Olympia J. Snowe 

U.S. SENATOR FROM MAINE 

TRIBUTES 

IN THE CONGRESS OF 

THE UNITED STATES 

UNUM

E PLURIBUS


congress.#15
Olympia J. Snowe 


81112.002
U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

WASHINGTON : 2014

S. DOC. 113–14 

Tributes 

Delivered in Congress 

Olympia J. Snowe 

United States Congresswoman 

1979–1995 

United States Senator 

1995–2013 

÷ 

Compiled under the direction 

of the 

Joint Committee on Printing 

[ iii ] 

CONTENTS 

Page 

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

Farewell Address ...................................................................................... ix 

Proceedings in the Senate: 

Tributes by Senators: 

Boxer, Barbara, of California .................................................... 25 

Cardin, Benjamin L., of Maryland ............................................ 20 

Collins, Susan M., of Maine ...................................................... 3 

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

Enzi, Michael B., of Wyoming ................................................... 17 

Harkin, Tom, of Iowa ................................................................. 13 

Klobuchar, Amy, of Minnesota .................................................. 24 

Landrieu, Mary L., of Louisiana ............................................... 11 

Leahy, Patrick J., of Vermont ................................................... 19 

Levin, Carl, of Michigan ............................................................ 15 

McConnell, Mitch, of Kentucky ................................................. 4 

Mikulski, Barbara A., of Maryland .......................................... 8, 12 

Murkowski, Lisa, of Alaska ....................................................... 23 

Reed, Jack, of Rhode Island ...................................................... 14 

Reid, Harry, of Nevada .............................................................. 26 

[ v ] 

BIOGRAPHY 

OLYMPIA J. SNOWE was born OLYMPIA JEAN BOUCHLES on 

February 21, 1947, in Augusta, ME. She is the daughter of 

the late George Bouchles, a native of Mytilene, Greece, and 

the late Georgia Goranites Bouchles, whose parents immigrated to America from Sparta. After the death of her parents, she was raised by her aunt and uncle, the late Mary 

and James Goranites of Auburn, ME. OLYMPIA attended St. 

Basil’s Academy, a Greek Orthodox school in Garrison, NY, 

and graduated from Edward Little High School in Auburn. 

She earned a degree in political science from the University 

of Maine in 1969. 

With her election in 1994 OLYMPIA became only the second 

woman Senator in history to represent Maine, following the 

late Senator Margaret Chase Smith, who served from 1949 

to 1973. In November 2006, she was reelected to a third 6- 

year term in the U.S. Senate with 74 percent of the vote. 

Before her election to the Senate, OLYMPIA represented 

Maine’s Second Congressional District in the U.S. House of 

Representatives for 16 years. Senator SNOWE is only the 

fourth woman in history to be elected to both Houses of Congress and the first woman in American history to serve in 

both houses of a State legislature and both Houses of Congress. When first elected to Congress in 1978 at the age of 

31, OLYMPIA was the youngest Republican woman, and the 

first Greek-American woman, ever elected to Congress. She 

has won more Federal elections in Maine than any other person since World War II. OLYMPIA is the third longest serving 

woman in the history of the U.S. Congress. 

OLYMPIA’s dedicated work in the U.S. Senate has garnered 

her nationwide recognition as a leading policymaker in 

Washington. In 2005 she was named the 54th most powerful 

woman in the world by Forbes magazine. In 2006 Time magazine named her one of the Top 10 U.S. Senators. Calling 

her ‘‘The Caretaker,’’ Time magazine wrote of Senator 

SNOWE: 

Because of her centrist views and eagerness to get beyond partisan point 

scoring, Maine Republican OLYMPIA SNOWE is in the center of every policy 

debate in Washington, but while SNOWE is a major player on national 

[ vi ] 

issues, she is also known as one of the most effective advocates for her constituents. 

Focusing her attention on efforts to build bipartisan consensus on key issues that matter to Maine and America, 

OLYMPIA successfully built a reputation as one of Congress’ 

leading moderates. In 1999, she became cochair of the Senate Centrist Coalition with Senator John Breaux (D–LA), 

and in that same year, she was cited by Congressional Quarterly for her centrist leadership. 

OLYMPIA has worked extensively on a number of issues, 

such as budget and fiscal responsibility; education, including 

education technology; national security; women’s issues; 

health care, including prescription drug coverage for Medicare recipients; welfare reform; oceans and fisheries issues; 

and campaign finance reform. She co-led the successful fight 

for a refundable child tax credit, assisting an additional 37 

million American families. She has also led efforts important 

to her home State of Maine, including successfully working 

to overturn the Department of Defense’s recommendations in 

2005 to close two of Maine’s military installations, a successful push for Federal disaster funds in response to a devastating 1998 ice storm and the 2006 flooding in southern 

Maine, increased funding for the Togus veterans hospital, reauthorization of the Northeast Dairy Compact so critical to 

the survival of Maine’s small family dairy farms, and opposition to a proposed Federal rule that would have devastated 

the State’s lobster fishery. 

