[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 7 (Monday, January 22, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Pages S83-S85]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 SECRETARY OF DEFENSE, WILLIAM S. COHEN

  Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, our Nation has been most pleased with the 
extraordinary leadership of Secretary William S. Cohen at the helm of 
our Armed Forces for the past 4 years. On January 17, 2001, the 
Chairman and members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff honored Secretary 
Cohen and his lady, the First Lady of our military, Janet Cohen, with a 
spectacular ceremony at Fort Myer. Although the ceremony was to 
officially honor Secretary Cohen, it made all in attendance most 
pleased that Mrs. Cohen, Janet, as she is known to men and women in the 
Armed Forces, was also honored. I believe it was the first time in 
history when our troops were officially reviewed by the Secretary and 
his lady. Janet Cohen was most deserving of this high honor. As the 
remarks eloquently note, she was, indeed, the First Lady of the United 
States Armed Forces.
  The pomp and ceremony, the colors and the parade were memorable, but 
the remarks made by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General 
Henry S. Shelton, and the response by Secretary Cohen will be long 
remembered. I respectfully believe that these speeches are worthy of 
the attention of my colleagues. Accordingly, I ask unanimous consent 
that a copy of the remarks by General Henry S. Shelton, Chairman of the 
Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the responding remarks of the Secretary of 
the Department of Defense, the Honorable William S. Cohen, be printed 
in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

 Remarks of General Henry H. Shelton, USA, at the Farewell Ceremony in 
                        Honor of Secretary Cohen

       Secretary and Mrs. Cohen, Mr. Kevin Cohen, Members of the 
     Cabinet, Designated Members of the Cabinet, Members of the 
     Diplomatic Corps, Distinguished Members of Congress, Service 
     secretaries, Fellow members of the Joint Chiefs, Commanders-
     In-Chief, Unified and Functional Commands, Distinguished 
     guests, Fellow members of the Armed Forces, Ladies and 
     Gentlemen:
       Thanks to each of you for coming to this special event as 
     we, the members of the Armed Forces and the Department of 
     Defense, pause to honor and salute a truly great American 
     couple.
       But first, let me, once again, thank the outstanding men 
     and women standing in front of you today and representing 
     hundreds of thousands of soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines 
     and coastguardsmen. They are truly our Nation's treasure . . 
     . they serve with honor and courage . . . and they are 
     committed to keeping America strong and free.
       Let's give them a hand!
       We are all here this morning to honor and pay tribute to 
     Secretary and Mrs. Cohen. And while it is always difficult to 
     say farewell . . . the task is particularly difficult today 
     because the Secretary and Janet have served the department . 
     . . and indeed this Nation . . . with such distinction and so 
     unselfishly over the past 4 years.
       Of course, Secretary Cohen's outstanding service to the 
     Nation encompasses much more than his tenure as Secretary of 
     Defense. For nearly a quarter century, first as a Congressman 
     and later as a Senator from the great State of Maine, he 
     served his constituents and, indeed, all Americans well . . . 
     as a skillful legislator and powerful advocate.
       In the Senate, he was known as an influential voice on 
     defense and international security. He was admired for his 
     commitment to the principle that the security of our Nation 
     is not, and should never be, a partisan matter. His focus, 
     always, was on what was best for America and what was best 
     for the men and women of our Armed Forces.
       All of us here today recognize it is a great honor to be 
     asked by the President to serve in the Cabinet . . . 
     especially if it's the first time in American history when an 
     elected official of the other party was selected to be a 
     senior member of the cabinet.
       But, 25 years in this town as a dedicated public servant is 
     a long time . . . and Senator Cohen had certainly ``earned 
     his parole.'' Why then, you might ask, would this great 
     Senator from Maine want to voluntarily extend his sentence 
     and take on such a position?
       Well, I don't presume to speak for the Secretary, nor can I 
     know for certain why he willingly accepted the enormous 
     demands that come with the 24 hour-a-day/7 days per week job 
     of Secretary of Defense . . . and the ``scrutiny''--I mean 
     ``help''--of his former colleagues on the Hill.
