Farewell to the Senate (Executive Calendar)
Mr. President, I rise today in the time-honored tradition of giving my farewell remarks to the United States Senate. This is an opportunity to thank my friends, my colleagues, and the voters of North Carolina who have supported me for 28…
Mr. President, I rise today in the time-honored tradition of giving my farewell remarks to the United States Senate. This is an opportunity to thank my friends, my colleagues, and the voters of North Carolina who have supported me for 28 years, through 8 elections, for the opportunity to serve and the ability to make a difference for my State and my country.
Thirty years ago, I was a businessman with a happy family in Winston- Salem, NC, who decided things in Washington, DC, weren't working exactly right. So I decided to run for Congress in an effort to help make that change for the better. My reason for
running was a concern of the future for my two young sons and others of their generation.
I lost that first race for the House in 1992, and I took it in stride thinking, I have done my best shot. It was meant to be. I am not a politician. I had never run for office before or been involved in politics except to vote. But by 1994, as Congress was still raising taxes and increasing the deficit at the same time, I decided I had to try again to bring some common sense to how things were being decided in our Nation's Capital. So I threw my hat in the ring again, and I was elected to the House of Representatives. I was surrounded by 73 other new Members, with a new majority, and an opportunity to make new friends.
I met three people who are now some of my closest friends: John Boehner, Saxby Chambliss, and Tom Latham. Brooke and I are blessed with their friendship. Every year since they have left, along with their wives, Debbie Boehner, Julianne Chambliss, and the late Kathy Latham, we have traveled and deepened those bonds of friendship. I am grateful and proud we are so incredibly close, and I thank all of them today.
Do you suppose Boehner is crying by now?
While we have all made new friends in Congress, not a day goes by-- not a day--that I don't miss my good friend Tom Coburn. I have his name plate in my office from the Intel Committee to remind me of the lessons that Tom gave all of us and for the example he set as a Member of the Senate. Now, from that class of 1994, there are only three of us left-- Roger, Lindsey, and me--and my time is short.
The Contract with America created a new majority. Newt Gingrich and Frank Luntz crafted our unifying message to the American people. We came with a commitment not to leave for a hundred days until we started to change the course of American government. Then, this seemed like a small sacrifice for a transformation I saw as imminent and important. We worked day and night before we ever found the bathroom or permanent housing.
Every Member had a different story and a different reason for running, but we were elected for a common cause: to fix Congress and a government that was broken and out of touch.
Being one of 435 Representatives in an institution driven by seniority has a sobering impact. For many, our new committee assignments taught us that we weren't quite as smart as we thought. Winning elections was hard; thoughtful policymaking was even harder. I decided early on that the Energy and Commerce Committee was where I would spend the majority of my time and focus.
Much can be said for the value of institutional knowledge, but there weren't any Republicans who knew what to do in the majority since none of us had ever served in a majority.
John Dingell was the outgoing chair of the committee, and quite honestly, John could have ignored the new Republicans and been upset about the election taking his gavel away. Instead, he took me under his wing. John taught me many lessons about hearings, about oversight, how to focus on important topics, and more importantly, how the work in Washington really gets done. He advised me to spend my time listening, so I did. I came to the committee hearings, and I learned from the experts.
I was doing so much at one time, I realized that family time was too often ignored. I cannot express how much I appreciate the love and the support of my family to let me have this incredible experience. Brooke and I have lived apart for 28 years. Outside of congressional recesses or a few trips, every Monday, I have had to wake up, just like you, and know I had to fly back to Washington to cast a vote. I look forward to being home with the love of my life when I am done with this.
During the decade I served in the House, our country went through some major events, including 9/11 and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, which still ripple through our foreign policy, our defense policy, and our domestic policy today; the anthrax attacks, which opened my eyes as to how unprepared our country was for the threat of bioterrorism and inspired my work to create the national preparedness and response framework; and the impeachment of President Clinton--only the second time a President had been impeached in the history of our country in the House.
I had the opportunity to work on a lot of legislation, but issues I am most proud of are bipartisan legislation to end the tobacco quota; the start of my biodefense work with the National Disaster Medical System and the Smallpox Vaccine Program when we created the Department of Homeland Security; and especially the Food and Drug Modernization Act, or FDAMA, as many of us know.
