[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 135 (Wednesday, October 10, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10429-S10430]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SENATOR MIKE MANSFIELD

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, today is one of the days I have had kind of 
a bittersweet experience. For me, the bittersweet experience was going 
to the funeral of the former distinguished majority leader of the 
Senate for 16 years, Mike Mansfield; bitter because you never want to 
see such a person and such a giant's life come to an end; sweet though 
because he had 98 very fulfilling years.
  At the end of those 98 years, we listened to the tales from his 
family, associates, and others who reminded all of us what a great man 
he was. The irony is that Senator Mansfield would not have let any one 
of us talk on at such length and be so praiseworthy about him here on 
the floor. He was very modest. But I thought of the wonderful moments 
that could remind each other--those of us who had the privilege of 
serving with Senator Mansfield and those of us who came later--of what 
a great man he was.
  I first met Mike Mansfield when I was Senator-elect. I came in here 
as a 34-year-old prosecutor. The terms actually overlapped. I came into 
this building I used to visit as a law student. But now I carried this 
mantle of U.S. Senator, and I was probably far more nervous than I once 
was as a law student.
  Senator Mansfield was one of the first people I got to see. I 
remember him inviting me into his office. He asked if I wanted some 
coffee. My nerves were shaky enough at that point, I didn't need it, 
but I said: Of course. He poured it out and handed it to me. He asked 
me about my life, and all that. I was trying to ask questions.
  I always called him Mr. Leader. But I remember one thing he said was: 
You are going to be here at least 6 years. You may be here a lot 
longer. But remember, in the Senate we keep our word. And if you commit 
to something, if you tell another Senator you are going to do 
something, then always keep your word, even if it turns out that 
politically it is not going to be helpful for you because it is the 
only way we can operate in this body. We do it on trust.
  He also said: The other thing is, if you vote on something, and 
afterward you think you cast the wrong vote, don't worry about it. I 
guarantee you, the issue will come up again, and you will get to vote 
the right way.
  He was right on both occasions. I have cast votes that afterward I 
thought: That was kind of a dumb thing to do. I will wait for another 
time to bring it up. It will come back up, and I can vote the right 
way.
  But I do remember what Senator Mansfield said: Keep your word. You 
always keep your word.
  We had some real giants serving in the Senate at that time. I 
remember Senator Mansfield, when things would get bogged down in this 
Chamber, would come through and sort of tap a few people on the 
shoulder and suggest they come in the back room; and then we would pass 
a great deal of legislation in that back room, as Senator Mansfield 
would puff on his pipe, and with very few words he would get warring 
parties to seek peace and move on with the Nation's business.
  He was very nice to my family. He used to give a speech every year to 
the caucus, saying: There is no seniority. There is no juniority. We 
are all equal. He gave that speech one day, and Senator Abourezk of 
South Dakota, who, like me, was one of the most junior Members here, 
stood up and said: Mr. Leader, I was so impressed with that speech, 
especially as one of the most junior Members, that there is no 
seniority, no juniority. Senator Mansfield thanked him for his 
statement, and Senator Abourezk said: Because of that, could I borrow 
your limousine and driver tonight? Senator Mansfield took the pipe out 
of his mouth and, with a quiet smile, said: No.
  There were certain limits, but then, when I was a young Senator, he 
loaned that limousine to my wife Marcelle and me and our three children 
to go to a movie premier and then to drive elsewhere to meet the cast 
afterward.
  I recall so many times, when I was stuck here late in this Chamber 
and I could not get home to my family, that my children would remind 
me, when I came home and apologized: Remember that wonderful evening 
Senator Mansfield let us take his car and even use the telephone in it.
  He would do things like that. He cared very much about those of us 
who had young children. One, he remembered the names of the children 
who would come in here with us. Even a few months ago, when I ran into 
him at an event, we started talking, and he immediately asked: How is 
Marcelle? He started naming the children. What a remarkable person.
  He taught Senators that you have certain responsibilities. There are 
only 100 of us at any given time to represent the country, but within 
responsibilities you can have personal relationships across the aisle.
  I remember Hugh Scott, traveling with both of them on the plane and 
them puffing on their pipes. But those personal relationships made the 
Senate work so well.

  I remember the great speech he gave in the Leader's Lecture Series in 
the Old Senate Chamber. It was the speech

[[Page S10430]]

