[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Pages 17185-17187]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      REMEMBERING DANIEL K. INOUYE

  Mr. McCAIN. I thank the majority leader. Today, the Senate lost, 
America, and especially his beloved citizens of Hawaii lost a unique, 
brave, wonderful legislator, a man who brought to this institution the 
most unique credentials I would argue probably of anyone who has ever 
served in this pretty diverse body.
  Dan Inouye was born of Japanese parents who came to Hawaii, as many 
Japanese did in that period of time at the turn of the century, to work 
in the pineapple fields and agriculture, which was a fundamental of the 
economy for the State of Hawaii. Their conditions were not good. They 
worked hard. But they raised their families with pride, with dignity 
and honor, and were proud to call themselves Americans.
  Dan Inouye was as proud as any. As we know, one of the most shameful 
chapters of American history took place during World War II when an 
incredible act of injustice took place. The United States of America 
decided to intern Japanese Americans who lived in California. They were 
put into internment camps because they happened to be Japanese 
Americans, not because they had done anything wrong, not that they did 
not love America, but because they happened to be Japanese Americans. 
By the way, some of those internment camps were in my home State of 
Arizona. Conditions were not terrible, but they were not good. People 
were incarcerated because they happened to be ethnic Japanese.
  In Hawaii, there was a group of young Japanese Americans who decided 
that they wanted to serve their country and they wanted to serve in 
uniform. One of the most well-known and famous and most highly 
decorated units of the entire World War II was the battalion in which 
Dan Inouye served. They were in many of the most gruesome and difficult 
blood lettings of the entire conflict as the American forces fought 
their way up through Italy against a very well trained, very well 
equipped, professional German opposition. Dan Inouye was a proud member 
of this battalion. In fierce combat, Dan Inouye was gravely wounded on 
the battlefield. He was brought home. He, as we all know, lost his arm 
as a result of one of the wounds he sustained.
  Interestingly and coincidentally, he went to a veterans hospital in 
Chicago where a person in the same ward, was a American Army second 
lieutenant who had also been wounded seriously in Italy, one Bob Dole--
2LT Bob Dole of Kansas. And there began a friendship that lasted to 
this day, both gravely wounded, both dedicated more than ever to serve 
their country. Both served with distinction. The friendship, the bonds 
of friendship that were forged in that hospital between Bob Dole and 
Dan Inouye were unique and enduring.
  So Dan Inouye returned to his beloved Hawaii. The story goes--and I 
do

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not know if it is true or not--the story goes that a Dan Inouye went 
down to join the veterans organization, and when he applied for 
membership, he was told that the only members they took in that 
organization were Caucasian.
  Dan Inouye decided that he wanted to continue to serve his country 
and the State of Hawaii. He was the first Senator from the State of 
Hawaii and has served longer than any Senator in this institution. He 
was loved by all of us. I did not always agree with Dan. Occasionally, 
we had differences about how we use appropriations bills. No one--no 
one ever, ever accused Dan Inouye of partnership or unfairness.
  He loved Native Americans, and he loved his Hawaiians. One of the 
more rewarding periods of my time here in the Senate was being on the 
Indian Affairs Committee under his chairmanship. Very important pieces 
of legislation came out of that committee. It was a great honor for me 
to have the privilege to serve with Dan Inouye. He loved Native 
Americans. He knew that Native Americans had been wronged in our 
history. He knew that solemn treaties must be honored by our government 
even if those treaties sometimes meant that there would be significant 
expenditures of America's tax dollars.
  Have no doubt that our treatment of Native Americans and the 
treatment of Native Hawaiians is not the most glorious chapter in 
American history when we look back at what happened to the proud Native 
Americans, the Native Hawaiians as their civilization collided with the 
civilization that came to the United States of America from around the 
world.
  Dan Inouye fought for the things he believed in and the principles 
that he held dear. He held nothing more dear than the glory of being 
able to serve people who needed to be served.
  Dan Inouye will be missed. There will not be another like him. There 
will not be another Senator literally deprived of his rights. There 
will not be another Senator who will serve in length and with the 
dedication that Dan Inouye served this Senate and his beloved Hawaii. 
So we will all miss Dan Inouye. I hope from time to time, with the 
bitter partisanship that exists here sometimes in the Senate, maybe we 
could use Dan Inouye's record as an example of bipartisan, of 
friendship, of a willingness to reach across the aisle and work with 
the other side; it characterized Dan Inouye's record here in the 
Senate.
  For some reason, when I heard and thought about Dan's passing today, 
I was reminded of another person who died and is buried on the island 
of Samoa, and his poem is inscribed on his gravestone as an epitaph. I 
think it applies to our dear and beloved friend who passed today. It 
was by Robert Lewis Stevenson. I quote:

     Under the wide and starry sky,
     Dig the grave and let me lie.
     Glad did I live and gladly die,
     And I laid me down with a will.

     This be the verse you 'grave for me:
     Here he lies where he longed to be;
     Home is the sailor, home from the sea,
     And the hunter home from the hill.