I came to Congress 6 years before the horrible attacks of 9/11, and guarding our Nation's freedoms was as important then as it remains today. Standing at Ground Zero just a few days after those awful attacks in New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania made it clear to me that we could never let down our guard against those who hate our country and hate our freedoms. Serving on the House and Senate Intelligence Committees has made me more committed to remaining vigilant in the goal of protecting the lives of all Americans.
When I decided to run for the Senate, little did I know how grueling the campaign would be. Running a statewide race against Erskine Bowles was never going to be easy. Erskine had experience, money, and a built- in network. I had a lot of energy and a determination to win.
Our campaign was downright civil compared to what we have seen in recent years, and after the election, Erskine and I became lifetime, longtime friends. We remain that way today. I appreciate Erskine Bowles for his continued service to our State of North Carolina and to the country.
In my 18 years in the Senate, we have lived through some major events as well: the financial crisis of 2009, the Ebola outbreak of 2014, a global pandemic, and I might say the third and fourth impeachments of a President of the United States, the illegal and immoral invasion of Ukraine.
In the Senate, any Senator can work on any legislation they want, but in particular, I would like to mention just a few: the Pandemic and All-Hazards bill, or PAHPA; the ABLE Act to help families with children with disabilities save for the future; the child care and development block grant reauthorization to help families afford quality childcare; the Veterans Choice Act to help veterans get the healthcare they deserve; making permanent the funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund; the Ryan White CARE Act to make this successful program more equitable for Americans living with HIV/AIDS; the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crimes bill, which helps investigators work to discover the truth and seek justice for families of the victims of civil rights-era cold cases; and years' worth of annual intelligence authorization bills.
Usually, the most bipartisan bills that move through this body are often misunderstood and mischaracterized. Far from being a congressional blank check to the intelligence community, they represent an annual congressional exercise to guide and direct the intelligence community. These bills are the most bipartisan products of ongoing, rigorous oversight. Those who block or obstruct or otherwise delay these bills are not empowering the people they think they are.
While I am proud of all these bills and more, I want to highlight the work I have done to build the architecture of the Nation's pandemic and biological preparedness systems--in particular, the creation of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, BARDA.
Developing a collaboration between the Federal Government and private sector companies to accelerate the development of medical countermeasures helps us all meet the oath we swore to protect the safety and security of the American people.
Without BARDA, we wouldn't have had the tools to deal with anthrax, smallpox, and radiological or nuclear threats. We wouldn't have developed the COVID vaccines as rapidly. We wouldn't be on the leading edge of science, and we would instead be falling further and further behind.
This infrastructure works because we made it flexible. We made it adaptable. So whatever the current threat may be, my greatest frustration is that administration after administration
seems to think they need to reinvent the wheel instead of picking up the tools that Congress has already laid on the table and built to handle emergencies.
I hope one lesson we have learned from COVID is exactly how valuable BARDA is.
I have been especially fortunate to serve on three of the most consequential committees in the United States Senate: Intelligence, where I continued my service from the House in the Senate, eventually becoming chair; Finance, which governs our Tax Code and much of our healthcare programs; and the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, where I currently serve as the ranking Republican and have focused on our public health threat preparedness and response infrastructure and modernizing the FDA, CDC, and NIH, and I thank my chairman, Senator Murray.
While serving on the Intelligence Committee, I have developed a deep friendship with Mark Warner and so many of my colleagues. We were great partners during our investigation of Russia's efforts to interfere in the 2016 election, and our shared passion for oversight of the intelligence community has made them better, more responsive, and our country safer.
Mark, I am going to miss that work with you.
I would also like to offer my deepest thanks and proud affection for the men and women of the intelligence community. From junior analysts to the station chiefs, in DC and around the world, the thing that has always stood out is their love of country, their commitment to mission, to keep the American people safe and our country secure. It is easy to focus on their so-called intelligence failures, which are more, actually, policy failures, and we don't get to talk about their successes, but that is what enables them to keep doing the work they do successfully to keep us safe.
It is a rare opportunity to praise them for a job well-done. So to all of them: Thank you. It has been an honor, and it has been a privilege to serve in that capacity.
Committees are where you roll up your sleeves and you get to work. I learned that from John Dingell in the House and from my friends Ted Kennedy and Orrin Hatch in the Senate. It is where friendships are made and where we work together to get results for the people who sent us here.
