[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 185 (Tuesday, November 19, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H9043-H9049]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
HONORING THE LIFE AND SERVICE OF SENATOR JOHNNY ISAKSON
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of
January 3, 2019, the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Austin Scott) is
recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader.
General Leave
Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent
that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and
extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the topic of
this Special Order.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Georgia?
There was no objection.
Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I have a lot to say. My
colleague, Mr. Hice, has a lot to do. I am going to yield to Mr. Hice
so that he can speak briefly and go back to his committee.
Mr. HICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I thank my good friend for
yielding a quick moment.
There are few people in Washington, D.C., and in America who have had
the impact of Senator Johnny Isakson. And when we think of Senator
Isakson, no question, there are so many things that come to our mind.
Senator, you are and you have been an incredible statesman, a
phenomenal leader, in Georgia, here in the United States Senate, and in
our country, and we just want to say thank you for all that you have
done for us.
I think, personally, when I first came to Congress, you were one of
the first individuals to reach out to me and to give advice and
encouragement. And to this day, every time I see you, you do that, and
you will never know how much that means.
I just want to publicly state that Johnny Isakson, Senator Isakson,
is a hero for people all across this country. Your brilliant mind and
your leadership will always be here, and we say thank you from the
bottom of our heart. May God bless you and your family as you go into
this next chapter.
Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, today, my colleagues and
I rise to honor the legislative legacy and the life of my good friend
and colleague and fellow Georgia Bulldog, U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson.
For more than 20 years, Senator Isakson has served the people of
Georgia in the United States Congress, tirelessly fighting for the
people of Georgia.
During his tenure, Senator Isakson has been a bellwether for many in
our delegation, both as a Member of this body and as a United States
Senator. If I have heard it once, I have heard it a thousand times:
Where's Johnny on this? What does Johnny think about this? Have you
spoken to Johnny on this?
He has offered counsel that has been learned through his 40 years of
public service that is invaluable to me and many of us in the Georgia
delegation and throughout this Nation.
I have many personal stories about Johnny, some of them appropriate
for the floor, some of them not. But my first recollection of Senator
Isakson was a call that I made as a young teenager when we had a mutual
friend and I needed a little help getting him through the ballot
process at the fraternity house. Senator Isakson picked up the phone
and called and, a few minutes later, the president of the fraternity
walked in and said: I am not quite sure who spoke to Senator Isakson,
but this is the way the next vote's going to go.
And that was all it took.
I can't tell you, over the last 20, or, I am sorry, I should say 30-
plus years, how much you have meant to me and my family. And when I am
back home, I constantly tell the people the respect our delegation and
all the Members of the House and the Senate have for you. You have
brought forward a sense of bipartisanship in working across the aisle
for the good of all Georgians.
He has played a key role in building and maintaining his reputation,
and I look forward to that special tradition continuing in the coming
legislative sessions.
Public service is much more than just the service of the Member; it
is also the service of the family.
Senator Isakson, your children, your wonderful wife, Dianne, we
extend our thanks for their commitment to serve Georgia and their
support of our delegation and fellow delegation members. Their impact
cannot be understated, and we look forward to you enjoying more time
with Dianne and your entire family as you enter your next chapter.
For decades, Senator Isakson and his family have faithfully served
our State. His character, godliness, and
[[Page H9044]]
statesmanship will be greatly missed in Washington, D.C.
His faithful service to the great State of Georgia is second only to
our beloved mascot, Uga. He is a giant among men and dogs, dedicated
and deliberate, and it has been an honor to work alongside him fighting
for the good people of Georgia and the veterans of the United States of
America.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Lewis).
Mr. LEWIS. Madam Speaker, I want to thank my beloved colleague and my
friend for yielding. I would like to thank our colleague, Mr. Austin
Scott, for organizing this Special Order tribute to a great man, to a
wonderful human being.
Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize Senator Johnny Isakson, a son of
Atlanta, Georgia. Senator Isakson is a special man. He is a good man. I
want to thank him for his years of service in the Georgia State
Legislature, in the United States House of Representatives, and, now,
in the United States Senate.
On February 25, 1999, I introduced Johnny as the newest member of the
Georgia congressional delegation to the House of Representatives. He
came to Congress as a graduate of the University of Georgia and a
successful businessman.
Before coming to Congress, he served as a member of the Georgia Air
National Guard, the State house minority leader, a State senator, and
the chair of the State board of education.
