[Senate Document 111-26]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



S Doc. 111-26

 
                      TRIBUTES TO HON. JIM BUNNING



                                     Jim Bunning

                       U.S. SENATOR FROM KENTUCKY

                                TRIBUTES

                           IN THE CONGRESS OF

                           THE UNITED STATES



                                           


                                           

             
             

Jim Bunning


                                      Tributes

                                Delivered in Congress

                                     Jim Bunning

                              United States Congressman

                                      1987-1999

                                United States Senator

                                      1999-2011

                                          a
                                           


                                           


                            Compiled under the direction

                                       of the

                             Joint Committee on Printing


                                      CONTENTS
             Biography.............................................
                                                                      v
             Farewell to the Senate................................
                                                                    vii
             Proceedings in the Senate:
                Tributes by Senators:
                    Alexander, Lamar, of Tennessee.................
                                                                      3
                    Conrad, Kent, of North Dakota..................
                                                                     14
                    Cornyn, John, of Texas.........................
                                                                     15
                    DeMint, Jim, of South Carolina.................
                                                                     16
                    Dodd, Christopher J., of Connecticut...........
                                                                     13
                    Durbin, Richard, of Illinois...................
                                                                      9
                    Enzi, Michael B., of Wyoming...................
                                                                      6
                    Hatch, Orrin G., of Utah.......................
                                                                     18
                    Hutchison, Kay Bailey, of Texas................
                                                                     19
                    Kyl, Jon, of Arizona...........................
                                                                     12
                    McConnell, Mitch, of Kentucky..................
                                                                      9
                    Murkowski, Lisa, of Alaska.....................
                                                                     20
                    Reed, Jack, of Rhode Island....................
                                                                      5
                    Reid, Harry, of Nevada.........................
                                                                      5
                    Warner, Mark R., of Virginia...................
                                                                      6
                                      BIOGRAPHY

               On November 2, 2004, Jim Bunning was elected to serve a 
             second term as U.S. Senator for the Commonwealth of 
             Kentucky. Senator Bunning was first elected to the U.S. 
             Senate in 1998, winning by a mere 6,766 votes. In 2004 he 
             won by a margin almost 3\1/2\ times larger than his 
             victory in 1998, and he also won 73 of Kentucky's 120 
             counties and secured 873,507 votes. People who know Jim 
             Bunning were not surprised by these victories. Competition 
             is a hallmark of Jim Bunning 's life, and he is no 
             stranger to winning.
               As a youngster in northern Kentucky, Jim Bunning fell in 
             love with baseball and even then he displayed a 
             competitive spirit and a willingness to work hard. That 
             combination carried him on to a highly successful 17-year 
             career as a Major League Baseball player after his 
             graduation from Xavier University with an economics 
             degree.
               Pitching primarily for the Detroit Tigers and 
             Philadelphia Phillies, Jim Bunning accumulated a record of 
             achievement that eventually won him a seat in the Baseball 
             Hall of Fame in 1996. He was the second pitcher in history 
             (Cy Young was the first) to record 1,000 strikeouts and 
             100 wins in both the American and National Leagues. When 
             he retired in 1971, Jim Bunning was second on the alltime 
             strikeout list--second only to Walter Johnson.
               The same commitment that made Jim Bunning a Hall of 
             Famer also serves him well in public office. In 1977, he 
             wanted to give something back to his community and he ran 
             for and won a city council seat in Fort Thomas, KY. In 
             1979, he was elected to the Kentucky State Senate and 
             became its Republican leader. In 1986, Jim Bunning was 
             elected to the U.S. House of Representatives for the 
             Fourth District of Kentucky where he served for 12 years.
               As chairman of the House's Social Security Subcommittee, 
             Jim Bunning established himself as one of Congress' 
             foremost experts and defenders of Social Security, as well 
             as a leading spokesman for strengthening and protecting 
             Social Security. In Congress, Jim Bunning has been a 
             proponent of walling off budget surpluses to help ensure 
             the livelihood and commitment of Social Security for our 
             seniors and future generations. He played a key role in 
             the passage of landmark legislation establishing the 
             Social Security Administration as a stand-alone and 
             independent agency. He also authored the law to raise the 
             unfair ``earnings limit'' for seniors.
                In the Senate, Jim Bunning's hard work won him the 
             respect of his colleagues and a coveted seat on the 
             influential Finance Committee, making him the first 
             Kentuckian in nearly 40 years to serve on this powerful 
             committee. Service on this committee allows Senator 
             Bunning a direct role in influencing how nearly two-thirds 
             of all Federal dollars are spent on such issues as tax 
             policy, Medicare and Medicaid, Social Security, welfare 
             reform, and trade policy.
               Senator Bunning also serves on the Banking Committee 
             where he has been the leading critic of the Federal 
             Reserve and financial bailouts. When he was chairman of 
             the Banking Committee's Economic Policy Subcommittee, he 
             also wrote legislation to reform the National Flood 
             Insurance Program, which was signed into law. From his 
             seat on the Energy Committee, Senator Bunning worked hard 
             to make America more energy independent with diverse 
             energy sources, especially coal-to-liquids, soy-diesel, 
             and ethanol. Jim Bunning also served on the Budget 
             Committee where he fought for fiscally responsible budgets 
             that fund our top priorities, with an emphasis on 
             strengthening our military and taking care of our troops 
             overseas.
               Although his election in the U.S. Senate and induction 
             into the Baseball Hall of Fame stand out as top moments in 
             his life, the alltime high point in his life was his 
             marriage to Mary Catherine Theis. Together, they raised 9 
             children and have 35 grandchildren and 5 great-
             grandchildren. Jim and Mary make their home in Southgate, 
             KY, and are active members of the St. Therese Catholic 
             Church in Southgate, KY.
                               Farewell to the Senate
                             Thursday, December 9, 2010

