[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Pages 16651-16652]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                            A NATION'S LOSS

  Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, Californians have been deeply saddened and 
moved by a number of losses we have faced. One involves the death of 
the senior member of our California Democratic delegation, George 
Brown, who was a beloved Congressman on both sides of the aisle. As a 
matter of fact, one of the Republicans in the House said on his 
passing, if everyone was like George Brown, we would not need to go on 
retreats to find out how to get along better with one another.
  George Brown was that kind of person. George was a man of great 
compassion, of great reason. He was consistent. He never changed his 
views according to the polls. He was a mentor

[[Page 16652]]

of mine when he ran for the Senate in 1970, which takes us back a long 
time. I very proudly worked on his campaign simply as a volunteer. He 
was an advocate for science and technology, and although he was 79 
years old, he was an ageless person. He had so many young ideas, and he 
was so future oriented.
  The Nation faced the tragedy that befell the Kennedy family once 
again with the tragic loss of John F. Kennedy, Jr., and his wife and 
her sister. The press was calling and asking for a comment. I said it 
truly is a tragedy beyond words. I think at times such as these all you 
can really do is pray that the family will be able to cope with a loss 
of such enormity.
  I particularly want to spend a moment talking about my colleague, Ted 
Kennedy, because after all the tragedies with which the family has had 
to deal, Ted has become a real father figure to the entire next 
generation of Kennedys. I know how Senator Kennedy teaches those of us 
who have not been here as long as he, how he monitors us and guides us.
  I can just imagine the close bond he had with John Kennedy, Jr., and 
what this has done to his heart. I know when he does come back, every 
one of us will give him our strength.
  When President Kennedy died, Robert Kennedy said the following. He 
said:

       When I think of President Kennedy, I think of what 
     Shakespeare said in Romeo and Juliet:

     When he shall die,
     take him and cut him out into stars
     and he shall make the face of heaven so fine
     that all the world will be in love with night
     and pay no worship to the garish sun.

  I think when we think of John Kennedy, Jr., we will think of him 
sharing in those bright stars.
  To close, I have a poem that was written by someone who is in her 
thirties. I think the words will have meaning for those who look to 
John, Jr., for their future. This is what it is called: ``If Only We 
Could Have Said Goodbye.''

     Our special son
     the namesake he
     of honorable tradition
     to serve our great country

     Passed down through generations
     of dedicated, determined souls
     He understood our devotion
     and carried with him a nation's hope

     This honor never did he shun
     In public he graced us well
     With patience he regaled us
     with tales
     Of hiding behind
     the Oval's chair,
     Or that indelible salute

     We mourned together his father's fate
     While marveling his mother's grace
     These traits were passed on to Kennedy's own
     to John, indeed

     Could he be the return of Camelot?
     We wondered
     and inside we cheered this Kennedy's fate
     with the wish that he could fulfill in his time
     those hopes left so unmade

     Or perhaps
     just share with us,
     a bit of the mystery, a bit of your name
     If only we could have said goodbye

  Mr. President, it is a sad day across this land. Our prayers are with 
the Kennedy family and the Bessette family.
  I thank the majority leader for yielding me this time.

                          ____________________