Ryan Sydlik
Staff Writer
ON NOVEMBER 8th, California Congressman Daniel Lungren (R-03) received the Notre Dame Alumni Association’s John J. Cavanaugh, C.S.C. Award in recognition of his accomplishments as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives.
The John J. Cavanaugh, C.S.C. Award has been awarded annually since 1985, and it is reserved for an alumnus or alumna “who has performed outstanding service” in government or public service.
After receiving the award, Lungren hosted an informal question and answer session with a group of about two dozen Notre Dame students on November 9th to talk his accomplishments in office. He also used the opportunity to answer questions related to recent and upcoming legislation in the House of Representatives.
The session was arranged by the Department of Political Science in conjunction with the Alumni Association.
“I feel very privileged to receive [the award],” Lungren said.
Lungren said he was honored because he greatly respected other people who had been given the award previously including former California Congressman Ron Mazzoli, a person who he had worked with on many issues in the past.
Lungren was first elected to Congress in 1978, challenging a two term incumbent and winning. He served California’s 34th District until 1989, service that earned him a reputation for focusing on immigration and criminal justice.
Lungren’s most famous piece of legislation was the Simpson-Mazzoli Bill in which he was the principle co-sponsor. It went on to become the Immigration Reform Act of 1986, which Lungren co-authored. The bill criminalized hiring illegal immigrants, but it also included a provision for a “one-time” amnesty for illegal immigrants in the country at that time.
Lungren was critical of how the Immigration Reform Act has been enforced since that time.
“We needed to learn we failed the people 20 years ago…The problem was while we passed that as legislation it never came to fruition in that no administration, Democrat or Republican, no Congress, Democrat or Republican, wanted to enforce the law,” he said.
“We have now come to a situation that is far worse then it was then…We felt the acuity of the problem in Southern California at that time, now the whole nation feels it,” he added.
Lungren said Congress’ recent attempt at comprehensive immigration reform failed because in light of the previous 1986 failure, the focus was too much on a path to citizenship instead of enforcement.
“What’s happening now is you see [Congress] saying we got the word, you want enforcement…The question will be how far do we go such that the American people truly believe that we are committed to this on a long term basis,” he said.
Lungren left Congress in 1990 to become California’s Attorney General. During his two terms he helped author California’s “Three-Strikes-and-You’re-Out-Law” targeting repeat offenders, sponsored legislation that resulted in “Megan’s Law” requiring law enforcement to notify the public about sex offenders, and successfully argued a case before the Supreme Court. Also, from 1993 to 1998, he is credited in part with helping California’s crime rate drop by 30 percent to historic lows.
Lungren was elected to Congress again in 2004, this time serving California’s 3rd District. Lungren publicly credits the September 11th attacks for motivating his return.
“I came back to Congress after being gone for 16 years primarily because of the 9/11 experience and our obligation to try and respond to it in a way that made sense, was effective, and didn’t tear up our Constitution,” he said.
Lungren graduated with honors from Notre Dame in 1968 and went earned his law degree from Georgetown in 1971. He currently serves on the House Judiciary and Homeland Security Committees.
Between his position as California Attorney General and his second stint in Congress, he was also a nationally syndicated radio talk show host and served as a fellow in Harvard University’s Institute of Politics.
Lungren said his experience at Notre Dame played a large role in his career in Congress and that he has tried to exemplify the values he was taught at the university.
“I think that it is extremely important for those of us in public service that there are in fact values to guide us. I don’t have any doubt about the fact the Judeo-Christian values that I learned here are bedrock to the protection of what we consider our constitutional rights,” he said.
Lungren said that he hoped the values of Notre Dame have not worn off on him.
E-mail Ryan at rsydlik@nd.edu.
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