[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 162 (Thursday, December 9, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8661-S8662]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     TRIBUTES TO RETIRING SENATORS


                             Sam Brownback

  Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, I rise in tribute to my good friend 
and distinguished colleague, Senator Sam Brownback, or I could also say 
Governor-elect Sam Brownback of the great State of Kansas.
  Sam promised his constituents that he wouldn't run for more than two 
full 6-year terms in the Senate, and Sam has honored that pledge.
  Let me just say at the outset that Sam has been an outstanding 
Senator and an example of principled leadership to all of us. He has 
served the people of Kansas with great distinction and honor, and I am 
certain he will continue to do so as he takes on new challenges in 
Topeka.
  Sam is a born leader. He was raised in the small town of Parker, KS, 
where his mom and dad still live and farm today, and his many talents 
were evident early on. In high school, he was State president of the 
Future Farmers of America. As an undergraduate at Kansas State 
University, he was elected president of the student body, and he was 
elected class president in law school, too, at the University of 
Kansas. After law school, Sam worked as a lawyer in Manhattan, KS, for 
4 years before being appointed as the secretary of the Kansas Board of 
Agriculture.
  From 1990 to 1991, Sam was accepted as a White House fellow under 
President George H.W. Bush, where he worked for the U.S. Trade 
Representative. Three years after that, he ran for Congress as part of 
the Republican revolution and was overwhelmingly elected to Kansas's 
Second District. It was the first time in Sam's life that Republicans 
had the majority in the Congress, and he was a part of it. He planned 
to make the most of it by focusing on limiting the size and reach of 
the Federal Government.

  But Sam's tenure in the House was brief. In 1996, just 2 days after 
Senator Dole announced his plan to resign from the Senate to run for 
President, Sam announced he would seek the Republican nomination in a 
special election to serve out the final 2 years of Dole's term. Sam 
handily defeated the former Lieutenant Governor who had been appointed 
to fill Senator Dole's seat earlier that spring.
  In the general election, Sam's campaign message was simple. He called 
it the three Rs: reduce, reform, and return:

       Reduce the size of and scope of the Federal Government. 
     Reform Congress. Return to the basic values that had built 
     the country: work and family and the recognition of a higher 
     moral authority.

  Sam's message resonated with the people, many of whom feared their 
government had become, as Sam stated, ``their master, not their 
servant,'' and easily defeated his opponent with 54 percent of the 
vote. Sam would go on to be reelected to full terms in 1998 and 2004, 
capturing an astounding 65 and 69 percent of the vote.
  While in the Senate, Sam has been a leader among his peers. He has 
been outspoken and has fought hard for the people of Kansas and for the 
underprivileged around the world.
  Sam is an ardent defender of life and of the protection of the 
unborn. ``I see it as the lead moral issue of our day,''

[[Page S8662]]

Sam said, ``Just like slavery was the lead moral issue 150 years ago.'' 
Sam opposes Roe v. Wade, has a 100-percent pro-life voting record, and 
sponsored numerous bills in support of the unborn.
  In 1995, Sam was diagnosed and treated for melanoma and it had a 
profound effect on his life. Sam said:

       With the cancer, I did a lot of internal examination. My 
     conclusion was that if this were to be terminal, at that 
     point in time I would not be satisfied with how I had lived 
     my life. I had tried to be a Christian, but I had failed. . . 
     .

  Surviving cancer, Sam found out just how precious life was, and with 
his new lease on life, Sam began to devote his life and work in the 
Senate to humanitarian causes around the world. Sam has actively fought 
to bring awareness to the genocide in Darfur. Sam supported the Sudan 
Peace Act of 2002 and the Darfur Peace and Accountability Act of 2002. 
In 2004, Sam visited Darfur to see violence and suffering firsthand, 
and that same year he supported the Congressional Declaration of 
Genocide.
  In addition to his advocacy work on Sudan, Sam has worked on numerous 
other humanitarian challenges throughout the world, including Iran, 
Afghanistan, Uganda, the Congo, Pakistan, Ukraine, China, North Korea, 
and Vietnam. The Weekly Standard wrote:

       Arguably no Senator has done more to press for human rights 
     and democracy or to confront the spread of deadly disease, 
     such as malaria, which kills 800,000 children in Africa every 
     year.

  In the Senate, Sam has crusaded for his humanitarian causes in a 
bipartisan fashion, including cosponsoring the Iran Democracy Act with 
Senator Evan Bayh, cosponsoring the North Korea Human Rights Act with 
the late Senator Ted Kennedy, and what Sam calls his greatest 
achievement, cosponsoring the Trafficking in the Victims Protection Act 
with the late Senator Paul Wellstone.
  Another one of Sam's passions was his role as chairman of the Senate 
Values Action Team. The group, consisting of outside organizations, met 
weekly to discuss matters of faith, family, and religious freedoms. 
Over the years, they worked together to strategize on efforts to 
protect the sanctity of life, school choice, and much more. Sam devoted 
countless hours to this organization and rarely missed a meeting.
  In the Senate, I relied heavily on Sam's expertise and his 
leadership. He was always someone I looked toward, whether it was for 
guidance or perspective on many different issues. Sam served on 
numerous committees, including the Appropriations Committee, the Joint 
Economic Committee, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation, and the Senate Special Committee on Aging, as well as 
the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
  In 2008, Sam announced he would honor his pledge to only serve two 
terms in this Chamber. Sam will be missed, but his service to Kansas 
will continue. Last month, Sam was elected Governor of Kansas with 63 
percent of the vote, winning 103 of the 105 counties. I wish to 
congratulate Sam on his impressive victory, and I cannot think of a 
better public servant or leader than Sam Brownback for the people of 
Kansas.
  On top of all of Sam's accomplishments, he is a loving husband to 
Mary. They met in law school and have been married for 27 years. 
Together, Mary and Sam have five children, including one adopted from 
Guatemala and one adopted from China. Sam said:

       My family has been personally touched by adoption. My wife 
     and I adopted our two youngest children, and I continue to 
     experience joy from the relationships we have built through 
     our adoption experience.

  I think right there tells us all we need to know about the type of 
character and person Sam Brownback is.
  Sam, this Chamber honors you today for your service to this Nation, 
to the State of Kansas, and to the millions around the world who dream 
of a better life. Thank you from all of us, and good luck in the next 
chapter of your life.
  Madam President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. LEVIN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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