[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 85 (Tuesday, June 11, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6043-S6046]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               FAREWELL ADDRESS OF SENATOR ROBERT J. DOLE

  Mr. DOLE. Mr. President, I want to go back 136 years ago this summer. 
A committee arrived in Springfield, IL--Senator Simon probably knows 
the story--and it formally notified Abraham Lincoln that the Republican 
Party had nominated him to run for President. History records that 
Lincoln's formal reply to the news was just two sentences long. And 
then as he surveyed the crowd of friends gathered outside his home, as 
I survey the crowd of friends here in the galleries and on the floor, 
he said, ``Now I will no longer defer the pleasure of taking each of 
you by the hand.'' So I guess, as Lincoln said then, 136 years ago, if 
all of us who are leaving this year--and I am only one, and I know we 
have the same thoughts and the same emotions--if we can all go out and 
shake hands with all the people who were responsible for us being here, 
it would take a long time.
  You begin with your family. You, obviously, begin with your parents, 
your brothers, your sisters, and you think about all the support they 
have provided and all the good things that happened. And you think 
about the Senate. You think about your family, your remarkable, 
wonderful wife and daughter, who have seen victories and seen defeats 
and have put up with, as all our spouses and children do around here, 
with late hours, not being home on weekends, and all the demands that 
go with serving in the Senate.
  So I am very honored to have my wife Elizabeth and my daughter Robin 
in the gallery today.
  [Applause.]
  I know they join me in expressing our deep appreciation to everyone 
here and the people of Kansas. As all of us go back who are leaving 
this year, thinking about leaving in a couple of years, or whatever, 
you think about the people who sent you here and the people who tried 
not to send you here--once you are here, you forget about those. 
[Laughter.]

  And they are all your constituents, whether Democrats, Republicans, 
or Independents. And four times, my friends in Kansas, Republicans and 
Democrats and Independents, I believe, gave me their votes for the 
House of Representatives and five times they have given me their votes 
to the U.S. Senate. I think to all of us, such trust is perhaps the 
greatest gift that can come to any citizen in our democracy, and I know 
I will be forever grateful, as everyone here will be forever grateful, 
to our friends and our supporters who never gave up on us, who never 
lost their confidence in us. Maybe they did not like some of our votes, 
or maybe they did not like other things, but when the chips were down, 
they were there. We all think of all the phone calls and all the 
letters and all the visits of people who come to your office with big 
problems and small. Or you think about the town meetings you have 
attended. I have attended, as have some others here, town meetings all 
over America. They are pretty much the same. They are good people, they 
have real questions, and they like real answers.
  I always thought that differences were a healthy thing and that is 
why we are all so healthy, because we have a lot of differences in this 
Chamber. I have never seen a healthier group in my life. [Laughter.]
  And then there are those on our staff. Sometimes we forget to say 
thank you. I have had one member of my staff for 30 years, and others 
for 19, and so on. They have been great, and they have been loyal, and 
they have been enthusiastic. Their idealism and intelligence and 
loyalty have certainly meant a lot to me, and I think a lot to other 
people in this body, and other staff members, and the people they work 
with on a daily basis. Many are on the Senate floor or in the gallery 
today. I just say, thank you very much. We have had a little fun along 
the way, too. It gets kind of dull around here from time to time, so 
you have to have a little fun. When you really want to have fun to get 
away, you can go out to the beach--which is now my ``beach,'' and I 
will try to pack it up this afternoon. All of those who served in the 
Senate--and I see some of my former colleagues here today--and all 
those who serve the Senate, whether the Parliamentarian or the page, I 
thank you for all of us for your tireless service.
  I do not want my friends in the press gallery to fall out of their 
seats in shock. But let me add in acknowledgment of those who have 
worked here in

