A resolution relative to the death of the Honorable Theodore "Ted" Fulton Stevens, former Senator for the State of Alaska.

Mr. President, on the morning of Tuesday, August 10, in Alaska, in Washington, and around the world, time seemed to stand still. It was then we received word that a floatplane carrying our beloved Senator Ted Stevens had gone down in the remote Bristol Bay region of western Alaska. Senator Stevens traveled to that area, as he did practically each summer for decades, to pursue one of his dearest passions--fishing.

Along with Senator Stevens on that flight were several of his closest friends. Sean O'Keefe, the former Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration; Jim Morhard, who came to the Senate in 1983 as an aide to Senator Pete Wilson of California and retired in 2005 as chief of staff of the Senate Appropriations Committee; Bill Phillips, a distinguished Washington lawyer and former chief of staff to Senator Stevens was on the flight; as was Dana Tindall, one of

Alaska's best and brightest who made a career of bringing 21st century telecommunications technology to our vast territory. Three of their children were on the trip as well: Sean's son Kevin, Bill's son Willy, and Dana's daughter Corey. The pilot was Theron ``Terry'' Smith, an accomplished aviator who retired as chief pilot after 25 years with Alaska Airlines in Anchorage.

When it became apparent that the floatplane was overdue en route to a remote fishing camp, a massive search was quickly mobilized. The wreckage was located and, thankfully, there were survivors.

Sean and his son Kevin, Jim Morhard and Willy Phillips survived the crash. We pray for their swift and full recovery.

At the same time our hearts dropped at the news that the crash claimed the lives of Senator Stevens, Bill Phillips, Dana Tindall, her daughter Corey, and pilot Terry Smith.

At a later time I will have more to say about the distinguished careers of Bill Phillips, Dana Tindall, and Terry Smith, as well the lost promise of Corey Tindall, a champion debater at South High School in Anchorage and an aspiring doctor.

I will also have more to say about the heroes that responded to the crash site. That story begins with the Good Samaritan pilots who located the wreckage, Dr. Dani Bowman, and local first responders who were brought in by helicopter--they cared for the survivors and the dead in poor weather through a long night awaiting rescue--the elite Alaska National Guard and Coast Guard search and rescue teams that accomplished the rescue, the medical teams in Anchorage that tended to the survivors.

Today, I would like to devote a few moments in memory of my mentor, a man who stands tall among our Senate family as one of the truly great Senators of all time, my dear friend, Ted Stevens.

It would take days and days to enumerate all of Senator Stevens' accomplishments in this body over the course of 40 years. The Senate began the process of chronicling Senator Stevens' place in history in S. Res. 617, which was enacted on August 12. Our colleagues will fill in the details in the coming days.

Let me digress for a moment and extend my deepest appreciation, and that of the Stevens family, to our colleagues and the staff--all of those who pulled out the stops--to ensure that S. Res. 617 could be enacted during a brief lull in the recess. The resolution was presented to the Stevens family following the funeral in Anchorage. It was well received.

So how to summarize the remarkable career of Ted Stevens in a few moments. Ted Stevens was the longest serving Republican in the Senate's history. He served as President pro tempore and President pro tempore emeritus. He was the assistant Republican leader. At various points during his career he chaired the Appropriations Committee, the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, the Committee on Governmental Affairs, the Committee on Rules and Administration, and the Senate Select Committee on Ethics. He was involved in numerous other leadership roles.

He was a dear, dear friend of our men and women in uniform. In the early 1970s he helped to bring an end to the draft and encouraged the All Volunteer military force. He worked diligently to ensure that service members were compensated fairly, that their benefits were not eroded, and that they received the best health care.

A family man always, he was deeply concerned about the length of time that service members were separated from their families. And when service members returned from Iraq and Afghanistan suffering from PTSD and TBI, he ensured that funds were shifted from lower defense priorities to address these immediate concerns. He used his key position on the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee to make this all happen.

During his more than 40 years in the Senate he traveled to visit with service members on the battlefield. He visited Vietnam, Kuwait, Bosnia, Kosovo, Iraq, and Afghanistan. On those trips he spent time with those in the lowest ranks, asking whether they had the right equipment, how the food was, and how their families back home were coping.