               Mr. BUNNING. Madam President, I thank the Senator from 
             Missouri (Mr. Bond), a dear friend of mine and someone who 
             has unusual wisdom in his remarks today. I listened to 
             many of them. I just hope I have a few that are as well 
             thought out as my good friend from Missouri.
               I wish to take a few moments to thank all my colleagues 
             and other individuals who have come to the Chamber to hear 
             me bid farewell. That doesn't mean I will not speak again. 
             That just means I am bidding farewell and this is a 
             farewell speech.
               I have had the great fortune of having three wonderful 
             careers during my life: one as a husband and father of 9 
             children and a grandfather of 40, one as a Major League 
             baseball player for 17 years, and one in public service 
             for 30 years. Many people often talk to me about how 
             different my baseball and public service careers are, but 
             they really are not so different.
               I have been booed by 60,000 fans in Yankee Stadium, 
             standing alone on the mound, so I have never cared if I 
             stood alone in the Congress, as long as I stood by my 
             beliefs and my values. I have also thought that being able 
             to throw a curve ball never was a bad skill for a 
             politician to have.
               I came to Washington, DC, in 1987, when the people of 
             the Fourth District in northern Kentucky gave me the 
             distinct honor to serve them. I did not know then that the 
             people of Kentucky had bestowed upon me the privilege of 
             representing them for 24 years. I have the same 
             conservative principles in 2010 that I had when I first 
             was elected to Congress.
               Over the years, I have always done what I thought was 
             right for Kentucky and my country. I did not run for 
             public service for fame or public acclaim. When I cast my 
             votes, I thought about how they would affect my 
             grandchildren and the next generation of Kentuckians, not 
             where the political winds at the time were blowing. Words 
             cannot express my gratitude to the people of Kentucky for 
             giving me the distinct honor of serving them for 12 years 
             in the House of Representatives and 12 years in the 
             Senate.
               Here I stand, though, in the Senate Chamber about to say 
             goodbye after nearly a quarter of a century in Congress. I 
             have reflected much about my time here. As I stand here at 
             the desk of Henry Clay, the great Kentuckian, I am proud 
             to have had the opportunity to serve in a place in 
             history. I thought it fitting to discuss the legislative 
             items of which I am most proud.
               I have three bills I am particularly proud I was able to 
             accomplish signing into law. One of the things I am most 
             proud of during my time in Congress is helping pass 
             legislation that repealed the earnings limit on older 
             Americans under the Social Security system. Social 
             Security used to penalize many older Americans for working 
             by reducing their Social Security benefits by $1 for every 
             $3 they earned, if they made more than the earnings limit 
             which was about $12,000 in 1995. This was an unfair tax on 
             seniors and punished them for continuing to work. I worked 
             hard for many years in both the House and Senate to get 
             this unfair earnings limit eliminated.
               Finally, in 2000, after I had been elected to the 
             Senate, it passed and was signed into law. This law has 
             helped many hard-working seniors stay involved in their 
             communities, remain independent, and contribute to 
             society.
               Another bill I am proud of is the 2004 Flood Insurance 
             Reformation Act. In 2004, I wrote the last reauthorization 
             of the National Flood Insurance Program. That law provided 
             significant reforms to the program just in time for the 
             2004-2005 hurricane season, including Hurricane Katrina. 
             Had the law not been in place, homeowners all over the 
             gulf coast would not have had coverage for the flood 
             damage to their homes. The 2004 law is still the framework 
             for the program today. It was not a Republican 
             accomplishment or a Democratic accomplishment. It was a 
             bipartisan accomplishment.
               I worked very closely with Senator Sarbanes and 
             Representatives Bereuter and Blumenthal to write and pass 
             that law. While I believe that further changes are still 
             needed to the program, the 2004 law made meaningful 
             changes that put the program on a more sound financial 
             footing.
               Unfortunately, passage of the bill was not the end of 
             the story. What happened or, more accurately, what did not 
             happen illustrates one reason people are fed up with 
             Washington: because government does not do what it is 
             supposed to do. Despite the fact that the bill passed both 
             the Senate and the House unanimously, FEMA refused to 
             implement all of its provisions in a timely manner. The 
             most glaring example was the appeals process created by 
             the bill for property owners to appeal claims they thought 
             were not settled fairly or correctly. The law gave FEMA 6 
             months to write the rules. FEMA, instead, took almost 2 
             years from the day the bill passed to put even draft rules 
             out. They probably would not have done it then, if it was 
             not for the right of one Senator to object. I had to hold 
             the nominee to head the agency to get the attention of the 
             Bush administration and move the Secretary of Homeland 
             Security to finally publish the rules. It should not have 
             been that way.
               The third bill I am grateful was signed into law is the 
             Emergency Employee Occupational Illness Compensation 
             Program. The Paducah, KY, gaseous diffusion plant is the 
             only operating uranium enrichment plant in the United 
             States. When I came to the Senate, I held the first 
             hearing to look at cleaning up the contamination the 
             Department of Energy left at the site. After the hearing, 
             I focused on cleaning up the site. A lot has been cleaned 
             up since that first hearing 10 years ago. I also worked 
             hard to provide compensation to workers who suffered 
             serious illnesses as a result of their employment at the 
             DOE nuclear weapons program plant.
               This energy employment compensation program was set up 
             because many workers served our country's nuclear programs 
             during the cold war and their health was put at risk 
             without their knowledge--the first compensation bill 
             passed in 2000, with the help of a bipartisan group of 
             Congressmen and Senators. I then became aware that DOE was 
             slow-walking claims processing and payment to many 
             claimants and their portion of the compensation program. 
             So in 2004, again, with the help of a bipartisan group of 
             Senators and Congressmen, I spearheaded legislation that 
             moved the entire program over to the Department of Labor, 
             which had sped up and streamlined compensation for the 
             sick nuclear workers.
               Along with many of my achievements, I also had time to 
             reflect on some of the disappointments I wish I had been 
             able to fix during my time here. I am deeply concerned 
             about the state of entitlement programs--Medicare, 
             Medicaid, and Social Security. It is clear that our 
             government cannot meet its future obligations and 
             ultimately the American people will suffer, unfortunately. 
             Too many Members of Congress are willing to look the other 
             way and let the financial problems of these programs 
             fester instead of making hard decisions. Congress just 
             cannot get the courage together to address these issues 
             head on.
               In fact, after President Bush's second election, 
             Congress briefly focused on the problems of Social 
             Security solvency. At the time, I was a strong supporter 
             of private investment accounts but certainly realized that 
             the whole system needed an overhaul and was open to many 
             different options. Toward the end of the debate, I was 
             willing to tackle Social Security reform even if we did 
             not do investment accounts, as long as we did something. 
             However, it quickly became apparent that many Members of 
             Congress--even some in my own party--were not willing to 
             get serious about this. Six years later, Congress still 
             has not touched Social Security reform, and the program is 
             even in worse financial shape.
               Medicare and Medicaid are in the same position. In 2006, 
