sorely missed. Frank still speaks with a native, no-nonsense Boston accent, but he is--through and through--a New Jerseyan at heart and in spirit. He has had three accomplished careers. His first was with the U.S. Marines where he spent 21 proud and glorious years. He enlisted in 1957 and rose to the rank of major in 1976. Major McDonough served in Vietnam in combat and combat service support units. In 1968, during the siege at Khe Sanh, he was communications officer of the 1st Battalion, 13th Marines. He was appointed acting battery commander for Headquarters Battery until the headquarters was lost to enemy rocket fire.

He served as communications officer for the 2nd Battalion 26th Marines and for the 1st Reconnaissance Battalion. He was company commander of Echo Company, 2/26 and completed his tour as battalion operations officer under Marine legends COL ``Wild Bill'' Drumwright and LTC Bill Leftwich. In October, 1970, he was assigned to the United States Army Signal Center and School at Fort Monmouth where he graduated with honors and became the officer-in-charge of the Marine detachment and a distinguished instructor in the officer school. Major McDonough retired in 1978.

Frank McDonough's second career was in law. He completed his undergraduate degree magna cum laude at Boston University and then earned a juris doctorate in 1983. He returned to the Garden State and joined the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office. Before long he became director of the Environmental Crimes Task Force. Then, as now, Frank McDonough had a strong sense of environmental responsibility. Frank's particular interest has been New Jersey's coastal environment.

In 1986 he entered private practice. He was a member of the bar in New Jersey and the District of Columbia and was admitted to practice before the Third Circuit Court of Appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court.

Frank McDonough's third career got its start courtesy of Governor Christine Todd Whitman. Governor Whitman knew that Frank was the right person to help the State through a developing crisis that threatened the larger bistate region served by the Port of New York/New Jersey. The Governor appointed him to the dredged materials management team that was formed to resolve the ``mudlock,'' as the New York Times described the unprecedented dredging crisis. Early in my service as a Member of Congress I also focused efforts to find dredged material management solutions that would enable navigation dredging to resume.

In 1995 Governor Whitman appointed Frank McDonough the State's first executive director of maritime resources. He worked with me and others to help arrive at workable solutions. Resolution was achieved by 1996 with the help of the Clinton White House and the active involvement of Vice President Al Gore.

Frank McDonough must have liked the challenges of the port world because that is where he made his third career. In 2000, he retired from the State and was appointed executive director of the advocacy organization, Nation'sPort, and served as a visiting professor and advisory board member of the Center for Maritime Systems at Stevens Institute of Technology.

In 2001, Frank was elected president of the New York Shipping Association, the position from which he is now retiring. He has been the principal advocate for the marine terminal operators and steamship lines that call on the Port of New York/New Jersey, the third largest in the country. He has been responsible for negotiating and managing the labor contracts, comanaging the various welfare and pension programs, and hiring, training and dispatching the workers.

Frank McDonough's watch at the port has been a dynamic and challenging period. Cargo experienced double digit growth for much of that time until last year when the trade market fell as the global economy went into recession. During this period the port has been at the forefront of port security initiatives in response to a more dangerous world and new Federal mandates developed to combat it. Frank's role has included serving as vice chairman of the New York Harbor Area Maritime Security Committee.

Throughout this tumultuous time, Frank McDonough has been a steady figure on the business side of the port. He led his member companies to undertake important initiatives to reduce the port's environmental imprint even as cargo flow increased. He worked to reduce the port's dependency on trucking and increase the use of congestion-relieving rail and marine transportation for moving cargo between points in the

Madam President, I rise to extend my congratulations to C. Vivian Stringer for her induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. It is a proper tribute for such a distinguished and celebrated career. This is certainly an incredible honor which stands tall, even amongst her other considerable accolades.

The success that Vivian Stringer has achieved in her 38-year coaching career, including the last 14 at Rutgers University, speaks for itself: 825 victories; 30 seasons of 20 or more wins; 22 NCAA Tournament appearances; 4 Final Fours with 3 different programs; Olympic Gold as an assistant coach with the 2004 U.S. Women's Basketball team. Her commitment to excellence is unsurpassed and lauded by peers and supporters alike.

