[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 8]
[Senate]
[Pages 11530-11532]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    REMEMBERING SENATOR CRAIG THOMAS

  Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, 1 year ago yesterday, the State of Wyoming 
and our Nation lost one of the great cowboys ever to ride this land. On 
June 4, 2007, Senator Craig Thomas, my senior Senator, my mentor, and 
most important of all, my friend, lost his battle with leukemia. I 
still expect to see him come in that door every time we vote and go 
over to the candy desk and get a piece of candy and come down to the 
well to visit with me.
  I can tell you right now, I feel him over my shoulder saying: You 
cannot let the Senator from Illinois get away with what he just said. 
That is what Craig would do. He used to do it from that desk right over 
there.
  Craig would have said that honesty, truth, and promises are virtues 
of the West. When you promise three circuit court judges, you deliver 
them. They did not deliver. That is why, yesterday, we weren't able to 
do the tributes that we are doing today.
  When it comes to the global warming issue, he would have said 
``gotcha'' politics doesn't have a place here. But that is what they 
are doing on issue after issue.
  How do you tell it is ``gotcha'' politics? If it didn't go to 
committee, it is ``gotcha'' politics. Oh, yes, they would argue that 
global warming went to committee. Well, a bill went to committee, but 
that is not the bill that we have shifted to. We have shifted to one 
that didn't go to committee. It is full of little landmines. That is 
not the way we used to do things around here. I know my friend, Craig, 
would have pointed that out. Both the cowboy and the marine in Craig 
Thomas would have been forced to point that out--to be honest, get the 
judges up; be honest, do the bills that go through the committee that 
everybody has a chance to amend.
  As Craig comes through the door, which he does in my mind all the 
time, I symbolically lift my hat to him, to celebrate the life of a 
great Senator.
  He was raised in Wapiti, WY. That is between Cody and Yellowstone 
Park. The school he went to now has about an 8-foot fence to keep 
grizzly bears out. Craig was so tough, they didn't need that fence when 
he went to school there. He was executive director of the Wyoming Farm 
Bureau, executive director of the Wyoming Rural Electric Association, 
he was a small businessman, a State legislator, a Member of the U.S 
House of Representatives, and a Senator. He was a marine at heart, but 
he was a cowboy in his soul. He was quiet. He was focused. He was 
tough. He was a staunch fiscal conservative. His life became a portrait 
of the American West. He preferred to see the world from the saddle of 
a horse and from under the brim of his cowboy hat, but he sacrificed 
much to serve us here.
  He was proud of Wyoming and our country, and we in Wyoming were proud 
to be represented by him. He encouraged vision, Mr. President, and, as 
you can tell, he still challenges me and, I think, you. The cowboy and 
marine in Craig made him a fierce fighter on behalf of Wyoming, and he 
approached his cancer no differently.
  I will never forget when I learned about my friend's passing. I was 
overcome with shock and heartbreak, but I also felt a sense of 
serenity, knowing that Craig was at peace.
  I can tell my colleagues that even a year later, not a day goes by 
without thoughts of memories of Craig passing my mind. I miss him. I 
miss him in this Senate Chamber. I miss him on the trail back home in 
Wyoming. I miss his camaraderie, his friendship, his leadership, and 
his unwavering commitment to the values and ideals of the people he 
served.
  Although a year has passed since Craig left us, his spirit is alive 
and it is felt by all of us within this body. Work he championed on 
behalf of Wyoming residents and all Americans is ongoing today. As a 
recent example, Craig was a staunch supporter of country-of-origin 
labeling. He saw it as a vital provision for our State's livestock 
producers, and I know he would be proud to see COOL finally passed as 
part of the farm bill. It is something we had been working on together 
for many years.
  Craig's spirit has also been remembered here on the Senate floor with 
the

