[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 4 (Wednesday, January 7, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Pages S70-S71]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO JOHN KEAST

  Mr. WICKER. Mr. President, this week, we began a new year's work here 
in the Congress. But as we open this chapter, I have a bittersweet task 
of helping to close another.
  Beside me sits John Patrick Keast, my longtime adviser and friend. In 
a few short days, John will conclude nearly two decades of service to 
my office, to the people of Mississippi, and to the United States of 
America. The U.S. Senate and the people we represent are better off 
because of John Keast and his work.
  For years, John has been beside me, through hearings, briefings, and 
meetings, at campaigns and community events, and during negotiations, 
decisions, and celebrations. Through it all, he has been a wise and 
steady presence. So, for a few minutes today, I want to commend his 
remarkable record of service.
  More than 30 years ago, a very young but wise John Keast came to work 
for an upstart who was running to represent Mississippi's First 
Congressional District. I hired John Keast to be my campaign manager. 
As he would do time and time again, John rose to the challenge and then 
some. Not only did we win the election that year, but John began 
absorbing in encyclopedic detail the ins and outs of Mississippi. This 
knowledge enabled him to serve our people well.
  Name a town in the First Congressional District of Mississippi, and 
John can tell you where to find the precinct boxes. List a few local 
issues, and John could tell you what he has done to help alleviate 
problems there. It is fitting that John will soon be settling down in 
the First Congressional District of Mississippi in Oxford.

  I mentioned John's outstanding recall and knowledge because John 
would never do that. And it is that combination of intelligence and 
humility that has proven so dynamic. John often told me that he likes 
to hire staff who are smarter than he is. I can say that for myself. It 
is easier for me to find staff that are smarter than I am. It is a 
little bit difficult and a tall order for John. He has the command of 
the nitty-gritty and of the big picture. He can go toe-to-toe with the 
best of the policy wonks, but he also knows what he doesn't know. He 
understands when to defer to the experts. That self-awareness is just 
what you want in an adviser.
  When John and I got to Washington, we were determined to make a 
difference. It was 1994, the first Republican majority in the House in 
40 years, the famous Republican Revolution. We were excited to fulfill 
our contract with America, as it was called. I remember it well, and so 
does John. We stayed in session for 93 days, managing to vote on every 
Contract with America item before the 100-day milestone.
  Somehow, I became president of the freshman class, and John was there 
every step of the way--brainstorming with me at Bullfeathers restaurant 
during new Member orientation, building an all-star team for the 
office, and advancing my priorities for north Mississippi. And what 
teams he has assembled over the years--there may be some of them in 
earshot of me today. That constitutes a network of John Keast friends 
and alumni, and they are accomplishing great things across this body, 
across this city, and in this country.
  I expect if we were to send each of them a pop quiz, most would be 
able to answer one question in particular, and that would be: What are 
the ``Four Ps of Success in Washington''? When John gives staffers 
guidance in DC, he tells them to focus on four areas. They should 
understand policy, process, politics, and people--policy, process, 
politics, and people, the four dynamics at work on Capitol Hill and in 
this city.
  John has earned every right to give his advice because he has been 
the embodiment of it. John is fluent in policy. John knows that we come 
to Washington to make good legislation and provide good oversight that 
benefits the American people. Name a portfolio, and John Keast has 
influenced it.
  In our days in the House, John was especially vital in my efforts to 
improve our energy resources, our roadways, and our national defense 
assets. Together, we fought to create jobs and commerce for hard-
working Americans.
  The world has changed a lot in 30 years. We no longer use the IBM 
Selectric correcting typewriters my office inherited when John and I 
were setting up shop in the House. The world continues to evolve 
rapidly. John has shaped policy that has and will maintain American 
leadership through all this change. Nowhere is this truer than in his 
leadership of my Commerce Committee staff and my Armed Services 
Committee staff.
  It is difficult to summarize John's success as staff director on 
these committees. He fought for legislation that brought well over $1 
billion in infrastructure and broadband funding to our State of 
Mississippi and across the country. His work on the CHIPS and Science 
Act, which I was proud to vote for, invested in the universities of 
America's heartland. Actions like these will help supercharge 
Mississippi's growth and development for decades, and you can say that 
for the entire heartland of our country.

[[Page S71]]

  We have had lofty goals on the Senate Armed Services Committee. We 
are charging ahead on America's military rebuild and on 
transformational acquisition reform and working toward the success of 
the AUKUS partnership, and we are helping Ukraine and Taiwan stand up 
to tyrants. We are making great strides on each of these efforts. John 
Keast has been integral to every one.
  We had another lofty goal in the Armed Services Committee: to build a 
member-driven National Defense Authorization Act and work it through 
the Senate in regular order and in the light of day. It takes a master 
of Senate process to accomplish that goal, and John has done so. He can 
cite Senate rules by chapter and verse. He can anticipate and maneuver 
through this body's complicated idiosyncratic process. That knowledge 
bore fruit in countless backstage victories. But for one prominent 
example, take this year's success in the Senate NDAA. We saw a 
remarkably efficient markup followed by primetime--daylight--floor 
votes. Unusual in this body.
  John pairs his procedural dexterity with 20/20 political vision. He 
understands that political realities shape what any individual Member 
can accomplish in Congress. John knows when to push in a negotiation 
and when to make difficult compromises. And that must take place in 
this bipartisan body. He has earned trust on both sides of the aisle. 
Both my colleagues and his fellow staffers know John to be a man of his 
word.
  John understands these first three dynamics--policy, process, 
politics--because at the end of the day, he understands the final 
``p''--people. John has formed strong relationships with the mayors, 
alderman, and city councilmen of north Mississippi, with industry 
leaders and entrepreneurs across the Nation, with lawmakers, Hill 
staff, administration officials, and most personally with all those 
fortunate enough to have worked with him on Team Wicker.
  His team members have been devoted and for good reason. John knows 
how to nurture talent. He takes time to show staff their skills and 
inspire them to greater heights. He sets a high bar and expects his 
team to meet it. When he hires someone, he gets out of the way and lets 
them excel. Those people skills have paid off. The policy results speak 
for themselves--the 30 years of policy results. But so does the 
outpouring of support John has received since announcing his departure. 
Many are here now and will be at future celebrations to honor him.
  As I speak about John today, I do not speak only for myself. My wife 
Gayle and I both will always be grateful for John Keast. My children 
will be grateful for the influence of John Keast. At so many pivotal 
moments, he has been a trusted and faithful friend, as well as a public 
servant. I know he will remain so. We look forward to seeing him often 
in Mississippi--I mentioned in Oxford, where he will reunite with his 
wife Virginia and their children Patrick, Grace, and Anna Kate.
  Until then, we remain and always will be grateful for this hero of 
public service, this great American patriot, John Keast.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Sheehy). The Senator from Tennessee.

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