Most importantly, Vivian Stringer has served, above all else, as a teacher to each of her players. Her dedication to education beyond the court is clear, as her players traditionally graduate on par with their nonathlete classmates. The students who have walked into her program walk out of it as strong and dignified women, each ready to continue the legacy of achievement that Vivian Stringer has set before them, whatever the arena. Two years ago, Vivian Stringer's leadership was on display as the Lady Scarlet Knights, in the face of adversity and slander, served as shining examples of exceptional poise and grace.

This 2009 Hall of Fame Class is indeed one of the most distinguished in memory, and it is fitting that Vivian Stringer enters alongside other luminaries that share her caliber of achievement. I applaud Vivian Stringer's service to Rutgers University, the entire basketball community, and the great State of New Jersey. I wish her luck as she continues her career and in all of her other future endeavors.

Mr. President, once again, we mourn another Kennedy, the last brother, a friend, a colleague, a Senator's Senator, larger than life even in death, certainly the most effective legislator of our time and arguably the most effective Member of this body in the whole of American history.

Across this Nation and across the political divide, we have seen the impact of his life and work in the tearful eyes of millions of Americans. Each face a challenge to continue his long and lasting legacy of hard-fought, hard-won battles for hardworking families everywhere. His is a legacy of hope for the unemployed, the dispossessed, the downtrodden, the undereducated, the uninsured; a legacy of hope for Hispanic Americans and Asian Americans, all Americans who have come to this country, often with little more than the clothes on their backs and a glorious dream for a better life.

Ted Kennedy will be remembered by my generation as more than the last brother, more than the end of an era. He will be remembered as America's preeminent leader on fair, responsible, humane immigration policy that always put people first. For all of us, he was the standard bearer of headier days, of Camelot, of intellectual vitality, political energy, and a deep and abiding commitment to public service and to this beloved Senate. He taught us through actions and deeds, in times of great personal pain, the power of the human spirit to endure and prevail. He symbolized the best of an era of progressive, compassionate leadership in this country and a deep belief that we must always ask what we can do for the country, a torch unexpectedly passed to him which he carried with dignity and humility through great tragedy as well as great triumph.

He understood our personal struggles, however profound, ``make us stronger in the broken places,'' as Hemingway said. For every Hispanic American and every American across this Nation whose family came here to find a better life, whatever their ethnicity or political views, Ted Kennedy was a leader. His deep and abiding concern for the struggles of hard-working people was not political. It is simply part of the Kennedy

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 9:30 a.m. tomorrow, Friday, September 11; that following the prayer and the pledge, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed expired, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day; that there then be a moment of silence in commemoration of the eighth anniversary of the September 11 attacks; further, that following the moment of silence, the Senate proceed to a period of morning business until 10:30 a.m., with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each; and, finally, I ask that following morning business, the Senate resume consideration of Calendar No. 153, H.R. 3288, the Transportation, HUD, and related agencies appropriations bill.

Mr. President, there will be no rollcall votes during Friday's session of the Senate. I ask unanimous consent that following the remarks of Senator Carper and Senator Bennet of Colorado, the Senate adjourn under the previous order.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I wish to say briefly that we are incredibly proud in New Jersey that Frank Lautenberg is our Senator. It is not just the number of votes he cast, it is what he has stood up for. Senator Lautenberg has been known as standing up for New Jerseyans first, but he has also stood up for the Nation, millions of people, since he passed the ban on smoking on airlines and what he has done with Superfund sites and what he has done on domestic violence abusers, who can no longer possess a gun, which means people are alive today as a result of Senator Lautenberg's work in New Jersey and across the Nation. The landmark legislation he has participated in over his career in the Senate is exemplary.

I wanted to join in the tribute because it is not just his number of votes, it is the type of effect he has had on the lives of people in New Jersey and across the country.

Mr. President, the Senate will soon vote to confirm Judge Sonia Sotomayor. In doing so, we will not only make history, but we will stand witness to a coming of age of America.

Our Founders devised a unique experiment in a new form of government built on tolerance, equal rights, justice, and a Constitution that protected us from the mighty sword of tyranny. It was a revolutionary notion that in this new Nation, no one--no one--would be bound by an accident of birth. No one would be limited by their economic or social circumstances. In America we have come to believe that all is possible.

Today, on the anniversary of the signing of the Voting Rights Act, at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue is an African American sitting in the Oval Office. This is America.

Across the street in that magnificent symbol of equal justice under law, a woman--a Latina--will take a seat on the U.S. Supreme Court. This is America.

