[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 15]
[Senate]
[Page 20367]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        HONORING CAROLE GRUNBERG

  Mr. WYDEN. Today I honor Carole Grunberg for her years of service to 
me and to the Senate. Carole is retiring after serving as my 
legislative director for more than 10 years. In total, she has 16 years 
of Senate service along with more than a decade in the House of 
Representatives. I want to take this opportunity to talk about Carole 
and how much I appreciate everything she has done for the Nation, the 
State of Oregon, and me.
  When it comes to legislative directors, Carole was truly the gold 
standard. Her skills and ability to get things done were unsurpassed. 
She was a master at designing strategies to take a concept, develop it 
into legislation, and guide it through Congress to become law. And she 
pursued each of these efforts with passion and commitment until the 
legislation made it into the statute books.
  Known by many as one of this Nation's top ranked squash players, 
Carole brought that same competitive passion to the Senate's 
competitive marketplace of ideas and legislation. Keeping the Internet 
free of discriminatory taxes, recognizing electronic signatures as 
legally valid, protecting Oregon's vote by mail, retraining service 
workers displaced by trade, and our ongoing effort to end secret holds 
are just a few examples of initiatives Carole made into her personal 
quests.
  Carole also brought out the best in our entire legislative team, 
using an approach that was part den mother and part drill sergeant. She 
proudly described our legislative staff as the best on Capitol Hill and 
pushed them to meet that standard every day. But the same big, 
competitive heart that made Carole expect the best from herself and her 
staff also filled her with enormous compassion and a burning desire for 
justice.
  Carole always viewed the entire Wyden staff, from the most senior to 
the newest intern, as part of one team--Team Wyden. And she 
successfully marshaled all our staff in efforts ranging from shutting 
down Admiral Poindexter's Total Information Awareness Program, which 
basically would have involved holding every American upside down and 
shaking them to see if anything bad fell out, to crafting my fair flat 
tax bill to simplify and reform the Tax Code.
  Carole's team-building efforts extended well beyond the office. She 
organized and served as captain for a Wyden Team that ran the 195-mile 
relay race from Mt. Hood to the Oregon coast. As Carole saw it, there 
is no better way to build camaraderie than to have a bunch of sweaty 
runners crammed into a van together for 20 hours.
  For someone who is used to spending her spare time running marathons 
and winning national championship squash tournaments, I don't see 
Carole's retirement as a glidepath to the rocking chair. She has got 
too much energy and too much passion to sit on the sidelines for long. 
I know that she and her long-time partner--and fellow Senate veteran--
Kate Cudlipp, will be making certain that her skills and energy are put 
to good use. And in whatever she chooses to do, I know she will 
continue to shine.
  Again, I can't thank Carole enough for all she has done for me, my 
staff, the State of Oregon, and the Nation. She will always be my dear 
friend and a member of our Team Wyden family. I wish her all the best 
for the next chapter of her life.

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