[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 166 (Wednesday, December 15, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10239-S10240]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         FAREWELL TO THE SENATE

  Mr. BAYH. Mr. President, if I could be permitted a few moments of 
personal privilege before I begin my formal remarks, there are so many 
people I need to express my heartfelt gratitude to today, starting 
with, of course, my wonderful wife Susan. I know we are not supposed to 
recognize people in the gallery, but I am going to break the rules for 
one of the first times here to thank my wife. We have been married for 
25 wonderful years, and frankly, Mr. President, I wouldn't have been 
elected dog catcher without Susan's love and support.
  I often remember a story during my first campaign where I met an 
elderly woman who took my hand, looked up into my eyes, and said: Young 
man, I am going to vote for you.
  I was curious and asked her why.
  She said, with a twinkle in her eye: Well, I have met your wife. It 
seems to me you did all right with the most important decision you will 
ever make. I will trust you with all the other ones too.
  It is not uncommon in our State, as Senator Lugar could attest, that 
people say they really vote for Susan's husband.
  Darling, I can't thank you enough.
  She was a wonderful first lady, is a phenomenal mother, and is the 
partner for my life.
  Next, I would like to express my gratitude to my parents. Even though 
they were very busy, I never doubted for a moment that I was the most 
important thing in their lives. There is no question that my devotion 
to public service stems from their commitment--something, Mr. 
President, I think you can relate to as well. I have always admired my 
father's selfless commitment to helping our State and Nation. I am 
proud to follow in his footsteps here in the Senate and to share his 
name. My mother taught me that even from the depths of adversity can 
come hope. She was diagnosed with cancer at age 38, passed from us at 
age 46--an age I now recognize to be much, much too young. I miss her, 
but I suspect, as so often in my life, she is watching from on high 
today.
  Next, to my wonderful sons, Nick and Beau. They came into our lives 
when I was still Governor and were barely 3 when I was sworn in to the 
Senate. They are the joys of my life. I hope that one day they will 
draw inspiration, as I did, from their upbringing in public service and 
will choose to devote themselves in some way to making our country and 
State better places.
  I am so proud of you, my sons.
  Next, to my devoted staff and to the staff who serves us here in the 
Senate. My personal staff has had the thankless task for 12 years of 
making me look better than I deserve, and in that, they have performed 
heroic service. They have never let me down. To the extent I have 
accomplished anything on behalf of the public, it is thanks to their 
tireless efforts and devotion. Each could have worked fewer hours and 
made more money doing something else, but they chose public service.
  It has been an honor to work with you. I will miss each of you and 
can only hope we will remain in touch throughout the years. No one has 
been privileged to have better support than I have.
  To the men and women who work in the Senate and make it possible for 
us to do our jobs, I wish to express my heartfelt gratitude. You have 
always been unfailingly courteous and professional. The public is 
fortunate to have the benefits of your devotion. And on behalf of a 
grateful nation and a thankful Senator, let me express my appreciation.
  Next, to my colleagues. More about each of us later, but let me 
simply say it has been my privilege, the privilege of my lifetime, to 
get to know each of you. There is not one of you who is not exceptional 
in some way or about whom I do not have a fond recollection. Each of 
you occupies a special place in my heart.
  I am especially fortunate to have served my career in the Senate with 
Senator Richard Lugar. I have often thought Congress would function 
better if all Members could have the kind of relationship we have been 
