GRANTS: CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH AWARDS

DEADLINE: All proposals must be received no later than February 1, 2010.

The Dirksen Congressional Center invites applications for grants to fund
research on congressional leadership and the U.S. Congress. A total of up to
$35,000 will be available in 2010. Awards range from a few hundred dollars to
$3,500.

The competition is open to individuals with a serious interest in studying
Congress. Political scientists, historians, biographers, scholars of public
administration or American studies, and journalists are among those eligible.
The Center encourages graduate students who have successfully defended their
dissertation prospectus to apply and awards a significant portion of the funds
for dissertation research. Applicants must be U.S. citizens who reside in the
United States.

The awards program does not fund undergraduate or pre-Ph.D. study. Organizations
are not eligible. Research teams of two or more individuals are eligible. No
institutional overhead or indirect costs may be claimed against a Congressional
Research Award.

There is no standard application form. Applicants are responsible for showing
the relationship between their work and the awards program guidelines.
Applications are accepted at any time. Applications which exceed the page limit
and incomplete applications will NOT be forwarded to the screening committee for
consideration.

All application materials must be received on or before February 1, 2010. Awards
will be announced in March 2010.

Complete information about eligibility and application procedures may be found
at The Center's Web site: http://www.dirksencenter.org/print_grants_CRAs.htm.
PLEASE READ THOROUGHLY. Frank Mackaman is the program officer -
mailto:fmackaman@....

The Center, named for the late Senate Minority Leader Everett M. Dirksen, is a
private, nonpartisan, nonprofit research and educational organization devoted to
the study of Congress and its leaders. Since 1978, the Congressional Research
Awards (formerly the Congressional Research Grants) program has paid out
$776,188 to support 378 projects.


Cindy Koeppel
The Dirksen Congressional Center
2815 Broadway
Pekin, IL 61554

309.347.7113
309.347.6432 Fax
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Death notice and burial info for Sen. Hawkins. Note her sobriquet while serving
on the FL PSC: "The Battling Maitland Housewife."

=========================================

HAWKINS, UNITED STATES SENATOR PAULA, 82, of Winter Park, Florida passed away
Friday, December 4, 2009.

Senator Hawkins was born January 24, 1927, in Salt Lake City, Utah, to Paul Burt
Fickes and Mary Leoan Staley. She was the oldest of four children. Her father
was in the Navy and the family lived in Long Beach, CA, Hawaii, Jacksonville, FL
and Atlanta, GA. It was in Sunday school class in Atlanta, Georgia that she met
Walter Eugene Hawkins, who would become her husband. They married in Logan, UT,
where Paula was a student at Utah State University.

They initially lived in Atlanta and then moved to Winter Park, FL, in 1954.
After building a new home in Maitland, Paula was surprised to find there was no
sewer system in the town. She urged her neighbors to elect a mayor and council
who would support this improvement for the city. They were successful and sewers
were soon installed. Thus began her love for "grass roots" politics.

In 1968, Paula was elected Republican National Committeewoman for the State of
Florida. This was a position she held until 1986. She served as a delegate to
five consecutive Republican National Conventions. In 1972, Paula was elected as
one of three members of Florida's Public Service Commission which regulated
monopolies in Florida that provided electricity, water, telephone and
transportation. She earned the nickname "The Battling Maitland Housewife"
through her strong advocacy of consumers' rights.

In 1976, Paula became the first Republican to be reelected to political office
in the state of Florida. In 1980, Paula was elected to the United States Senate.
She was the first woman elected from Florida to the Senate and the first woman
in the country elected in her own right (not following a father or a husband) to
the Senate. In the Senate she became a very effective champion of children and
families, authoring the legislation that established the National Center for
Missing and Exploited Children.

She also authored legislation establishing Radio Marti and legislation that
provided innovative ways for displaced housewives and mothers to re-enter the
work force. She was also well known for her strong and innovative actions to
fight the importation and trafficking of illegal drugs.

Paula and Gene were married for 62 years and are members of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints. They have three children: Genean McKinnon (Joel) of
Winter Park and Montreal; Kevin (Jean) of Denver; and Kelley McCoy (David) of
Winter Park; sister, Carole Wright of Sacramento, CA; eleven grandchildren and
ten great grandchildren.

A gathering for family and friends will be held Wednesday, December 9th from 6
to 9 p.m. at Baldwin Fairchild Ivanhoe Chapel. Funeral services will be held
Thursday, December 10th at 11 a.m. at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- day
Saints, 45 East Par Street, Orlando, FL, with interment immediately following at
Palm Cemetery in Winter Park, FL.

In lieu of flowers donations may be made to: The National Center for Missing and
Exploited Children, 699 Prince Street, Alexandria, VA 22314. Arrangements are
being handled by BALDWIN FAIRCHILD
IVANHOE CHAPEL 301 NE Ivanhoe Blvd., Orlando, FL 32804.

Fmr. State Rep. Pittenger died on 12/6/2009 in Lancaster, PA. He served in the
PA House from 1965-1967 & 1969-1971.

====================================

Former education secretary Pittenger dies
By The Associated Press
December 08, 2009, 1:01PM
Former Pennsylvania Secretary of Education John Pittenger has died. He was 79.

Pittenger died Sunday in Lancaster from complications of Parkinson's disease.

A lawyer and Army veteran, Pittenger became involved in Democratic politics and
served in the state House of Representatives for two nonconsecutive terms. In
1971, he joined the administration of Gov. Milton Shapp and became Shapp's
secretary of education the following year.

He fought for the rights of disabled students and to mandate equal athletic
programs for girls.

He later served as dean of Rutgers University Law School in the 1980s, as well
as on the boards of numerous civic and charitable organizations.

He's survived by his wife, Pauline, and two stepsons.

===================================

Top Dem John Pittenger dead at 79
Was state legislator, education secretary

By LORI VAN INGEN, Staff Writer

John C. Pittenger, former Pennsylvania Secretary of Education and former state
representative died Sunday at Homestead Village from complications of
Parkinson's disease. He was 79.

"'Pitt,' as he was affectionately known, was a true patriot, serving his nation,
his state and his community as a military veteran, as an educator, a farmer, a
lawyer, a state legislator and a state Cabinet secretary," Bruce Beardsley,
chairman of the Lancaster County Democratic Committee, said.

"To me, and to my political colleagues, he was a friend and trusted mentor,"
Beardsley said. "He played an invaluable behind-the-scenes role in the
renaissance of the local Democratic Party, advising me, my predecessor and many
others. He helped the party raise money, and he enjoyed and had a remarkable
knack for motivating and recruiting people to volunteer for the party. It was
almost impossible to say 'no' to Pitt."

Beardsley said Pittenger was the "epitome of a great American. Throughout a
lifetime of service, he never abandoned the effort to make the world a little
better place, although he did come to discover that it's a lot harder than he
thought it would be. He will be sorely missed."

Mike Sturla, the current state Congressman for the 96th District, said, "I,
along with countless others, consider him a mentor. Very few people talked to
him and didn't learn learn something. I respected what he accomplished and what
he tried to get others to accomplish."

Jim Shultz actively campaigned for Pittenger's election in the 1960s.

"He was a mentor to me and others. We sought out his counsel and great advice.
He was selfless, taking an interest in our lives, in our careers and families,"
said Shultz, a friend of Pittenger for more than 50 years. "I admired his
passion for the Democratic Party. He was the personification of Mr. Democrat."

Just three months ago, Pittenger was on the phone to committee people and
working to get people registered to vote, Shultz said.

"He was passionate about public service," Shultz said. "I will greatly miss
him."

G. Terry Madonna, director of Franklin & Marshall College's government
department and a political analyst, said Pittenger was an early mentor of his,
too.

"I deeply respected his views on politics and government. He was the first
person to introduce me to politics when I was in college and to participating in
government," Madonna said. "He deliberately sought out some of the young people
at the college to get involved in politics."

Madonna said Pittenger encouraged young people to get into politics as an
"honorable profession."

"He stressed that good people need to get into government service," Madonna
said. "He was a man of incredible integrity with very, very strong convictions
and willing to express them. He was an incredible role model."

Lancaster Mayor Rick Gray said Pittenger was "certainly a man of principles and
an anchor in the Lancaster Democratic Party for many years."

"Even when he was not living here, he participated from a distance," Gray said.
"His intellectual abilities were great, and he was a warm, caring person. His
character traits were reflected in his politics. He was motivated to get the
best for a person, whether aged, infirm or young. He was a tremendous guy."

After practicing law in Lancaster from 1958 to 1965, Pittenger became involved
in Democratic politics. He served in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
for the 96th District from 1965 to 1966. During this term, Pittenger helped
draft the bill that set up the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency
scholarship program and was a principal sponsor of the Mental Health/Mental
Retardation Act of 1966.

He was defeated in the next election, but was re-elected the following term,
serving from 1969 to 1970. As a member of the Democratic Policy Committee and
chairman of the Joint Legislative Data Processing Committee, Pittenger helped
develop assessment procedure reform and computerize all state registration and
election figures.

Also during his two terms, Pittenger authored a controversial proposal for
charging graduated -- or income-based -- tuition at state colleges and
universities and vigorously supported a bill to strengthen the powers of the
state Board of Education. He was the first member of the General Assembly to
bring high school seniors to Harrisburg on a regular basis to serve as pages in
the House of Representatives.

He also served as director of research for the minority Caucus of the House of
Representatives from 1967 to 1968.

In 1971, while a member of the Commission on School Finance, Pittenger was
appointed legislative secretary to Gov. Milton J. Shapp and served as a liaison
between the governor's office and the Department of Education.

As legislative secretary, he helped steer the state's first personal income tax
bill through the General Assembly, played an instrumental role in securing
reforms to Workmen's Compensation and Unemployment Compensation Acts and guided
to passage the bill that created the Department of Environmental Resources.

A year later, Shapp named Pittenger the state secretary of education.

As secretary, he established due process rights for handicapped children and
created the Governor's School for the Arts and the state government internship
program for state college students.

He also led the fight to mandate equal athletic programs for female students in
public schools and supervised the first complete rewrite of the school code in
30 years. In addition, he played a key role in adopting the system of statewide
achievement and attitudinal testing in grades five, eight and 11.

He served for three years as chairman of the legislative committee of the
National Council of Chief State School Officers.

Pittenger resigned as secretary in late 1976 to accept a position as visiting
lecturer at Harvard Graduate School of Education.

In 1978, state House Speaker K. Leroy Irvis asked Pittenger to chair a
commission on the reform of the Pennsylvania House. His commission's report led
to the establishment of the Bi-Partisan Management Committee and other major
reforms.

In 1979, Pittenger threw his hat into the ring in the race for the U.S. Senate
seat being vacated by Richard Schweiker, but withdrew a year later when Mayor
Pete Flaherty of Pittsburgh entered the race.

Pittenger was named dean of Rutgers University Law School in 1981. There, he
instituted an exchange program with the law faculty of Karl Francis University
in Graz, Austria; presided over the development of specialties in taxation and
international law; and helped persuade Rutgers to build a law school dormitory
in Camden.

Although he stepped down as dean in 1986 to move back to Pittwillow Farm --the
family farm in southern Chester County --he continued to teach at the law school
until his retirement in 1994.

Throughout the years, Pittenger taught several courses as an adjunct professor
in the government department at F&M and served as the college's pre-law advisor.

He also was the co-author, with Henry W. Bragdon, of "The Pursuit of Justice,"
an introduction to constitutional law for high school students, and of "Politics
Ain't Beanbag," a political memoir.

Once Pittenger moved to Homestead Village in 1997, he became active in
Democratic politics once more. He said he wouldn't be happy until the day there
was a Democratic mayor in Lancaster, a Democratic governor in Harrisburg and a
Democrat in the White House -- all at the same time.

Pittenger attended public school in Swarthmore and Phillips Exeter Academy,
Exeter, N.H. He graduated summa cum laude from Harvard College with a degree in
American history in 1951 and cum laude from Harvard Law School in 1958.

