[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 196 (Wednesday, December 12, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7456-S7457]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO ORRIN HATCH

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, on a completely different matter, it is 
my bittersweet job this morning to pay tribute to a historic Senate 
career that will conclude at the end of this Congress.
  Senator Orrin Hatch has faithfully represented the people of Utah in 
this body for the last 42 years. That makes him the dean of our 
Republican conference and, of course, President pro tempore of the 
Senate. It also makes him the longest serving Republican Senator in our 
Nation's history. So Orrin's longevity alone would have guaranteed him 
a place among the giants of the Senate. As he joked a couple of weeks 
ago, one of the most memorable experiences from his early Senate tenure 
was the confirmation process for Justice Joseph Story back in 1811. 
Apparently it was quite the scene, Orrin tells us.
  Seriously, though, the most impressive thing about Orrin Hatch is not 
the historic length of his tenure here but how completely filled with 
accomplishments that time has been.
  But let's back up for a moment. It wasn't always obvious that our 
friend would become a star U.S. Senator. At one point, it looked like 
another kind of stardom might be more probable. And I am not just 
talking about the successful law practice he set aside to run for 
office. We all know about Orrin's musical talents and his contributions 
to the recording industry. I am told that just a few years before 
Orrin's first campaign in 1976, the lawyer and family man was 
moonlighting as band manager for a groundbreaking Mormon folk group 
called The Free Agency. Well, it is fortunate for all of us that this 
free agent felt called to bring his talents here to Washington.

  There is a famous story from that first campaign back in 1976. Think 
about this. Orrin had no political experience--a stranger to running 
for office. But he had this sense that public service was his mission. 
Perhaps he was thinking of his beloved big brother Jesse, who gave his 
life in World War II when Orrin was just 10.
  He started asking around: Did his friends and family think he had a 
shot at a Senate seat? Few liked his chances in the primary and even 
fewer against the three-term incumbent. But the worst reaction of all 
came from his beloved wife Elaine.
  The story goes that when Orrin filed his papers to run, she cried for 
3 straight days. I am not sure whether that was unhappiness at the 
prospect of an east coast life they hadn't planned for or a fairly 
accurate assessment of his chances at that point.
  But Orrin beat the odds. With the help of a big endorsement from a 
former California Governor named Ronald Reagan, this young, 
conservative upstart pulled off the upset.
  Actually, there is a little secret surrounding this endorsement. Few 
people know this, but I am sorry to say that Orrin was actually the 
Gipper's second choice. You see, our friend was so unknown back then 
that Reagan's first telegram offered a ringing endorsement

[[Page S7457]]

of someone called ``Warren Hatch.'' Happily, the error was quickly 
corrected. Orrin earned Utah's trust and found his way right here to 
this Chamber.
  Some of his new Senate peers thought their new colleague should lay 
low and keep quiet about his principles. They had no idea what they 
were in for.
  This Pittsburgh-born son of a metal lather was actually ready for 
action. Remember, Orrin was once an amateur boxer. So he came to the 
Senate ready to brawl. In his very first term, he decided he had to 
take down this far-left labor reform law that would have hurt free 
enterprise and future prosperity. So he took on a couple of 
heavyweights--Robert Byrd, George Meany, and the whole machinery of Big 
Labor.
  So this freshman became the public face and private backbone of the 
opposition. It was an epic showdown. Orrin worked 18-hour days. He 
taught his whole staff how to draft amendments. He gave pep talks to 
his ragtag, bipartisan band of brothers--Dick Lugar, Howard Baker, and 
Fritz Hollings, from across the aisle--trying to keep everyone in the 
boat. And it worked. It withstood six cloture votes, breaking the 
record for a single bill, and they won. American prosperity was kept 
safe from a big power grab by union bosses.
  It only seems fitting, decades later, that the other end of Orrin's 
Senate tenure would also be marked by a major, hard-won, right-of-
center accomplishment to help advance prosperity for all Americans.
  Orrin has chaired three of the Senate's most distinguished and 
critical committees--the HELP Committee, Judiciary, and, most recently, 
Finance. In this Congress, as Finance chairman, he led the charge to 
deliver once-in-a-generation tax relief to middle-class American 
families and tax reform to American job creators. This meant more late 
night and more painstaking negotiations. Chairman Hatch had to thread 
the needle, attending carefully to his colleagues' needs and keeping 
their eyes on the prize. Once again, he got it done.
  So what about the decades in between these two bookmarks? First and 
foremost may be Senator Hatch's special devotion to the Federal 
judiciary--to its essential role in our constitutional order, to its 
need for the highest quality personnel. Well, over his Senate tenure, 
Orrin has participated in the confirmation of more than half of all of 
the article III judges who have served in the United States of America 
in our Nation's history. Let me say that again. Orrin has met with, 
studied up on, questioned, or at least voted on more than half of all 
of the Federal judges in American history. That includes all nine 
Members of the current Supreme Court.
  When he supported a particular nominee, such as Justices Thomas, 
Gorsuch, and Kavanaugh, Orrin has been a leading champion of their 
cause, even in the face of unfair slights and smears. Even in cases 
when he has felt compelled to vote against nominees, he has treated 
them and the process itself with the respect and dignity that it is 
due.
  The pile of Orrin's legislative victories is almost as high as that 
tower of distinguished judges, and many of them are defined by one 
signature thread that connects much of his proudest work, his care for 
and commitment to serve the most vulnerable members of our society--the 
State Children's Health Insurance Program, the Americans with 
Disabilities Act, Hatch-Waxman for generic drugs, some of the earliest 
work on AIDS research, and even his very recent work to designate 6-1-1 
as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.
  So Orrin has led a bit of a double life here in the Senate, and I 
mean that in the best possible way. He has been every bit the 
principled fighter, as advertised. He has led the charge often and 
hasn't flinched from the big battles, but at the very same time, there 
was Orrin, constantly working quietly behind the scenes and across the 
aisle to tick off victories for vulnerable Americans who could have 
easily been left behind.