blessed to enjoy. He has been unfailingly thoughtful and supportive. 
Even though we occasionally have differed on specific issues, we have 
never differed on our commitment to the people of our State or to the 
strength of our friendship.
  Dick, thanks to you and Char for so much. You are the definition of a 
statesman.
  Finally, to the wonderful people of Indiana, for whom I have been 
privileged to work almost an entire adult life. Hoosiers are hard 
working, patriotic, devout, and full of common sense. We are Middle 
America and embrace middle-class values. The more of Indiana we can 
have in Washington, frankly, the better Washington will be.
  To my fellow Hoosiers, let me say that while my time in the Senate is 
drawing to a close, my love for you and devotion to our State will 
remain everlasting.
  As I begin my final formal remarks on this floor, my mind goes back 
to my first speech as a U.S. Senator. It was an unusual beginning. I 
was the 94th Senator to deliver remarks in the first impeachment trial 
of a President since 1868. The session was closed to the public; 
emotions ran high; partisan divisions were deep. It was a 
constitutional crisis, and the eyes of the Nation and the world looked 
to the Senate.
  My first day as Senator, I was sworn in as a juror in that trial. 
There were no rules. All 100 of us gathered in the Old Senate Chamber. 
The debate was hot, but we listened to each other. We all knew that the 
fate of the Nation and the judgment of history--things far more 
important than party loyalty or ideological purity--were in our hands.
  Consensus was elusive. Finally, we appointed Ted Kennedy--John 
Kerry's esteemed colleague--a liberal Democrat, and Phil Gramm, a 
conservative Republican, to hammer out a compromise. And they did. 
Their proposal was adopted unanimously.
  The trial of our chief magistrate, even in the midst of a political 
crucible, was conducted in accordance with the highest principles of 
due process and the rule of law. The constitutional balance of powers 
was preserved and the Presidency saved. The Senate rose above the 
passions of the moment and did its duty.
  Three years later, the Senate was once more summoned to respond in a 
moment of crisis. The country had been attacked and thousands killed in 
an act of suicidal terror. This building had been targeted for 
destruction and death, and that would have occurred but for the 
uncommon heroism of ordinary citizens. I was told not to return to my 
home for fear assassins might be lying in wait. So I picked up my sons 
from their school, and we spent the night with a neighbor.
  Two days later, those Senators who could make it back to Washington 
gathered in the Senate Dining Room. There were no Democrats or 
Republicans there, just Americans. Without exception, we resolved to 
defend the Nation and to bring to justice the perpetrators of that 
horrible crime. The feeling of unity and common purpose was palpable.
  Fast-forward another 7 years. In October 2008, I was summoned, along 
with others, late at night to a meeting just off this floor. The 
financial panic that had been gathering force for several months had 
attained critical mass.
  The Secretary of the Treasury, Henry Paulson, spoke first. He turned 
to the new head of the Federal Reserve, Ben Bernanke, and said: Ben, 
give the Senators a status report.
  Bernanke, in his low-key, professorial manner, said: The global 
economy is in a free fall. Within 48 to 72 hours, we will experience an 
economic collapse that could rival the Great Depression. It will take 
millions of jobs and thousands of businesses with it. Companies with 
which all of you are familiar will fail. Trillions of dollars in 
savings will be wiped out.
  There was silence. We looked at each other, Democrats and 
Republicans, and asked only one question: What can be done?
  The actions that emanated from that evening helped to avoid an 
economic catastrophe. The jobs of millions and millions of people were 
saved, businesses endured. But the measures required were unpopular. My 
calls were running 15,000 to 20,000 opposed and

