[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 30 (Wednesday, March 18, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2230-S2231]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 RETIREMENT OF MR. LEONARD G. CAMPBELL

 Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to Mr. 
Leonard Grove Campbell--one of our federal government's finest public 
servants and a distinguished son of the Commonwealth of Virginia. At 
the end of

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this month, he will retire from a truly distinguished career of over 37 
years of exemplary service to his country.
  Mr. Campbell was well-prepared for his distinguished career. After 
graduating from the University of Virginia with a degree in economics, 
he entered Officer Candidate School in 1963 and began his first career 
with the United States Navy. Mr. Campbell served as a weapons officer 
aboard the USS Iwo Jima in the Pacific--service which included tours in 
Vietnam. He completed his active duty service in the Navy in 1967, and 
retired from the Naval Reserves in 1983 as a Commander.
  After completing his active duty service with the Navy, Mr. Campbell 
went to work for the Department of Commerce as a senior economist in 
the Balance of Payments Division. In 1973, he began a remarkable 25-
year career with the Department of Defense.
  I am proud to honor him today for his tremendous accomplishments, and 
to recognize the support and sacrifices of his wife, Lois, and his 
daughters, Lisa and Kristin, who wisely followed in their father's 
footsteps as UVA graduates.
  The quality of Mr. Campbell's work has been recognized by every 
Administration he has served. He has received the Presidential Rank 
Award for Meritorious Service, the Department of Defense Distinguished 
Civilian Service Award, the Department of Defense Meritorious Civilian 
Service Award, and the Department of Defense Exceptional Civilian 
Service Award.
  Mr. Campbell has served as the key advisor on budget issues for nine 
Secretaries of Defense and nine Department Comptrollers. His 
recommendations on a wide range of vital issues were constantly sought 
by the Pentagon leadership and greatly helped the Department robustly 
defend the funding requirements which support U.S. forces and missions. 
Year in and year out, his sage counsel and sound advice produced the 
best possible, yet fiscally responsible, spending plans to satisfy the 
nation's national security needs.
  Mr. Campbell always brought exceptional insight and skill to the many 
diverse challenges presented to and undertaken by him. He is one of the 
few individuals in the Department who understands and can explain 
succinctly the complexities contained in numerous legislative 
proposals. On many occasions, his advice assured the adoption of sound 
spending decisions that supported major Defense Department requirements 
while remaining consistent with the President's budget priorities and 
prevailing perspectives in the Congress. His comprehensive knowledge, 
the consummate clarity by which he explained issues, his exceptional 
skill in guiding senior officials through the intricacies and 
restrictions of legislation, and his tireless dedication were immensely 
valuable to a whole generation of Department of Defense leaders, to our 
armed forces, and to U.S. national security.
  The ultimate result of Mr. Campbell's performance within the 
Department of Defense over the last 25 years was that senior U.S. 
leaders, both in Congress and in the Defense Department, benefited 
enormously from his extensive knowledge, exceptional dedication, superb 
political sensitivity, and wise judgment. His invaluable contributions 
allowed our nation's leaders to make the wisest possible allocation of 
declining defense resources while maintaining America's future 
security.
  Mr. Campbell has had a career of singular merit and has earned the 
profound gratitude of the American people. I wish him well in his 
future endeavors.

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