In this Chamber, this Senator respectfully stands before you born in the same year as Judge Sotomayor and in similar circumstances--raised in a tenement in an old neighborhood in New Jersey, the son of immigrants, the first in my family to go to college. I never dreamed I would stand on this floor on this day to rise in support of an eminently qualified Hispanic woman who grew up in a housing project in the Bronx, as I was growing up in that old tenement in Union City. Yes, this is America. It is the America our Founders intended it to be.

I said on this floor earlier in this debate that when Judge Sotomayor takes her seat on the U.S. Supreme Court, we will only need to look at the portrait of the Justices of the new Supreme Court to see how far we have come as a nation, to understand who we are as a people. It is true that we are often divided by deeply held individual beliefs that too often prevent us from reaching compromise on the complex issues and challenges facing this Nation. But in America, we are entitled to our individual beliefs. We are entitled to hold them firmly, passionately, with resolve, reason, and fairness. We are free to fight for them with every fiber of our being; to express them, to shout them from the rooftops if we like. Put simply, all of us see the world differently. All we can ask of ourselves, all any of us can ask, is that wisdom, intelligence, reason, and logic will always prevail in every decision we make.

I have said before on this floor, and I will say again: Who we are is not a measure of how we judge, it is merely one part of the many- faceted prism through which we see and analyze the facts. The real test is how we think and what we do. I know in my heart and in my mind that Judge Sotomayor will do what is right for America.

The worst her opponents have accused her of is an accident of geography that gave her the unique ability to see the world from the street view, from the cheap seats. I know that view well. I know it very well. It gives us a unique perspective on life. It allows us to focus a clear lens on the lives of those whose struggles are more profound than ours and whose problems run far deeper than our own. The view of the world from a tenement remains with me today, and it will remain with me all of my life, just as the view from that housing project in the Bronx will remain with Judge Sotomayor. It is a part of who she is. But let's be clear. It is not what she will do or how she will judge. It is the long view of America--a wide, inclusive view-- often profoundly moving, sometimes heartbreaking, and it gives her an edge where she may see what others cannot, and I truly believe that is a gift that will benefit the Nation as a whole.

So I call on my colleagues to step back, take the long view, think of what our Founders hoped for this Nation, and let's vote. History awaits and so does an anxious Hispanic community in this country.

I have made my decision, and I will proudly stand in the well of this Chamber to cast my vote to confirm Judge Sotomayor as the next Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. When she places her hand on the Bible and takes the oath of office, the new portrait of the Justices of the Supreme Court will clearly reflect who we are as a nation, what we stand for as a fair, just, and hopeful people.

Let that be the legacy of our generation, for this is America--the America our Founders intended it to be.

Mr. President, the Judiciary Committee has received letters of support for Judge Sotomayor's nomination from local, national, and international law enforcement, including the chiefs of police of major cities, among others. I ask unanimous consent that those letters, as well as letters from national Latino and Hispanic rights organizations, such as MANA, ASPIRA, and others be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, with that, I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I rise in proud support of the confirmation of Judge Sonia Sotomayor. We are not only about to cast a vote this week that will make history, but we are about to stand witness in some small way to the coming age of America.

The great Founders of this democracy built a nation on an idea and an ideal. They devised the unique experiment in a new form of government built on tolerance, equal rights, justice, and a constitution that protected us from the mighty sword of tyranny. They forged a community from shared values, common principles, yet preserved the freedom of every citizen to pursue happiness and reach for the stars no matter their position, no matter their circumstance at birth.

It was a revolutionary notion that in America one is not bound by his or her social or economic status; that if we work hard, reach further, aim higher, everything--anything--is possible.

Unlike other nations united by common history, common language, and common culture, America prides itself on its motto: E pluribus unum-- out of many, one. In our blind rush to one side of the political spectrum or the other, we too often forget those words. We too often forget that we are united in our differences in a vast melting pot forged from common values and an ideal of freedom that is the envy of the world.

Today, as we prepare to confirm Judge Sotomayor, the full realization of that ideal is closer than it has ever been. I know it, I feel it, for I have lived it. I stand here, someone who himself came from humble beginnings, raised in a tenement building in a neighborhood in Union City, NJ, a son of immigrants, first in my family to go to college, and now in a nation of 300 million people, 1 of 100 Members of the U.S. Senate.

