[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 8 (Tuesday, February 1, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E122]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       ARTICLE ABOUT THE MEMORY OF THE HONORABLE ROBERT T. MATSUI

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. RAHM EMANUEL

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, February 1, 2005

  Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise to call the attention of the House 
to a wonderfully written column by Norman Ornstein about the memory of 
our colleague, the Honorable Robert T. Matsui, who passed away on 
January 1. Mr. Ornstein's column, published in the January 26 edition 
of Roll Call, captured the very essence of Bob's spirit and reminded us 
why we all will miss him so much--because he was an ``all-around great 
guy'' whose warmth, wit and bipartisanship will live on and inspire 
future leaders in this chamber to serve with the same kind of grace and 
style that Bob possessed in spades.

                    [From Roll Call, Jan. 26, 2005]

          Bob Matsui: Wonk, Fighter, and All-Around Great Guy

                          (By Norman Ornstein)

       Some years ago, I had the good fortune (or misfortune) of 
     appearing on the cover of a now-defunct glossy magazine 
     called Washington Dossier, wearing a fancy tuxedo while 
     dancing with an elegant model (who was about 6 inches taller 
     than me).
       A couple of weeks later, I got a call from the office of 
     Rep. Bob Matsui (D-Calif.) asking me to come by for a meeting 
     on some issue he was dealing with on the Ways and Means 
     Committee. I dutifully showed up, to find that it was a 
     pretext for Bob to give me a nicely framed picture with the 
     Dossier cover and the inside picture.
       I treasure that picture--but I treasure even more the 
     photograph I received later. It was taken by one of Bob's 
     staffers, showing Matsui giving me the gift, beaming about 
     the surprise he'd managed to pull off.
       That was vintage Bob Matsui: a delight in surprising one of 
     his friends, a warmth and goodness that is rare in any group 
     of people but even rarer at the top reaches of rough-and-
     tumble politics. Weeks after the fact, I am still having 
     trouble coming to grips with the reality that he is gone.
       I first met Bob and his wife, Doris, soon after he was 
     elected to the House in 1978. Bob drew people to him because 
     he was so warm, open, unpretentious and bright. I shared with 
     him a love of baseball and of politics. He and Doris and my 
     wife and I became good friends, sharing news of our kids 
     growing up, dissecting current events, talking about the 
     Orioles and sometimes going to games.
       Unlike many people in elite levels of politics, television, 
     law or business, Bob was not self-absorbed. The line, ``But 
     enough about me. What do you think of me?'' applies: to many 
     (as each of us could name) but it did not apply to him. He 
     was genuinely interested in others, and took genuine delight 
     in their achievements.
       Through the years, I watched Bob up close as his career in 
     Congress soared. He first shot to national prominence when he 
     led the effort to get reparations for the Japanese-Americans 
     who had been forced into internment camps during World War 
     II. Of course, he had been among them, spending the first few 
     years of his life in such a camp. He and his House colleague 
     Norm Mineta (D-Calif.) handled that issue with determination 
     and drive--but without bitterness or recrimination. The 
     process became a template for reconciliation. It also showed 
     Bob as a proud American, not cynical or bitter but simply 
     wanting to see his country make amends for a huge mistake.
       That alone would have made a terrific career. But Bob made 
     his mark in so many more areas. In trade, he was a model 
     bipartisan, willing often to take on his own party as he 
     fought for the free-trade ideals he believed in, looking to 
     find common ground with allies such as Reps. Jim Kolbe (R-
     Ariz.) and David Dreier (R-Calif.), and looking as well to 
     find common ground on issues such as labor and environmental 
     standards as a way of broadening the free-trade coalition. 
     (He was disappointed to find that the current House was not 
     interested in broadening coalitions beyond the majority of 
     the majority party.)
       Bob became a world-class expert on welfare and Social 
     Security. He was a policy wonk who loved politics, a gentle 
     man who had a fierce attachment to his values and policy 
     views, a partisan who also wanted to work with those across 
     the aisle, and a man who could use ferocious rhetoric to 
     defend the downtrodden but who seemed to have no enemies, 
     even among those he excoriated.
       I have had the privilege of having many members of the 
     House and Senate as friends, spanning both parties and all 
     viewpoints. They have included many currently serving or 
     recently retired, along with such now-deceased leaders as 
     Speaker Tip O'Neill (D-Mass.) and House Minority Leader John 
     Rhodes (R-Ariz.), and superstars--of public service like Rep. 
     Barber Conable (R-N.Y.) and Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan (D-
     N.Y.).
       I think what all my friends in Congress have shared is 
     their love and respect for the institution, their joy of 
     serving, and their delight in politics. That was true, in 
     spades, of Bob. He embodied all that is right about politics 
     and the legislative process, all that is great about America. 
     As partisan as he grew in the ever-more-partisan House, he 
     refused to divide the world into friends and enemies. He 
     carried himself with class. His dismay with the House led him 
     to take the brutal job as chairman of the Democratic 
     Congressional Campaign Committee, which he did dutifully 
     and well over the past two years, without any of the 
     sleaze now so common in elections.
       During the beautiful memorial service for him in Statuary 
     Hall, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) provided the take-
     home phrase: She hoped that during the coming years, as we 
     face nasty and brutish partisan politics and debate, that we 
     could pause from time to time for a ``Matsui Moment.''
       Everybody in the hall understood what she meant, including 
     Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.), who had the class to allow 
     the memorial service to be held in that hallowed and rarely 
     used space. Despite the tension of recent years, the Speaker 
     noted that Bob Matsui never failed to come across the aisle 
     to say hello to him, to be pleasant and forthcoming. I hope 
     he, and his colleagues, will remember the idea of the Matsui 
     Moment and apply it. God knows such moments have been in 
     short supply.
       Bob knew about his disease for some months. He and Doris 
     decided that he was not going to change his life or curb his 
     energy in face of it. Rather, he was going to carry on with 
     what he believed in and what he was dedicated to do. That 
     included finishing his responsibilities with the DCCC and 
     preparing for his crucial role as point man for the Democrats 
     on Social Security. Up to the last, he followed what was 
     going on in the world and worked on a strategy for Social 
     Security.
       My family and I got back from our holiday late on the 
     evening of Jan. 1. I opened the mail, and went right for the 
     famous Matsui Christmas card, which was especially delightful 
     this year, with its gorgeous pictures showcasing Bob and 
     Doris' beautiful pride and joy, granddaughter Anna. The next 
     morning, I checked my e-mail and saw the news about his 
     death--and literally fell off my chair.
       I am glad that Bob will be replaced by Doris, who, like 
     Lindy Boggs, will come to Congress as a remarkable talent 
     from day one. But I miss my friend and miss even more what he 
     brought to politics, to Congress and to America.

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