TRIBUTES TO HON. ROBERT F. BENNETT 

Robert F. Bennett 

U.S. SENATOR FROM UTAH 

TRIBUTES 

IN THE CONGRESS OF 

THE UNITED STATES 

UNUM

E PLURIBUS


congress.#15
Robert F. Bennett 


64801.001
U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

WASHINGTON : 2012

S. DOC. 111–22 

Tributes 

Delivered in Congress 

Robert F. Bennett 

United States Senator 

1993–2011 

÷ 

Compiled under the direction 

of the 

Joint Committee on Printing 

[ iii ] 

CONTENTS 

Page 

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

Farewell to the Senate ............................................................................. vii 

Proceedings in the Senate: 

Tributes by Senators: 

Alexander, Lamar, of Tennessee ............................................... 3 

Baucus, Max, of Montana .......................................................... 11 

Bond, Christopher S., of Missouri ............................................. 5 

Bunning, Jim, of Kentucky ....................................................... 18 

Carper, Thomas R., of Delaware ............................................... 18 

Conrad, Kent, of North Dakota ................................................. 12 

Cornyn, John, of Texas .............................................................. 16 

Dodd, Christopher J., of Connecticut ....................................... 15 

Durbin, Richard, of Illinois ........................................................ 6, 15 

Enzi, Michael B., of Wyoming ................................................... 13 

Harkin, Tom, of Iowa ................................................................. 17 

Hutchison, Kay Bailey, of Texas ............................................... 19 

McConnell, Mitch, of Kentucky ................................................. 8 

Murkowski, Lisa, of Alaska ....................................................... 20 

Reed, Jack, of Rhode Island ...................................................... 7 

Reid, Harry, of Nevada .............................................................. 5 

Warner, Mark R., of Virginia .................................................... 7 

[ v ] 

BIOGRAPHY 

Former Senator ROBERT F. BENNETT has earned the reputation among his colleagues, constituents, and clients as a 

pragmatic problem-solver who seeks creative and commonsense solutions to their issues. 

ROBERT F. BENNETT entered the political arena by managing his father’s Senatorial reelection campaign 49 years 

ago, in 1962. Wallace F. Bennett was a U.S. Senator from 

1951 to 1974. It was this experience that would later inspire 

Mr. BENNETT to seek public office. 

In the meantime, he used his strong leadership skills and 

lessons learned from working as a staffer on Capitol Hill in 

several successful entrepreneurial pursuits. His greatest triumph in the business world came when he was CEO of 

Franklin International Institute, now known as Franklin 

Covey. Mr. BENNETT grew the business from 4 employees to 

more than 1,000, and it was listed on the New York Stock 

Exchange. 

In 1992, Mr. BENNETT followed in his father’s footsteps 

and ran a successful campaign for the U.S. Senate, carrying 

his businessman-like approach with him to the Hill. He 

served as a senior member of the Senate Banking Committee 

and a member of the distinguished Joint Economic Committee, where he was at the center of national economic policy discussions. He also served as the ranking Republican on 

the Senate Rules Committee. 

As a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, 

Senator BENNETT strived to balance fiscal discipline in government while representing the needs of his constituents in 

the distribution of Federal funds. He also represented the interests of the West as the ranking Republican on the Senate 

Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water and a 

member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. 

Senator BENNETT was at the forefront of health care reform. He cosponsored the Healthy Americans Act, the first 

major bipartisan health care legislation in more than a decade. His Healthy Americans Act guaranteed quality, affordVerDate Aug 31 2005 14:37 May 15, 2012 Jkt 064801 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 H:\DOCS\BYEBYE\BYEBYE10\64801.TXT KAYNE
[ vi ] 

able, portable health coverage for every American, cutting 

health costs by more than $1.2 trillion over the next decade. 

Mr. BENNETT is a graduate of the University of Utah, 

where he was student body president. He and his wife Joyce 

are the proud parents of 6 children and have 20 grandchildren. 

[ vii ] 

Farewell to the Senate 

Thursday, December 9, 2010 

Mr. BENNETT. Madam President, there once was a very 

strong tradition in the Senate that every new Senator gave 

a maiden speech, and in that tradition some Senators waited 

as long as a year before they gave the speech. Then, when 

the time came, the more senior Senators would gather and 

take notes and then critique the newcomer on how well he 

did. 

Life has changed a good deal. I never gave a maiden 

speech. I plunged right into the debate when I got here. Now 

the tradition seems to be to give a farewell speech. So I am 

grateful to my colleagues who will gather for this occasion as 

I contemplate saying farewell to the Senate. But I will warn 

them, this is probably not my last speech. I intend to be 

heavily involved in the debate over whether we pass a continuing resolution or an omnibus bill. 

I have a history with the Senate, and it began when I was 

a teenager as a summer intern. I remember sitting in the 

gallery and watching Bob Taft prowl across the back of the 

Senate, watching to make sure things were going according 

to his desire. He had been the majority leader. He had 

stepped down from that position because of the cancer he 

had contracted, but he was still paying attention to this body 

where he served with such distinction. 

Lyndon Johnson was sprawled out with his lanky frame at 

the Democratic leader’s desk, and I was watching from the 

gallery, thinking what an extraordinary place this was. 

Ten years later, I came back as a staffer, and I served 

here. I was sitting in my cubicle in the Dirksen Building 

when word came that John F. Kennedy had been shot in 

Dallas. We didn’t know whether he was dead. We all rushed 

over to the Senate, where there was a ticker tape back in the 

back lobby, to see what was happening. I rushed in with the 

others to see what was there and then looked to see whom 

I had jostled aside in order to get to see the ticker tape. It 

was Mike Mansfield. I quietly withdrew, realizing I had done 

something that was not appropriate on that occasion. 

[ viii ] 

I was here in Washington when Martin Luther King gave 

his ‘‘I Have a Dream’’ speech. I was here as a staffer when 

the historic civil rights bill of 1964 was passed and was involved in the drafting of that bill at a very low kind of level 

and the conflict that occurred on that occasion. 

Then I came back into government as the head of the congressional relations function for a Cabinet-level department. 

I worked with Senator Dirksen in trying to pursue the Nixon 

administration’s goals forward and ran into a bright young 

Senator from Kansas with a sharp wit named Bob Dole. I 

had the opportunity of working with Dirksen and Dole and 

the others in that situation. 

Watergate came along. I was given the dubious honor of 

being called to testify by a young Senator from Tennessee 

named Howard Baker. He assigned me to his staffer, who 

grilled me for 3 hours under oath—a fellow by the name of 

Fred Thompson. 

