[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 33 (Thursday, March 1, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Page S1191]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     COMMENDING SENATOR CARL LEVIN

  Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, I recently had the privilege of speaking 
at an event sponsored by the Center for the National Interest which 
honored our colleague from Michigan, Senator Carl Levin, with their 
2012 Distinguished Service Award. In addition to being my colleague, I 
am proud to call Carl Levin a dear friend, and I ask unanimous consent 
that my remarks honoring Senator Levin be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

    Remarks by Senator John McCain in Honor of Senator Carl Levin, 
                     Delivered on February 15, 2012

       Thank you. I'm glad to be here, and I'm grateful to the 
     Center for giving me an opportunity to say a few words about 
     your honoree, my friend, Carl Levin.
       Carl and I have served on the Senate Armed Services 
     Committee together since I first came to the Senate, which it 
     pains me to recall, was over a quarter century ago. That's 
     not as long as Carl has been there, however. I think you were 
     elected shortly after the Spanish American War, weren't you, 
     Carl? No? I thought I had read you had been on the committee 
     when it refused to authorize Teddy Roosevelt's Great White 
     Fleet.
       As you all know, Carl is a proud Democrat, and I'm not. 
     That difference is quite obvious on any number of issues 
     before the Senate. What I hope has always been just as 
     obvious is how greatly I admire and respect the man.
       We have our moments on the committee. Debate among the 
     members can get a little passionate at times, though I hope 
     never rancorous. The members are quite proud of the 
     committee's tradition of bipartisan cooperation. I think we 
     appreciate the gravity of our responsibility to help maintain 
     the defense of our country, and the obligation we have to do 
     right by the men and women of the United States Armed Forces, 
     who have risked everything on our behalf. I think Carl and I 
     both feel their example of selfless sacrifice would make us 
     feel ashamed if we let the committee descend into the 
     partisan posturing that often makes it hard for Congress to 
     serve the national interest. When members disagree on the 
     committee, even heatedly, more often than not, it's because 
     we feel sincerely passionate about whatever issue is in 
     dispute. And even then, I think we try to maintain civility 
     and respect for one another, and we do not let it prevent us 
     from completing the committee's business.
       That we have managed to keep that reputation in these 
     contentious times is a tribute to the man who has served as 
     the Committee's chairman or ranking Democrat since 1997. He 
     has kept the committee focused on its duties and not on the 
     next election or the latest rush-to-the-barricades partisan 
     quarrel that has momentarily consumed the Senate's attention. 
     He does so in a calm, measured, patient and intelligent 
     manner. He seems to become even calmer and more patient in 
     moments of disagreement when tempers and emotions among the 
     membership start to rise. He and I have slightly different 
     leadership styles, of course. I'm much gentler and less 
     confrontational. But Carl's style seems to work for him.
       The committee has a heavy workload every year, and Carl 
     manages to keep us all in harness and working together at a 
     pace and in a constructive, results oriented approach that is 
     the envy of the dozen or so lesser committees of the Senate. 
     Our principle responsibility is to produce the defense 
     authorization bills one of the most important and 
     comprehensive pieces of legislation the Senate considers on 
     an annual basis. The committee has never failed to report the 
     bill, and the Senate has never failed to pass it. That's not 
     an accomplishment that some of those lesser committees I just 
     referred to can claim every year. And no one deserves more of 
     the credit for it than Carl Levin.
       When Carl first joined the committee, he explained his 
     reason for seeking the assignment this way: ``I had never 
     served, and I thought there was a big gap in terms of my 
     background and, frankly, felt it was a way of providing 
     service.'' He might have never served in the military, but he 
     has surely served it, and served it well. And he has served 
     the national interests our armed forces protect in an 
     exemplary manner that the rest of us would be wise to 
     emulate.
       He is a man of principle, ability, and serious purpose. He 
     has the respect of his colleagues on both sides of the aisle. 
     We all listen to him, and we listen closest to him on the 
     occasions when we disagree with him. That's a great 
     compliment from a Senator. It is a tribute paid to only the 
     most revered members of the Senate. But the greatest 
     compliment one senator can pay another is to credit him or 
     her as a person who keeps their word. Why that's so rare in 
     our work is a mystery. But I can attest Carl possesses the 
     virtue. He has never broken his word to me.
       We recently found ourselves in a dispute with the 
     administration over how and where to prosecute detainees 
     captured in the war on terror. Most people on my side of the 
     aisle agreed with my position. Many people on Carl's side and 
     in the administration disagreed with his. But he never 
     wavered. He never backed out of a deal, and he argued our 
     case far more effectively than I could. We did what we 
     usually do on the committee under Carl's leadership. We found 
     a way to settle the dispute without abandoning our 
     responsibilities. Carl deserves most of the credit for that, 
     too.
       On a personal note, that controversy reminded me again of 
     one of the great satisfactions in life. And that, my friends, 
     is when you fight for a common cause with someone you haven't 
     always agreed with, whose background, views and personality 
     are distinctly different than yours, and you discover that 
     despite your differences, you have always been on the same 
     side on the big things.
       Thank you, Carl, for your friendship and your example.

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