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SECOND REGULAR SESSION
HOUSE CONCURRENT
RESOLUTION NO. 41
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBL Y
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENT A TIVE W ALSH MOORE.
6992H.01I JOSEPH ENGLER, Chief Clerk
WHEREAS, a century ago, in October 1924, Ireland formally opened diplomatic
2 relations with the United States of America when T imothy Smiddy presented his credentials
3 to President Calvin Coolidge. Following the Irish people's long and painful struggle for
4 independence, the U.S. was one of the first nations to recognize the fledgling Irish state
5 earlier that year , and when Smiddy emer ged from the White House, he had become Ireland's
6 first Ambassador to any country in the world. It was very appropriate that Ireland's first
7 representative overseas should be dispatched; and
8
9 WHEREAS, today , nearly one-tenth of Americans identify as being of Irish ancestry .
10 Irish immigrants helped build the America we know today , not only the physical
11 infrastructure from the skyscrapers of Manhattan to the transcontinental railroad, but also
12 the political construct that is America; and
13
14 WHEREAS, Irish people have made an enormous contribution to public debate and
15 politics in America, from their local communities right up to the White House. More than
16 twenty American Presidents claimed some Irish ancestry . But the influence of Irish America
17 extends well beyond the Oval Of fice and the Capitol building, to every state within the Union,
18 most evident in the significant number of state legislators within the American Irish State
19 Legislators Caucus; and
20
21 WHEREAS, since T imothy Smiddy's momentous audience in the Oval Of fice 100
22 years ago, a further eighteen Irish Ambassadors have presented credentials to U.S. Presidents.
23 Over this time, Ireland's relations with the United States have evolved significantly . From an
24 impoverished and internationally isolated state, scarred by years of conflict, Ireland has
25 transformed over the past century . Ireland today is at peace, economically prosperous, and
26 culturally vibrant; and
27
28 WHEREAS, this transformation is due to the support of friends in the United States,
29 from the crucial role America played in brokering peace in Northern Ireland, culminating
30 with the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, to the huge American economic investment in
31 Ireland. There are almost one thousand U.S. companies in Ireland, employing over two
32 hundred thousand people directly . Our economic relationship is truly two-way; some one
33 hundred thousand people are employed in the U.S. by over 650 Irish-owned companies,
34 across all fifty states. Indeed, Ireland is now the ninth lar gest source of foreign direct
35 investment in the U.S.; and
36
37 WHEREAS, the U.S.-Irish relationship is a shining example of how ancestral ties,
38 historical connections, cultural af finities, and shared values can create a foundation for
39 enduring partnership and mutual prosperity . Irish American state legislators across the United
40 States are playing a vitally important role in fostering this partnership and ensuring that it
41 continues and flourishes for another century to come:
42
43 NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOL VED that the members of the House of
44 Representatives of the One Hundred Third General Assembly , Second Regular Session, the
45 Senate concurring therein, hereby recognize and celebrate the special relationship between
46 the United States and Ireland; and
47
48 BE IT FUR THER RESOL VED that the Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives
49 be instructed to prepare a properly inscribed copy of this resolution for the American Irish
50 State Legislators Caucus.
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HCR 41 2