Cleo Fields: “Mr. Speaker, Ron Brown was a very personal friend of mine. I had an opportunity to meet him on a Presidential campaign…”

“Mr. Speaker, Ron Brown was a very personal friend of mine. I had an opportunity to meet him on a Presidential campaign in 1988, where he and I shared many platforms together. There is not another American that I have ever met in my lifetime who has worked as hard, who has had such a strong commitment to country, than Ron Brown. Mr. Speaker, I stand before the House today to say that Ron Brown was indeed a scholar, a leader, and a role model, for people all across this country. The last time Ron Brown and I had an opportunity to sit down and talk was actually in the Fourth Congressional District. I called him at the Department of Commerce and said, Mr. Secretary, I want you to come to Louisiana and talk about economic development. And right off the cuff he just said, I will be there. And in about 30 minutes, he called back and said, I will be there in about 3 weeks. So I want to thank the Ron Brown family. I also want to give a special tribute to a family from Louisiana. The pilot of that plane was from my home State of Louisiana, Ashley Davis. To his wife and to his two little children, we want to say that we offer our condolences to them and to all of the families of those who lost their lives in this tragic accident. To them we say God bless you, and we will pray for you.”