There are great memories there. I did not realize I would 

come back to the Senate myself, and as a political junkie, 

what could be better? I was involved in the debate, I had access to all of the activity, and they even gave me a vote. It 

was a great time, a great opportunity, and I have enjoyed it 

immensely and say farewell to it with mixed feelings. 

What have I learned out of all of this, both that past history and my own history in the Senate? I will not bore you 

with all of the things I have learned, but I have picked out 

several I want to highlight here today. 

One of the first things I learned is that this is, indeed, an 

extraordinary place filled with extraordinary people. And the 

caricature we get from the press and the movies and other 

places that this is filled with people who have self-serving 

agendas and very low standards of ethics is simply not true. 

The Senate is filled with people with the highest standard of 

ethics—we have a few clunkers, I will admit that, but overall 

the highest standard of ethics the American people could 

want. 

If I may dip back into my history to give you this example 

of how much better the present Senate is than some of the 

older ones, I remember that when I was prowling the halls 

in the circumstances I have described, I ran into a friend 

who was distraught. 

I said to him, ‘‘What is the problem?’’ 

He said, ‘‘I am taking a group of schoolchildren through 

the Capitol, and I sent a note in to a Senator to ask him if 

he would come out and speak to them. And he did, and he 

[ ix ] 

is drunk. I can’t get him to stop and get the schoolchildren 

back to the tour, and I don’t know what to do.’’ 

You don’t see that kind of behavior in today’s Senate. 

You don’t see the kind of casualness toward personal campaign contributions that existed. Why do you think, when 

they built the Dirksen Building, they put a safe in every 

Senator’s office? It was to hold the cash that would be 

brought into the office and handed to the Senator. And that 

was a routine kind of circumstance. 

One of the things I enjoyed about the renovation of the 

Dirksen Building was being able to say to the Architect of 

the Capitol, ‘‘Take the safe out because we don’t need it anymore.’’ I notice now that I started a trend. If I leave no legacy other than this, it will be that the safes are all coming 

out of the Dirksen Office Building, and I was the first one 

to do that. 

This is an extraordinary place filled with extraordinary 

people who take their jobs very seriously and deserve the 

kind of respect that too often they do not get. Everybody 

says, when they leave this place, they will miss the people. 

I certainly will. The friendships that have been made here, 

the lessons I have been taught, and the mentors I have had 

have all been a major part of it. I will not name names because once I get started in that, I will not be able to quit. 

But I do recognize the mentors I have had in the leaders, in 

my senior colleague, Senator Hatch—and I will tell a story 

about him—and the staff. These are also extraordinary people who go to extraordinary lengths to serve the country. We 

should acknowledge that and give them the credit they deserve. 

Senator Hatch gave me this piece of advice. We were talking one night about an issue, and we were on opposite sides. 

That didn’t happen very often. Senator Hatch and I don’t 

confer in advance of a vote very often. We come to our own 

conclusions, but, both being conservative Republicans, we 

usually end up in the same place. On this occasion, we were 

different. Orrin was giving me his full court press. You have 

all been exposed to Orrin’s full court press on an issue. 

Finally, he said to me, ‘‘BOB, apply the driving home test.’’ 

I said, ‘‘All right, what is the driving home test?’’ 

He said, ‘‘After this is all over and the lights go out and 

you go get in your car and you are driving home, thinking 

back on the day and the votes you cast, the driving home 

test is, how will you feel driving home if you cast that particular vote?’’ 

[ x ] 

I said, ‘‘Orrin, that is some of the best advice I ever got.’’ 

I voted against him, and I felt great while I was driving 

home. 

In sum, that is one of the first things I learned. This is an 

extraordinary place filled with extraordinary people who are 

dedicated to the country, dedicated to doing the right thing, 

and who uphold the highest ethical standards. 

The next thing I learned is that there are two parties and 

that there is a difference between the two parties. There are 

those who say: Oh, there is not a dime’s worth of difference 

between the Republicans and the Democrats; they are the 

same people who say we are all corrupt. There is a significant difference. The Democrats are the party of government. 

Going back to their roots with Franklin Roosevelt, they come 

to the conclusion that if there is a problem, government 

should solve that problem. The Republicans are the party of 

free markets, and they come to the conclusion that if there 

is a problem, it should be left to the markets to solve it. And 

they are both right. That is the thing I have come to understand here. There are some problems where government is 

the solution—but not always. There are some problems 

where free markets do provide the solution—but not always. 

The tension between those two has run throughout the 

history of the Republic. You can go all the way back to 

Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton and the arguments they had as to what the proper role of government 

should be, whether it should be big government or little government, whether you should have this or that kind of 

power. It ran through the Constitutional Convention and arguments that occurred there. 

It is appropriate that those who believe in government 

should have strong advocates on their side. Those who believe in free markets should have equally strong advocates 

on their side. And because I believe in free markets, I am a 

Republican, and I have been happy to be a Republican. I 

have been careful to stand up for those things I believe, and 

I have compiled a record that many of my friends on the 

Democratic side would consider fairly miserable in terms of 

wisdom on voting. But let us understand in the debate, as 

we go back and forth between these two concepts, that we 

do not question the motives or the patriotism of anyone on 

the other side—or within our own caucuses. 

I remember an event where someone on the Republican 

side voted with the Democrats in a way that some on this 

side felt was betrayal, and there was a sense of, let’s punish 

[ xi ] 

him, let’s do this, that, and the other. Trent Lott taught me 

this lesson. He said, ‘‘No, the most important vote is the next 

one. We are going to need his vote the next time. And if we 

punish him for this last vote, we won’t get it.’’ 

Yes, there is a difference between the two parties. Yes, we 

disagree. But if we can disagree in an effort to solve the 

problems of the country and be willing on occasion to say 

maybe the other side is right, we will move forward. 

Let me go back to the Civil Rights Act and that debate. 

Barry Goldwater was the Republican standard bearer in the 

year that was passed. Barry Goldwater and many of his colleagues on the Republican side believed that the Civil Rights 

Act was an unwarranted intrusion on personal liberty, that 

you were entitled to pick your own associations. And the 

Democrats—some of them—believed the civil rights bill had 

to be passed to keep faith with the 14th Amendment and 

government’s role in securing liberty. 

Everett Dirksen stood in the middle of that fight. The civil 

rights bill was written in his office. Lyndon Johnson gets historic credit for it, as he deserves, but within this body where 

the cloture vote determined whether it would pass, the key 

figure was Everett Dirksen. 

