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TRIBUTES TO HON. JOHN EDWARDS 

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John Edwards 

U.S. SENATOR FROM NORTH CAROLINA 

TRIBUTES 

IN THE CONGRESS OF 

THE UNITED STATES 

UNUM

E PLURIBUS


congress.#15
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John Edwards 


97207.001
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U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

WASHINGTON : 2005

S. DOC. 108–23 

Tributes 

Delivered in Congress 

John Edwards 

United States Senator 

1999–2005 

÷ 

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Compiled under the direction 

of the 

Joint Committee on Printing 

Trent Lott, Chairman 

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CONTENTS 

Page 

Biography .................................................................................................. v 

Farewell ..................................................................................................... vii 

Proceedings in the Senate: 

Tributes by Senators: 

Allen, George, of Virginia .......................................................... 15 

Boxer, Barbara, of California .................................................... 5 

Burns, Conrad R., of Montana .................................................. 4 

Conrad, Kent, of North Dakota ................................................. 3 

Daschle, Thomas A., of South Dakota ...................................... 17 

Dayton, Mark, of Minnesota ..................................................... 6 

Dodd, Christopher J., of Connecticut ....................................... 10 

Domenici, Pete V., of New Mexico ............................................ 13 

Frist, Bill, of Tennessee ............................................................. 4 

Harkin, Tom, of Iowa ................................................................. 7 

Hutchison, Kay Bailey, of Texas ............................................... 14 

Inhofe, James M., of Oklahoma ................................................ 10 

Lautenberg, Frank, of New Jersey ........................................... 9 

Leahy, Patrick J., of Vermont ................................................... 15 

McConnell, Mitch, of Kentucky ................................................. 18 

Nelson, Bill, of Florida ............................................................... 6 

Reid, Harry, of Nevada .............................................................. 15 

Sarbanes, Paul S., of Maryland ................................................ 18 

Shelby, Richard C., of Alabama ................................................ 4 

Stabenow, Deborah Ann, of Michigan ...................................... 13 

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Biography 

Sworn into office on January 6, 1999, Senator JOHN EDWARDS emerged as a champion for issues affecting the daily 

lives of regular people in North Carolina and the Nation. 

Senator EDWARDS was a chief sponsor of the Bipartisan 

Patient Protection Act, strong and far-reaching patient protection legislation that passed the Senate in 2001. 

Senator EDWARDS’s bipartisan accomplishments also include a major investment in America’s public schools, strong 

antiterrorism measures, sweeping campaign finance reform 

and legislation to fight corporate corruption. 

The News & Observer of Raleigh described Senator EDWARDS as ‘‘smart, disciplined, [and] hard-working with a 

down-home manner.’’ The Wall Street Journal called him ‘‘a 

Senator who impresses colleagues in behind-doors deliberations.’’ The Washington Post said Senator EDWARDS has ‘‘the 

ability to think on his feet . . . master complex issues and . . . 

communicate in plain language to ordinary people.’’

Senator EDWARDS served on four committees: Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions; Intelligence; Judiciary; and 

Small Business. 

As part of his commitment to North Carolina, Senator EDWARDS has been to all 100 counties in the State, from Murphy (where he went to a college) to Manteo (where he honored Andy Griffith). Every week that the Senate was in session, he hosted Tar Heel Thursday, townhall style meetings 

open to all North Carolinians visiting Washington. 

Born in 1953, Senator EDWARDS grew up in Robbins, a 

small town in the Piedmont. His father, Wallace, worked in 

textile mills for 36 years. His mother, Bobbie, had a number 

of jobs including working at the post office. 

A product of North Carolina public schools, Senator EDWARDS was the first person in his family to go to college. He 

worked his way through North Carolina State University 

and graduated with an honors degree in textiles in 1974. He 

earned a law degree with honors in 1977 from the University 

of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. 

He met his wife, Elizabeth, when both were law school students at Chapel Hill. They married in 1977, and have had 

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four children. Their first child, Wade, died in 1996. Their 

eldest daughter, Catharine, is a 2004 graduate of Princeton 

University. The EDWARDS household also includes a 6-yearold daughter, Emma Claire, and a 4-year-old son, Jack. 

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Farewell 

Friday, November 19, 2004 

Mr. EDWARDS. Mr. President, life has a great way of 

handing us moments that are bittersweet. I am sad today to 

rise for the final time to represent the State of North Carolina as their Senator, but I am also filled with a great deal 

of joy because I will be heading home to the place and the 

people and the family I love so much. I also want to thank 

everyone who is listening and all Members of the Senate and 

the staff who have been so extraordinary about my wife Elizabeth for their prayers and their support. 

Elizabeth and I and our family draw so much strength 

from all of you. We are comforted by your words and your 

prayers. 

We are grateful to the more than 50,000 people who have 

sent e-mails and letters to Elizabeth. As Elizabeth’s brother 

said when he was asked about it, he would not want to be 

cancer inside of Elizabeth’s body, and I agree with that. 

She is the love of my life and a woman of great strength. 

I am sure she will be successful in this fight. Both of us hope 

and pray that by talking about it in the way that Elizabeth 

has, and with the grace and courage that she has shown, it 

will help other women who are faced with the same kind of 

struggle so they can avoid the same kind of struggle. 

Sometimes when hardship comes, one feels alone, but 

thanks to all of you and our family in the Senate, we know 

that we are not alone. We are blessed to have the love, affection, and support of our friends and our family, our great 

staff in Washington, DC, in the Senate office and back in 

North Carolina and our Senate offices there, and also the 

staff in the Senate. 

Those who serve on the floor of the Senate who have been 

wonderful friends and so much help and support for all of us, 

we thank all of them. To Marty and to Lula, whom Elizabeth 

and I adore, who have been wonderful friends to us and have 

advised us and shown us our way around here, we appreciate both of them. To the people in the Cloakroom who have 

helped us and taken care of us for the last 6 years, and to 

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the men and women—and I hope they will hear my voice—

who take us up and down the elevators, whom we see as we 

go in and out of these office buildings and the Capitol, who 

serve all of us and who are wonderful, extraordinary people, 

I have to say, since I have come back from the campaign 

trail, to a person they have spoken their support and affection for Elizabeth and for our family and what we are going 

through. I just want them all to know how much they mean 

not only to us but to all of us who serve in the Senate. 

And, of course, to all the men and women I have had the 

privilege to serve with here in the Senate. To those who 

think the men and women who serve in this institution do 

not work hard, I wish they could spend 1 day here and see 

how hard it is and how devoted everyone who serves in the 

Senate is, and how much they want to do good things for the 

country—whatever our disagreements are. We have many 

and they are strong. The truth is, everyone here serves because they love their country and they want to do good 

things for their country. 

