[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 131 (Tuesday, July 27, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5092-S5093]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                         Remembering Mike Enzi

  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, I rise to speak about the life and legacy 
of our friend, Mike Enzi, and his sudden loss.
  I saw Mike via Zoom just last week at the Senate prayer breakfast. 
Mike got up a little earlier than the rest of us to be able to join us 
over the internet from Wyoming. But he liked participating in the 
prayer breakfast. And as we were reminded by some of our colleagues--I 
think Senator Lankford may have mentioned it--Mike could always be 
depended on if somebody was a last-minute cancellation, which happened 
from time to time.
  Of course, it had only been a matter of a few months since Mike had 
retired, marking the conclusion of a storied career in public service. 
Mike literally did it all. He served in the military and at every level 
of government, from the mayor's office in Gillette to the State 
legislature, to here in the U.S. Senate. And he always put the people 
of Wyoming first.
  Mike was pretty unique in this place because he never sought the 
spotlight. In many ways, it seemed like he was allergic to getting any 
sort of attention from the press or otherwise. Whether he was in the 
midst of a high-pressure negotiation or celebrating a big legislative 
victory, Mike did not run to the TV cameras or reporters in the 
hallways. He preferred to work quietly behind the scenes, effectively 
resolving differences in a quiet, thoughtful way. And once he 
succeeded, he didn't claim the credit for himself. He claimed credit 
for others.
  During Mike's 24 years in the Senate, he certainly had a lot of 
successes to celebrate, and he let me in on his winning formula not 
long after I got here. At the time, he and the liberal lion of the 
Senate, Teddy Kennedy, were chairman and ranking member of the Health, 
Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee. I think they may have swapped 
out as majorities changed; one became chairman, and the other became 
ranking member.
  But I asked him how Mike, the staunch Western conservative that he 
was, could work so productively with somebody who shared very different 
views. And he told me it is easy. It is the 80-20 rule. You are not 
going to agree or disagree with 100 percent of what someone has to say, 
but if you focus on the 20 percent or that that you will never agree 
on, you overlook the 80 percent that you can agree on.
  Well, as simple as it may sound, it is a winning formula for success 
here in the Senate, and more of us should practice the 80-20 rule. At a 
time when more attention is paid to what divides us than what unites 
us, I hope the legacy of Mike Enzi and the 80-20 rule will remain a 
constant in the Senate.
  As we honor the life and legacy of our good friend, Mike Enzi, there 
is another favorite saying of his that has been on my mind. He used to 
say: You have to have an attitude of gratitude.
  Well, Mike was always grateful--grateful to God, grateful to live in 
this great country, grateful to the people of Wyoming for the 
opportunity to serve them, and, of course, grateful for his

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wonderful family and their endless love and support.
  Sandy and I send our condolences to Mike's wife Diana, their 
children, grandchildren, and the entire Enzi clan. We are grateful to 
them that they shared their beloved patriarch with us for so many 
years.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Wyoming