H8 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE January 27, 1998 portion, of such gold to charitable organiza- ful owners in cases where assets were con- SONNY is survived by his oldest chil- tions to assist survivors of the Holocaust. fiscated from the claimant during the period dren, Christy and Chastity, and by his (b) AUTHORITY TO OBLIGATE THE UNITED of Nazi rule and there is reasonable proof lovely wife Mary and their children, STATES.— that the claimant is the rightful owner. Chesare, who is 9 years of age, about to (1) IN GENERAL.—From funds otherwise un- The Senate bill was ordered to be be 10, and Chianna, who is 6. obligated in the Treasury of the United read a third time, was read the third States, the President is authorized to obli- During the time he was with us, gate subject to paragraph (2) an amount not time, and passed, and a motion to re- SONNY demonstrated to all of us that to exceed $30,000,000 for distribution in ac- consider was laid on the table. he is one of the most unusual char- cordance with subsections (a) and (b). f acters you could ever meet. But by way (2) CONFORMANCE WITH BUDGET ACT RE- GENERAL LEAVE of background, SONNY BONO came to QUIREMENT.—Any budget authority con- California when he was 7 years old and tained in paragraph (1) shall be effective Mr. LEACH. Mr. Speaker, I ask unan- moved to Los Angeles. Following high only to such extent and in such amounts as imous consent that all Members may are provided in advance in appropriation school he got his first job, that of being have 5 legislative days within which to a meat truck driver. I think we all Acts. revise and extend their remarks on S. SEC. 103. FULFILLMENT OF OBLIGATION OF THE know that his heart lay in the enter- UNITED STATES. 1564, the Senate bill just passed. tainment business. In those early days (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there he was developing his skills as a music There are authorized to be appropriated to objection to the request of the gen- writer. Often on those trips around the the President such sums as may be necessary tleman from Iowa? city of Los Angeles making stops for for fiscal years 1998, 1999, and 2000, not to ex- There was no objection. his product purpose, he would also drop ceed a total of $25,000,000 for all such fiscal f years, for distribution to organizations as off at various locations various songs may be specified in any agreement concluded EXPRESSING SORROW OF THE that he had developed. pursuant to section 102. HOUSE AT THE DEATH OF THE SONNY’s talent became very apparent (b) ARCHIVAL RESEARCH.—There are au- HON. SONNY BONO, REPRESENT- to all the world when his then thorized to be appropriated to the President ATIVE FROM THE STATE OF girlfriend, Cherilyn Sarkasian, and he $5,000,000 for archival research and trans- CALIFORNIA. made their first recording together, lation services to assist in the restitution of among a number of recordings that led Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Speak- assets looted or extorted from victims of the to that show known as Sonny and Cher. Holocaust and such other activities that er, I offer a privileged resolution (H. Between 1971 and 1974, Sonny and Cher would further Holocaust remembrance and Res. 338) and ask for its immediate con- were among the great hits across the education. sideration. country. They had an impact upon TITLE II—WORKS OF ART The Clerk read the resolution, as fol- young people of that age that is re- SEC. 201. FINDINGS. lows: membered by all. Congress finds as follows: H. RES. 338 (1) Established pre-World War II principles Following that work, which eventu- Resolved, That the House has heard with of international law, as enunciated in Arti- ally came to an end, the partnership profound sorrow of the death of the Honor- cles 47 and 56 of the Regulations annexed to came to an end, about 1974, SONNY went able Sonny Bono, a Representative from the the 1907 Hague Convention (IV) Respecting on with his business over a period of State of California. the Laws and Customs of War on Land, pro- Resolved, That the Clerk communicate time. He then took the next step in hibited pillage and the seizure of works of these resolutions to the Senate and transmit terms of his most amazing career. In art. a copy thereof to the family of the deceased. the early 1980s, he established what (2) In the years since World War II, inter- Resolved, That when the House adjourns were to become known as Bono Res- national sanctions against confiscation of today, it adjourn as a further mark of re- taurants, first in Los Angeles, then in works of art have been amplified through spect to the memory of the deceased. such conventions as the 1970 Convention on Texas. I began to personally get to the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gen- know SONNY when he opened such a Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Owner- tleman from California (Mr. LEWIS), restaurant in Palm Springs, California. ship of Cultural Property, which forbids the the dean of the California Congres- At that time, the location of the res- illegal export of art work and calls for its sional delegation, is recognized for 1 taurant was actually in my own dis- earliest possible restitution to its rightful hour. trict. owner. Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Speak- In Palm Springs, he quickly became (3) In defiance of the 1907 Hague Conven- er, I yield 30 minutes to the gentleman tion, the Nazis extorted and looted art from known by anybody who enjoyed both individuals and institutions in countries it from California (Mr. BROWN). the entertainment as well as the fun occupied during World War II and used such (Mr. LEWIS of California asked and restaurant opportunity in Palm booty to help finance their war of aggres- was given permission to revise and ex- Springs. As he developed that process sion. tend his remarks.) in Palm Springs, he found himself hav- (4) The Nazis’ policy of looting art was a Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Speak- ing some difficulty with local govern- critical element and incentive in their cam- er, I yield myself such time as I may ment regulations. It seems there was a paign of genocide against individuals of Jew- consume. conflict that arose over a sign that he ish and other religious and cultural heritage Mr. Speaker, it was with great sad- and, in this context, the Holocaust, while needed for his restaurant. Local bu- standing as a civil war against defined indi- ness that I was awakened in the middle reaucracy, he would suggest, was get- viduals and civilized values, must be consid- of the night during the recess. I want ting in the way. That kind of led to a ered a fundamental aspect of the world war to share with my colleagues that I was minibattle that caused SONNY a dif- unleashed on the continent. struggling in my subconscious, at- ferent way, perhaps for the first time, (5) Hence, the same international legal tempting to put together words that to especially focus upon politics. principles applied among states should be ap- were of condolence to my colleague the With that confrontation, when the plied to art and other assets stolen from vic- gentleman from Massachusetts [Mr. local person resisted what he thought tims of the Holocaust. KENNEDY] regarding the recent tragic was sensible public policy, he indicated (6) In the aftermath of the war, art and other assets were transferred from territory loss in his family, only to be awakened that maybe the best alternative for previously controlled by the Nazis to the by a telephone call from a reporter, him was to run for office and become Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, much of Jim Specht, who writes for a number of that person’s boss, SONNY wanted to which has not been returned to rightful own- newspapers in our region, Jim told me make sure that sense was made out of ers. of the tragic accident that led to the local policy. With that, SONNY became SEC. 202. SENSE OF THE CONGRESS REGARDING death of our friend and colleague, the mayor of Palm Springs. RESTITUTION OF PRIVATE PROP- SONNY BONO. Known by all in Southern California ERTY, SUCH AS WORKS OF ART. To say the least, we were all shocked in connection with that, after some It is the sense of the Congress that consist- ent with the 1907 Hague Convention, all gov- by this development. SONNY BONO is time carrying forward that work, he ernments should undertake good faith efforts one of those very, very unusual people ran for the U.S. Senate. I mention to facilitate the return of private and public you meet very rarely in public life or that, even though he was unsuccessful property, such as works of art, to the right- in life in general. in the primary process, only by way of