[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 70 (Tuesday, May 11, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3487-S3488]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     TRIBUTE TO SENATOR JIM BUNNING

  Mr. REID. Madam President, this past Sunday, a young pitcher for the 
Oakland Athletics threw a perfect game. For those of you who do not 
know baseball, the Oakland Athletics is a baseball team, and throwing a 
perfect game is truly a big deal. It is such a big deal, it is only the 
19th time this has ever happened--and baseball started keeping records 
in 1880-something--and this is the first time it happened on Mother's 
Day.
  Someone did throw a perfect game on Father's Day. On that Sunday, 
more than 45 years ago, one of our colleagues made history by 
accomplishing one of the most remarkable, most elusive, and most 
coveted accomplishments in all of athletics, throwing a perfect game in 
Major League Baseball. That pitcher was the junior Senator from 
Kentucky, Jim Bunning. He threw the second no-hitter of his Hall of 
Fame career, and I repeat: this time, a perfect game.
  To show how stupendous this game Senator Bunning pitched was, 
understand this young man who pitched a perfect game last Sunday did 
so, I think, throwing 108 pitches, something like that. Jim Bunning 
threw 90 pitches. This is unbelievable, that in 9 innings someone could 
pitch a whole baseball game and throw only 90 pitches. It is a rare 
occurrence in modern day baseball for someone to complete a game, but 
to complete a game--and a perfect game--in 90 pitches is truly amazing.
  Sometimes in this body, this Senate, our political passions or 
legislative objectives get in the way of our personal relationships and 
the respect we show for one another. When that happens, we do a 
disservice to the citizens we serve. The Senate was created as a place 
for leaders to work for the American people, and the only way to do 
that work is to work together, not against each other.
  We surely have our differences, just as those we represent do not see 
eye to eye on every issue. That is inherent in a representative 
democracy, and none of us is perfect. As Senator Jim Bunning once said:

       Everybody makes mistakes. The only time I've ever been 
     perfect was for about two hours and 10 minutes on June 21, 
     1964.

  But we should also be able to appreciate those differences and 
appreciate the distinguished men and women who make up this body, the 
Senate. We have combat veterans. We have a man who has won the 
Congressional Medal of Honor for his valor in combat. We have doctors. 
We have teachers, farmers, entrepreneurs, Governors, Cabinet 
Secretaries. We have an astronaut, the Senator from Florida, and we 
have a Hall of Fame pitcher, whom I just talked about.

[[Page S3488]]

                           Wall Street Reform

  The day before the perfect game on this past Sunday, a story appeared 
on the front page of the Washington Post. The story began this way:

       Something unusual is taking place on the Senate floor: 
     Republicans and Democrats are working together on a major 
     piece of legislation.

  It is a shame that bipartisan cooperation passes for news these days, 
not to mention front-page news in one of our Nation's largest 
newspapers.
  But I hope that collaboration continues this week as we vote on 
amendments from both sides, as we move closer to a final vote on this 
very important piece of legislation. Reforming the rules of the road on 
Wall Street is critical to our Nation's future. We need to restore the 
American people's trust in our financial system.
  The American people demand we act. Families demand we safeguard their 
savings. Seniors demand we protect their pensions. They have seen big 
bankers gamble away so much of their money--not the bankers' money but 
our money--their retirements, and their home equity, which has been 
shaken. The last thing they want is for their leaders to waste their 
time also.
  So I still hope we can pass Wall Street accountability reforms this 
week. I am going to do everything I can to see that happens.


                         Supreme Court Nominee

  Let's talk about the Supreme Court for just a short time. We have 
accomplished much in the first few months of this year. It has been 
difficult, but we have done a lot. But we have so much more to do. On 
that list is one of our most important responsibilities as Senators: 
giving our advice and consent to the President's nominees for the 
courts and in this instance the Supreme Court.
  In the day or so since President Obama asked our Solicitor General, 
Elena Kagan, to serve as the Court's 112th Justice, she has received 
bipartisan praise for her intellect, her dedication to public service, 
and her ability to bring people together, especially when they 
disagree. She has produced impressive work as an academic, 
contributed to lifesaving legislation as a lawyer, and has been a 
policy aide at the highest levels. She has inspired students as the 
dean of Harvard Law School and made her country and her fellow citizens 
stronger as Solicitor General. So I commend President Obama for 
choosing her to serve on the Supreme Court.

  My No. 1 goal for this new Supreme Court Justice--I have stated it 
publicly before the Judiciary Committee; I have told the President 
himself--let's stop having judges go on the Supreme Court. I wanted 
someone who had not worn the robe, someone who had a little common 
sense separate and apart from the Supreme Court.
  I know those Justices have common sense, but they have worn those 
robes a long time, and I think it is good to get a fresh insight into 
what is going on in the world. Elena Kagan is a lawyer and scholar so 
respected because she knows the value of listening to all sides of an 
argument before making a judgment. In that sense, she is a good role 
model for her own confirmation process. Let's listen to what she has to 
say, to what those who know her have to say about her, and to the 
American people, who demand that the Supreme Court puts the rights of 
people ahead of the wallets of corporate America.
  My Republican colleagues--I have heard some in the media say: Well, 
she is not experienced enough. I developed a personal relationship with 
Chief Justice Rehnquist. I developed that respect for him for a couple 
reasons. No. 1, when I was chairman of the Democratic Policy Committee, 
I did something for which people said: Why are you bothering? He will 
never do that. I called him and said: Mr. Justice, would you come over 
to the Senate and talk to my Democratic Senators? He said: I would be 
happy to.
  Over he comes. What a wonderful meeting we had. He had a great sense 
of humor. He handled all the questions with ease. Then, shortly 
thereafter, he was sitting where the Acting President pro tempore is 
now sitting, as we did the impeachment trial of President Clinton. 
Again, he had such a good sense of fairness as he worked his way 
through those very difficult proceedings.
  He had a bad back, and he would have to get up once in a while--stand 
where the Acting President pro tempore is now sitting. When the breaks 
would be taken, he would go back into one of the rooms back here, and 
we would all go visit with him--a terrific man. You may not agree with 
a lot of the direction of his opinions, but they were brilliantly 
written. He had no judicial experience--zero.
  One of my favorite Supreme Court Justices, in recent years, has been 
Sandra Day O'Connor, not because she is a Republican but because she 
was a good judge. She had run for public office. She served in the 
legislature in Arizona. That is why she could identify with many of the 
problems created by us legislators, and she could work her way through 
that.
  I think Solicitor General Kagan will bring a lot of those same views 
of these two Republicans to the bench; that is, she has fresh ideas. 
She has been out in the real world recently. I think she is going to be 
a terrific addition to the Supreme Court.
  Would the Chair now announce the business of the day.

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