Between college and law school, Pittenger was a Frank Knox Fellow at the London
School of Economics. He received the honorary degree, doctorate of humane
letters, from Franklin & Marshall College in 1981.

A first lieutenant, he served in the infantry and government intelligence in the
U.S. Army from 1952 to 1955.

He was a member of the Society of Friends.

Active in community affairs, Pittenger served as president of Lancaster Opera
Workshop and Harvard Club of Central Pennsylvania and vice president of the
board of Family and Children's Services and Lancaster Foundation for Educational
Enrichment. He was a trustee of Lincoln University.

An avid squash and badminton player, he served intermittently for 15 years as
the first coach of F&M's men's squash team.

He received the Lancaster Jaycee Good Government Award in 1967, the B'Nai B'rith
Man of the Year Award in 1968 and the Penn State Special Award for Leadership in
1976. The Lancaster County Democratic Committee honored him in 2003 with its
first Lifetime Achievement Award.

Born in Philadelphia, he was the son of the late Nicholas Otto and Cornelia
VanDerveer Chapman Pittenger.

He was married to Pauline Miller Pittenger.

Surviving in addition to his wife are two stepsons, Josiah Leet of Lancaster and
Matthew Leet of Oakland, Calif.; and a sister, Jane Kellenberger of Boulder,
Colo.

A memorial service has not yet been announced.

Amb. Wilson died on 12/5/2009 in Carmel, CA.

==============================================

Updated December 05, 2009
First U.S. Ambassador to Vatican Dies

AP

William Wilson, a member of President Reagan's "kitchen cabinet" of advisers,
dies at the age of 95.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- William A. Wilson, the first American to serve as
ambassador to the Vatican and a member of President Ronald Reagan's "kitchen
cabinet" of advisers, has died. He was 95.

Wilson was among a group of about a dozen conservative, wealthy Los Angeles
businessmen who became confidantes and advisers to Reagan, first as he sought to
become governor of California, and later, president. They also helped bankroll
his campaigns for office.

Wilson died around 1 a.m. Saturday at his home in Carmel, said his daughter,
Marcia Wilson Hobbs.

A rancher and horse lover by nature, Wilson grew up in Los Angeles and studied
the family business, oil, at Stanford University in Palo Alto, where he met his
future wife, Elizabeth. After graduation, he joined his father's company, Web
Wilson Oil Tools.

Reagan first appointed Wilson as presidential envoy to Rome in 1981, when the
United States did not have full diplomatic relations with the Vatican because of
an 1867 U.S. law that prohibited establishing such ties to maintain separation
of church and state.

In 1984, after the law was repealed, Reagan appointed Wilson as the first
ambassador and served in the post for about two years, according to an obituary
released by the family.

"He was a delightful, gentlemanly like man of the old school and he was the
perfect diplomat," said longtime family friend Bee Canterbury Lavery. She said
the Wilsons outfitted the residence in Rome with beautiful furniture. "They were
the first ones, and so they really furnished the American Embassy there in
Rome."

Elizabeth Wilson, who grew up in a well-connected wealthy L.A. family, also
developed a close friendship with Nancy Reagan after the couples met at a party
in 1960, hosting annual birthday parties for the first lady at the family's
ranch in Riverside County, according to a Vanity Fair profile of Nancy Reagan.
Elizabeth Wilson died in 1996.

The Wilsons also owned a ranch in Sonora, Mexico, where Reagan often vacationed
and where he famously was thrown from his horse.

Hobbs said beyond his distinguished biography, Wilson was a good dad.

"He was the best. He was a great father, he was very loving and very doting,"
said Hobbs, who was with her father when he died.

Wilson is survived by two daughters, Hobbs, of Los Angeles, and Anna Marie
Wilson of Sonora, Mexico, five grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.

Services were pending in Los Angeles.

Fmr. Sen. Hawkins died in Orlando, FL on 12/4/2009.

===========================================

Dec 4, 12:23 PM EST

Ex-US Sen. Paula Hawkins of Florida dies at 82

By MIKE SCHNEIDER
Associated Press Writer

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -- Paula Hawkins, who in 1980 became the first woman elected
to a full Senate term without a family political connection, died Friday. She
was 82.

Hawkins had been in poor health recently, having suffered a stroke and a fall,
said U.S. Rep. John Mica, a close friend. She died at Florida Hospital in
Orlando surrounded by her family, he said.

During her single six-year term in the U.S. Senate, the Republican positioned
herself as a media-savvy champion of children and working mothers and an enemy
of drug dealers. She lost her bid for a second term in 1986 to then-Gov. Bob
Graham.

Hawkins entered public office at a time when doors that previously had been
closed to women were being opened. She never considered herself a feminist, but
she championed equal opportunities for women.

She was the first woman senator elected from the South and the first woman from
any state elected to a full Senate term who was not the wife or daughter of a
politician. Nebraska businesswoman Hazel Abel, who also had no political family
ties, was elected from that state in 1954 to serve the final two months in the
term of a senator who had died in office.

"I think it showed other women that you could do this," Hawkins said in a 1997
interview for an oral history program at the University of Florida.

Hawkins backed legislation that helped homemakers enter the job market after
divorce or widowhood. She supported equalizing pension benefits for women by
taking into account their years spent at home raising children. She fought to
get day care for the children of Senate employees and pushed for tax breaks on
child care expenses.

She even forced fellow senators to don bathing trunks when swimming in the
Senate gym so she could work out at the previously all-male bastion during
daytime hours.

But there were slights. At one of her first news conferences in Washington as a
senator, a television reporter asked who was going to do her laundry if she was
busy working in the U.S. Senate.

"I kept saying (to myself), this is 1980 and I can't believe that anybody is
asking me this, especially a grown man from a national network," Hawkins said in
the 1997 interview.

Yet at the same time, Hawkins opposed the Equal Rights Amendment and
abortion-on-demand. She refused to join the Congressional Woman's Caucus because
she thought childcare, pension equity and other matters were "family issues" and
not just of concern to women.

"I did not like the Equal Rights Amendment," she said. "I predicted that it
would bring about the downfall of the father's responsibility to support the
family."

Elected to the Senate in 1980, Hawkins was part of a wave of conservatives who
came to Washington as part of the Ronald Reagan landslide.

She helped pass the Missing Children's Act of 1982, which established a national
clearinghouse for information about missing children.

In 1984, she startled her Senate colleagues, friends and relatives by disclosing
during a congressional hearing that she was sexually molested as a child. Her
admission was greeted with widespread public sympathy.

She pushed legislation that cut aid to countries that did not reduce their drug
production. She helped initiate the South Florida Drug Task Force and assisted
in creating the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control.

Hawkins was born in Salt Lake City in 1927. She attended Utah State University
before marrying her husband, Gene Hawkins. They had three children.

=================================================

U.S. Rep. John Mica

On behalf of the family of former United States Senator Paula Hawkins, U.S.
Congressman John Mica announced the passing of the Senator in Orlando, Florida
early Friday morning.

Mica, former chief of staff for the Senator, said, "With Paula Hawkins' passing,
we have lost a remarkable public servant and trailblazer for women and all
Americans in the state and national political landscape.  Senator Hawkins was
the first popularly elected female United States Senator who attained the office
without a husband or father preceding her in politics.  Senator Hawkins was
widely known as a champion for children and authored the Missing Children's Act
of 1982.  As chairman of a Senate subcommittee, she led the nation's efforts to
curtail drug trafficking and address substance abuse."

"Senator Paula Hawkins was tireless, tenacious and an incredible champion for
America's children," said Ernie Allen, President of the National Center for
Missing & Exploited Children.  "We will cherish her memory and miss her very
much."

Senator Hawkins was part of Florida's and the national political history for
four decades.  She began her political career in her Maitland neighborhood. 
Hawkins was the first Florida statewide elected woman when she won election to
the Public Service Commission in 1972.  The press gave her the title of the
"Battling Maitland Housewife."  Hawkins' campaign to reform the Public Service
Commission was so upsetting to the political establishment her opponents
successfully ended the popular election of Public Service Commissioners.

Paula Hawkins was a pioneer in building the Republican Party in Florida.  She
began organizing at the community level, served as the GOP State and National
Committee Woman, and co-chaired the National Platform Committee of the 1984
Republican Convention.

Senator Hawkins is survived by her husband Gene Hawkins of Winter Park, FL and
three children, Genean McKinnon of Winter Park and Montreal, Kevin Hawkins of
Denver, CO and Kelly McCoy of Orlando, FL, as well as 11 grandchildren and 10
great-grandchildren.  Senator Hawkins had dealt with a number of health issues,
however her passing is attributed to complications from a recent fall.

Funeral arrangements are pending.

Edward Watts Stimpson, 75, passed away peacefully at his Boise home on Nov. 25,
2009. Although he never smoked, he was diagnosed with lung cancer in June 2009,
and died from complications of the disease. Edward was born on June 18, 1934, in
Bellingham, Wash., the eldest of the seven children of Edward Keown and
Catharine "Kitty" Watts Stimpson. He graduated from Bellingham High School in
1952 and from Harvard College in 1956. He earned a graduate degree from the
University of Washington, Seattle, in 1959.

In 1962, in Seattle, he met his future wife, Dorothy "Dottie" Sortor who was
born in Omaha, Neb. At the time, both were employed at the Seattle World's Fair.
Among the VIPs he was assigned to show around were Sen. Frank Church and Federal
Aviation Administration head Najeeb Halaby. The latter invited Ed to move to
Washington, D.C., to work for the FAA and he accepted, serving for six years as
the head of Congressional Affairs for the FAA under the Kennedy administration.
In 1970, Ed was instrumental in creating a new trade association, the General
Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA), and served as its president for 19
years.

He quickly assumed a leadership role in the setting of the direction of many
significant aviation policy issues of the era, including the establishment of
the Airport and Airways Trust Fund and the allocation of aviation fuel during an
oil embargo, Ed married Dottie in 1970. She was then working for the League of
Women Voters of the U.S. They crossed the Washington, DC line to Virginia for
the ceremony. In 1989, Morrison Knudsen CEO Bill Agee hired Ed in a key
management position, which brought the Stimpsons to Boise. "Agee did me two huge
favors: He hired me and he fired me," Ed was fond of saying. Leaving MK, Ed
returned to GAMA for nine years, retiring in 1996.

During his distinguished career, Ed quarterbacked industry advocacy that led to
enactment of the General Aviation Revitalization Act of 1994, which helped
preserve and create thousands of jobs. In recognition of that accomplishment,
Cessna Aircraft Company emblazoned Ed's initials on the first 100 piston-powered
airplanes the manufacturer produced when it returned to that market. After
retiring from GAMA, Ed led the "Be A Pilot" program, the largest "learn-to-fly"
initiative in general aviation history to that date.

Two U.S. Presidents then recognized Ed's unique abilities, asking him to serve
as U.S. Ambassador to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), an
agency of the United Nations, in Montreal. In 2000, President Bill Clinton
nominated Stimpson to the ICAO post; Clinton's successor, President George W.
Bush, seconded the nomination in 2001. Stimpson served at ICAO until 2005. For
the next several years, Stimpson served as the chairman of the Flight Safety
Foundation in Washington, D.C., continuing his strong commitment to flight
safety and traveling the world to promote it.

Stimpson's monumental contributions to the industry earned him the highest
awards in aviation, including the prestigious Wright Brothers Memorial Trophy
and the NBAA Meritorious Service to Aviation Award. On Oct. 14, 2009, Ed was
honored with the Flight Safety Foundation - Boeing Aviation Safety Lifetime
Achievement Award, presented by FSF president and CEO William R. Voss, FSF
counsel Ken Quinn and Boeing vice president Steve Atkins. Throughout his life,
Ed generously gave of his time to others. He was a friend and mentor to many
people in and outside the aviation community.

Ed served on the Board of Trustees for Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University for
15 years, including seven as chairman. In recognition of his service at
Embry-Riddle, a residence hall and laboratory were named after him. In the
1980s, he chaired the Franklin Square Assoc., dedicated to improving a blighted
area of Washington, D.C. In Boise, he was active in arts, aviation, cultural,
environmental, and health causes.

