Nancy L. Johnson: “I had the privilege to travel recently over the recess, and I ran into some of the young people that had worked with…”

“I had the privilege to travel recently over the recess, and I ran into some of the young people that had worked with Ron. And it was really interesting to me because you do not see this all the time. Cabinet members are not necessarily either warm and fuzzy or mentors. They are important and they do a great job for America. They serve an important need. But Ron has inspired many young minds, and they are there and they will serve us. And they are both parties. Some of them are lifelong, quote, ``bureaucrats.'' And so he has passed on and was able to pass on a belief and a faith in America, in us as a free people, and in us as a governing democracy, and felt strongly the need for us to be a part of the international community both as an economic force and as a force for democracy. I thought it was so interesting to listen to the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia [Ms. Norton] talk about how he never saw himself as a black man. He saw himself as an American, as a man, as a power, as an individual, and as a proud black citizen. But he never felt anything stood in his way. If he wanted to do it, he had the intellect and resources to do it. And it is that legacy that inspired those he traveled with, that made a difference in the countries he went to. And it is that attitude that he leaves to those whose lives he touched. I thank my colleague for organizing this recognition of former Secretary Ron Brown tonight.”