             Congress finally got serious about spending in these 
             programs and passed the Deficit Reduction Act. This bill 
             slowed the rate of growth in Medicare by $6 billion and in 
             Medicaid by $5 billion over 5 years. Let me be clear about 
             this. We were not cutting spending in these programs. We 
             were just slowing the growth.
               Well, you would have thought the sky was falling when we 
             did this. The longer Congress takes to honestly tackle 
             these fiscal challenges, the harder it will be to fix 
             these programs. This means bigger cuts, bigger deficits, 
             and bigger tax increases.
               Health care is another area where Congress should have 
             done better. The other side of the aisle's stubborn 
             refusal to compromise and, more important, listen to the 
             desires of the American people on health care reform led 
             to the passage of a bill that is one of the worst pieces 
             of legislation I have seen in Congress in 24 years.
               The health care bill is clearly unconstitutional, will 
             force millions of Americans to lose the health insurance 
             they currently enjoy, give the IRS--that is the Internal 
             Revenue Service--the power to police and tax Americans who 
             do not have health insurance, and take over $500 billion 
             out of Medicare programs to pay for new spending.
               Despite all the rhetoric from the administration and 
             Democratic leaders about being transparent and open and 
             willing to compromise, it quickly became clear that they 
             only wanted Republican support if we agreed to everything 
             they wanted to do. Well, compromise does not work like 
             that. A compromise means you actually have to take ideas 
             from other people instead of just giving lip service.
               One of the other recent disappointments was the 
             financial regulation bill passed earlier this year. Before 
             my first election, I spent 31 years working in the 
             security business. That was back when baseball players did 
             not make millions of dollars a year and had to have jobs 
             in the off-season to pay the bills. I spent nearly all of 
             my time in Congress on either the old House Banking 
             Committee or the Senate Banking Committee, so this is 
             something I know a great deal about and care about.
               There were, and are, real problems in our financial 
             system. But that bill is not going to fix them and almost 
             certainly sows the seeds for the next banking and 
             financial crisis while, at the same time, adding more 
             burdens on the economies struggling to recover.
               That bill did not replace bailouts with bankruptcy. It 
             made bailouts a permanent part of the financial system. 
             The bill did not force the too-big-to-fail banks to get 
             smaller. It gave them special status. The bill ignored the 
             role of housing finance and left Fannie Mae and Freddie 
             Mac alone. The housing crisis could not have happened 
             without Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
               The Senate failed to act on a bill to reform Fannie and 
             Freddie passed by the Banking Committee in 2006, and that 
             failure is going to end up costing taxpayers hundreds of 
             millions of dollars. Congress has to do something soon to 
             get them off the taxpayers' life support they have been on 
             since 2008. But, unfortunately, that did not happen in the 
             financial reform bill.
               The bill also ignores the Federal Reserve's failures as 
             a regulator and, instead, gave them more power. And, worst 
             of all, the bill did nothing to rein in the largest single 
             cause of the current financial crisis and most other 
             financial crises in the past: flawed monetary policy by 
             the Federal Reserve.
               Nothing Congress has done will stop the next bubble or 
             collapse if the Fed continues with its easy money 
             policies. Cheap money will always distort prices and lead 
             to dangerous behavior. No amount of regulation can contain 
             it.
               For many years, I was a lone critic of the Federal 
             Reserve. Particularly, no one questioned Alan Greenspan, 
             despite his policies causing two recessions and two asset 
             bubbles. I was the lone vote against Ben Bernanke in 2006. 
             I was the lone vote because I thought he would continue 
             the Greenspan monetary and regulatory policies. Well, he 
             did. He kept it up--a flawed monetary policy--and was slow 
             to regulate. Then, in 2008, he took the Federal Reserve 
             into fiscal policy by bailing out Bear Stearns and, later, 
             AIG, and just about every other major financial 
             institution in the country. As we saw, even last week 
             around the world, Chairman Bernanke compromised the 
             independence of the Fed and turned it into an arm of the 
             U.S. Treasury.
               Things have not gotten better since then either. 
             Chairman Bernanke is continuing with the easy monetary 
             policy, and a month ago started the printing presses again 
             to buy up more Treasury debt. While the Fed may be 
             propping up the banks with plenty of cheap money, he is 
             undermining our currency.
               Other central banks are moving away from the dollar and 
             gold is continuing to climb. Just like the soaring 
             national debt and entitlement costs, the destruction of 
             the dollar is not sustainable. Congress must act to rein 
             in the Chairman of the Federal Reserve and the Fed before 
             they destroy our currency and permanently damage our 
             economy and financial system.
               Public awareness of what the Fed is doing is increasing, 
             while public opinion of the Fed is falling. Chairman 
             Bernanke had nearly twice as many votes cast against him 
             in the Senate earlier this year than any other Fed 
             Chairman in history. It is just not outside the Fed that 
             opposition is growing. Regional Federal Reserve Bank 
             presidents are speaking up and voting against Fed policy. 
             Even some members of the Fed Board are recognizing the 
             dangers of Chairman Bernanke's policies. I am more hopeful 
             now than ever that Chairman Bernanke and the Fed will not 
             be allowed to continue the flawed policies and act as an 
             arm of the Treasury and the major banks.
               As I stand here and reflect upon my time in Congress, I 
             can honestly say I am gratified, despite the ups and 
             downs, to have had the opportunity to serve my country and 
             serve the people of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.
               Twenty-four years is a very large portion of my life and 
             my family's life. I thank my 9 children: Barb, Jim, Joan, 
             Cat, Bill, Bridget, Mark, Amy, and David, and my 40 
             grandchildren, who inspired me to try to make this country 
             better and better for the next generation to live.
               I also want to give a special thanks to my wife Mary, 
             the mother of my nine children and my childhood sweetheart 
             from the fourth grade. I thank her for being at my side 
             through all of the road trips and the late nights I spent 
             in the House and Senate. She is my better half, who 
             supported and stood by me. She is my lighthouse that 
             always shone in the dark during the good and the bad times 
             of public service. She prayed me to my wins in public 
             service and in baseball, and I never could have done any 
             of these achievements without her.
               As this chapter in my life comes to an end and I flip 
             the page into a new chapter, I thank very much all the 
             other people in my life who have stood by me. Without the 
             friendship and support of so many over the years, I never 
             would have been able and had the privilege to represent 
             Kentucky in the House and Senate.
               As I leave here today, I offer a little prayer for the 
             next Congress. Pope John Paul II once said, ``Freedom 
             consists not in doing what we like, but in having the 
             right to do what we ought.'' This is the motto I have 
             tried to live by during my time in Congress. I pray that 
             the Members of the next Congress do what is right for the 
             country, not what is right for their fame and their future 
             aspirations. My hope is that Congress will focus on the 
             astronomical debt instead of continuing down the path of 
             spending our future generations into higher taxes and a 
             lower standard of living than we have now.
               Godspeed and God bless.
               With a sense of pride and gratitude, I will say for the 
             last time, Mr. President, I yield the floor.
?