All of you, you keep us strong. You keep us going. You remind us, in good times and in bad, when we work together, 

everything is still possible here in America. It is the North 

Carolina way. That is the way I like to look at it. I have 

never loved my home State or my country more than I do 

today. We have had some triumphs, we have had some tragedies over the last 6 years. But one thing is clear: I will 

never stop representing the people of North Carolina, the 

values they represent and the values that I grew up with 

there and the values I believe in. The truth is, it is who I 

am. 

It is what I learned in Robbins, NC, growing up, watching 

my father and the men and women who worked alongside 

him in the mill for all those years. It is what I learned from 

going to church, from going to our schools, and from going 

to all 100 counties in North Carolina, which I am proud to 

have done, and listening to the people of North Carolina. It 

is what I learned when I shook the hands of the people who 

came on Tarheel Thursday, which we had when we were 

here in the Senate. I will never forget you. 

I will never forget the first struggle we had in the wake 

of Hurricane Floyd, hard-working people like Bobby 

Carraway. He owned a restaurant in Kinston near the Neuse 

River. It sat under 3 feet of water for days. He lost everything. He and so many like him didn’t want a government 

handout, they wanted a hand up and a chance to do what 

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they were capable of doing and a chance to go back to work, 

which is all he and his family had ever known their entire 

lives. What we did then for so many, and this year, too, in 

the western part of our State, which has been hit by hurricanes and flooding, is we worked together, we picked ourselves up, we dusted away the disappointment, and we got 

back to work to make North Carolina stronger. 

I will also never forget the men and women who worked 

at Pillowtex. They did everything right. They took care of 

their families. They went to work every day, some of them 

for days and years, some of them for decades. They still 

couldn’t stop their jobs from moving overseas. 

I met one woman whose question I hear over and over—

I heard it over and over again as I traveled around the country. She looked at me and said: What am I supposed to do 

now? Have I not done what is right in America? I worked 

hard, I raised my family, I was responsible. Now my job is 

gone and what am I supposed to do? 

Together we fought to help her pay for health care and get 

training for a new job but, most important, we fought to 

keep North Carolina jobs in North Carolina where we need 

them so badly. We stood up against tax breaks that shipped 

our jobs overseas. We fought for fair trade that gave our 

workers and businesses a chance to compete, and represented the values we believe in. 

I will also never forget Dr. Clay Ballantine. He works at 

Mission St. Joseph’s Hospital in Asheville, NC. Every day he 

sees kids and adults and seniors who come in with respiratory problems, problems with asthma. He told his story 

as we fought the battle to protect the quality of our air for 

our children and for our seniors. 

I will never forget the farmers and the men and women 

who live in our small towns, our rural areas where I grew 

up. That is who I am. The truth is, you are the heart and 

soul of North Carolina. When our farmers were struggling, 

especially our tobacco farmers, I am proud in the end we 

were able to do something to help them, because they deserve it. They have done so much for their towns and their 

communities and for my State. They deserve something, finally, to be done to help them and support them. All of us 

together were able to do that. 

It also matters to good, hard-working people like Blythe 

and Gwendolyn Casey. They have had a family farm for decades. They did their part and they never dreamed they 

would be close to retiring, mired in debt, debt they can never 

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recover from. Together we helped them and we maintained 

family farms across our State of North Carolina. 

I will never forget the mothers and the fathers, the husbands and the wives, the brothers and the sisters who wanted nothing but to make sure their loved one got the care 

they needed in their darkest hour. Together with Senator 

John McCain and Senator Kennedy, my friends and my colleagues, two men for whom I have enormous respect and affection, we went to work on something that matters—making 

sure you and your doctors could make your own health care 

decisions, especially when they were important to you and 

your family. It wasn’t easy. There were lobbyists all over this 

place from every drug company, HMO, and big insurance 

company. They prowled these halls, but we did it and we got 

the Patients’ Bill of Rights passed in the Senate. I have absolute faith that the Senate will do it again and the President 

will sign the Patients’ Bill of Rights into law for all Americans. 

I will also never forget the brave soldiers I met in Afghanistan on a dark night. They are so proud—they were so proud 

and still are—of serving their country, going after terrorists 

and Osama bin Laden. I will never forget the thousands of 

men and women from Fort Bragg, Camp Lejeune, Cherry 

Point, Seymour Johnson, and Pope Air Force bases, who 

were serving this country abroad and who were serving the 

country at home, and whose families were there to support 

them. I represented them and represented their families and 

it was an extraordinary honor for me to be able to represent 

them. 

It is simple for me. If you take care of us, if you serve our 

country to protect the freedoms and ideals we cherish, we 

should be there for you. Your country should be there for 

you. That means health care and housing, it means relief on 

your student loans, and help covering your child care cost 

when your spouse has to go to work. 

The men and women who wear the uniform of the United 

States of America are who we think of and pray for when we 

look at our flag. The Stars and Stripes wave for them. The 

word ‘‘hero’’ was made for them. They are the best and the 

bravest, and we will always stand with you when you are 

standing in harm’s way. This is what we have fought for together. It is something of which we should all be proud. 

We built on North Carolina’s model to improve our schools, 

to strengthen standards, to expand afterschool, and to pay 

teachers more. We fought to strengthen security at our ports 

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and our borders, chemical and nuclear plants, and to give 

our police and firefighters the support they needed to keep 

this country safe. We fought to make Washington live within 

its budget, to make sure Washington did what most families 

in America do every single day, to live within their means, 

and to restore fiscal responsibility. And we fought to reward 

work—not just wealth, work—and to ensure that the American dream stays alive and available to every single American, no matter where they live or who their family is or 

what the color of their skin. This is the America we believe 

in. This is the America we fought for. 

All my life I have fought for those who do not have a voice. 

I did it before I came to the Senate. I have done it here in 

the Senate. I will do it for the rest of my life. It is what my 

life has been about: Fighting for people who need someone 

to fight for them. 

I thank Senator Byrd for all of his guidance and for showing me the ropes during the time I have been here in the 

Senate. 

I want to take a moment and say a word about Senator 

Reid, who has also been a great leader here in the Senate 

and who I want to wish Godspeed in the important work in 

front of him. 

Again, my thanks to our leader, Senator Daschle, for the 

work he has done and the leadership he has shown and the 

grace and strength and courage he has shown in leading in 

very difficult times, as others have said. He is a good and decent man and we all look up to him and respect him. 

I thank Senator McCain and Senator Kennedy for including me in working on the Patients’ Bill of Rights, two great 

leaders in this Senate, two great leaders for the country, two 

Americans that Americans do and should look up to and respect. 

I thank my friend, my seatmate, Senator Evan Bayh, for 

all the times we have spent together, working here on the 

floor of the Senate, running together. He and his wife and 

his family are great friends of ours. His friendship means the 

world to me. 

