[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 5]
[Senate]
[Pages 6356-6358]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         FAREWELL TO THE SENATE

  Mr. ENSIGN. Mr. President, I rise today to deliver a very difficult 
speech. This will be my farewell speech to the Senate. Serving as 
Nevada's 24th Senator has truly been the greatest professional 
privilege of my life. Growing up with a single mom in very humble 
surroundings, I simply never imagined that one day I would end up as a 
Member of such an august body.
  Unfortunately, the amazing experiences that stem from the more than 
10 years of my Senate service cannot be summed up in one single speech. 
I owe a humble thank you to many people who helped to get me here and 
who have helped me serve effectively, from campaign volunteers, staff, 
and donors, to some of the best people with whom I have ever worked, my 
Senate staff. I cannot thank you enough for the honor of the past many 
years. Each of you has helped me to achieve more than my individual 
talents alone could have ever accomplished. When I look back over my 
time, both here and in the House of Representatives, I am very proud of 
the many accomplishments that we together have been able to achieve. I 
wish to take a moment to mention a few.
  The beauty of the State of Nevada has been greatly enhanced and 
protected for the enjoyment of future generations because of my work in 
authoring the Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act and several 
other important lands bills. Because of these lands bills, Nevada has 
been able to keep over $3 billion that has been raised from land sales 
in southern Nevada. This is money that did not have to come out of the 
U.S. Treasury.
  In the past, BLM land; that is, the public land in Nevada, was 
exchanged for sensitive land around the State. But as a result of the 
lands bills we worked on, we were able to, instead, auction this BLM 
land, raising far more money for the State of Nevada than the land 
exchanges ever were able to do. This land revenue has been used to 
purchase sensitive land to protect it for future generations, but also 
to construct over 100 beautiful parks and trails in southern Nevada. I 
cannot tell you how proud I am when I drive around Las Vegas and see so 
many families enjoying these beautiful areas. These lands bills have 
made the great quality of life we enjoy in Nevada that much better.
  Additionally, for those in northern Nevada, my love for Lake Tahoe 
has been evident throughout the years. I have worked hard to ensure 
that the beauty of those tranquil waters and surroundings will be just 
as beautiful decades from now as they are today,