On that day, I said he brought a wealth of knowledge with him. I
explained to our colleagues that, in his decades of public service in
our home State, Johnny developed a great reputation as a bridge
builder, a man who has strong beliefs but was also willing to work with
others to get things done.
Very quickly, Members of the House and Senate discovered how true
this was. The Senator does not make a lot of noise, but he has the
ability and the capacity to speak truth to power.
When Johnny served in the House of Representatives, we always found a
way to come together, and we continued that tradition when he was
elected to the Senate. Over the years, we worked together on many, many
issues, like transportation, water, housing, and veterans affairs. We
always found a way to get along and to do the good work the people
deserved.
Time and time again, he stood with us, he worked with us to uplift
African Americans in the State of Georgia, to recognize individuals
like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Jackie Robinson, native of
Georgia. He did not just talk the talk, he literally walked the walk.
Senator, you not only supported the reauthorization of the Voting
Rights Act in 2006, but, a few years later, you even co-led the
congressional pilgrimage to Selma, Alabama. I want to say thank you for
all of your good and great work.
Those of us who know you will agree that you are always thoughtful
and mindful, a warm and welcoming gentleman in the truest sense of the
word.
For two decades, you, Senator, led a team that could cross the aisle
without compromising their values. Whenever a constituent came over
from a meeting with you and your staff, they felt heard and respected.
{time} 1545
I hope you do not mind, but I would like to share a moment that
stands out for me and will always stand out for me as long as I live,
to this very day.
One morning, before I was scheduled to read the 13th Amendment on the
House floor, Senator Isakson asked me to come and speak with his staff
about service and my own experiences. We had an honest and thoughtful
discussion. It was one of the most meaningful, memorable experiences of
my years in Congress. I carry it in my heart to this very day, to this
very moment, what Senator Isakson said. I believe 20 years have passed
since I stood on this very floor to introduce Senator Isakson to
Congress.
As Johnny returns to private life with his beloved wife, Dianne, of
51 years and his wonderful, beautiful children and grandchildren, I
would like to thank Johnny for his years of service. I would like to
thank Johnny for his service to our State, our Nation. I wish Johnny
health and happiness.
I hope the Senator takes some time to enjoy a beautiful and wonderful
life in the State of Georgia. Senator Isakson has been very good to the
people of the State of Georgia, and I am lucky enough, and just blessed
really, to call him a friend and a brother. I thank him so much.
Madam Speaker, it is almost difficult to yield back the time when I
speak of this good and great leader from the State of Georgia. I thank
Johnny for his service. I will come over and meet you, brother.
Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I wish all of America
could be here to see that, two icons from Georgia embracing. What a
wonderful sight that I think is representative of the days of the past
and the days to come and how we should work together. Thank you both so
much, not just for what you did, but for who you are.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Graves).
Mr. GRAVES of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I thank Representative Scott
for yielding and for coordinating this hour of tribute to a dear, dear
friend and how humbling it is to follow my good friend, Representative
Lewis, who swore me in just the same, Johnny, just over 9 years ago,
right here in this same spot.
I know this would certainly take more than an hour, and I know this
is a Georgia delegation moment, but, Senator, I am certain that if the
House would allow that, Member after Member from State after State
would come down here and pay you tribute, just the same as we are
today.
As Members, we get up each and every day and we work hard to make
sure our constituents have a great place to live and provide for their
families. And it is not often that we have the opportunity to share
about the impact that a single person might have made on our very own
lives.
Today is one of those rare occasions for me, and I get to do that
today through the recognition of one of Georgia's giants. And I am
going to do this today, Senator, take the opportunity to share of our
first interaction, my first introduction, my introduction to Senator
Isakson.
It was November 6, 1990, and I was just your average 20-year-old
college student. I was apolitical. I was just looking for a free meal
that night. I was an idealist, very open-minded, and I was invited that
night by my roommate to attend a political gathering. And my roommate
just happened to be the son of Freddie Stevenson, who is a dear friend
of ours, Senator.
And that was my very first political event ever that I had attended,
and it happened to be the gubernatorial election night celebration, or
that is at least what I anticipated that night. I can remember that
evening as if it were yesterday, and I know the Senator can, as well,
as can so many others.
As a north Georgia country boy, I didn't grow up in wealth or
politics. I just worked hard every day just trying to get through each
and every day.
But that night I was impacted. There was a lot of energy. There was
excitement in the room. And that is infectious, I know it is, but that
is not what it was about that night. I was impacted more so than
anything by a single person, a person I didn't even know yet, a person
that I would soon get to know very well, though.