I never dreamed growing up that one day I would have the distinct honor to come to the floor of the Senate to rise in favor of the confirmation of an eminently qualified Hispanic woman who grew up in the Bronx across the river from the old tenement I lived at in Union City. I never dreamed that as a U.S. Senator of Hispanic heritage, I would have the privilege of standing in the well of this Chamber to cast a historic vote for the first Hispanic woman on the highest Court in the land. So for

me personally, my vote for Judge Sonia Sotomayor will be a proud moment, one I will always remember as a highlight of my time in the Senate.

When Judge Sotomayor takes her seat on the U.S. Supreme Court, America will have come of age. We will need only to look at the portrait of the Justices of the new Supreme Court to see how far we have come as a nation, who we really are as a people, what we stand for, and what our Founders intended us to be. It will be a striking portrait--one of strength, diversity, spirit, and wisdom, the portrait of a nation united by common concerns, yet still too often divided by deeply held individual beliefs.

There are those in this Chamber who, because of those deeply held beliefs, will vote for Judge Sotomayor and those who will not, each for their own reasons, each in part because of who they are, where they grew up, how their perspective has been uniquely shaped by their individual circumstances and experiences. Their vote will be based on their own logic, their own reasoning, how they interpret the facts and the testimony before them. Each of us will analyze and debate those facts from our own perspective. We will hold to our own intellectual positions. We will disagree. Some will find fault with Judge Sotomayor's choice of words. Some will interpret her statements and rulings differently than she may have clearly intended. Some will question her temperament, her judgment, the details of her decisions. But in this debate and, ultimately, in the final analysis, none of us can deny the role our experience will play in our decision. None of us can deny our backgrounds, our upbringing, the seminal events that shaped our life. We cannot deny who we are. All we can ask of ourselves--of any of us--is that wisdom, intelligence, reason, and logic will always prevail in the decisions we make.

Those who would say a U.S. Senator or a Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court does not carry something with them from their experience are simply out of touch with reality. But let us remember that who we are is not a measure of how we judge; it is merely the prism through which we analyze the facts. The real test is how we think and what we do.

Let's be clear. Given the facts, given the evidence before us, Sonia Sotomayor is one of the most qualified and exceptionally experienced nominees to come before the Senate. I am proud to stand in favor of her confirmation, not because of where she came from, not because we share a proud ethnicity, but because of Judge Sotomayor's experience and vast knowledge of the law. I am proud to stand in favor of her nomination not because she is a Hispanic woman but because of her commitment to the rule of law and her respect for the Constitution; not because of the depth of her theoretical knowledge and respect for precedent but because of her practical experience fighting crime; not because of one statement she may have made years ago outside the courtroom but because of a career-long, proven record of dedication to equal justice under law. Nothing--I repeat nothing--should be more important to any nominee than a dedication to those simple words chiseled above the entrance to the Supreme Court: ``Equal Justice Under Law.''

These are the reasons I am proud to stand in support of her confirmation, and these are the reasons I believe Judge Sotomayor should be unanimously confirmed by the Senate. But I know that will not be the case. I know there will be few on the other side of the aisle who will cast their vote in support of her. I know some of my colleagues have suggested that Judge Sotomayor may not have the judicial temperament necessary to serve on the Supreme Court. To those Senators who get up and say that, I say watch the hearings again. Watch them closely. Listen to what was asked, watch her responses, take note of the depth, the dignity, and clarity of her answers. Be aware of the deference she showed every Senator on the committee, her tone, the tenor of her responses, her rebuttals, and then tell me she does not have the proper judicial temperament.

I think most Americans who watched her, who listened to her, would respectfully disagree. Most Americans do not care about one specific statement out of hundreds of statements. They care about the person. They care about the experience. They care about honor and decency and dignity and fairness. They care about who she is and what she has accomplished in her long judicial career. Put simply, they care about the record, and the record is clear. It shows she has a deep and abiding respect for the Constitution. It shows that the leaders of prominent legal and law enforcement organizations who know her best, those who have actually seen her work, say she is an exemplary, fair, and highly qualified judge. It shows a crime fighter who as a prosecutor put the ``Tarzan murderer'' behind bars. It shows a judge who has upheld the convictions of drug dealers, sexual predators, and other violent criminals. And it highlights a deep and abiding respect for the liberties and protections granted by the Constitution, including the first amendment rights of those with whom she strongly disagrees.