he was going to give on a Friday afternoon on November 22, 1963. As he 
walked in this Chamber to give it, he was told that President Kennedy 
had been shot. But he gave it in the Old Senate Chamber, and it was 
just as new as it would have been then, just as responsive.
  He said: We have to lower the level of partisanship. We have to work 
together--of course, not give up our principles--this is not a unibody 
of opinion--and have the personal relationships that make it work.
  He spoke in many ways. He was from a different era of the Senate, but 
in many ways a better era, where individual Senators, person to person, 
would work out problems. I think today, as I have seen so many Senators 
come together on some of these problems since the terrible events of 
September 11, Senator Mansfield would be proud of us for doing that.
  People sometimes ask me what I consider the greatest thing about 
being a U.S. Senator. I always say one of the greatest was having 
Senator Mansfield here as leader when I came to the Senate. I have 
served wonderful leaders in both parties, but what he did to help all 
of us, as new Senators--to talk with us, to advise us, to work with us, 
to make us feel we belonged; and then to ask us to make sure others 
felt they belonged--was unique. The country was better for his service 
in the Senate.
  I think life has shown that each one of us, whether we are leader or 
not, has the privilege of being 1 of the 100 people in this Chamber who 
serve our Nation of a quarter of a billion people. And we owe great 
responsibilities to each other and to the country. That is a great 
legacy.
  So I say it was bittersweet to be there. But it was wonderful to 
celebrate such a full, full life, a life that so few people ever equal. 
So I bid adieu to a dear friend.
  I yield the floor.
  Mr. SARBANES. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to the life 
of a great American, former Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield, who 
passed away on October 5 at the age of 98.
  Senator Mansfield's legacy as a Member of Congress will leave a 
shadow as long as his very life. Born in New York, the son of Irish 
immigrants, in 1903, Michael Joseph Mansfield experienced tragedy at an 
early age when his mother died when he was only 3. Sent to live with 
relatives in Great Falls, MT, Senator Mansfield soon began a lifetime 
of hard work, first in the family grocery store, then enlisting in the 
Navy before his 15th birthday, and later, when the Navy discharged the 
young Senator Mansfield after discovering he was underage, serving in 
the United States Army and Marine Corps, all before the age of 20. In 
1922, Senator Mansfield returned to Montana and began working as a 
``mucker'' in the copper mines near Butte, MT. Five years later, he met 
Maureen Hayes, to whom he would be married from 1932 until her death 
just last year.
  It was his wife that encouraged Senator Mansfield to continue his 
education, first at the Montana School of Mines then completing his 
high school education through correspondence courses. In 1930, he left 
the copper mines and enrolled in the University of Montana where he 
later became a professor of Far Eastern and Latin American history and 
political science after completing graduate work at the University of 
California at Berkeley.
  Although he did not follow a traditional path, Senator Mansfield's 
education provided him with the background that would allow him to 
become one of Congress' foremost experts on foreign affairs. After 
losing his first bid for elected office, Senator Mansfield was elected 
to the House of Representatives in 1942 and was immediately assigned to 
the Foreign Affairs Committee. Just two years later, then-
Representative Mansfield was sent on a confidential fact-finding 
mission to China by President Franklin Roosevelt, returning in 1945 to 
report on the state of that nation. In 1952, he narrowly defeated an 
incumbent to win a seat in the Senate where he was again called upon to 
use his expertise on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, completing 
another fact-finding trip, this time to Indochina, and serving as a 
representative to the Manila Conference.
  Outside the realm of foreign affairs, Senator Mansfield quickly rose 
through the ranks of Senate leadership, first as party whip in 1957 and 
becoming the Democratic Majority Leader just four years later in 1961. 
In his 16 years as Majority Leader, Senator Mansfield helped steer the 
Nation through some of our most difficult times. After President 
Kennedy's assassination in 1963, Senator Mansfield delivered a eulogy 
at a Capitol Rotunda memorial service that was broadcast across the 
country and helped all Americans mourn the loss of our great President. 
Senator Mansfield was a vocal critic of our Nation's involvement in the 
Vietnam War, and warned three administrations, from Eisenhower to 
Johnson, about the extent of U.S. military actions there. Although his 
position on the Vietnam War strained his relations with the Johnson 
administration, he was able to work with the President on passage of 
landmark civil rights legislation. The turmoil of that era was 
immediately followed by the Watergate scandal that resulted in the 
resignation of President Nixon and shook the faith of some Americans in 
our government. But throughout all of these trying times, Senator 
Mansfield led the Senate with quiet determination that exemplified his 
service in Congress.
  And that truly is how we will remember Senator Mansfield. Through the 
most difficult of times, Senator Mansfield led this great body with a 
sense of purpose and integrity. He put his trust in the rules and 
procedures of the Senate to reach a result that was right for the 
American people. He encouraged Committee Chairmen to lead Senate debate 
on bills under their jurisdiction, and inspired young Senators to make 
their voices heard on the floor. He delegated responsibility to others, 
making the Senate a more democratic place, instead of a body dominated 
by the ``old guard.'' And when the Senate failed to live up to the high 
ideals embodied in the Constitution, Senator Mansfield would say so. It 
has been reported many times in the past few days that Senator 
Mansfield nearly resigned his position as Majority Leader in 1963. 
Following President Kennedy's assassination, Senator Mansfield put that 
speech aside, but delivered the remarks in 1998 as part of a lecture 
series in the Old Senate Chamber. We would be wise to remember those 
words now, and to follow Senator Mansfield's example of thoughtful 
consideration and respect for others in the difficult times we face 
today.
  Senator Mansfield's service to our Nation did not end with the 16 
years he spent as Majority Leader. His expertise on Far East matters 
led very different Presidents, Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan, to 
choose him as their ambassador to Japan. Ambassador Mansfield spent 11 
years in this difficult diplomatic post. After leaving Tokyo in 1987, 
the Japanese ambassador to this country predicted the Ambassador 
``could have run for prime minister and won.'' Leaving public service, 
Senator Mansfield would still not retire and served as a senior advisor 
on East Asian affairs to Goldman, Sachs until his recent death. He 
remained active in policy matters and the Senate remained close to his 
heart as he attended the Senate's weekly prayer breakfasts on a regular 
basis.
  Mike Mansfield brought to the United States Senate some of the best 
characteristics of Montanans, he addressed issues in a straight-
forward, honest way, never forgot the people that put him in office, 
provided a calming influence in good times and bad. In a turbulent and 
uncertain time, Senator Mansfield was a beacon of dignity, common 
sense, intelligence, and above all, wisdom. I would like to offer my 
condolences to his daughter, Anne, his granddaughter, and his many 
friends and admirers here in Washington and in his beloved home State 
of Montana.
  Mr. BINGAMAN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that I be 
allowed to proceed for 5 minutes as in morning business.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mrs. Murray). Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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