My father, with me as his chief of staff, was caught in that 

pressure with the conservatives saying one thing, the liberals saying another, and dad trying to decide which way he 

would go. I remember a comment he made as he made his 

decision—and he made his decision to go with Dirksen, vote 

for the bill, vote for cloture. Being a businessman, he had 

thought it through. He believed in free markets as well as 

I do. But he made this comment which I have always held 

onto as an example of the way you deal with this challenge. 

He said: 

You know, I thought about it, and many of these companies that refuse 

to serve Black people are public companies with their stock available on the 

stock exchange. So what we are saying is, it is all right for the Black person 

to own the company but it is not all right for him to patronize it. That is 

unsustainable. 

So on this occasion, he sided with the people who believed 

in government to solve the problem. He voted for the Civil 

Rights Act, and he got a challenger for his next nomination 

and the toughest primary he ever had within the party. He 

overcame that challenger, and he got his fourth term. 

I made the decision to act in concert with George Bush 

and my leader, Mitch McConnell, and the Democratic leader, 

Harry Reid, and the Republican standard bearer, John 

[ xii ] 

McCain, to vote in favor of an act of government as opposed 

to free markets when I supported the Toxic Asset Relief Program (TARP). And I got a challenger as I sought a fourth 

term, and I was not as successful as my father, so my career 

was ended. My father never regretted his civil rights vote. I 

don’t regret my TARP vote because it was the right thing to 

do. 

For those who say, ‘‘Oh, what a terrible thing it is that 

your career has ended,’’ I go back again to the old Senate 

and a Senator named Norris Cotton, from New Hampshire. 

Norris Cotton was a Republican. He used to tell this story: 

Three fellows were sitting on a bench in New Hampshire in their rocking 

chairs contemplating what would happen after they had died. The first one 

said, ‘‘You know, after I die, I want to be buried next to George Washington, 

the Father of our country. I think it will be a great honor to be buried next 

to Washington.’’ 

The second one said, ‘‘Well, that is fine, but I am more loyal to our State. 

I want to be buried next to Daniel Webster.’’ 

OK. They rocked for a while, and they turned to the third fellow and they 

said, ‘‘What about you?’’ 

He said, ‘‘I want to be buried next to Elizabeth Taylor.’’ 

They said, ‘‘But, Joe, Elizabeth Taylor is not dead yet.’’ 

He said, ‘‘Neither am I.’’ 

I appreciate the opportunity to give this farewell speech 

and your willingness to come listen to it. But I am not dead 

yet. The demographers are saying, within the next three or 

four decades, the number of Americans over the age of 100 

will be in the millions. I intend to be one of that number. I 

have loved being in the Senate. I have loved the association. 

I have enjoyed hearing about the issues and being in the 

arena to try to solve them. 

I do not intend to leave the arena of public debate and 

public affairs. I simply have changed venues. I am grateful 

to the Senate and to all my friends for all the things you 

have taught me. I view the Senate not as the end of my career but as the education and preparation for the next stage. 

My father lived until he was 95, my mother 96. I only have 

to beat the demographic laws by a very small percentage to 

make my goal. I appreciate the opportunity of being here and 

your courtesy in listening to me here today. 

TRIBUTES 

TO 

ROBERT F. BENNETT 

[ 3 ] 

Proceedings in the Senate 

TUESDAY, November 30, 2010 

Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, 16 Senators will retire 

this year. There is a pretty big turnover in this body, but 

that is a lot of Senators at once. We are losing an enormous 

amount of talent, but, of course, we are gaining a lot of talent with the new Senators. 

I wish to show my respect for those who have served, 

which I will do in a summary fashion because we are talking 

about 16 individuals with very complex and distinguished 

backgrounds. 

One might ask, what are the characteristics of a Senator? 

There are a lot of different answers to that, depending on 

your background and attitude toward politics and government. First, I have always thought that one characteristic of 

almost every Member of the Senate is that he or she probably was a first grader sitting in the front row, hand in the 

air waiting to be recognized. This is an eager bunch or you 

would not have gotten here. 

Second, it is a group of risk takers. Most people who end 

up in the Senate get here because a lot of other people who 

wanted to be Senators were standing around waiting for the 

right time to run. A lot of people who were elected to the 

Senate seemed to have no chance of winning at the time they 

decided to run, but the voters decided differently, and here 

they are. 

Third, we are almost all professional and congenial. That 

is a big help. It is almost a requirement in an organization 

of 100 individuals who spend almost all their time with one 

another, who serve in a body that operates by unanimous 

consent, when just one Senator can bring the whole place to 

a halt, and whose job basically is to argue about some of the 

most difficult issues that face the American people. So it 

helps that almost every Member of the Senate is an especially congenial person. 

Back in Tennessee, people often say to me it must be 

rough being in that job. They are awfully mean up there. 

[ 4 ] 

The truth is, I don’t know of a more congenial group than 

the Members of the Senate. We begin the day in the gym. 

The next thing you know we are at a Prayer Breakfast, and 

then we are at a committee hearing. Then we are on the 

floor voting, and then we have lunch. It goes through the day 

until 7 or 8 o’clock, or sometimes later. We live together and 

we get along very well. We know and respect each other. 

Not long ago, the Presiding Officer (Mr. Udall of New Mexico) and I were having dinner together with our wives. We 

were lamenting the loss of families who know one another, 

the way it happened when his father was serving in Congress and when I first came to the Senate to work for Senator Baker. And that’s true. We’ve lost some of that. Still, 

there is an enormous amount of affection and good will here. 

You don’t always get to be very close friends in this job, but 

you get to be very good acquaintances, and you learn to respect people for their strengths. 

Senator Domenici said, when he left, that we don’t do a 

very good job of saying goodbye here. That is true. As one 

part of saying goodbye, I wish to say at least one good thing 

about each one of the 16 retiring Senators. Much more could 

be said about each, of course. Mostly, I am going in alphabetical order. 

I have known Senator BOB BENNETT of Utah the longest. 

We served together in the Nixon administration. I was in the 

White House working with Bryce Harlow, and he was in the 

Department of Transportation. That was in 1969 and 1970. 

What I will remember about BOB BENNETT—and most Senators will remember this about his legacy—are his careful 

expositions of economic issues. He has a background as an 

entrepreneur and businessman. He served with distinction 

on the Joint Economic Committee. His expertise in helping 

us better understand the economy has been valuable. . . . 