       But, from almost daily observation for the last 3 years and 
     4 months, I know that the Secretary took the job out of a 
     deep love for our country . . . and an equally strong 
     devotion and respect for those who serve. And those of us in 
     the Armed Forces are fortunate that he did!
       For the past four years, America has successfully navigated 
     the often dangerous waters of international security affairs 
     with Secretary Cohen at the helm. The department . . . and 
     indeed the Nation . . . have been well served having him in 
     charge during the many storms we have weathered over these 
     unpredictable years.
       It was Joshua Chamberlain . . . another great leader from 
     the State of Maine . . . who once said that, in times of 
     great struggle, ``it is character that tells.'' Chamberlain 
     then defined character as a ``firm seasoned substance of soul 
     . . . [including] such qualities as intelligence, 
     thoughtfulness, conscientiousness, right-mindedness, 
     patience, fortitude, and unconquerable resolve.''
       Those who know Secretary Cohen, know that he personifies 
     the qualities of character that Chamberlain, a fellow Bowdoin 
     College graduate, talked about over a century ago. And we 
     also understand that as a result we are a stronger, better 
     military today.
       Throughout Secretary Cohen's tenure, America has operated 
     in and been successfully engaged in a dangerous and untidy 
     world. He has been a great coach . . . a ``players coach'' 
     who cared deeply for his soldiers, sailors, airmen, and 
     marines . . . and a visionary leader who executed a winning 
     game plan . . . a game plan we call our strategy of shape, 
     respond, and prepare:
       The first piece of the strategy is shaping . . . and we 
     have shaped the international security environment in many 
     ways: From NATO enlargement, to the more recent and indeed 
     on-going negotiations on the EU-NATO relationship. From 
     Bosnia, to Kosovo and the indispensable role we have played, 
     along with our allies, in promoting peace. And, from the no-
     fly zones, to the Persian Gulf, where U.S. forces have 
     ensured the free flow of oil and prevented Saddam Hussein 
     from threatening his people or neighbors.
       The second element of our strategy is responding . . . and 
     we, along with our allies and friends, have responded to a 
     wide range of crises.
       From the December 1998 air campaign to degrade Iraq's 
     ability to deliver WMD and threaten its neighbors, to the 78-
     day air campaign that succeeded in reversing Slobodan 
     Milosevic's reign of terror in Kosovo.
       From our presence during the turmoil in East Timor to the 
     evacuation of noncombatants from life-threatening civil 
     unrest in West Africa.
       From providing humanitarian assistance in Central America, 
     to fighting raging forest fires in the Western U.S.
       The third and final element of our strategy is preparing . 
     . . that is, getting ready now for the demands of the future. 
     Under Secretary Cohen's leadership we have seen the largest 
     increase in military spending in over a decade and 
     restructured the department to confront the emerging threats 
     of this new century. Under his leadership we pursued and 
     achieved--with the great support of Congress and the 
     administration--the largest increase in pay and benefits in a 
     generation . . . and recognized that quality of force, in 
     part, reflects the level of public support for the military. 
     We are attracting and retaining the best-qualified people for 
     our military, and making sure we provide them with the best 
     equipment and training.
       In all these areas, and many others Mr. Secretary, our 
     successes have been due to

[[Page S84]]

     your outstanding leadership and vision. Of course, you have 
     been helped along the way by the fantastic team you built 
     within OSD . . . and, from one other very ``special 
     assistant'' as well. Indeed, over the past four years you 
     have had a great partner at your side. And so, today, we say 
     goodbye as well to your partner, the First Lady of the 
     Department . . . Janet Cohen.
       Janet, on behalf of our men and women in uniform, let me 
     say a special thank you . . . for your tireless efforts to 
     improve the quality of life of our people in uniform and 
     their families. And for your efforts to help the Secretary 
     reconnect the military to the America we serve. Those of us 
     here today who have grown to know you well, will miss you 
     greatly. But, so too will the families of those who serve . . 
