[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 131 (Wednesday, October 18, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Page S10703]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      TRIBUTE TO GOV. MEL CARNAHAN

  Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, it is with a heavy heart that I stand here 
today to pay tribute to a good friend, Mel Carnahan, Governor of 
Missouri, and express my sorrow at the loss of his son Randy and his 
longtime aide, Chris Sifford.
  I had known Mel for a long time. I have followed his career with 
pride and admiration as his neighbor to the North. Mel's service to the 
State of Missouri spans four decades and even more elected offices. He 
started out as a municipal judge in his hometown of Rolla at the age of 
26. He served in the Missouri State Legislature. He was State treasurer 
and Lieutenant Governor, and in 1992 became the 51st Governor of 
Missouri.
  Like many of my colleagues, I had the privilege of campaigning with 
Mel this past year. As I watched Mel Carnahan on the trail and watched 
him talk with the people of Missouri and listen to their concerns and 
their hopes to gain their confidence and trust, I was reminded of 
something Adlai Stevenson once said:

       Every age needs men who will redeem the time by living with 
     a vision of things that are to be.

  Mel Carnahan was one of those men, and as Governor of Missouri, he 
had a vision for his State and for our country. We saw it in his work 
on education. We saw it in his work on Missouri's economy. He created 
thousands of jobs and moved some 100,000 people from welfare to work. 
We saw it in his work on crime and children's health insurance and so 
many other issues, how he stood up to the gun industry and stood strong 
for those who have the deck stacked against them.
  He had a vision for this Nation which he took into his Senate race. 
He believed, as Hubert Humphrey stated, that the measure of government 
is in how it treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children, 
those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly, and those who are 
in the shadows of life, the sick and the needy. That is why he wanted 
to come to Washington. This was his vision.
  Its very urgency makes it harder to accept the fact that he was taken 
from us before he could help make it a reality. His death is a loss for 
all of us in Congress who would have had the honor of working with him. 
It is a loss for the people of Missouri who would have had the 
privilege of being represented by him. It is a loss for the people of 
this Nation who would have had the good fortune of being served by him.
  We cannot let our sorrow overwhelm us. We cannot let our sadness 
become bitterness, despair, or regret. That would not be a fitting 
tribute to Mel Carnahan. Rather, we owe it to him, to his country, and 
to his family to take up the torch of his life's work and to carry it 
on. We owe it to ourselves to let his memory be our solace, his record 
our guide, and his legacy our inspiration, to let the life of this good 
and decent man continue to light our way. That is the best and enduring 
memorial for our friend Mel Carnahan.
  Earlier this year, I was flying in that very plane with Mel and his 
son Randy at the controls. Being a pilot myself, we talked a lot about 
flying. It was a night flight. We talked about the aircraft. I talked 
to Randy about the different instrumentation he had on his aircraft. 
Randy was a very qualified pilot. He knew what he was doing. Mel was, 
too. Mel had been taking flying lessons and had hoped to complete them 
at some time but had to interrupt them for his campaign.
  For me, it makes the loss even so much more poignant and tragic since 
just a couple of months ago I was on that very plane with them. We do 
not know exactly what happened. Right now what went wrong is really of 
no consequence. What is of consequence is that we have lost three good 
lives in that tragic accident in Missouri.
  My heart and my prayers are with Jean, his very lovely and very 
dedicated wife, their children Russ, Robin, and Tom, and with the 
family and friends of Chris Sifford who also lost his life in that 
tragic accident.
  Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I rise to add my voice to those who have 
come to the Senate floor to pay tribute to Missouri Gov. Mel Carnahan.
  Those of us who knew and admired Governor Carnahan share a profound 
sense of loss at the news of his untimely death and the deaths of his 
son Randy and longtime aide Chris Sifford in a plane crash on Monday 
night.
  I had the pleasure to meet Mel Carnahan on several occasions in 
recent years. I knew him as a good man, as someone who spoke 
passionately and cared deeply about the people of his State, especially 
its children. He was a dedicated and talented public servant who never 
wavered in his belief that public service is a noble calling.
  Few if any would question that Mel Carnahan's heart was with the 
working people of his State. In his first year as Governor, he called 
for a tax increase to fund the State's public schools. Allies and 
opponents alike said he was sealing his fate as a one-term Governor. 
The voters saw his decision for what it was: an act of political 
courage. They reelected him in a landslide.
  In addition to work on behalf of the children of Missouri, he fought 
for better health and safety standards for seniors in nursing homes. He 
championed tough measures to fight crime. He brought about sensible 
welfare reform. And he successfully streamlined his State's government, 
redirecting hundreds of millions of dollars for job creation, 
education, and law enforcement.
  The Democratic leader said earlier this week that Governor Carnahan 
was a man of such talent and insight that he would have succeeded in 
any field which he chose. Anyone who knew this man would, I believe, 
have to agree with that view; that he chose the field of public service 
and brought credit and esteem to a profession that is all too often 
criticized. It brought a better life for millions of Americans who 
reaped the harvest of his tireless efforts on their behalf.
  I extend my deepest sympathies to the Governor's wife Jean, their 
family, the family of Chris Sifford, and the people of the State of 
Missouri.

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