In a rare display of bipartisanship, footage coming out of the U.S. House of Representatives shows rolling unanimous and bipartisan support for the renaming of the Hagatna post office for Guam’s first Chamorro postmaster: Atanacio Taitano Perez.
An eight-minute video of the business of the House during the vote on Congressman Michael San Nicolas’s House Resolution 3539 making the name change shows some of the nation’s most polarizing figures on both sides of the political aisle doing something they almost never do: standing together to support the same issue.
Granted, naming a federal facility after a person typically is a non-controversial issue. But, in an age of polarizing politics and partisanship, it is refreshing to see the nation’s leaders agree on on something; especially when it involves Guam.
The following is the news release on HR 3539 from the Office of Congressman Michael San Nicolas:
The U.S. House of Representatives today passed H.R. 3539 overwhelmingly with a vote of 417-1. Introduced by Congressman Michael San Nicolas, H.R. 3539 names the Hagatna Post Office Facility as the Atanasio Taitano Perez Post Office.
“The Honorable Atanasio Taitano Perez was a leader of many sorts on our island, but most relevant to H.R. 3539 he was the first CHamoru Post Master for the U.S. Postal Service on Guam,” said Congressman San Nicolas.
“An achieved man of great eloquence, Atanasio not only performed his duty to our island with dignity, he also strongly advocated for our dignity, being a vocal proponent of citizenship in the United States for the people of Guam up until his passing just before the enactment of the Organic Act of Guam made it so,” Congressman San Nicolas continued.
“As this Bill journeys to final enactment, let us reflect on the significance of leaders in our island’s history like Atanasio, who dedicated their lives not in the advancement of themselves or their own ideals but in the advancement of our people, that we too may emulate their example in our expectations and advocacy,” Congressman San Nicolas concludes.