Ed leaves a large family behind. It includes his wife Dottie; her sister
Margaret Joseph, Eckert, Colo.; her niece Doris Jean McGuire, Cedaredge, Colo.;
and her nephew, Thomas Joseph, O'Fallon, Ill. Stimpson also is survived by a
brother, John, of San Juan Island, Wash., and by his five sisters: Catharine,
New York City, and her partner, Elizabeth Wood; Mary and her husband, Steven
Rivkin, Bethesda, Md.; Susan and her husband, Loch Trimingham, Lummi Island,
Wash.; Jane and her husband, William Bremner, Seattle; Caroline and her husband,
Torbert Macdonald Jr., Cape Neddick, Me. Ed took a great interest in his 15
nieces and nephews, and in the 14 grand-nieces and grand-nephews of the newest
generation.

As tributes and statements gather about his death, they illustrate the number of
his friends across the nation and around the world. Celebrations of Stimpson's
life will be held in Boise on Saturday, Dec. 5, 2009, at 3 p.m. at St. Michael's
Episcopal Cathedral, 518 N. 8th Street, and on Saturday, Dec. 12, at the
Smithsonian Institution Air and Space Museum, Washington, D.C. from 7:30 am to
10:00 a.m. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be directed to the
Treasure Valley Family YMCA Civic Engagement Scholarship Fund, 1050 W. State
Street, Boise, Id. 83702; or, Embry Riddle Aeronautical University Ed Stimpson
Scholarship Fund, 600 S. Clyde Morris Blvd., Daytona Beach, Fla. 32114-3900.
Condolences for the family may be submitted online at CloverdaleFuneralHome.com.

Mr. Stimpson was Ambassador to the International Civil Aviation Organization
(Montreal) from 1999-2004. He died in Boise,ID on 11/25/2009. His wife, Dorothy
S. Stimpson, was a 2000 Delegate to the Dem. National Convention and is listed
on TPG.

===================================================

Edward W. Stimpson, aviation advocate, dies at 75

By JOHN MILLER
Associated Press Writer

BOISE, Idaho (AP) -- Edward Stimpson, an aviation advocate who pushed to
rejuvenate struggling small aircraft manufacturers in the 1990s by limiting
lawsuits against them, has died after a five-month illness. He was 75.

He died Wednesday from complications related to lung cancer, though he wasn't a
smoker, said his sister, Catharine Stimpson.

Stimpson, president of the General Aviation Manufacturers Association for 25
years, was a major proponent of legislation signed by President Bill Clinton in
1994 to prevent general aviation companies from being named as defendants in
lawsuits in crashes of small planes 18 years old or older.

By 1994, a wave of lawsuits was blamed for a downturn at small aircraft
manufacturers such as Beech Aircraft Co. and Cessna Aircraft Corp., costing
100,000 industry jobs. Annual sales of single-engine planes averaged 13,000 from
1965 to 1982, but dropped to just 500 by 1993.

Catharine Stimpson remembered how Cessna used her brother's initials to signify
the first 100 piston-powered planes the company built after resuming production.

"Whatever he did to preserve the industry was more than a job to him," she said
in a phone interview from her home in New York. "He just loved the idea of being
up there in the clouds."

Stimpson, who held a private pilot's license, also advocated against record
attempts like 7-year-old Jessica Dubroff's 1996 bid to become the youngest
person to fly across the country. Dubroff, her father and her flight instructor
died when their plane crashed in Cheyenne, Wyo., prompting Stimpson to call for
measures to "stop the circus-like, media-driven events."

He retired from the General Aviation Manufacturers Association in 1996 to become
chairman of "Be A Pilot," an industrywide education and research program aimed
at increasing the number of people learning to fly.

Stimpson was born in Bellingham, Wash., the oldest of seven children. He
graduated from Harvard College and received a graduate degree from the
University of Washington in Seattle. He and his wife, Dorothy, met as employees
at the Seattle World's Fair in 1962.

He settled in Idaho after being hired as a lobbyist for Boise-based engineering
firm Morrison Knudsen Corp. in 1989. His wife became one of the state's
representatives to the Democratic National Committee until 2000. They had no
children.

In 1998, Stimpson received the Wright Brothers Memorial Trophy for public
service in aviation, an honor he shared with aviator Charles A. Lindbergh, World
War II pilot Lt. Gen. James H. Doolittle and Apollo 11 astronaut Neil A.
Armstrong.

And in 1999, then-President Clinton appointed Stimpson to the Council of the
International Civil Aviation Organization, a Montreal-based group that promotes
safe aviation around the world. The post carries the rank of ambassador;
Stimpson served through 2004.

Catharine Stimpson remembered one flight she took with her brother in Washington
state where his concern for safety caught her attention.

"He saw the pilot doing something he did not approve of," she said. "Believe me,
that pilot will not forget what he heard."

For two decades, Stimpson was a board member at the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical
University in Florida, where a residence hall and laboratory have been named
after him.

In April 2008, Stimpson was named to a Federal Aviation Administration panel to
recommend improvements to airline safety measures after concerns arose that the
FAA allowed Southwest Airlines to fly dozens of Boeing 737s without inspecting
them for fuselage cracks as required and that Southwest's system for complying
with FAA safety directives hadn't been inspected since 1999.

Hi!
 First, Happy Thanksgiving!
 Secondly, hot political topics in Rhode Island are the R.I. Congressman Patrick
Kennedy and his battle with the R.C. Bishop Tobin over abortion, the nomination
of O. Rogeriee Thompson to be a federal judge, and the civil trial concerning
actor James Woods over the handling of his brother Michael Woods in Kent
Hospital in Warwick, where the brother died. Michael Woods was a former
Democratic candidate for Mayor of Warwick. That fact (mayoral candidate), I note
seems to be omitted from press coverage on the trial, which I realize may not be
that relevant to that story. Also a former Jamestown Town Council member David
Swain was recently convicted in Tortola in the British Virgin Islands for
murdering his wife.
 I am a descendant of some of The Pilgrims. I belong to The Alden Kindred of
America www.alden.org  President Coolidge and both Adams Presidents are
descendants as well as VP Dan Quayle,. I have yet to join The Mayflower Society
www.mayflower.org ,.
 In closing, check out The Providence Journal www.projo.com for the stories
above. 
Regards,
Scott

Scott Bill Hirst
20 Maple Court
Ashaway,RI 02804-1300 USA
(401)377-4643
Note:Telephone if you need quick reply.

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Former Assemblyman Takasugi died on 11/19/2009 in Oxnard,CA.

==============================================

Nao Takasugi

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - Former state Assemblyman Nao Takasugi (NAH'-oh
tah-kah-SOO'-gee), who was sent to a Japanese internment camp during World War
II, has died. He was 87.

Takasugi, a Republican from Oxnard, spent six years in the Legislature before he
was termed out of office in 1998. He had been the mayor of Oxnard for 10 years
before winning the Assembly seat.

His son, Ronald Takasugi, said Friday that his father died Thursday night of
complications from a stroke. Robert Garcia of Garcia Mortuary in Oxnard told The
Associated Press that arrangements are pending.

Takasugi was a 19-year-old student at UCLA when he was sent to an internment
camp. He later graduated from Temple University in Philadelphia before returning
to California.

Hi!
 A lawyer by an the name of Michael J. Gardiner is running for U.S. House, 2nd
Cong. District of Rhode Island as a Republican. It wasin THe Providence Journal
today www.projo.com ,. Mark Zaccaria who ran in 2008 is also running again. Mr,
Gardiner is an unknown politically and I cannot comment on him.
 This Thursday at my Elks Lodge in Westerly, R.I., Gardiner, Zaccaria,
and Elizabeth Dennigan a Democrat will meet for candidates in that race. Erik
Wallin, a Republican Attorney General candidate will be present. Jim Langevin is
the Democratic U.S. House member from our district who is known to be running
again. Interestingly, Dennigan resigned her State House seat to run in our
district and has changed her residence or will do so. Ironically she did not
have to do so to make a run in the district she was not a voter in! Patrick
Kennedy, Ted's son is the U.S. House member in that district.
 The forum will be from 7 to 9:30 P.M., in the evening and contact people are
Gina Fuller and Steve Wright at 401-935-7600 and rivc@... ,. The web site of
the hosting organization is http://rhodeislandvotercoalition.org/ ,. This is the
Rhode Island Voter Coalition.
 Sharing with some contacts through "Bcc:" including e-mail address above,.
Regards,
Scott

Scott Bill Hirst
20 Maple Court
Ashaway,RI 02804-1300 USA
(401)377-4643
Note:Telephone if you need quick reply.

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Ambassador Lilley died in Washington, DC on 11/12/2009.

================================

James Lilley, a former ambassador to China, dies
The Associated Press

James R. Lilley, a longtime CIA operative and later the U.S. ambassador to China
during the time of the Tiananmen Square crackdown, has died. He was 81.

The Washington Post said Lilley, who was born in China to an oilman father and
schoolteacher mother, died Thursday in Washington from complications related to
prostate cancer.

Lilley had a close relationship with former President George H.W. Bush dating to
the early 1970s, when Lilley headed the CIA's operations in Beijing and Bush was
the chief of the U.S. mission there. During the 1989 Tiananmen protests, Lilley,
a stern critic of the crackdown, often sent his reports about the unfolding
events directly to Bush, who was then president.

In a statement Friday, Bush called Lilley "a most knowledgeable and effective
ambassador who served with great honor and distinction."

Bush said he'd spoken with Lilley just a few days before his death.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who is traveling in Asia, said she
was saddened to learn of Lilley's death and called him "one of our nation's
finest diplomats."

She said Lilley "inspired generations of China hands."

Lilley who earlier served as the ambassador to South Korea, was the ambassador
to China from 1989 to 1991, "one of the most difficult periods in our bilateral
relations," Clinton said.

==========================================

JAMES R. LILLEY, 81
U.S. ambassador to China served during crackdown at Tiananmen Square

By John Pomfret
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, November 14, 2009

James R. Lilley, 81, a longtime CIA operative in Asia who served as ambassador
to China during the Tiananmen Square crackdown and was regarded as one of the
most pragmatic voices on the modern Sino-American relationship, died Nov. 12 at
Sibley Memorial Hospital. He had complications related to prostate cancer.

Mr. Lilley, born in China, the son of an oilman and a schoolteacher, had a
storied career as an intelligence officer in Asia. Gruff with a no-nonsense
manner and a keen eye for detail that peppered his reports from the field, Mr.
Lilley was singular in the fractious world of China-watching in that he was
respected by both Communist China and Taiwan and across the political spectrum
at home. Alone among U.S. officials, Mr. Lilley served as a U.S. ambassador to
China and as the top American representative to Taiwan.

"Because he was raised in China, Jim Lilley had the ability to view China as an
ordinary country with no romanticism about his views," said J. Stapleton Roy,
who succeeded him as ambassador to China in 1991. "On the one hand, he could be
very critical of China. On the other hand, he could weigh in when you weren't
expecting it with a defense of our relationship with China."

The height of the public portion of Mr. Lilley's career came during the
Tiananmen Square protests in 1989. Because of a close relationship with
then-President George H.W. Bush -- Mr. Lilley had served as the CIA station
chief in the U.S. mission in Beijing when Bush was chief of mission during the
early 1970s -- his graphic reports about the dramatic events unfolding in
Beijing were often sent directly to the president.

Mr. Lilley was a harsh critic of the crackdown. He housed top Chinese dissident
Fang Lizhi in the embassy for a year and a month before the Chinese allowed Fang
to leave for the United States. But Mr. Lilley also played a critical role in
arranging a secret trip by two senior U.S. officials to Beijing after the
crackdown to assure China that the United States valued its relationship with
Beijing.

James Roderick Lilley was born Jan. 15, 1928, in Qingdao, a resort in Shandong
province famed for its German-run brewery and its white sand beaches. He had an
idyllic childhood in an international community, with a Chinese nanny who
attended to his every need. Mr. Lilley idolized his eldest brother, Frank, whom
he would follow to Yale and also into the U.S. Army.

