[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 13]
[Senate]
[Pages 17231-17236]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                  REMEMBERING SENATOR DANIEL K. INOUYE

  Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, I too rise to pay tribute to the great 
Senator Daniel Inouye.
  First, I want to express my deep and most heartfelt condolences to 
Senator Inouye's family, his wife Irene, his daughter Jennifer, his son 
Ken, Ken's wife Jessica, and their lovely little granddaughter Maggie. 
And to the people of Hawaii, also our condolences, because he loved 
them dearly, and they reciprocated by sending him time and time back to 
the Senate. I also want to express condolences to his very able and 
capable staff, the other Inouye family, many of whom were among the 
longest serving staff in the Senate, who were devoted to helping him 
help the people of Hawaii and helping the people of America. Hawaii and 
the Nation have lost a great hero and a true patriot, and I have lost a 
real good friend.
  Senator Inouye was one of the great men of the Senate who welcomed me 
and helped me get started when I first came to the Senate. It is well 
known that I was the first Democratic woman elected in her own right. 
When I came to the Senate there was only one other woman, Senator Nancy 
Kassebaum of Kansas. But I said this, and I say today, though I was the 
only Democratic woman, though I was all by myself: I was never alone 
because I had great men in the U.S. Senate who helped me get started 
and mentored me and taught me how to be an effective Senator.
  Senator Inouye was in a group of those men who in the warmest, most 
generous, most helpful way welcomed me to the U.S. Senate. He helped me 
get on the powerful Appropriations Committee. He was my teacher. He was 
my mentor.
  He also had a wonderful way of communicating with all of us. And as 
each new class of Senators--and each new class of women Senators 
arrived--he welcomed each and every one of us with the same warmth and 
generosity he showed to me.
  We have a saying among us, the women of the Senate, which is that men 
of quality always stand up for us women fighting for equality. And Dan 
Inouye was there every step of the way. When we wanted equal pay for 
equal work, he was there. When we wanted to be included in the 
protocols at NIH and establish an Office of Women's Health, he was 
there, issue after issue.
  Last year, I had the wonderful honor of traveling to the Middle East 
with Senator Inouye, and he admired the pin that I have on today. It is 
an eagle that many of the women in the Senate wear. There are those of 
various styles, of which we have a little collection. This one is from 
the Smithsonian. He said, I love it. It is so pretty. I want to get one 
for my wife.
  Well, I don't know if Senator Inouye ever got it for his wife Irene, 
but I say to my colleagues today, at an appropriate time, on behalf of 
the women of the U.S. Senate, I will present this pin to Mrs. Inouye in 
honor of her husband, our gift to her, because he gave so many gifts to 
us.
  He was a lion in the Senate, a real American hero. Although gentle in 
style, he was a fierce warrior when it came to fighting for his Nation 
or standing up for Hawaii.
  When he received his Medal of Honor, he was rising to the call of the 
sirens of Pearl Harbor, volunteering to serve his

[[Page 17232]]

country, putting aside his own dreams to be a physician. But he went on 
to be a healer of many wounds. He was decorated in World War II for 
saving his fellow soldiers.
  My experience with Senator Inouye as a friend was that he was a 
devoted, dedicated public servant. He was Hawaii's first representative 
of the Nation's newest State. He was the first person of Japanese 
heritage ever to be elected to the Senate. Imagine, he himself knew 
what it was like to break barriers and to break boundaries. When he 
came to the Senate, he cherished his love for Hawaii and its people. He 
fought tirelessly to improve their lives.
  His style was one of absolute civility. He was the one who believed 
that the decorum of the Senate enabled the Senate to do the people's 
business. He was the essence of civility, and he showed that often good 
manners was good politics, and that led to good politics. He did not 
argue the loudest; instead, he worked diligently. He marshaled his 
arguments and with quiet determination won the day.
  As a fellow appropriator, I saw that he loved his earmarks. He liked 
earmarks. And what did he do with those earmarks? I can tell you. He 
made sure that we looked out for Indian tribes. He made sure we looked 
out for the poorest of the poor in Hawaii. He cleaned up a superfund 
site that had been left by an old agricultural legacy. And he made sure 
that children who needed help were able to get the education they 
needed in a small community setting who might not have been able to do 
it.
  Yes, he was the old school. And it was the old school that should 
teach us a lesson or two.