It has been my privilege to serve with these 16 Senators. 

We thank them for their service to our country. They have 

had a chance to serve in what we regard as the world’s 

greatest deliberative body; it is a special institution. We will 

miss their leadership, and we hope they will stay in touch 

with us because they are not just retiring Senators, they are 

all our friends. 

I yield the floor. 

[ 5 ] 

WEDNESDAY, December 8, 2010 

Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that 

there be printed as a Senate document a compilation of materials from the Congressional Record in tribute to retiring 

Members of the 111th Congress, and that Members have 

until Thursday, December 16, to submit such tributes. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. 

THURSDAY, December 9, 2010 

Mr. BOND. Madam President, I am humbled to follow my 

great, good friend, the eloquent orator, the wonderful Senator from Utah, Mr. BOB BENNETT, a man who has been a 

giant in this Senate, not only terms of height but of intellect. 

We have followed his lead on many issues. I know the Senate will miss him. 

Mr. REID. Senator BENNETT from Utah is a very dear 

friend of mine. We have traveled around as Members of the 

Senate, visiting places all over the world. His wife Joyce is 

an accomplished artist. She is a flutist. She is well known 

here and in Utah. Senator BENNETT is a very courageous 

man. What a disappointment he was not reelected. I am not 

usually giving speeches for my Republican colleagues, but it 

is a real loss to the country that Senator BENNETT will not 

return to the Senate. He is a very courageous man. He represents the ideals of the State of Utah. He is a very devout 

member of his church. He is a person who calls his political 

issues the way he sees them. His having been criticized for 

supporting his President, a Republican President, on the 

Toxic Asset Relief Program (TARP) is unfair. This was one 

of the most important issues we faced in ages in this country, and I think the proof is in the pudding. Of the hundreds 

of billions of dollars—almost $1 trillion—that were put out 

for that fund, all but $25 billion is paid back and most of the 

economists say we will get more than that back from some 

of the things that were invested in. 

I admire the public service of Senator BENNETT. It has 

been outstanding. It meets the accomplishments of his father 

who also served very well in the U.S. Senate. I am going to 

miss him a great deal. What a wonderful human being. He 

is an author. He has in the past been a very successful busiVerDate Aug 31 2005 14:37 May 15, 2012 Jkt 064801 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 H:\DOCS\BYEBYE\BYEBYE10\64801.TXT KAYNE
[ 6 ] 

nessman, and I think one of the most accomplished legislators I have had the pleasure to deal with. . . . So I am grateful for the friendship of Senator BENNETT and Senator Dorgan. 

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I join my colleagues in recognizing Senator ROBERT BENNETT of Utah. 

I have had the privilege of working with Senator BENNETT

since I entered the Senate in 1997, 4 years after Senator 

BENNETT began his Senate service. I have admired his enthusiasm and dedication to serving the people of Utah ever 

since. 

It was clear that public service was in his blood. From his 

election as student body president at the University of Utah, 

to his time in the Utah Army National Guard, Senator BENNETT’s priority for his entire adult life has been serving the 

people of his home State. 

His first taste of real politics came in the 1960s when he 

helped his father Wallace Bennett win reelection to this very 

Chamber. While he did not seek office himself until almost 

20 years following his father’s retirement, he worked in the 

private sector in Utah, deepening his ties to the State and 

his devotion to the people of Utah. 

I have had the privilege of working side by side with Senator BENNETT on the Appropriations Committee for many 

years. I have seen his passion for service, his respect for the 

Senate, and above all else, his love of Utah. 

He has managed to stay true to the fiscal principles that 

he gained as a businessman and CEO, while understanding 

the need for compromise when it was required of him for the 

sake of his State and the rest of America. 

During his tenure here, Utah has become a premiere destination of the West—he has worked for quality education for 

Utah’s children, fought to preserve its natural landscapes, 

and paved the way for the development of 21st century infrastructure back home. 

Senator BENNETT also made America proud in 2002 when 

he helped the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics become one 

of the most successful and safe Olympic games in recent 

memory. 

Of course, Senator BENNETT and I have not always seen 

eye to eye on many issues. But my respect for his beliefs has 

always been deep. In 2008, when America was on the brink 

of financial collapse, I was moved by his eagerness to reach 

across the aisle to do what was right for Utah and Illinois, 

[ 7 ] 

alike. This has always been his character, and the Senate 

will miss him for it. 

Senator BENNETT leaves us this month in the same way 

that he has served here for almost 20 years: with dignity and 

conviction. I am proud to call him a friend, and wish him 

and his family all the best in the future. 

FRIDAY, December 10, 2010 

Mr. REED. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to 

our colleagues who are departing the Senate after distinguished service on behalf of their States and on behalf of the 

Nation. I have been privileged to work with these individuals, to learn from them, to collaborate and cooperate 

with them, and to, in some small way, help them do what 

they have done so well—represent their States with fidelity, 

with great effort, and to move the agenda of the Nation forward. . . . 

BOB BENNETT and I served together on the Banking Committee. His thoughtful questioning and his deep knowledge 

of the subjects were critical on so many different issues. I remember when we were trying to get the extension of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act completed so the markets—particularly the markets for large properties—would not freeze 

up, he was instrumental in getting that done. That is just 

one example of what he has done throughout a career of public service to the people of Utah and of this Nation. I wish 

him and Joyce the very best as they continue to serve, as I 

am sure they will, this Nation and their State of Utah. . . . 

To all of these colleagues and their families, my deepest 

appreciation and my profoundest respect. 

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I rise again to recognize the 

service of another great Federal employee. This is a tradition 

that was started by our friend and former colleague, Senator 

Kaufman, and I am proud to carry on that tradition. But I 

want to first say that I appreciate the remarks of the Presiding Officer (Mr. Reed) about our colleagues who are leaving this body, and I share his great respect for not only Senator Kaufman but all of the colleagues who are leaving the 

body at the end of this Congress. . . . 

[ 8 ] 

MONDAY, December 13, 2010 

MR. MCCONNELL. Mr. President, we are losing through 

retirement a number of our most distinguished Members. 

None of them have I been closer to than the Senator from 

Utah, Senator BENNETT, and I am pleased he is here on the 

floor today. He made his farewell speech last week, and now 

I wish to speak about his farewell myself. 

Over the last 18 years, I have come to rely on BOB’s counsel, and today I wish to thank him publicly and personally 

for being so generous with his candid advice and unfailing 

good judgment. I simply would not be where I am today 

without the benefit of BOB’s wisdom and friendship, and I 

am deeply grateful for it. 

