Kika De La Garza Federal Building

KIKA DE LA GARZA FEDERAL BUILDING -- (House of Representatives - September 27, 2006)

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Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Speaker, I thank both of my colleagues for their leadership on this matter, and I am pleased to honor Congressman Kika de la Garza as he has honored south Texas and America by his extended public service.

This particular building is located around the corner from where Kika de la Garza began his career practicing law in McAllen and also around the corner from the district office that I have had the honor to maintain this past 2 years in the city of McAllen.

Kika began humbly and poorly, poor in economic terms but rich in talent. His first job was shining shoes, and he rose from that to making laws in the State House and later here in the United States Congress. But as far as he traveled and as important a position as he held here in Washington, he never stopped treating all of his constituents as if each one were the most important.

Kika still remembers an episode from his early days as a lawyer when he loaned one of his clients a shirt to keep warm in a cold courthouse. Throughout his tenure in Congress, Congressman de la Garza never forgot where he came from. It was my pleasure to share one term with him when I was first elected to my term that began in 1995.

At a time when many this year look at the Rio Grande Valley and talk about building walls, Congressman de la Garza believed in building bridges, literally and figuratively. He worked to improve relations and trade between the United States and Mexico throughout his career. He promoted dialogue between Members of Congress and our counterparts in Mexico. He led efforts to create modern border crossings across the Texas-Mexico border and bridges that are now vital links in commerce throughout this hemisphere.

His hard work earned him many honors here, many things named for him in the Rio Grande Valley, but also the Order of Aztec Eagle, the highest honor that the country of Mexico can bestow on a noncitizen.

Kika de la Garza is best known for his work here on agriculture, particularly his extended service as Chair of the House Agriculture Committee. He was the first Hispanic since 1917 to chair a standing committee in the United States House of Representatives; and no other chairman has ever done so much to advance the concerns of the small farmer, the family farmer, as Chairman de la Garza.

When you ask him of his proudest accomplishments, he points to the farm bills that he shepherded through this Congress. He particularly remembers his first farm bill as chairman. He gave a speech in this very room that won him a standing ovation, but it was his last-minute persuasion of a colleague from the other side of the aisle that passed the bill by a single vote. Chairman de la Garza knew for the farmer in the field results count far more than rhetoric.

Even though he has retired from this Congress, Kika de la Garza has not retired from public life. In fact, we still call him ``Mr. Chairman'' in the valley because he is the Democratic precinct chairman of Precinct 62 in McAllen. Although he has moved along in years, he has maintained the same interest in service that he always has had from his origin in the valley.

When you ask him about his most recent political office, he quotes back Tip O'Neill's famous axiom that ``all politics is local.'' From humble beginnings in the local community, Kika de la Garza has returned home but maintains a legacy that is international in scope.

I want also to commend Lucille de la Garza, who clearly has been his partner and continues to be his partner. She served with him through the legislature, the Congress and now in McAllen. Kika and Lucille have devoted their lives together to enhance the quality of life for all citizens of the valley.

That devotion is also reflected in a great family. George is a cardiovascular surgeon who still practices in the valley. Michael is a retired Lieutenant Commander in the Navy who defended our country on the high seas from the Pacific to the Persian Gulf. Angela is a special education teacher at Tobias Elementary School in Kyle, working to pass along the world of opportunities that come with a strong public education.

Kika de la Garza is an example to all of us of a true gentleman and public servant who brought honor to this Congress through civility, respect and commitment to doing what is right. He will serve as an appropriate role model for the lawyers and public servants who enter into that courthouse, that Federal building named after him in McAllen, Texas.

His lifetime dedication to public service has been a gift to our community. Today's tribute is richly deserved, and I thank my colleagues for helping to secure the approval of this legislation.

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