  I see my dear and beloved friend, the other Senator from Hawaii, Dan 
Akaka, on the floor.
  I thank you, Danny, and God bless.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Hawaii.
  Mr. AKAKA. Madam President, it is very difficult for me to rise 
today-- with a heavy heart--to bid aloha to my good friend, colleague, 
and brother Dan Inouye. It is hard for me to believe that the terrible 
news I just received is true. Senator Inouye was a true patriot and an 
American hero in every sense, and he is at this time in Hawaii the 
greatest leader.
  He served his country as a soldier, receiving the highest honor our 
Nation can bestow. When we think of how he began to serve his Nation, 
it is difficult to believe the difficulty we had in Hawaii as Japanese 
Americans. To be a part of our Nation's military--we were denied. We 
were considered aliens of this country. But he was one of those who 
wanted to serve their country, and they went to the highest level to 
receive that dignity, and eventually they were given the honor to serve 
our country. As we now know, it became the greatest unit in military 
history, with the most decorations of any unit and also with the 
highest levels of decoration, of the Medal of Honor.
  He served as a leader, the third longest serving Member of the U.S. 
Senate in our Nation's history. He served as a defender of the people 
of this country, championing historic charges for civil rights, 
including the equal rights of women, Asian Americans, African 
Americans, and Native Hawaiians. It is an incredible understatement to 
call him an institution. This Chamber will never be the same without 
him.
  I remember, in our childhood in Hawaii, that Hawaii was a diversified 
place. Where I lived in Pauoa Valley, there were many Japanese families 
who lived around us. There were many nights that I spent sleeping in 
the homes of our Japanese families, ate their food, slept on the tatami 
on the floor, and I really was brought up with the Japanese families. 
So when the war broke out, I couldn't understand what was happening 
because there were families who were removed from the community, and, 
of course, at that time the Japanese American boys weren't allowed to 
be in the military, but they pursued it because they wanted to serve 
this country as well. This is why, in my time in Congress, I did focus 
on trying to help the Japanese Americans in this country and the Asians 
in this country as well and to help them achieve what they really 
earned.
  I remember seeking the Medal of Honor for the unit and for those who 
fought in World War II, and I provided the Pentagon with 100 names from 
these units. I was really surprised that there were finally 21 of them 
who were selected for the Medal of Honor, and Senator Inouye was one of 
them. But that showed that they were willing to give their lives for 
this country, and they did. Since then, he has continued to serve his 
country.
  We all used the G.I. bill to be educated in Hawaii. We went to the 
University of Hawaii, graduated from there, and went on to further 
degrees. They came back, in a sense, those who could help the 
communities, and became leaders.
  In the case of Danny Inouye, he was one of the ones who turned the 
tide in Hawaii politically since 1954, and by 1959 we became a State. 
Senator Inouye ran for office and was our first Member of the House. 
After one term, he moved to the Senate because Senator Long decided to 
retire. As a result, Senator Matsunaga was elected to the House and 
served the House and also the Senate as well, and he also was a member 
of the 100th infantry during World War II. But the Japanese Americans 
really served our country, and Danny Inouye is one of those great 
leaders in the history of this country.
  Through my career in Congress, I have been proud to be on Dan's team. 
We have worked on everything from appropriations to Native Hawaiian 
rights, to veterans and to defense. All of us in Hawaii looked up to 
him, and we are so sad to see him go.
  Danny Inouye leaves behind him a list of accomplishments unlikely to 
ever be paralleled. His lifelong dedication and hard work in the name 
of his beloved country, the United States of America, influenced every 
part of his life and set him apart, even in the Senate. He was a fierce 
advocate as a senior member of several committees, and the way he 
conducted himself commanded respect from all with whom he worked.
  His legacy is not only the loving family he leaves behind, it can be 
seen in every mile of every road in Hawaii, in every nature preserve 
and every facility that makes Hawaii a safer place. He fulfilled his 
dream of creating a better Hawaii. He gave us access to resources and 
facilities that the mainland States, I would say, took for granted.
  Tomorrow will be the first day since Hawaii became a State in 1959 
that Danny Inouye will not be representing us in Congress. Every child 
born in Hawaii will learn of Danny Inouye, a man who changed the 
islands forever.
  I join all of the people of Hawaii tonight in praying for his wife 
Irene, his son Ken, and his daughter-in-law Jessica; his stepdaughter 
Jennifer, and his grand-daughter Maggie, who really tickle his life. 
Whenever I had a chance

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to chat with him, we talked about Maggie. They brought him so much joy 
in his life and will carry his legacy forward.
  I am going to miss Dan, and so will all of us here in the Senate, and 
this great country will also. He represented a true American, and for 
us in Hawaii, he represented a true Hawaiian in Hawaii. He served 
Hawaii and this country well.
  Dan and I have worked so well together all these years. When I was in 
the House and on the Appropriations Committee there, we worked very 
well between the House and the Senate. Many of the renovations that 
have come about in Hawaii were because of Danny, and he really helped 
to shape Hawaii and this great country. He brought here on Earth a kind 
of life that people of our country and this world can follow to be 
great citizens of the world.
  Dan, my dear friend and colleague, you will be missed in Washington 
as much as you will be missed in Hawaii. Rest in peace. God bless you 
and your spirit.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Merkley). The Senator from North Carolina.

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