[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 13]
[Senate]
[Pages 17236-17237]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      REMEMBERING DANIEL K. INOUYE

  Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, I rise this sad day to comment on the 
passing of a great patriot, Senator Daniel Inouye. He fought for his 
country as part of the Greatest Generation and served his State with 
distinction for more than 50 years.
  We were all honored to know him and blessed by his sacrifice in 
defense of American freedom. We served together on the Armed Services 
Committee and later on the Appropriations Committee as well. Danny's 
insight was invaluable to our Nation's defense and military policy. He 
did make America stronger.
  I had the pleasure of working with him when we traveled together to 
Bosnia to visit our troops in the very early stages of that conflict. 
We later went to the Middle East on a CODEL with Senator Stevens as 
well. One of the pictures in my office is of Senator Stevens, Senator 
Inouye, Senator Snowe, and myself in our helmets and flak jackets the 
first time we flew into Sarajevo in the early 1990s, when the Serbs had 
still been shooting from the hills into the airport.
  In 1995, on the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II, Senator 
Inouye and a number of other World War II veterans gathered at the 
Smithsonian to reminisce about their time in battle.
  Senator Inouye recalled the morning of December 7 at Pearl Harbor, 
when he recognized that the men in the Japanese planes looked like him, 
and he said he knew then his life would never be the same.
  As soon as the Army permitted Japanese Americans to volunteer, he 
signed up and ventured to the mainland of the United States for the 
first time in his life. He and his fellow Hawaiians of Japanese descent 
worried about how they would be treated in the United States but, as he 
recalled it, they encountered kindness and respect at every stop their 
train made.
  By the time he finished his training and prepared to depart for 
Europe, he said he had learned this was truly a country worth dying for 
and certainly one worth sacrificing an arm in order to preserve our 
freedom and our way of life. He did lose his arm, and it was during 
this time that he also distinguished himself to earn the Congressional 
Medal of Honor, the highest military award in our country for valor.
  There is often talk of partisan acrimony in Washington, but we know 
strong friendships can form across party lines. Senator Inouye and 
Senator Ted Stevens had such a friendship. They were both war heroes 
from the last two States to join the Union, and they both recognized 
and guarded the congressional prerogatives under our Constitution to 
play the primary role in determining appropriations to fund the 
government.
  When they were the two senior Senators on the Appropriations 
Committee and on the Commerce Committee, they considered themselves as 
cochairs and officially designated each other as that. When control of 
the Senate changed hands, it was not unusual for one to retain key 
members of the other's staff.
  So today, I add mine to the many voices mourning his passing and say 
to his family: You are in our thoughts and prayers.
  Danny Inouye was someone in our Senate whom I think we should all 
strive to be; that is, he was a warrior, but he was a gentleman. He was 
a man who was loyal to the core for not only his beliefs but also his 
friends, and if he gave his word, his word was good. He is someone whom 
every one of us who knew him cared for and regarded as a giant among 
us. In fact, I would say the Senate has lost a gentle giant.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Maryland.
  Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, I join with Senator Hutchison in paying 
tribute to Senator Daniel K. Inouye.
  I rise to pay tribute to our dear colleague. Senator Inouye was not 
one of the tallest Senators; in fact, he had a slight build and a quiet 
demeanor. But he was a giant. He will be missed by all in the Senate. 
The people of his beloved Hawaii will miss him. All Americans will miss 
him.
  In the immediate aftermath of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Senator 
Inouye was declared an enemy alien because of his Japanese ancestry. 
But in 1943, when the U.S. Army dropped its enlistment ban on Japanese 
Americans, he enlisted in the Army and volunteered to be part of the 
442nd Regimental Combat Team.
  The 442nd became the most highly decorated infantry regiment in the 
history of the U.S. Army. The 442nd, known by its motto, ``Go for 
Broke,'' was awarded eight Presidential Unit Citations and 21 of its 
members, including Senator Inouye, were awarded the Medal of Honor for 
their heroism during World War II.
  Following World War II, Senator Inouye finished his undergraduate 
studies at the University of Hawaii and then earned a law degree from 
George Washington University. In 1953, he was elected to the Hawaii 
Territorial House of Representatives and was immediately elected 
majority leader. He served two terms there and was elected to the 
Hawaii Territorial Senate in 1957. Midway through his first term in the 
Territorial Senate, Hawaii achieved statehood. He won a seat in the 
House of Representatives as Hawaii's first full Member and took office 
on August 21, 1959, the same date Hawaii became a State, and he was 
reelected in 1960.
  Then, in 1962, he was elected to the Senate and was reelected eight 
times, only once with less than 69 percent of the vote. Senator Inouye 
had been in the Congress since Hawaii became a State. He was the second 
longest serving Senator in our Nation's history, and he served with 
distinction, just as he served with distinction in the U.S. Army.
  Others on this floor have already detailed his bravery in battle, his 
service on the Watergate and Iran-Contra Committees and his 
accomplishments as the first chairman of the Senate Select Committee on 
Intelligence and as chairman of the Commerce and Appropriations 
Committees. I would like to highlight his work on behalf of the victims 
of racial and economic and social inequality and his commitment to 
making the Senate operate as the Founding Fathers envisioned.
  A statement on Senator Inouye's Web site says: ``Dan Inouye was 
always among the first to speak out against

