[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 13]
[Senate]
[Pages 17281-17282]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      REMEMBERING DANIEL K. INOUYE

  Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, it is only fitting that I be allowed to 
speak for a few minutes recognizing that on this floor we have just 
advanced these resolutions in honor of our friend, our colleague, and 
truly an incredible gentleman and statesman, Senator Daniel K. Inouye.
  In Alaska, we regarded former Senator Ted Stevens as ``Uncle Ted.'' 
What follows, then, is that the people of Alaska would regard his 
brother, our beloved Daniel Inouye, as our uncle as well.
  Today, the people of Alaska are mourning the loss of Senator Inouye 
in the same way we would mourn the loss of one of our own; that is, 
because Senator Inouye is one of our own. Regardless of whether he 
wanted that burden--I know that perhaps at times he did not want that--
we would think of him as Alaska's third Senator. A great many Alaskans 
came to know, to love, and to rely on Senator Inouye to watch Alaska's 
back, and he never let us down.
  Senator Inouye delivered a very touching, a very tender eulogy at Ted 
Stevens' funeral in August of 2010. In that address, he mentioned that 
millions and millions of words had been written of Ted's 
accomplishments. Yet as I was thinking about how I might frame my 
remarks about Senator Inouye's life, it dawned on me that millions and 
millions of words had also been written already about Senator Inouye. 
That is because I think so many of Ted's accomplishments came with Dan 
Inouye at his side and, not coincidentally, many of Dan's 
accomplishments occurred in the presence of Ted. So where do we begin? 
There is so much that must be said and that should be said.
  I was present at the Anchorage Baptist Temple when Senator Inouye 
delivered his eulogy, and I had the opportunity last evening, after we 
learned word of Senator Inouye's passing, to view that video clip 
again. As I listened to that eulogy, it came to me that everything 
Senator Inouye said about Ted told us as much about Dan as it did about 
Ted. There was so much that these two men shared.
  Senator Inouye related that he knew from the very beginning of the 
relationship that the two would have a great deal in common. Both 
represented former territories at the very edge of our great Nation--
territories that at times were treated as appendages to our Nation. He 
characterized Alaska and Hawaii as the forgotten people. In those early 
years, he reminded us it cost more to make a telephone call from 
Honolulu to here in Washington, DC, than it did Honolulu to Tokyo. It 
was cheaper to call Beijing from Washington than Anchorage. Dan and Ted 
set out to do something about that, and they did.
  They traveled to each other's States. They came to understand the 
unique challenges each faced.
  Senator Inouye related on one trip to an Alaska Native village that 
he met a nurse. It actually was not a nurse. It was our community 
health aide, an individual from the village who had been trained to 
provide basic medical care. It occurred to both of them at that time 
that the new technology could enable a doctor at a major hospital, 
hundreds or perhaps even thousands of miles away, to observe and 
diagnose a patient via a video link.
  So was born the Alaska telemedicine network, one of the first of its 
kind in the world and truly a remarkable advancement and achievement in 
Alaska. It was born from their very conversations on that CODEL. This 
is just one small example of the many collaborations that improved life 
for the Native peoples of Alaska and Hawaii. These collaborations 
created models by which Senator Inouye improved conditions for the 
Native peoples of the 48 States as well.
  Another thing that Ted and Dan shared in common was, of course, that 
they were both veterans. One of our colleagues described them as World 
War II soulmates--men who loved the military, absolutely loved the 
military, with every ounce of their being. They traveled together 
across the globe to zones of conflict to visit Americans in uniform.
  The tragedy of Vietnam veterans returning home unappreciated was not 
lost on either of these veterans, and they devoted their lives to 
ensuring that our veterans would never again be disrespected.
  Following Ted's death, Senator Inouye came to this floor, and he said 
the following of his fallen brother:

       When it came to policy, we disagreed more often than we 
     agreed, but we were never disagreeable with one another. We 
     were always positive and forthright.

  This remark came as perhaps a little bit of a surprise to me because 
on the important issues that faced this country, they would most often 
arrive at significant agreements that would allow the issues to advance 
in the Senate. Not one of them viewed bipartisanship in a negative 
context. It was not a dirty word. Senator Inouye said of Ted: ``We made 
the word bipartisan become real--real.''
  It is no coincidence that each would be described in these terms:

       His word is his bond . . . . Good as gold.

  Daniel Inouye brought depth to every debate and dignity to every room 
in which he entered. He was a model Senator and in these times of 
turbulence within the Senate I think a role model for so many of us. 
There was an elegance in this man that I think we should all strive to 
emulate. I wonder often if those of us who did not come of age in that 
``greatest generation'' are up to this challenge. But we should 
certainly strive to be.
  On behalf of the people of Alaska, I express our deepest appreciation 
and condolences to his wife Irene and to

[[Page 17282]]

Ken for sharing this extraordinary statesman with us and with the 
Nation. For that, we owe them a very sincere and genuine thank you--
mahalo. Irene, of course, is doing important work with the United 
States-Japan Council. I look forward to working closely with her in 
that important role.
  When a significant figure in Alaska passes, we often say: ``A big 
tree has fallen.'' In the islands, Daniel Inouye was the biggest of the 
big trees. There is no way to minimize the loss the people of Hawaii 
are feeling. We could see it in the face of Governor Abercrombie 
yesterday. He could barely control his tears as he conducted a lengthy 
news conference following Senator Inouye's passing. We saw our friend 
and colleague, Senator Akaka, as he delivered very sad remarks as well. 
In Hawaii, as in Alaska, these things are personal. Losing a longtime 
Senator feels like losing a member of your own family. The Senate ohana 
is less today because Senator Inouye is no longer with us. Let me 
simply say the people of Alaska and the people of this great Nation 
stand with the people of Hawaii. I offer my personal commitment to the 
people of Hawaii as the now senior-most Senator representing the 
decades' old alliance of our former territories: Your needs will not be 
forgotten.
  With that, I thank you for the few extra minutes this evening to pay 
tribute to a good man, a good friend.
  I yield the floor.

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