Mr. Lilley was an 18-year-old serving at Fort Dix, N.J., when he learned that
Frank had committed suicide in 1946 at a U.S. military base outside Hiroshima,
Japan. Mr. Lilley dedicated his 2004 memoir, "China Hands," to his brother who
"died young and pure so that we could carry on."

Mr. Lilley joined the CIA in 1951. Three years later, he married Sally Booth.
The District resident survives, along with the couple's children, Jeffrey Lilley
of Silver Spring, Doug Lilley of the District and Michael Lilley of Rumson,
N.J.; a sister; and six grandchildren.

Mr. Lilley started his career, he wrote, "as a foot soldier in America's covert
efforts to keep Asia from being dominated by Communist China." He helped insert
agents into China, gathered intelligence in Hong Kong and battled against the
Communist takeover in Laos. He served as ambassador to South Korea, among other
posts.

Mr. Lilley was involved in bureaucratic battles that resonate today. In the
early 1980s as chief of the American Institute in Taiwan, the de facto U.S.
Embassy there, Mr. Lilley clashed with State Department officials over arms
sales to Taiwan. Senior State Department officials wanted to bend to Chinese
pressure and agree to a cutoff date; Mr. Lilley thought this was unwise and
represented an unnecessary present to Beijing.

In the end, the Reagan administration agreed in a letter to the Chinese
government that "there would naturally be a decrease in the need for arms by
Taiwan," a clause that has bedeviled U.S. relations with China each time
Washington agrees to sell Taiwan another batch of weapons.

Gov. King died on 11/13/2009 at his ranch in Stanley, NM.

=========================================

Nov 13, 12:22 PM EST

Former New Mexico Gov. Bruce King dies at age 85

By DEBORAH BAKER
Associated Press Writer

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) -- Former New Mexico Gov. Bruce King, a folksy cattle
rancher who served more time as governor than anyone else and became an
institution in state politics, died Friday. He was 85.

Attorney General Gary King announced his father's death.

King was a Democrat who served three terms that spanned three decades. He was in
office in 1971-74, 1979-82 and 1991-94.

King was with family members at his ranch in Stanley when he died Friday
morning. His death comes less than a year after the death of his wife of 61
years.

"None of us in the family thought this day would come so soon after we lost my
mom, Alice King, but we are comforted by the thought that Bruce and Alice can be
together once again," Gary King said in a statement released by his office.

King had been ill and was recovering from a heart procedure in September to
adjust the pacemaker that was implanted after he had a heart attack in 1997.

Gov. Bill Richardson ordered flags flown at half-staff, saying King's death
"leaves a huge void in our state."

"Bruce King was an innovative, farsighted governor who knew the state better
than any living New Mexican," Richardson said. "He was as genuine and colorful
as his cowboy boots. I can just hear him say `mighty fine' as he shook another
hand."

King was known for the sharp political mind behind his country-boy manner. He
was famous for entering restaurants and greeting people table-by-table with a
vigorous handshake and a down-home, "How y'all doing? Fine. Fine."

He also was known for his malapropisms, once telling a lawmaker that the
lawmaker's proposal could "open up a whole box of Pandoras."

King told The Associated Press in 2005 at a Moriarty restaurant, where he and
family members met for morning coffee for decades, that he was happy to be known
for working with New Mexico's diverse groups and political parties.

He retained programs he liked from governors who preceded him, occasionally
keeping key personnel, whether from a Democratic or Republican regime.

King said he was proudest of his economic development accomplishments,
particularly an Intel Corp. computer chip plant in Rio Rancho. But he also was
governor during one of the most horrific events in New Mexico history: a 1980
prison riot at the old main penitentiary near Santa Fe. Thirty-three inmates
were butchered by other prisoners.

King said in 2005 that he resisted advice from around the country to storm the
prison immediately. The slain inmates were killed in the early hours of the
riot, and King said his concern was to keep alive a dozen prison workers taken
hostage. None of the employees was killed.

The situation at the penitentiary before the riot was "kind of like the guy who
was going to control the tea kettle by just putting Scotch tape and taping over
the spout and lid," King said. "And as he heated it up, well, it just has to
give. That's kind of where we were."

Details about memorial services were pending.

Fmr. Amb. Kimelman died on 11/9/2009 in West Palm Beach, FL.

===========================================

Kimelman, McGovern fundraiser, dies in Fla. at 88

By JENNIFER KAY
Associated Press Writer
Posted on Wednesday, 11.11.09

MIAMI -- Henry Kimelman, whose fundraising and support for Sen. George McGovern
in the 1972 presidential campaign earned him a spot on President Richard Nixon's
"enemies list," has died. He was 88.

Kimelman died Monday of heart failure at his home in West Palm Beach, his son
Donald said Wednesday.

Henry Kimelman turned to politics after building a business career in the U.S.
Virgin Islands. He was chief of staff for Secretary of the Interior Stewart
Udall during the final year of the Johnson administration. During his time in
Washington, he befriended Sen. George McGovern of South Dakota.

While visiting Kimelman on St. Thomas in 1969, McGovern learned of Sen. Edward
Kennedy's accident on Chappaquiddick Island. A young woman passenger in
Kennedy's car died, and the Massachusett senator's plans for a presidential
campaign appeared to derail.

Kimelman encouraged him to pursue the 1972 Democratic presidential nomination,
even though most of his own staff were trying to talk him out of it, McGovern
said.

"He said, 'George, you're never going to know if you could be nominated
president and elected president unless you try. I urge you to give it a try,'"
McGovern told The Associated Press on Wednesday. "He said, 'It's a great
privilege just to run for the presidency, and you have the right position on the
issues and you're a person of reliable character and integrity.' And he never
varied from that."

Kimelman became McGovern's chief fundraiser, and his house in Washington was the
scene where the campaign told Sen. Thomas Eagleton that he could not continue to
be McGovern's running mate after it was revealed he had received electroshock
treatment for depression, Donald Kimelman said.

His support for McGovern landed him on Nixon's notorious "enemies list" of 200
political opponents.

"He wasn't surprised because he thought those people would really do anything to
retain power," his son said. "It became a point of pride."

President Jimmy Carter named Kimelman ambassador to Haiti in 1980, during the
regime of Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier.

Kimelman never thought the impoverished Caribbean country was hopeless, and he
tried pushing the dictator toward more democratic policies, his son said.

"How to get this regime to get better, to stop being president for life, to be
less corrupt - that was his position," his son said. "He was concerned about a
military takeover and what that could lead to."

However, he never was able to see if his position would have succeeded because
Carter lost his re-election campaign that year.

After Carter left office, Kimelman became a founding member and officer of the
Council of American Ambassadors, a Washington-based nonprofit group.

Kimelman was born on Jan. 21, 1921, in Brooklyn, New York. He studied business
administration at New York University, and he enlisted in the Navy after the
attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941.

Kimelman was a prominent businessman in the U.S. Virgin Islands. He helped his
father-in-law, Sidney Kessler, run the Virgin Isle Hotel on St. Thomas after it
opened in 1950. At the time, it was the largest hotel on St. Thomas. One of
Kimelman's marketing strategies was to give any guest a free room on nights when
the temperature dropped below 70 degrees; the hotel never had to give away a
free night. He became the islands' first commissioner of commerce in 1960.

His later years were focused on philanthropy in South Florida and in the Virgin
Islands, including a cancer center, a community foundation and school projects,
his son said.

Kimelman is survived by his wife, Charlotte, sons Donald and John and a
daughter, Suzi Edwards. A memorial service will be held next week on St. Thomas.

During The Dirksen Center's annual Congress in the Classroom® workshop --
http://www.dirksencenter.org/print_programs_CongressClassroom.htm --
participants are asked to introduce the lesson plans, resources, and techniques
that have proven successful in teaching about Congress in their classrooms. A
2009 participant, Erica Powell, Mt. Diablo High School, Concord, CA, presented a
lesson entitled, "Congress: A Vocabulary Review."

This activity is based on a game called "Shenanigans." The purpose of this
lesson is to review students’ knowledge of key concepts and terms related to
Congress.

Find  "Congress: A Vocabulary Review" at:
http://www.congresslink.org/print_lp_congressvocabrev.htm

Cindy Koeppel
The Dirksen Congressional Center
2815 Broadway
Pekin, IL 61554
309.347.7113
309.347.6432 Fax

Web site:  http://www.dirksencongressionalcenter.org
Facebook: 
http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Dirksen-Congressional-Center/144144304380
Twitter:  http://twitter.com/dirksencenter

Gov. Avery died on 11/4/2009 (unknown location).

=========================================

Former Kan. Gov. Avery Dies

TOPEKA, Kan. -- Former Kansas Gov. William Avery, who served one term in the
Statehouse in the 1960s, has died. He was 98.

Gov. Mark Parkinson's office said Thursday that Avery, a Republican who served
as governor from 1965-66, died Wednesday night. He served for 10 years as a
congressman from the 2nd District before running for governor.

Born Aug. 11, 1911, Avery grew up on the family farm in Wakefield. After
graduating from the University of Kansas he returned to Wakefield to farm and
raise livestock.

Avery entered politics as a local school board member after a stint as a pilot
in World War II. He then served in the Kansas House from 1951-55 before being
elected to Congress.

Funeral plans haven't been announced by the family.

==============

TOPEKA | William Avery, a one-term Republican governor in the 1960s and former
U.S. House member, has died, the governor's office said Thursday. He was 98.

Gov. Mark Parkinson's office said Avery died Wednesday and ordered flags across
the state lowered until Nov. 14.

"Governor Avery led our state during a time of tragic loss and national
attention. Kansas honors his long life and service to our state. Our thoughts
and prayers are with his children and family," Parkinson said in a statement.

Born Aug. 11, 1911, he grew up on the family farm in Wakefield. After graduating
from the University of Kansas he returned there to farm and raise livestock.

Avery entered politics as a local school board member after a stint as a pilot
in World War II. He then served in the Kansas House from 1951-55. After that,
Avery began a decade-long career as a congressman from the 2nd District before
running for governor.

Avery served his one term from 1965-66, when a governor's term was two years. He
was defeated for re-election by Democrat Robert Docking, receiving 44 percent of
the vote.

His most notable achievement as the state's 37th governor was recommending the
establishment of a state income tax withholding system in 1965. It was part of a
package of income and sales tax increases to improve public schools.

But he also signed legislation legalizing studded snow tires and banning trading
stamps, which were popular in the 1960s. He also established the first private
club law at a time when liquor by the drink in public establishments was banned.

Avery once said the number of state taxpayers after the withholding law took
effect indicated 10 percent of Kansans hadn't been paying their state income
tax.

"Quite obviously, I didn't endear myself to those people who weren't paying
their taxes," he said.

Docking campaigned against some of the tax proposals, saying they were excessive
and unfair to the poor. Avery said statewide unification of school districts
also may have cost him votes for a second term.

Not everything Avery did was unpopular. He denied a reprieve request from Perry
Smith and Richard Hickock, who were hanged at Lansing State Prison on April 14,
1965, for the 1959 slayings of Herbert Clutter, his wife and two children, in
Holcomb. The murders were immortalized by Truman Capote in his novel "In Cold
Blood."

Another controversy was a bill directing the state Board of Health to give out
birth control information along with contraceptives to married couples. Avery
said he was pressured to veto the measure but let it become law without his
signature.

He was governor when the House changed its system of representation to make it
conform to the U.S. Supreme Court's one-man, one-vote mandate for equal
representation. The old system in place since 1873 gave each county one
representative and distributed the remaining 20 among the most populous
counties, leaving rural counties over-represented.

After being turned out of office, Avery moved to Wichita where he became an oil
company executive. In 1968, he made a final bid for public office when he lost
the GOP primary for the U.S. Senate to Bob Dole.

In 1977, he returned to Wakefield to resume a role with the Farmers and
Merchants Bank. In 2000, the post office in his hometown was renamed in his
honor.

Funeral services for Avery haven't been announced by his family.