  As a member of the Appropriations Committee for 41 years, he led us 
by example. He came in 1971 and became the chairman in 2009. Leading by 
example, he showed how we can accomplish great things by working 
together. He saw we could have a stronger country, a stronger economy, 
and yet have a sense of frugality. He treated the minority party with 
great respect.
  All have spoken about his legendary friendship with Senator Ted 
Stevens, another World War II hero. But now, as Senator Cochran, 
serving as the ranking member--he called him his vice chairman, and I 
know he was ready to reach out to Senator Shelby who assumed the role. 
He knew we needed the input of all Senators to not only enact our bills 
but to craft our bills.
  He also served as chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, the 
Indian Affairs Committee; he was the very first chairman of the Select 
Committee on Intelligence.
  There will be those who will read his resume. But when the history of 
Hawaii and this man is written, I hope they say he didn't come here to 
gain fame, he didn't come here to do press releases or to be on talk 
shows. He came here to govern. He came here to the U.S. Senate, having 
fought for his country in World War II while even members of his own 
family had been held in an internment camp because of their Japanese 
heritage. But he was loyal and faithful from the day he took his oath 
to defend the Constitution as a young private all the way to the day 
here now. He was a fierce defender of our military. For him, it was 
always about the troops. And he never forgot what it was like to be 
fighting in a foreign land. That is why he was devoted to our veterans 
and to our health care. And we are devoted to the memory of Senator 
Inouye.
  So to an old-school war hero, let us give our final salute and a fond 
aloha. But let's take the lessons learned from his great life and 
incorporate them in our very day here today.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Tennessee.
  Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, Senator Inouye told me a story which I 
wish to repeat for our colleagues.
  In 1973, George Gallup, the pollster, asked to come see him. This was 
at the height of the Watergate hearings. Back then, these 
investigations into President Nixon's Watergate break-in were consuming 
the country. Then there were only three major television networks, plus 
the Public Broadcasting System, and the Watergate hearings were 
televised from the Senate every single day, for several hours a day, on 
all four of those networks. So, almost everyone in the country watched 
the Watergate hearings for weeks. They got to know Sam Ervin, the 
chairman. They got to know Howard Baker, the ranking Republican. But 
George Gallup came to see Senator Inouye. And Senator Inouye said, I am 
glad to see you, but why do you come to see me?
  He said, Senator, who would you say is the most recognized person in 
the United States today? Senator Inouye said, Well, I am sure President 
Nixon is. And Gallup said, That is right. But the second most 
recognized person is Senator Dan Inouye.
  Inouye said, Well, how could that be? George Gallup said, Well, 
Senator, I suspect so many Americans have never seen a United States 
Senator of Japanese ancestry with one arm and a distinguished voice and 
presence, and you have made an indelible impression on the American 
people.
  That was 1973. That was a long time ago. Since then, Dan Inouye made 
an indelible impression on a great many people around the world, and 
especially on the 100 of us who serve here. He commanded our respect in 
a remarkable way, in part because of his service in the war.
  He and Bob Dole, our former colleague, were wounded at about the same 
time in Europe and were in the same hospital recovering from 
tremendously serious wounds. Of course, Senator Inouye was later 
awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for that.
  Senator Pryor was telling the story that when Senator Inouye was 
finally elected to Congress, he wrote Senator Dole a note and said, I 
am here, where are you? Because both of them, when they were recovering 
from their war wounds, had determined that one day they wanted to serve 
in the United States Congress. Inouye got here first.
  A few years ago, Senator Inouye and Senator Ted Stevens invited a 
number of us to go with them to China. It was quite an experience. 
Senator Stevens--of course, another World War II veteran--had flown the 
first cargo plane into what was then Peking, in 1944. Of course, 
Senator Inouye was well regarded in China for his service. So the group 
of Senators--there must have been a dozen of us of both parties--got 
more time with Mr. Hu and Mr. Wu, the No. 1 and 2 leaders of China, 
than the President of the United States nearly did. We were accorded 
every courtesy possible because of the presence of Senator Inouye and 
Senator Stevens. They were like brothers. They called one another 
brothers. They acted that way in private. They served that way in the 
Senate, as chairman and vice chairman of the Defense Appropriations 
Subcommittee. Over a number of decades, they singlehandedly shaped our 
American defense posture, and they did it with skill and patriotism and 
knowledge of our structure that very few could have.
