| |
| |
|
|
R E S O L U T I O N
|
|
|
WHEREAS, The Honorable James Earl Carter Jr., the 39th |
|
|
president of the United States and a greatly admired humanitarian, |
|
|
passed away on December 29, 2024, at the age of 100; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Jimmy Carter was born in Plains, Georgia, on |
|
|
October 1, 1924, to James Earl and Lillian Carter; he entered the |
|
|
U.S. Naval Academy during the Second World War and graduated in |
|
|
1946, a year after the war's close; he went on to become a U.S. Navy |
|
|
lieutenant, serving as a nuclear engineer and submariner; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, The young navy midshipman met and fell in love with |
|
|
Rosalynn Smith, a friend of his younger sister, and married her just |
|
|
weeks after his graduation from the academy and commission into the |
|
|
U.S. Navy; following his father's death, he took over the family |
|
|
peanut farm back in Georgia and began making a name for himself |
|
|
speaking out in favor of Black voting rights and racial |
|
|
integration; at the age of 39, he was elected to the Georgia State |
|
|
Senate, where he served for four years; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, State Senator Carter first ran for governor of |
|
|
Georgia in 1966, and he found success in his second bid for that |
|
|
office in 1970; in his inaugural speech as the state's 76th |
|
|
governor, he powerfully asserted that "the time for racial |
|
|
discrimination is over"; as governor, his leadership in efficiency, |
|
|
racial justice, and progressive reforms set him up as a national |
|
|
figure who would launch a run for president of the United States in |
|
|
1976; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Governor Carter was elected as the 39th president of |
|
|
the United States, and he earned the distinction of being the most |
|
|
recent Democrat to win the State of Texas in a presidential contest; |
|
|
his presidency was dedicated to humanitarian advancement at home |
|
|
and around the world, and he began his term by pardoning |
|
|
approximately 10,000 Vietnam War draft evaders; he also established |
|
|
the Departments of Energy and Education and expanded domestic |
|
|
environmental conservation efforts, and his administration was |
|
|
instrumental in promoting diplomacy abroad; he brokered a peace |
|
|
agreement between Egypt and Israel with the Camp David Accords, put |
|
|
pressure on oppressive regimes by leveraging economic and military |
|
|
aid, and helped secure the release of 52 U.S. citizens during the |
|
|
Iran Hostage Crisis; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, President Carter left office in 1981, but he did not |
|
|
withdraw from public service; he established the Carter Center |
|
|
alongside his wife with the purpose to promote human rights, |
|
|
democracy, and public health, and the center's many accomplishments |
|
|
included negotiating a peace agreement during the Sudan Civil War |
|
|
and diplomatically easing U.S. tensions with North Korea as well as |
|
|
between Eritrea and Ethiopia; the center has also played a crucial |
|
|
role in monitoring and ensuring fair elections in more than 40 |
|
|
countries, and it helped to build thousands of homes in |
|
|
collaboration with Habitat for Humanity; in addition, the Carter |
|
|
Center has demonstrated a steadfast commitment to disease |
|
|
prevention, specifically empowering initiatives to combat malaria |
|
|
and mental health crises, and it has supported efforts to eradicate |
|
|
Guinea worm, which, at its height, affected an estimated 3.5 |
|
|
million people in 20 countries; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Former President Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, |
|
|
celebrated 77 years of marriage before her passing on |
|
|
November 19, 2023; they are survived by their four children and |
|
|
many grandchildren and great-grandchildren; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Jimmy Carter devoted his life to public service and |
|
|
humanitarianism, and he leaves behind a legacy that will continue |
|
|
to inspire generations of Americans for years to come; now, |
|
|
therefore, be it |
|
|
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 89th Texas |
|
|
Legislature hereby pay tribute to the life of the Honorable James |
|
|
Earl Carter Jr., 39th president of the United States, and express |
|
|
deep appreciation for his many years of dedicated public service; |
|
|
and, be it further |
|
|
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
|
|
prepared for the Carter Center and the Jimmy Carter Presidential |
|
|
Library and Museum. |
| |
|
|
Morales of Harris |
|
|
|
|
|
______________________________ |
|
|
Speaker of the House |
| |
|
|
I certify that H.R. No. 598 was unanimously adopted by a |
|
|
rising vote of the House on March 31, 2025. |
|
|
|
|
|
______________________________ |
|
|
Chief Clerk of the House |
| |