BOB has always been a pretty low-key guy, and he has always preferred working quietly in the background—both rarities in politics today. But as with most everything BOB does, 

there is a method behind his style. As BOB once put it: ‘‘In 

Washington, there are two kinds of Senators . . . workhorses 

and show horses. I decided I would be a workhorse.’’ Then 

he went on to explain the difference. He said: 

Most of the show horses look in the mirror in the morning and see a 

President looking back at them . . . But we haven’t elected a bald President 

in this country since [Dwight] Eisenhower [so] I look in the mirror and realize I don’t have the qualifications. 

What BOB failed to point out, of course, is that he has one 

of the longest resumes in the Senate. So I would like to take 

a moment today to go through just some of the things he has 

achieved in a very eventful life. 

Born in Salt Lake City, BOB was the youngest of Francis 

and Wallace F. Bennett’s five children. BOB learned the 

value of hard work from his dad and the importance of faith 

from both his parents. The product of public education, BOB

graduated from East High School in Salt Lake City and then 

went on to attend the University of Utah, where he majored 

in political science and served as student body president. 

After college, he served 3 years as chaplain in the Utah 

Army National Guard. By then, BOB’s father had already 

been a U.S. Senator for a number of years; and after his 

service BOB joined his dad’s Senate reelection campaign in 

1962. It was a close race, but BOB’s father was able to win— 

and BOB himself was hooked on politics. After working on 

the campaign, he wasn’t much interested in returning to 

Bennett Paint & Glass, so he packed his bags and moved to 

Washington, DC. 

[ 9 ] 

After bouncing around a little as a press secretary in Congress, a corporate researcher working on Federal pension 

law, and chief administrative assistant for his dad, he took 

a job as a lobbyist for J.C. Penney. 

Now, in those days, lobbyists did not make as much money 

as they do today. But BOB enjoyed the work and the friendships he made, including his friendship with the legendary 

Bryce Harlow. Bryce ended up becoming more than a friend 

to BOB, he really became a mentor to him. And when Nixon 

won the Presidential election in 1968, Bryce pulled BOB

aside and gave him some marching orders: ‘‘If I have to give 

up my cushy corporate job to serve this administration,’’ he 

said, ‘‘so do you. Go get measured for a suit, go over to the 

Department of Transportation. Show up; you’re going to be 

John Volpe’s head of congressional relations.’’ And that is exactly what BOB did. BOB will tell you he was proud of his 

work and experience he gained at DOT. He says no department was more successful. And he has all of the Presidential 

pens to prove it. 

At the end of 1971, BOB was ready to leave government 

and start something new. So he bought the public relations 

firm Robert Mullen Company and soon unwittingly found 

himself right in the middle of the Watergate scandal. What 

BOB didn’t know when he bought the firm is that it doubled 

as a CIA front and that one of its employees had organized 

the break-in at the center of the Watergate investigation. 

The unwanted attention ruined BOB’s new business and completely changed the course of his career. 

Howard Hughes was one of Mullen’s clients at the time, 

and he asked BOB to work for him directly in California. 

Looking for a fresh start, he took the job, and left Washington for the west coast. After that, BOB found success running a company that made day planners and organizers. 

Under his leadership, the company went from 4 employees 

to over 1,000 employees and more than $80 million in sales. 

And then, in 1992, with Utah Republican Jake Garn retiring 

from the Senate, BOB decided to fulfill his lifelong dream and 

follow in his father’s footsteps by running for the Senate. 

After a tough primary, he beat his Democratic opponent and 

won the election by a 15-point margin. And since entering 

this Chamber, he has been a central player in some of the 

most significant legislative efforts the Senate has undertaken over the last two decades. 

A staunch conservative with a track record of finding common ground on some of the toughest issues, BOB played a 

[ 10 ] 

central role in the bailout of the Mexican Government during 

the peso crisis in the 1990s. For his efforts, President Clinton praised him as ‘‘a highly intelligent, old-fashioned conservative who quickly grasped the consequences of inaction 

and would stick with us throughout the crisis.’’ Around the 

same time, he was also instrumental in the passage of legislation related to the confidentiality of medical records. 

As someone who has always worked hard to build relationships with Democrats, I knew I could always rely on BOB to 

find out the pulse of Democrats on an issue. And Democrats 

could turn to him too. Here is what Senator Reid once said 

about BOB: ‘‘There is no more honorable Member of this body 

than BOB BENNETT.’’ 

BOB and I have found common cause over the years, 

among other things, in our defense of the First Amendment. 

I remember being in the trenches together over the flagburning amendment, which we both opposed. Both of us, of 

course, also strongly oppose any desecration of the flag. But 

we agreed that an amendment to the Constitution was not 

the way to go. In the end, we prevailed. We thought it was 

a worthy fight to ensure that Congress didn’t place any 

qualifiers on the First Amendment. 

Over this time, BOB became one of my most trusted colleagues, and that is why, when I was elected Republican 

leader, I asked him if he would serve as one of my advisers. 

He is smart and levelheaded, a proven leader, a successful 

entrepreneur, and when he speaks everyone listens. In addition, he has a remarkable gift of persuasion. Far from the 

floor is where BOB does his best work. It is a trait he learned 

from his dad. 

As BOB once put it: 

Building a consensus, building relationships where people will trust and 

do things for you is the hardest work of the Senate, and when it comes to 

fruition . . . it’s also the most rewarding work in the Senate. 

BOB decided long ago to do his best to stay out of the nasty 

political fights that occur from time to time in Washington. 

That is one of the reasons you don’t ever see him on the Sunday shows. BOB knows that most of the time the media is 

just looking for that gotcha moment. He is more interested 

in focusing on what is best for his constituents, whether it 

is in this Chamber, in committee, or back home. 

In addition to BOB’s role in leadership, he served as the 

ranking member of the Rules and Administration Committee, as the chairman of the Joint Economic Committee, as 

the senior member of the Senate Banking Committee, as the 

[ 11 ] 

ranking member on the Subcommittee on Energy and Water 

Development and on the Senate Appropriations Committee. 

He has been involved in nearly every major issue that has 

come through this Chamber over the past two decades. He 

has worked hard to fix our economy and health care system, 

simplify the tax code, reform entitlement programs, and 

strengthen America’s national security at home and abroad. 