  Several Senators mentioned how bipartisan Dan Inouye was. He was of 
the old school--not a bad school for today, in my point of view. He 
treated each Senator with courtesy, even the newer Senators. He treated 
each Senator with a sense of equality, even those who were in the 
minority and not on his side of the aisle. He was always fair, he was 
always courteous, and he always tried to do the right thing. He was a 
textbook U.S. Senator.
  He announced for reelection after his last election. I don't know his 
exact age at the time--maybe 85, 86. He will not be able to run for 
that reelection now that he is gone, but he will be well remembered.
  Not long ago, he spoke at our Wednesday morning Prayer Breakfast that 
we have here. Usually we have 20 or 30 Senators. On the day he spoke, 
we had maybe 60 or 70. We had Senators sitting on the windowsills, 
standing around the back, just to hear what he had to say. I won't 
repeat what he had to say because we don't talk about what goes on 
there in public except to say he talked about his war experiences--and 
in a quiet way. He stood there for 10 or 15 minutes and explained those 
experiences to us, most of whom had never had that sort of experience.

[[Page 17233]]

It gave us a new sense of him, and it increased our respect for him, if 
that could have been possible.
  I join with my colleagues to say Senator Dan Inouye was a patriot. He 
set the standard, really, for a U.S. Senator. He set the standard for a 
man or woman in our military fighting to defend his or her country. And 
he set the standard as an individual who showed courtesy to everyone he 
met. We will miss him. We honor him. And we give his family our 
expressions of grief, but, more important, our great respect for our 
colleague who today is gone.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Alaska.
  Mr. BEGICH. Mr. President, I ask consent to speak until my comments 
are completed.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. BEGICH. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to a mentor of 
mine in the Senate, Senator Daniel Inouye. The histories of my State 
and Senator Inouye's are closely connected. We both entered the Union 
at the same time, in 1959. As a matter of fact, I know as a kid growing 
up I was not sure if we had two Senators or three Senators because 
Senator Inouye's name was so well known throughout Alaska.
  When our States were entered in 1959, there was opposition to both of 
us becoming States, but we have proven our opponents wrong. Thanks to 
Daniel Inouye, Hawaii has become a modern, prosperous State. Many 
Alaskans have a special fondness for the 50th State, especially, I have 
to say, at this time of the year when it is 40 below in Fairbanks.
  Daniel Inouye began his public career and service at the age of 17 
when he entered the Army after the attacks on Pearl Harbor. He served 
with incredible distinction, earning the Nation's highest medal for 
action in Italy. As a Member of the Senate, Senator Inouye continued 
his fierce defense of his State and his partnership with Alaska.
  My predecessor, Alaska Senator Ted Stevens, knew Senator Inouye as 
his brother. They worked together and produced much good for both our 
States that will last for generations.
  When I was elected to this office, Senator Inouye was one of the 
first Members to reach out to me to ask how he could help. The unique 
thing about Senator Inouye was always his quiet approach to all the 
issues. He provided me quiet advice and helped me learn how this place 
works. Many times I would be down in the well waiting for the vote to 
be tallied and Members to vote, and Senator Inouye would come in, stand 
at the edge there, and look up and just say: How is it going, Alaska? 
We would have a brief conversation. Usually his words would have 
incredible insight. They may not even have been relevant to the topic 
we were voting on, but he would say something to me about something he 
knew I was working on and just share a few words.
  I know the first people of Alaska will especially remember him for 
his dedication to their success. He met with Alaskan Native peoples 
during their visits to Washington as often--and I would say even more 
often--as the Alaskan Members of the House and Senate. They made a 
point to stop by his office on a regular occasion to talk to him about 
what happened in the past and what was going on today and what they 
looked for in the future.
  Earlier this year, Senator Inouye was in Alaska at my invitation--his 
last trip to Alaska. He told a memorable story about his support of the 
trans-Alaska oil pipeline, which was controversial when he supported it 
and its construction. Senator Inouye has a unique style of how to tell 
stories. You have to just pay attention and listen. They are not wordy, 
just to the point. Senator Inouye told this story, told by opponents of 
the pipeline, that it would destroy the caribou that lived in Alaska's 
North Slope. This is what he was told over and over.