Hi!
 To see 2009 election results try this addresses. If these don't work a search
can bring you results and sample ballots:
 Connecticut: http://www.sots.ct.gov/sots/site/default.asp
 New Jersey: http://www.njelections.org/results_2009_doe.html
 New York: http://www.elections.state.ny.us/2009ElectionResults.html
 Pennsylvania: http://www.electionreturns.state.pa.us/
 Rhode Island: http://www.elections.state.ri.us
 Virginia: http://www.sbe.virginia.gov/cms/Index.html
 Sharing with some contacts under "Bcc:",.
Regards,
Scott

Scott Bill Hirst
20 Maple Court
Ashaway,RI 02804-1300 USA
(401)377-4643
Note:Telephone if you need quick reply.

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Fmr. Gov. Treen died in Metairie, LA on 10/29/2009.

====================================================

Former Louisiana Gov. Dave Treen dead at 81

Advocate Capitol News Bureau
Published: Oct 29, 2009 - UPDATED: 8:15 p.m.

Former Louisiana Gov. Dave Treen, the state's first Republican governor since
Reconstruction, died at the age of 81.

Treen's son, David C. Treen Jr., said the former governor died early Thursday of
complications from a respiratory illness at East Jefferson General Hospital in
Metairie. Treen had been in the hospital about two days, his son said.

Funeral arrangements are incomplete. But Gov. Bobby Jindal's office announced
plans for a memorial service Monday in the State Capitol followed by a public
visitation. Jindal ordered flags at the Capitol to fly at half-staff.

Treen's family scheduled services for Tuesday at St. Timothy on the Northshore
United Methodist Church in Mandeville, where his wife, Dodie who died in 2005,
is interred.

Visitation begins at 9 a.m. Tuesday and services start at 11 a.m. The public is
invited.

Treen was the leader of the state's Republican party during its early emergence
in the 1970s after about a century of Democratic Party domination. He was the
first congressman and the first governor elected as a Republican in decades.

But family and friends on Thursday remembered Treen as someone whose kindness
spilled over into his politics.

Treen's son in law, Lloyd Lunceford, recalled his first trip to Metairie in 1976
to meet the parents of Cynthia, the woman who would become his wife.

Treen arrived home, wearing a tuxedo, after having dinner with then-President
Gerald R. Ford, Lunceford recalled.

Perhaps sensing the young man's nervousness at meeting his girlfriend's father,
who also happened to be buddy of the president, Treen ran up stairs, changed
into fuchsia-and-lime-green golf pants, then returned to chat up his daughter's
suitor.

"It became apparent that he had chosen to go the extra mile to put me at ease.
That spoke to me about his thoughtfulness and humility," Lunceford said. "I was
privileged to call him friend, and I miss him dearly."

In Washington, D.C., the U.S. House of Representatives held a moment of silence
for Treen Thursday afternoon after addresses by Democratic U.S. Rep. Charles
"Charlie" Melancon of Napoleonville and Republican U.S. Rep. Steve Scalise of
Metairie.

Louis Lambert of Prairieville, who lost the 1979 governor's race that made Treen
Louisiana's first Republican governor in about a century, said Treen was the
"grandfather" of the Republican Party in Louisiana.

"He was a Republican when it was not very popular and there were very few,"
Lambert said in an interview Thursday.

Treen was born in Baton Rouge on July 16, 1928 and attended elementary school
here before his family moved. Treen lived in the Carrollton section of New
Orleans during his high school years.

He attended Tulane University and graduated from Tulane Law School in 1950.
After law school Treen served in the U.S. Air Force.

Treen married Dolores "Dodie" Brisbi in May 1951.

His first active political work was in the 1956 challenge to then-U.S. Rep. Hale
Boggs of New Orleans by then-U.S. Attorney George Blue. Boggs won easily and
Treen partnered with Blue in a New Orleans law firm that became known as Beard,
Blue, Schmitt & Treen.

Treen initially was a member of the States Rights Party. He then joined a
fledgling state Republican Party and challenged Boggs in 1962, collecting 32
percent of the vote.

After losing a third time to Boggs with 49 percent of the vote in 1968,
Republicans pressed Treen to run as their candidate for governor in 1971. He
lost to Edwin W. Edwards.

Treen then won the Third District Congressional seat in November 1972.

Former Democratic U.S. Sen. John Breaux worked with Treen in the U.S. House
beginning with Treen's arrival in January 1973 until he became governor in 1979.

"He was the odd man out because he was the only Republican in the delegation,"
Breaux said in an interview Thursday morning. "He wasn't your typical
beat-your-opponent-to-death kind of guy. He was always someone you could work
with."

Former Republican U.S. Rep. Bob Livingston recalled, "He was one of those guys
in Congress who read every bill."

When elected governor in 1979, Treen focused on education and helped get
incentive pay for teachers. He appointed more minorities to state government
than any of his predecessors.

Ray Lamonica, Treen's former executive counsel who now serves as counsel for the
LSU System, said Treen was sometimes unfairly viewed as "amateurish" because he
intentionally did not embrace old-school politics.

Treen also had to deal with being politically stonewalled at times because
Edwards attempted to run a "shadow government" during Treen's term, Lamonica
said.

Treen's term was marked by frustration over a downturn in Louisiana's
boom-and-bust, oil-based economy. Oil prices and production fell during his
tenure, cutting sharply into state revenues. He tried to make up for it by
taking on oil with a proposal to tax production, but business interests shot it
down.

Sally A. Nungesser, who was Treen's press secretary, said Thursday: "He was such
a force for good, truly believing in what he was doing and always so careful to
make sure he did the right thing in every situation."

Although many of Treen's legislative initiatives failed to win passage, the
ideas are still being discussed today, such as setting performance standards in
public education, she said.

Winston R. Day said Treen's "most important and lasting contribution" was
establishing the state Department of Environmental Quality. Day, who was DEQ's
first secretary, recalls a hard battle in which Treen overcame opposition from
the oil and gas industry and from Edwards' supporters.

But Treen lost in 1984.

Edwards, who preceded and succeeded Treen's one term, delighted in making Treen
the butt of his jokes. Edwards once famously quipped that Treen was "so slow it
takes him an hour and a half to watch `60 Minutes.'"

Treen didn't hold a grudge. He became the most vocal champion to release Edwards
from federal prison.

Edwards is serving a 10-year federal sentence for a scheme to rig the riverboat
casino licensing process during his fourth and final term in office, which ended
in 1996. Treen repeatedly called for a commutation of the 82-year-old former
governor's sentence, scheduled to end in 2011, but the appeal failed even as the
Bush administration ended.

Former House speaker E.L. "Bubba" Henry, now a Baton Rouge lawyer, said Treen's
push to free Edwards was indicative of Treen's character.

"Edwards was not always charitable toward Dave Treen. He poked fun at him,"
Henry said in an interview about Treen's efforts to free Edwards. "That was
above and beyond what most of us would do."

"He was a worthy adversary and an absolute honorable man," Edwards said Thursday
in a prepared statement released to The Associated Press through family friend
Mary Jane Marcantel. "In spite of the different roads we traveled, we had become
very good friends."

Treen is survived by his son, two daughters and nine grandchildren.

Jordan Blum, Michelle Millhollon, Gerard Shields and Marsha Shuler of the
Capitol news bureau and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Fmr. Sen. Hansen died in Jackson, WY on 10/20/2009.

===========================================

Former Wyo. governor, US Sen. Clifford Hansen dies

By MATT JOYCE
Associated Press Writer

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) -- Former Wyoming governor and U.S. Sen Clifford Hansen, a
rancher who rode his agricultural background to political success in Cheyenne
and Washington, D.C., died Tuesday night. He was 97.

Hansen, who suffered from ailments including respiratory problems and had
returned home Monday after hospital treatment for a broken pelvis, died at his
home in Jackson, his son, Peter Hansen said.

Clifford was the nation's oldest living former senator.

"I am sure there are many things that could be said," Peter Hansen said. "He was
a wonderful husband, father, and I'm sure other people will say many other
things."

Hansen, a Republican, was elected governor in 1962. As governor, he supported
lowering the voting age from 21 to 18, increasing retirement pay for state
employees and repealing the state's ban on accepting federal aid for education.

As his term as governor drew to a close in 1966, Hansen ran for the Senate,
beating Democrat Teno Roncalio.

In the Senate, Hansen served on the Veterans Affairs Committee, the Finance
Committee and the Special Committee on Aging. He backed reservoir projects in
Wyoming, designating national recreation areas and wilderness areas in Wyoming,
and placing a ceiling on federal expenditures.

Hansen was re-elected in 1972 and stepped down in 1978.

Hansen was born Oct. 16, 1912, to Peter and Sylvia Hansen, who homesteaded at
Zenith in Jackson Hole. Hansen attended public schools in Jackson and graduated
from the University of Wyoming in 1934 with a degree in animal science.

He returned to Jackson Hole to ranch and married Martha Close in the fall of
1934.

Clifford Hansen was proud of his lasting marriage, Peter Hansen said. The couple
celebrated its 75th anniversary on Sept. 24.

Hansen began in politics as a Teton County commissioner from 1943 to 1951. As a
commissioner, he fought to keep hunting legal in Grand Teton National Park and
to obtain payments in lieu of taxes for people who turned over land for the new
park.

Hansen also was president of the Wyoming Stock Growers Association from 1953 to
1955 and was a University of Wyoming trustee from 1946 to 1963.

In 1995, he was inducted into the National Cowboy Hall of Fame as a "Great
Westerner."

Hansen is survived by his wife, Martha, son, Peter, five grandchildren and 10
great-grandchildren. His daughter, Mary Mead, ran unsuccessfully for governor in
1990 and died when thrown from a horse while herding cattle in 1996.

Arrangements were pending.

* NEW LESSON PLAN * THE PUBLIC’S VIEW OF CONGRESS: A STUDY IN CONTRASTS THROUGH
FILM

During The Dirksen Center's annual Congress in the Classroom® workshop --
http://www.dirksencenter.org/print_programs_CongressClassroom.htm --
participants are asked to introduce the lesson plans, resources, and techniques
that have proven successful in teaching about Congress in their classrooms. A
2009 participant, René M. Lafayette, Northbridge High School, Whitinsville, MA,
presented a lesson entitled, "The Public’s View of Congress: a Study in
Contrasts through Film."

After completing this lesson, students will (1) gain an understanding of the
public’s perception of Congress over time as represented in film, and (2) see
how film-makers depict Congress.

Find "The Public’s View Of Congress: A Study In Contrasts Through Film" at:
http://www.congresslink.org/print_lp_publicviewofcongress.htm

Cindy Koeppel
The Dirksen Congressional Center

Former Congressman & U.S. Mint Director Jay Johnson died on 10/17/2009 in
Bristow, Prince William County, Virginia.

================================

Oct 19, 2:27 AM EDT

Ex-Wis. Rep. Johnson, longtime TV journalist, dies

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) -- Former Wisconsin Rep. Jay Johnson, who spent three
decades as a television journalist before jumping into politics and heading the
U.S. Mint, has died. He was 66.

Johnson passed away Saturday night of an apparent heart attack at his home in
suburban Washington, D.C., family spokeswoman Danielle Bina said Sunday.

"He could just light up a room," said Bina, who shared the anchor desk with
Johnson in the late 1980s and early 1990s in Green Bay. "He could work a room
like no one I've ever met. ... I would categorize him as having the biggest
heart of anyone in the business."

Johnson spent 32 years as a journalist in Wisconsin, Florida and Michigan before
running for Congress. The Democrat was elected to Wisconsin's 8th District in
1996, and served on the House transportation and agriculture committees. He lost
after one term to Republican Mark Green.

President Bill Clinton nominated Johnson to serve as director of the U.S. Mint
in 1999, a position he held from May 2000 to August 2001. The next year he
started Jay Johnson Coins and Consulting, where he developed a major wholesale
coin sales program for a national bank, according to a biography on his Web
site.

Before entering politics, he worked as an anchor and reporter at WLUK-TV and
WFRV-TV, both in Green Bay. He also worked in markets in Florida and Michigan,
and spent time as a disc jockey in Texas. The Michigan native also served in the
Army as an information specialist from 1966 to 1968.