Judge Sotomayor's credentials are impeccable. Set aside for a moment the fact that she graduated at the top of her class at Princeton. Set aside her tenure as editor of the Yale Law Review, her work for Robert Morgenthau in the Manhattan District Attorney's Office, her successful prosecution of child abusers, murderers, and white-collar criminals. Set aside her courtroom experience and practical hands-on knowledge of all sides of the legal system. Even set aside her appointment by George H.W. Bush to the U.S. District Court in New York and her appointment by Bill Clinton to the U.S. Court of Appeals and the fact that she was confirmed by both a Democratic majority Senate and a Republican majority Senate, which alone tells this Senator, if she was qualified then, she must be qualified now. Set all that aside, and you are still left with someone who would bring more judicial experience to the Supreme Court than any Justice in the last 70 years, more Federal judicial experience than anyone nominated to the Court in the last century. Her record clearly shows that someone so experienced, so skilled, so committed, so focused on the details of the law can be an impartial arbiter who follows the law and still has a deep and profound understanding of the effect her decisions will have on the day-to-day lives of everyday people.

With all due respect to my colleagues who plan to vote against this nominee, what speaks volumes about Judge Sotomayor's temperament, what speaks volumes about her experience, what speaks volumes about her record is that the worst--the very worst--her opponents can accuse her of is an accident of geography that gave her the unique ability to see the world from the street view, from the cheap seats. I know that view very well. I grew up in it. I can tell you that certainly it gives you a unique perspective on life. it engenders compassion. It engenders pathos. It focuses a clear lens on the lives of those whose struggles are more profound than ours, and whose problems run far deeper. Yes, I know that view well, and it remains with me today, and it will remain with me all of my life.

I daresay there may be no greater vantage point from which to view the world--to see the whole picture--than a tenement in Union City or a housing project in the Bronx. Thomas Jefferson, in his first inaugural address said:

I shall often go wrong through defect of judgment. When

right, I shall often be thought wrong by those whose

positions will not command a view of the whole ground.

Judge Sonia Sotomayor surely commands a full, wide expansive view of the whole ground. It is a strength, not a weakness. It is who she is, not what she will do or how she will judge. It is the long view, and it gives her an edge where she may see what others cannot. And that is a gift that will benefit this Nation as a whole.

I ask my colleagues to take the long view and see what this nomination means in the course of this Nation's glorious history. For me, the ideal, the idea of America, the deep and abiding wisdom of our Founders, will have come of age when Judge Sonia Sotomayor raises her right hand, places her hand on the Bible, and takes the solemn oath of office. With it, the portrait of the Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court will more clearly reflect who we are as a nation, what we have become, and what we stand for as a

fair, just, and hopeful people. Let that be our charge. Let that be our legacy. Let someone who is committed to the Constitution, to the rule of law, to precedent--and who has exhibited that over a lifetime of work--be our next Supreme Court Justice.

I am proud and honored to support the confirmation of Judge Sonia Sotomayor as the next Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.

And finally, numerous civil rights, Latino, and law enforcement organizations join me in supporting Judge Sotomayor's nomination. I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record letters of support from the following organizations: Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund, the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda, the National Puerto Rican Coalition, the National Fraternal Order of Police, the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, Federal Hispanic Law Enforcement Officers Association, the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and the Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, to name a few.

Mr. President, with that, I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that Christa McDermott, Ashley McCabe, and Joia Starks, legislative fellows in my office, be granted the privilege of the floor for the remainder of the debate on the confirmation of Judge Sonia Sotomayor.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak as in morning business.

Mr. President, I rise in recognition of the NAACP in this, its 100th anniversary month. I rise in praise of what this extraordinary organization has so proudly come to represent to every American who deeply believes in freedom, human dignity, and equal justice under the law.

Yet I rise with a heavy heart, filled with powerful lasting images of the unimaginable suffering surrounding the founding of this great organization, images of the savage hand of racism--horrific lynchings in the middle of the night, the 1908 race riot in Springfield, IL, the birthplace of Abraham Lincoln, that led a bold band of Americans to do all they could, whatever they could, to end the violence against Blacks, the vicious, unveiled hatred and intolerance that to this day has left deep and painful scars on this Nation.