  On his last trip, he was in front of a group of people. I was anxious 
as he started to talk. He said: I have this story to tell you. He 
talked about this time of controversy about the Alaska North Slope and 
the oil pipeline, the caribou and what was happening, the destruction 
that may occur based on what he was hearing. But he was a strong 
supporter of the pipeline. In his words, here is how he actually said 
it. In fact, he said, the warm oil going through the pipeline heats the 
ground, so grass grows year round. The caribou come around to eat the 
grass and, in his words, ``make love,'' and the caribou population has 
grown threefold. Who was I to let facts spoil that wonderful story by 
Senator Inouye and get in the way of its telling?
  But he has done enormous work for our Alaskan people and Alaska in 
total, the work he did that he described to me when he went out to 
rural Alaska many years ago and saw the deplorable conditions of our 
water and sewer, saw an important effort to preserve not only the 
languages of Alaska but also Hawaii. Yes, like Hawaii, Alaskans loved 
our earmarks and we still love them. He was an adamant proponent of 
earmarks, making sure that, as mentioned by Senator Mikulski, they went 
for the right reasons. As was also mentioned, in his defense of this 
country and his personal heroic actions, his ongoing everyday work he 
did to shape the national defense and really international defense, it 
was an incredible sight to watch him in action.
  I will always remember Daniel Inouye for his truly hearty laugh, 
ready smile, his partnership with my State of Alaska, and his 
dedication to his State--truly a silent giant.
  My condolences go to his wife Irene and the entire Inouye family. We 
will miss him greatly. When we come down to the Chamber every day, we 
get the calendar of business, this one dated today. You look on the 
list of all the committees, and you see the chairman and the Members. 
But today his name is not there after 41 years.
  My heart goes out to him--truly the silent giant.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington.
  Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I come to the floor to pay tribute to an 
American hero, a great Senator, an amazing man, and a dear friend, 
Senator Danny Inouye.
  Senator Inouye dedicated his life to public service, and through his 
hard and faithful work, he has left his Nation and the State that he 
loved so dearly far better in so many ways.
  We will all hear a lot in the days ahead about the barriers Danny 
broke down during the course of his life. We will hear about his 
service in times of war and in peace, about his heroism, about his love 
for his family and State and country. We will hear about the admiration 
and respect he earned from so many of us here in the Senate, on both 
sides of the aisle, over the course of a long and very historic career.
  What I want to focus on for a minute today is the Danny Inouye who 
has been there for me as friend and mentor for the past 20 years, who 
has been a shining light in this Chamber and has set an example for all 
of us who measure our work not simply in words but in actions.
  Senator Inouye was certainly not the loudest Member of this Chamber. 
He was certainly not the most verbose. He was not a Senator who spent 
his time making long-winded speeches. But through his quiet resolve, 
his understated strength, and his commitment to do the right thing no 
matter what, he was able to accomplish so much.
  Senator Inouye led the Appropriations Committee through difficult 
times with grace and incredible effectiveness. The partisan rancor that 
too often dominates this city was unacceptable to him, and he made that 
clear to all of us. Danny's focus was on people, on the infrastructure 
on which they depended in their communities, on the most vulnerable, on 
our military families, and on the State of Hawaii, for if Danny Inouye 
was a giant here in the Senate, he was a mountain back home. Hawaii 
would not be Hawaii without Danny Inouye. He fought for his State. He 
would not allow it to be ignored, and he made it a better place to live 
and work for generations to come.
  As the Senator of another State far from Washington, DC, I learned a 
lot from Senator Inouye about how to advocate for the people who elect 
you and

[[Page 17234]]

how to make sure they never get lost in the mix. Through his quiet and 
shining example, we all learned a bit more about bipartisanship.
  I so remember Danny huddling here on the floor, working closely with 
his good friend Senator Stevens from Alaska. We all learned a bit more 
about effectiveness. He knew how to get things done, more than anyone I 
have seen before or since. We all learned a bit more about humanity.
  You would never hear Danny talk about himself. We all learned a bit 
more about respect, about kindness toward all, not just those who agree 
with you.
  Danny helped us all remember every single day why he came here in the 
first place. I cannot tell you how many times Danny would stand his 
ground on issues that others would have given up on, simply because he 
knew the impact it would have on real people. He knew this was about so 
much more than politics or legislative games; it was about helping 
people and solving their problems and delivering for our communities 
and our Nation.
  Danny Inouye impressed me every day for 20 years, but nothing 
impressed me more than his love and commitment to his family. I just 
got off the phone a few minutes ago with his wife Irene and expressed 
my condolences. She is such a gracious lady.