But BOB will tell you his most important job is being a 

husband. And of course today we also pay tribute to Joyce, 

who has played such an active role in the life of the Senate 

family over the years. We will miss them both. Together, 

they have raised six children and in nearly 50 years of marriage, they have certainly seen a lot. 

When asked about his legacy, BOB has pointed out that it 

was always his hope to live up to his own father’s example 

of integrity and hard work. BOB, we know that if your dad 

were here today, he would be so proud of all you have accomplished not only in this Chamber and for our country, but 

also as a devoted husband, father, and grandfather. So it is 

with a sense of gratitude for all that he has meant to the 

Senate and to me personally, that I pay tribute to BOB BENNETT. It has been an honor to serve with him, and most important to call him a friend. On behalf of the entire Senate 

family, I want to thank BOB for his service. He will be 

missed, and we wish him all the best in the next chapter of 

his life. 

Mr. BAUCUS. Mr. President, I too want to say a couple of 

words about BOB BENNETT. We are deeply impressed with 

his sense of integrity and his commitment to working for 

basic, sound principles. I might say he made a big impression on me when he came to my office—I think on his own, 

but maybe he was appointed to do so—to help find a way to 

make the Senate more relevant and to find ways to change 

the Senate rules to address some of the frustration a lot of 

Senators have. People who are watching may wonder, gosh, 

why do Senators think they are not relevant? I must say 

that a lot of Senators feel they want to get something done 

quickly and they are sometimes frustrated with the actions 

of another Senator who doesn’t quite have the same idea. I 

was impressed with BOB’s attitude. He talked to me and 

asked, ‘‘What can be done, Max? What ideas do you have?’’ 

It was very refreshing. I remember thinking at the time that 

this will be difficult, and I told him it would be difficult. I 

didn’t tell him how difficult I thought it would be. But I was 

[ 12 ] 

impressed with his freshness and his desire to help adjust 

the Senate rules. 

WEDNESDAY, December 15, 2010 

Mr. CONRAD. Mr. President, I want to take a moment to 

honor a friend and colleague, Senator BOB BENNETT, who 

will be moving on from the Senate after 18 years of service 

to the people of Utah. 

BOB has had a long and impressive career. Out of college, 

he served for several years in the Utah National Guard and 

worked as a congressional liaison for the Department of 

Transportation. Turning next to the private sector, he 

worked for 20 years in public relations and later in the technology field. He put that experience to good use once elected 

to the Senate, using his high-tech know-how to chair the 

Senate Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology 

Problem, serve on the Senate Republican High-Tech Task 

Force, and work on issues from broadband infrastructure development to cybersecurity. 

Utah and North Dakota have many things in common. 

Both are largely rural States with unique needs that often 

go unrecognized by those who live in densely populated 

areas. Senator BENNETT should be proud that he has been 

a vocal and consistent supporter of funding for Utah’s farmers and ranchers, veterans, rural health care institutions, 

military installations, and roads, highways, and mass-transit 

infrastructure. I know that Utah has many reasons to be 

grateful for what BOB BENNETT’s hard work on the Appropriations Committee has brought to the State over the years. 

During his time here, Senator BENNETT and I have worked 

closely on a number of important issues, especially those related to our national defense. As an important member of 

the Senate ICBM Coalition, Senator BENNETT has worked 

with me to ensure that our Nation preserves both its fleet 

of Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles and the 

infrastructure required to keep them operational for years 

into the future. Senator BENNETT is also a member of the 

Senate Tanker Caucus, which has vocally and consistently 

pushed for the Department of Defense to quickly and fairly 

select and procure a next-generation aerial refueling tanker 

to replace the aging KC–135. His advocacy on this issue has 

been key in the work of the caucus. 

[ 13 ] 

Finally, of course, and I think most important to BOB, he 

is a dedicated and outstanding family man. Though I know 

he will be missed here in the Senate, the new time he will 

have to spend with his wife Joyce and his six children will 

certainly be counted among his many blessings. My wife 

Lucy and I wish BOB and his family many happy years 

ahead. 

Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, it is always a bittersweet moment when the end of a session of Congress draws near and 

it becomes time for us to say goodbye to those of our colleagues who will be returning home at the end of the year. 

We know we will miss them when the next session of Congress begins not only for their many contributions to the 

day-to-day work of the Senate but for their friendship and 

the good advice they have provided to us for so long as we 

deliberated issue after issue on the Senate floor. 

I can’t think of anyone who better fits that description 

than BOB BENNETT. BOB was born in Utah, a member of a 

family who was very active in their community and the government. BOB was therefore blessed with some great role 

models early on in his life. He soon found he had a talent 

for business and a great understanding of the needs of 

businesspeople all over the State and around the Nation. Because of his insights and his ability to promote his good 

ideas and products, he took his company from a 4-person 

shop in 1984 to an $82 million company just a few years 

later with more than 700 newly created staff. With today’s 

economy we can really appreciate that—that is a lot of jobs. 

From there he decided to take on the challenge of a run 

for the Senate. As we all know, that first run for the Senate 

is never easy as it takes more than the vote of a community 

to make it happen. You have to take your case to every corner of the entire State. That means putting a lot of miles on 

your car and getting to know people from every city, town, 

and neighborhood. 

It wasn’t an easy bid for office that brought BOB to Washington. But, in the end, he proved to have what it takes to 

be a successful candidate. He had a vision for the future of 

Utah and the United States, a willingness to work hard, and 

a sense of humor. He took his job and the position he holds 

of Senator very seriously, but he was never one to take himself too seriously. In fact, he sees his job principally in terms 

of what he can do to help the people of Utah who elected 

him. 

[ 14 ] 

That is why, when he arrived in Washington, he immediately established a reputation as one of the Senate’s most 

influential and sought after conservatives. Like me, he 

learned at a very young age that it was better to be a workhorse than a show horse because there is no limit to what 

you can do if you don’t care who gets the credit. BOB never 

cared about getting his share of the credit; he was always too 

busy working on the next issue and helping to form another 

compromise agreement to make sure things continued to get 

done. 

BOB has left quite a legacy of achievement during his service in the Senate and a big pair of shoes to fill for those who 

will follow him. The media knows him not for an assortment 

of catchy one liners but for his ability to provide easily understood, readily accessible explanations about what was 

going on in the Senate—and why. No one has a better, clearer understanding of the inner workings of the Senate than 

BOB does. He has been such a valued resource, in fact, that 

many of us have sought him out more than a time or two 

just to get his take on things. 