                                           

                                      TRIBUTES

                                         TO

                                     JIM BUNNING
                              Proceedings in the Senate
                                             Tuesday, November 30, 2010
               Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, 16 Senators will retire 
             this year. There is a pretty big turnover in this body, 
             but that is a lot of Senators at once. We are losing an 
             enormous amount of talent, but, of course, we are gaining 
             a lot of talent with the new Senators.
               I wish to show my respect for those who have served, 
             which I will do in a summary fashion because we are 
             talking about 16 individuals with very complex and 
             distinguished backgrounds.
               One might ask, what are the characteristics of a 
             Senator? There are a lot of different answers to that, 
             depending on your background and attitude toward politics 
             and government. First, I have always thought that one 
             characteristic of almost every Member of the Senate is 
             that he or she probably was a first grader sitting in the 
             front row, hand in the air waiting to be recognized. This 
             is an eager bunch or you would not have gotten here.
               Second, it is a group of risk takers. Most people who 
             end up in the Senate get here because a lot of other 
             people who wanted to be Senators were standing around 
             waiting for the right time to run. A lot of people who 
             were elected to the Senate seemed to have no chance of 
             winning at the time they decided to run, but the voters 
             decided differently, and here they are.
               Third, we are almost all professional and congenial. 
             That is a big help. It is almost a requirement in an 
             organization of 100 individuals who spend almost all their 
             time with one another, who serve in a body that operates 
             by unanimous consent, when just one Senator can bring the 
             whole place to a halt, and whose job basically is to argue 
             about some of the most difficult issues that face the 
             American people. So it helps that almost every Member of 
             the Senate is an especially congenial person.
               Back in Tennessee, people often say to me it must be 
             rough being in that job. They are awfully mean up there. 
             The truth is, I don't know of a more congenial group than 
             the Members of the Senate. We begin the day in the gym. 
             The next thing you know we are at a Prayer Breakfast, and 
             then we are at a committee hearing. Then we are on the 
             floor voting, and then we have lunch. It goes through the 
             day until 7 or 8 o'clock, or sometimes later. We live 
             together and we get along very well. We know and respect 
             each other.
               Not long ago, the Presiding Officer (Mr. Udall of New 
             Mexico) and I were having dinner together with our wives. 
             We were lamenting the loss of families who know one 
             another, the way it happened when his father was serving 
             in Congress and when I first came to the Senate to work 
             for Senator Baker. And that's true. We've lost some of 
             that. Still, there is an enormous amount of affection and 
             good will here. You don't always get to be very close 
             friends in this job, but you get to be very good 
             acquaintances, and you learn to respect people for their 
             strengths.
               Senator Domenici said, when he left, that we don't do a 
             very good job of saying goodbye here. That is true. As one 
             part of saying goodbye, I wish to say at least one good 
             thing about each one of the 16 retiring Senators. Much 
             more could be said about each, of course. Mostly, I am 
             going in alphabetical order. ...
               Everybody knows about Senator Jim Bunning and baseball. 
             Nobody would want to be a batter when he is throwing 
             pitches. We understand he is the only person to strike out 
             Ted Williams three times in one game. But what not as many 
             people know about him is that Jim Bunning has been a 
             persistent leader in fighting for sick nuclear workers who 
             served our country during the 1950s and 1960s and were 
             sick because of their work in handling nuclear weapons. So 
             Jim Bunning deserves the thanks of all the families of the 
             sick nuclear workers in America for his service here. ...
               It has been my privilege to serve with these 16 
             Senators. We thank them for their service to our country. 
             They have had a chance to serve in what we regard as the 
             world's greatest deliberative body; it is a special 
             institution. We will miss their leadership, and we hope 
             they will stay in touch with us because they are not just 
             retiring Senators, they are all our friends.
               I yield the floor.
                                            Wednesday, December 8, 2010
               Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that 
             there be printed as a Senate document a compilation of 
             materials from the Congressional Record in tribute to 
             retiring Members of the 111th Congress, and that Members 
             have until Thursday, December 16, to submit such tributes.

               The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so 
             ordered.
                                             Thursday, December 9, 2010
               Mr. REID. I of course admire Senator Bunning because of 
             his great athletic skills. He is a member of the Baseball 
             Hall of Fame. To think I have had the opportunity to serve 
             in the Senate with one of the great pitchers of all time. 
             I love talking to Jim Bunning about his baseball days. 
             Some of the stories he has told I have repeated many times 
             and I will never forget them. One of the things he said 
             that I have repeated on a number of occasions--Jim Bunning 
             was a great pitcher, an All-Star with no-hitters in both 
             leagues. But he has some humility, because he said there 
             was Sandy Koufax and there was the rest of us. He and I 
             don't vote often the same way, but he is a man who has a 
             strong opinion, and I am going to miss Jim Bunning and the 
             chance for me to talk to him about his athletic feats. I 
             certainly wish him well in whatever his endeavors may be 
             in the future.
                                              Friday, December 10, 2010
               Mr. REED. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to 
             our colleagues who are departing the Senate after 
             distinguished service on behalf of their States and on 
             behalf of the Nation. I have been privileged to work with 
             these individuals, to learn from them, to collaborate and 
             cooperate with them, and to, in some small way, help them 
             do what they have done so well--represent their States 
             with fidelity, with great effort, and to move the agenda 
             of the Nation forward. ...
               Senator Jim Bunning and I served together for many years 
             on the Banking Committee. Jim and Mary Catherine and their 
             family brought so much to not only the Senate as an 
             organization, but to the Senate as a group of individuals. 
             Jim was one of the first and most insightful observers and 
             critics of the growing issues in the securities market. He 
             did it based upon his experience as a financial 
             stockbroker in the world of finance. He did it also with 
             his grasp of common sense and looking at things carefully 
             and pragmatically, based on Main Street not on financial 
             centers. We worked together on the Securities Committee, 
             and we did it in a way that I enjoyed the collaboration 
             immensely.
               A focus on the issues and their importance to the 
             country was also in the forefront of his mind. He 
             distinguished himself immensely. I wish him well. ...
               To all of these colleagues and their families, my 
             deepest appreciation and my profoundest respect.

               Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I rise again to recognize the 
             service of another great Federal employee. This is a 
             tradition that was started by our friend and former 
             colleague, Senator Kaufman, and I am proud to carry on 
             that tradition. But I want to first say that I appreciate 
             the remarks of the Presiding Officer (Mr. Reed) about our 
             colleagues who are leaving this body, and I share his 
             great respect for not only Senator Kaufman but all of the 
             colleagues who are leaving the body at the end of this 
             Congress. ...
                                           Wednesday, December 15, 2010
               Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, it is always a bittersweet 
             moment when we come to the end of a session of Congress. 
             As the clock winds down on the final hours of our 
             legislative activities, it also signals the time when 
             several of our colleagues will be retiring and ending 
             their years of service in the U.S. Senate. One of our 
             colleagues who will be leaving at the end of this session 
             is my good friend Jim Bunning of Kentucky. I know we will 
             all miss him, his spirited presence in the Senate, and the 
             friendship he has shared with us through the years.
               Someday when he gets the urge I have no doubt that Jim 
             will be able to write another book or two about his life 
             that will sell countless copies all over the country. It 
             can't miss. Jim has a truly remarkable story to tell about 
             his life that has all the makings of a bestseller. An old 
             adage reminds us that it isn't the number of years in your 
             life that is important, it is the life in your years. If 
             that is the standard we are going to use, I can't think of 
             anyone who has been able to fit more into every day of his 
             life than Jim, and I for one would enjoy reading all about 
             it. This time Jim might think about writing about how 
             playing baseball was a lot like politics--and how the 
             beanballs he used to throw at batters became verbal 
             fastballs that came with lightning speed right at other 
             Senators and members of the media.
               I would imagine the first volume of this new series 
             would be about Jim's years in baseball. There is 
             definitely a lot still to be written about his Hall of 
             Fame career and the outstanding results he was able to 
             achieve that kept him in the Major Leagues for so many 
             years.
               Jim's 17-year career in baseball began when he broke 
             into the big leagues on July 20, 1955, with his first 
             team, the Detroit Tigers. In the years that followed, he 
             pitched for the Philadelphia Phillies, the Pittsburgh 
             Pirates, and the Los Angeles Dodgers, notching 100 wins 
             and 1,000 strikeouts in both the American and National 
             Leagues. When he retired he had the second highest number 
             of career strikeouts in the history of Major League 
             baseball and two no-hitters, one of them the seventh 
             perfect game in baseball history that he pitched on June 
             21, 1964--Father's Day--which made the game that much more 
             meaningful for him. He was then inducted into the Baseball 
             Hall of Fame in 1996.
               For anyone else that would have been enough. A Hall of 
             Fame career, after all, is the kind of thing that most 
             people can only dream about--but Jim was never one to be 
             like most people. He had another career in mind, and it 
             was time to get started on his other dream--making 
             government work better for the people of Kentucky.
               Soon after he first tossed his cap into the political 
             arena, Jim won an election to serve on the city council in 
             Fort Thomas. He then ran for and won a seat in the 
             Kentucky State Senate where he soon came to serve as its 
             Republican leader. Then, when the opportunity presented 
             itself, Jim ran for and won an election to the U.S. House 
             of Representatives, where he served for 12 years.
               Fortunately, for the people of Kentucky and the Senate, 
             Jim then ran for and won a seat in the Senate. At every 
             level, it was Jim's willingness to work hard and his 
             commitment to his country and his beloved Kentucky that 
             not only got him noticed, but helped him to make progress 
             on all fronts.
               Here in the Senate, Jim became the first Kentuckian in 
             nearly 40 years to serve on the Finance Committee. He also 
             served on the Banking Committee, chaired that committee's 
             Economic Policy Subcommittee, and then served on the 
             Energy Committee which gave him a chance to work to make 
             our Nation more energy independent.
               At every post he has held he has been a fighter--for a 
             sound budget, one that would provide the funds that were 
             needed for our national priorities, like our Armed 
             Forces--especially for those who were serving overseas. 
             For 12 years in the House and 12 years in the Senate, Jim 
             held true to the values and principles that had guided his 
             life and served as his inner compass through all of his 
             life's challenges and opportunities.
               Jim has had more great moments in his life than most 
             other people could ever hope for. He has his victories on 
             the mound during a Hall of Fame career to look back on. He 
             had all those wins on election day to remember with pride. 
             Still, there was one moment that still stands head and 
             shoulders above them all--his marriage. That day when Mary 
             said ``I do'' was the best moment of his life. She is a 
             strong source of support for him and I am sure he has 
             already said that whatever success has come into his life 
             he owes to a large degree to Mary. Theirs has been a 
             remarkable marriage, during which they raised nine 
             children who have blessed them with an abundance of 
             grandchildren and some great-grandchildren, too.
               Just like the title of the movie so many of us enjoy 
             during this time of year Jim is having a wonderful life. 
             Each day, each week, each month, and every year, he's 
             played a full and active role in his community and his 
             Nation. As a baseball player he proved to be one of the 
             best there ever was. As a Senator and a Representative, he 
             showed a willingness to bring that same determination that 
             had won him so many games on the mound to our 
             deliberations on the Senate floor.
               I don't know what Jim is thinking of taking on next--but 
             given his legacy of excellence that he continues to add to 
             every day, I wouldn't be surprised to learn we haven't 
             heard the last from him. That would suit me and so many 
             who know him just fine. His is a voice that is still 
             needed.
               That is why, in the months to come I hope I continue to 
             hear from him with his thoughtful ideas and suggestions 
             about the issues we will be taking up in the current 
             Congress. I will miss hearing what he has to say--but if I 
             know Jim--I have a hunch he will make his views known.
               Thanks, Jim, for your willingness to serve the people of 
             Kentucky and the Nation. With both careers you have 
             inspired countless people of all ages to pursue their 
             goals and work to make their dreams a reality. Thanks most 
             of all for your friendship. Diana and I wish you and Mary 
             all the best that life has to offer. You have earned all 
             of that and so much more. For all your life you have been 
             leading the best way--by example--and living a life that 
             has been nothing short of a great and grand adventure--
             just what life was always meant to be.

               Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that 
             the order for the printing of tributes be modified to 
             provide that Members have until sine die of the 111th 
             Congress, 2d session, to submit tributes and that the 
             order for printing remain in effect.