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and our lands bills helped to achieve this goal. Through this 
legislation, hundreds of millions of dollars have been devoted to 
preserve its ecosystem, and important fuel reduction projects around 
our State will help prevent catastrophic wildfires that so threaten the 
future of our State and its breathtaking landscape.
  Additionally, I have been a passionate advocate for education reform. 
Our lands bills have directed millions of dollars to Nevada schools as 
an endowment our State will benefit from for many years yet to come. I 
thank Senators Reid and Bryan for their cooperation in helping draft 
this legislation that so greatly benefits our State. I also thank the 
folks on my staff, especially John Lopez, who worked so hard to turn 
these pieces of legislation into law.
  Speaking of legislation that became law, I wish also to highlight 
another accomplishment of which I am so proud.
  As the only bipartisan provision in the so-called ObamaCare bill, 
Senator Tom Carper and I worked against some powerful interest groups 
to get the Healthy Behaviors Act added to the health reform bill.
  Our provision was modeled after efforts by Safeway in the private 
sector to both improve health care quality and to reduce the cost of 
health care. Essentially, our provision rewards people in the form of 
lower health care premiums for making healthy choices, such as quitting 
smoking. If we as Americans continue to eat too much, exercise too 
little, and to smoke, it really does not matter what kind of health 
care reform we enact in this country; costs will continue to escalate. 
I hope this provision will highlight the individual contribution we can 
all make to reduce our health care costs.
  Certainly this legislation would not have become law if it were not 
for the spectacular job Michelle Spence from my office did. As I 
mentioned earlier, I simply cannot list the number of things or the 
number of people on my staff who have helped me with legislation. We 
have accomplished a lot. I wish I could do it in just one speech, but 
it is not possible. I could speak at length about my fight for lower 
taxes and individual freedoms, protection of constitutional rights, the 
dignity of our service men and women, education reform, and so much 
more, but there is not enough time. I hope my voting record and 
legislative record in the Senate will continue to speak for me long 
after I have left this Chamber. I would like to speak, though, about a 
few observations I have made through the course of my time here.
  When I first ran for office back in 1994, I was rather naive. I was 
also very idealistic. I simply wanted to make a difference in this 
great country. Throughout the years, I may have lost my naivete, but I 
never lost my idealism. I still strongly believe the United States is 
the greatest country in the history of the world, and it is worth 
fighting for and worth protecting.
  I will leave this place knowing there are some really outstanding 
people here who are just as idealistic or maybe more so than I ever 
was, and they are willing to take the tough political votes that are 
necessary to save this country from total bankruptcy. My prayer is that 
more people will join them in that courage. Our children and our 
grandchildren deserve to have the same country we enjoyed, and it is up 
to the House, the Senate, and the White House to stand together with 
the American people to save the future of the United States from self-
destruction.
  When I first arrived in the Senate, I observed several people who 
were so caught up in their own self-importance and busyness that 
arrogance literally dripped from them. Unfortunately, they were blind 
to it, and everyone could see it but them. When one takes a position of 
leadership, there is a very real danger of getting caught up in the 
hype surrounding that status. Oftentimes, the more power and prestige a 
person achieves, the more arrogant a person can become.
  As easy as it was for me to view this in other people, unfortunately, 
I was blind to how arrogant and self-centered I had become. I did not 
recognize that I thought mostly of myself. The worst part about this is 
that I even tried not to become caught up in my own self-importance. 
Unfortunately, the urge to believe in it was stronger than the power to 
fight it. This is how dangerous the feeling of power and adulation can 
be.
  My caution to all of my colleagues is to surround yourselves with 
people who will be honest with you about how you really are and what 
you are becoming, and then make them promise to not hold back no matter 
how much you may try to prevent them from telling you the truth. I wish 
I had done this sooner, but this is one of the hardest lessons I have 
had to learn. I believe that if I had learned this lesson earlier, I 
would have prevented myself from judging two of my colleagues when I 
had no place to do so.
  When I was chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, 
I was confronted with the personal issues facing Senator Larry Craig 
and Senator Ted Stevens. Following Larry's admission and Ted's guilty 
verdict, I too believed in the power of my leadership position, and I 
called on both of them to resign. I sincerely struggled with those 
decisions afterward, so much so that I went to each of them a few weeks 
afterward and admitted what I did was wrong, and I asked both of them 
for forgiveness. Each of these men was gracious enough to forgive me 
even though publicly I did not show them the same grace. I am very 
grateful to both of these men. When I announced my personal failure 2 
years ago, Larry Craig was one of the first to call and to express his 
support. I truly cannot tell you what that meant then and what it means 
to me today.
  The purpose of me speaking about this is to humbly show that in life 
a person understands mercy a lot more when they need it and when it is 
shown to them. Again, this is a hard lesson I have had to learn, but I 
hope I can now show mercy to people who come into my life who truly 
need it.
  As I conclude, I have a few others I want to thank.
  My colleague from the State of Nevada, Senator Reid. I ran against 
Senator Reid in 1998. He beat me by a little over 400 votes. Afterward, 
2 years later, when I was fortunate enough to win the election, Senator 
Reid and I sat down and we kind of made a pact between us that we were 
going to get along even though we were of different parties, we were 
going to put the past behind us, and we were going to work together for 
the people of the State of Nevada. A funny thing happened along the way 
over these last 10-plus years: Senator Reid and I developed a 
friendship--two people with opposite voting records, opposite views on 
major national issues, but we worked together on a lot of issues that 
affected our State. A friendship formed between our staffs, and a true 
friendship formed between Senator Reid and myself. And for that, I want 
to thank him.
  To my Senate colleagues, I would like to take a moment to apologize 
for what you have had to go through as a result of my actions. I know 
many of you were put in difficult situations because of me, and for 
that I sincerely apologize.
  My wife Darlene, who has been through so much with me and has fought 
through so many struggles, is owed more than I could ever repay. I do 
not deserve a woman like her, but I love her, and I am so grateful the 
Lord has put her in my life.
  Our children, Trevor, Siena, and Michael, have never known anything 
other than their dad leaving each week to come back to Washington, DC, 
for my work. All three of them are incredible, and it has been a 
blessing and a privilege just to be their dad.
  I have also been very blessed with a great set of parents who have 
stood by me through thick and thin, and also the rest of my extended 
family. I also have wonderful friends who have been there with me and 
my family through the highs and the lows.
  Lastly, most importantly, I want to thank God for allowing me to be 
here. I have been encouraged by some not to mention God because it 
looks hypocritical because of my own personal

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failings, but I would argue that I have not mentioned Him enough. I am 
glad the Lord not only forgives, but he actually likes it when we give 
Him thanks. So, Lord, thank You for all You have done in my life. I 
hope I can do better in the future. I hope I can learn to love You with 
all my heart, soul, and to love others as myself.
  My colleagues, I bid you farewell. Know that you will all be in my 
prayers.
  I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Blumenthal.) The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. DURBIN. I ask unanimous consent to speak as in morning business.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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