     . the very families that you have served so compassionately. 
     Finally, on a very personal note Mr. Secretary, let me thank 
     you for the tremendous opportunity to serve as your, and 
     President Clinton's, principal military advisor and to 
     represent our great soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines 
     here in Washington--there can be no greater honor and for 
     that I am forever indebted to you.
       You embody those attributes and values that the members of 
     our Armed Forces try to live by--you're a person of great 
     character . . . the ``character'' that Chamberlain eloquently 
     defined. You are a person of absolute integrity and of 
     tremendous vision. I have watched you work tirelessly on 
     behalf or our men and women in uniform, watched you travel 
     over 750,000 miles to foster peace and stability around the 
     globe with Allies, partners and friends and fight the tough 
     fights at home and abroad for what was best for America and 
     for America's Armed Forces. For that, we are all indebted to 
     you.
       In closing . . . thank you, Mr. Secretary . . . and thank 
     you Janet . . . for all that you have done. We are a 
     stronger, better-prepared, and prouder military for your 
     efforts. The Nation has been truly blessed by your service. 
     All of us wish you and Janet life's best in all your future 
     endeavors. Thank You.
                                  ____


            Remarks by Secretary of Defense William S. Cohen

       General Shelton, thank you for your overly generous 
     remarks. Carolyn Shelton. When I recommended that Hugh 
     Shelton be selected as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, I was 
     approached by a reporter who asked, ``What's our reaction to 
     him? How do you size him up?'' I answered, ``About 6'6".'' 
     I'd say he's a combination of Randolph Scott, John Wayne, and 
     a little bit of Clint Eastwood. He's a man of few words, but 
     who's silence tells you all you really need to know about 
     him. You don't want to make his day.
       One of the first things he did after his confirmation was 
     to give me and the other members of the Joint Chiefs a copy 
     of a book entitled Dereliction of Duty. He was sending a very 
     strong signal in passing out that book--he was saying that 
     under my watch I'm never going to tailor my judgment or 
     advice to fit a particular objective that I think is unwise. 
     It's a book that I keep very much at eye-level on my shelf, 
     Mr. Chairman.
       The second thing you gave me was a fountain pen, and a note 
     that went with it. It was a statement from General William 
     Tecumseh Sherman to Grant. He said, ``I always knew that if I 
     was in trouble you'd come for me if alive.'' Mr. Chairman, I 
     always knew that if I were ever in trouble, that you would 
     always be there for me as you've been there for all of the 
     men and women who wear our uniform. You are a warrior and you 
     carry the warrior's code not on your sleeve, but in your 
     soul. I am deeply grateful that I had the chance to work 
     beside you and to have you as a principal advisor.
       General Joe Ralston and Dede, I believe you're here, but if 
     you're not I will say a few words anyway. I want to thank you 
     for all that you have given to our country and what you 
     continue to give as commander of our forces in the European 
     theater, and as Supreme Allied Commander, Europe. You have 
     carried on the great work of your predecessors and the 
     tradition established by Generals George Joulwan and Wes 
     Clark, and you have been succeeded as Vice Chairman of the 
     Joint Chiefs by a truly able officer and friend, Dick Myers.
       So I want to take this occasion to thank General Myers and 
     Mary Jo; and to thank General Mike Ryan Chief of Staff, U.S. 
     Air Force and Jane; to thank General Ric Shinseki Chief of 
     Staff, U.S. Army and Patty; to thank Jim Jones Commandant, 
     U.S. Marine Corps, a friend and companion for so many years 
     and Diane; and Admiral James Loy Commandant, U.S. Coast Guard 
     who played basketball against me so many years ago, and 
     unfortunately was the winner.