               The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so 
             ordered.
                                            Thursday, December 16, 2010
               Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, I know there are others 
             on the Senate floor seeking to speak, but I wish to bid 
             farewell to one of our colleagues. Few people can say they 
             have had the same range of experience and successes in 
             life as Senator Jim Bunning. In fact, there isn't even 
             another Major Leaguer who can say he struck out Ted 
             Williams three times in one game. Jim accomplished that 
             notable feat in just his second year in the majors.
               Thirty-nine years after that, he had become the only 
             member of the Baseball Hall of Fame to serve in Congress. 
             For the past 12 years, I have been honored to work 
             alongside this remarkable American in the Senate. We 
             followed different paths in life, but we sure have deep 
             love for Kentucky and its people. It has been my honor 
             over the years to work closely with Jim to advance our 
             common goals.
               So today I wish to say a few words about my good friend 
             as we honor his remarkable life and his remarkable 
             service.
               Jim was born and raised in Southgate, KY, and it 
             wouldn't surprise anybody to learn he excelled in school 
             and in sports growing up. He played baseball as a teenager 
             at St. Xavier High School in Cincinnati, but it was for 
             his skills as a basketball player that would earn him an 
             athletic scholarship to Xavier University.
               Baseball interrupted his college education, but at his 
             father's insistence, Jim would return to Xavier and earn a 
             degree in economics that would serve him well in Congress 
             over the years. He entered the majors in 1955, and over 
             the course of a storied 17-year career he would play for 
             the Detroit Tigers, the Philadelphia Phillies, the 
             Pittsburgh Pirates, and the Los Angeles Dodgers. Jim is a 
             pretty imposing force at committee hearings--just ask 
             Chairman Bernanke--but he was a dominating presence on the 
             mound long before that.
               At 6 feet 4 inches, he was a hard-throwing sidearmer who 
             would tumble off the mound with every pitch he threw. By 
             the end of his career, Jim could boast he was the first 
             Major League pitcher to win 100 games, rack up 1,000 
             strikeouts, and throw no-hitters in both leagues. He 
             finished with an impressive 224 wins, 184 losses, 2,855 
             strikeouts, and a 3.27 ERA--the career stats that would 
             earn him a spot in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
               Jim's two greatest pitching achievements were his no-
             hitter in 1958 and the perfect game he threw on Father's 
             Day, 1964, a feat that has only been accomplished 20 times 
             in baseball history. Another little known feat was Jimmy's 
             so-called ``immaculate inning'' in 1959 when he struck out 
             3 Red Sox on 9 pitches, a feat that has only been achieved 
             43 other times in baseball history.
               Around here we joke that Jim likes to throw the high 
             hard ones, but he developed the skill early. Over a 4-year 
             period with the Phillies, Jim hit more opposing batters 
             with pitches than any other pitcher in the league. In 
             fact, over a 17-year career, he plunked 160 batters or 
             nearly 10 batters a year, making him the 13th most 
             dangerous pitcher of all time, ahead of such other well-
             known headhunters as Roger Clemens, Nolan Ryan, and Don 
             Drysdale.
               Jim has never been afraid of a little chin music, and he 
             brought that same competitive mentality to his life in 
             public service. After baseball, public service seemed like 
             a logical choice. It was Jimmy's turn to give back, and 
             give back is exactly what he did.
               When Jim walks out of this Chamber for the last time at 
             the end of this session, he will be able to say with 
             justifiable pride that he has given 33 years of his life 
             to public service and to Kentucky.
               Over those three decades, Jim has served in all levels 
             of government--from the Fort Thomas City Council to the 
             Kentucky State Senate, to both Chambers in this building--
             12 years in the House and 12 in the Senate. He has 
             dedicated his life to serving the people of Kentucky, and 
             Kentuckians are grateful for his service.
               In the House he made a name for himself, among other 
             things, by working tirelessly to strengthen and protect 
             Social Security as chairman of the House Ways and Means 
             Subcommittee on Social Security.
               And then, in 1998, he decided to make a run at the U.S. 
             Senate seat which at the time was held by Wendell Ford. It 
             turned out to be a pretty close election, but once he 
             arrived in the Senate, Jim set out to become one of the 
             hardest working and most influential Members of this 
             Chamber.
               He has been a staunch social and fiscal conservative, 
             and a budget hawk who for years has sounded the alarm on 
             the kind of concerns about spending and debt that drove so 
             many Americans to the polls this month. Jim spoke for many 
             Americans when he said in a recent statement that, being a 
             grandfather to many he worries that future generations 
             will be saddled by the poor decisions that are being made 
             today. ``For the first time in my life,'' he said, ``I 
             question if my grandchildren will have the same 
             opportunities that I had.''
               One particular issue that has been close to Jim's heart 
             is the issue of adoption. In 2001, Jim introduced 
             legislation to make adopting more affordable to American 
             families. And in 2007, he introduced legislation to make 
             those tax incentives permanent.
               Of course, if there was ever a controversial issue 
             regarding the national pastime on Capitol Hill, Jim was 
             right at the forefront, including the 2005 hearings 
             related to steroid use in baseball. In one memorable 
             exchange from that hearing, Jim offered the following 
             testimony, from his own experience as a player: ``Mr. 
             Chairman,'' he said, ``maybe I'm old-fashioned, [but] I 
             remember players didn't get better as they got older. We 
             all got worse. When I played with Hank Aaron and Willie 
             Mays and Ted Williams, they didn't put on 40 pounds to 
             bulk up in their careers and they didn't hit more homers 
             in their late thirties than they did in their late 
             twenties.'' It was just this kind of straightforward, 
             commonsense approach to the issues that has won Jim a 
             legion of admirers not only on the baseball diamond, but 
             off of it. On this issue in particular, Jim's passion and 
             personal perspective helped shed light not only on the 
             dangers of steroid use at the professional level, but on 
             the growing steroid epidemic among young athletes at all 
             levels.
               Despite his high profile, Jim never forgot about the 
             issues that mattered most to his constituents back home. 
             He's been a staunch supporter of clean coal technologies 
             as an effective, efficient way to use coal, improve our 
             environment, and bring jobs to Kentucky. Another issue 
             that was extremely important to all Kentuckians was the 
             failed cleanup of radioactive contamination that was found 
             in the drinking water wells of residences near the 
             Department of Energy's uranium enrichment plant in 
             Paducah, KY, in 1988. In 2004, Jim harshly criticized the 
             DOE's cleanup efforts, as well as called several hearings 
             on Capitol Hill to draw attention to DOE's failure to 
             compensate many workers that had been stricken with 
             radiation-related diseases.
               On every issue he has taken on, whether national, 
             statewide or local, Jim has been a man of principle from 
             start to finish. He has stayed true to himself. In a truly 
             remarkable life, he has got a lot to be proud of. But if 
             you were to ask Jim to list his greatest achievement, I 
             don't think he would say it was his election to the U.S. 
             Senate or his induction to the Hall of Fame. They would 
             both come in a distant second and third to the day he 
             married his high school sweetheart, Mary. Jim and Mary 
             still live in the northern Kentucky town where he grew up. 
             They have been married for nearly 60 years. Together, they 
             have raised nine children. And they enjoy nothing more 
             than spending time with the next generation of Bunnings--
             which last time I checked included 35 grandchildren and 5 
             great-grandchildren. Jim will tell you there's no secret 
             to his success. He is happy to give all the credit to 
             Mary. As he put it in his Hall of Fame induction speech, 
             she is his ``rock.''
               Today, we honor and pay tribute to our friend and 
             colleague for more than three decades of public service. 
             Jim will be remembered for his two Hall of Fame-worthy 
             careers, for his example of principled leadership, and for 
             his devotion to God, country, and family. On behalf of 
             myself and the entire Senate family, Jim, we thank you for 
             your service, and we wish you the best in the next chapter 
             of your life.
               I yield the floor.

               The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from 
             Arizona is recognized.

               Mr. KYL. Madam President, I join Senator McConnell in a 
             tribute to my friend and colleague, Jim Bunning. Jim and I 
             came into the House of Representatives at the same time as 
             part of the 100th class. I have enjoyed being with him as 
             well in the Senate. Jim and Mary are counted among the 
             best friends my wife Carol and I have. I agree with 
             Senator McConnell that while people may disagree with Jim 
             Bunning, no one has ever doubted his courage, his 
             sincerity, his love for this country, his desire to do 
             what is right, and his commitment to all those efforts. So 
             I will greatly miss Jim when he is no longer part of the 
             Senate. I think it is probably time for Jim and Mary to 
             have a little bit of time to spend with all those 
             children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. 
             Obviously, we all wish them both well.

               Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I rise today to say a few words 
             of farewell to my colleague from Kentucky, Senator Jim 
             Bunning. We will both be retiring from this Chamber when 
             this Congress concludes, and I wish him and his wife Mary 
             Catherine, their sons and daughters, and the rest of their 
             family the very best in the future.
               As we all know, prior to becoming a politician, Jim 
             Bunning was a world-class baseball pitcher. He had a 
             distinguished career primarily with the Detroit Tigers and 
             Philadelphia Phillies, during which he became the second 
             pitcher in Major League history to record 1,000 strikeouts 
             and 100 wins in both the American and National Leagues. He 
             was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1996.
               Of course, after such a distinguished career he could 
             have simply hung up his cleats, moved back to his home 
             State of Kentucky, and enjoyed a quiet retirement with his 
             family.
               Instead, he decided to take the work ethic and 
             competitive spirit that drove him in baseball and use his 
             energy to give back to his community as a public servant. 
             In 1977, he ran for and won a city council seat in Fort 
             Thomas, KY. He was then elected to the Kentucky State 
             Senate in 1979. After serving in the State senate as 
             Republican leader, he ran to represent Kentucky's Fourth 
             Congressional District in 1986. He also won that election, 
             and served for 12 years in the U.S. House of 
             Representatives.
               In 1998, Jim ran to replace Senator Wendell Ford, who 
             was retiring. He kept his winning streak alive, not only 
             winning that initial Senate contest, but also reelection 
             in 2004. When he retires this year, Jim Bunning will have 
             amassed an impressive winning streak in politics, just as 
             he did in baseball.
               As you know, life in the U.S. Senate is about working 
             out disagreements through deliberation and debate. This 
             process of lawmaking has served to ensure that the voices 
             of a broad range of Americans are heard as we work to 
             craft the laws and policies we must ultimately all abide 
             by.
               As a Senator, Jim Bunning has always stood up for his 
             beliefs, and fought for what he thought was right. As a 
             member of the Senate Banking, Budget, Energy, and Finance 
             Committees, Senator Bunning has been a staunchly 
             conservative voice on economic policy.
               While he and I seldom have seen eye to eye on these 
             matters, his deep convictions have given voice to the 
             concerns of citizens who share his point of view, and 
             thereby have helped to shape and enrich our debates on the 
             important questions we have faced over the years.
               I wish him further success in whatever endeavors he 
             pursues, as well as many happy, healthy years to come with 
             his family.