You might suggest that I was impressed by the Senator's resume, his
history and what he had done. I mean, after all, we glossed over what
the Senator has accomplished, but he has served in the Georgia Air
National Guard. The Senator has 14 years in the Georgia House as a
minority leader. The Senator was co-chair of a Presidential campaign,
president of one of the largest real estate companies in the country,
and, yes, as has been mentioned, he was a Georgia Bulldog. All of that
by 1990. That is impressive, but that is not what captured me that
night.
I was totally unaware of all those things. Nor could it have been his
future, because none of us knew, none of us knew what might be yet.
That was so many years ago.
The fact that Johnny would one day run and be elected to the State
Senate, that he would be a candidate for U.S. Senate in 1996, he would
head the State School Board, be elected to the U.S. House in 1999,
sworn in by the great John Lewis, and then 5 years later elected to the
United States Senate as our senior Senator.
[[Page H9045]]
There was something so much more, Johnny. There was so much more than
that, Senator, that we had yet to know. I mean, it was more than the
Senator's resume. It was more than the Senator's title, and it was more
than what the Senator was going to accomplish that stirred me or that
stirs any individual.
It was on that night in 1990 where a man I had never met with a name
I certainly couldn't pronounce with a history that I didn't know or a
future yet untold, he caught my attention. My first true interaction,
my first impact by a political figure in my life was that night in
1990.
The results were not what the Senator had hoped for at the time or
what the Senator had worked for, and yet, he was in a room of friends
and supporters and had to address them that night.
Now, if you were an onlooker like me, a 20-year-old college student,
what do you expect? You expect maybe there is going to be bitterness,
there is going to be regret, there is going to be some blaming, there
is going to be some divisiveness. That certainly sounds familiar,
certainly today. But it was different.
Instead, Johnny Isakson, he took the stage with grace, with respect,
with dignity, with vision and with a confidence that I never expected
in a person. And whether the Senator knew it that night at that time,
he chose to impact, and he chose to inspire. He chose to inspire me.
I know the story is not unique to me. I know it is not. There are 45
years of stories like that. I just happened to be one. He was paying
forward before it was even a thing to do. And now 29 years later I can
stand before each of you, I stand before you as one who served in the
Georgia House for 7\1/2\ years and now in my 10th year here in Congress
and a future still yet untold. I get to stand before the Senator and
say, ``thank you.''
I thank Senator Isakson. I thank him for caring. I thank him for
being an example of what is needed so much today. It is with deep
gratitude that I get to pay tribute in his farewell. To the one who
might have lost an election in 1990 but won the trust of a 20-year-old
college student that night, a true fighter for Georgia, a great
statesman, and a dear friend, thank you so much, and may God bless the
Senator in the days ahead.
Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. I yield to the gentleman from Georgia
(Mr. Bishop), my friend and colleague.
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for
yielding, and I thank my colleagues for this Special Order giving
tribute to a good and great man.
Winston Churchill once said, ``You make your living by what you get.
You make your life by what you give.'' My friend, Johnny Isakson, has
given so much to so many for so long. He has truly made a life.
Johnny Isakson has been a true statesman in his remarkable career as
a public servant for Georgians. I first met Johnny in 1977 where we
served together in the Georgia General Assembly. We developed a
friendship which has endured through our work together in the State
House, the U.S. House of Representatives, and during his service as our
U.S. Senator from Georgia.
Throughout his career, he has not viewed issues from a partisan
perspective, but for the good of all Americans. Johnny served as a
Republican in both chambers of Georgia's State legislature, but he was
appointed by Georgia's Democratic Governor Zell Miller to be the
chairman of the Georgia State Board of Education. His integrity, his
kindness are invaluable qualities in a legislator and have no doubt
been a defining measure of his success.
I am honored to call Johnny my friend. We will miss him in the
delegation. His loss will be felt deeply, but we can all agree that he
is very much deserving of a happy retirement spent with his wife,
Dianne, their children, and grandchildren, and we wish you the best,
Johnny.
The poet said:
Isn't it strange how princes and kings,
and clowns that caper in sawdust rings,
and common people, like you and me,
are builders for eternity?
Each is given a list of rules;
a shapeless mass; a bag of tools.
And each must make your life as flown,
a stumbling block, or a stepping stone.
