Robert Torricelli: “I know to many Americans it may be strange or bewildering with so many issues before the Congress that we are debating…”

“I know to many Americans it may be strange or bewildering with so many issues before the Congress that we are debating naming, honoring, Americans by placing their names on different public facilities. But who we honor, and the names we attach to public buildings and locations, matters. By whom we choose to honor, we set standards about ourselves. We communicate with future generations the qualities of people that we admire and the things in American history that are important. The Senator from Georgia has rightly noted the considerable contributions of former President Ronald Reagan. The Senator from Nevada, Mr. Reid, has offered an amendment of importance for another reason. Standards change. Nations learn conduct and behavior. No sooner had the Soviet Union fallen than statues of Stalin and Lenin tumbled to the streets. Samoza, Marcos, Batista had probably not even left office when their names and statues were removed from public places. In America through the years we have had despots of a different order, people who lived in a free society but did not always respect the law. They were part of the U.S. Government but not always in its best traditions. The Senator from Nevada has raised an issue before the Senate that the name of J. Edgar Hoover remains on the FBI building in Washington, DC.”