               Mr. CONRAD. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute 
             to my colleague, Senator Jim Bunning. After 12 years in 
             the U.S. Senate, Senator Bunning is retiring from this 
             Chamber at the end of this session.
               Jim has led a remarkable life. As a baseball fan, I am 
             especially envious of his first career as a Major League 
             pitcher. He was a classic, hardnosed competitor, which 
             foreshadowed his style as a public servant later in life. 
             My favorite story about Senator Bunning's baseball career 
             is that he was the only pitcher to strike out Ted Williams 
             three times in a single game. He is also one of only seven 
             pitchers to throw a perfect game and a no-hitter. Senator 
             Bunning retired from the sport in 1971 with 2,855 career 
             strikeouts, which, at the time, was the second highest 
             total of all time. He was rightfully inducted into the 
             Hall of Fame in 1996.
               Following his outstanding baseball career, Jim went into 
             politics. Once again, he was a winner. He has held office 
             at the local, State, and Federal level. After serving 
             Kentucky's Fourth District for 12 years in the House of 
             Representatives, Senator Bunning began his service in this 
             Chamber in 1999. I have served with him on the Budget and 
             Finance Committees, and have always known him to freely 
             speak his mind and ask tough questions. He remained true 
             to the fierce style he first demonstrated as a young 
             pitcher who was not afraid to brush back a hitter.
               Nor was Senator Bunning intimidated by the often arcane 
             and technical issues we confronted as members of the 
             Finance Committee. Over the years we have served there as 
             colleagues, we have worked productively on a wide range of 
             legislative proposals that included the taxation of life 
             insurance companies, shortening the depreciation period 
             for farm equipment, and capital gains treatment for 
             songwriters, just to name a few. He was always willing to 
             reach across the aisle to help achieve a common objective, 
             a longstanding Finance Committee tradition.
               Senator Bunning will now enter a new phase in his life, 
             and I am certain he will now have the luxury of spending 
             time with his wonderful family. Jim has the good fortune 
             of being married to his childhood sweetheart, Mary. They 
             met in grade school, and I am impressed that Jim knew at 
             such a young age that he found a truly special person. I 
             find Mary to be an absolutely lovely woman and admire 
             their lasting love for each other. Mary is the mother of 
             their 9 children, and Jim and Mary now share 40 
             grandchildren. I wish Jim, Mary, and their entire family 
             many years of health and happiness.

               Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, I join my colleagues in 
             appreciation and admiration of Senator Jim Bunning.
               Millions of American baseball fans know Jim as one of 
             the most accomplished athletes of his generation. Jim 
             pitched for both the Detroit Tigers and Philadelphia 
             Phillies during his 17-year career. He was the second 
             pitcher in history to notch 100 wins and strike out 1,000 
             batters in both the American and National Leagues, and 
             when he retired he was second on the alltime strikeout 
             list. His impressive career earned him a spot in the 
             Baseball Hall of Fame.
               While he wore the uniforms of teams in Michigan and 
             Pennsylvania, Jim's heart never left his native Kentucky. 
             Six years after retiring from baseball, Jim decided to run 
             for public office and won a city council seat in Fort 
             Thomas, KY. He was later elected to the Kentucky State 
             Senate and became the Republican leader. Kentuckians then 
             elected Jim to the U.S. House of Representatives for the 
             Fourth District of Kentucky where he served until 1998. 
             During his time in the House, Jim committed himself to 
             defending Social Security as chairman of the Social 
             Security Subcommittee. His unwavering stance on protecting 
             Social Security contributed to the establishment of the 
             Social Security Administration as a separate agency.
               Jim was elected to the Senate in 1998 and quickly became 
             a strong voice for fiscal responsibility. He became the 
             first native Kentuckian on the Finance Committee in 40 
             years, and also served on the Budget Committee--and in 
             both capacities I had the opportunity to work with him. 
             Jim also served as chairman of the Banking Committee's 
             Economic Policy Subcommittee, where he authored 
             legislation that reformed the National Flood Insurance 
             Program and made it possible for millions of Americans to 
             protect their homes affordably.
               Jim's passion for policymaking has helped him shape 
             legislation that will govern our Nation for years to come, 
             but his greatest legacy is his family. He and Mary raised 
             9 children and have 35 grandchildren and 5 great-
             grandchildren. Sandy and I offer our best wishes to the 
             entire Bunning family, and we thank him for his years of 
             service to our great Nation.