  One perfect illustration of this was Orrin's friendship with the late 
Ted Kennedy. For many of the years they spent here in the Senate, it 
seemed like they managed to rank among each other's closest friends, 
top collaborators, and most consistent sparring partners--all at the 
same time.
  But that is Orrin. He loves to give and take. He loves to discuss and 
debate. His colleagues and staff can rely on him equally to sit down 
and talk at length if they see an issue differently than he does. He 
does not dismiss or overrule. He wants to learn, persuade, and to be 
persuaded. It is no wonder that Orrin's peers are so fond of him and 
his team is so loyal to him.
  I am speaking especially of Ruthie Montoya, Orrin's scheduler for 
more than three decades--a member of the Senate family in her own 
right. But you can't help but respect Orrin because his own respect for 
this institution and the dignity of every individual he meets is so 
evident.
  Utahns know this better than anyone. They know they can run into 
their senior Senator on the sidewalk or out shopping, and he will stop 
and listen carefully to their thoughts and concerns and life stories--
maybe over a Costco hot dog--and he will take it all to heart.
  How could this be surprising? This distinguished Statesman grew up 
modestly. His mother had her hands full raising seven children, and his 
father supported the family with his work as a metal lather. The hours 
were long and the work was hard, but the life lessons were invaluable.
  Orrin worked his way through college and law school. When his 
scholarship didn't prove quite enough to support a young family, he 
worked as a janitor and attendant and still graduated with honors. That 
education has carried Orrin far, but not as far as something else he 
gained in college.
  It was in one BYU classroom that providence did Orrin a great favor, 
with an assist from alphabetical order. Because ``Hatch, Orrin'' came 
after ``Hansen, Elaine,'' he found himself seated next to this pretty 
young lady and struck up a conversation. That seating chart kicked off 
a blessed marriage of 60-plus years and counting.
  Not every young husband would have left a successful law practice on 
the east coast and started over in Utah to be closer to his wife's 
family. Not every wife and mother would tolerate--let alone encourage 
and support--half a lifetime of public service 2,000 miles from where 
they planned to call home.
  That loving partnership has brought six children, 23 grandchildren, 
and 24 great-grandchildren. Orrin has been known to refer to his brood 
as ``the Hatchlings.''
  So it is our hope that the Senate's great loss upon Orrin's 
retirement will at least be this great family's loving gain.
  We are sad to bid farewell to our artist-in-residence and his 
platinum records, to this former all-star missionary and LDS bishop who 
still practices what he preached, to this living example of the 
American dream at its most extraordinary--the Pittsburgh fighter who 
climbed up from working poverty and became ``The Gentleman of the 
Senate,'' where he dedicated his work to strengthening that ladder for 
the generations that would follow.
  Orrin has been so generous to his colleagues, to this institution, 
and to the State and the Nation he has served. He has given us so much. 
He retires with great congratulations on a most distinguished career 
and our very warmest wishes for a peaceful and happy retirement.

                          ____________________