[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 353 Introduced in House (IH)]
110th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. CON. RES. 353
Recognizing the 100th birthday of Lyndon Baines Johnson, 36th
President, designer of the Great Society, politician, educator, and
civil rights enforcer.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 16, 2008
Ms. Jackson-Lee of Texas (for herself, Mr. Hoyer, Mr. Clyburn, Mr.
Lampson, Mr. Ortiz, Mr. Al Green of Texas, Mr. Doggett, Mr. Hall of
Texas, Mr. Hinojosa, Mr. Gonzalez, Mr. Gene Green of Texas, Mr.
Edwards, Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas, Mr. Filner, Mr. Baca, Mr.
McNulty, Mr. Wynn, Mrs. Christensen, Ms. Norton, Ms. Kilpatrick, Ms.
Bordallo, Mr. Braley of Iowa, Mr. Rothman, Mrs. Jones of Ohio, Mr.
Fattah, Mr. Etheridge, Mr. Lewis of Georgia, Mr. Brady of Texas, Ms.
Clarke, Mr. Cazayoux, Mr. Watt, Mr. Wexler, Mr. Altmire, Mr. Boswell,
Mr. Melancon, Mr. Towns, Mr. Cooper, Mr. Thompson of Mississippi, Mr.
Pallone, Mr. Dingell, Mr. Conyers, Mr. Reyes, Mr. Butterfield, Mr.
Meeks of New York, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. Costa, Mr. Clay, and Mr. Bachus)
submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to
the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
_______________________________________________________________________
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Recognizing the 100th birthday of Lyndon Baines Johnson, 36th
President, designer of the Great Society, politician, educator, and
civil rights enforcer.
Whereas August 27, 2008, marks the 100th birthday of Lyndon Baines Johnson;
Whereas Lyndon B. Johnson was born in Stonewall, Texas, to Samuel Ealy Johnson,
Jr., a Texas representative, and Rebekah Baines, on August 27, 1908;
Whereas upon graduation, Lyndon B. Johnson enrolled in Southwest Texas State
Teachers' College, where he vigorously participated in debate, campus
politics, and edited the school newspaper;
Whereas Lyndon B. Johnson had several teaching positions throughout Texas,
including at the Welhausen School in La Salle County, at Pearsall High
School, and as a public speaking teacher at Sam Houston High School in
Houston;
Whereas Lyndon B. Johnson went to work as a congressional assistant at the age
of 23;
Whereas Lyndon B. Johnson served the 10th Congressional District in the Texas
House of Representatives from April 10, 1937, to January 3, 1949;
Whereas Lyndon B. Johnson became a commissioned officer in the Navy Reserves in
December 1941;
Whereas during World War II, Lyndon B. Johnson was recommended by Undersecretary
of the Navy James Forrestal to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who
assigned Johnson to a three-man survey team in the southwest Pacific;
Whereas Lyndon B. Johnson was conferred the Silver Star, which is the military's
third highest medal, by General Douglas MacArthur;
Whereas in 1948, Lyndon B. Johnson was elected to the Senate at the age of 41;
Whereas in 1951, Lyndon B. Johnson was elected Senate minority leader at the age
of 44 and elected Senate majority leader at the age of 46, the youngest
in our history;
Whereas Lyndon B. Johnson was elected Vice President at the age of 52, becoming
president of the Senate;
Whereas Lyndon B. Johnson's congressional career and his leadership spanned the
stock market crash, the Great Depression, World War II, the nuclear age,
the Cold War, the space age, and the civil rights movement, some of the
most turbulent years in American history;
Whereas Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson was appointed as head of the
President's Committee on Equal Employment Opportunities, through which
he worked with African-Americans and other minorities;
Whereas an hour and 38 minutes after the assassination of President Kennedy,
Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn in as President aboard Air Force One;
Whereas Lyndon B. Johnson was a bold leader;
Whereas as President, Lyndon B. Johnson believed that government could guarantee
human rights, could lift people out of poverty, and provide access to
quality education and health care throughout the Nation;
Whereas Lyndon B. Johnson was an idealist, a force of nature, and had the energy
and determination and leadership to turn those dreams into reality;
Whereas Lyndon B. Johnson was a ``can-do'' President because no matter how
difficult and daunting the task at hand, he never rested until it was
completed;
Whereas in 1964, the Johnson Administration passed the landmark Civil Rights Act
of 1964, which banned de jure segregation in the Nation's schools and
public places;
Whereas the Johnson Administration passed the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which
outlawed obstructive provisions that were rendered impractical and
impartial to potential voters;
Whereas in January of 1965, the Johnson Administration introduced the Great
Society, which included provisions for aid to education, Medicare, urban
renewal, beautification, conservation, the development of depressed
regions, a wide-scale fight against poverty, and the removal of
obstacles to the right to vote;
Whereas in 1967, President Johnson nominated Thurgood Marshall as the first
African-American to serve on the Supreme Court;
Whereas during Johnson's presidency, the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration made spectacular steps forward in space exploration when
3 astronauts successfully orbited the moon in December 1968;
Whereas Lyndon B. Johnson died at 4:33 p.m. on January 22, 1973, at his ranch in
Johnson City, Texas, at the age of 64;
Whereas Lyndon B. Johnson was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of
Freedom in 1980; and
Whereas Lyndon B. Johnson is honored, venerated, and revered for his drive to
establish equality for all Americans, illustrated in the momentous
legislation passed during his Administration: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring),
That the Congress--
(1) honors Lyndon B. Johnson for his fortitude in passing
the historic Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of
1965;
(2) extols the contributions of Lyndon B. Johnson to the
United States, and his commitment to eliminating poverty in the
War on Poverty through the Economic Opportunity Act;
(3) commends Lyndon B. Johnson for establishing the
Medicare Act of 1965 that has helped millions of Americans; and
(4) recognizes the 100th birthday of Lyndon Baines Johnson,
the 36th President, designer of the Great Society, politician,
educator, and civil rights enforcer.
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