[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 132 (Tuesday, December 5, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11125-S11127]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           RETIRING SENATORS

  Mr. HAGEL. Mr. President, I have listened carefully to our colleague 
from Ohio, spending his few minutes in the Senate talking about brave 
men and women who serve our country. It is the mark of our colleague 
from Ohio, the kind of person he is--not just the kind of Senator he 
is--that he would come to the floor of the Senate in his last few days 
as a Member of this institution and focus on others, focus on those who 
have given the ultimate for their families, for our country and for our 
future. It shows us, once again, that Senator DeWine is the consummate 
Senator.
  I am here this afternoon to recognize and thank and pay tribute to 
our colleagues who will be leaving the Senate. They are a varied group. 
Again, I can think of no finer example of this group of public servants 
than one of Senator DeWine's last speeches in the Senate to recognize 
others.
  I thank you, Senator DeWine, for your service.
  As we recognize, it is a distinct privilege and high honor to serve 
our country. It is a distinct privilege and high

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honor to serve our country in any capacity, and certainly none higher 
than in uniform. But it is especially important we recognize those who 
have given years of their lives, sacrificing their families, their own 
time, to help make a better world for all of us. I know of no capacity 
in which we serve our country that has given those who have had this 
rare opportunity to serve in the Senate anything more noble than trying 
to shape a better world from this Senate.
  These individuals who will leave the Senate, some on their own terms, 
some on the terms of the election, but, nonetheless, in their own 
specific way have contributed a great deal to this country.
  I take a few minutes to recognize each. I start with our colleague, 
your dear friend, former lieutenant governor, the senior Senator from 
Ohio. I need not tell the distinguished Presiding Officer what Senator 
DeWine has meant to his State and to this country. I had the privilege 
of serving on the Intelligence Committee with Senator DeWine for 4 
years. I have teamed up with Senator DeWine over the years on many 
legislative matters. I don't know of an individual who cares more, 
contributes more, to what they believe, than Senator DeWine. His years 
of service in the House, the Senate, and as lieutenant governor are to 
be recognized. We should thank him and tell him that we will miss him 
and we will especially miss a friend.
  Senator Paul Sarbanes, the longest serving Senator in Maryland, 
serving five terms in the Senate, was elected to the U.S. House of 
Representatives in 1970. I first got acquainted with Senator Sarbanes 
not as a Senator but as a young staff member, chief of staff to a 
congressman from Nebraska, John McCollister, who also had been elected 
to the House in 1970.
  I have had the privilege of serving on two committees for the last 10 
years with Senator Sarbanes--on the Foreign Relations Committee and the 
Committee on Banking. His courtesies to me, his sharp, defined 
intellect, his ability to dissect problems and focus on a resolution, 
will be greatly missed in this institution. We wish the Sarbaneses 
continued success and a little rest.
  Senator Jim Jeffords, from Vermont. Not many former chief justices of 
their State have served in this Senate. He is one. Senator Jeffords, in 
his long, distinguished service to our country, served as Chief Justice 
of the Vermont Supreme Court, served in the House of Representatives, 
and then served here in the Senate. He served our country in the U.S. 
Navy. Jim Jeffords' life has been about service.
  I had an opportunity to get acquainted particularly with Senator 
Jeffords and work closely with him on the Individuals with Disability 
Education Act, IDEA. There has been no one in this Senate over the last 
25 years more committed to education for our young people than Jim 
Jeffords. We will miss Jim Jeffords.
  Senator Conrad Burns. The best thing we can say about Senator Burns 
is he married a girl from Nebraska. His wife Phyllis is from North 
Platte. Senator Burns represents some of the best the West has to 
offer. He will be the longest serving Republican Senator in Montana 
history. His background is varied: distinguished entrepreneur, 
broadcaster, and that which he is most proud of, a U.S. marine.
  I have had the honor of working with Senator Burns on a number of 
bills and occasions, many related to agriculture and the cattle 
industry. For Senator Burns' service to our country, we thank him. We 
will miss him.
  Senator Rick Santorum one of the leaders of the majority in the 
Senate the last few years, from Pennsylvania, came to the Senate in 
1994 and helped shape a different agenda. He believed fervently in the 
power of the institution to change the world and felt deeply about 
issues.
  I served on the Committee on Banking with Senator Santorum for many 