I also thank my fellow Senate retirees Senator Breaux and 

Senator Hollings. One thing I guarantee you: Our accents 

will be missed here on the floor of the Senate. Hopefully, 

there will be others who will be able to speak the way we 

speak. 

I also want to say a word about my friend Senator Kerry. 

I embarked a few months ago on a journey with Senator 

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Kerry, a fight, as we traveled across the country and fought 

for the things in which we believe. We shared our hopes for 

this country together. We worked hard to make America 

stronger. I developed a very strong, close, personal friendship 

with John Kerry during that time. John Kerry is a good man 

and he is a good American. I got the chance to see him when 

others didn’t, when there were no cameras around, when 

there were no crowds. This is a man of strength and conviction and courage. He loves his children. He has a beautiful 

family, by the way. He and his wife Teresa and their kids 

became very close with my family and our children. 

We feel an enormous affection for them and enormous connection with them because we were engaged in what we 

thought was a very important cause. It still is a very important cause. 

But the reality is that John Kerry is somebody who has 

loved this country his entire life. He stood up and fought for 

this country his entire life. I am proud to have been able to 

spend the last few months fighting alongside him as he traveled throughout the country and the work that he did not 

just in this campaign but for all the years he served in this 

Senate before this campaign, and the years he will serve 

from here on are important. Every day he walks onto the 

floor of this Senate, the American people will be better for 

it. 

He is my friend. He is my colleague. I trust him. 

I believe, of course, that he would have made a great 

President, and I believe he has great work to do for this 

country in the days and years to come. It is an honor for me 

to be able to serve with him in this term. 

I also want to thank my staff. I ask unanimous consent to 

have their names printed in the Record. 

There being no objection, the material was ordered to be 

printed in the Record, as follows: 

Tracy L. Allen; Laurie G. Armstrong; William O. Austin; Alexis Bar; Victoria Bassetti; Jared J. Bataillon; William Beane; Austina L. Bennett; Crystal M. Bennett; David G. Berard; Sonceria Ann Berry; Joshua L. Brekenfeld; 

Michael D. Briggs; Erica Buehrens; Derek H. Chollet; Marilyn J. Dixon; 

Charles R. Dorrier; Paul D. Dryden; Robert W. Elliott. 

Justin E. Fairfax; Colette Forrest; Alice D. Garland; Katherine L. Garland; Laura Godwin; Robert Gordon; Steven K. Gryskiewicz; Wanda Haith; 

Peter Harbage Emma Harris; Kate G. Heath; Robert Hines; Lisa Hyman; 

Morgan Jackson; Stephanie Jones; Mildred J. Joyner; Jeremy Kyle Kinner; 

Jeffrey I. Kovick; James R. Kvaal; Miles M. Lackey. 

Jeffrey Lane; Louise D. Learson; Lawrence (Andy) Magill; Maureen 

Mahon; Sharyn J. Malone; Kenneth F. Mansfield; Kathryn J. Marks; John 

J. Maron; Cory S. Menees; Heather L. Messera; Sophie Milam; Blair B. MilVerDate jan 13 2004 10:48 Mar 26, 2008 Jkt 097207 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 C:\DOCS\BYEBYE\BYEBYE05\97207.TXT CRS1 PsN: SKAYNE
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ligan; Joyce Mitchell; Carlos A. Monje; Kevin A. Monroe; Robert Morgan; 

Matthew L. Nelson; Elizabeth E. Nicholas; Ashley I. O’Bryant; Sacha M. 

Ostern. 

Joseph W. Parry-Hill; Lauren Partner; Elizabeth Pegram; Philip J. Peisch; 

Sarah L. Pendergraft; Anthony Petty; Aaron S. Pickrell; Lesley Pittman; 

Sally Bussey Plyler; Mary Margaret Propes; Hunter L. Pruette; Jacqueline 

F. Ray; Karen A. Robb; David E. Roberts; Judith M. Rossabi; David A. Russell; Craig J. Saperstein; Heidi Schneble. 

David G. Sewell; David L. Sherlin; Joseph L. Smalls; Julianna Smoot; 

Joshua H. Stein; Michael Sullivan; Jonathan Sumrell; Adrian Talbott; 

Noelle Shelby Talley; Bradford T. Thompson; Cindy E. Townes; Brooke I. 

Turner; Ann S. Vaughn; Jannice T. Verne; Rebecca Walldorff; Jewell E. Wilson; Jessica F. Wintringham; Andrew A. Young; Lisa E. Zeidner. 

Mr. President, we couldn’t do the work we do here without 

the support and help of all those who work so hard with us 

every single day. You show up every day. You show up every 

day, in my case as I saw it, with a simple question: What 

can I do to make my country better? And you did. Those of 

you who worked with me, I know that you did; I saw it. I 

saw the hard work you did, and you will continue to do it 

because you believe public service is an important and noble 

calling. I thank you personally. I thank you on behalf of the 

people of North Carolina and the people of this country. I 

have seen the hard work you have done, and it is important. 

This fight goes on. 

I will be home in a place I love, North Carolina, the place 

that made me love America to begin with. I am going to have 

God’s gift—more time to hear the screen door slam when my 

young kids run through the house after school. I still have 

a couple of young kids, Emma Claire, who is 6, and Jack, 

who is 4. I will be able to spend more time with my older 

daughter Kate, who graduated from college and was out on 

the campaign trail. I am very proud of her. I will have more 

time to spend with my own parents and my family and more 

time to be there for the woman I love and have loved for a 

long time now, my wife Elizabeth. 

It is bittersweet knowing what we have accomplished. And 

it is also bittersweet knowing what is left to be done. There 

is so much work left to be done in this country. 

And in the end, I always think of North Carolina’s own 

Thomas Wolfe. He said: 

I believe that we are lost here in America, but I believe we shall be found. 

And this belief, which mounts now to the catharsis of knowledge and conviction, is for me—and I think for all of us—not only our own hope but, America’s everlasting, living dream. 

Our job is making sure that no one—no one—is lost in 

America; that that dream is everlasting. And together we 

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will continue to make it stronger and more alive for all who 

grace our lives. 

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TRIBUTES 

TO 

JOHN EDWARDS 

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Proceedings in the Senate 

TUESDAY, November 16, 2004 

Mr. CONRAD. Mr. President, today I want to pay tribute 

to Senator JOHN EDWARDS and acknowledge his dedication to 

fighting for the middle class. 

Senator EDWARDS, the son of a mill worker, was the first 

in his family to go to college. He then went on to law school 

where he met his wife, Elizabeth. Following his graduation 

from law school, he earned a reputation as one of the best 

trial attorneys in the country, taking on the causes of those 

who had suffered serious tragedies as a result of the negligence or malfeasance of others. 

