Beyond Post Offices; Barack Obama's Legislative Prowess

Yesterday CM detailed Senator Barack Obama’s tremendous legislative record of renaming post offices and issuing commemorative coins and stamps. Today CM looks at Mr. Obama’s commitment to education, which is best demonstrated by his sponsorship (or co-sponsorship) of numerous resolutions.

These resolutions include:

• Designating the week of October 23, 2005 as "National Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Week" (109th S.RES.278)
• Designating the week of October 23, 2006 as "National Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Week" (109th S.RES.599)
• And, in a remarkable show of consistency, designating the week of October 21, 2007 as "National Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Week" (110th S.RES.316)
• Designating the week of September 10, 2006, as "National Historically Black College and Universities Week" (109th S.RES.528)
• Designating the week beginning September 9, 2007, as "National Historically Black Colleges and Universities Week" (110th S.RES.291)
• And in yet another display of consistency, designating the week beginning September 7, 2008, as "National Historically Black Colleges and Universities Week" (110th S.RES.622)
• Designating July 13, 2006, as "National Summer Learning Day" (109th S.RES.529)
• Designating January 2008 as “National Mentoring Month” (110th S.RES.430)

Mr. Obama’s dedication to organizations and events in his home state of Illinois should be commended:

• Recognizing Rotary International, founded on February 23, 1905, in Chicago, Illinois (109th S.RES.62)
• Congratulating the Chicago White Sox on winning the 2005 World Series championship (109th S.RES.291)
• Congratulating the City of Chicago for being chosen to represent the United States in the international competition to host the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and encouraging the International Olympic Committee to select Chicago as the site of the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games (110th S.CON.RES.28)
• Marking the sesquicentennial of Illinois State University with a year-long celebration, beginning with Founders Day on February 15, 2007 (110th S.RES.53)
• Marking the 50th anniversary of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville with a year-long celebration , beginning September 24, 2007 (110th S.RES.329)
• Recognizing the 75th anniversary of the American Academy of Pediatrics [headquarted in Elk Grove Village, IL] and supporting the mission and goals of the organization (109th S.RES.204)

In a display of bipartisanship, Mr. Obama crossed the aisle (or, at least, traveled half way) to back Senator Arlen Specter in his support of Greek Americans:

• Designating March 25, 2006, as “Greek Independence Day: A National Day of Celebration of Greek and American Democracy” (109th S.RES.399)
• Designating March 25, 2007, as “Greek Independence Day: A National Day of Celebration of Greek and American Democracy” (110th S.RES.95)
• Designating March 25, 2008, as “Greek Independence Day: A National Day of Celebration of Greek and American Democracy” (110th S.RES.476)

Mr. Obama stayed firmly in the Democratic side by supporting Mr. Dick Durbin, the senior Senator from Illinois (also the Democratic Party Whip and a backer of the anti-free speech Fairness Doctrine) thusly:

• Designating the week of May 1 through May 7, 2005, as "North American Occupational Safety and Health Week (NAOSH)” (109th S.RES.130)
• Designating the week of May 6 through May 12, 2007, as “North American Occupational Safety and Health Week” and May 9, 2007, as “Occupational Safety and Health Professional Day” (110th S.RES.193)
• Designating the week of May 4 through May 10, 2008, as “North American Occupational Safety and Health Week” and May 7, 2008, as “Occupational Safety and Health Professionals Day” (110th S.RES.547)

To reach beyond our Greek friends, Mr. Obama embraced different interest groups by:

• Designating March 8, 2005, as “International Women's Day” (109th S.RES.74)
• Recognizing Hispanic Heritage Month and "celebrating the vast contributions of Hispanic Americans to the strength and culture of our Nation” (109th S.RES.238)
• Designating April 20, 2007, as “National and Global Youth Service Day” (110th S.RES.158)
• Expressing the sense of the Senate that public servants should be commended for their dedication and continued service to the Nation during Public Service Recognition Week, May 5 through 11, 2008 (110th S.RES.497)
• Recognizing and honoring the 15th anniversary of the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (109th S.RES.207)
• Commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the Interstate Highway System (109th S.RES.427)
• Recognizing the month of November 2007 as "National Homeless Youth Awareness Month” (110th S.RES.226)
• Expressing the sense of the Senate that a National Methamphetamine Prevention Week should be established to increase awareness of methamphetamine and to educate the public on ways to help prevent the use of that damaging narcotic (109th S.RES.313)

Despite Mr. Obama’s efforts to kowtow to multiple special interest groups, he often returned to his comfort zone:

• Celebrating the 40th anniversary of the enactment of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and reaffirming the commitment of the Senate to ensuring the continued effectiveness of the Act in protecting the voting rights of all citizens of the United States (109th S.RES.232)
• Celebrating Black History Month (109th S.RES.380)
• Recognizing the historical significance of Juneteenth Independence Day and expressing the sense of the Senate that history should be regarded as a means for understanding the past and solving the challenges of the future (109th S.RES.516)
• Recognizing the African-American spiritual as a national treasure (110th, S.RES.69)
• Encouraging the recognition of the Negro Baseball Leagues and their players on May 20th of each year (110th S.CON.RES.29)

In the next post CM will detail Mr. Obama’s use of Senate resolutions to recognize worthy Americans.