The people of Georgia, the people of our Nation, and, indeed, people
all across the world are so blessed that you have used your life and
your career not as a stumbling block but as a stepping stone for a
higher, better quality of life for human kind. Thank you, and God bless
you.
Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I want to thank Senator
Isakson, as well, for his service to our Nation's veterans and his role
as chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs. He served our
military veterans faithfully for many, many years.
I yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Collins), my friend and
colleague, one of the men who serves us in multiple capacities, both in
the Air Force and as a Member of Congress.
Mr. COLLINS of Georgia. Thank you, Mr. Scott, for yielding. To be
here, to hear just the accomplishments of Senator Isakson. He's one of
the people that as you go along you find in life that you have to know
him by title or you have to know him by last name, in the State of
Georgia when you say, ``Johnny,'' everybody knows who you are talking
about, especially when it comes to our politics.
And for me to rattle off everything that has already been said, it is
breathtaking what you have done and what you have accomplished from
business to career, and those are the things that are worthy of the
page in your life.
But for many of us here, just as my friends were saying earlier, the
Senator has a personal attachment to many of us, whether he realizes it
or not. For those of us who come forward in public service, you need
role models and mentors, and you hear about those who succeeded and
failed and succeeded and failed, which is something many of us have to
get used to, whether we want to or not.
For me it is watching the Senator in the times when probably he
didn't know he was being watched. There were times when I watched the
Senator, as a young person in the State House in Georgia going to a
meeting and they would recognize him and say, you know, Johnny is here,
would he like to say a few words?
And for most of us, it is struggling just to come up with a couple
words that actually sound good together, much less sentences, but
Johnny Isakson would stand up and for the next 5 minutes rattle off a
speech that you would have sworn had been honed for years, and it
touched the very soul of everybody there.
{time} 1600
I was in awe. And I watched him do it so many times. He listened. In
this business, that is pretty impressive. That is why he got stuff
done.
I remember, every time I would come to him, there would be times when
I would be asking a question, and I would go along, and he would listen
and answer the question. I went away feeling better just by being with
him.
I remember when I talked to him right after he announced to us that
he was going to leave a big hole in our delegation. The first thing he
said to me when I picked up the phone, as he did almost every time,
was, ``Doug, thank you. You are doing a great job,'' even when I knew
that probably wasn't true.
When you understand, though, what it takes to lift people up, you
leave a mark. You leave a special mark.
For those of us in politics who struggled many times over the past
few years to go into groups that would call us names and not like us
even when they supposedly were on our side, I watched what he did. He
would go into those groups and sneak in the back after the meeting
started. They would see him there. They would recognize him, and he
stood and spoke. He never backed up. He never backed down. But he made
a lot of converts simply by being there.
For those of us in public service, if he showed me or showed anybody
anything, it is that being in the room, being a participant, listening
to people, and caring about them, even if we disagree with them, is the
largest step we can take to make sure that we have a union that
matters.
From me and my house, for a profession that many have taken on that
needs role models, we stand on his shoulders. He is the giant in the
room, from our perspective of watching what happens and how it happens.
When I got to Washington, DC, I knew the one thing that I wanted to
do
[[Page H9046]]
was actually pass legislation because I had heard him say one time
before: Why do we come up here if we don't get anything done?
Madam Speaker, Johnny is far beyond the policy. He went to the heart
of people, and it will be missed in this place. But it is alive now,
and we turn to him and that vision more than anything.
Of course, as Senator Isakson knows, I still represent part of Athens
and Clarke County. He is a Georgia graduate, and as we say around those
parts, ``You are a damn good Dawg.''
Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I thank Mr. Collins for
his comments.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Georgia (Mrs. McBath),
my colleague.
Mrs. McBATH. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. I am
so glad that we are gathered here today to honor our colleague.
It is an honor to represent Georgia's Sixth District here in
Congress, and it is truly an honor to hold the seat that Senator
Isakson once held.
Senator Isakson has spent decades in service to the State of Georgia
and to our great Nation. His legacy has left an unforgettable mark on
Georgia and the United States Senate.
He is known in our community for being a friendly neighbor and for
being a truly good man, and I am honored to call him my friend. We
share a passion, a passion to make Georgia the best place to live and
to start a family. We share a dedication to making America a more
perfect union.
I know that I have not been in the Georgia delegation very long, but
I thank the gentleman for putting people over party and for his
commitment to the best policy, which is not always easy politics.