Elected in 1998, Senator EDWARDS has served just one 

term in the Senate, but he made a mark in a number of 

areas. First and foremost, he was a lead advocate for a patients’ bill of rights. From his background helping families 

that had suffered injuries at the hands of our health care 

system, Senator EDWARDS brought a passionate understanding of the need to hold health insurance companies accountable when their decisions led to serious injuries or 

death. More important, he championed changes in rules that 

would prevent these adverse outcomes in the first place. His 

dedication to this cause paid off in 2001, when the Senate finally passed the Patients’ Bill of Rights. 

Senator EDWARDS also made a big contribution on education policy. He was an early voice in favor of education reform, and worked to provide additional resources to help 

local schools achieve higher standards. As a co-chair of the 

Senate Rural Education Caucus, I saw first-hand his work to 

support funding to meet rural school needs like the Rural 

Education Achievement Program and to make certain that 

the unique challenges for rural schools in complying with the 

No Child Left Behind Act are recognized. 

Senator EDWARDS also, of course, distinguished himself in 

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turing into ‘‘Two Americas’’—one wealthy and privileged, the 

other increasingly left behind—resonated with millions of 

Americans. 

Senator EDWARDS is leaving this body. But I am confident 

he will not turn his back on public service and look forward 

to his continued contribution to our Nation’s political debate. 

Working with the Senator from North Carolina has been a 

joy, and we wish him and his wife a happy and healthy future. 

THURSDAY, November 18, 2004 

Mr. BURNS. * * * I served only one term with JOHN EDWARDS and Peter Fitzgerald. They, too, will be missed in the 

Senate. Their contribution was huge. * * * 

As to all of these men, I want to say you do form relationships here, and there is a certain bond that attracts us all, 

as we learn that even though you may be on the same side 

of the aisle or the opposite side of the aisle, one could always 

agree or disagree without being disagreeable. That is what 

makes the Senate a special place. 

We will miss all of these men, but I am looking forward 

to those who take their place as, there again, new relationships will be developed, a new bond dealing with the old 

challenges of a free society, with those who love the Constitution and love this country who were prepared to die for 

it and would if asked to do so today. No one doubts the depth 

of their patriotism or their service to their country. We welcome them as we say goodbye to old friends, old relationships that will never be forgotten. 

Mr. SHELBY. I first met JOHN EDWARDS 6 years ago when 

he came to the Senate. He is a very accomplished lawyer, a 

very engaging person. He was the Democratic nominee, as 

we all know, for Vice President of the United States. JOHN

EDWARDS is a young man, a man with a lot of talent, and 

I am sure we will hear from him in some respect, political 

or otherwise, in the future as life goes on. 

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, JOHN EDWARDS came to the 

Senate just 6 years ago. Yet he has won us all over as 

friends for his sunny disposition, his positive attitude, his intelligence, and his hard work. 

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JOHN can make anyone smile. He forms a personal bond 

with nearly everyone he meets. No doubt this quality comes 

from the fact that he always remembers his roots. 

The first member of his family to go to college, JOHN grew 

up the son of two textile workers, moving from town to town. 

This upbringing shaped JOHN EDWARDS. It instilled in him 

a burning desire to improve the world and a strong commitment to populist values. 

He became a lawyer. And with ardent trial advocacy, hard 

work, and genuine concern for others, he scored astounding 

success. 

A terrible tragedy—the death of a child—marked a deciding point in his life. He did not let it destroy him. Never forgetting the terrible pain, JOHN turned tragedy into triumph. 

He set out to change America for the better. A political unknown, he faced long odds, but he overcame them. 

In the halls of the Senate, JOHN has won new laws to protect patients, increased funding for public schools, and improvements to our banking system. 

He and Elizabeth, Catherine, Emma Claire, and Jack have 

been delightful additions to our Senate family. 

And our prayers are with them as they strive to overcome 

the difficulty of Elizabeth’s recent diagnosis of breast cancer. 

JOHN EDWARDS has already played a vital role in American public life. And whatever he chooses to do next, we wish 

him and Elizabeth and their entire family all the best for a 

bright future. 

FRIDAY, November 19, 2004 

Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I would like to make some 

comments about our friends who are departing the Senate. 

I thank Senator EDWARDS for spending some time in this 

Chamber. When you came in, we were faced with some tough 

legal issues. We turned to you and you stepped up to the 

plate. I appreciate that. I thought you did us proud—I am 

not only speaking as a Democrat, I am speaking as an American—on the campaign trail with the passion for people. You 

are so articulate and you brought the economic issues home 

to everyone. I think everyone is better for it. 

You are right about Senator Kerry. I think he would have 

made a great President. I think history will look at his campaign and be kind to him because John Kerry had dignity in 

his campaign. He stuck to the issues. The debates were fanVerDate jan 13 2004 10:48 Mar 26, 2008 Jkt 097207 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 C:\DOCS\BYEBYE\BYEBYE05\97207.TXT CRS1 PsN: SKAYNE
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tastic. I believe it served our President well. He had to step 

up to the plate as well on many of the issues. 

Thank you very much. 

Mr. DAYTON. Mr. President, I want to associate myself 

with the remarks of the Senator from California and her regards and respect to the other retiring Members, particularly 

Senator EDWARDS who has just spoken and has distinguished himself so impressively over the last year and a half 

in the service of our country by seeking the Vice Presidency. 

I am proud of my State of Minnesota. They cast by a majority over 100,000 votes for Senator EDWARDS and Senator 

Kerry, reflecting the wisdom of voters in the tremendous excitement of Senator EDWARDS and Senator Kerry. But Senator EDWARDS, in my personal experience, generated tremendous courage and enthusiasm in St. Paul, MN, on Labor Day 

and on the Iron Range in Minnesota. He has a very bright 

future in whatever future endeavors. 

I join my colleagues in expressing to his wife Elizabeth our 

prayers for a speedy recovery. I think that will be the result. 

I thank the Senator for his outstanding service and as 

leader of our party and our country. 

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, while the Senate 

is holding in abeyance for the final omnibus appropriations 

bill that the House is getting ready to file sometime tonight, 

I want to take the opportunity to pay tribute to our retiring 

Senators: Tom Daschle, Fritz Hollings, Don Nickles, John 

Breaux, Ben Nighthorse Campbell, JOHN EDWARDS, Peter 

Fitzgerald, Zell Miller, and Bob Graham. 

I wish to make a speech about each one of these Senators 

who has become a dear friend, in some cases, over the years, 

such as Fritz and Peatsy Hollings, who took special interest 

in me as I came to the Senate and made sure I got on his 

Commerce Committee, which has been just an extraordinary 

experience with him as chairman, as well as with the 

present chairman, John McCain. * * * 

I wish to say a special word about JOHN EDWARDS, for he 

came to the Senate in a seat that was already held by an incumbent Senator, and they said it could not be done. They 

said a Democrat could not win in North Carolina. Of course, 

JOHN did and took the national stage by storm. 

