[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 149 (Thursday, September 18, 2008)]
[Senate]
[Page S9016]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     REMEMBERING ROBERT J. McCARTHY

  Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I take this opportunity to honor 
the memory of a dedicated attorney, community leader, and wonderful 
person, Robert ``Bob'' McCarthy. Bob passed away on September 4, 2004. 
He was 61 years old.
  Born in New York City on December 31, 1946, Bob McCarthy spent his 
childhood in the city, where he attended Regis High School in 
Manhattan. Following his graduation in 1965, Bob attended Santa Clara 
University, where he was a Presidential honors scholar and editor-in-
chief of the school newspaper. In 1969, Bob received a B.A. cum laude 
in political science in 1969. While attending the university, Bob met 
his future wife, Suzanne Bazzano, the office manager at the school 
newspaper. They married in 1970 and had five children.
  Following a stint in Chicago, where he earned his law degree from the 
University of Chicago Law School, Bob and Suzanne moved to San 
Francisco, Suzanne's hometown. Bob pursued a career in law, working in 
the San Francisco office of the district attorney for 4 years, serving 
as chief deputy district attorney. In 1980, Bob started his own general 
law practice with his friend Lester Schwartz.
  Throughout his career, Bob found the time to pursue his love and 
passion for politics. He served as general counsel for the California 
Democratic Party from 1983-1990, and held a number of trustee positions 
within the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, including National 
Finance cochair. He also served as a close adviser and cochair of my 
own Senate campaign, and has also advised a number of other elected 
officials in California. Bob was also well-known for the election day 
lunches that he hosted every year, a tradition among Bay Area 
dignitaries that wasn't to be missed.
  In addition to the long hours Bob put in as an attorney, Bob carved 
out time to give back to his community. He was appointed by President 
Bill Clinton to the Woodrow Wilson Center Board of Trustees; served as 
a guest lecturer at Hastings College of Law in San Francisco, the 
University of California at Berkeley, and Peking University in Beijing, 
China; sat on the board of St. Mary's Hospital; was a regent of St. 
Ignatius College Preparatory; and was also made a member of the Knights 
of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem by Pope John 
Paul II.
  Bob is survived by his mother, Dorothy McCarthy; his wife, Suzanne; 
his sons Brendan, Matthew, Ryan, and Bobby; and daughter, Margaret. I 
extend my deepest sympathies to his family.
  Bob McCarthy was a deeply loved community leader, both in the Bay 
Area and throughout the State of California, and he will be missed by 
all who knew him. Let us take comfort in knowing that his dedication 
and love for his family, friends, and community have made this world a 
better place to live.

                          ____________________