[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Pages 17076-17077]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         FAREWELL TO THE SENATE

  Mr. KOHL. Mr. President, I rise for one final time to address the 
Senate. My remarks will be brief. Actually, I just want to say one 
thing: Thank you. I wish I could say it with the eloquence of one of my 
first friends in the Senate, Senator Dale Bumpers, who told his stories 
and always made his case pacing these aisles like a lion tethered to a 
specially made, extra long microphone cord, or with the breadth of 
vision of the late Senator Robert C. Byrd, who sprinkled his classic 
Mother's Day or Fourth of July speeches with memorized poetry and his 
vast command of history, or with the fire of my dear friend, the late 
Senator Ted Kennedy, who would bellow to the rafters his passion for 
the America that could be and then call on the Senate to make it so.
  What a privilege it has been to serve with such men and so many other 
men and women who have made up this body over the last 24 years. You 
have been my friends, advisers, sometimes adversaries, always worthy, 
and my inspiration. I thank you. My colleagues in this body are, to a 
man or a woman, thoughtful, hard-working patriots. We do not always 
agree, understandably. But every Senator I have met is pursuing a 
course he or she believes is best for the Nation and advocating 
policies he or she believes are best for their States.
  When I have come to any of you with my ideas about what is best for 
the Nation or my State, you have listened respectfully, counseled 
wisely, and helped whenever you could, and so I thank you.
  The Senate is often referred to as a family, and that is certainly 
how I feel about my staff, many of whom are gathering today to say our 
goodbyes. Perhaps what I will miss the most on leaving the Senate is 
coming to work every day in Washington and in Wisconsin with such a 
bright, creative, and dedicated group of people constantly focused on 
what is best for our Nation and my State, challenging and pushing me to 
be the best Senator I could be. You cannot be a cynic about the future 
of this country when you work in an office such as mine and have the 
privilege to interact with generations of intelligent, civic-minded, 
and loyal staffers.
  I thank them all for making a hard job not just easy but enjoyable 
and for serving the people of Wisconsin tirelessly and exceedingly 
well.
  My final thanks go to the extraordinary people of Wisconsin. Thank 
you for letting me pay back, in part, the great debt my family owes to 
the State that took in my immigrant mother and father and allowed our 
family, including my brothers, Sidney and Allen, and our sister 
Dolores, to grow and thrive. Thank you for taking a chance on me in 
that first election 24 years ago and renewing my contract three more 
times. Thank you for trusting me with your problems and concerns, your 
hopes and dreams.
  Please know we have listened to you carefully and fought for you 
always. Every Wisconsinite who wanted it, Democrat or Republican, rich 
or poor, farmer or city dweller, got full consideration in my office. 
Whether it was arranging a Capitol tour, finding a lost Social Security 
check, pushing for legislation to reform the Federal dairy program or 
reviving the shipbuilding industry in Marinette, WI, every Wisconsinite 
had an ally and an advocate in us.
  It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve these 24 years in 
this hallowed institution, alongside my fellow Senators and my staff 
and as the voice for the people of Wisconsin. For that, I thank you all 
one last time.
  I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Brown of Ohio). Without objection, it is 
so ordered.
  Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, with the close of the 112th Congress, our 
good friend and colleague Senator Herb Kohl is retiring after four 
terms of dedicated service to this body, the people of Wisconsin and 
the United States. As a Senator, Herb Kohl has shown the same 
dedication and work ethic that previously allowed him to build his 
family-owned business into a nationally known brand name. Indeed, 
during his 24 years in this body, he has been a classic workhorse 
Senator, as opposed to a show horse Senator. Few Senators have been 
more willing to shun the limelight and share the credit in order to get 
important things done for the people of this country.
  Senator Kohl is also a proud and principled progressive. His work in 
the Senate brings to mind the great words of the late Senator Hubert 
Humphrey:

       The moral test of government is how its government treats 
     those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who 
     are in the twilight of life, the elderly; and those who are 
     in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy and the 
     handicapped.

  Senator Kohl has been respected as a leading advocate on children's 
issues. For instance, he authored legislation to expand the school 
breakfast program and has been a strong supporter of child nutrition 
programs. He also authored legislation requiring that handguns be sold 
with separate child safety locks.
  Of course, as chair of the Special Committee on Aging, he has led the 
charge in the Senate on issues affecting older Americans, something 
especially important in my State of Iowa.
  In particular, I salute Senator Kohl for authoring the Physician 
Payment Sunshine Act, which was included in the Affordable Care Act. 
The Sunshine Act, which was the focus of a series of hearings chaired 
by Senator Kohl, will

[[Page 17077]]

require transparency and disclosure on payments made to doctors and 
surgeons by drug and medical device companies.
  Senator Kohl has been our leader in improving the safety and quality 
of nursing homes, ensuring criminal background checks for employees in 
nursing homes, and working with CMS to institute new and meaningful 
quality ratings for nursing homes.
  Senator Kohl and I worked together, in my capacity as chair of the 
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, on legislative reform 
of the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation and its outside board.
  Senator Kohl also deserves enormous credit for his committee's 
indepth hearings and reports identifying financial scams and abuses 
targeting seniors and the elderly.
  Herb Kohl is a good friend, and he has been an outstanding Senator. 
He has accomplished many things during his four terms in the Senate. 
But I can think of no greater accolade than to say, simply, that Herb 
Kohl is a good, decent, honorable person with a passion for social and 
economic justice and a determination to make life better for ordinary 
Americans.
  I join with the entire Senate family in wishing Herb the very best in 
the years ahead.

                          ____________________