We live in an age where loyalty to partisanship has too often come at
the expense of the American people, and we live in an age where
``compromise'' has become a dirty word. We live in an age where the
American people have become disillusioned with the American Government.
Senator Isakson has defied that age. Senator Isakson has always been
open to that tough conversation, and he has always been open to finding
commonsense solutions to forge uncommon ground.
That is why I am so proud to follow in his footsteps as the
Representative from Georgia's Sixth Congressional District. It is why I
work so hard to make sure that we are passing bipartisan bills, bills
that will help protect the communities that we truly love.
Madam Speaker, I thank Senator Isakson. I thank him so much for his
service to the people of Georgia and his service to the freedom of our
country.
Godspeed to my friend. God bless.
Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman
for her remarks.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Woodall),
my friend and colleague.
Mr. WOODALL. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
I am enjoying listening to the partnership conversation. I want to
come from a different perspective, though. I want to talk about the
partisanship conversation.
When I was 6 years old and Senator Isakson was elected as a Georgia
House member, it was 23 out of 180 members of the house, as I recall. I
don't know how many there were before he got there, but being a
Republican in Georgia in 1976 was not a popular thing to do.
I think about all the things that we want to do together in this
body. I think about folks who say, ``Oh, we can't do that. It is too
hard. It is going to take too long. Let's do something today, but let's
not focus on those long-term goals.''
You might think that when Ronald Reagan was elected in 1980, that
that was a big jump in Georgia. As I recall, there were still 23
members in the Georgia House in 1980, 23 out of 180.
Somebody had to be the first one to stand up.
We talk about partisanship in this institution, Madam Speaker, like
it is a bad thing. What I have always loved about the Senator is that
he has never been embarrassed to be a Republican. He knew what he
believed, and he knew why he believed it.
Now, the Senator might not like the way someone else expresses their
Republican values, but he led with his heart. He can sit right beside a
Democratic hero like John Lewis, and I can't tell the difference when
it comes to Southern gentility, but he will never be embarrassed to
share who he is as a Republican.
That is what it takes to grow from 23 members in a 180-member body
into the institution that Tom Graves had an opportunity to serve and
into the institution that so many of our colleagues had a chance to
serve.
We talk about bipartisanship as that Holy Grail. It requires
partisanship to get there, and but for the example that Senator Isakson
set, we wouldn't have the Republican Party in Georgia, and we wouldn't
have Isakson values in that party.
I talked about partisanship, Madam Speaker. I want to talk about
people as the second part of that.
I have always imagined the roughest part about being a United States
Senator is that one might lose that one-on-one contact that one has
had. In a congressional district, we can get to know people. We can be
with them in the community.
Senator Isakson's entire career has been about people. I watch him
when he walks into a room. Folks that I ought to know who they are
because I have worked with them but I just can't remember, I see him go
up and greet them by name. Folks that have come into the room from all
different congressional districts, he has a relationship with them,
maybe from back in 1976 when he was trying to grow the party across the
State, maybe from back when he was leading the State Board of
Education, maybe from back in the Sixth District, maybe from his time
as a United States Senator. He has always put people first.
I see that in every speech he has given in Gwinnett and Forsyth
Counties. He will stand up and always thank the staffers who are
working for him.
It is his Academy Day that I enjoy the most. That is my favorite time
that we spend together each year.
If people don't know, Madam Speaker, the Isakson Academy Day is a
statewide event that brings all the young men and women who love an
opportunity--they could do anything they want to with their life, but
they want to serve the United States of America. They want to be the
future generation of leaders. Even as young as seventh, eighth, and
ninth grade, they come to this event that Senator Isakson puts
together.
Talk about all the lives that he has changed here in this
institution, don't even get started on the number of lives he has
changed as it relates to leadership and opportunity to serve through
his Academy Day.
I think about him being a Republican's Republican. I think about Reva
Jennings in Forsyth County. Senator Isakson knows Reva. She is hard
core. For folks who don't know, Madam Speaker, Forsyth County is one of
the most conservative counties in the State of Georgia--a conservative
State, a conservative county.
Reva Jennings has been building that Republican Party up there for as
long as anyone can remember. We lost her in an untimely way.
But while everybody loves us on our way out the door, Senator Isakson
might remember a tough primary season or two where folks might come and
say: Johnny, why aren't you more angry about this? Why aren't you doing
this?
As Republican primary seasons are, we tend to eat our own. Reva
Jennings, the first time I met her, was fielding one of those
questions. Somebody came up and said: We have to get somebody to
challenge that Johnny Isakson in the next primary. He is soft, for a
Republican.
