[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 68 (Tuesday, April 26, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Page S2139]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                       Remembering Orrin G. Hatch

  Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, on Saturday, we lost a remarkable former 
colleague: Senator Orrin Hatch.
  Orrin rose from poverty to become one of the longest serving Senators 
in U.S. history and the longest serving Republican Senator ever. During 
his more than 40-year Senate career, he built a record of 
accomplishment that included landmark legislation like the Americans 
with Disabilities Act; the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act; and the Religious 
Freedom Restoration Act, which he authored with his close friend from 
across the aisle, Senator Ted Kennedy. At the time of Orrin's 
retirement, no Senator alive had had as many pieces of legislation 
signed into law.
  I was privileged to serve under Orrin's leadership at the Senate 
Finance Committee, one of three influential Senate committees that he 
chaired during his tenure in the Senate. In addition to being an 
outstanding legislator and a principled conservative, Orrin Hatch was 
also a cherished and good-humored colleague and a deeply kind human 
being. It is no surprise that his friendships spanned both sides of the 
aisle or that both the Democrat and Republican leaders paid tribute to 
him yesterday.
  Mr. President, I know I speak for more than myself when I say that I 
have missed his presence in the Senate. His death is a loss for our 
country and especially for his beloved State of Utah, which he served 
so faithfully and so well during his long career.
  My thoughts and prayers this week are with Orrin's wife of more than 
64 years, Elaine, with Orrin's six children, and with his dozens of 
grandchildren and great-grandchildren.