One of the things I will most remember about BOB is his 

love of gadgets. He was the first Senator to drive a highmileage, low-emissions, gasoline-electric hybrid car. His interest stemmed from his awareness of the importance of conserving energy and the need to pursue solutions to our transportation problems that would make good and wise use of 

our resources. 

He was also a leader in encouraging the Senate to tackle 

a very thorny issue—Social Security. Social Security is a lot 

like the weather: we all complain about it, we all know something needs to be done about it, and we are all sure we will 

know the right solution when it appears magically on the 

Senate doorstep. That wasn’t what we should do, as BOB saw 

it. Then again, he was never one to shy away from getting 

the conversation started on just about anything. 

In addition, as fellow small businessmen, we both took a 

great interest in proposals that were offered by both sides 

that would have caused problems for other small businessmen who were trying to do what they do best—make a profit 

and create more jobs. Thanks to BOB, our small business 

community had a champion in the Senate who was willing 

to take a stand against efforts to make owning and running 

your own business more difficult than it already is. 

Those are just a few short snippets of BOB’s record and the 

great success he has been able to achieve for his constituents 

[ 15 ] 

and for our great Nation. During his service in the Senate, 

BOB was not only a part of our Nation’s history, he helped 

to write a new chapter of it every day. 

Before I close, I want to thank BOB for the great gift of his 

friendship. It has meant a great deal to me ever since that 

first day that Diana and I drove our van into Washington 

from Wyoming, unsure of what the future held for us but excited to begin this great new adventure in our lives. BOB

made a difference for us from the first time we met him and 

Joyce, and we will always be grateful for that. We are very 

proud of them both and the difference they have made over 

the years in our lives and so many more. Thanks to their efforts together, the future will be a lot better and a more 

hopeful place for our children and our grandchildren. 

I don’t know what you have planned for the years to come, 

but one thing I am certain of—we haven’t heard the last 

from you. That is a good thing. You have proven to be a 

great success at so many things. You have always been an 

important addition to our debates and deliberations, and you 

will be missed. It is good to know you will never be more 

than a phone call away. 

Good luck in all your future endeavors, my friend. Keep in 

touch with us, and we will keep in touch with you. God bless. 

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent 

that the order for the printing of tributes be modified to provide that Members have until sine die of the 111th Congress, 

2d session, to submit tributes and that the order for printing 

remain in effect. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. 

THURSDAY, December 16, 2010 

Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to a 

friend and longtime colleague, Senator BOB BENNETT who, 

like me, will be departing from the U.S. Senate in just a couple of weeks. I would like to take this opportunity to wish 

BOB, Joyce, and the rest of his family the very best as he 

leaves the Senate and embarks on this new chapter in his 

life. 

Since he was first elected to this body in 1992, BOB has 

well served the people of Utah as their Senator. BOB comes 

from a long line of individuals dedicated to public service, 

[ 16 ] 

and it is no surprise that he himself decided to go down that 

path. BOB’s grandfather, Heber J. Grant, was the seventh 

president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints 

in Salt Lake City. BOB’s father, Wallace F. Bennett, represented the State of Utah in this very Chamber between 

1951 and 1974, serving alongside my father, Tom Dodd. 

Throughout the time that I have known and worked with 

him, I have always found BOB to be receptive to the ideas 

of others and careful and deliberate in his own evaluation of 

complex policy questions. 

Of course, that is not to say that BOB BENNETT isn’t also 

a determined partisan. Indeed, throughout his three terms 

here, BOB has been one of the Senate’s most consistently 

conservative voices. But despite that, BOB has frequently 

reached across the partisan divide to seek out areas of common ground and mutual interest with Democrats. 

That willingness to engage and cooperate with colleagues 

has perhaps been most evident in his work on the Senate 

Banking Committee. Throughout our years of service together on that panel, BOB and I have frequently been among 

the first to reach out across the aisle and search for solutions 

to the challenges facing our Nation’s financial services sector. From our work together during the savings and loan crisis, to passage of legislation that provides a safety net for 

our economy in the event of a devastating terrorist attack, 

we have achieved some important results. 

BOB chaired and I served as vice chairman of the Y2K 

Committee, to ensure the integrity of our Nation’s financial 

services sector. More recently, in fall 2008, when the global 

financial system was on the verge of collapse and our country was standing at the precipice of an economic depression, 

BOB took a significant political risk by supporting the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act, which established TARP. 

I realize that this was an incredibly difficult vote for BOB

and every other Member of this Chamber at the time. 

But I am convinced that without elected officials who are 

willing to cast those kinds of tough, yet necessary votes, this 

country would be a very different place. 

So I would like to once again thank BOB for his 18 years 

of service in this body and for his willingness to listen to and 

work with colleagues with whom he hasn’t always agreed. I 

would like to once again wish BOB and his family the very 

best as he leaves the Senate this January. 

Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, I join my colleagues in appreciation and admiration of Senator BOB BENNETT. 

[ 17 ] 

Senator BENNETT understood the perspectives of America’s 

small business owners. After all, he was one of them. As 

CEO of Franklin International Institute, BOB grew the company from 4 employees to over 1,000. During his tenure the 

firm became one of the best-known providers of time management seminars and products, and became listed on the 

New York Stock Exchange. 

Reducing obstacles for small business owners has been one 

of Senator BENNETT’s top priorities in Washington. In his 

first 6 months of service, he took to the floor to identify three 

ways the Federal Government was growing at the expense of 

the entrepreneur. Those three obstacles—increased regulation, increased taxation, and increased difficulty in capital 

formation—remain challenges to job creators today, and BOB

has never stopped voicing their concerns. 

Senator BENNETT was elected to the U.S. Senate from his 

beloved State of Utah, which his father, Senator Wallace 

Bennett, represented for many years. By the time I was 

elected to the Chamber, Senator BENNETT had already been 

one of the ‘‘wise ones’’ in his own right for many years. I 

have long admired BOB’s sincere appreciation and respect for 

the traditions and history of the Senate—to which he and his 

father have both contributed tremendously. 

Throughout his service here in Washington, BOB’s family 

has helped keep him grounded—all 6 children and 20 grandchildren. Sandy and I wish the best for BOB and his wife 

Joyce. 

SATURDAY, December 18, 2010 

Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, in these closing days of the 

111th Congress, the Senate will be saying farewell to one of 

our most seasoned and accomplished Members, respected on 

both sides of the aisle, Senator ROBERT BENNETT of Utah. 