[[Page S10240]]

only about 100 to 200 in favor of acting. The House initially voted 
down the measures. The economy teetered on the edge of the precipice, 
but Senators did our duty. Some sacrificed their careers that evening. 
The economy was saved.

  I recount these moments of my tenure to remind us of what this body 
is capable of at its best. When the chips are down and the stakes are 
high, Senators, regardless of party, regardless of ideology, regardless 
of personal cost, doing their duty and selflessly serving the Nation we 
love are capable of great things.
  On my office wall hangs a famous print--the Senate in 1850. There is 
Henry Clay; there is Daniel Webster, Thomas Hart Benton, John C. 
Calhoun, William Seward, Stephen Douglas, James Mason, and Sam Houston. 
Giants walked the Senate in those days. My colleagues, they still do.
  In ``Profiles in Courage,'' John Kennedy tells the stories of eight 
U.S. Senators whose actions of selflessness and fortitude rescued the 
Republic in times of trial. Serving in this body today are men and 
women capable of equal patriotism if given a chance--new profiles in 
courage waiting to be written. It shouldn't take a constitutional 
crisis, a terrorist attack, or a financial calamity to summon from each 
of us and from this body collectively the greatness of which we are 
capable, nor can America afford to wait.
  We are surrounded today by gathering challenges that, if unaddressed, 
will threaten our Republic--our growing debt and deficits, our 
unsustainable energy dependence, increasing global economic 
competition, asymmetric national security challenges, an aging 
population, and much, much more. Each of these challenges is difficult, 
each complex. The solutions will not be universally popular, but all 
can be surmounted, and I am confident they will be with the right 
leadership from us and the right ideas. I am confident because I know 
our history and I know our people. I know all of the challenges we have 
overcome--the wars, the economic hardships, the social turmoil. I know 
the character of the American people--our resiliency, our innate 
goodness, and our courage--and I know we can succeed. But it will not 
be easy, and it will not happen by itself. It is up to us.
  America is an exceptional nation because each generation has been 
willing to make the difficult decisions and, yes, the occasional 
sacrifices required by their times. America is a great nation not 
because it is preordained but because our forebears, both here in the 
Senate and across the Nation, made it so. For 10 generations, the 
American people have been dedicated to the self-evident truth that all 
of us are created equal and have been endowed by our creator with 
inalienable rights.
  From the beginning, it is freedom that has been the touchstone of our 
democracy--freedom not from the benevolence of a king, not by the 
forbearance of the majority, not by the magnanimity of the State, but 
from the hand of Almighty God; the freedom to enjoy the fruits of our 
labors, the freedom to speak our minds and worship God as we see fit, 
the freedom to associate with those of our own choosing and to select 
those who would govern us.
  From the hillsides of ancient Athens to the fields of Runnymede, to 
the village greens of Lexington and Concord, to the Halls of this great 
Senate, it has always been the same: The innate human longing for 
independence now finds its truest expression in the American 
experiment. We are the guardians of that dream.
  Each generation of Americans has been called to renew our commitment 
to that ideal, often in blood, always with sacrifice. Now is our time. 
Now is the time for us to keep faith with those who have come before 
and to do right by those who will follow, to lift high the cause of 
freedom in all of its manifestations within its surest sanctuary--this 
U.S. Senate.
  All of this was put into perspective for me one day on a visit to 
Walter Reed Army hospital. I was visiting wounded soldiers. There was a 
young sergeant from Georgia. He had been married 3 weeks before 
deploying to Iraq. He was missing his left arm and both legs. His wife 
sat by his side. A look of dignified calm was upon his face. I asked if 
he was receiving the care he needed. Yes, he said, he was. I asked if 
there was anything I could do. No. No, there was not. Anything he 
needed? No.
  I had never felt so helpless or so insignificant.
  I left his room and made my way to the hospital front door and walked 
outside into the bright sunshine, sat upon the curb, and cried.
  All I could think of was what can I do--what can I do to be worthy of 
him? What can each of us do? Look at what he sacrificed for America. 
What are we prepared to give? Is it too much to think that while 
soldiers are sacrificing limbs on our behalf, that we can look across 
the aisle and see not enemies but friends, not adversaries but fellow 
citizens?
  With service men and women laying down their lives, can we not lay 
down our partisanship and rancor but for a while? Can we not remember 
we are but ``one nation under God,'' with a common heritage and common 
destiny? Let us no longer be divided into red States and blue States 
but be united once more into 50 red, white, and blue States. As the 
civil rights leader once reminded us: ``We may have arrived on these 
shores in different ships, but we are all in the same boat now.''
  My friends, the time has come for the sons and daughters of Lincoln 
and the heirs of Jefferson and Jackson to no longer wage war upon each 
other but to instead renew the struggle against the ancient enemies of 
man: ignorance, poverty, and disease. That is why we are here. That is 
why. If I have been able to contribute even a little to reconciliation 
among us, then I have done my duty.
  My prayer is that in the finest traditions of this Senate--both in my 
time and my father's time and in days before--we may once again serve 
to resolve our differences, meet the challenges that await us, and in 
so doing forge an American future that is worthy of our great past. So 
that when our children's children write the history of our time, they 
may truly say of us: Here were Americans and Senators worthy of the 
name.
  I thank you.
  I yield the floor.
  (Applause, Senators rising.)
  Ms. LANDRIEU. Mr. President, I understand we are in morning business.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. That is correct.
  Ms. LANDRIEU. I would like to speak for the next 5 minutes. I 
understand Senator Voinovich is on his way, but I would like to speak 
for the next 5 minutes.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.
  Ms. LANDRIEU. Mr. President, this Senate is not going to be the same 
place without the Senator from Indiana. In fact, it will be a lesser 
place because he has been such an outstanding Senator. I wish to let 
him know he will be very much missed. He contributed enormously, in his 
very quiet and dignified but powerful way, to many important issues, 
both domestic and international. We look forward to hearing a lot more 
from Governor Bayh and Senator Bayh in the years to come.

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