  Danny will be missed terribly, but he has left so much for us to 
remember him by: his legislative achievements, of course, the roads 
that would not have been built had he not been here, the military bases 
that wouldn't have existed had he not fought so hard for them, the 
ports and bridges and trains that would have been less safe had he not 
been there to move legislation that strengthened them--so much more. 
But Danny will be remembered far beyond his many tangible achievements. 
He will live on through the values he embodied and spread; through the 
principles he stood for and shared; through his family, who loved him 
dearly; through the people who will never forget his advocacy; through 
the country he sacrificed so much for; and of course through all of us 
who are forever better simply for having served with the greatest 
Senator of all, Senator Dan Inouye.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Georgia.
  Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, on behalf of the people of Georgia, the 
United States of America, and the 99 Members of the Senate, I want to 
pause to pay tribute to the family of Dan Inouye. When a great football 
coach passes away and players are interviewed and asked what kind of 
coach he was, they will say he was a player's coach. When great 
generals are lost and the people who go to the funeral ask what kind of 
general he was, they say he was a soldier's general.
  I am here to pay tribute to a Senator's Senator. He was a great role 
model for me. He came here when Hawaii first became a State, and he was 
here ever since. He influenced the lives of not a few but of many.
  I got an e-mail from Mike Mattingly, a U.S. Senator who was elected 
in 1980. He said: Please remember when you are on the floor of the U.S. 
Senate to express the love and affection my wife Leslie and I have for 
a great American, Dan Inouye.
  I share that same affection. I know I owe a lot of whatever success I 
have had in the Senate to learning from his patience, guidance, 
temperament, and also his determination. Yesterday, I was told his last 
word was aloha, but we have to remember that was always the first word 
we heard from Dan Inouye as well because he meant it in a welcoming, 
friendly way.
  I want to follow up on what Senator Alexander said earlier. I too was 
at the Prayer Breakfast when Dan Inouye was there. It was the largest 
crowd we ever had, and it was not because invitations went out but 
because Dan Inouye was going to be there. Everybody there was 
mesmerized by his candor, by his life, and by his commitment. We don't 
discuss what goes on inside those rooms, and I will not here, except to 
say that when Dan Inouye opened his heart, it was as big and rich a 
heart as the one we have all seen in the Senate.
  To his loved ones, the State of Hawaii, and the people of America, we 
have lost a great man. We have all been better off for knowing him, 
loving him, and serving with him. I pay tribute to the life and times 
of a great American hero, Dan Inouye.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Kansas.
  Mr. ROBERTS. Mr. President, let me associate myself with the remarks 
of Senator Isakson. I thank him and all of my colleagues who have come 
to the floor to eulogize Senator Danny Inouye. The Senate and our 
Nation has lost an unsung hero. He was heroic in military valor, 
receiving the Nation's highest honor, the Medal of Honor. He was heroic 
as the one chosen to lead with dignity in inquiries seeking the truth 
during our most challenging times. He was a tireless guardian of our 
national security and champion to the men and women who put their lives 
at risk to protect the United States and whose legislative achievements 
have been simply remarkable. All this from a man who always gave others 
credit and never sought the spotlight.
  Yesterday Senator John McCain from Arizona--a hero in his own right--
reflected on the passing of Senator Inouye: Today, the Senate, America, 
and especially his beloved citizens of Hawaii, lost a unique, brave, 
and wonderful legislator. He was a man who brought the most unique 
credentials to this institution--I would argue--of probably anyone who 
has ever served in this very diverse body.
  Senator McCain certainly hit the nail on the head.
  He went on to say: In Hawaii there was a group of young Japanese 
Americans who decided they wanted to serve their country in uniform. 
One of the most well-known, famous, and highly decorated units of World 
War II was the battalion in which Dan Inouye served.
  Dan Inouye was a proud member of his battalion. In fierce combat, he 
was gravely wounded on the battlefield and was brought home. He, as we 
all know, lost his arm as a result of one of the wounds he sustained.
  Senator McCain went on to point out that he went to the Veterans 
Hospital in Chicago where a person in the same ward was an American 
Army second lieutenant who had also been wounded seriously in combat in 
Italy, 2LT Bob Dole of Kansas. Bob Dole is a man who still represents 
the very best we have in Kansas, our country, and he did such a great 
job as leader of this body. Their friendship has lasted to this day.
