[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 2]
[Senate]
[Page 1873]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO RICK DeBOBES

  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, there is a document posted on the wall of 
the offices of the Senate Armed Services Committee with all of the 
staff listed in order of seniority, with the dates on which they 
started their service. The second name on the list is that of Rick 
DeBobes, the staff director of the committee, who joined the committee 
staff 24 years ago, on March 9, 1989. That record of service is all the 
more remarkable because Rick did not come to the Senate until after he 
had completed a distinguished 26-year career in the Navy. His last 
assignment on Active Duty was as legal advisor to Chairman of the Joint 
Chiefs of Staff William Crowe.
  This week, Rick will retire for the second time, culminating an 
extraordinary record of 50 years of service to the Senate, the Navy, 
the men and women of our Armed Forces, and his country.
  In the course of his service on the committee staff, Rick has played 
a key role in the enactment of 24 National Defense Authorization Acts. 
A proud graduate of Georgetown University, Rick received his law degree 
from Fordham University and a masters' degree in international law from 
the National Law Center at George Washington University. He has gone on 
to have what I am sure must be a far greater influence on international 
law than any of his professors or mentors could have imagined. It is no 
exaggeration to say that Rick DeBobes has been involved in writing or 
improving virtually every major piece of national security legislation 
to come before the Congress in the last quarter century, starting with 
the Goldwater-Nichols legislation that he helped shape before joining 
the committee staff.
  For the last 10 years, Rick has served as staff director of the 
Senate Armed Services Committee--one of the toughest and most important 
jobs in the Senate. In this capacity, Rick has not only helped guide 
our annual National Defense Authorization Act to enactment each year, 
but also played a vital role in congressional oversight of our military 
operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere. His leadership of the 
committee staff has also seen the enactment of the Wounded Warrior Act, 
the Detainee Treatment Act, the Military Commissions Act of 2009, the 
Weapon Systems Acquisition Reform Act, TRICARE for Life, and the repeal 
of don't ask, don't tell, along with other major legislation. Rick's 
advice and counsel on all of these matters--informed by his unique 
background and experience--have been invaluable not only to me and to 
other members of the Armed Services Committee, but also to our military 
chiefs of staff, combatant commanders, and other senior military and 
civilian officials in the Department of Defense.
  In the 16 years that I have served as chairman or ranking member of 
the Armed Services Committee, Rick has spent countless hours in my 
office, discussing national security matters of every kind. He has 
joined me on virtually every overseas trip I have taken, including more 
than a dozen trips to Iraq and Afghanistan. We have met together with 
Senators, Secretaries of Defense, chiefs of staff, and foreign heads of 
state. We have been through markups, floor debates, and conferences 
together. Through all of this, I have not only appreciated and needed 
Rick's wise counsel, I have enjoyed his company.
  Rick's hallmark as staff director has been the composure, the 
steadiness, and the sound judgment that he brings to the job every 
single day. The committee staff often line up outside Rick's office 
door, bringing him one crisis after another that needs to be addressed. 
Whether it is early in the morning before a hearing or late at night 
after a ``Little 4'' meeting in conference, Rick always makes time for 
the staff. And I don't think any of us have ever seen Rick lose his 
cool--except perhaps when his beloved Georgetown Hoyas basketball team 
blows a late lead.
  As Rick leaves us to enjoy a well-deserved retirement with his wife 
Margaret, his children, and his grandchildren, I know I speak for the 
entire Armed Services Committee--members and staff--when I say: Thanks, 
Rick, for a job extraordinarily well done, and best wishes for the 
future.

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