Bina, who used her maiden name, Kegel, when she worked with Johnson, said the
two have remained friends over the years and just spoke a couple of weeks ago.

"Jay had a sense of humor and an outgoing, wonderful people-sense that was
second to none," Bina said. "He was a kind, patient, wonderful guy."

Johnson is survived by his wife, JoLee, and two stepchildren. Funeral
arrangements were pending Sunday.

===================================================

Editorial: Viewers, voters will remember Johnson
October 20, 2009

Jay Johnson was a journalist for 32 years and a member of the U.S. House of
Representatives for only two. "Of the two jobs, nothing can beat working in
Congress," he said in an interview with the Green Bay Press-Gazette last winter.

Johnson, 66, died Saturday at his home in suburban Washington, D.C., of an
apparent heart attack. One of only three Democrats since World War II elected to
the House from the 8th Congressional District, he savored the time he spent
serving the people who had known him as a television news anchor for 16 years.

After coming into our homes via WFRV, Channel 5, from 1980 to 1986, Johnson
moved to WLUK, Channel 11, from 1987 until he left to run for Congress in 1996.

"It's not like you can keep your job," he laughed, noting the obvious conflict
of interest that would arise from being a fair-and-balanced journalist and a
candidate at the same time.

He was part of the Congress in 1998 when it passed the first balanced budget in
30 years, and he was there when the House voted to impeach President Clinton.
(The Senate later acquitted the president.) Johnson said his votes against the
four articles of impeachment were his most vivid memories of that time.

After then-state Rep. Mark Green denied Johnson a second term in Congress,
Clinton appointed him the 36th director of the U.S. Mint, a job he said he
loved.

"The first government building ever built was the mint, and the first agency
mentioned in the Constitution is the U.S. Mint," Johnson said with pride. He
started Jay Johnson Coins and Collecting after leaving the mint in 2002, and in
recent years he was a spokesman for the Franklin Mint and the Morgan Mint.

In 1988, he was recognized for his work with Big Brothers Big Sisters and the
Family Violence Center, organizations for which he advocated on and off the air.

All of the people who have offered comments about the death of Jay Johnson seem
to begin with a variation of what his WFRV co-anchor, Mary Smits Larson said to
the Press-Gazette on Sunday: "He was a good guy and he was kind to everybody. He
was always a gentleman in every sense of the word."

That's a good way to be remembered.

==============================================

Former Rep. Jay Johnson Dies at 66
By Tricia Miller
Roll Call Staff
Oct. 20, 2009, 12 a.m.

Former Wisconsin Rep. Jay Johnson (D), who worked as a journalist, politician
and eventually director of the U.S. Mint, died suddenly Saturday in Bristow, Va.
He was 66.

Johnson was born in Bessemer, Mich., on Sept. 30, 1943. He completed an
associate degree at Gogebic Community College, a bachelor's degree at Northern
Michigan University and a master's degree at Michigan State University. Between
earning degrees, he served as an information specialist based in Texas in the
Army from 1966 to 1968.

Johnson kicked off a 32-year career as a broadcaster soon after college and
spent the bulk of his career as a TV reporter at two stations in Wisconsin. In
1996 he ran for an open House seat and upset state Speaker David Prosser,
earning 52 percent of the vote. In 1998, he was similarly upset by Republican
state Rep. Mark Green, who went on to serve four terms.

Johnson's commitment to public service didn't wane after his re-election loss.
He served local nonprofits, including the Green Bay Family Violence Center,
Easter Seals of Wisconsin, United Way of Brown County and Wisconsin United Way,
in a wide range of capacities.

He took several low-level government jobs before finding a unique second
calling. In late 1999, President Bill Clinton appointed him director of the U.S.
Mint. Johnson served as director from May 2000 to August 2001. He developed an
expertise in numismatics and established his own firm, Jay Johnson Coins and
Consulting, in 2002. The Boeing Co., Paragon Technology Group, DanSources and
Jackson Metals were among his clients, according to the firm's Web site. In
2001, he received an American Numismatic Association Presidential Award, and
this summer he had become a spokesman for Goldline International Inc., marrying
his love of broadcast and gold.

Rep. Steve Kagen (D), who represents part of Johnson's former district, put out
a statement remembering his predecessor Monday.

"Jay Johnson was a kind and gentle friend to everyone in Northeast Wisconsin,"
the statement reads. "He served the best interests of all our families and will
be missed greatly."

Hi!
 Mike Huckabee has his own show on Fox News Channel seen tonight at 8 P.M., and
repeated the next night also at 8 P.M.,. It been on awhile.  For tickets contact
1-877-225-8587 or hucktix@... ,. General comments for the show is
huckmail@... ,.   FYI!
Regards,
Scott

Scott Bill Hirst
20 Maple Court
Ashaway,RI 02804-1300 USA
(401)377-4643
Note:Telephone if you need quick reply.

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Fmr. Congressman Davis died in Arlington, VA on 10/16/2009.

=========================================

Oct 16, 7:48 AM EDT

Former US Rep. Bob Davis of Michigan dies at 77

By MIKE HOUSEHOLDER
Associated Press Writer

DETROIT (AP) -- Former Michigan congressman Bob Davis, who represented northern
Lower Michigan and the Upper Peninsula for seven terms in Congress, has died. He
was 77.

Mark Ruge, who served as chief of staff for Davis, says the former congressman
died Friday at a hospice in Arlington, Va. Ruge says Davis had suffered kidney
and heart failure.

Davis' congressional district was one of the largest in the nation.

Davis served as the top Republican on the committee that oversaw federal Great
Lakes policy and championed the process that eventually led to the establishment
of the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary near Alpena.

In his last act in Congress, Davis helped create the Keweenaw National
Historical Park, a part of the National Park Service.

Davis also served two terms in the Michigan House and two terms in the state
Senate.

========================

Funeral for ex-Congressman

Former Rep. Bob Davis, a Republican who represented the upper peninsula of
Michigan for 14 years and retired from Congress in 1993, died Friday.

He settled in the D.C. area after his retirement, but traveled back to Michigan
frequently, according to an obituary released by his former chief of staff.

The funeral will be held Monday, October 19 at Grace Episcopal Church in
Alexandria at 4:30 p.m. with a reception to immediately follow.

Posted by Glenn Thrush 03:51 PM

================================

Judge Justice died on 10/13/2009 in Austin, TX.

==================================

Federal judge who shattered old Texas dies at 89

By APRIL CASTRO
Associated Press Writer

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -- U.S. District Judge William Wayne Justice, whose rulings
shattered old Texas by changing the way the state educated children, treated
prisoners and housed its poorest and most vulnerable citizens, has died. He was
89.

His law clerk, Kelly Davis, said the judge died Tuesday in Austin.

The soft-spoken jurist spent three often tumultuous decades on the bench
following his appointment by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1968. To some,
Justice was a judicial renegade who disregarded the public's will by imposing
his own concepts on a conservative state.

But his decisions are widely credited for creating a modern Texas. They forced
the state to dramatically expand and improve its prison and juvenile justice
systems, and to dismantle racial barriers in public housing and education. He
opened public schools to the children of illegal immigrants and provided
bilingual education in rulings that were later used as the foundation of
national policy.

"I'm basically a very shy, retiring person, but fate has put me in a situation
where I've been in the midst of controversy," he wrote in his 1991 book,
"William Wayne Justice, A Judicial Biography."

After only two years on the bench, he ordered the state in 1970 to eliminate
racial segregation in public schools after many districts ignored desegregation
federal policies. That ruling, U.S. v. Texas, affected more than 1,000 school
districts and 2 million students statewide.

Justice ordered Texas to provide free public education for illegal immigrants
and their children following a class action lawsuit filed in September 1977. The
suit accused East Texas' Smith County of excluding children of Mexican decent
from public schools because they couldn't show legal U.S. residency. Appeals led
to a landmark 1982 Supreme Court ruling that extended the right nationwide.

Justice took control of the Texas prison system after a 1972 lawsuit filed by
inmate David Ruiz alleged overcrowding and inhumane conditions. After a nearly
year-long trial in 1980, Justice issued a sweeping 188-page ruling that said
Texas prisons were overcrowded, understaffed and offered inadequate medical
care. Justice also found that prison officials tolerated rampant violence among
inmates, guards and inmates who worked as guards under a generations-old system
known as building tenders.

He ordered changes and appointed a special master to make sure they were
implemented. Justice found the state in contempt in 1987. Voters later that year
approved a half-billion dollars in bond for prison construction, the first step
in an unprecedented building program that today includes more than 100 prisons
housing some 154,000 inmates.

Justice ended federal oversight of the system in 2002.

That same year, Justice rebuked the administration of then-Texas Gov. George W.
Bush for failing to provide health care to children who already qualified for
Medicaid.

Justice paid a personal price for his rulings.

He became a social pariah to much of the community in Tyler where he was based
in northeast Texas and considered too controversial for a seat on the 5th U.S.
Circuit Court of Appeals. Some believed that Justice threw the law books away
and disregarded the state's conservative leanings.

"From time to time, the majority is simply wrong," Justice once said.

Justice has denied that personal ideologies determined his rulings.

"I don't have time to evolve a philosophy. I react to the evidence and facts
before me," he said in a 1983 interview.

In 2007, as state leaders attempted to hammer out a settlement in a children's
Medicaid lawsuit to avoid going before Justice, then serving as a senior judge.

"We don't feel very comfortable relying on Judge Justice to give us any slack,"
Republican Rep. Warren Chisum said during negotiations.

Ultimately, Justice approved a sweeping settlement aimed at improving access to
medical care for more than 2 million poor children in Texas.

In February 1998, Justice stepped down as Eastern District judge in Tyler to
take senior status. Although Justice's family had been in East Texas since 1866,
when his Confederate veteran grandfather moved there, he and his wife moved to
Austin to be closer to their grown daughter. He also took over the Del Rio
federal court docket for the Western District of Texas.

His father, William D. Justice, was an outspoken and flamboyant Athens, Texas,
attorney with a reputation for populist politics, a willingness to take on
unpopular cases and a refusal to reject clients for inability to pay.

On one occasion, a white man shot a black murder defendant in a crowded
courtroom. Will Justice cradled the dying man in his arms as he shamed
bystanders into providing aid, Justice said of his father.

"I'm just a pale reflection of my father," Justice said in 1998. "Now there was
a man."

The elder Justice was determined that his son go into law and renamed his law
firm "W.D. Justice and Son" when his son turned 7. The younger Justice graduated
from the University of Texas School of Law in 1942, followed by World War II
service in the Army. He returned to Athens in 1946 to join his father's firm. He
was active in the Democratic Party as a youth, though never sought elected
office.

A service will be held Monday at St. David's Episcopal Church in Austin.

---

Associated Press writers Kelley Shannon in Austin and Diana Heidgerd in Dallas
contributed to this report.

==================================

WILLIAM WAYNE JUSTICE 1920-2009

Judge Justice dies at 89
By Denise Gamino

AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF


Wednesday, October 14, 2009

His destiny was all in a name.


"Judge Justice."


William Wayne Justice was a giant in Texas history, the foreman of an audacious
legal assembly line that churned out bulging packages of civil rights, equal
justice and opportunities for the least among us.


Justice, a soft-spoken federal judge who roared in his class action rulings on
human rights over the past 41 years, died Tuesday in Austin.


He was 89 and was still serving as a U.S. district judge in Austin, although
illness had kept him out of the office for months.

A memorial service is scheduled for Monday at 10 a.m. at St. David's Episcopal
Church in downtown Austin. A public reception will follow. Private burial will
take place in the judge's East Texas hometown of Athens.

The judge also will be honored later with a monument at the Texas State
Cemetery. The dedication of that cenotaph, which has not yet been scheduled,
will be open to the public.


Justice was a legend in his own time. The very mention of his made-for-Hollywood
name could turn state officials and conservative taxpayers red with anger but
melt the hearts of reform advocates fighting to better the lives of overlooked
people who had no clout.


People either thought "Judge Justice" was an oxymoron or simply redundant.


But today, most agree that William Wayne Justice shoved Texas, against its will,
into the mainstream of society.