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cipline, and intelligence he brought not only as a Senator but 

as a candidate for Vice President of this great country. 

And then, of course, we all know the story of how on the 

very day that JOHN had to concede the election, along with 

our colleague, the Senator from Massachusetts, his wife told 

him that she had breast cancer. I want Elizabeth and JOHN

to know that our prayers are with them and that we are all 

sharing a great deal of optimism about her complete recovery. 

I had the wonderful privilege of observing their three loving children on the campaign trail—their daughter Kate, and 

then, of course, the two young ones, Jack and Emma Claire, 

as they would bounce with such boundless enthusiasm on 

that campaign plane. * * * 

So for all of these names I have mentioned, in the great 

poem ‘‘Ulysses,’’ he says, ‘‘I am a part of all that I have met,’’

and I am a part of all these great Senators. I am much richer for it and for having been their friend. 

Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, in these final working days 

of the 108th Congress, as so many speakers before me have 

said, we are saying farewell to a number of our retiring colleagues. I intend to speak about a couple of them this 

evening and will have more to say about some of the others 

tomorrow. * * * 

Mr. President, I would also like to express my respect to 

and admiration for the retiring senior Senator from North 

Carolina, Senator JOHN EDWARDS, who also spoke earlier. 

We will miss his unique, skillful, and persuasive voice in the 

debates here on the Senate floor. Time and again we have 

seen his knack for taking complex arguments and making 

them accessible and persuasive to ordinary people. Time and 

again his skills have carried the day. 

I fully understand the advice uttered by one of my Republican colleagues one time, when he said, ‘‘Never yield the 

floor to JOHN EDWARDS.’’

Over the last year and a half, people in my State of Iowa 

have gotten to know JOHN and his wonderful wife Elizabeth 

very well. As I have often said, JOHN EDWARDS was the only 

person to run for national office as a Vice Presidential candidate who visited each one of Iowa’s 99 counties. He has 

been all over our State, in our schools, in our coffee shops, 

and in our living rooms. In fact, we have often said in Iowa 

if it weren’t for that southern accent, you would think JOHN

was born and raised in Iowa. 

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I can say that we on the Democratic side, we Democrats 

in Iowa and all over the country, are proud of his race to secure the nomination of our party, which he did not get, 

which went to another of our colleagues, Senator John Kerry. 

But we were proud of how JOHN EDWARDS sought that nomination. And we are doubly proud of his conduct as our nominee for Vice President of the United States. 

He always comes across as just folks, which is what you 

would expect from a person raised in very modest circumstances, the first in his family to go to college. That 

humble background was an enormous strength for JOHN EDWARDS. It is a strength we saw on that campaign trail that 

allowed him to understand people and to communicate powerfully with ordinary people. People responded in kind. All 

over this country, people just plainly liked JOHN EDWARDS. 

They trusted him because he spoke to them in a language 

they understood. 

But if Iowans and other Americans see just plain folks in 

JOHN EDWARDS on the campaign trail, Senators here have 

been privileged to see a different side of him, hard at work 

in this Senate. He has only been here one term. He surely 

made his mark. He made his mark first by challenging an 

incumbent Senator, and took on the Jesse Helms machine in 

North Carolina, and he beat it. That is no small feat in 

North Carolina. 

He made his mark here as lead co-sponsor of the Patients’

Bill of Rights, along with Senators Kennedy and McCain. He 

managed the bill on the floor. He was the lead negotiator in 

hammering out a bipartisan consensus on the bill. 

He made his mark by sponsoring and passionately advocating for a bill to speed up the approval of generic drugs. 

As I said in my State of Iowa, JOHN EDWARDS made his 

mark and won people’s hearts with his big smile, his friendly 

manner, and his boundless optimism. 

He won our respect with a campaign that was always positive. Even under provocation, even when stakes were the 

highest in the final weeks of the campaign leading up to the 

caucuses, JOHN never wavered from his positive message of 

hope and opportunity for ordinary Americans. 

We are proud of our colleague Senator EDWARDS, and we 

know we will not hear the last of him as he leaves this body. 

We say farewell to Senator JOHN EDWARDS. I know and I 

hope and I trust we will hear more from him in the future. 

We wish him the very best. Of course, we all hope—and our 

prayers are with him and with Elizabeth—for a full recovery 

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for his wonderful wife Elizabeth. We will miss them both 

here. But our friendship endures, and I know that Senator 

EDWARDS, Elizabeth, and his family will be heavily involved 

in the course of our political life and our Democratic Party 

in the future. 

I thank the Chair and yield the floor. 

Mr. LAUTENBERG. I talked before about Tom Daschle. I 

also will discuss the rest of our colleagues who are leaving 

the Senate. 

When the 109th Congress convenes in January, nine of our 

current colleagues will not be here. I take a few moments to 

pay tribute to them. Collectively, our colleagues have served 

in the Senate for 144 years. We will miss them. * * * 

The senior Senator from North Carolina, JOHN EDWARDS, 

has streaked across the political firmament like a shooting 

star. Six years ago, he was a trial lawyer who won a Senate 

seat in his first try at elected office and 2 weeks ago he was 

very nearly elected Vice President. 

JOHN EDWARDS, like Tom Daschle, was the first person in 

his family to graduate from college. His father worked in the 

textile mills. His mother held several jobs, working in a post 

office, running a furniture refinishing business. After he 

graduated from the University of North Carolina Law 

School, he put his formidable legal skill to work for ordinary 

people as a trial attorney. He was good at it. In 1997, he won 

the largest personal injury verdict in North Carolina history, 

$25 million, for a 9-year-old girl injured by a swimming pool 

drain the manufacturer knew was faulty. 

JOHN proved if there is injury or damage, take it to a jury 

of your peers. Let them make the judgment regarding careless operation of a piece of machinery or automobile. The 

damage is incalculable in terms of a monetary value. So 

JOHN EDWARDS did what he ought to do. He protected those 

who had recourse for terrible damages that they incurred. 

JOHN knew what it was like for that little girl’s parents I 

just talked about because he and his wife lost their 16-yearold son. His name was Wade. He died in a car accident. 

When he got to the Senate, JOHN continued to fight for 

working-class Americans, and despite being a freshman 

Member, he was a principal author of a patients’ bill of 

rights bill, which passed the Senate in June 2001. 

He also fought hard for his constituents, securing more 

than $250 million in disaster funds following Hurricane 

Floyd in September 1999. 

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I don’t know what the future holds for JOHN. One looks at 

that face, and sees such a young man. He is only 51 years 

old, and to me that is like a child. But somehow or other I 

do not think we have seen the last of him. 