Although he will long be remembered as a tireless advocate for the responsible development of Alaska's abundant natural resources, his friends and even his foes readily admit that he leaves a substantial conservation legacy. He was key to the compromise that led to the enactment of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, a leader in fishery conservation through the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act and the High Seas Driftnet Fisheries Enforcement Act.

He was a champion of the Olympic movement, a champion of physical fitness, a champion of amateur athletics. He played a significant role in ensuring that female athletes could compete on a level playing field with their male counterparts. He was one of the best friends public broadcasting could possibly have in Washington. He championed family friendly policies for America's civil servants. These are some of his legacies to the Nation.

But to many Alaskans he was known simply as ``Uncle Ted.'' And it was not just for the Federal dollars he brought to the State of Alaska, the energy facilities, hospitals and clinics, roads, docks, airports, water and sewer facilities, schools and other community facilities, although these were substantial.

The Almanac of American Politics observed, ``No other Senator fills so central a place in his state's public and economic life as Ted Stevens of Alaska; quite possibly no other Senator ever has.''

Truth be told, Ted Stevens was known as Uncle Ted because so many Alaskans viewed him as a friend of their own Alaskan families. Alaskans treasure the photographs and the letters that Senator Stevens sent them. Some of those photographs and letters were decades old, yet treasured keepsakes.

He gave Alaska's young people an opportunity to intern in Washington, inspiring many careers in public service. I am proud to be one of those interns. He hired many young Alaskans, once they graduated college, as junior staff members. He encouraged the best to go to law school and then brought them back as legislative assistants and committee staff. Many went on to accomplish great things in their chosen fields.

In the aftermath of Senator Stevens' death, hundreds upon hundreds of Alaskans lined the streets of Anchorage bearing signs that read, ``Thank you, Ted'' as his funeral procession drove by. Makeshift memorial services were conducted in Alaska's Native villages.

Why did Ted Stevens' loss shake Alaska so hard? The answer is simple. For generations of Alaskans he had been their Senator for life. Ted Stevens became Alaska's Senator less than 10 years after Alaska was admitted to statehood. I was 11 years old when he first came to the Senate.

In so many respects, his elevation to the Senate in 1968 was the culmination of a career of service to Alaska that began in the 1950s. It was, if you will, his second career of service to the people of Alaska.

Ted's first career began when he was named the U.S. attorney in Fairbanks. In a 2002 speech to the Alaska Federation of Natives, Ted recalled that this position gave him the opportunity to carry out President Eisenhower's commitment to equal rights for everyone. He traveled throughout the area requesting business owners to take down signs that read, ``No Natives Allowed.''

Ted then moved to Washington to serve as legislative counsel in the Interior Department. He played a key role in the enactment of the legislation that admitted Alaska as America's 49th State.

He helped draft that section of the Alaska Statehood Act which committed the Federal Government to the settlement of the Alaska Native land claims. After leaving the Interior Department he opened a law practice in Anchorage. Among his clients was the Native Village of Minto. The State of Alaska was about to select Minto's traditional lands in advance of a land claims settlement. Senator Stevens took on Minto's case pro bono. He invited Alaska Native leaders to his home to explore strategies for a more comprehensive settlement of Alaska Native land claims.

Ted Stevens could not have guessed at that point that he would join the U.S. Senate and have the opportunity to make the dreams of Alaska's Native peoples a reality.

That was the first order of business when Ted came to the Senate. He began work on the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act in 1969 and on December 18, 1971, the dream that Alaska's Native people would hold title to their ancestral lands became a reality.

This December marks the 39th anniversary of the passage of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act--ANCSA. That landmark legislation returned some 44 million acres of land to Alaska's Native people and created the regional and village Alaska Native Corporations.

ANCSA led to a resurgence in Native pride and self-confidence. It gave our Native people unparalleled opportunities to lead. It has proven a valuable legacy for the continuation of Alaska Native culture through the generations.

Senator Stevens played a significant role in bringing Alaska's Native people together to create today's great institutions of Indian self- determination. The Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium and the Southcentral Foundation, which together operate the Alaska Native Medical Center in Anchorage, are just two examples.

The Alaska Native Medical Center, Alaska's only certified level II trauma center, has earned national recognition for the quality of its nursing care. It is connected through innovative telemedicine technology to regional Native medical centers in rural Alaska and clinics at the village level. None of this would be possible without Senator Stevens' leadership.