[[Page 17237]]

injustice whether interned Japanese Americans, Filipino World War II 
veterans, Native Americans and Native Hawaiians.'' How true.
  A few hundred yards from this Chamber is the Smithsonian's 
magnificent National Museum of the American Indian. Senator Inouye 
introduced the legislation to create that museum and fought for Native 
American and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander recognition and 
rights and restitution as chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian 
Affairs.
  In the Senate, Senator Inouye treated all his colleagues with respect 
and courtesy and always reached across the aisle to forge bipartisan 
solutions to our Nation's biggest challenges. His friendship with 
former Republican leader Bob Dole, whom he met while the two of them 
were recuperating from grievous combat injuries--along with, I might 
say, another wounded veteran who became a giant in the Senate, Senator 
Philip Hart of Michigan--serves as an example we should strive to 
emulate. He was a member of the so-called Gang of 14, again reaching 
across the aisle at a time when partisan tempers were particularly 
high.
  There are few--if any--Americans who have been more heroic in battle, 
more accomplished as a public servant, more dedicated to family and 
country and humanity than Daniel K. Inouye. Yet he was also one of the 
most humble and self-effacing people. What a tremendous example of a 
life well lived he has left for all of us as we mourn his death, 
celebrate his life, and give thanks for his service to the people of 
Hawaii, the Senate, and the United States of America.
  To Senator Inouye we say aloha.
  With that, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. HARKIN. 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. HARKIN. Mr. President, the Senate--both as a legislative body and 
as a family--is in mourning today after the passing of its most senior 
and revered Member, Senator Daniel Inouye of Hawaii.
  In his final days, Senator Inouye was asked how he wanted to be 
remembered. He replied, with characteristic modesty:

       I represented the people of Hawaii and this nation honestly 
     and to the best of my ability. I think I did OK.

  With similar understatement, speaking about the extraordinary act of 
heroism in combat for which he was awarded the Congressional Medal of 
Honor, he explained that it was ``a case of temporary insanity.''
  Modesty and reserve were trademark qualities of our beloved Danny 
Inouye. But we can speak more forthrightly about this very 
extraordinary person.
  Yes, Senator Inouye represented the people of Hawaii and this Nation 
honestly and to best of his ability. But he did not do just ``OK.'' 
Daniel Inouye was a truly great American, a public servant of 
extraordinary accomplishment. His qualities of character and conscience 
and steadfastness have set the standard in the Senate for over five 
decades.
  Think about this. In 1973 and 1974, as a Senate Select Committee 
investigated the crimes of Watergate, which Senator did we count on to 
take charge with tough but fair questioning of those involved?
  In 1976, after revelations of abuse of power by the CIA and the FBI, 
which Senator did we count on to oversee reforms as first chairman of 
the Select Committee on Intelligence? Of course, we counted on Senator 
Inouye.
  In 1987, as the Iran-Contra scandal rocked the Reagan administration, 
which Senator did we count on to lead a tough but fair inquiry as 
chairman of the select committee appointed to investigate the affair? 
Of course, we counted on Senator Inouye.
  Time and again, over seven decades, the United States of America has 
counted on Daniel Inouye, and he always delivered. He always responded 
to the call of duty with courage, selflessness, and excellence.
  As we all know, during the Second World War, Dan served in the famed, 
all-Nisei 442nd Regimental Combat Team. After losing his right arm and 
sustaining other grave injuries in combat, he spent 2 years in Army 
hospitals. At one of those hospitals he met two other wounded veterans: 
a soldier from Kansas named Bob Dole and a Michigan boy named Philip 
Hart. All three would go on to become giants of Senate history.
  It is difficult to imagine, but after returning from the war, LT 
Daniel Inouye was wearing an empty right sleeve pinned to his Army 
uniform and was denied service at a San Francisco barbershop. The 
barber dismissed him with the words, ``We don't serve Japs here.'' One 
of Daniel Inouye's great legacies in his successful fight to defeat 
that brand of racism and discrimination was his successful fight 
against any form of discrimination against anyone, especially people 
with disabilities. Throughout his political career, he fought for civil 
rights and social justice not only for Japanese Americans but for all 
Americans.
  Mr. President, I have lost not only a friend of nearly four decades 
but also my chairman on the Committee on Appropriations and its 
Subcommittee on Defense. Senator Inouye was well known as a stalwart 
advocate for national defense and for veterans. He also fought very 
passionately to advance education, the National Institutes of Health, 
and other programs in the jurisdiction of my Appropriations 
Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education.
  I will never forget what Senator Inouye said one time in a meeting in 
which my bill on labor, health and human services, education, NIH, the 
Centers for Disease Control--all of the things that are in that bill 
came forward. Remember, Senator Inouye was at that time the chairman of 
the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, and he said something I will 
never forget.
  He said:

       I chair the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee. That is 
     the subcommittee that defends America.

  He said:

       Senator Harkin chairs the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and 
     Human Services, and Education. That is the subcommittee that 
     defines America.

  So Senator Inouye was not a one-dimensional person. He was not just 
someone who fought for our veterans and fought for the strong defense 
of our country. I also remember him saying one time--repeating the 
famous words of President Truman--that the strength of America comes 
not just from the number of tanks, guns, and war planes we have but 
from the health, welfare, and education of our people.
  In tributes on the floor yesterday and today, colleagues are 
remembering Dan Inouye as one of the greatest Senators of our time, and 
indeed he was. But knowing Dan and the values he held dear, he would 
want no greater tribute than to be remembered as a loyal friend, a man 
of honor, decency, and humility. Senator Inouye was that and much more.
  Senator Inouye was the finest of men. For half a century, the Senate 
has been graced by his dignified and noble presence. It will not be the 
same without him. We will miss our friend Daniel Inouye very, very 
much.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a 
quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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