Of course, his first task is to help his wife Elizabeth get 

through her bout with breast cancer. We send our prayers to 

both of them, for her quick and complete recovery. He and 

Elizabeth have the good wishes and prayers of each and 

every one of us here in the Senate. * * * 

I close my remarks by noting that these men have made 

remarkable contributions to our society, and all Americans 

should be grateful. I would tell those who are retiring, I retired 4 years ago, and I did not like it. So here I am. Perhaps 

there is hope for any of them who want to rejoin. If you want 

to come back, I am here to tell you it can be done. Just make 

sure that you get to keep your seniority. 

Mr. President, I yield the floor and thank my colleagues 

for their indulgence while I made my remarks. 

Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, let me say—this is probably 

the first and only time I have ever said this—I have been listening carefully to my friend from New Jersey, and I agree 

with everything he said. 

I have had a chance to talk a little bit about some of these 

people who are retiring, and at some length about Senator 

Nickles, and I certainly appreciate the Senator’s remarks 

about him. 

Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I know the hour is getting late 

and others want to be heard, but I briefly want to express 

some thoughts about our colleagues who are leaving this 

wonderful body. Today we have heard some very compelling 

speeches, particularly the one given by my good friend, Tom 

Daschle of South Dakota, our Democratic leader. 

I was pleased to see so many of our colleagues remain on 

the floor to listen to the departing Democratic leader. The 

words he expressed about his State, his staff, his colleagues, 

his feelings about the country, and the future, are instructive. I know it can sound repetitive when people hear us talk 

about our colleagues this way, but I think it is important for 

the public to note that while they might hear only about the 

bickering, the part that you do not often see is the deep respect, affection, and caring that goes on among the Members 

of this body. This affection comes despite the differences that 

exist in red States and blue States, or being strongly conservative or strongly liberal. 

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There is this weaving of a common denominator through 

each and every one of us, particularly after years of common 

service in this remarkable institution we call the Senate. 

There is a deep and abiding respect for those who have come 

here, those who have served here, those who have tried to 

make a difference for our country. 

It may seem like it is inside discussion, but I hope the 

public understands how deeply felt these comments are 

about colleagues who will no longer have the pleasure of 

spending each and every day in this Chamber, but whose 

friendship and collegiality will continue in the years ahead 

as we encounter each other in different walks of life. * * * 

JOHN EDWARDS, as well, is leaving the Senate. What a remarkable 6 years. Short in some ways but rather significant 

considering what he was able to accomplish. He brought enthusiasm, optimism, and eloquence that won him voters and 

supporters in his first effort to seek election in the State of 

North Carolina. He was a powerful voice for the Democratic 

Party throughout the Democratic primaries. He was a powerful voice for our party this past year as a Vice Presidential 

candidate. That is a rather remarkable set of accomplishments in 6 short years. 

He distinguished himself, of course, by exceeding expectations in many cases. He rose from a background of modest 

means. As we have heard said, he became the first in his 

family to go on to higher education, then law school, becoming one of the most successful attorneys in America, not only 

in his home State of North Carolina. 

He won difficult cases motivated by trying to see to it that 

people who had little means to protect themselves would 

have an advocate when he represented them in a court of 

law. 

Here in this body he took a leading role on the Patients’

Bill of Rights. He brought a compelling and compassionate 

message to America. He talked about two Americas: the 

America of those who have, and those who lack the good 

things in life, who lack the essentials and basics. JOHN spoke 

of the real moral values shared by mainstream America. He 

is a young man whose voice will be heard, I will predict, in 

the coming months and years. 

He spoke of our moral obligation to honor hard work, to 

lift Americans out of poverty, expand health care, break 

down racial and economic barriers, to enact fair tax policies 

to make sure that all Americans pay their fair share. He 

spoke honestly and directly about some of the widening gaps 

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in our society. America listened, paid attention, and rewarded him their respect. 

I certainly believe he would have been an asset to his 

country had he stayed in the Senate. I am sorry he is not 

going to be here. He made the decision when he sought the 

Presidency to leave the Senate. I believe JOHN EDWARDS

would have made a tremendously fine Senator in the years 

ahead had he stayed here. He has decided to take another 

path. I am confident, as I said a moment ago, he will find 

a way to continue to be heard. 

I also want to take a moment to express my best wishes 

and those of my wife Jackie to his wife Elizabeth. America 

knows and deeply appreciates Elizabeth. As we all heard a 

few weeks ago, the family now faces a very different kind of 

fight. I am certain I speak for everyone in this body, across 

the country, regardless of their political views and how they 

voted on election day, when they heard that Elizabeth Edwards had breast cancer, every single person in this country 

prayed to the dear Lord that Elizabeth Edwards will be rid 

of this dreadful disease, and that she and her young children 

will have years and years of good health ahead. 

I am confident that will be the case knowing what a fighter she is and what a fighter her husband is. 

We all wish them and their family nothing but the best 

during this difficult time. * * * 

I apologize for taking this extra time. It is important that 

the public hear Members talk about each other, even those 

who disagreed on matters, that they understand why this institution works more than 230 years after the Founders created it. 

I, as a Senator from Connecticut, take unique pride in the 

Senate because it was Roger Sherman and Oliver Ellsworth, 

both of Connecticut, who offered at the Constitutional Convention the idea of the Senate representing small and large 

States. Arguing over a unicameral system, Sherman and 

Ellsworth said, how about having a second body with equal 

representation, regardless of the size or the population of the 

State? As a result, this institution was created. It has been 

a great place that has served our Nation for so long and I 

am confident it will in the future. 

We have been blessed by the participation of those who are 

leaving. All of us wish each and every one of them the very 

best in the years to come. 

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Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I rise to pay tribute to 

some of my colleagues who will be leaving the Senate at the 

end of this session. * * * 

And finally, Mr. President, the Senate is also losing a 

champion for America’s working families with the retirement 

of Senator JOHN EDWARDS. Senator EDWARDS is the embodiment of the American dream. 

Raised in a small town in North Carolina by hard-working 

parents—his father was a textile mill worker for 36 years—

Senator EDWARDS learned the real American values of getting a good education, of hard work, fairness and playing by 

the rules. 

He was the first member of his family to go to college. And 

after graduating from law school, he fought for the values 

his parents taught him and by working for justice on behalf 

of those who couldn’t fight for themselves—working families 

and their children who were seriously injured by irresponsible corporate actions. 

I was proud to work with Senator EDWARDS on the Patients’ Bill of Rights where he brought that same passion to 

help working families by ensuring that doctors and not 

HMOs make our medical decisions. 

I know Senator EDWARDS will continue to fight for working 

families and be a national leader on these important issues. 

I also want to wish his wife Elizabeth the best at this difficult time. She is a strong, amazing woman and a fighter 

like her husband, and the entire EDWARDS family is in my 

thoughts and prayers. 