               Mr. DeMINT. Mr. President, I rise in tribute to Senator 
             Jim Bunning, who is retiring after honorably serving the 
             people of Kentucky for 24 years.
               Throughout his political career, Jim has been a fierce 
             taxpayer's advocate, a bold defender of life and protector 
             of families, a small business ally, and a courageous 
             critic of bad government policy.
               As the targets of his criticism have learned, Jim's 
             words can sometimes be sharp. That is because cold, hard 
             truths have sharp edges and Jim Bunning speaks in cold, 
             hard truths.
               Even when it comes to his own party.
               In summer 2008, shortly after a Republican Treasury 
             Secretary obtained the authority to pump unlimited money 
             into Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, Jim was rightfully upset. 
             ``When I picked up the newspaper yesterday, I thought I 
             woke up in France,'' he told the Secretary in a hearing. 
             ``But no,'' Jim said, ``it turned out it was socialism 
             here in the United States.''
               Jim often asked simple questions that were easy to 
             answer truthfully and didn't tolerate equivocation. In the 
             case of the Fannie and Freddie bailouts, he asked the 
             Treasury Secretary, ``Where will the money come from?''
               The Treasury Secretary said it was better to ``be 
             unspecified and enhance confidence in the market.''
               Jim asked again saying that ``doesn't answer the 
             question. Where is the money going to come from if you 
             have to put it up?''
               There was more waffling, but Jim finally pushed the 
             Treasury Secretary to admit the money was going to come 
             from the taxpayer. The taxpayers were going to pay.
               He later called for the resignation of that Republican 
             Treasury Secretary because he was, as Jim put it, ``acting 
             like the minister of finance in China.''
               ``No company fails in Communist China, because they're 
             all partly owned by the government,'' Jim noted.
               Jim has also been a brave critic of the Federal Reserve. 
             He has told the Fed Chairman, who was appointed by a 
             Republican President and helped orchestrate bailouts for 
             those considered too big to fail that, ``You are the 
             definition of a moral hazard.''
               ``Your Fed has become the creature from Jekyll Island,'' 
             Jim said. And then he asked for the Fed Chairman's 
             resignation, too.
               Jim has performed a great public service by bringing 
             attention to the economic damage being caused by the Fed 
             with cheap money when no one else would. He was there 
             calling for more oversight of the Federal Reserve long 
             before it became a Tea Party cause, and he deserves credit 
             for driving the issue into the mainstream.
               As Senator, you could say Jim's approach has been as 
             direct as the fastballs he threw that made him a Major 
             League, Hall of Fame pitcher. When the Democrats tried to 
             pass off phony paygo rules as real reform, Jim exposed it 
             as a trick pitch. It was a gimmick to fool Americans into 
             thinking they would pay for their big spending plans.
               The Democrats said paygo would obligate Congress to 
             offset any new spending with new revenues or spending cuts 
             elsewhere in the budget. Soon after, they tried to pass 
             $10 billion in unpaid for unemployment extensions. 
             Moreover, the Democrats wanted to pass it by unanimous 
             consent--Meaning no public debate, no rollcall vote, no 
             accountability.
               The Democrats bet no one would oppose benefits for the 
             unemployed in this bad economy. They believed, as they 
             continue to, that they can keep giving out money without 
             paying for it and without any consequences.
               Jim did not concede. He objected and stood his ground on 
             the Senate floor. And by doing so, he showed everyone what 
             a sham paygo is. The Wall Street Journal called it ``his 
             finest hour.''
               Jim Bunning announced his retirement in July 2009, more 
             than a year ago. He could have taken it easy during his 
             last years in the Senate. He didn't have to tackle the 
             Treasury, the Fed, or insist unemployment extensions be 
             paid for.
               But he did. Jim Bunning, the Hall of Fame pitcher, the 
             distinguished Senator, father of 9 and grandfather of 40 
             cared too much for this country to sit this one out.
               He said in his farewell speech that he prays the Members 
             of Congress will stop spending our future generations into 
             higher taxes and a lower standard of living than we have 
             now. I pray for that, too.
               Finally, I express my gratitude to Senator Bunning for 
             supporting the new Republican from his State who will 
             inherit his Senate seat next year. Jim campaigned for 
             someone to take his place who would say no to bailouts, 
             stop the takeovers, end the wasteful spending, and bring 
             down the national debt. The Nation will benefit greatly by 
             continuing to have a Senator at Jim's desk who believes as 
             much in the principles of free markets and freedom as Jim.
               Thank you Jim for giving America your best until the 
             very last inning.
                                              Sunday, December 19, 2010
               Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I rise today to speak in honor 
             of my good friend, Senator Jim Bunning. Senator Bunning 
             will be departing from the Senate at the end of this 
             session. I wanted to take a few moments to offer some 
             remarks.
               Jim is a distinguished two-term Senator whose career in 
             public service has spanned more than three decades. Yet 
             when the history books are written, it is likely that he 
             will be more well known for his first love, the game of 
             baseball.
               Jim was born in Southgate, KY, in 1931. He graduated 
             from Xavier University in Cincinnati, OH, with a degree in 
             economics.
               Most know that Senator Bunning was a Major League 
             pitcher for 17 years, mostly with the Detroit Tigers and 
             the Philadelphia Phillies. He was, not to put too fine a 
             point on it, one of the greatest pitchers to ever put on a 
             glove. Jim retired with the second-highest strikeout total 
             in baseball history. He was only the second pitcher in 
             history to record 1,000 strikeouts and 100 victories in 
             both the American and National Leagues. Before Jim, only 
             the legendary Cy Young had accomplished that feat. On June 
             21, 1964, Jim pitched a perfect game against the New York 
             Mets, achieving one of the rarest and most sought-after 
             feats in all of sports. Senator Bunning was inducted into 
             the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1996, 2 years before he came 
             to the Senate.
               After retiring from baseball, Jim chose a life of public 
             service. In 1977, he was elected to the city council of 
             Fort Thomas, KY. Two years later, he was elected to the 
             Kentucky State Senate, where he became the Republican 
             leader. In 1986, he was elected to the first of his six 
             terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. In 1998, 
             Senator Bunning was elected to the Senate and has served 
             here ever since.
               Throughout his time in Washington, Senator Bunning has 
             been an advocate for a number of causes, including the 
             preservation of Social Security for seniors, fiscal and 
             financial reform, and ending America's dependence on 
             foreign energy sources. He's played a key role on some of 
             this Chamber's most influential committees, including the 
             Banking, Energy, Budget, and Finance Committees.
               For the last several years, I have had the opportunity 
             to work with Senator Bunning on the Finance Committee. I 
             have always admired his commitment to his principles and 
             his willingness to speak plainly when it became necessary 
             to do so. His presence on the committee and in this 
             Chamber will certainly be missed.
               I want to wish Jim and his family the best of luck going 
             forward.
                                           Wednesday, December 22, 2010
               Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, I would like to take a 
             few minutes to pay tribute to the 16 Senators who will be 
             departing this body at the end of the year.
               I am grateful for the opportunity I have had to serve 
             alongside each of these Senators as colleagues and as 
             friends. All served their States with distinction and gave 
             their constituents strong voices in the world's greatest 
             deliberative body. Senators Evan Bayh, Robert Bennett, Kit 
             Bond, Sam Brownback, Jim Bunning, Roland Burris, Chris 
             Dodd, Byron Dorgan, Russ Feingold, Carte Goodwin, Judd 
             Gregg, Ted Kaufman, George LeMieux, Blanche Lincoln, Arlen 
             Specter, and George Voinovich--each left an indelible mark 
             on the Senate, and I wish them well as they take on new 
             challenges and opportunities into the future.
               I would like to speak briefly about a few of the 
             Senators I knew best and served with in committees to 
             recognize their contributions and accomplishments and 
             share my fond memories of them and the legacies they will 
             leave behind. ...
               I wish Senator Jim Bunning well as he departs the 
             Senate. Much of his legacy can be defined by his 
             competitive spirit and strong work ethic. These attributes 
             have been evident throughout his many successes in life, 
             first in his career as a Hall of Fame baseball player and 
             then later as a public servant, representing the people of 
             Kentucky. Being an avid sports fan myself, I hold deep 
             admiration for those who can play at the highest levels of 
             competitive sports and later bring that drive to the 
             Senate!
               Following his highly successful professional baseball 
             career for 17 years, Jim decided he wanted to give back to 
             his community. In 1977, he ran for city council and then 
             later ran for the Kentucky State Senate eventually 
             becoming the Republican leader.
               In 1986, Jim was elected to the U.S. House of 
             Representatives for the Fourth District of Kentucky, where 
             he served for 12 years before being elected to the U.S. 
             Senate in 1998.
               During Jim's tenure in Congress, he has established 
             himself as an expert and defender of Social Security, 
             fighting hard to protect Social Security for current and 
             future generations.
               His hard work and devotion will be missed by the people 
             of Kentucky, whom I know are grateful for his many years 
             of service. ...
               In conclusion, the departing Senators' contributions, 
             their dedicated service, and the issues they championed 
             will be remembered long after their final days in the 
             Senate.
               I believe I can speak for my fellow Senators when I say 
             that we will all miss our departing friends.

               Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, when the 111th Congress 
             draws to a close, we will bid farewell to 16 colleagues 
             who have collectively given more than 200 years of service 
             to our Nation through their service in the Senate. These 
             include seven of the Senate's most experienced Members. 
             People like Chris Dodd and Arlen Specter who have each 
             served five terms in the Senate. Kit Bond who has served 
             four terms and Bob Bennett, Byron Dorgan, Russ Feingold, 
             and Judd Gregg, who have each served three terms in this 
             Chamber. ...
               In January we will feel the loss of the great pitching 
             ace, Jim Bunning, and Evan Bayh, both respected colleagues 
             on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee. They are 
             among six of my Energy Committee colleagues who are 
             leaving the Senate this year. ...
               It has been an honor and a pleasure to serve with each 
             of the people who will leave this Chamber when we adjourn 
             sine die. Each has made substantial contributions to their 
             States, to the Nation, and to the Senate during their time 
             here.
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