Senator Stevens deplored the Third World conditions that stubbornly persisted in rural Alaska, threatening the health of Native children. He helped build showers and laundromats in rural Alaska--we call them washeterias--and he helped construct water and sewer facilities so that our Native people did not have to haul their waste to an open dump site. I am sad to say that this work is far from done. There is that last 25 percent or so that remains to be done.

It is often said that a society is judged by the way it treats its most vulnerable members. It is appropriate that we judge the character of our elected officials in the same manner. In Alaska, our Native people are the most vulnerable. For decades, Alaska's most vulnerable people have had no better friend than Ted Stevens.

As I noted in my response to Ted's farewell speech on November 20, 2008, ``When I think of all of the good things, the positive things that have come to Alaska in the past five decades I see the face and I see the hands of Ted Stevens in so many of them.''

Not just in rural Alaska but throughout Alaska I think of Senator Stevens whenever an F-22 takes flight from Elmendorf Air Force Base. I think of him when I drive through the front gate of Eielson Air Force Base, which was spared from the 2005 BRAC round largely through his leadership. His face is in the new VA Regional Clinic in Anchorage and in the Community Based Outpatient Clinic in the Mat-Su Valley. I think of Ted when I am fishing on the Kenai River and all of his efforts to help with conservation and restoration of this world class river. These are just a few of Senator Stevens' contributions to Alaska. There is so much more.

At the close of his farewell remarks to the Senate, our friend Ted, told us that he had two homes: ``One in this Chamber, the other his beloved State of Alaska.'' He closed his remarks with the phrase, ``I must leave one to return to the other.''

How prophetic. For on the afternoon of August 9, a cold and gloomy day, yet the kind of day when fishing is great, the Lord called our friend Ted Stevens from Alaska to yet a third home.

Ted's departure leaves a tremendous hole in the hearts of the people of Alaska, a hole in the collective hearts of his Senate family, and a hole in my heart that will take a long time to heal.

On behalf of a grateful Senate and a grateful American people, I extend condolences to Ted's wife Catherine; to his children Susan, Beth, Ted, Walter, Ben and Lily, and to all of the grandchildren.

As our friend, the late Senator Robert Byrd, knew and often recounted on the Senate floor--of all of the things that brought Ted Stevens joy, his family brought Ted the greatest of joys. In Ted's words, his family gave him the kind of love, support, and sacrifice which made his 40- year career in the Senate possible and gave it meaning. We thank Ted's family for sharing this remarkable man with Alaska, the Senate, and the Nation.

Thank you, Ted. We will never forget you.

Mr. President, I have just returned from the interment services for our colleague and our friend, the Senator from Alaska, Ted Stevens.

I must say it should be pointed out that our Chaplain, Chaplain Black, gave a marvelous eulogy during the graveside services that was poignant, elegant, and I know in regard to helping the family with solace and poignancy, he had no equal. He simply was absolutely marvelous. He described Ted Stevens as a ``force of nature''--which I think was a rather appropriate description, depending on your description of a force of nature--and as a person who always made him laugh. Well, it is difficult to try to figure out how to eulogize a person of Ted's stature, someone who has done so many different things. So you have to sort of segment, it seems to me, your own personal relationship with Ted and do the best you can to grasp this unusual man and describe him.

I was a Member of the House when I first met Ted Stevens. It was at a Republican retreat years ago. In expressing his opinion, he was obstreperous, if not outrageous, regardless of any other person's point of view. To say he was both unique and memorable is an understatement-- a force of nature, indeed, perhaps a wandering tornado, if you will, with a poststorm rainbow of ideas.

I came to the Senate back in 1996. It didn't take long for Ted Stevens to burst into my--up to that point--relatively routine senatorial life. He jabbed his finger on my chest and said, ``I know who you are.'' I responded, ``Well, I sure as hell know who you are.'' He said, ``You allegedly know something about agriculture.'' I said, ``Well, thank you,'' and he interrupted and said, ``You serve on Armed Services and Intelligence?'' I said, ``That's right.'' He said, ``How would you like to go to the Russian Far East with me and Danny and some others?''

