[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 147 (Monday, October 1, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Page S12378]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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  (At the request of Mr. Reid, the following statement was ordered to 
be printed in the Record.)

                       RETIREMENT OF RICK DIEGEL

 Mrs. CLINTON. Mr. President, I would like to take a moment to 
recognize the distinguished career of a man who has devoted his life to 
improving the welfare of working men and women.
  Rick Diegel hails from Texas, where he worked as a journeyman wireman 
and foreman. He served his country in the U.S. Air Force from 1964 to 
1968, and is a veteran of the Vietnam War. He also served three terms 
as the mayor pro-tem of the City of Ingleside, Texas, and was elected 
business manager of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers 
Local 278 in Corpus Christie in 1977. He held this post until 1983, 
when he was appointed to the International Office of IBEW as the 
director of their Committee on Political Education. In 1998, he became 
director of the Political/Legislative Department, a position he has 
held to this day.
  For nearly four decades, Rick has fought to improve the working and 
living standards for our Nation's workers. As director at the 
International Office, Rick spearheaded the modern political program of 
the union, and transformed the way that unions effect legislative 
change. He worked to get more IBEW members elected to office than any 
other union, and he established a full-time grassroots mobilization 
program at IBEW to give even a louder voice to workers' needs.
  Throughout his career, Rick has been a forceful advocate for the 
approximately 750,000 members who work in a wide variety of fields, 
including utilities, construction, telecommunications, broadcasting, 
manufacturing, railroads and government. Rick has served as a powerful 
champion for the labor movement, not only because he was a skillful 
advocate on behalf of workers, but also because he encouraged workers 
to make their individual voices heard. Rick understood the importance 
of workers engaging in the political process to elect members who made 
workers' rights a priority.
  Rick Diegel is a dear friend and an invaluable ally in the fight to 
support America's workers. He has left an indelible mark on the country 
he has served his entire life, and he has improved the lives of 
millions of workers. I wish him a retirement full of health and 
happiness.

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