I am proud to have served with these great Senators and 

I know that they will be remembered long after the tribute 

speeches are given and the farewell parties end, because of 

their leadership, their compassion, and their hard work on 

behalf of all Americans. 

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I rise today to take this 

opportunity to honor our departing colleagues who are leaving the Senate. Almost each new Congress a different group 

of 100 men and women come together from different backgrounds and political philosophies, representing different interests and constituencies, but through all our differences, 

we develop respect and admiration for each other. Many 

times we step across the aisle and work together on legislation and oftentimes genuine friendships are created. As I pay 

tribute to these departing Senators, whether they have been 

here one term or seven, they are a remarkable group and we 

thank them for their honorable service. * * * 

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Finally, I would like to acknowledge my retiring colleague 

from North Carolina, Senator JOHN EDWARDS. 

Senator EDWARDS was the first in his family to attend college, working his way through North Carolina State University and later earning his law degree from the University of 

North Carolina. Afterward, JOHN EDWARDS established himself as a distinguished and successful lawyer. These accomplishments alone are quite striking and aptly demonstrate 

the intelligence and determination of Senator EDWARDS. 

During his time in the Senate, Senator EDWARDS served 

on four committees: Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions; 

the Judiciary; the Small Business, and Entrepreneurship; 

and the Select Intelligence. He continually championed for 

issues affecting the daily lives of regular people in North 

Carolina and the Nation. 

I am sure Senator EDWARDS will find success in any endeavor he now chooses to undertake, and I join with my colleagues in wishing him the best. 

SATURDAY, November 20, 2004 

Mrs. HUTCHISON. Madam President, I rise to say goodbye to several of my dear friends and colleagues with whom 

I have had the pleasure to work in the Senate. * * * 

Madam President, we must also say farewell to a freshman Senator who is now a household name in the United 

States. No one who has met JOHN EDWARDS can fail to like 

and respect him. 

Senator EDWARDS rose from humble beginnings to come 

close to being elected Vice President of the United States. 

The first member of his family to gain a college education, 

he went on to earn a law degree from the University of 

North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He built a hugely successful 

law practice before he entered public service. 

Senator EDWARDS was a chief sponsor of the bipartisan Patient Protection Act, strong and far-reaching patient protection legislation that passed the Senate in 2001. He has a 

long career ahead of him and will do well on whatever path 

he takes. 

Finally, I want to let Senator EDWARDS know that he and 

his wife Elizabeth are in my prayers every day. 

Madam President, I will miss all of my colleagues. As we 

take the opportunity to go forward in a new Congress, we 

will make new friends, but we will never forget the old ones. 

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Mr. ALLEN. Mr. President, I want to share my views, as 

did Senator Hutchison and others, about our colleagues who 

are leaving for new adventures in life. 

I wish all the best to Senator Hollings. We will miss his 

booming voice. We will miss Senator EDWARDS, Senator 

Graham of Florida, and Senator Daschle. We will also miss 

John Breaux, a man we know will enjoy life with his good 

common sense and sense of humor. He is a good friend. 

Mr. REID. I ask everyone to pull out this week’s People 

magazine, if they have one—if not, get a copy of it—because 

that tells the story of JOHN and Elizabeth EDWARDS. The 

story is directed toward Elizabeth because she has now been 

stricken with breast cancer, but it tells in some detail about 

this wonderful family. 

He was the Vice Presidential candidate and is someone 

who has tremendous ability. I am a trial lawyer. He is a trial 

lawyer. He has made such a distinct impression on the country with his oratorical skills. We know why he was a great 

trial lawyer. 

People magazine is so filled with information and inspiration. The last sentence in that People magazine article talks 

about Elizabeth Edwards. She knew she had breast cancer 

in the last week of the campaign. She did not tell anybody, 

but she tells in this People magazine article that was so well 

written that somewhere at a place she stopped, they were 

having a cancer survivor program, and one of them asked 

her: Are you a cancer survivor? She did not answer but, of 

course, thought to herself, as the article says: We’ll see. 

We will see. We certainly hope for the EDWARDS family, 

which has already had a lot of personal problems due to the 

death of their 16-year-old son, we really do hope—all of us, 

all Americans hope for Elizabeth Edwards, this wonderful 

woman, to recover. 

I will miss JOHN EDWARDS in the Senate. He only served 

here 6 years, but he certainly left his mark as a great Senator from the State of North Carolina. North Carolina is 

going to benefit, however, from the defeat of the Kerry-EDWARDS ticket because he is returning to North Carolina. 

Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize the 

service of Senator JOHN EDWARDS of North Carolina. 

Because of his time on the campaign trail, Senator EDWARDS’s biography is well known to most Americans. He is 

the son of a mill worker and was the first in his family to 

attend college. Before coming to the Senate, JOHN fought for 

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victims’ rights against insurance companies for more than 20 

years in North Carolina. He enjoyed great success in that career, but seeking to do more for the people of his State, he 

decided to run for the Senate in 1998. JOHN ran against, and 

defeated, an incumbent Senator, Senator Faircloth. Immediately upon arriving in the Senate, Senator EDWARDS began 

to make an impact. 

Only a few days after Senator EDWARDS was sworn in, I 

asked him to help depose witnesses in the impeachment trial 

of President Clinton. I wanted to make sure we had the best, 

and I thought he was. It was JOHN’s career experience that 

made him an ideal choice to assist in the depositions, and he 

had recent experience working in the trenches. In that pressure filled situation JOHN won the respect of all of his colleagues, both on this side of the aisle and the other. 

From his seat on the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, Senator EDWARDS advocated for lowering 

the cost of prescription drugs for all Americans by improving 

access to generic medications. In 2001, he authored the Patients’ Bill of Rights which would have guaranteed that people in HMOs and other insurance plans get the health care 

they pay for. Unfortunately, this was passed in the Senate 

but blocked by the White House. In addition to serving on 

the HELP Committee, Senator EDWARDS served on the Intelligence, Small Business, and Judiciary Committees. 

As a member of the Judiciary Committee, Senator EDWARDS worked closely with me on a number of legislative efforts. He was a co-sponsor of the Innocence Protection Act, 

the National Amber Alert Network, and a strong voice on judicial nominations. Senator EDWARDS has stood up to efforts 

by this President to pack the courts with people whose 

records do not demonstrate that they will be fair judges to 

all who come before them, rich or poor, Democrats or Republicans, or any race or background. 

In September 2003, Senator EDWARDS announced that he 

was running for President. JOHN ran a great campaign, raising issues important to the American people. He frequently 

referred to the division of America into two halves, that of 

the haves and that of the have-nots. JOHN focused on the 

struggles of the middle class and many of the same issues 

that he was a leader on during his time in the Senate. 

