[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 105 (Wednesday, June 16, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S4586]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        REMEMBERING JIM BUNNING

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, 57 years ago on Father's Day, 1964, 
future U.S. Senator from Kentucky Jim Bunning pitched the perfect 
game--the seventh in Major League Baseball history--for a 6-0 win by 
the Philadelphia Phillies over the New York Mets. Jim would have been 
90 years old this summer, and in recognition of his legendary career in 
baseball and politics, the Behringer-Crawford Museum in Covington, 
Kentucky is celebrating his life with an exhibit running from this 
Father's Day until August. Today, I recognize Senator Jim Bunning as an 
outstanding Kentuckian and a lifelong champion on both the pitcher's 
mound and the Senate floor.
  It is fitting that Jim would be honored at the Behringer-Crawford 
Museum, which has celebrated everything great about northern Kentucky 
for over 70 years. The exhibit, entitled ``From the Mound to the 
Hill,'' encapsulates the essence of Jim's life as an all-around 
Kentucky hero. It is rare that leaders are able to excel in one, let 
alone two, fields, but Jim earned acclaim with grit, determination, and 
tenacity.
  After his prodigious, 17-year baseball career with the Tigers and the 
Phillies, which included 224 wins and 2,855 strikeouts, Jim returned 
home to Campbell County to serve at all levels of local, State, and 
national government. He dedicated his life to the people of Kentucky, 
and our gratitude for his public service is apparent in tributes like 
the one at the Behringer-Crawford Museum.
  I served with Jim in the Senate for his entire tenure and was proud 
to work alongside a man of deep conviction and strongly held 
principles. As he once said, ``I have been booed by 60,000 fans in 
Yankee Stadium, standing alone on the mound, so I never cared if I 
stood alone in Congress, as long as I stood by my beliefs and my 
values.'' Jim was never afraid to defend his ideals and fight for 
Kentuckians in the Senate, a trait his constituents wholeheartedly 
admired. He truly deserves his place in the Hall of Fame, not just for 
baseball, but for life.
  No commemoration of Jim would be complete without also honoring his 
wife Mary, a truly remarkable woman who led her own admirable life.
  The Northern Kentucky Tribune highlighted the Behringer-Crawford 
Museum's exhibit in a recent article. I ask unanimous consent that the 
article be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

             [From Northern Kentucky Tribune, June 9, 2021]

 Behringer-Crawford Museum Exhibit Chronicles Dual Career of Baseball 
                     Star, U.S. Senator Jim Bunning

       It will be 57 years to the day. Father's Day, Sunday, June 
     21, 1964.
       That's the day Northern Kentucky's Jim Bunning, a member of 
     the Philadelphia Phillies, pitched the seventh perfect game 
     in major league history--a 6-0 win over the New York Mets at 
     Shea Stadium.
       It was the first perfect game in the National League since 
     1880 and Bunning's second no-hitter. His first came as a 
     member of the Detroit Tigers on July 20, 1958, against the 
     Boston Red Sox.
       Behringer-Crawford Museum's From the Mound to the Hill 
     exhibit, a pictorial history of the baseball life of 
     Southgate's Jim Bunning, is on display now through August. 
     Rex Morgan, a life-long friend of Bunning, donated the 
     material to the museum.
       ``Jim Bunning was truly a local hero,'' said Jason French, 
     curator of exhibits at Behringer-Crawford Museum. ``When we 
     were given the opportunity to display such an extensive 
     collection of Bunning memorabilia, it was less of a question 
     of `if' than `when.' We felt that the summer of his 90th year 
     would be a great way to honor his memory.'' Bunning was born 
     October 23, 1931.
       Bunning was the sole major league baseball athlete to be 
     elected to both the United States Senate and the National 
     Baseball Hall of Fame. He pitched from 1955 to 1971 for the 
     Tigers, Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates and Los Angeles Dodgers. 
     When he retired, he had the second-highest total career 
     strikeouts in major league history. He currently ranks 19th.
       A graduate of St. Xavier High School in Cincinnati in 1949, 
     Bunning received a bachelor's degree in economics from Xavier 
     University in 1953. He was elected to the Philadelphia 
     Phillies Baseball Wall of Fame in 1984, and in 1996, to the 
     Baseball Hall of Fame via the Veterans Committee. In 2001, 
     his uniform number, 14, was retired by the Phillies.
       After retiring from baseball, Bunning returned to his 
     native Northern Kentucky and was elected to the Fort Thomas 
     city council, then the Kentucky State Senate, in which he 
     served as minority leader. In 1986, Bunning was elected to 
     the United States House of Representatives from Kentucky's 
     4th congressional district and served in the House from 1987 
     to 1999. He was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1998 and served 
     two terms as the Republican junior senator. In July 2009, he 
     announced that he would not run for reelection in 2010. 
     Bunning gave his farewell speech to the Senate on December 9, 
     2010.
       ``When we were approached about being a permanent home to a 
     massive Jim Bunning memorabilia collection, there was little 
     chance that we were going to turn it down,'' French said. 
     ``Jim was such an icon and local legend. He did so much for 
     our community and was always there for Behringer-Crawford 
     Museum, too. Housing his collection is quite natural for us 
     and exemplifies our partnership with the Northern Kentucky 
     Sports Hall of Fame.''
       Hall of Fame members will be admitted to BCM free on 
     Saturday, June 19 to view the Mound to the Hill Jim Bunning 
     display, as well as adjunct displays featuring the Negro, 
     Cuban and Mexican leagues.
       Behringer-Crawford Museum opened to the public in 1950 as a 
     natural history museum based on the collections of William 
     Behringer, an avid collector, traveler, diarist and Covington 
     resident, featuring fossils, minerals, animal specimen and 
     other oddities from his world travels. It is the only museum 
     totally dedicated to the people, history, culture and art of 
     Northern Kentucky.
       Admission to the museum: $9 for adults, $8 for seniors 
     (over 60), $5 for children (3-17 years old) and free for 
     children under 3. Hours of operation are Tuesday through 
     Saturday, 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and Sunday, 1 to 3:30 p.m.

                          ____________________