[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 45 (Thursday, April 21, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: April 21, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                     RETIREMENT OF JUSTICE BLACKMUN

 Mr. DURENBERGER. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize and 
commemorate the retirement from public life of one of Minnesota's most 
outstanding citizens of the 20th century.
  Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun's retirement after 24 years on 
the Court leaves a void that will not easily be filled. He exemplifies 
the virtues of hard work and independent thought--qualities that are 
absolutely essential if we are to maintain a strong, fair and 
independent judiciary.
  While he was a graduate of Harvard University Law School, Justice 
Blackmun practiced and taught law in Minnesota until 1959. Among his 
clients was the famous Mayo Clinic of Rochester, Minnesota, which he 
served as resident counsel. In 1959 he was appointed by President 
Eisenhower to one of the Minnesota seats on the Eighth Circuit Court of 
Appeals, where he served until his elevation to the Supreme Court in 
1970.
  In 1991 the World Champion Minnesota Twins were in Washington at a 
reception hosted by the Minnesota Congressional Delegation. Justice 
Blackmun, who, along with former Chief Justice Warren Burger, is 
occasionally referred to as one of the Minnesota twins on the high 
court, was there too. From that occasion and others I know that he 
takes some pride, as I do, in his Minnesota roots.
  I would also like to take a moment to salute Harry Blackmun's 
helpmate throughout his public service, his wife Dorothy Blackmun. 
While raising three daughters, Dorothy Blackmun made the sacrifices of 
public service, just as her husband did. She deserves our gratitude.
  Together they are an example to us all.
  It would not be an exaggeration, Mr. President, to describe the 
character of Justice Blackmun as fundamentally Minnesotan. His 
dedication to his own principles did not make him a slave of any 
political party or ideology.
  Justice Blackmun also brought compassion and an unerring sense of 
justice to the Court. ``Poor Joshua!'' he said in a widely quoted 
dissenting opinion in 1989--referring to a small boy who suffered abuse 
that governmental agencies ostensibly did little to alleviate. With 
that controversial burst of sentiment, Harry Blackmun seemed to be 
calling attention to the fact that while law must be an abstraction in 
order to be fair, it must never be only an abstraction if it is to meet 
the changing needs of a truly diverse nation.
  Responding to change--without sacrificing true principle--is a 
hallmark of the public service of Harry Blackmun. While few people 
would agree with every single exercise of Justice Blackmun's prodigious 
intellect, I'm confident that most observers would agree that America 
is much better off for his thirty five years of judicial leadership.
  I ask my colleagues to join me and the people of Minnesota in 
expressing affection and gratitude to a great American, Associate 
Justice Harry Blackmun, on the occasion of his retirement.

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