Throughout the campaign, JOHN was a positive voice for our 

party, and he was an excellent choice as a running mate for 

John Kerry. 

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In an interview, JOHN once said that he had an ideal 

image of what a U.S. Senator should be. He said that ‘‘I 

think about a fiery advocate, someone who works passionately for his constituents.’’ For the past 6 years, JOHN has 

been exactly that. Be it health or education reform, supporting farmers or North Carolina’s economic interests, JOHN

EDWARDS has been an incredible leader and advocate for his 

State. I will miss JOHN’s friendship here in the Senate. I 

know that he has a wonderful wife and three beautiful children, and that whatever steps he takes next that he will be 

just fine as long as he has their support. 

Mr. DASCHLE. Today I would like to say a few words 

about eight Senators with whom I have served these last historic 6 years, all of whom will be leaving when this Congress 

ends. 

Senator Nickles, Senator Campbell, Senator Fitzgerald, 

and Senator Miller, it has been a privilege to work with each 

of you. You have each sacrificed much to serve our Nation 

and I am sure you will continue to serve America well in the 

years to come. 

Six Democratic Senators are leaving at the end of this 

Congress. * * * 

We also say goodbye to JOHN EDWARDS. 

I think it is probably no coincidence that JOHN EDWARDS

holds Sam Ervin’s old seat in the Senate. Like Sam Ervin, 

JOHN has a brilliant legal mind and a deep love of justice. 

In 2001, the first bill Democrats brought to the floor after 

we retook the majority was the Patients’ Bill of Rights. I 

couldn’t believe my luck: My first bill as majority leader—the 

Patients’ Bill of Rights and I was able to tap as floor leaders 

Ted Kennedy and JOHN EDWARDS. It was like looking down 

the bench and seeing Babe Ruth and Willie Mays. You just 

knew the Patients’ Bill of Rights was finally going to pass 

the Senate. And it did—in large part because of JOHN EDWARDS’s remarkable skill and deep personal commitment. 

I think one of the great lines in American literature is the 

line near the end of ‘‘Death of a Salesman’’ where Willie 

Loman’s wife Linda says her husband wasn’t famous or powerful, but he was a good man to whom respect must be paid. 

That same conviction is what has motivated JOHN EDWARDS’s whole life: The belief that there is dignity and worth 

in every person, including people who work hard every day 

in mills, and factories, and farms. 

In his race for the Democratic Presidential nomination 

with John Kerry as our party’s Vice Presidential nominee, 

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JOHN EDWARDS brought a sense of hope and optimism to millions and millions of Americans. 

JOHN and Elizabeth EDWARDS both won places in our 

hearts immediately, and our hearts and prayers are with 

them and their wonderful children today as Elizabeth continues her recovery from breast cancer. We look forward to 

spending many more happy years with them. We also look 

forward to the good work we know they will do for our Nation in the years ahead. * * * 

I have to be honest, Mr. President, it was not my wish to 

depart with these fine Senators. But it has been my honor 

and a joy to serve with them, and one that I will remember 

all the days of my life. 

Mr. McCONNELL. We cannot conclude the 108th Congress without a sense of sadness. There are many—in fact 

there are too many—great Senators who are leaving this institution. I have already had an opportunity to express my 

goodbyes to Senator Nickles, Senator Campbell, and Senator 

Fitzgerald. 

I also wish a happy and healthy future to our colleagues 

across the aisle, Senator Daschle, Senator Breaux, Senator 

Hollings, Senator Bob Graham, Senator JOHN EDWARDS, and 

Senator Zell Miller. Each of these men has made a lasting 

contribution to this marvelous institution. 

MONDAY, December 20, 2004 

Mr. SARBANES. Mr. President, in 1998, JOHN EDWARDS

was elected to the U.S. Senate from his home State of North 

Carolina to fill the seat once held by Senator Sam Ervin. He 

had never before run for, or served in, public office. From the 

time he received his law degree in 1977 until he entered the 

Senate, he was an attorney in private practice. For two decades JOHN represented in court North Carolinians who had 

been grievously injured or disabled and had no one to speak 

up for them. He quickly made the transition from the courtroom to the Senate Chamber, however, because in both he 

has been guided by the same unwavering principle: putting 

to work his formidable talents and energy, along with his 

training, on behalf of ‘‘the people I grew up with.’’

JOHN EDWARDS grew up in Robbins, NC. Robbins was a 

mill town. JOHN’s father spent nearly four decades working 

in textile mills; his mother worked in a number of jobs as 

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well. As David Broder once put it, his parents and their 

friends and co-workers were people who ‘‘earn their bread by 

the sweat of their brow.’’

JOHN was the first person in his family to go to college. 

For the millions of Americans who were the first in the family to receive a college education—and I count myself among 

them—this has very special meaning. He worked his way 

through school in 3 years, finding summer jobs in the mills. 

He went on to study law at the University of North Carolina 

at Chapel Hill, one of the Nation’s ranking law schools, and 

there he met, and soon married, a fellow student, Elizabeth 

Anania. In his book, Four Trials, which was published just 

this year, JOHN pays tribute to the men and women who 

have played some part in his life, but none is more moving 

than his richly deserved tribute to Elizabeth: ‘‘I have spent 

many years trying to live up to what she believed I could be, 

and I am the better for it.’’

In the 108th Congress, JOHN served on the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee; the Judiciary Committee; the Small Business Committee; and the Intelligence 

Committee—and also for a while on the Banking, Housing, 

and Urban Affairs Committee, where we first had an opportunity to work together. These are formidable, wide-ranging 

jurisdictions. In every assignment he undertook, JOHN fought 

for policies, as he has put it, that ‘‘reward work—not just 

wealth, work—and (to) ensure that the American dream 

stays alive and available to every single American, no matter 

where they live or who their family is or what the color of 

their skin.’’

Together with the senior Senator from Massachusetts and 

the senior Senator from Arizona, JOHN EDWARDS led the successful effort in the Senate to pass landmark patients’ rights 

legislation, only to see the bill falter in the face of implacable 

opposition from the White House. JOHN has been a forceful 

advocate for the thousands of North Carolinians, and indeed 

Americans, who ‘‘did everything right,’’ but were still powerless to prevent their jobs from being swept overseas. 

When the 109th Congress convenes in January, JOHN EDWARDS will no longer represent his beloved State of North 

Carolina in the U.S. Senate. He will be home in the State 

he loves—‘‘the place that made me love America to begin 

with’’—with the family he loves so dearly. Whether in the 

Nation’s Capital or in North Carolina, however, we know 

that JOHN will continue to do what he has always done so 

well, fighting ‘‘for those who do not have a voice, to make 

(Trim Line)

(Trim Line)

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sure that ‘‘no one—no one—is lost in America, that that 

dream is everlasting.’’ He will be sorely missed in this Chamber. 

Æ