[[Page S6044]]

this building I also salute you. I think it is fair to say that we do 
not always agree with everything you said or wrote, but I know that 
what you do off this floor is as vital to American democracy as 
anything we do on it. And we have to keep that in mind.
  So I say that it has been a great ride. There have been a few bumps 
along the way. I have learned a lot from people in this room. I have 
even gone to Senator Byrd when I was the majority leader to ask his 
advice on how to defeat him on an issue. If you know Robert Byrd as I 
do, he gave me the answer. But it was not easy. I mean, this man is 
determined. I know that in his first book, his great works about the 
Senate, he writes about when I became the majority leader. He very 
candidly writes in his book that he had his doubts about this Bob Dole 
because I might be too partisan, or I might not work with the minority 
leader. But I have heard him say a number of times since that I 
demonstrated that I was not that partisan. And if I understood one 
thing, as my successor will understand, it is that unless the two 
leaders are working together, nothing is going to happen in this place. 
We have to trust each other, as Senator Daschle and I have, as Senator 
Mitchell and I have, as Senator Byrd and I have. And I also have great 
respect for Senator Mansfield and Senator Baker, though I did not have 
the privilege of being in the leadership at that time.

  I say to all those who have been in the leadership positions, it is a 
difficult life. After 2 o'clock today when somebody calls me about 
bringing up their amendment, I will say that it is all right with me; 
bring it up any time you want, and I will not stand in your way. 
[Laughter and Applause.]
  I am looking at one of the giants in the Senate right now, Senator 
Thurmond. And I looked at others on the way in, like Senator Byrd. I 
thought about Senators Baker, Dirksen, Russell, and many, many more, 
Democrats and Republicans, who love this place, who have made it work. 
I repeat frequently the statement of Senator Dirksen--and I do not know 
whether he made it on the floor--who said, ``A billion here, a billion 
there, and soon it will add up to real money.'' If only he could come 
back today, it would be ``a trillion here and a trillion there.''
  Then there was Hubert Humphrey. Nobody ever understood how Bob Dole 
and Hubert Humphrey could be such good friends. We did not have a 
problem at all. And he used to say of his own speeches, ``I never 
thought they were too long. I enjoyed every minute.'' [Laughter.]
  I remember we were in the hallway one day talking about the talk 
shows. And, of course, I was only watching them in those days, but he 
was on one every Sunday. It used to be issues and answers for the 
normal guest. But for Hubert it was issue and answer--then the time was 
up.
  And then there was Senator Mansfield in just the reverse. When he was 
on a Sunday talk show, it was ``yep,'' ``nope,'' ``maybe.'' Ten minutes 
into the program, they were out of questions. [Laughter.]
  I remember Russell Long. I remember during the Reagan landslide, I 
was going to be chairman of the Finance Committee. I did not know how 
to tell Russell--and I did not. I said, ``Who is going to tell 
Russell?'' Nobody was going to tell Russell. Dave Durenberger was 
there, and I remember the first vote we had. I got to sit in the chair, 
but when they called the roll, they called the minority side first and 
then the other side. They said, ``Mr. Chairman,''--this was my first 
time--and he voted ``aye.''
  It is a true story. Then there is Phil Hart and Dan Inouye. We all 
met in Battle Creek, MI, at the Percy Jones General Hospital--
Lieutenant Colonel Hart, Lieutenant Inouye, and Lieutenant Dole. We 
were all patriots. The best bridge player at Percy Jones Hospital was 
Dan Inouye. Probably one of the best men I ever knew was Phil Hart. He 
had a flesh wound in his right elbow area, and from morning to night he 
spent his time running errands or getting tickets for patients to the 
Detroit Tigers games. His wife was Jane Briggs. It was Briggs Stadium--
Briggs owned the Tigers at that time. There was not anything that Phil 
Hart would not do--not only there but when he came to the U.S. Senate. 
So I left my proxy with the last of the Percy Jones General Hospital 
caucus, with Dan Inouye. I wrote him a letter today, I said you've got 
my proxy. If anything comes up regarding Percy Jones General Hospital, 
which is closed----
  [Laughter.]
vote me present.
  [Laughter.]
  I could go on and on. I am not like Senator Byrd because nobody can 
do it the way Senator Byrd does it.
  But I think of all of these people who have come and gone and of all 
of the new bright stars that are here today on both sides of the aisle, 
and there is one thing that you do know for certain. This is a great 
institution.
  I have learned another thing that we have all learned in this Chamber 
and this town. Your word is your bond. If you do not keep your word 
around here, it does not make much difference what your amendment may 
be, or whatever it may be. And it is important to all of us. As far as 
I know everybody that I know on either side observed that rule. It is 
true in any business or in any profession. It is more true in politics 
because the American people are looking at us, and they want us to tell 
the truth. It does not mean that we have to agree. It does not mean we 
cannot have different motivations. I learned that leadership is a 
combination of background and backbone. I learned a lot about that from 
the likes of Senator Byrd and others that I watched and watched.
  I know that Senator Warner is the first person to ever mention to 
me--one day we were at the same place having lunch. He said, ``You 
ought to think about running for leader.'' I said, ``Me?'' So I thought 
about it. [Laughter.]
  I thought Ted Stevens was going to be the leader. Where is Ted? 
Something happened on the way to the vote. [Laughter.]
  I walked out of there surprised. When Howard Greene held up his hand, 
I knew that I must be the leader.
  So I would just say that we all know how the political process works. 
Some people are cynical. Some people think it is awful. Some people do 
not trust us. But the people who watch this thing day in and day out 
have a better understanding.
  Some people ask me. I remember the Speaker--the Speaker is present--
telling me just 10 minutes ago, he really understands now more about 
the Senate. We have different rules. I love the House of 
Representatives. I never wanted to be in the House of Representatives. 
I wanted to be in the Senate. I wanted to be in the Senate where you 
can have unlimited debate, where any Senator on either side on any 
issue can stand up and talk until they drop.
  The record is held by the Presiding Officer, Senator Thurmond.
  The PRESIDENT pro tempore. Twenty-four hours and eighteen minutes. 
[Laughter and Applause.]
  Mr. DOLE. That is why you are seldom asked to be an after dinner 
speaker. [Laughter.]
  Mr. President, I think sometimes around here we think we have to have 
everything. ``We have to have total victory. I will not settle for 
less. It has to be my way, or no way.'' Well, Ronald Reagan said once, 
``If I can get 90 percent of what I want, I would call that a pretty 
good deal.'' Ninety percent is not bad. You can get the other 10 
percent later. It is a small amendment then. [Laughter.]
  Better understand that--take the 90 and then work on the 10.
  I want to say, too, that I read that my resignation and my decision 
to leave caused astonishment in some quarters, and I do not begrudge 
anyone their surprise. But I would just want to disabuse anybody about 
the Senate. This is the great opportunity, and there are hundreds and 
hundreds and thousands and thousands of people who would give anything 
they had to be a Member of this body. That is the way it should be. It 
is very competitive.
  So I have said the truth is that I would no more distance myself from 
the Senate than I would from the United States itself. This is a body 
that is the reflection of America. It is what America is all about. We 
come from different States and different backgrounds with different 
opportunities and different challenges in our lives. And, yes, the 
institution has its imperfections and occasional inefficiencies. We are 
like America; we are still a work in progress in the U.S. Senate.
  So I would say to my colleagues that I remember way back when I ran 
for