years and came to respect the junior Senator from Pennsylvania. I have 
a high regard for his ability to work through the big issues.
  For service to our country, both the House and the Senate, thank you, 
Senator Santorum. We will miss you.
  Senator Linc Chafee. Senator Chafee comes from a long line of public 
servants from the State of Rhode Island. The name ``Chafee'' is a 
famous name in this institution. His father John Chafee was one of the 
great Senators in this Senate in the 20th century. Linc picked up where 
his father left off.
  I had the opportunity to serve with Senator Chafee on the Senate 
Foreign Relations Committee. We sat next to each other for many years. 
He had a keen ability to cut through the fog, the nonsense, the 
superficial, the obsequious, and get to the real issues. We will miss 
that ability. We will miss that laser. I am sorry to see Senator Chafee 
leave. He will continue to serve his country in many areas as he has 
done before his service in the Senate.
  Senator George Allen. We will miss footballs. Many of my colleagues 
received footballs. He was a quarterback for the Cavaliers at the 
University of Virginia and he could throw almost as well as even a 
Nebraska quarterback.
  Senator Allen, for a very young man, has a very distinguished record 
of public service, serving as the Governor of the great State of 
Virginia, serving in the House of Representatives, serving in the U.S. 
Senate. I served on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee with Senator 
Allen for many years, and I will miss his ability to say it clearly and 
plainly. And his leadership position within the Republican majority, 
which he served so ably, will be missed.
  Senator Mark Dayton from Minnesota, a neighbor. I served on two 
committees with Senator Dayton, the Rules Committee and the Foreign 
Relations Committee. He is a unique individual who served in many ways, 
beginning with his service to Senator and then Vice President Walter 
Mondale. Senator Dayton has a rich history and understanding of this 
institution and his State. We will miss Senator Dayton's character, his 
ability to also cross party aisles and help resolve the issues of our 
day.
  Senator Jim Talent from Missouri has had 14 years of service in the 
House and Senate. I worked very closely with Senator Talent on his 
bill, the Combat Methamphetamine Act. I believe it is one of the most 
significant, relevant, important bills to pass the 109th Congress. He, 
too, will be missed. No one worked harder than Jim Talent for the 
interests of his State. He understands agriculture, he understands 
energy like very few in his State. He began his service to his country 
and to the State of Missouri at the age of 28, when he was elected to 
the House of Representatives. We will continue to hear more from Jim 
Talent.
  I conclude my recognition of our colleagues who will be leaving us at 
the end of this Congress by recognizing our leader, Senator Bill Frist, 
from Tennessee.
  Senator Frist has been referred to, as we all are, in many ways and 
in many terms. ``Renaissance man'' has been one of those terms that 
have described Bill Frist. This is a unique individual. This is a man 
whose life has much been about serving others.
  For his leadership in the Senate during a very difficult time, this 
body owes him a great deal of thanks and gratitude. He will go on to 
continue to do significant things with his ability, his talent, his 
life, and we wish him well. We will miss him. We will miss his ability 
to, in an always steady way, help reach a consensus.
  Mr. President, in conclusion, it is not easy to put one's self on the 
firing line and offer one's self as a candidate for any office. It 
takes a certain amount of courage and, I suspect, a little dose of 
insanity. But nonetheless individuals who believe deeply enough to 
commit themselves to a cause greater than their own self-interests need 
to be recognized. Having nothing to do with me or you or any one 
individual, but it is the essence of our country, it is the very fabric 
of our democracy that makes it all work and probably gives rise to, 
more than any one reason, why we have been such a successful nation for 
over 200 years--because people from all walks of life, in every 
community, in every State, offer themselves for office. Whether it is a 
mayor, a Governor, city councilman, county official, a sheriff, these 
individuals deserve recognition.
  We all make mistakes. That is who we are. But in the end, it is not 
unlike what Teddy Roosevelt once referred to in his magnificent quote 
about the man in the arena. And it is the man and the

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woman in the arena who change our lives. It makes a better world that 
shapes history, that defines our destiny. And for these individuals who 
will no longer have that opportunity to serve our country in the 
Senate, we wish them well, we thank them, and we tell them we are proud 
of them and their families and wish them Godspeed.
  Mr. President, I thank you for the time and yield the floor.

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