Certainly no one in this body doubts Senator BENNETT’s 

staunch conservative values and principles, especially on fiscal and regulatory issues. But, throughout his 18 years in 

this body, Senator BENNETT has been a consensus builder, 

willing to reach across the aisle in order to get important 

things done for the people of Utah and of the entire United 

States. Clearly, this thoughtfulness has caused him to lose 

favor with the more extreme wing of his party, for which he 

paid a price during the primary election this year. I know I 

[ 18 ] 

am not alone in mourning the loss of one of the Senate’s 

most thoughtful conservatives. 

For example, he partnered with Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon in advocating a legislation to provide universal health 

insurance coverage. 

In response to the financial crisis of 2008, as a senior 

member of the Senate Banking Committee, he supported the 

Emergency Economic Stabilization Act. Senator BENNETT

was widely criticized by those on the right, as was I for the 

same vote by critics on the left. But he can take great pride 

in it, because facts are facts: the Troubled Assets Relief Program prevented a total meltdown of our financial system. Almost the entire $700 billion taxpayer investment has been— 

or soon will be—paid back to the Treasury. In fact, just this 

week, the Treasury booked a $12 billion profit on its previous $45 billion TARP investment in Citigroup. 

I have been proud to call BOB BENNETT my friend for the 

last 18 years, and I count myself fortunate to have served 

with him on the Appropriations Committee. He is a gentleman, a bridge-builder, a person of rock-solid character and 

integrity. 

I join with the entire Senate family in wishing BOB and 

Joyce the very best in the years ahead. 

Mr. CARPER. Before Senator Harkin leaves the floor, let 

me say I am so pleased that I was literally able to be here 

on the floor and hear you talk about our colleagues. What a 

wonderful thing to do, to single out Democrats and Republicans and to reflect upon their service to their States and to 

our country. I had to mention that. . . . 

You mentioned BOB BENNETT. He and I served on the 

Banking Committee for a number of years. In the end, he 

lost his seat I think because of his willingness to do what we 

were rewarded for in Delaware, and that is to reach across 

the aisle and find ways for Republicans and Democrats to do 

things together. We will certainly miss him. 

MONDAY, December 20, 2010 

Mr. BUNNING. Mr. President, today I pay tribute to my 

distinguished colleague from Utah, Senator ROBERT BENNETT, who will be retiring from the Senate at the end of the 

111th Congress. 

[ 19 ] 

I have worked with BOB since coming over to the Senate 

in 1998. I have also had the privilege of serving on the Senate Energy and Banking Committees with BOB. In fact, we 

sat next to each other for years in the Banking Committee. 

He is a man of integrity and devotion. As a young man, 

he worked as a staffer on Capitol Hill and moved on to become a successful entrepreneur in Washington, DC. In 1992, 

he followed in his father’s footsteps and was elected to the 

U.S. Senate. Over the course of his three consecutive terms 

in the Senate, BOB has fought hard for our shared conservative values of fiscal discipline, securing our borders, and energy independence. 

BOB has served the people of Utah proudly as their Senator. His leadership on the Banking Committee and in the 

Senate will be missed. 

I am honored to know him and to have worked with him. 

I would like to thank BOB for his contributions to the Senate 

and to the country we both love. I wish him and his family 

the best in all of their future endeavors. 

WEDNESDAY, December 22, 2010 

Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, I would like to take a 

few minutes to pay tribute to the 16 Senators who will be 

departing this body at the end of the year. 

I am grateful for the opportunity I have had to serve 

alongside each of these Senators as colleagues and as 

friends. All served their States with distinction and gave 

their constituents strong voices in the world’s greatest deliberative body. Senators Evan Bayh, ROBERT BENNETT, Kit 

Bond, Sam Brownback, Jim Bunning, Roland Burris, Chris 

Dodd, Byron Dorgan, Russ Feingold, Carte Goodwin, Judd 

Gregg, Ted Kaufman, George LeMieux, Blanche Lincoln, 

Arlen Specter, and George Voinovich each left an indelible 

mark on the Senate, and I wish them well as they take on 

new challenges and opportunities into the future. 

I would like to speak briefly about a few of the Senators 

I knew best and served with in committees to recognize their 

contributions and accomplishments and share my fond 

memories of them and the legacies they will leave behind. 

For nearly two decades, Senator BOB BENNETT has honorably served the people of Utah. 

[ 20 ] 

His career in the U.S. Senate has been marked by his commonsense solutions to many of the most pressing issues facing our country. 

Before serving in the Senate, BOB was a successful entrepreneur as the CEO of Franklin International Institute. 

Under his leadership, the business grew from 4 employees to 

more than 1,000 and was listed on the New York Stock Exchange. 

BOB brought his past experiences running a successful 

company with him to the Senate. His business sense was 

certainly an asset that informed his decisions as a U.S. Senator and made him an effective advocate for businesses, 

large and small, who keep our economy strong. Being a 

former business owner myself, I valued his pragmatic perspective and ability to get things done. 

As a senior member of the Senate Banking Committee and 

a member of the distinguished Joint Economic Committee, 

BOB has been a leader in many national economic policy decisions. 

In addition, while serving as the ranking Republican on 

the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and 

Water, he has worked to address the critical funding needs 

our country faces on a wide range of energy- and waterrelated issues. 

I am proud to have served with BOB for so many years, 

and his leadership and kind manner will be sorely missed in 

the Senate. . . . 

In conclusion, the departing Senators’ contributions, their 

dedicated service, and the issues they championed will be remembered long after their final days in the Senate. 

I believe I can speak for my fellow Senators when I say 

that we will all miss our departing friends. 

Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, when the 111th Congress draws to a close, we will bid farewell to 16 colleagues 

who have collectively given more than 200 years of service 

to our Nation through their service in the Senate. These include seven of the Senate’s most experienced Members. People like Chris Dodd and Arlen Specter who have each served 

five terms in the Senate. Kit Bond who has served four 

terms and BOB BENNETT, Byron Dorgan, Russ Feingold, and 

Judd Gregg, who have each served three terms in this 

Chamber. . . . 

BOB BENNETT, one of the most thoughtful among us, who 

draws wisdom from experience as an entrepreneur as well as 

from public service, will not be among us. I learned much 

[ 21 ] 

from Senator BENNETT during the period that he served as 

counselor to the Republican leader and I served as vice chair 

of the Senate Republican Conference. . . . 

It has been an honor and a pleasure to serve with each of 

the people who will leave this Chamber when we adjourn 

sine die. Each has made substantial contributions to their 

States, to the Nation, and to the Senate during their time 

here. 

Æ