[[Page S6045]]

the Kansas Legislature. We had a Democratic law librarian who thought 
young people ought to get involved in politics. She found two 
Republicans and two Democrats, and talked us into running for the State 
legislature. We did not know anything about politics. We did not know 
what party we were in. We were students; veterans going to school under 
the GI bill. I thought about which party to belong to. I have said in 
jest, from time to time I went back to my hometown and went up to the 
courthouse and found out there were more Republicans than Democrats. 
And I became a committed Republican. [Laughter.]
  It is not quite accurate. But my parents were Democrats.
  I remember the first time I was ever approached by a reporter. Here I 
was a brandnew law student, a brand new legislator. I did not know 
anything about anything. They said, ``Well, what are you going to do 
now for your district?'' Or something of that case. I said, ``I am 
going to sit around and watch for a couple of days, and then stand up 
for what is right.''
  Well, that is what we all do around here. I hope I have done it over 
the years.
  I will take a minute or two to indulge in some of the things that we 
all have different interests in. I have been deeply involved in 
agriculture, as many of you have here, because Kansas is a farm State. 
When I came to Congress, I was on the House Agriculture Committee. I 
have been on the Senate Agriculture Committee ever since. So I am proud 
of having served the farm families of Kansas and around America who 
make a lot of sacrifices.