Now, we know Reva. She doesn't have any softness in her. She went
right to Senator Isakson's steel backbone. She went right after it. She
took it to that whole crowd of Republicans, saying: You can poor-mouth
anybody you want to in this town, but you cannot poor-mouth Johnny
Isakson because he has done more for the Republican Party than anybody
else in this State has, and let me tell you how.
It is not hard to find detractors out there these days. It is hard to
build those lifelong friendships that create that gift of relationship
that Senator Isakson has offered so many.
He has offered it to me. I am grateful to him for it. I wouldn't be
standing
[[Page H9047]]
here today but for the work he has done over those years, and I thank
Senator Isakson for that.
Madam Speaker, I thank Mr. Scott for yielding.
Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman
from Georgia (Mr. Carter), my good friend and colleague.
Mr. CARTER of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I thank Representative Scott
for putting this together. Indeed, it is something well deserved.
I rise today to recognize a great Georgian and a great Senator.
I have been blessed in my life. I am the grandson of a tobacco farmer
and the son of a paper mill worker, and here I am, walking the Halls of
Congress.
In the short period of time that I have had to serve here, I have
witnessed many great things. I got to listen to the Pope, something I
never thought I would have the opportunity to do, one of the great
religious leaders in the world, right here in this room.
But when I think of what I saw just a few minutes ago, when I saw not
only two great Georgians but two great Americans, John Lewis and
Johnny Isakson, embrace, I pinch myself sometimes. How did this happen
to me? How did I get to witness all of these great things in my life?
Madam Speaker, I thank both of these gentlemen.
Madam Speaker, I thank especially Senator Isakson. I have been
fortunate to call him a friend and a mentor for many years. I have had
many political mentors in my life: Tom Triplett, Tom Coleman, just to
name a few, and Johnny Isakson.
I can remember hearing the story from the then-minority leader of the
house of representatives in the Georgia statehouse, when Senator
Isakson would tell the story of leading such a small group that General
Custer had had better odds than he had at that time.
{time} 1615
I will never forget that. It taught me perseverance. It taught me to
always work hard and to continue on. I have always looked at that and
admired that in you, and I appreciate it very much.
Your dedication to our State and our Nation has truly been unmatched.
It is something that I have admired throughout all my time in public
service.
Senator Isakson, you are one of the greatest Georgians to ever serve
and one of the only Georgians--in fact, the only Georgian--to have ever
served in the Georgia State House, in the Georgia State Senate, in the
House of Representatives, and the United States Senate. I got three out
of four. I don't know if I will ever make it across over here, but if I
do, I am going to catch you because I have had the honor, as well.
At each of those levels that you have served, you have been
successful in advancing policies for the betterment of the State of
Georgia and for the United States of America. I think that is what is
so very important. Everywhere you have been, every step of the way, it
has always been for the people, always been for the betterment of our
State and of our Nation.
During a time in our political history in which Americans seem to be
increasingly divided, I have always looked to you. One of the most
important achievements I think that you have made is to build
bipartisanship, to reach across the aisle, to come together.
I hear my staff tell the story of you don't hear about Senator
Isakson being involved in a big fight over in the Senate, but, in the
background, he is in a knife fight and he is winning.
That is what we all aspire to do. We all want to be known as
statesmen. We all want to be successful and win our matches. But you
are, and we don't even know about it most of the time.
For example, you have always been a staunch supporter of our Nation's
veterans. I think that is extremely important for all of us to
remember. You were chair of the Veterans' Affairs Committee for so many
years.
I have heard the stories of problems at the VA and of Senator Isakson
picking up the phone and calling the family member and apologizing.
Now, this is the chair of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee
calling someone and apologizing for them having a problem at the VA
center. Can you imagine? But that is what we admire.
The overhaul to the VA Veterans Choice Program, modernizing VA
hospitals in the MISSION Act, all of these signed into law as a result
of your efforts.
Every year for over a decade, Senator Isakson has held a barbecue in
the Russell Building to feed his colleagues from both sides of the
aisle.
Now at retirement at the end of this year, the State of Georgia, the
United States of America, loses one of its great political assets. I
know you have made the point that you are going to sprint through the
finish line, and that is important.
I want to thank you, Senator, for your service to our State. I want
to thank you for your service to our Nation. I want to thank you for
the example that you have set for people like me. Thank you for always
being a step above the political infighting in order to do what you
truly felt was best for Georgians.