       I am told that former Secretary of Defense Caspar 
     Weinberger may be in the audience. I want to say that I 
     enjoyed my friendship and service with you over the years. I 
     don't think anyone other than Mel Laird ever served longer as 
     Secretary of Defense than Cap Weinberger. You helped to 
     rebuild our military and our morale at a time when we 
     needed that boost, and I will never forget how you used to 
     come before a skeptical Congress with your two very sharp 
     pencils in your hand, ready to answer any question that we 
     had.
       Secretary, Bill Perry, what an opportunity it was for me to 
     know you when I serve in the Senate and what an honor to 
     follow you as Secretary of Defense. You are known and you're 
     revered for your brilliance, your leadership and your quiet 
     strength, but you're also respected and loved for your 
     civility and your kindness. You, along with Cap, are regarded 
     as two of our finest public servants, and I am truly grateful 
     that you could be here to observe my farewell.
       Deputy Secretary Rudy de Leon, when John Hamre left to take 
     over the presidency of CSIS, Center for Strategic 
     International Studies, I asked you to step into some very big 
     shoes, and you took up the challenge without hesitation. You 
     more than lived up to our high expectations. And no matter 
     how difficult the issue, you never lost your composure and 
     you never lost your focus. And if ever there's going to be 
     another story made of Cool Hand Luke, you'll be the man.
       Members of the Cabinet and diplomatic corps, Members of 
     Congress, Secretary of the Army Louis Caldera, Secretary of 
     the Air Force, F. Whitten Peters, Secretary of the Navy, 
     Richard Danzig, leaders from across this great institution, 
     Janet, of course, and my son Kevin, thank you for being here 
     on such a special occasion. Distinguished guests, ladies and 
     gentlemen, and most importantly, the men and women of the 
     United States Armed Forces--the finest fighting force on the 
     face of the Earth.
       Twenty-four years ago another Secretary bid farewell to 
     this institution. In the coming days, the 13th Secretary of 
     Defense will return as the 21st Secretary of Defense. Don 
     Rumsfeld has been an enduring public servant to this country, 
     and he's going to be an outstanding leader of this 
     department. But I must tell you, even if senator Strom 
     Thurmon is in the audience--and what an inspiring example of 
     service he is--I have no illusions. I am not returning in the 
     year 2025.
       But I do want to take this occasion to thank you for 
     honoring me and Janet with your presence and to use this 
     final occasion to address the ranks among you--those who wear 
     the nation's uniform.
       During these final days--which somehow have become the most 
     demanding in the last four years--I've been afflicted by a 
     multitude of emotions and thoughts. Late last night, early 
     this morning, I was complaining to Janet that I didn't have 
     enough time to even begin to contemplate what I might say to 
     you today, knowing that my words would have no more lasting 
     effect than those words written in sand. She replied. ``Just 
     tell them what you feel.'' That's always what Janet would 
     say. ``Tell them what you feel.''
       I thought years back to when I was in college and I used to 
     read the French existentialists. And I think it was Gide, or 
     it could have been Camus, who once said that it's the 
     foreknowledge of the finality of things that destroys bliss 
     at its very apex. In other words, everything that is mortal 
     must come to an end, and therefore we can take no joy in the 
     experience.
       I used to dabble with such thoughts as a young college 
     student, but 40 years of experience have taught me 
     differently. We have loved this job, knowing that this day 
     would one day have to come. We have loved not this job, but 
     this opportunity to be in the presence of heroes--to walk and 
     to sail and to soar with eagles.
       So what do I feel? I feel honor, to be sure, but most of 
     all, an unqualified sense of awe. When I'm in the presence of 
     men and women who serve and sacrifice themselves and their 
     families for our freedom, I am in awe. I've had the privilege 
     of meeting with kings and queens, and presidents and prime 
     ministers, and princes and sultans and emirs, and yes, 
     parliamentarians the world over. But nothing has ever been 
     more rewarding than to visit our troops in Bosnia, in Kosovo, 
     Korea, Kuwait, or Saudi Arabia; to land on a carrier in the 
     Persian Gulf where the temperatures can run 120, 130, 140 
     degrees, and to see our sailors and Marines carrying out 
     their duties in that heat; to watch our Air Force put steel 
     on target or deliver humanitarian relief to helpless victims 
     of hurricanes, earthquakes or other natural disasters; to 
     witness our Coast Guardsmen protect our shores or rescue 
     those who are caught up in those perfect storms.