In 2001 OLYMPIA became the first Republican woman ever 

to secure a full-term seat on the Senate Finance Committee, 

and only the third woman in history to join the panel. The 

committee is considered one of the most powerful in Congress with jurisdiction over two-thirds of the entire Federal 

budget, because its members author tax, trade, health care, 

welfare, Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security related legislation. OLYMPIA also served as a member of the Subcommittee on Health Care, which oversees matters related to 

health insurance, Medicare, and the uninsured. 

As former chair, and later ranking member of the Senate 

Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, OLYMPIA fought fiercely for our Nation’s small businesses. 

Through her proactive legislative efforts and strong advocacy 

on behalf of America’s small businesses, she consistently 

championed affordable and flexible health care options, increased access to capital, a fair share of Federal contracting 

[ vii ] 

dollars and opportunities, and reduced tax and regulatory 

burden, among other issues. 

Also a former member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, she was the former 

chair and later ranking member of its Subcommittee on 

Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries, and the Coast Guard where 

she worked to pass legislation to allow Maine’s fish and fishing communities to thrive. A former member of the Senate 

Budget Committee, she was a key voice in establishing education as a priority within the context of the first balanced 

budget since 1969, and in 1999, 2000, and 2001 authored the 

amendment that for the first time created a reserve fund for 

a Medicare prescription drug benefit. She also sat on the 

Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. 

Prior to her service on the Finance Committee, Senator 

SNOWE had been the fourth woman ever to serve on the Senate Armed Services Committee, where she was the first 

woman Senator to chair the Subcommittee on Seapower, 

which oversees the Navy and Marine Corps. OLYMPIA SNOWE

was a leading voice in the Senate on combating sexual assault in the military, fighting for gender integrated training, 

and shipbuilding matters. 

During her tenure in the U.S. House of Representatives, 

she cochaired the Congressional Caucus on Women’s Issues 

for more than 10 years and provided leadership in establishing the Office of Women’s Health at the National Institutes of Health. She also served as a member of the House 

Budget Committee; the House Foreign Affairs Committee, 

where she was ranking Republican on the Subcommittee on 

International Operations; and the former House Select Committee on Aging, where she was ranking Republican on the 

Subcommittee on Human Services. 

In her first term, OLYMPIA helped launch with House 

Speaker Tip O’Neill the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). Across her combined 30-year tenure on the Foreign Affairs, Foreign Relations, Senate Armed 

Services, and Senate Intelligence Committees, she fought to 

keep our Nation safe—authoring the creation of a Diplomatic 

Security Service to protect our embassies, questioning our 

broken system of issuing visas even before the 1993 World 

Trade Center bombing, and instituting greater information 

sharing among our intelligence agencies. 

She served in both houses of the Maine Legislature, first 

elected to the Maine House—representing her home town of 

Auburn—in 1973 to the seat left vacant by the death of her 

[ viii ] 

first husband, the late Peter Snowe, in an auto accident. She 

was reelected in 1974, and was elected to the Maine Senate 

representing Androscoggin County in 1976. 

Senator SNOWE is married to former Maine Governor John 

R. McKernan, Jr., and lives in Falmouth, ME, and Washington, DC. She is a member of the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in Lewiston, ME. 

[ ix ] 

Farewell to the Senate 

Thursday, December 13, 2012 

Ms. SNOWE. Madam President, I rise today with an infinite appreciation for the institution of the U.S. Senate as 

well as a profound sense of gratitude as I prepare to conclude my 18 years in the Senate and my nearly 40 years in 

elective office on behalf of the people of Maine. 

It has been difficult to envision this day when I would be 

saying farewell to the Senate, just as it was impossible to 

imagine I would one day become a U.S. Senator as I was 

growing up in Maine. But such is the miracle of America, 

that a young girl of Greek immigrants and a first-generation 

American, who was orphaned at the age of 9, could in time 

be elected to serve in the greatest deliberative body the 

world has ever known and become the third longest serving 

woman in the history of the U.S. Congress. 

So in contemplating how to begin my remarks today, I was 

reminded of the words of the renowned American poet and 

son of New England, Ralph Waldo Emerson, who said: 

Cultivate the habit of being grateful for every good thing that comes to 

you, and to give thanks continuously. And because all things have contributed to your advancement, you should include all things in your gratitude. 

That perfectly encapsulates how I am feeling on this day— 

thankful and blessed. In that light, I first and foremost want 

to thank the people of Maine for allowing me to be their 

voice, their vote, and their champion for 16 years in the U.S. 

House of Representatives and for three terms in the U.S. 

Senate. One of the definitions of the word ‘‘trust’’ is ‘‘a 

charge or duty imposed in faith or confidence.’’ To have had 

the trust of Maine people, who have placed their faith and 

confidence in me, is an honor of indescribable magnitude. Indeed, serving my magnificent State over the past 34 years in 

the Halls of Congress has been the greatest privilege of my 

life. 

