[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 202 (Tuesday, December 1, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Page S7128]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                       Tribute to Martha McSally

  Mr. President, on one final matter, every other December we have the 
difficult task of saying farewell to some of our colleagues. Today, I 
want to say a few words about our friend from Arizona, Senator McSally, 
whose successor, I believe, will be sworn into office tomorrow.
  Before she was Senator McSally or Congresswoman McSally, she was 
known as Colonel McSally--a dedicated, courageous, and extremely 
talented Air Force pilot.
  During her 26-year career in the Air Force, she made a habit out of 
breaking barriers and became the first woman in U.S. history to fly a 
fighter jet in combat.
  But those of us who know Senator McSally can say--and certainly her 
incredible staff can attest to this--that she is not one to rest on her 
laurels. She was always pushing herself and those around her to aim 
higher, to do better, to work harder. So it is no surprise she became 
the first woman ever to command a fighter squadron in the Air Force.
  Her arrival in the Senate brought with it a wealth of knowledge and 
experience on many issues that are important to our work here, 
particularly those surrounding the military and veterans, and Senator 
McSally has been a fierce and unyielding advocate for all of our 
servicemembers and veterans and their families.
  As a member of the Armed Services Committee, she has played a 
critical role in developing major legislation to support them, such as 
the National Defense Authorization Act, which I mentioned earlier.
  But she has also been a champion to our servicemembers through lesser 
known but still very important legislation. Last month, President Trump 
signed a bill she introduced to improve mental health delivery for 
veterans and to help those who are suffering from post-traumatic stress 
disorder to receive the treatment they need.
  Over the last 2 years, I have enjoyed working with Senator McSally on 
a number of shared priorities. Both of our home States were devastated 
by mass shootings, and we introduced legislation to reduce that sort of 
horrific violence and to prevent more communities from experiencing 
these tragedies. Of course, we are both Senators from border States, so 
you can imagine that we have worked together to improve border security 
along our southern border and ensure that trade and the good parts of 
having a common border with our southern neighbor remain effective and 
efficient. Once COVID-19 hit, we teamed up on legislation to protect 
the healthcare workers who lost their jobs during the pandemic.
  Senator McSally has continuously fought for change, both big and 
small, to improve the lives of her constituents in Arizona and to 
strengthen our national security. We will miss this dedicated friend 
and colleague, but I know her work is far from finished. I have no 
doubt that Senator McSally will remain a strong voice for Arizonans and 
an unshakable advocate for our servicemembers and veterans. We are 
grateful for her lifelong service to our country, and I am eager to see 
the ways that Senator McSally will continue to make her home State 
proud and make the American people's lives just a little bit better 
each day.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. PORTMAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.