I thought to myself, Why on Earth would I want to go to the Russian Far East?

He said, ``We are going to Khabarovsk, and then we are going to Vladivostok.'' But that's out there where the Cossacks went over the steppes of Russia. ``Then we are going to meet with the admiral of the Russian navy, and Vladivostok is closer to Alaska than to Moscow. I know him,'' said Ted. ``Then we are going to go to South Korea to indicate our strong support. But then we are going to be the first delegation allowed into North Korea, Pyongyang.''

Well, that got my attention. He said, ``That is why I need to have you come along, because if we can arrange a third-party grain sale, there are things that we can do in North Korea to at least establish a relationship.''

I thought, what a unique idea, using agriculture as a tool for peace, if you will--or at least a fulcrum to change the relationship with North Korea. I said, ``Well, sure, I will sign up.''

That began a personal and meaningful relationship with Ted and Catherine and their family with Franki and our family that lasted during the duration of my career in the Senate until his untimely death weeks ago.

He said, ``I understand that you are a newspaper guy.'' I said, ``Yes, and?'' He said, ``You could be the scribe in regard to our CODEL.'' I might add that any CODEL you went on with Ted Stevens, you always had a T-shirt afterward saying: ``I survived CODEL Stevens.'' You could--and I did--end up at the South Pole. So I was known as the Stevens CODEL scribe.

In any case, we went to Khabarovsk and Vladivostok. We talked to that admiral, who felt closer to Ted Stevens than he did his own Russian Government, and we went to Sakhalin Island. Ted was trying to work out some kind of arrangement where American oil companies could explore and develop the tremendous oil reserves there and have a contract that meant something with Russia. It was there that Flying Tiger Ted learned about saber-toothed tigers that were allegedly actually still alive in that part of the world. It is a wonder he didn't schedule a hunting trip.

Then we went to South Korea and eventually into North Korea, and it was the first delegation allowed into that theocratic time warp. We left everything on the plane. We stayed at an alleged VIP headquarters--no heat, very cold, just North Korean TV with 24/7 military parades and martial music.

That night the discussion had gone on and on and on. We had hoped to meet with Kim Jong Il. That was not possible, so he sent two of his propaganda puppets to meet with us. We had permission from the Treasury to waive certain requirements so that we could arrange for a third- party grain sale to assist North Korea, which goes through a famine every harvesting year. It would have been at least a start.

So you had Ted and Danny Inouye, two World War II veterans, who told the North Korean delegation it was time to make Panmunjon a tourist attraction. Ted finally had it and said, ``Knock off the BS. I know you understand English. Let's get to the bottom line.'' The bottom line was that they could not do anything in terms of policy. They were there to make an intelligence estimate, and it was a lost opportunity at that particular time. The leadership effort by Ted Stevens didn't pan out, but not for the lack of trying.

On another CODEL we landed at 11 and got to the hotel at about midnight. Ted was a great connoisseur of military history and movies. He was a great devotee of the series ``Band of Brothers.'' So we were playing Band of Brothers to staff and to all present. This is at 12:30 at night, going on to 1, 1:30. We had fought and died with episode five; we were going to episode six. I looked around, and all the loyal staff were asleep; all Members were still there and were asleep. I was having a hard time keeping my eyes open. I looked over at the great man, and his eyes were closed. I thought he was asleep, so I got up and started to turn off the television. As I reached for the power button, he said, ``This next part is the best part.'' He was not watching it; he was listening to it because he had seen it at least three times. Well, needless to say, we saw episode six in its entirety. Thank the Lord, we didn't go to episode seven. We would have been there all night.

Some years ago, I was present for the ceremonies in Alaska when Ted was named the ``Alaskan of the Century.'' How on Earth could a sitting Senator,

or anybody, get overwhelming citizen support and approval and accolades from his State and be named ``Alaskan of the Century''? Ted did. I was there to allegedly roast him. There was a great crowd. Facts and records are stubborn things. He was and is still today the ``Alaskan of the Century.'' What he did and what he accomplished in the making of our 49th State was simply remarkable. By the way, the Federal Government still has not made good on many promises they made to Ted when he worked so hard and diligently to make Alaska a State.