  Both men were gravely wounded, both were certainly dedicated to serve 
their country, and both served with distinction. The friendship and the 
bonds of friendship that were forged in that hospital between Bob and 
Dan were unique and also enduring.
  Yesterday, Senator Danny Akaka also pointed out that his colleague 
from his native State was a true patriot and American hero in every 
sense and at this time in Hawaii, the greatest leader.
  Then Danny Akaka said that it is an incredible understatement to call 
him an institution. This Chamber will never be the same without him. He 
also said Danny Inouye leaves behind 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.
  Today will be the first day since Hawaii became a State in 1959 that 
Danny Inouye will not be representing us in the Congress. Every child 
born in Hawaii will learn of Danny Inouye, a man who changed the 
islands forever.
  Senator Akaka then went on to say he was praying for his wife Irene, 
his son Ken, his daughter-in-law Jessica, his stepdaughter Jennifer, 
and granddaughter Maggie, who was the apple of his eye.
  Like so many, with Danny's untimely passing, I have lost a very dear 
friend. In truth, as an institution, every Senator in the Senate lost a 
dear friend. We lost one of the last institutional flames of the 
Senate.
  Upon reflection, the occasions I have had the privilege to be with 
Danny also represented my personal career highlights. There were codels 
with Senator

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Ted Stevens, affectionately called Uncle Ted. Danny always had T-shirts 
made that said ``I survived Codel Stevens.'' He took us to Antarctica, 
North Korea, the Russian Far and wild East, and any number of places of 
national interest that nobody else would go. As the song says, through 
the bushes and brambles where a rabbit wouldn't go.
  Danny was the personification of those who get things done the 
effective way. He stayed in the background until it was time to take 
charge and then gave others the credit. I will always remember his 
sonorous, basso profundo voice advising the North Koreans at one point 
during a trip to make P'anmunjom and the 38th parallel a tourist site--
not a shooting gallery.
  In the Russian Far East we traveled to Sakhalin Island, with 
mountains and raw materials that rivaled Alaska and where locals say 
there are still saber-toothed tigers north of the island. Danny, while 
visiting with staff, went into detail about his many travels, with a 
little fact and fiction mixed in, all with a twinkle in his eye.
  I also remember while in the city of Khabarovsk in the Russian Far 
East--we were at a hotel. Of all the hotels in the Russian Far East, 
this one had to be one of the last on the list.
  As we went into our rooms, I discovered that my bed was a wooden 
frame with just straps--no mattress, one blanket, and no pillow. I 
thought, being a junior member of this codel, this was something they 
assigned to me. So I went down the hall with my special key in hand and 
my special ID that was required in that part of the world and knocked 
on Danny's door. He said: How can I be of service to you, dear friend?
  I said that I wanted to look at his accommodations, thinking, of 
course, he would have a bed. There was a wooden bed with the same kind 
of accommodations--no mattress, straps, and just one blanket. He said: 
Why are you interested in that bed?
  I said: Well, I thought being a junior Member that things might be 
better in your quarters.
  He got a big kick out of that. He always reminded me of that at 
various times when I would get a little upset about anything.
  At any rate, it is not an understatement with regard to his 
leadership, bipartisanship, integrity, and achievement. It would serve 
every Member of this Senate to ask: What would Danny Inouye want us to 
do?
  In today's Washington Post there was a reference to the keynote 
speech that Senator Inouye gave in Chicago. It was a period of unrest 
after the assassinations of Senator Robert Kennedy and Rev. Martin 
Luther King--troubling times, indeed. Speaking not as a Democrat but as 
a citizen disturbed by unprecedented violence, Senator Inouye described 
a ``troubling loss of faith among Americans.''
  He went on to say: I do not mean a loss of religious faith, I mean a 
loss of faith in our country, its purposes, and its institutions. I 
mean a retreat from the responsibilities of citizenship.
  Danny called for Americans to rebuild their trust in government--an 
extraordinary statement from a man whose people had suffered grave 
injustices at the hands of government.
  The article went on to say that Senator Inouye's remarks were 
immediately overshadowed by events at that convention, but his speech 
was truly remarkable. It was a speech that drew little attention then 
and is even less remembered now.
