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Floor Speech

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Mr. CORNYN. Madam President, this week my fellow Texans and people across the country will be celebrating the life and legacy of Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee. Like some of the best known Texans, from George Bush to Simone Biles, Sheila wasn't born in Texas. But as we like to say, she got there as soon as she could.

She was born in New York, but she and her husband, Elwyn, chose to plant roots in Texas, and it didn't take long for her to become a leader in the Houston region.

She was a lawyer, then a judge, then a city council member and, finally, a Member of the U.S. House of Representatives.

When I came to the Senate, I quickly learned a few important qualities about Sheila. No. 1, she was passionate--very passionate. Sheila was honored to represent the 18th Congressional District, and she cared deeply about her role as a voice for those constituents, here in Congress.

Two, she was persistent. Some might even say relentless. She was never afraid to pick up the phone or track you down and try to convince you to see things her way on an issue.

And, third, she was willing to cross party lines to get things done. Despite our opposing political parties, Sheila and I partnered on a number of bills to notch bipartisan wins for our State. Along with the rest of the Texas delegation, she helped secure critical resources and disaster assistance after numerous storms and hurricanes, which always seem to find their way to the southeast region of Texas. We worked on bills to support survivors of sexual assault and violence, including the Debbie Smith Act, which was just signed into law this week. We passed a law that serves as a first step toward establishing the Emancipation National Historic Trail, which will stretch from Galveston to Houston. And, 3 years ago, we led legislation to establish Juneteenth as a Federal holiday, something that existed in Texas for the last 40 years because Juneteenth celebrates something very important that happened in Galveston, TX, when, 2 years after the Emancipation Proclamation, the African-American slaves in that region learned for the first time that they were indeed free.

Sheila was a true stateswoman. She was a Texan through and through, and she devoted her life to serving the people of Houston. We will miss Sheila, both in Texas and in the Halls of Congress.

And Sandy and I send our prayers for comfort to Elwyn, Jason, Erica, Ellison, Roy, and the entire Lee family.

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