As you continue to do what is best for your health, you and Dianne
will always be in my thoughts and prayers. Thank you, Senator, for your
service to our country. God bless you.
Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, may I inquire as to how
much time I have remaining.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Georgia has 18 minutes
remaining.
Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman
from Georgia (Mr. Loudermilk), my friend and colleague.
Mr. LOUDERMILK. Madam Speaker, I thank Representative Scott for his
time here, and I thank him for organizing this.
This is a moment that I am sure all of us are having mixed feelings.
There have been a lot of accolades given here today to Senator Isakson,
a lot of talk about his accomplishments, which are absolutely many.
What a lot of people don't understand about Georgia is we have
legends. There are legends from Georgia that, if you go to any history
book or you talk to anybody, they will recognize those names as
Georgia.
James Oglethorpe is one of those, the founder of Georgia. Sam Nunn,
Zell Miller, John Lewis, Dr. Martin Luther King. Of course, everybody
knows Vince Dooley, the legendary coach of the University of Georgia.
Others, like Tom Murphy, the longest serving speaker of the house in
the Nation, who served in the Georgia State House, that I know Senator
Isakson served with when he was in the State house.
I believe that Johnny Isakson is one of those legends, as well. As
was mentioned, he is the only Georgian in the history of our State, in
the history of this Nation, to serve in both houses of the State
legislature and both Houses of the United States legislature, an
accomplishment no one else has ever achieved.
Now, the one thing I know about Senator Isakson is the character of
the man, that he didn't accomplish those things because it was a
personal goal; it was because of his heart of service.
One thing that I have been able to consistently and honestly say
about Senator Isakson is that he is a statesman. That is something that
seems to be lost in the line of politics today, those who are true
statesmen.
There are some things about him and things about statesmen that are
common across the board. One is truthfulness. I can tell you that
Johnny will tell you the truth, even if it is something you don't want
to hear; but, yet, he will tell you in a way that you will appreciate,
because he is doing it to uplift you and to make you better, not to
draw you down.
Faithfulness, he has been faithful to his faith, his God, his family,
his political beliefs, his party, but, more importantly, this country
and the institutions that he has represented.
Another is trust, that is something that is lacking in modern
politics. But I can tell you this: Johnny Isakson has never ever told
me something that I ever questioned after that. If he told you he was
going to do something, it was going to happen.
Loyalty is another area. He has always been loyal to those who are
his friends, for those he represents, for his nation, and for his
State.
Commitment, he is a very committed person to those things which he
believes in.
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Civility is one of those that really is lost today; but, as many have
spoken here today, he has not only reached across the aisle, but he has
reached across the State to try to bring civility back into politics.
And the last one, which I think is most important to me, is
friendship. The mark of a statesman is all of those, but mostly
friendship.
I was in another Member of Congress' office recently, and, Senator,
there was a poster. It made me laugh. There was a poster on their wall
that said: ``If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog.'' Well, I
don't think that Member ever met Johnny Isakson, because he is a friend
not only to me; he is a friend to Georgia. He is a friend to all of us.
He is a friend to the United States.
Senator, God bless you. Thank you for your service to our State.
Thank you for your service to our Nation. You will be missed.
I am so honored to be able to say I am a friend of a legend from
Georgia.
God bless you.
Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I would remind my friend
and colleague that Senator Isakson is a Dawg; he is a Georgia Bulldog.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Allen).
Mr. ALLEN. Madam Speaker, I thank Mr. Scott for organizing this time
to honor, as said here many times, a legend. Of course, I never thought
I would be standing in front of two Georgia legends as I speak
specifically about one. But I do rise today to honor my great mentor
and friend, Senator Johnny Isakson, along with greetings to Dianne and
your wonderful family.
I was there last Saturday to witness your beloved Bulldogs beat my
beloved Auburn Tigers. Congratulations on this. I just hope and pray
that they will go all the way for you. I think that would be a great
tribute.
Johnny has been a champion for the State of Georgia for decades, a
reflection of his many years of service, as has been mentioned about
all of the accomplishments, a life of political service. And, also, a
mention about his influence on education.
When I was first elected, I had not been in politics before and I
didn't really know how to get things done up here. But I, in my service
on the Education and Labor Committee, was attracted to a bill called
the Every Student Succeeds Act and worked feverishly to get that bill
passed in the House by a margin of a mere five votes, 218-213.