If I have any regrets about the operation of the Senate in recent years, it is how much leadership ignored the work of the committees and, in many cases, ignored the expertise of our staff.
The Senate needs more committee consideration of bills and serious issues, less consolidation of decision-making in the hands of a few.
Thomas Jefferson once said:
I like the dreams of the future better than the history of
the past.
So let me look forward in my remaining time rather than just reminisce the past. I have never been more optimistic about America's future.
During the next two decades, we will see technology and innovation at a speed that none of us can envision today. Technology platforms will emerge that change the global economy; and at a pace that will be hard for this institution to keep up with.
Breakthroughs will transform healthcare, agriculture, and manufacturing. Then it will hit a wall called the Federal Government, with an architecture designed in the 1950s.
The work you have got is huge. It is time for Congress to be the visionary body our Founders envisioned when they created us.
We are now 22 years into this new century. What are we waiting for? We need to unleash Americans to solve today's problems with the intellectual power of our great country. America is full of bright and intelligent men and women of all ages who are creative at finding solutions and forging new paths. We need these folks in the U.S. Senate, and I am glad that I have had the chance to serve with some who will now continue to carry on the great efforts for years to come.
We need more statesman and fewer politicians. As Harry Truman said while serving in this great body:
Regardless of [your] politics . . . [our] fate is tied up
in what [happens] in this room.
What happens in this room.
The tradition of a farewell speech usually includes some words to your colleagues about the importance of the U.S. Senate, John Dingell's complaint about us being the enemy of the House notwithstanding.
So here are some lessons about what I have learned and what I recommend to my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, both to the newcomers and to those in term 1 or 5.
One: Thank your family. They put up with more than you will ever know.
To my wife Brooke, thank you, thank you, thank you.
While I am sure she is happy to see me retire, she also reminded me she doesn't make lunch, so I had better get a job.
To my sons and their families, Tyler, Meg, Rooney, William, Tyler-- yeah, a boy Tyler and a daughter-in-law Tyler--Mary Lyde, Virginia, and Henry: Thank you. I am proud of the lives you are building and the grandchildren you have blessed Brooke and I with. I love you. I look forward to spending more time with you instead of these guys.
Two: Thank your staff. They are actually the reason you are here; it is not you.
In my time in the House and the Senate, during my leadership of the Intelligence Committee, the HELP Committee, I have worked with roughly 200 of the smartest, hardest working staff who sacrifice time and higher pay to work behind the scenes to make so many things happen.
I have been blessed with a staff in North Carolina. My constituents couldn't be better served by their tireless efforts.
I have had the best constituent service folks in North Carolina as North Carolina has ever seen.
It would be impossible to name all of you, and I will put the names in the Record, but, particularly, I want to thank Dean Myers and Chris Joyner for their years of friendship and service to North Carolina, our country, and to me. I thank both of you.
There are so many names, but from my House terms, I would like to especially thank Jenny Hansen Ware, John Versaggi, Brian Vanderbloemen, and A.T.
From my Senate terms: Natasha Hickman, Chris Toppings, Polly Walker, Michael Sorensen, Caitlin Carroll, Rebecca Glover, and Josh Bowlen.
From the Intel Committee, Christian Cook, Emily Harding, Vanessa Le, Tommy Nguyen, the entire bipartisan Russian team, and all of those who serve the committee under my chairmanship.
And my HELP Committee, Angela Wiles, Rachel Portman, Anna Abrams, Dr. Bob Kadlec, Margaret Barton and David Cleary.
Finally, I would also like to say a few words about Alicia Peterson Clark. She helped me in my first election. She became my House chief, and she got me to the Senate.
She helped build the operation and establish the culture that runs through my office today. Today, even if you never met her, if you have worked for me, you have been influenced by her leadership. She passed away a few years ago, heartbreakingly young, and she is deeply missed.
Three: Consistently remind yourself why you came to serve.
The American people expect us to get things done. Like it or not, they may not send you home, but you will leave feeling that you played in the game and have very little to show for it.
Four: Only do things that have meaningful purpose. My staff knows my rule for the introduction of legislation. You have got to show me the human face behind the issue if you want me to introduce it and be passionate about it.