At any rate, he flew in, during that ceremony, on a World War II plane. He had his combat jacket. He came in with Catherine and they took their places on very posh chairs. I will quote what he said time and time again to the people of Alaska: ``The hell with politics; let's do what's good for Alaska.''

I will add this: The country and our national defense and every man and woman in uniform owe this man a great debt.

When you come to this body and you come to public service, you know you risk your ideas, your thoughts, your hopes, and your dreams before the crowd. Sometimes the crowd says yes, and you have friends who will stand behind you when you are taking the bows. Then perhaps something happens in your life and you suddenly become a lightning rod for accusations; you wonder where your friends are, who will stand beside you when you are taking the boos, not the bows. The lightning rod was fast, furious, and egregious, especially considering the man, his accomplishments, and integrity.

In Washington, when there is crisis and chaos and big-time problems, many are called but few are chosen. When the chips were on the table, we chose Ted. As chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, he headed up the posse that decided the Nation's spending priorities. What a tough job. It was a tough job then, and it is even tougher today. But he did a heck of a job. For, you see, Members of Congress are a lot like someone suffering from the flu, an insatiable appetite on one end and no sense of responsibility on the other.

They said: Ted, Ted, I know we have to meet our budget caps, but this program is really important to me. My program is an investment, not a cost.

Somehow, someway, the chairman has to wade through all of the demands of his colleagues, try to meet the ever changing and growing needs of our Nation at an unprecedented time of economic challenge, and through all of it, then he must fulfill our obligations to guarantee our national security and to the many entitlement programs we are very reluctant to reform in this body and the other body and to which we Americans seem to think we are entitled. It is like herding cats, big cats with saber teeth, just like those up on Sakhalin Island. In the doing of this, Ted Stevens was surrounded by many colleagues good at proposing more spending on existing programs and new programs to boot and those who look at any spending increase with a gleam in their eye and the tools of a stonecutter.

There are few, however, who can measure value, and that is what Ted did. Just at the time he thought he could make both ends meet in behalf of Alaska and our Nation, someone moved the chains. To his critics--and there were many--the old saying ``a penny for your thoughts'' may be a fair evaluation of their contribution. The wheels of progress are seldom turned by cranks, critics, or, in Ted's case, a howling pack of wolves.

Today, both political parties are having trouble looking beyond their ideological fences. Ted Stevens was a bipartisan fence-mender while riding herd on all of the strays. How on Earth did he do this? How did he persevere throughout an ordeal that would have best the best of men?

Abraham Lincoln defined duty in this way:

I do the very best I know how, the very best I can, and I

mean to keep doing so until the end. If the end brings me out

all right, what is said against me will not amount to

anything. If the end brings me out wrong, ten angels swearing

I was right would make no difference.

During Ted's memorial service in his beloved Alaska, Vice President Biden's tribute was truly eloquent, personal, and pertinent. Others spoke with equal meaning. But it was Senator Danny Inouye, his best friend, who brought thousands to their feet at this service, clapping for minutes when he said: ``We all knew he was innocent.'' So did 10 angels and those who knew him best, and I think Ted heard them both.

Thank you, Catherine and Ted's family, for sharing him with us, and, as Vice President Biden said so well, we will not see the likes of him again.

Mr. President, it was just about two years ago that many of us came to the floor to say goodbye to one of our good friends. Ted Stevens was leaving the Senate and returning home to his beloved Alaska. He had earned his retirement many times over.

At last there would be time to do the things that he always enjoyed-- fishing, spending more time with his family, and being with the people of Alaska who hold him in such high esteem and affection. He was known throughout the State as Uncle Ted.

Now we are gathered again to reflect on Ted Stevens and his life, but this time we are here to say a final farewell as we mourn his loss. On reflection, nothing says more about the way he lived his life than to speak of his loss at the age of 86 with the feeling that he was taken from us all too soon.

Ted's life was a great, grand and glorious adventure, and he filled every day of it to the brim as he pursued anything and everything that interested him or moved him to action. The strength of his character and his love of his country saw him through his military service. His determination to succeed and his commitment to getting a good education helped him through college and then through law school as he worked to obtain the skills and the knowledge he knew he would need to be successful in whatever he chose to do in life.

For all who knew him, Ted's ultimate legacy can be summed up in one word--statehood. That was his first and most powerful calling, and his successful effort to make Alaska a State left its mark on our country and our flag--a distinction that will ensure that Ted will always be remembered.

