[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Pages 17103-17104]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     TRIBUTES TO DEPARTING SENATORS


                             Jeff Bingaman

  Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. President, I rise today with a difficult 
task: to honor a great Senator and a great friend, Senator Jeff 
Bingaman.
  This is difficult for two reasons. First, Senator Bingaman is not one 
to call attention to himself, and, second, he does so as briefly as 
possible. On both counts--let me just say now--I am going to fall 
short.
  Jeff is that rare combination of character--brilliant and humble. For 
Jeff, it is about the work, not about his own ego, not about a monument 
to himself. For three decades in the U.S. Senate, he has been making a 
difference, for the American people and for our home State of New 
Mexico.
  Public service is a noble profession--when it isn't swamped by money, 
when it isn't held hostage to hyperpartisanship. Jeff is the best 
example I know of the nobility of politics. The origin of the word 
``noble'' is ``nobilis''--well-known--from the latin ``noscere'' to 
come to know. Jeff, who is a scholar, probably knows that. I had to 
look it up. But, knowing, making sense of the world, using that 
knowledge to make the world a better place, that is what public service 
is supposed to do, and that is what Jeff Bingaman does.
  By Washington standards, Jeff is a man of few words. And when he 
comes to this floor to speak, we listen. If I am at my desk in my 
office, I will turn up the television, I will stop what I am doing, 
because I know that he will say something insightful, something worth 
knowing, something worth thinking about.
  When Jeff came to the Senate 30 years ago, this was a different 
place. There was a new President. There was a fierce battle of ideas, 
of ideology, of where the country needed to go. Principles did not 
matter any less then than they do now. But folks worked together. They 
clashed, but they also compromised.
  We all know what has happened since then. Washington has become more 
and more polarized. But, time and again, Jeff Bingaman has been a voice 
of reason, of doing what is best for our country--no grandstanding, 
just hard work, paying attention to details, getting problems solved, 
getting the job done. He is an inspiring role model.
  In his own quiet way, Jeff does something essential: He challenges us 
to think a little harder, look further down the road, see how we can 
move our country forward, not just today, but far into the future. He 
doesn't look for the limelight. He looks for solutions. And his 
accomplishments make for a very long list.
  He has been a truly great chairman of the Energy and Natural 
Resources Committee. He has done so much to protect our natural 
resources, to build a clean energy economy, for jobs, for the 
environment. I was proud to work with Jeff on the first renewable 
electricity standard in Congress. He led the Senate bill, and I led the 
House bill. And, as always, I learned from his example: steady, 
focused, and reasonable.
  We will continue to carry the torch on renewable and clean energy 
standards in Congress, following in his footsteps. But today, we can be 
proud that 30 States--including New Mexico--have enforceable renewable 
standards. Together, these cover the large majority of the U.S. 
population.
  Jeff also shepherded the Energy Policy Act of 2005, the first 
comprehensive energy bill in 13 years. a ``do it all'' energy bill that 
covered renewables, nuclear, clean coal, and oil and gas.
  And 2 years later, he took the lead in the Energy Independence and 
Security Act of 2007. That bill was an even more ambitious effort than 
2005. As the National Journal reported, it was ``the most sweeping 
energy efficiency legislation ever put into law.''
  On both of these bills, Jeff worked in a commendable, bipartisan 
fashion with Senator Domenici, a Republican from New Mexico. He also 
achieved these compromise bills with a Republican House in 2005, a 
Democratic House in 2007, and both were signed into law by Republican 
President George W. Bush.
  The public lands package of 2009 was another great achievement. Jeff 
reached across the aisle for compromise and protected 2 million acres 
in nine States as new wilderness areas, and more than 1,000 miles of 
rivers and streams--one of the greatest land protection laws ever. It 
will benefit generations to come, and it is part of the legacy of Jeff 
Bingaman.
  We are spending time these days debating the failings of the Senate, 
the gridlock, the partisanship. In contrast, Jeff's committee has been 
a leading light of cooperation and compromise. When other committees 
lost their bipartisan way, the Energy Committee kept steady. I believe 
the standard he set will shape future energy and natural resources 
policy in years to come. I hope it guides us next year.
  When this body has looked for answers, so often it has turned to 
Jeff. No surprise that he was one of the Gang of 6 to negotiate health 
care reform. When real solutions are on the agenda, Jeff will have a 
seat at the table.
  Jeff was also one of the key negotiators in the No Child Left Behind 
Act, and he pushed for the Technology for Education Act and the America 
COMPETES Act--raising standards for all students, increasing 
opportunity for all Americans. Because he knows that investments in 
education and technology and training are crucial, crucial for the jobs 
of the future, crucial for our country.
  Education, health care, jobs, energy, and the environment--Jeff has 
been a leader in all these areas. And what comes through over and over: 
he never

[[Page 17104]]

forgets the people who brought him here. He never forgets that what we 
do here is about families, is about communities, is about making a 
better future for our children and grandchildren. That is what drives 
him, and that is what has made him such a great Senator.
  One of the things I admire most about Jeff Bingaman is his courage. 
You know where he stands, and he is not afraid to go against the 
current. He was one of 23 Senators who voted against war with Iraq. As 
he said later: ``I think that was the right vote, but it was not a 
popular vote.''
  I have valued his counsel on many occasions. It has been an honor to 
serve with him. He is going to be missed--not just for his good humor, 
not just for his friendship, but, more importantly, for his character 
and wisdom. On both sides of the aisle, his absence will be felt.
  With typical humility, Jeff would be the first to say he has a great 
staff, and he does. When I first came to Congress, on the House side, 
Jeff and his staff reached out to me, and to my staff, always available 
to help, always ready to work together, to try and do what is best for 
our State and our Nation.
  And, finally, I know Jeff would also say, he could not have 
accomplished so much without the support of his amazing wife Anne. They 
met at Stanford Law School, and have walked side by side, equal 
partners, ever since. Anne Bingaman is as remarkable as her husband, 
and he would very likely insist more so.
  My dad once said that the measure of someone isn't about winning 
elections or awards or honors. It is what the people who know you best 
think about you. For those of us who know Jeff Bingaman, he is the real 
deal.
  Jeff Bingaman has lived a life of service--substantial, enduring, 
noble service. I have no doubt that--though he is leaving the Senate--
he will find other ways to serve, and New Mexico and our Nation will be 
the better for it.
  Jeff, thank you. Thank you for your leadership, for your friendship, 
and for your always wise counsel. As you and Anne begin a new chapter 
in your lives, Jill and I wish you the very best.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from New Mexico.
  Mr. BINGAMAN. Mr. President, let me thank my colleague, Senator 
Udall, for his overly generous comments and indicate that 30 or 40 
years from now when he retires from the Senate, I will be glad to make 
similar comments about his service. I could make similar comments about 
his service already based on the time he has served our State as 
attorney general and in the Congress and now in the Senate, but he does 
a tremendous job for New Mexico and for the entire country here, and it 
is an honor for me to get to serve with him. This will be 4 years that 
we will have completed as the two Senators from New Mexico, and it has 
been a great pleasure for me to have a good friend and a very capable 
Senator to work with. So I again appreciate the overly generous 
comments.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent 
that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mrs. Shaheen). Without objection, it is so 
ordered.
  Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Madam President, I spoke about Senator 
Bingaman. I know the Presiding Officer is on his committee and she 
feels the same way about him and all the work he has done. It is going 
to be a sad day for all of us when he exits at the end of this year, 
but he is a pretty remarkable leader.

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