Charles G. Rose III

ALBERTVILLE, Ala. - Charles Grandison Rose III, former congressman from Fayetteville, N.C., died Sunday, Sept. 2, 2012, in Albertville, of complications associated with Parkinson's disease. He was born Aug. 10, 1939, in Fayetteville, and was a 1961 graduate of Davidson College. He earned a law degree in 1964 from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Law. Congressman Charlie Rose practiced law in Raleigh, N.C., following law school and served as district prosecutor in the judicial district that includes Cumberland County. He was elected to Congress in 1972 and served 24 years in the House of Representative, retiring in 1996. He was preceded in death by his parents, Charles Grandison Rose Jr. and Frances Duckworth Rose of Fayetteville, as well as by an infant daughter, Irene. He is survived by his wife, Stacye Hefner Rose of Albertville; and their daughter, Parker, of the home, as well as children, Charles, Louise and Kelly Rose. Congressman Rose is also survived by a stepson, Joseph Hawks; a brother, the Rev. William Frederick Rose and his wife, Georgia, of Richmond, Va.; and a sister, Irene Rose Owen and her husband, Dr. Duncan Owen, also of Richmond. Congressman Rose was a political centrist and skilled champion of agriculture and technology in the U.S. House of Representatives. A chairman of the House Administration Committee, he earned the nickname "The Mayor of Capitol Hill." He dedicated much of his time in Congress to making the institution work more effectively and to provide the "People's House" with the modern technology needed to deal with an ever more complex world. Throughout his career, and later as chairman of the powerful House Administration Committee, Rose oversaw the updating of many Capitol Hill communications tools, including telephone systems and computer networks. Rose was an early proponent of the Apple MAC operating system, which was virtually unknown in government offices until Congressman Rose introduced computers and encouraged other members to follow suit. Rose also played a major leadership role in the House recording studio, drafting system upgrades for satellite transmissions and recording services and leading the way for the formation of CSPAN, bringing the live broadcast of Congressional proceedings to the masses. He had an unparalleled understanding of gadgetry and was always the first on the scene to test new ideas. He was the father of TV coverage of the House of Representatives, as well as nearly every other technological advancement over a quarter of a century of service. Also widely known as "Mr. Tobacco," Rose fiercely protected the tobacco farmers of his district and kept price support programs intact as chairman of the Subcommittee on Tobacco and Peanuts of the Committee on Agriculture. As crops declined and the threat of a federal tobacco tax increase was debated, Rose successfully eased the economic transition and hardship on his farmers with the conciliatory style of brokering deals and reaching across the aisle in compromise. Congressman Rose initiated the idea that resulted in the tobacco buy-out program. Congressman Rose was particularly proud of providing outstanding constituent services through his offices in Washington and his district offices. No problem was too big or too small for him to tackle, and no person was overlooked. In the area of foreign affairs, he served for many years as a member of the North Atlantic Assembly, the parliamentary arm of NATO, including serving two terms as president of the group. In 1991, Rose and the late Sen. William Roth, a Delaware Republican, came up with the idea of integrating parliamentarians from emerging democracies and new political forces into NATO activities with annual seminars on defense and security policy. Known as the Rose-Roth Initiative, these seminars remain an important tool for the assembly to engage with delegations from non-NATO member countries, as well as former Eastern Bloc emerging democracies. He served as head of the delegation of NATO observers witnessing the first democratic elections to the Duma in Russia in 1993. Congressman Rose was also an establishing member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. Congressman Rose led the House investigation of the illegal sale of weapons to Saddam Hussein's regime, including the use of falsified agricultural financing credits to purchase illicit weapons and materials. He is perhaps best known for his long support for the Committee for a Free Tibet and his friendship with the Dalai Lama, who has opposed the Communist Chinese occupation of Tibet for decades. Congressman Rose was the lead advocate in Congress for a free Tibet. Rose served in Congress for 12 terms, from January 1973 to December 1996, when he decided not to seek re-election. He represented southeastern North Carolina in the Seventh Congressional District, including Fayetteville, the coastal area of Wilmington and Lumberton in Robeson County, home of the Lumbee Indian Tribe, with which he had a special relationship. In 1997, Rose and his wife formed Rose & Hefner Consulting. Among their clients were electronic, agriculture and health care companies. Rose also was the former chairman of the board of Circle One Global in Cedar Springs, Ga., where he helped develop a product to control aflatoxins in peanuts. A private celebration of his life was held Friday, Sept. 7, 2012, in Albertville. He will be honored at a later date in Fayetteville and Washington.


This obituary was originally published in the Fayetteville Observer.