His legal compassion forever changed the lives of millions of schoolchildren,
prisoners, minorities, immigrants and people with disabilities in Texas. He
ordered the integration of public schools and public housing. He outlawed
crowding, beatings and inhumane medical care in prisons and youth lockups. He
ordered that community homes be provided to people with mental disabilities who
were living in large institutions. He expanded voting opportunities.


And that was just the tip of the docket.


Justice also changed the landscape of public education. He ordered education for
undocumented immigrant children and bilingual classrooms. And, back in the
nonconformist hippie days of 1970, he ruled that bearded and long-haired
students, including Vietnam veterans, had a right to attend public college. "I
held that that was silly," he said in June 2009 while reminiscing about the old
Tyler Junior College rule forbidding long hair on male students.


Some of the class action cases, many of which were the largest institutional
reform lawsuits in America, dragged on for decades and outlasted a long string
of Texas governors, lawyers and even some of the original plaintiffs.


All the while, the genteel and courtly judge slept easily at night and always
kept his number listed in the public telephone directory in the conservative
East Texas town of Tyler, where he served for 30 years before moving to Austin's
federal court in 1998 to be closer to his daughter.


He chose to ignore the many death threats, mountains of hate mail and cold
shoulders from strangers and close neighbors alike. He recently recalled walking
into a Tyler gas station after striking down the long-hair ban. "The place went
silent," he said, and the old-timers stared into their coffee cups. It was just
another daily snub for a man who challenged people's prejudices. One of the
coffee drinkers looked out the window, saw a couple of long-haired young men and
said, "They ought to be in the penitentiary."


William Wayne Justice was "perhaps the single most influential agent for change
in 20th-century Texas history," according to his official biographer, Frank
Kemerer, who was a professor at the University of North Texas for almost 30
years.


"Through a series of momentous judicial decisions, his influence would sweep
across the Texas landscape far beyond the geographic boundaries of his court and
out into the nation," he wrote in "William Wayne Justice: A Judicial Biography"
(University of Texas Press).


Justice was at the top of the list of so-called activist judges who, as a
general group, are often accused by former President George W. Bush and other
legal conservatives of interpreting the U.S. Constitution too expansively. But
Justice took to heart a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in 1958 that, in essence, the
Constitution and its amendments are "not static" and must draw "meaning from the
evolving standards of decency that mark the progress of a maturing society."


"I was never underprivileged, but I have human feelings. If you see someone in
distress, well, you want to help them if you can," Justice told the
American-Statesman in 2006. "I hope people remember me for someone trying to do
justice. That's what I've tried to do."


The late Barbara Jordan, the first black woman from the South to serve in the
U.S. Congress when she was elected from Texas in 1972, once said Justice "helped
officials in Texas state government see their duty clearly."


It may be difficult for Texas newcomers or younger generations to picture the
slight, humble man with the lopsided grin who worked out regularly at the YMCA
as someone who once was so despised by many Texans that bumper stickers called
him the "most hated man in Texas." Thirty of his more than 40 years as a federal
judge were spent in Tyler, where more than 10,000 of the 65,000 residents signed
a petition to try to have him impeached. Repair people refused to work on his
home, and when he entered a restaurant, other patrons walked out.


But today's 21st-century Texas is different from the segregation and
close-minded thinking that pervaded the state in 1968, when President Lyndon
Johnson appointed Justice to the federal bench in East Texas, where the judge
was born and raised.


Justice's courtroom in Tyler was just 35 miles from the smaller and more liberal
town of Athens, where he was born on Feb. 25, 1920. Justice's father had been a
flamboyant and highly successful criminal lawyer in Athens who added his son's
name to the law office door when the boy was only 7.


William Wayne Justice, a lifelong bookworm and sports enthusiast, knew he wanted
to be a lawyer. He attended undergraduate school at the University of Texas and
graduated from its law school in early 1942. He then served nearly four years in
the Army during World War II, ending up in India as a first lieutenant. He
practiced law with his father during the 1940s and 1950s. He was swept off his
feet in the mid-1940s by a beautiful young woman named Sue Rowan, who became his
wife on March 16, 1947. They had one child, Ellen, who lives in Austin with her
husband.


While practicing law, Justice served two terms in the part-time position of
Athens city attorney. Both Wayne and Sue Justice became active in Democratic
politics and befriended the late U.S. senator from Texas, liberal Ralph
Yarborough. In 1961, Justice was named U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of
Texas. He was reappointed in 1966.


By the time Justice was sworn in as a federal judge two years later, he had
amassed broad experience in the courtroom. Though he had never been the victim
of discrimination or deprivation, he had been introduced to the downtrodden
world and woes of the have-nots through his legal work, his parents' guidance
and the views of his humanitarian wife. In addition, a series of childhood
illnesses that he overcame, such as chronic whooping cough, had given him
valuable insight into the suffering of the underdog.


"It's when you're weak like that, you get picked on, and I guess that's where I
developed an attitude where I can understand the people that are oppressed," he
told the American-Statesman in 2006.


Justice's ascension to the federal bench came at a time of social revolution and
upheaval in America, and he was ready. It didn't take long for him to begin
roiling the status quo in rulings that were received like bombshells from the
bench.


He threw himself into one of the early cases filed in his court, the dispute
about whether Tyler Junior College could require male students to have short
hair, trimmed mustaches and no beards to ensure a peaceful campus.
"Unconstitutional," Justice quickly ruled. The best and worst of men throughout
history sported hairstyles popular in their day, he said. Further, he noted,
nearly every delegate to the Constitutional Convention would have been banned
from Tyler Junior College because of his grooming habits.


Next up were several local school racial desegregation cases, which prompted the
U.S. Justice Department to file a class action suit in his courtroom seeking to
end racial segregation in all Texas schools. The case, United States v. Texas,
was filed in 1970, 16 years after the U.S. Supreme Court had banned segregated
schools in Brown v. Board of Education.


In Texas, it was not unusual for students in all-black schools to have outhouses
rather than indoor restrooms or to have orange crates instead of chairs. Some
schools had only Hispanic students whose classroom resources were subpar.

Justice quickly sided with the federal government and ordered integration of
schools.


It didn't take long for reform advocates to find their way to his East Texas
courtroom, where they filed class action cases aimed at forcing Texas to provide
society's outcasts with the liberty, justice and equality guaranteed by the U.S.
Constitution.


In 1971, legal advocates for Texas youths incarcerated in facilities run by the
Texas Youth Council filed a class action lawsuit known as Morales v. Turman. The
case focused on illegal commitments, inhumane treatment, beatings and the use of
Mace on youths, unsupervised and poorly trained guards and punitive practices.
Some inmates were forced to pick weeds all day, shovel dirt and throw it back,
or dig dirt all day with spoons.


Justice found the conditions in the youth facilities unconstitutional and forced
the state to make sweeping reforms.


In 1972, a state prison inmate from Austin, armed robber David Ruiz, filed a
15-page handwritten petition in Justice's court. The judge consolidated it with
filings from other inmates into a class action suit against the Texas prison
system known as Ruiz v. Estelle. By the time the case was settled in 2002, the
state had been forced to make sweeping changes and expansions to prisons. Gone
are the days of using brutal inmates to "guard" other prisoners and having one
doctor for the entire system, overcrowding and long stays in solitary
confinement as punishment for trivial violations. It became the most massive
prison reform case in the country.


Justice once told a reporter, "I was haunted by the horrendous tales of physical
abuse. You try to avoid emotion ... but you don't always succeed, though."


In 1974, parents of several residents in state institutions for people with
mental disabilities filed a federal lawsuit demanding improvements in the
so-called state schools. The Lelsz v. Kavanagh class action case ran for more
than two decades and exposed deplorable conditions in the institutions,
including hosing down groups of residents in lieu of bathing them, rapes of
female residents who became pregnant and gave birth with no idea of what was
happening to their bodies, fatal beatings, woefully inadequate medical care and
a lack of appropriate activities for the residents. Justice ordered that
hundreds of residents be moved into apartments and group homes in the community.
The 21-year-old case was settled after the state closed two of the 13 state
schools (now called State Supported Living Centers), including the Travis State
School in East Austin.


In 1977, Doe v. Plyler landed in Justice's court after the Tyler school district
refused to admit children of undocumented immigrants unless they paid $1,000 in
tuition, an impossible feat for immigrant families who earned an average of only
$4,000 a year at that time in Texas. The state had outlawed free education for
noncitizens in 1975. But Justice ruled, in the first federal opinion of its
kind, that undocumented children and young adults have the same right as U.S.
citizens to attend school in Texas. Appeals landed the case before the U.S.
Supreme Court, which upheld Justice's decision. The landmark ruling extended the
education right nationwide.


"We've had more cases involving discrimination, I suppose, in Texas than most
other Southern states," Justice told the Statesman. "We've had discrimination
against blacks and against Mexican Americans. You name it; we discriminate
against it until somebody tries to correct it.


"I thought injustice was being done (with the $1,000 tuition law). It was
unconstitutional. The Supreme Court upheld me 5-4. As a result of that decision,
I think probably several million children got an education. And that's the case
I'm most proud of."


It's also the case his wife, a lifelong champion of the oppressed, cherishes as
her favorite ruling. Sue Justice told Kemerer, the judge's biographer, that a
small bouquet of flowers arrived at her home shortly after her husband issued
his ruling. It was signed with two X's and one illegible name, so she called the
florist for more information.


"He told her that three Mexican laborers had put down two dollar bills and some
change — all the money they had — and asked that the flowers be sent to Mrs.
Justice," Kemerer wrote. Sue Justice told him, "That very meager bouquet of
flowers went a long way to make up for all the suffering I've experienced" as
the wife of a controversial jurist.


The Justices had long wanted to transfer to Austin, but other federal judges
were reluctant to allow him to move to an even more visible venue that could
attract additional high-profile reform lawsuits. But a deal finally was struck,
and the Justices moved to Austin in 1998. Shortly before the move, a group of
Tyler men met in a barbershop on the edge of town to try to take up a collection
to help the judge with his moving expenses.


After transferring to the federal bench in Austin, Justice was mostly assigned
immigration and drug cases in Del Rio, where he traveled regularly for court
with his law clerks and court reporter. The drive was long and the weather was
hot along the Mexican border, but Justice never complained.


In recent years, he has received national recognition for his work to right the
wrongs of repression.


In 2004, the UT Law School honored Justice by renaming a center after him. The
William Wayne Justice Center for Public Interest Law promotes the importance of
pro bono work, public service and public interest law while encouraging students
to try to increase access to justice for all.


"Judge William Wayne Justice has been and is one of the great and courageous
judges of our time," then-UT Law Dean William Powers Jr. (now the UT president)
said when the center was renamed.


In 2006, Justice traveled to New York to receive the first Morris Dees Justice
Award, named for the Southern lawyer who has spent a career fighting racism.


In 2007, at a birthday tribute for Justice at the UT Law School, U.S. District
Judge Keith Ellison of the Southern District of Texas spoke with passion about
his colleague.


"He has, through his hard work, his high purpose and his undaunted courage,
helped make the American dream accessible to millions of men, women and children
for whom it was previously thought hopelessly out of reach. ... He has always
shown a gentle identification with the oppressed and a towering rage against the
oppressor."


Now, Justice's historic gavel has been silenced. But its mighty sound will
reverberate through Texas forever.


dgamino@...; 445-3675

Hi!
 I apologize for this. This clearly went out to all my e-mail addresses.
Regards,
Scott

Scott Bill Hirst
20 Maple Court
Ashaway,RI 02804-1300 USA
(401)377-4643
Note:Telephone if you need quick reply.

--- On Tue, 10/13/09, Scott Bill Hirst <scottbillhirst@...> wrote:


From: Scott Bill Hirst <scottbillhirst@...>
Subject: [political-graveyard] Check out my photos on Facebook
To: "Political-graveyard" <political-graveyard@yahoogroups.com>
Date: Tuesday, October 13, 2009, 12:10 PM


 



Hi political-graveyard ,

I set up a Facebook profile where I can post my pictures, videos and events and
I want to add you as a friend so you can see it. First, you need to join
Facebook! Once you join, you can also create your own profile.

