[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 140 (Monday, December 20, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Page S12092]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


       STANLEY KIMMITT--HONORED PUBLIC SERVANT AND LOYAL MONTANAN

  Mr. BAUCUS. Last week the Senate lost one of its most dedicated 
public servants. Stan Kimmitt was deeply devoted to this great body and 
to his beloved country. He never forgot his humble beginnings and 
strong Montana roots. Stan devoted his life to public service, always 
defending democracy and decency whether it was on the dangerous 
battlefields of War World II Europe or in the Halls of the U.S. 
Capitol, he always held true to his core values.
  Born James Stanley Kimmitt on April 5, 1918, to wheat farmers in 
Lewistown, MT, the 1920s drought forced the family to move to Great 
Falls where he was raised. After graduating from the University of 
Montana in Missoula in 1940, Stan immediately enlisted to serve his 
country in World War II. He fought as a tireless combat commander often 
volunteering to lead the most dangerous missions. Stan was eventually 
part of the first U.S. division to occupy Berlin and he was honored for 
his service by receiving the Silver and Bronze Stars. Stan would later 
heroically fight in the Korean war and his accomplishments were 
recognized when he was inducted into the Field Artillery Officer 
Candidate School Hall of Fame. Stan's exemplary military career served 
as a great building block for what lay ahead for his career.
  When he returned to the States, Stan sought other ways to serve his 
country. One presented itself when Mike Mansfield was elected to the 
U.S. Senate from Montana. As Senator Mansfield's chief of staff, Stan 
was able to honor his roots and work on the issues important to his 
beloved home State. When Senator Mansfield became majority leader, his 
right-hand man, Stan Kimmitt, became his secretary of the majority. For 
11 years, Mike and Stan worked quietly behind the scenes reaching 
across party lines to provide support to move the country forward. 
Kimmitt's long tenure represented a deep desire to work behind the 
scenes with both sides to provide support to move the country forward. 
It is clear that both sides respected this commitment.
  Stan's leadership and ability to move opposing forces forward made 
him the perfect choice to become Secretary of the Senate, which he 
served as from 1977 to 1981. In this role Stan became a very 
influential member of the Senate. He was never elected but many 
Senators used to affectionately refer to him as the 101st Senator or 
the third Senator from Montana.
  After Stan left the Secretary of the Senate position, he continued to 
be involved in governmental affairs. He sat on the board for the 
Democratic Leadership Council in 1985. The DLC was instrumental in 
introducing then-Governor Bill Clinton in 1985 to a wider public. Stan 
represented the same ideals that Bill Clinton ran on in 1992. He wanted 
to find politicians that would represent a new energetic vitality in 
the Democratic Party as Bill Clinton promised to do.
  In spite of Stan's own notoriety, he continued to value his Montana 
roots. In 1983, he founded the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Foundation. 
The Maureen and Mike Mansfield Foundation was a tribute to his former 
boss but to Montana as well. The foundation is part of Mansfield's 
legacy and the causes he advocated during his time in the Senate. The 
foundation sponsors exchanges, dialogues, and publications to create 
networks or partnerships between U.S. and Asian leaders. The foundation 
provides excellent educational opportunities through fellowships to 
Japan for government employees.
  Throughout the early 1990s Stan continued political activism that had 
been the trademark of his life. In 1991, Stan founded a political 
consulting firm now known as Kimmitt, Senter, Coates and Weinfurter.
  Stan brought to politics and his time in the Senate a strong sense of 
deep moral principles and convictions. He believed that government 
could and should be a force for good. Stan was very much the idealist 
and did not see bitter division in the Senate only as ideological 
disagreements. To Stan, the Senate was one big family with all the 
characteristics of a family.
  Stan lived his political life by three principles: First was to hold 
true to your conviction; second, be grateful for what is given to you 
and the opportunities you are given; and third, never give up unless 
you can make it better. The other value Stan saw as important in his 
political life was ``to thine own self be true.''
  Stan started his professional life as a public servant. It seems only 
fitting that the last day of his life he started the morning in the 
Senate cloakroom on the Democratic side talking with former colleagues 
and friends. That night he attended an event honoring retiring 
Louisiana Democratic Senator John Breaux. Stan died honoring a fellow 
colleague who shared his beliefs and deeply felt convictions. He died 
doing what he loved best, which was very appropriate, very fitting.
  Stan, you will be deeply missed in the Senate, but you will not soon 
be forgotten.

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