[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 112 (Friday, August 3, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1518-E1519]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TRIBUTE TO THE LATE GOVERNOR JOAN FINNEY OF KANSAS
______
HON. DENNIS MOORE
of kansas
in the house of representatives
Thursday, August 2, 2001
Mr. MOORE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to former
Governor Joan Finney of Kansas, who passed away on July 28th in her
hometown of Topeka.
Governor Finney was an extraordinary woman, a pioneer, a populist,
and my friend.
Governor Finney served the people of Kansas for sixteen years as our
elected State Treasurer and then was elected as the first woman
Governor of Kansas, defeating her two predecessors in that office while
on her way to achieving that goal.
Joan Marie McEnroy Finney was born on February 12, 1925. Her father
abandoned her pregnant mother and two older sisters in 1924, and her
mother raised the three girls by teaching piano, voice and harp.
Governor Finney herself was an accomplished musician and often played
her harp at political and social events. She graduated from Manhattan
High School in 1942 and earned a bachelor's degree in economic history
from Washburn University in Topeka in 1978. Her political career began
in 1953 when U.S. Senator Frank Carlson of Kansas hired her as a
secretary in his Washington, D.C., office. She returned to Topeka where
she worked for Carlson until he retired in 1969; in the following year
Finney was appointed Shawnee County Election Commissioner, where she
served until 1972.
In 1972, Finney sought the Republican nomination for U.S. Congress in
the Second District of Kansas. Two years later, she switched parties
and was elected State Treasurer as a Democrat, winning re-election
three times. I first got to know her when we were both statewide
candidates on the Kansas ballot in 1986; I lost and she won. I know
from firsthand experience on the campaign trail with her that she
possessed an amazing ability to remember names and personal details
about virtually every Kansan she encountered.
In a recent interview with the Topeka Capital-Journal, former Kansas
Democratic Party Chairman Jim Parrish noted that Finney had switched
parties because of the way the Republican Party in Kansas had treated
her:
She was told generally by the party that, ``We're not ready
for a woman.'' . . . I remember her telling me she counselled
with Frank Carlson before she did it, and then
[[Page E1519]]
proceeded to make the change. I go all the way back to the
1974 treasurer's campaign with Joan Finney, and there's not a
stronger, more determined woman in all of Kansas political
life, ever. And among women I would say she stands tall in
terms of being able to set her sights on an objective and go
for it in a world where, when she started, it wasn't
particularly easy for women.
The Kansas City Star had it right recently, when they wrote:
People credited Finney's success to her campaign style,
kidding that she had crossed every creek in Kansas. And she
was the master one-on-one politician, grasping a voter's hand
in both of hers. She saw herself as a populist who listened
to everybody.
The Associated Press quoted Republican State Senator David Adkins of
Leawood, Kansas, as saying,
You had to see Joan Finney work a bean feed to understand
her appeal. She would walk in and she already knew half the
people there, and the other half, before she left they would
think she was their best friend.
Her good friend, Kansas Senate Democratic Leader Anthony Hensley hit
the nail on the head when he said,
She literally went door-to-door all of her political
career. She'd walk in the parades, speak at the chili
suppers, campaign in bowling alleys and grocery stores, just
picking up bits and pieces from the people.
In 1991, the Kickapoo Tribe of Kansas gave her the name White Morning
Star Woman after she became the first governor to issue an official
proclamation to recognize the sovereignty of American Indian tribes.
The state's four tribes and Indian leaders nationwide admired Governor
Finney for supporting tribal efforts to open casinos on reservations as
an income source for them and for being sympathetic to their efforts to
assert their sovereignty.
As Governor, she appointed women to an unprecedented number of top
jobs in state government. On average, at least half of her cabinet
members were women, and her staff of advisors was almost exclusively
female. As Kansas Insurance Commissioner Kathleen Sebelius recently
commented,
I don't think there's any question that Joan Finney was one
of the most remarkable politicians I've ever known. She
changed the face of politics in this state and made it
possible for women like me to be seriously considered for
statewide office. She pushed women along every step of the
way.... She has an impressive place in American history and
an incredible place in Kansas history.
During her four years as Governor, the state rewrote its law for
distributing money to public schools, revised its abortion law,
overhauled its workers' compensation system, re-enacted a capital
punishment law, and signed four compacts that allowed Indian tribes in
northeast Kansas to open casinos. Legislators rejected her proposals to
amend the state constitution to provide for public initiatives and
referendums. Finney also took credit for opening international markets
to dozens of Kansas businesses due to a series of international trade
missions she undertook.
Most importantly, though, Joan Finney will be remembered as a true
populist leader in the finest sense of the word. As she said to the
Topeka Capital-Journal shortly before her election as Governor:
I believe the people should be supreme in all things. Even
if I don't agree and the majority want a certain issue and
believe in a certain issue, I accept that and I will stand by
the people.
Governor Finney was a genuine Kansas pioneer, particularly for women
in public life. She truly loved people and the people of Kansas loved
and respected her. As Commissioner Sebelius noted,
She had the heart of a true Kansan--someone with strong
values, ideals and pride. We should all be so lucky to live
like that.
We may never see another leader in our state with her determination,
self-confidence and independent spirit, and that truly is our loss.
Governor Joan Finney is survived by her husband, Spencer Finney, and
their three children, Sally Finney, Dick Finney, and Mary Holladay. I
join with them in mourning the loss of this unique, incredible woman.
____________________