  My colleagues, Danny's speech should be required reading today given 
the recent tragedies. It was just last week that I was asked to speak 
on Senator Inouye's behalf at an event concerning the proposed 
Eisenhower Memorial. It is a joint bipartisan effort that has taken far 
too long to bring to fruition. In the cloakroom the day before we had 
one of our many discussions where he grabbed my hand and looked me in 
the eye and said: You and I probably vote differently 80 percent of the 
time, but in all of our mutual efforts and all of our travels, I have 
considered you a brother.
  I didn't know what to do. I responded with a tear in my eye, and I 
said: I love you, Danny Inouye.
  And he said: I love you too.
  What a wonderful thing to hear from a true American hero in every 
respect. It has been a privilege and an honor to serve with such a 
remarkable and truly humble man.
  I also want to thank his wonderful staff in working with my staff on 
so many mutual projects.
  Aloha, my dear friend. I will miss you every day.
  I yield back the remainder of my time.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from New Jersey.
  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak for 5 
minutes.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. President, there are few times in the history of 
this institution when one Senator, a singularly iconic leader, comes 
along and reminds us of what it means to be a U.S. Senator and what it 
means to represent the very best of what this Nation stands for and to 
do it, as he always did, with the utmost dignity, honor, pride, and 
integrity.
  I am deeply saddened to have to speak to the passing of a true 
American hero. He was someone who inspired so many of us in the Senate. 
His ideals and sense of justice were always on display.
  The passing of Senator Inouye leaves a painful void in the leadership 
of this body. In so many ways, the life and sacrifice of Senator Inouye 
embodies the essence of the ``greatest generation.''
  Even when faced with the suffering, indignity, and humiliation of an 
internment camp, he did not allow his heart to be turned or his love 
and commitment to his country to be diminished. Justice was a constant 
theme in his life. He represented the challenges faced by his Hawaiian 
people since statehood, when he became its first representative in the 
U.S. Congress.
  We had a close bond when it came to our concern for minorities in our 
country. Because of the struggles in his life, he understood the 
struggles in both of our communities. He felt a kinship to the Hispanic 
community and shared the community's hopes and aspirations. In recent 
conversations, I know from his comments that he understood the growing 
importance of the Hispanic community and the benefit of advancing their 
interests within American society. He lived it, he understood it, he 
knew.
  We worked together on the recognition of Filipino veterans--something 
he was very passionate about--and he thanked me most graciously, as 
always, for my interest and for my commitment to working with him on an 
issue so dear to his heart.
  These are just a few stories of a man who led a quintessentially 
American life. I know there are thousands more stories to be told, some 
of which have already been told on the Senate floor, but the real story 
is that this was a man who sacrificed for his country, met the 
challenges it presented, but ultimately, because of a kind heart and 
loyalty to the ideals we profess as Americans, he became one of the 
most important, yet most humble, leaders in the U.S. Senate.
  Senator Inouye and his life and deeds remind us what it means to be 
an American hero, a war hero who carried the burden of his service with 
him all of his life. His courage, his patriotism, and his respect for 
the values he fought for informed his views and his votes in this 
Chamber.
  The Senate is sadly diminished today with the passing of one of our 
most respected and iconic leaders--a hero, a powerful voice for reason, 
rationality, and common sense when reason, rationality, and common 
sense are too often in short supply. He will be missed not only by all 
of us who had the privilege to serve with him but by a nation that 
needs more leaders like him.
  We, all of us, remember his lasting influence, his way of making us 
look into the heart of the matter without prejudice or preconceived 
political impressions. He knew how to get to the crux of an issue, and 
he led the way so many times for the rest of us. We followed his lead, 
and the Nation is better for it.

[[Page 17236]]

  All of us who worked with him as chairman of the Appropriations 
Committee respected his word and his commitment to fairness. He was 
always willing to listen, always willing to hear your side, always 
willing to reach out across the aisle for what he believed was right.
  Most recently, he was the voice of support and wisdom in our efforts 
to secure disaster relief for my home State of New Jersey. He 
empathized with the needs of New Jerseyans, just as he addressed the 
needs of Hawaiians for decades. There is no more gracious man than Dan 
Inouye, no one who was as dignified and respectful than the senior 
Senator from Hawaii.
  Our thoughts and prayers go out to his wife and his family and to the 
people of Hawaii today. We have lost an incredibly great man.
  Mahalo, my friend, until we meet again.

                          ____________________