I rise in recognition of those courageous men and women who, a century ago, stepped forward to found the NAACP, those who stood against violence, who stood against hatred, Blacks such as W.E.B. Du Bois, Ida B. Wells-Barnett, Mary Church Terrell, and Whites such as Mary White Ovington and Oswald Garrison Villard, descendants of America's first abolitionists. These men and women came forward, echoing the call of W.E.B. Du Bois to secure for all people the rights of the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments to the Constitution to end slavery, provide equal justice under law, and ensure universal adult male suffrage.

We all know that the full realization of equality, freedom, civil rights, voting rights, and equal justice under law has been a long, sometimes faltering, journey fraught with dead ends, deep divides, and seemingly insurmountable obstacles on the road to a more perfect Union. It has been a journey of starts and stops, with harrowing moments--some horrific, some heart-wrenching, but all equally historic, all part of the American saga, each forever etched in the collective memory of this Nation.

The magnificent building in which we do our work today is a monument to that journey. Those who labored to raise this glorious building in tribute to American democracy were themselves slaves. They laid the foundation. They cut the stones. They raised the walls and built the magnificent dome of the U.S. Capitol. Those slaves lived here on Capitol Hill in the shadow of what is now the Statue of Freedom that looks eastward toward the rising Sun and what was then the new dawn of a rising nation.

They are, in many ways, the ancestors of Freedom herself, the precursors of an event to which we have so boldly stood witness in January, in the shadow of their labors, as a Black man raised his hand on the west front of the Capitol to take the oath of office as President of the United States. What greater tribute to them.

We may have come a long way since they built this monument to democracy, but every day, with every troubling racial incident we see on television or read about in blogs or in newspapers, it is clear the century-long work of the NAACP goes on, the work continues. But it is equally clear, with Barack Obama in the White House, we have come of age, united by a common history, tragic at times, fought on the bloody battlefields of a civil war and still being waged in the hearts of the intolerant and unenlightened among us.

Let the images of history tell the story of America plainly, honestly, for what it is--from the labors of those slaves who built this Capitol to the founding of the NAACP; from the battlefields of Gettysburg and Manassas to the freedom rides and marches through Selma and Montgomery; from bloodshed, tragedy and travails, sacrifices and sorrows from those who lived and died on plantations or rode the Underground Railroad north, to those freed by the Emancipation Proclamation; from the devastating inhumanity of slavery to the election of Barack Obama.

There are countless images of courage and heroism, humiliation and humility, honor and horror, dignity and indignity; images of hope and despair, fear and frustration; images of fire hoses and police dogs turned on Americans whose only crime was the longing to be free and equal; images still clear in our minds, triumphant images of Martin Luther King at the Lincoln Memorial, millions marching on Washington; deeply moving images of peace-loving men like Congressman John Lewis beaten down by billy clubs because he simply wanted to cross a bridge; images of abject poverty, of two worlds separate and apart and far from equal; tragic images of a great man lying in a pool of blood on a motel balcony in Atlanta in April of 1968. But none so powerful, none so deeply moving as Barack Obama taking the oath of office as President of the United States on the west front of the Capitol 41 years later.

These are the awesome images of the history of race since the founding of the NAACP. They represent the history of America as much as they represent the history of the NAACP, and we must--all of us, Black and White alike--embrace them, understand them, and learn from them; learn from the tragedy and the sorrow; learn from the long, hard-fought battle that was the civil rights movement; learn from the debate on this floor that eventually led to the Voting Rights Act; learn from the prosegregationist terrorism that led to the assassination of NAACP Mississippi field secretary Medgar Evers and the death of Dr. King. Today, all of these images, the good as well as the bad, remain part of who we are, part of the American story in which the NAACP has played a pivotal role.

But the Nation has changed, and so the mission of the NAACP has evolved from what it was 100 years ago. The violence has lessened, but the virus of racism and prejudice has mutated, as all viruses do.

Now too often, intolerance rears its ugly head with the mere mention of the word ``immigration.'' And when it does, let us be comforted by the knowledge that the NAACP is still there, still working, still fighting the good fight.

Today, the NAACP is an expanded organization dedicated to the elimination of all race prejudice in America, whether that prejudice be against Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans, and all Americans who seek political, educational, economic, and social equality. For 100 years, the goal of the NAACP has been to tear down the walls of racial discrimination through the democratic process and make tolerance and equality a reality for all of us. Let that goal be realized in our generation, in our time, and let us continue--one nation, indivisible-- on that long journey to a more perfect Union.

Mr. President, I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I was unavoidably detained for rollcall vote No. 248, passage of H.R. 3183, Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.