       I marvel at your raw courage and your willingness to 
     constantly train and prepare to fight the wars that can't be 
     prevented. And I am touched to the core when I visit you at 
     Christmas time, knowing what a special moment it is for you, 
     how far away you are from your families, what spirit you show 
     in your very loneliness as you're surrounded by your 
     comrades, what pride you take in knowing that you save lives, 
     that you've touched hearts of total strangers, and that 
     you've given them something more precious than gold.
       And as I reflect on the swift passage of time these past 
     four years, all of these moments and memories come rushing at 
     me with a terrifying velocity. But I'd like to share one of 
     my earliest with you.
       On our visit to Eagle Base in Bosnia on Christmas Eve three 
     years ago--as we have done every holiday since that time--we 
     joined hundreds of soldiers to share songs and love and 
     levity and laughter, and to bring them just a touch of home. 
     As we left around midnight, we passed along the perimeter and 
     came across three young soldiers for whom Christmas Eve meant 
     manning a security post that was fashioned from wood. They 
     were out there in the mud, in the cold, in the darkness, 
     standing guard in the night.
       As we expressed our gratitude for their service and 
     conveyed our sorrow they couldn't be home with their 
     families, one of these soldiers looked at Janet and he 
     offered a response that we will never forget, so eloquent in 
     its simplicity, so profound in its

[[Page S85]]

     sincerity, ``That's all right, ma'am. Somebody has to do it. 
     And besides, I think we're making a difference here.''
       Men and women of the United States Armed Forces for the 
     past four years, we've been blessed to serve with you as you 
     stand guard in the night, and as you continue to make an 
     extraordinary difference the world over. Because of your 
     patriotism and professionalism, because of your dedication 
     and your daring, more people today sleep under the flag of 
     freedom than at any time in history.
       So the poet asks, ``How should we presume?'' I was recently 
     asked, ``What's your legacy? What can you point to with pride 
     that you've helped to make happen on your watch?'' Well, I'd 
     never really given any thought to legacies. I simply tried to 
     keep the faith of all who have come before me and those who 
     come after.
       The Chairman stole my thunder here, because I was going to 
     engage in just a touch of immodesty, but he already outlined 
     everything we've done. We have managed to secure an 
     additional $227 billion for future years defense spending. 
     Four years ago we were told there wouldn't be any increases. 
     We now have an additional $227 billion coming to our armed 
     forces. That's a remarkable achievement that this team has 
     produced.
       We've had the largest defense spending increase in 15 
     years, the largest pay raise in a generation, retirement 
     benefits back up to 50 percent, the elimination of housing 
     inequities for those who live off-base, overhauling the 
     health care system to make sure that we give decent health 
     care for the men and women who are serving us and those who 
     have retired and their families-care that's worthy of this 
     nation.
       We conducted the most successful air campaign in the 
     history of warfare. We drove Milosevic out of Kosovo, and 
     hopefully into oblivion, or at least to The Hague where he 
     can stand trial. We kept Saddam Hussein in his box and out of 
     his neighbors' oil fields and homes. We've enlarged the NATO 
     family with three new democracies. We've strengthened our 
     relationships in South America, in Africa, the Gulf States, 
     South Korea, Japan, and all of the Southeast Asian countries. 
     We've reduced nuclear weapons in Russia. We have established 
     military to military ties with China.
       We created the Joint Forces Command, preparing to deter and 
     counter those who plot our destruction with weapons of mass 
     destruction. We have reoriented the Space Command to ensure 
     that we remain as dominant in space and cyberspace as we are 
     on the battlefields. We've accelerated that Revolution in 
     Military Affairs, transforming our forces so we can marshal 
     and match the power of our technology with the force of our 
     ideals.
