[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 181 (Thursday, November 2, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Page S5328]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                        Tribute to Cameron Joost

  Ms. DUCKWORTH. Mr. President, I have come to the floor today to honor 
one of the fiercest advocates for Illinois I have ever known: Cameron 
Joost.
  I have had the privilege of working with Cameron for the past 7 years 
now, and over that time, she has been my State director, my campaign 
manager, my sounding board, and perhaps most importantly, my friend.
  It is hard to find the words to express what Cam has meant to both my 
office and to me. She is an expert in everything from the nuanced 
politics of Illinois's smallest towns to the full range of Hill House 
Home nap dresses. She can tell you every detail of how the latest bill 
for a vote here in DC will affect Chicagoans, and she can plan the most 
frenetically perfect campaign RV tour that Illinois has ever seen, with 
10 passengers on board ranging in age from 4 to 81 and lasting over 2 
weeks. Most of all, she is our team's moral compass.
  You know, all too often, when people think of American service, they 
only think of military service, but the truth is, service in this 
country isn't just limited to picking up a rifle to defend our 
democracy. American service also means picking up a soup spoon to feed 
the less fortunate, a hammer to rebuild a home destroyed by a wildfire, 
or, in a Cam's case, picking up a pen and notebook and going to work 
day after day, trying to better the lives of all those who call 
Illinois home. It means striving to ensure that they access the 
healthcare, education, SNAP benefits--you name it--that they deserve; 
pushing to help families recover from flooding on the Mississippi 
River; to help parents in Cairo get access to the safe, affordable 
housing their kids deserve; to help reunite Afghan refugees with their 
loved ones. She is ever-dedicated to serving others in every way she 
could.
  Through it all, she has had one enduring trait: She is a problem-
solver. I will never forget the first day I met her. President Obama 
was flying back to Springfield to deliver a speech, and I was lucky 
enough to catch a ride on Air Force One with the President and a few 
other Members of the Illinois delegation. But one thing that I knew and 
my colleagues did not was that it was just a one-way ticket on Air 
Force One. They were not flying us back, which no one else except for 
myself realized.
  So one by one, my colleagues came up to me in the Illinois State 
Senate chamber, and they asked if I knew that Air Force One wasn't 
going back to DC and did I know how I was going to get back to DC. 
``Making the 2-hour drive to St. Louis for a commercial flight,'' I 
told them. One by one, my colleagues followed up with ``Oh. Well, in 
that case, can I catch a ride with you?'' Of course I said yes, but I 
wasn't the one in charge of logistics or the driving. My scheduler in 
DC quickly reached out to one of our brandnew staffers. It was actually 
this staffer's first day on the job, but she was based nearby, and she 
had a car, a Toyota Corolla.
  That was how Cameron Joost learned that not only would she be meeting 
me for the first time that afternoon, but she would also be in charge 
of driving four Members of Congress--or roughly a quarter of the entire 
Illinois House delegation--the 100 miles across State lines. And, oh 
yeah, it was in the middle of a snowstorm, and we were all the female 
Members of the delegation. Somehow, she got us there. Somehow, she 
didn't lose a single one of us. And we didn't make it easy for her. 
That tells you a lot of what you need to know about Cam--nerves of 
steel. She can handle whatever you throw at her, always doing so with 
the best of intentions and biggest of smiles.
  In the next few weeks, Cam will move on to help lead Illinois' 
Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, where she will 
continue a career-long mission of looking out for others. While I am 
sad our office will no longer have Cam to ourselves, I am so, so 
excited to see all the good she is about to do in Springfield.
  Cam, I could go on for hours about all you accomplished as our State 
director. Please just know this: You have made a difference. You have 
changed lives. And you have probably saved lives through your efforts. 
Through your leadership, countless veterans have received the vital 
healthcare and benefits they have earned, and countless families have 
gotten Social Security checks they desperately needed or have been 
reunited with loved ones who were stranded across borders or have 
gained access to a hot meal or a warm bed.
  You have made Illinois proud. You made us all proud. I will miss you 
dearly, but I can't wait to follow your next steps--no longer as your 
boss but as your biggest fan. And I hope you will forever be willing to 
give me a ride in the middle of a snowstorm.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. LANKFORD. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.