Five: Remember, our Founders expected Congress to be visionary.
When we complain about regulation we don't like, it is usually our fault because we either delegated that authority away or remained silent when an out-of-control President just takes authority we never granted.
Our system is designed so that Congress would do things to fix problems, including problems that didn't exist.
The creation of BARDA proved to me the importance of being visionary. We would not have been prepared for H1N1, Ebola, Zika, coronavirus. My advice is to look ahead to what you think future problems might be and build an architecture to solve them.
Six: Nobody wins in impeachment. Let me say that again. Nobody wins in
impeachments. I have lived through 3--75 percent of all impeachments in the history of the United States of America.
Congress should resist the temptation to treat impeachment as just the newest form of political opposition.
Seven: Principle is important, but flexibility is essential.
While we all have areas of interest that we are most comfortable with, they may not be the greatest need of our time.
When the 9/11 terrorist attacks happened, we all had to shift our focus. When the financial markets collapsed in 2008 and 2009, it was all-hands-on-deck. And when COVID became a pandemic, we had to scramble to become health, education, and financial experts to shore up our economy and save lives.
I wish we had done more to keep schools open so that children wouldn't have suffered quite so much.
But I know that in the future we will have learned from these mistakes and we won't make them again.
That is seven lessons on how to be an effective U.S. Senator. I hope some of my colleagues find these to be helpful.
America has always been a great country, where dreams can come true. Let's keep it that way. Our citizens and elected officials alike should dream big and then work hard to make them a reality.
The job of being a U.S. Senator means making tough decisions. Please remember that good judgment in making those decisions often involves finding some balance between two parties as much as it means standing firm on your personal convictions and on the platform on which you were elected.
I hope we are all committed to supporting the ingenuity of our citizens so that they can match the likes of Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, George Washington Carver, Beulah Louise Henry, and so many others.
Government should not be a roadblock to innovation and new ideas. Rather, it should encourage new ideas, new innovation, and new possibilities to realize the untapped potential of our citizens.
I have often expressed my belief that America's best days are still ahead, and lately I have been chided for thinking that that is true. But my optimism is rooted in reality.
Our country and our citizens have an unlocked potential and an unbound determination to overcome any division, any problem.
Yes, there is much work to be done, but Americans have never been afraid to roll up their sleeves and work hard to succeed.
Think of the challenges that we have overcome since our country was founded--the Civil War, the Great Depression, two world wars, racial division, the Cold War, terrorist attacks, Presidential impeachments, disputed elections, an international pandemic, and more.
Yet none of these have destroyed the fabric of our Nation or its people, and I refuse to believe that any challenge is too great to tackle when we come together.
I stand here today in awe of the history made in the Capitol complex, the people's House, the U.S. Senate, the old House Chamber, the old Senate Chamber, and even the old Supreme Court Chamber.
Our Nation's history is crystalized here in this building. Our flaws, our triumphs, our humbling errors, and our breathtaking successes.
If you listen closely at night, when all around is quiet, you can hear the echoing voices of the ordinary men and women who became giants in our Nation's history--Sam Rayburn, Margaret Chase Smith, Everett Dirksen, Barbara Jordan, John Dingell, Tom Coburn, Barbara Mikulski, John Lewis, and so many more.
They served here with dignity and honor, and they shaped the course of a nation's destiny. They shared my optimism about our country and our future. Even in the darkest days, I know that optimism is not misplaced looking ahead.
It is hard for me to imagine that I have had the great honor and extraordinary privilege to follow in their footsteps.
I hope that my time here has had purpose and meaning. I know I have done my best to contribute and to help build a more perfect union.
I will miss you, my colleagues, and I will miss the tremendous staff in Congress who are unknown by the public, but behind the scenes, they keep everything running smoothly.
I will, especially, miss the hardworking, dedicated, and fearless men and women of the U.S. Capitol Police for the job they do to keep us safe. When trouble rears its head, they stand up. We must all remain thankful for the job they do on our behalf.
As I conclude, I want to thank my wife and my family again, as well as my colleagues and my staff.
I also want to thank the people of North Carolina for honoring me with the trust and respect. I am humbled that they sent me here to Congress eight different times, and I appreciate their support.
I yield the floor.
(Applause.)
(Ms. ROSEN assumed the Chair.)