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passage of a resolution designating July 26, 2008, National Day of the 
American Cowboy. Craig was the driving force behind the recognition of 
cowboys on a national scale for the past 3 years, and I am proud we 
have continued that tradition and are following in his footsteps.
  Known for his love of the outdoors and the cowboy way of life, 
Craig's name has been recognized in Wyoming through a number of 
dedications in the past year. The Department of Interior recently named 
a large area of public land the ``Craig Thomas Little Mountain Special 
Management Area.'' Now more than 69,000 acres of land surrounding the 
majestic Big Horn Mountains will be enjoyed and cherished by 
generations of Wyoming residents to come.
  Also, at Grand Teton National Park in Jackson, the new visitors 
center now bears his name and will help us always to remember Craig's 
dedication to the land he loved so much.
  His wife Susan, a close friend of mine and Diana's, continues to 
honor Craig's legacy every day in the work she does as well. She is a 
champion of the National Capital Chapter of the Leukemia and Lymphoma 
Society, raising money for research and fighting against the blood 
cancer that took her husband's life. She also created the Craig and 
Susan Thomas Foundation. It is a scholarship program for at-risk youth 
seeking to continue their education at a Wyoming institution of higher 
learning. Susan, throughout her whole life, worked with at-risk youth 
and is now continuing it with this memorial. The cause she has taken on 
embodies everything Craig stood for and believed in. Susan's efforts 
every day are a tribute to his memory, and that foundation is something 
in which we all can participate.
  Craig was a fine legislator, a dedicated public servant, and above 
all a kind, humble, and courageous man. With the heart of a marine and 
the soul of a cowboy, he worked tirelessly and selflessly for Wyoming.
  To my colleagues here today, I pray we never forget this man's legacy 
and the exceptional standard of public service he set for all of us--to 
serve the people with respect and integrity, always remembering it is 
of the utmost honor to serve. With a sense of humor, you will recall he 
always said, ``Don't squat with your spurs on,'' in his trademark 
western grace. Craig was the modern-day cowboy fighting for the 
principles that made this country great.
  Craig, I will never forget you. You are in my heart every day. We 
miss you, cowboy. Thank you for everything you have done for Wyoming 
and this great Nation. Ride on, my friend, ride on.
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Wyoming.
  Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I thank the minority leader, the 
assistant majority leader, and Wyoming's senior Senator for taking the 
time to remember a departed friend and an esteemed colleague.
  Wyoming's U.S. Senator Craig Thomas passed peacefully June 4, 2007, 1 
year ago this week. Craig was surrounded, as always, by his devoted 
wife Susan, by his family, and by close friends.
  Wyoming has lost a great man. We have lost many great men and women 
over the years, but Craig Thomas leaves behind a legacy equal to all of 
them. Yet Craig would be the first one to question that praise. Craig 
would say he was a common man, a typical cowboy who wanted simply to 
work hard and make a difference for the people of the place he loved. 
One year later, it is appropriate and right that we remember him again 
in the Senate and also in our own lives.
  Many of my colleagues joined us in my hometown of Casper, WY, to 
mourn Craig's passing. The words and presence of Senator Reid and 
Senator McConnell were especially meaningful to the people of Wyoming. 
President Bush and Vice President Cheney each extolled Craig's 
character and devotion to the Wyoming people and Wyoming places.
  But perhaps more to what Craig really meant to the people was the 
exceptional outpouring of very personal remembrances that followed his 
passing. In the halls of the U.S. Capitol, elevator operators, 
cashiers, janitors, office staff--each would say what a wonderful 
person Craig Thomas was. His staff, many of whom are now serving with 
me, speak about his kindness and the family character that was the 
hallmark in his office. It was Craig's nature.
  In Wyoming, from all walks of life, so many reflected their 
experiences with Craig that left each of their lives a little brighter. 
They recalled his loyalty and his commitment to their future, 
especially the young people.
  In Wyoming, after Craig's passing, folks in each town, in each 
community talked about the personal loss they felt. They wrote about it 
in newspapers and in messages left online because Craig gave so much of 
himself. Craig took time each day, every day to talk to you, to say 
hello, and not to simply pass by. He saw everyone, whoever you are.
  Because he gave his time to Wyoming and to this body and to 
individuals who needed help, he is remembered. He gave his passion, he 
gave his leadership, and his tireless energy to make this a better 
place.
  Ronald Reagan said:

       Some people wonder all their lives if they've made a 
     difference. The Marines don't have that problem.

