[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Page 16546]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      TRIBUTE TO BARBARA MIKULSKI

  Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, today I wish to pay tribute to Barbara 
Mikulski, who is retiring from the Senate this year, having spent 40 
years serving the people of Maryland in Congress.
  Senator Mikulski has been a trailblazer all her life. She grew up in 
east Baltimore and attended Mount Saint Agnes College and the 
University of Maryland School of Social Work. She began her career as a 
social worker and community organizer before being elected to the 
Baltimore City Council in 1971. In 1976, Senator Mikulski won election 
to the U.S. House of Representatives, where she served for 10 years 
before winning election to the Senate in 1986.
  At the time Senator Mikulski began her Senate service, she was one of 
only two female Senators. Today there are 20 female Senators. Next 
Congress there will be 21. Senator Mikulski has served as a role model 
and mentor for many of these leaders. She is the longest serving woman 
in the history of the U.S. Congress and retires as an icon for many 
young women who dream of serving their country in elected office.
  Senator Mikulski has been a leader for many years on health care, 
education, and veterans' issues. She is the first woman and first 
Marylander to chair the Senate Appropriations Committee, one of the 
most influential committees in Congress. Senator Mikulski has been a 
strong supporter of our Nation's space program throughout her time in 
Congress and was instrumental in the creation and launch of the Hubble 
and Webb space telescopes. She even has a supernova named after her--
Supernova Mikulski.
  Senator Mikulski has fought long and hard for the people of Maryland 
and for the issues she believes in. She is tenacious and dedicated and 
knows how to get things done. I wish her the very best as she moves on 
to her next endeavor.

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