[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 144 (Thursday, October 6, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: October 6, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                TRIBUTE TO SENATOR DONALD W. RIEGLE, JR.

  Mr. HEFLIN. Mr. President, when Senator Don Riegle announced his 
retirement from the Senate effective at the end of the 103d Congress, 
it came as a great shock to me and all Members of this body. He has 
certainly been one of our most dedicated and colorful Members, having 
one of the most unconventional political careers of any Member of 
Congress. Over the years, he has emerged as a tenacious leader on trade 
and banking issues, as well as a forceful advocate for his constituents 
and the interests of his State of Michigan.
  In watching Senator Riegle in action over the years, it strikes me 
that we on this side of the aisle are fortunate that he switched to our 
camp 20 years ago. We often forget that Don began his career as a 
Republican, beating an incumbent Democratic Congressman in 1966. He was 
a freshman in the same class as former President George Bush, and 
quickly became a fierce critic of the Vietnam War. He ultimately won 
his Senate seat in 1976 as a Democrat, and has remained an energetic, 
loyal, and fierce partisan ever since.
  As we all know, it is somewhat of an understatement to say that the 
senior Senator from Michigan fights passionately for those issues in 
which he believes. At the same time, he has fought just as bitterly 
against those he has opposed. Indeed, he has been one of the most 
persistent critics of Republican economic and foreign policies. He was 
a leader in the fight against the North American Free Trade Agreement.
  There will definitely be a void left by the retirement of Senator 
Riegle, for this body and for the people of Michigan. He is a hard 
worker, an intelligent and energetic debater, and a skilled legislator: 
it will be hard, if not impossible, to ever really replace him. I 
salute him for all his years of service.

                          ____________________