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[Page S3100]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TRIBUTE TO PAUL SOGLIN
Ms. BALDWIN. Mr. President, today I wish to recognize the exceptional
career and legacy of Madison, WI's longest serving Mayor, Paul Soglin.
Mayor Soglin spent his many years in office as driving force behind
Madison's extraordinary economic success and high quality of life.
Paul Soglin was raised in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago,
where he excelled academically at Highland Park High School. He
graduated with honors from University of Wisconsin--Madison in 1966 and
from the UW-Madison Law School in 1972.
Soglin gained national notoriety on campus as an activist for social
and political change. He frequently protested American military
involvement in the Vietnam war and demonstrated against Dow Chemical
Company for its role in manufacturing napalm and Agent Orange for use
in Vietnam. Beaten by police during the protests, Soglin became a
respected voice on campus. During this trying time in our Nation's
past, Soglin demonstrated his enduring commitment to peace and civil
rights.
Soglin won election to the Madison City Council in 1968, representing
the city's student wards. Four years later, he accomplished one of the
biggest upsets in Madison history by defeating two-term incumbent
William Dyke, becoming the youngest mayor in the city's history. During
his first term as mayor, he established Madison's Civic Center to
showcase the city's growing arts scene. He made tremendous improvements
to the city's public transit system and transformed State Street into
an iconic pedestrian mall, one of Madison's defining landmarks.
After leaving public office to teach at Harvard in 1979, Soglin
returned to Madison to practice law and was twice reelected to lead
Wisconsin's capital city. In all, he served as Madison's 51st, 54th,
and 57th mayor. During his second stint as mayor, Soglin accomplished
one of his crowning achievements, breaking through a 70-year debate to
build the Monona Terrace Convention Center that Frank Lloyd Wright
designed for Madison's Lake Monona's shoreline. He is also credited
with invigorating Madison's economy and rebuilding its declining
downtown.
Through his more than two decades of investment in infrastructure,
the arts, and recreation, Paul Soglin has helped build a welcoming and
flourishing city that appears often on lists of the Nation's most
livable cities. Throughout this growth, he has also fought to ensure
that Madison's resources and assets are available to all city
residents, regardless of their economic standing.
In addition to Paul Soglin's remarkable public service, I feel
fortunate to know him as a lifelong family friend. From my earliest
memories of Paul teaching me how to throw a Frisbee to his generous
moving reflections at my mother's memorial service, Paul Soglin has
provided me with encouragement and inspiration.
As he begins his next chapter after 22 years of service, he leaves
with the knowledge that he has left an indelible mark on the city he
loves and that his legacy will endure.
____________________