Thanks,
Scott

To sign up for Facebook, follow the link below:
http://www.facebook .com/p.php? i=822188221& k=S4G4QVUYTT6GWC 1ITGY62USVVQFC6Y
V&r

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Facebook's offices are located at 1601 S. California Ave., Palo Alto, CA 94304.

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Hi political-graveyard,

I set up a Facebook profile where I can post my pictures, videos and events and
I want to add you as a friend so you can see it. First, you need to join
Facebook! Once you join, you can also create your own profile.

Thanks,
Scott

To sign up for Facebook, follow the link below:
http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=822188221&k=S4G4QVUYTT6GWC1ITGY62USVVQFC6YV&r



Already have an account? Add this email address to your account
http://www.facebook.com/n/?merge_accounts.php&i=822188221&k=S4G4QVUYTT6GWC1ITGY6\
2USVVQFC6YV.political-graveyard@yahoogroups.com was invited to join Facebook by
Scott Bill Hirst. If you do not wish to receive this type of email from Facebook
in the future, please click on the link below to unsubscribe.
http://www.facebook.com/o.php?k=865e06&u=1081495563&mid=13ea38dG4076500bG0G8
Facebook's offices are located at 1601 S. California Ave., Palo Alto, CA 94304.



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Mrs. Harper died on 10/11/2009 in Durham,NC.

=============================================

Harper, lt. gov. candidate, dies
Submitted by janestancill on October 12, 2009 - 1:07pm.
Tags: Jim Hunt | lieutenant governor | Margaret Harper | Pat Taylor | Under the
Dome

Margaret Harper, who ran twice for lieutenant governor and was a pioneer among
female political figures in North Carolina, died Sunday at Duke Hospital. She
was 92.

Harper unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor,
first losing in the 1968 primary to Pat Taylor and in 1972 to Jim Hunt, who
would become governor.

Harper, of Southport, was a businesswoman who ran an insurance agency and headed
a statewide coalition of women's organizations. During World War II, she stepped
in to edit the State Port Pilot newspaper while her husband James served in the
military.

During the 1968 campaign, she told a Meredith College audience: "I want to look
like a girl, act like a lady, think like a man and work like a dog."

After her defeat, she became vice chair of the state Democratic Party. At the
time, she predicted it would be "right many years before a woman is elected on
the state level."

In a 1981 interview, she said would run again if she were younger. And, she
said, she'd win. "I was born 20 years too soon, I think."

============================================

NC politician, newspaperwoman Harper dies at 92

Posted: Today at 2:43 p.m.
Updated: Today at 6:32 p.m.

DURHAM, N.C. — Margaret Taylor Harper, a former candidate for lieutenant
governor as the women's movement burgeoned in North Carolina who also made marks
in journalism, business and charitable work, has died. She was 92.

Harper died Sunday at Duke Hospital in Durham from complications related to a
stroke she suffered last week, according to her son, Ed Harper, editor of the
family-owned State Port Pilot newspaper in Southport.

A Brunswick County native, Harper ran for the Democratic nomination for
lieutenant governor in 1968, finishing second to Pat Taylor. She ran again four
years later, finishing third to eventual winner and later four-time Gov. Jim
Hunt.

Ed Harper said Monday his mother's bids for statewide office were a natural
extension of her political interests. She had been a leader in the North
Carolina Democratic Women and was past president of the North Carolina
Federation of Women's Clubs. Harper always wore a button that read: "Never
underestimate the power of a woman."

"I would never have called her a crusader," Ed Harper said in an interview. "But
she always had an interest in advancing the role of women."

The two election defeats actually made her more well-known, her son said,
allowing her to later become a trustee at both the University of North Carolina
at Chapel Hill and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina.

"She was probably able to influence more decision-making in North Carolina
because she did not win in politics," Ed Harper said.

She operated her family's local insurance agency, and also edited The State Port
Pilot while her husband, James, served during World War II. James Harper died in
1994.

Margaret Harper also was executive secretary of the North Carolina Press
Association from 1969 to 1978 and was inducted into the North Carolina
Journalism Hall of Fame.

Later in life, she was involved in the development of the Croasdaile Village
retirement community in Durham.

In additional to Ed Harper, she is survived by another son, James Harper III of
Southport, four grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. A memorial service
will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday at Trinity United Methodist Church in Southport,
where she served as an organist for more than 50 years. Visitation will be at 1
p.m. at the church.

INTRODUCTION TO THE CONSTITUTION & TRIVIA

This section of Congress for Kids covers the history of the Constitution of the
United States. It includes information about the writing the Constitution, the
Great Compromise, the Constitution’s signers, the Bill of Rights, the Amendments
to the Constitution and what they mean to Americans, and much more. Let's get
started...click on Learn About The Constitution at:
http://www.congressforkids.net/Constitution_index.htm

* Celebrate the Constitution *

Do you know your rights? After starting the game, drag each statement that
appears on your screen to the document where it belongs.  Place one correct
statement in each of the four documents.  Get all four right and you’re a
Constitution Whiz Kid!  If you don’t want to play, click on any of the links on
the page to learn more about the Constitution.

Find Celebrate the Constitution at:
http://www.congressforkids.net/games/signingconstitution/2_signingconstitution.h\
tm

* Trivia *

Thanks to a legal "fiction" developed by courts in response to the breadth of
the state sovereign immunity doctrine, many suits which might otherwise be
barred by the Eleventh Amendment are allowed in federal court. Generally, what
feature do these cases share that allows them to avoid the immunity problem?

A) They are based entirely on state law
B) They only ask for injunctive relief
C) They seek more than $75,000 in damages
D) They are filed by corporations

*Find the answer in next month's issue of Communicator --
http://www.webcommunicator.org

Fmr. State Rep. Lane died on 10/3/2009 in Kansas City, MO.

============================

Alfred J. Lane

Al Lane, 77, Mission Hills, Kansas, passed away Saturday, October 3, 2009 at St.
Luke's Hospital, Kansas City, Missouri.

Al was born on July 7, 1932 in Columbus, Ohio to Daniel and Mary Ann (Nardone)
Lane.  He graduated from Ohio State University with a BS degree in 1955.
Following graduation, Al enlisted in the U.S. Air Force where he received his
pilot training. He was a pilot for TWA for 25 years, domestic and international.
Al retired from TWA in 1988.  He was  both a city councilman and mayor of
Mission Hills from 1981-89.  He began his career as a Kansas State
Representative of the 25th District in 1989, retiring in 2003.

Al is survived by his wife, Peggy (Wright) Lane; three daughters, Sheryl Turner
and her husband, Rod, Mission Hills, Kansas, Leslie Bryant, Mission, Kansas, and
Linda Coskun and her husband, Battal, Moorpark, California; son, Al Lane, Jr.
and his wife, Kim, Louisburg, Kansas; brother, Daniel F. Lane, Jr., and his
wife, Alice, Columbus, Ohio; six grandchildren, Michael and Megan Turner,
Joshua, Ellis and Rachel Bryant and Kaitlyn Coskun;  and two step-grandchildren,
Jamie and Jason Coskun.

Memorial contributions may be made to either St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, 6401
Wornall Terrace, Kansas City, Missouri  64113; St. Luke's Hospital Foundation,
4225 Baltimore Avenue, Kansas City, Missouri 64111 or Kansas City Hospice, 9221
Ward Parkway, Kansas City, Missouri 64145 (although Al did not require their
services).

Visitaton and Funeral Service

Friends may call from 5-7:00 pm Wednesday, October 7, 2009 at the Amos Family
Chapel of Shawnee.  Funeral service will be 11:00 am, Thursday, October 8, 2009
at St. Andrew's Episcopal Church. Family will receive friends prior to the
service from 9-10:00 am.   A reception will be held at the church following the
service from 12-2:00 pm. Family graveside services will be at Mt. Washington
Cemetery, Independence, Missouri.

A memorial service will be held in Columbus, Ohio at a later date.

Burial info for Gov. Bellmon.

======================================

Bellmon's body at Capitol today
Posted by Michael McNutton October 2, 2009 at 6:33 am

Oklahomans will have the chance today to pay their respects to Henry Bellmon at
the state Capitol, where the Billings farmer and former U.S. senator served two
terms as governor and one term as a legislator.

The body of Bellmon, who died Tuesday, will lie in repose on the 4th-floor
rotunda from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. His casket will be by the Will Rogers portrait.
Family members and former staff members will be on hand to greet visitors.

Flags at the Capitol and on other state property are being flown at half-staff,
as ordered by Gov. Brad Henry.

The last governor to lie in repose at the Capitol occurred in 1993. The body of
Raymond Gary was on the second floor of the Capitol. Gary was elected in 1954
and served from 1955 to 1959.
Visitors may enter the Capitol from any of the entrances and may either take
elevators or walk up to the 4th-floor Rotunda. All visitors will have to go
through metal detectors at the entrances.
Two funeral services are set for Saturday.

Services are scheduled for 10 a.m. at the First Presbyterian Church in Edmond
and at 3 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church in Perry. Burial will at the
Union Cemetery in his hometown of Billings.
The family has asked that memorials be made to the Oklahoma Medical Research
Foundation, 825 NE 13, Oklahoma City, OK  73104 or to the Henry Bellmon
Endowment, Oklahoma State University Foundation, P.O. Box 1749, Stillwater, OK 
74076-1749.

Bellmon was elected in November 1946 to the state House of Representatives, but
was not re-elected. He focused on his family and building up his farm, and in
the mid-1950s became active in Noble County politics. In 1960 he was elected
chairman of the Oklahoma Republican Party; he developed a strong statewide base
with chapters in each county. He couldn't persuade anyone to run for governor in
1962 so he ran and was elected, becoming Oklahoma's first Republican governor
and the first GOP governor of a southern state since Reconstruction. Back then,
governors in Oklahoma couldn't seek re-election so he got involved in national
politics and eventually ran for the U.S. Senate.

He was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1968 and 1974. He didn't seek a third term
in 1980 and returned to Oklahoma. He successfully again ran for governor in
1986.

Bellmon's accomplishments as governor included establishing Oklahoma's
CareerTech system and a state employees' retirement program as well as backing
legislation to exempt seed and fertilizer from sales tax during his first term.
During his second term, he led efforts to pass a public education reform bill,
House Bill 1017, which increased teacher salaries and reduced class sizes.
-    Michael McNutt, Capitol Bureau

To Political Graveyard Discussion Group:
Rhode Island Report-
1. Upcoming Democratic primary to nominate a successor to the recently deceased
Thomas Slater. His son Scott is in the primary. Maurice Green, is Republican
candidate who is a police officer and from the minority community. There are
independent candidates.
 2. Alice Bridget Gibney has been sworn in as Presiding Justice of the Rhode
Island Superior Court. This is equivalent to Chief Justice. A lot of new judges
in R.I. have been sworn in 2009,.
 3. Elizabeth "Betsy" Dennigan has resigned her Rhode Island State
Representative seat to run for a federal U.S. House seat. This in itself is NOT
the missing story by reporters Steve Peoples and Cindy Needham in today's
Providence Journal www.projo.com ,. Dennigan who lives in U.S. Rep. Patrick
Kennedy's district wants to run against fellow Democrat Jim Langevin for his
house seat. She is taking up residence in Langevin's district.
 The law does NOT prohibit her from running for U.S. Representative in the U.S.
House district she does not live in as long as it is in Rhode Island. While the
money may be small for the elections primary and special to succeed her, her
resignation is NOT technically required, and will cost money that could be
avoided! If memory serves me correctly before being elected to U.S. House
Patrick Kennedy lived and represented a Rhode Island State House District that
straddled both Congressional Districts. He moved to another part of his local
house district which was in the second congressional district to the first
congressional district.
 Information on these news stories can be accessed at The Providence Journal
www.projo.com ,.
Regards,
Scott


Scott Bill Hirst
20 Maple Court
Ashaway,RI 02804-1300 USA
(401)377-4643
Note:Telephone if you need quick reply.

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