  Craig was Wyoming's marine, and we will never need to wonder if he 
made a difference. Craig Thomas represented honor and dignity. Admired 
by those who knew him, he has given us a legacy of legislative 
accomplishment, a brilliant example of what one can do with a life 
lived with determination, with strength of character, and with vision.
  To Lexie, Peter, Greg, and Patrick, and all those amazing 
grandchildren, we again offer our most heartfelt condolences.
  Susan, today, like each day, we remember Craig for the great man he 
was and what he meant to Wyoming, for what he accomplished and how he 
did it, for what he taught us and how he touched so many.
  Susan has created the Craig and Susan Thomas Foundation. For all of 
those who miss Craig and want to see the great work in education that 
she is continuing, I invite you to go to her Web site, thomas-
foundation.com. It is important and lasting work in Wyoming that 
continues the Thomas legacy of making a difference one life at a time.
  To my Senate colleagues and to the people of Wyoming, remember--
remember that leadership takes courage, as Craig Thomas demonstrated in 
his remarkable life.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Wyoming.
  Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, I thank my fellow Senator from Wyoming for 
his comments and thank him for the way he has filled in and followed 
the legacy Senator Thomas began and the work he has done on the issues 
that were undone when Senator Thomas left us, his work on the Wyoming 
range and his work on the wild scenic rivers and also on our joint 
effort to make sure Richard Honecker gets a vote as a judge. That is a 
nomination Senator Thomas offered well before he left. In fact, he has 
been waiting around--not that I am keeping track--443 days. There has 
been no vote on him yet in committee, so we cannot vote on the 
nomination on the floor. This is an outstanding person, rated highly by 
everybody and letters of recommendations from both Democrats and 
Republicans in Wyoming who would really like to have a vote. So his 
life has been in suspension.
  I thank Senator Barrasso for the work he as done on that issue and 
the kind words about Senator Thomas, and I thank Senator Barrasso for 
filling in.
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Alabama.
  Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. President, I miss Craig Thomas. I loved him, and I 
wish I had told him that more explicitly. He is worthy of the ultimate 
comment and praise given in my area of the country: He was a good man. 
And he truly was. He combined strength and genuine modesty. He was wise 
and insightful on

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important issues without any show of pride or pomposity. He had 
integrity. He was a man's man. He was comfortable in his skin. He was a 
man of courage. Most especially, he was a man of principle, much like 
one of his heroes, Ronald Reagan.
  Craig was truly also a man of the West. It was in his bones. And he 
had in his very being a love for America and a deep understanding--
intellectual and intuitive--of its uniqueness, its exceptionalism, and 
why this country is so great. He understood that. His love for America 
caused him to dedicate his life to her, just as our soldiers and his 
fellow marines place their lives at risk this very moment in service to 
our country.
  I think that is why he undertook as part of his duties on this side 
to promote a policy principled message each morning in morning business 
on the floor. He did that for a number of years. He believed we ought 
to talk about the issues that made America great.
  Craig Thomas loved his country, he loved his wife Susan and his 
family. He loved Wyoming. Truly, he was a good man, and we do indeed 
miss him.
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Oklahoma.
  Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, let me first thank the Senator from Texas 
for allowing me to very briefly work in here.
  It happens that I was elected to the House and then to the Senate at 
the same time as Craig and Susan Thomas. And you know, sometimes you 
see someone for the first time and they have, as Senator Enzi pointed 
out, that infectious smile, and that was Craig. That was Craig. 
Everyone had to love Craig.
  I have thought of him so often during consideration of the bill that 
is on the floor now. Craig had such convictions, but he never quit 
smiling. What the guy could do is, he could say the same thing I would 
say and people would love him, but they wouldn't love me. I don't know 
how he got by with that, but he did.
  I picture him and where he would be today if he were here while we 
have a bill on the floor that has an increase in gas taxes, $6.7 
trillion of increases in taxes over the life of the bill, with job 
losses to China, and he wouldn't be sitting there, he would be up here. 
I applaud his replacement, the junior Senator from Wyoming, Senator 
Barrasso. Every time I turn around, he is coming down and saying 
exactly--exactly--what Craig would be saying.
  I would say this about Craig Thomas: He was always there at our 
Senate prayer breakfast every Wednesday morning. He was a Jesus guy, 
like we are, and so I don't feel the sadness a lot of people do with 
Craig Thomas, because I can only say right now: Craig, I know you are 
here with us, and we are going to see you later.
  I thank my colleague, and I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Texas.
  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, may I inquire how much time remains in 
morning business for this side of the aisle?
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator has 11\1/2\ minutes in 
the first 30 minutes.
  Mr. CORNYN. I thank the Chair.
  Mr. President, I join my colleagues in invoking the memory of Craig 
Thomas. On our side of the aisle, there was nobody more dependable, 
more loyal, or more of a team player. Whenever there was an important 
issue, particularly one concerning Wyoming or concerning energy, he 
would be down here talking about it and he would be enlightening the 
debate, and we miss him. I can't help but think he would be down here 
on this particular piece of legislation, as Senator Enzi has alluded, 
in talking about what is obviously a game of ``gotcha.''

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