Although it was a remarkable achievement, the idea of making Alaska a State wasn't a new idea when Ted got a hold of it. It had been talked about for some time, but it wasn't going anywhere because the proposal needed something more to get the ball rolling--it needed a champion who would fight for it--someone who could develop a strategy that would make the impossible dream of the people of Alaska come true. That individual was Ted Stevens.

Ted practically ran the effort from start to finish as soon as he arrived in Washington. He had a plan, and he put it into operation. It produced a groundswell of support that became so powerful there was just no stopping it. Soon President Eisenhower had signed the necessary legislation and Alaska had become our 49th State.

For most people, that would have been enough. But it wasn't enough for Ted. Ted didn't know what life had in store for him, but he knew where he would be taking the next steps in his life--back home in Alaska.

After a series of twists and turns, Ted became one of Alaska's Senators. He was a tremendously effective Senator, and his reputation grew over the years as a tireless worker who wouldn't take no for an answer when it involved one of his State's priorities.

Ted and I were able to forge a good working relationship and a friendship that meant a lot to us both. We understood each other and more often than not, we supported each other's legislative priorities. Wyoming is a lot like Alaska, so that may explain why Ted and I got along so well.

Wyoming is a large State with a relatively small population. So is Alaska. Wyoming is blessed with an abundance of natural beauty. So is Alaska. The people who call our States their home are strong, independent and proud--proud of their past, confident of their future, and well aware of how blessed they are to be Americans. I think that comes from the placement of our States. It took people with a sense of adventure and a willingness to put up with a great deal of difficulty and an abundance of hardship to travel the miles it took for them to get to Wyoming and later to travel North to Alaska.

In the years to come, whenever I remember the days I spent with Ted, I will think of the words of the old adage that reminds us that the most important inheritance we receive from our

friends, family and those we care about is found in the memories we will always carry with us of the special days we shared with them. For me, I will always remember the times I spent away from the Senate doing what Ted and I most loved to do: enjoying the great outdoors with a fishing rod in our hands. If you are from Wyoming or Alaska, I do not think you can find a bad fishing spot anywhere in those two States.

That is how Ted got a lot of us to his beloved Alaska year after year. He was always talking about his Kenai Tournament and the chance it gave everyone to see the sights of Alaska and get a little break from the rigors of the Senate. It was a great fishing tournament, but it was also a chance for us to help Ted raise some needed funds that were used to improve the habitat of the salmon that had the good sense to live there.

God must have needed a good man. I know we all miss Ted. When he wore his Hulk tie, you knew things were about to happen and happen fast. This memory makes it feel like he is never far away. Diana joins in sending our sympathy to Catherine and all his family. The Stevens family can be very proud of the difference they made together over the years and of the legacy they will proudly carry of service and an unwillingness to ever think any task is impossible, no matter how difficult the struggle.

I cannot help but think God needed someone with Ted's abilities to have taken him from us. I take some comfort in the knowledge that Ted was doing those things he dearly loved right up to the end. He was flying around his beloved Alaska and heading to a lodge to catch up on a little fishing when his plane went down.

In the days to come, whenever I am with my grandson and we both look up at the sky with the awe and wonder it inspires, I will remember the words of the Eskimo proverb that speaks to the reason why the beautiful lights in the sky shine so brightly at night. As legend goes: Perhaps they are not stars but, rather, openings in heaven, where the love of our lost ones pours through and shines down upon us to let us know that they are happy.

I do not know if there is fishing in heaven, but if there is, I know Ted must be up there somewhere waiting patiently for a nibble and the chance to reel in another prize winner. I can almost see him there, fishing rod in hand and a smile on his face. If that is what heaven has brought to Ted, I have no doubt he will be happy forever because it does not get any better than that.

Madam President, I rise to salute my former colleague Ted Stevens who will be laid to rest in Arlington today. He earned the right to be buried in Arlington National Cemetery, having served in World War II. That is one of the things that hasn't been talked about as much regarding Ted Stevens because he was a remarkable Senator and has a remarkable history with his State of Alaska as well as in the Senate.