  This year we did not have a wheat crop, hardly at all, in Kansas 
because of the drought. I am advised by Senator Dorgan that they are 
not going to have much of one because of the rains and the water.
  So farmers make a lot of sacrifices. I remember back during the 
Vietnam debate. Some of us were here. Some were on each side of the 
issue. The so-called Cooper-Church amendment that went on and on and 
on, week after week after week on whether we ought to withdraw our 
troops, or shut off funding, which I thought was wrong. As I look back 
on it, I think I was right because we had courageous men like Bob 
Kerrey, John McCain, and others in this Chamber who were risking their 
lives, and they deserved our support. That was a big debate at the 
time.
  I have also been proud to be involved in nutrition programs. Somebody 
mentioned that earlier today. I remember working with Senator McGovern 
on that, and there was a conservative article saying I cannot be a 
conservative because I know George McGovern. I think George McGovern is 
a gentleman and has always been a gentleman. But we worked together on 
food stamps. I will confess, when I made my first tour with George 
McGovern, I said, ``This guy is running for President.'' I was not 
convinced. There were a lot of skeptics in this Chamber; probably some 
on each side. You cannot have truer motives. It is always something 
political. But after being on that trip about 2 or 3 days, I changed my 
mind. Senator Hollings from South Carolina was in the forefront of that 
effort. He remembers how bad it was.
  So we worked together on food stamps, the WIC Program, and the School 
Lunch Program, particularly when it affected poorer Americans. I think, 
as I look at it, that no first-class democracy would treat its people 
like second-class citizens.
  I remember standing on this floor managing the Martin Luther King 
holiday bill. We had the majority. It was a proud day for me. It is now 
a national holiday.
  The first speech I ever made on the floor was April 14, 1969, about 
disabled Americans. There are a lot of people in this room who have 
worked on this program. I know Senator Kennedy and Senator Harkin and 
Senator Durenberger, when he was here, and Senator Jennings Randolph 
before--maybe before many of you came--was in the forefront. We stood 
with many who could not stand on their own, and the highlight was 
passing the Americans With Disabilities Act. Forty-three million 
Americans--they are not all seriously disabled, but there are many in 
wheelchairs, many who cannot even sit up. It was a very impressive 
sight to be at the White House the day that bill was signed by 
President Bush, and I am forever grateful. I know Senator Kennedy and 
Senator Harkin are. Have you ever seen so many wheelchairs at the White 
House at a signing ceremony? Never. And now more and more Americans 
with disabilities are full participants in the process. They are in the 
mainstream.