       And I want to mention one other thing--we've kept our 
     promise to help reconnect America to its military, to remind 
     the American people that we must take care of those who take 
     care of us and that freedom can be lost just as easily 
     through indifference and neglect as it can through warfare.
       In his wonderful book, On the Origins of War and the 
     Preservation of Peace, Donald Kagan talked about Athenian 
     democracy. He said that in the end, more than they wanted 
     freedom, they wanted security. And when the Athenians finally 
     wanted not to give to society, but for society to give to 
     them, when the freedom that they wished for was freedom from 
     responsibility, then Athens ceased to be free. We should 
     never let that happen to the United States of America.
       General Shelton, you quoted Chamberlain, one of my heroes. 
     And I would suggest that no words better describe those that 
     we serve. On countless occasions I've been asked by foreign 
     leaders. ``How can our military be more like America's?'' 
     I'll repeat here today what I've said time and time again. 
     It's not our training, although our training is the most 
     rigorous in the world. It's not our technology, although 
     ours is the most advanced in the world. And it's not our 
     tactics, although ours in the most revolutionary in the 
     world. We have the finest military on Earth because we 
     have the finest people on Earth, because we recruit and we 
     retain the best that America has to offer.
       So as I prepare to leave public office, I want to take this 
     final occasion to remind all of America: take a look at the 
     leadership that we have, take a look at what you see arrayed 
     before you here. Be inspired by their character and their 
     devotion to duty. Stand in awe of their courage and their 
     professionalism and their ability to maintain bravery in the 
     midst of tragedy and loss.
       When we stood on the tarmac at Andrews Air Force Base to 
     welcome home the flag-drapped coffins of those that we lost 
     in our embassies in East Africa, when we stood on the pier in 
     Norfolk with the wounded sailors and the families of those 
     who perished in the Cole, when we learned of those who were 
     lost aboard the Osprey, and whenever the phone rang at 
     midnight or in the early morning hours telling me of an 
     accident that would not make the headlines, but that would 
     rip a hole in the hearts of the families who were affected, 
     then we understand why these brave men and women and their 
     families truly are patriots among us--the pride of America, 
     the envy of the world.
       Finally, I'd like to pay special tribute to the most 
     remarkable person in my life. When you think of Janet 
     Langhart Cohen, you think of passion, of fire, of spirit. 
     Creative ideas spring from her like the cherry blossoms 
     around the Tidal Basin, only it's not just in the spring 
     time, they're always springing forward. And it's not just the 
     creativity, it's moving from the creation of the idea to the 
     actuality of the event.
       I think of all she has been able to do--creating that first 
     Family Forum or the Pentagon Pops, helping to organize those 
     holiday tours overseas, creating the new USO Corridor in the 
     Pentagon and a new liaison office in the Pentagon, hosting 
     that Special Assignment television program that goes 
     worldwide to our troops, receiving the VFW Award, then just 
     last week the Zach Fisher Award, being recognized by the 
     United States Chamber of Commerce for her work on behalf of 
     all of those in uniform, and yes, named the First Lady of the 
     USO. But I would say most of all, she has loved our men and 
     women in uniform with a zeal that transcends any ability of 
     mine to describe. I have never felt more alive--or more 
     ignored--than when she's out there with the troops. Lou 
     Gehrig was wrong, I'm the luckiest man alive.
       So it's time for the two of us to take our leave. We have a 
     new President who has assembled a great new national security 
     team and they will, with your help and God's help, continue 
     to make the United States of America the greatest force for 
     freedom in the world.
       I'd like to close with the paraphrased words of the poet 
     Tagore. ``When one comes and whispers to me, `Thy days are 
     ended,' let me say to him, `I have lived and loved and not in 
     mere time.' And he will ask, `Will thy songs remain?' And I 
     shall say, `I know not, but this I know. That often when I 
     sang, I found my eternity.' '' Thank you.

                          ____________________