Ted Stevens served here for 40 years. From the very beginning, Ted was Alaska's greatest champion. He helped found his State. He pushed through Alaska statehood and worked tirelessly to serve its unique needs for his entire life and continued to be its greatest advocate.

Nine years after he helped establish Alaska's statehood, he was elected to serve in the Senate. He spent the next 40 years building his State from an undeveloped territory, which Alaska was, to one of our Nation's most important energy producers, along with the other things Alaska gives to our great Nation. It is a testament to Ted Stevens' mighty efforts and his love for his native land.

Alaska and every other State was helped by Ted Stevens. Everyone knows he took care of Alaska because he fought ferociously, but he also helped every other Senator represent their States and the priorities of their States, and that was one of the great things about this man.

In particular, when he went on the Appropriations Committee and later was its chairman as well as the chairman of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, he devoted himself to protecting our troops, to making sure they had the right equipment to do the jobs we ask them to do. Of course, he was a man of the military. He was so proud of his air service. He was a man who had flown in World War II. I visited the World War II Memorial to Americans in Great Britain with Ted Stevens, and he walked around all of the old airplanes and talked about the airplanes that were there and the ones he had flown and the ones that were new. There was an excitement about that, in his 80s--all the memories of his World War II time.

When someone would say to me, How do you get along with Ted Stevens, I would always say Ted Stevens is a man who is all bark and no bite. This was a man who had this Incredible Hulk tie and he would frown and he would look ferocious. He was so tender underneath. He wanted to help people. He wanted to make sure people did the right thing. He had a passion, he did, but he was so good underneath.

Back in 1993, when I first entered the Senate, I was one of seven women Senators. I would say there was not another woman on the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee--my colleague Barbara Mikulski was on the committee--but I wanted to be on the Defense Subcommittee and I told Ted Stevens, We have more Army retirees in Texas than any other State. We have great Army bases as well as Air Force bases in Texas. I want to be on the Defense Subcommittee. He helped me get there. It made a difference in my capability to serve my State and my Nation.

I traveled once with Ted Stevens and Danny Inouye to Saudi Arabia for our work on the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee. I was told later that Ted Stevens was actually discouraged by our Saudi host from bringing me with the delegation because I was a woman. Ted Stevens never told me this until later. He said, No way am I going to keep a member of my subcommittee and my committee off this trip she deserves to go on, and that was it. I was part of the delegation. I visited our air base there with all of the other Members. I participated in every meeting and every event during that trip. Ted Stevens and Danny Inouye together would have it no other way.

Let me mention the relationship between Danny Inouye and Ted Stevens.

Ted Stevens and Danny Inouye were the chairman and ranking member of the Commerce Committee, but they never referred to each other as ranking member. They were always chairman and vice chairman. It went back and forth. When Democrats were in charge, Danny Inouye would be the chairman of a committee and Ted would be the vice chairman. If Republicans were in the majority, it would be Ted who was the chairman and the vice chairman would be Danny Inouye, because they were World War II soulmates. Danny Inouye--who is now the chairman of the Appropriations Committee and another great patriot for our country, hailing from Hawaii, who won the Congressional Medal of Honor for his great service in World War II--and Ted were inseparable friends and called each other soul brothers.

Another Ted story: One day during the markup in the Senate Appropriations Committee, Ted grew very animated, as he did on issues, and when another Senator said, Mr. Chairman, there is no reason for you to lose your temper, Ted glared back and said, I never lose my temper. I know exactly where it is. Those who knew him best knew his compassionate heart.

There is a wonderful article this morning in Politico, one of the newspapers on Capitol Hill, and it talks about his time. Again, another Ted story, World War II: He was very close to the Chinese, because he flew missions into China. One of the things he did was fly supplies to GEN Claire Chennault's Flying Tiger air bases in China. He escorted Anna Chennault on her first trip back to China in 1981 when Stevens himself had just remarried and was on his honeymoon with Catherine. ``We went on our honeymoon there with Anna Chennault'', said Catherine Stevens, laughing. ``Everybody kept sending tips that Ted Stevens is on his honeymoon with Anna Chennault.'' Then Catherine said, ``And that was technically true.''

This is another side of this wonderful man that we are going to bury today with all of the tributes and accolades he deserves at Arlington National Cemetery. We will miss this great man, this great patriot, this great Alaskan, this great American, and this great friend to every one of us here.