  So, I remember in 1983--I know Pat Moynihan remembers--we were 
standing right over in this aisle. We had a bipartisan commission on 
Social Security. We had met week after week, month after month. It was 
about to go down the drain. We had about given up. Everybody was 
disgusted. We were getting short-tempered. We were Democrats and 
Republicans. At the time the late John Heinz was a member of the 
commission. As member of the Finance Committee, I was a member. Senator 
Moynihan was a member. And Senator Moynihan--I think just by chance or 
fate or whatever--and I happened to meet in this aisle on my right. We 
said we have to try one more time to rescue Social Security--one more 
time.
  It was not a partisan issue. And we did. That afternoon we convened 
three more people, we had five of the commission, and it was not long 
until we were back on track. We finally made it happen, and 37 million 
people have gotten their checks on time.
  I think I read in the Washington Post just this weekend, Social 
Security is going to be in pretty good shape until the year 2029. So 
that is a pretty good fix. Maybe, as I said earlier in the day, that is 
a pattern we can follow for Medicare for the long-term solution: Take 
it out of politics as we did on Social Security, make it work, make it 
solvent. And the people who get the credit are the people who get the 
checks--37 million of them. So, we reached across partisan lines.
  So, I worry a little about the future. I worry about our defenses. I 
know there are a lot of very talented people here who are going to 
continue to do that. I am not here to make a partisan speech or even a 
partisan reference, but I would hope that we would keep in mind there 
are still threats around the world and also keep in mind that we are 
the envy of the world.
  I learned, meeting with a lot of leaders, foreign leaders, as leaders 
get to do in this business--the chairmen of the Foreign Relations 
Committee, Senators Helms and Pell and others, Senator Lugar when he 
was chairman--I remember when the Berlin Wall came down and the Soviet 
empire collapsed, a lot of people started coming to America. They were 
leaders. They were young and they were old and they were men and they 
were women, and they did not come for foreign aid. The cynics said, 
``Oh, they are coming after more of our money.'' They knew we did not 
have any. But for the first time in 70 years, in some cases, they had a 
right to travel. They could get on an airplane without checking with 
the government and waiting for a year or 2 years or 3 years. They could 
go to church, they could vote--all these basic rights that we take for 
granted. And they came to America.
  Some are now Presidents, like Lech Walesa, some are leaders of their 
party. As they came to our offices, and I am certain it was true in 
every other office, they did not ask for money. They wanted to come to 
America to see America. They wanted to take a look at America. And I 
can recall almost everyone who left my office, sometimes with tears 
streaming down their cheeks, saying, ``We want to be like America.''
  We are the envy of the world. That is why so many people want to be 
like we are.
  So, we have lit Liberty's torch with a glow that can truly light the 
world. That is what America is all about. We are much more than a place 
on a map. We are the United States, and we are a beacon of hope. We are 
a magnet for the oppressed and a shield against those who would put the 
soul itself in bondage.
  I think we did that in Kuwait, and we may be called on to do it 
again. But I would guess one thing. I would hope, when they catalog all 
the amendments and all the bills and do all the commentaries, whenever 
it is all over for us here, that we have left our children something 
other than a legacy of debt. Our children are important. None of us 
have a perfect solution, but there has to be some solution here where 
we can

[[Page S6046]]

come together, Republicans and Democrats, because everybody loves their 
children. Everybody loves their grandchildren. We have all these young 
pages here. We have an example every day of young people who want to 
get ahead, who are willing to work. They just want the opportunity.
  I think, if I could hope that anything might happen, it probably will 
not happen today, but this year or next year--I felt strongly about the 
balanced budget, but not enough people did. But that will be around.
  So I would close with, again, thanking all of my colleagues. I do not 
believe--I am just trying to think back--I do not believe we have ever 
had any real disagreements. I remember one time, I remind the 
Democratic leader, that I offered an amendment that you thought you 
were going to offer, and I made a mistake. I was not trying to one-up 
the Senator from South Dakota. So I withdraw my amendment. Then he 
offered the amendment. I think that is called civility.
  So, I would close with the words of my hero, Dwight Eisenhower, 
because he was our supreme commander. He also came from Abilene, KS; 
born in Texas but quickly moved to Kansas. He was only 2 years old. It 
took a while. But, in any event--this is his quote.

       As we peer into society's future, we--you and I--and our 
     Government--must avoid the impulse to live only for today, 
     plundering, for our own ease and convenience, the precious 
     resources of tomorrow.
       We cannot mortgage the material assets of our grandchildren 
     without risking the loss of their political and spiritual 
     heritage. We want democracy to survive for all generations to 
     come, not to become the insolvent phantom of tomorrow.

  I think those words are just as good today as they were 35 years ago 
when President Eisenhower spoke them. We can lead or we can mislead as 
the people's Representatives, but whatever we do, we will be held 
responsible. We are going to be held responsible and accountable. I am 
not talking about 1996. I am talking about any time over the next 
century.

  So the Bible tells us that to everything there is a season, and I 
think my season in the Senate is about to come to an end. But the new 
season makes this moment far less the closing of one chapter than the 
opening of another. We all take pride in the past, but we all live for 
the future.
  I agree with prairie poet Carl Sandburg, who told us:

     Yesterday is wind gone down,
     a sun dropped in the West.
     I tell you that there is nothing in the world,
     Only an ocean of tomorrows,
     A sky of tomorrows.

  Like everybody here, I am an optimist. I believe our best tomorrows 
are yet to be lived. So I, again, thank you.
  God bless America, and God bless the U.S. Senate.
  [Applause, Senators rising.]

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