Well, it just so happened that sometime later, as we got together in
Georgia for lunch, Johnny was asking me about that legislation. I told
him, I said we are going to return control to the States; we are going
to try to get the Federal Government out of the classroom so that our
teachers can have more time to teach. He quickly became a champion in
the Senate and helped garner bipartisan support.
Now, this is the way things should work. That bill, the Every Student
Succeeds Act, then passed the Senate 81-17 and went to a conference
committee, all because of the influence of this incredible man. When
that version then came back to the House, I am standing right there
looking at our ranking member, and that bill passed in this House 359-
64.
I had never seen anything like that, Johnny, and it is all owed to
you, and the impact on education is going to be felt throughout this
Nation. It is quite a difference, and it shows the depths of your
influence in these Halls of Congress.
And, of course, throughout your service, you have demonstrated the
true meaning of servant leadership by always putting the needs and
priorities of Georgia first. In fact, the greatest servant leader in
history said: There is no greater love than to give your life for a
friend. You have given a big part your life to this country, and we are
thankful for it.
As someone who came from the business world but had not served in
public office before, I am thankful for your leadership. Georgia has
been named the best State to do business in for the last 7 years, and
it is no coincidence that you had a lot to do with it.
I know that I can always call on you for sound advice and guidance.
Even though you are retiring this year, I hope you know that we will
still be reaching out to you for advice. We will deeply miss you and
your impact, and it will be missed for generations to come.
There is no doubt that Georgia has big shoes to fill, and I think our
delegation is up to the task, which is a testimony to your leadership
and an example to me and my colleagues.
Johnny, please know that we will do our best to make you proud and
honor your legacy. Robin and I wish you and Dianne all the best during
this next chapter in your life.
God bless you and your family.
Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman
from Georgia (Mr. Ferguson), my colleague, a fellow Bulldog and Georgia
Beta alumni.
Mr. FERGUSON. Senator Isakson--that feels a little formal saying it.
Johnny, as a constituent, is how I know you. I want to thank you so
much for your dedicated service to our State.
As others have talked about their first meeting with you, I remember
mine fondly. Not unlike my colleague, Mr. Graves, it was at the
University of Georgia. I was a freshman, sitting on the steps of a
fraternity house, completely clueless about the world, not having an
understanding, self-absorbed.
I remember sitting on the steps as you came--I had no idea who you
were--and you talked to us about a brighter future. You talked to us
about what it meant to be a Georgian.
{time} 1630
I remember, when you left, thinking two things from that moment, the
first is: That is maybe the nicest person that I have ever heard from
in my entire life.
Secondly, I was pretty touched that someone was looking out for my
future that didn't even know me.
Over the years as I watched you and began to follow you, I saw that
play out firsthand. I saw how important the State of Georgia was to
you, and what made it important was the millions of Georgians that you
love and care about; the ones that you don't know; the ones that you do
know; and the ones that are yet to come.
Your unwavering commitment to make our State and this Nation a better
place for all of us is something that can never be forgotten.
You have set a standard for being a gentleman and a statesman that we
should all follow. It is pretty remarkable that we, as the Georgia
delegation, are getting to sit here today and not only speak to you,
but our dear colleague, John Lewis, as well. Because many of those
same things that we say about you, we have to say about our colleague,
Mr. Lewis.
There is a genuine love for our Georgians, a sense of decency, a
sense of optimism, the desire for a bright future. All of those things
come through, not just in your words, but in your actions.
I want to thank you for your 40 years of service to making our lives
better. I am not exactly sure what piece of legislation you took up
shortly after you met me, and I had the chance to meet you and heard
from you on the steps of a fraternity house in Athens, Georgia, but I
feel confident that whatever it was, it made my life better many years
later. I thank the gentleman for that.
We ask that God continue to bless you and Dianne and know that we owe
you a debt of gratitude that we will never be able to repay. Thank you
and God bless you.
Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, in the last few minutes,
I want to thank all of my colleagues who joined us this afternoon,
especially John Lewis, another icon from Georgia.
Certainly, America and the world are better off because of both of
these men. I think the strong bipartisan presence here lends to the
extraordinary impact that Senator Isakson has had on our delegation and
the great respect that we have for his service to our State and our
Nation.
Senator Isakson, I have been told that I can't call you Johnny on the
floor, but if I could, I would say: Johnny, we love you. Thank you for
your service to the great State of Georgia. America and the world are
better places because of the service that you have provided to our
Nation and your fellow man.
Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
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