Thank you, Madam President. I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I rise this evening, as so many colleagues have done, to pay tribute to and remember one of the Senate's most enduring Members, the late Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska, who was buried today. For 40 years, Senator Stevens represented the people of Alaska in this body with zeal, with dignity, with intellect, and with strength.

Ted Stevens came in a small package, but he was indeed a giant--a giant for Alaska and for the Senate. He helped to chart a course for America's 49th State and our entire Nation through his vigorous dedication and passion. As one of the earliest proponents of statehood for Alaska, Ted Stevens' legacy remains intertwined with Alaska's development. His pride in Alaska was unmatched.

Fighting on behalf of Alaska, Senator Stevens was instrumental in developing America's energy policy and highlighting the incredible natural resources available in our own country. He saw the danger posed by a lack of energy security for this country, and drawing on Alaska's vast resources, he tirelessly advocated American energy independence. His work, including the Trans-Alaskan Pipeline Authorization Act of 1973, created good jobs for Alaskans and helped supply the power America desperately requires to fuel our economic growth.

A true American patriot who was concerned about U.S. security, Senator Stevens was determined that we maintain the ability to stand alone, if necessary, against the international forces of evil that plot our destruction. When it came to national defense, Ted Stevens demonstrated his commitment at an early age, long before his days in the Senate. I once heard Ted refer to the men and women of today's Armed Forces as ``the next greatest generation.'' He truly knew whereof he spoke. At 19 years of age, he enlisted in the Army Air Corps, during one of the darkest periods in American history. Having seen combat, Ted Stevens knew what service, valor, and bravery meant, and he saw that in the courageous men and women admirably serving now.

Retired Air Force COL Walter J. Boyne wrote a tribute to Senator Stevens that appeared in the Washington Post on August 11. I will quote excerpts from Colonel Boyne's memorable piece:

At age 20, Lt. Stevens flew twin-engine transports ``over

the Hump,'' carrying vital supplies from bases in India to

the Chinese armies resisting Japan. On these often-

unaccompanied missions, he had crossed the Himalayas; in

Asia, the mountains were higher than in Alaska, the weather

worse, and there was always the threat of a Japanese fighter

plane showing up to dispute the passage.

Boyne continues:

Young Lt. Stevens was probably disappointed to find himself

in the cockpit of a transport plane. He had completed flying

school at Douglas, Ariz., earning his wings by May 1944, and

probably expected to be assigned to Lockheed P-38 fighters.

The urgent requirement for transports dictated otherwise,

however, and he was assigned to the 322nd Troop Carrier

Squadron, part of the 14th Air Force commanded by Gen. Claire

Chennault.

Boyne writes:

While the route over the Himalayas demanded piloting skill

and endurance, Stevens also flew many missions within the

interior of China, some going behind Japanese lines, bringing

supplies in direct support of Chinese troops.

For his service, Stevens received two Distinguished Flying Crosses, which Boyne points out ``can be awarded to any member of the U.S. armed forces who distinguishes him or herself by `heroism or extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight.' ''

I ask unanimous consent that the entire article be printed in the Record.

Only 3 years before Senator Stevens earned his wings, Pilot Officer John Gillespie Magee, Jr., of the Royal Canadian Air Force composed a poem after being struck by the sheer wonder of flying a test flight at 30,000 feet. This poem was sent home to John Magee's parents just a few days before his death. It is entitled ``High Flight.''

I will close with those words in remembrance of an American hero, Senator Ted Stevens:

``Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of earth

``And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;

``Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth

``Of sun-split clouds--and done a hundred things

``You have not dreamed of--wheeled and soared and swung

``High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there

``I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung

``My eager craft through footless halls of air.

``Up, up the long delirious, burning blue,

``I've topped the windswept heights with easy grace

``Where never lark, or even eagle flew--

``And, while with silent lifting mind I've trod

``The high untresspassed sanctity of space,

``Put out my hand and touched the face of God.''

On August 9, 2010, Ted Stevens slipped the bonds of Earth one final time. He died, literally and figuratively, with his boots on, among friends, enjoying the rugged and dangerous beauty of nature and of the State of loved. We will miss his leadership and his friendship and the Nation will long be indebted to him for his lifetime of service.