I also want to thank my amazing husband, Jock 

McKernan, who is with us today and who, as you know, was 

a former Congressman and former Governor of Maine. In 

fact, when Jock was Governor while I was serving in the 

[ x ] 

House of Representatives, we used to joke that our idea of 

quality time together was listening to each other’s speeches. 

But truly, we have shared a passion for public service and 

quite a unique journey together, with 56 years between us 

in elective office, and we have never regretted a single moment. 

I am also pleased to say he is joined today by our very 

wonderful, longtime friends, Dan and Sharon Miller from 

Maine. 

On this occasion, I also think of my family, without whom 

none of this would have been possible. I have often joked 

that the secret to my electoral success is coming from such 

a large extended family—some of whom we started on campaigns at birth, I might add. They have been a source of 

boundless love and support over the years, through the 

struggles as well as the celebrations, and I thank them from 

the bottom of my heart. 

It is also impossible to serve for this long and at this level 

without dedicated and exceptional staff, and during my tenure in the House and Senate, I have had nearly 400 people 

on my staff who have helped to make all the difference for 

me, for Maine, and for Washington. Here we have had tremendous support with the invaluable guidance and efforts on 

the part of my staff through the extraordinary events of 

more than three decades, and they have represented the very 

best and brightest the Nation has to offer. They are here 

today in the back of the Chamber and up in the gallery, and 

I applaud them time and time again. In fact, we had a wonderful reunion of all of my staff, and I realize it just simply 

would not have been possible to have been on this legislative 

journey without them. 

The same is true of my staff in Maine, who have not only 

been my eyes and ears but also my stalwart surrogates in 

assisting Mainers with their problems and in navigating the 

Federal bureaucracies. Like me, they have never been inclined to take no for an answer, and in so doing they have 

touched literally thousands of lives, helping to soften the 

hardest days and brighten the darkest. 

I thank and commend the stellar staff of the Senate, from 

all of those ensuring the operation of the Senate here on the 

floor, to the Cloakroom staff, the legislative counsel, to all of 

our pages who are here from all across America, to all those 

who actually keep the facilities running, and certainly to the 

officers who are on the frontlines of Capitol security, protecting our visitors and all of us. You have my deepest admiVerDate Aug 31 2005 15:36 Apr 24, 2014 Jkt 081112 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 H:\DOCS\BYEBYE\BYEBYE12\81112.TXT KAYNE
[ xi ] 

ration for your immeasurable contributions to the Senate 

and to our country. 

I want to express my gratitude to the minority leader for 

his gracious remarks about my service. Senator McConnell 

has worked tirelessly in leading us through extremely challenging moments for the Senate and for the country. His longevity of legislative experience has made him a true asset to 

this body, for our Republican caucus, and I have the most 

heartfelt respect and appreciation for his contributions to his 

home State of Kentucky and to this country. 

To my friend and colleague Susan Collins, I want to thank 

her for her very kind and extremely generous words on the 

floor last week. Public service was imbued in Senator Collins 

from her earliest days in Caribou, ME, where, incredibly, 

both her parents, Don and Pat, were former mayors of the 

city. I happened to have served with her father Don when he 

was also in the State legislature. For the past 16 years, Senator Collins has provided exemplary representation not only 

for Maine but for America with her voice of reason, pragmatism, and thoughtfulness, and Maine will truly be in outstanding hands with Susan Collins as our senior Senator. 

I am also indebted to my great friend Senator Mikulski, 

the dean of the women in the Senate and for all women, for 

the warm and wonderful comments she made yesterday on 

the floor. I have known Barbara for more than 30 years, beginning with our mutual service in the House of Representatives. She is truly a dynamo who has always brought to bear 

an unyielding tenacity that has consistently been reflected in 

her vigorous advocacy for those she represents. 

As I said, in 2011 she became the longest serving woman 

in the Senate, and there is no one I would rather have surpassing the length of service of Maine’s legendary Senator, 

Margaret Chase Smith, than Senator Barbara Mikulski. 

What a reflection on her legislative stature that she has now 

assumed the mantle of longest serving woman in the history 

of the U.S. Congress. 

To our Presiding Officer [Mrs. McCaskill], I would say that 

I have enjoyed serving with her as well in this august Chamber and getting to know her. I know she will do well into the 

future, and I have enjoyed working with her over the years. 

I see two of my colleagues here: Senator Isakson, who is 

my neighbor in the Russell Office Building—a gentleman in 

every way. He has been magnificent to work with. And, of 

course, my colleague Senator Murkowski from Alaska, who 

has made some great contributions to the Senate with her 

[ xii ] 

consensus-building, her dedication, and her exceptional abilities. I want to thank them because I have certainly enjoyed 

working with them and getting to know them. 

To all of my Senate colleagues, past and present, this 

Chamber would simply be another room with fancy walls 

without the lifeblood of passionate service and dedication you 

bring to this institution and our Nation. 

We all have our stories about where we came from, about 

what shaped our values and aspirations and why we care so 

much about public service as a vehicle for securing for others 

the American dream, for all who seek to embrace it. In my 

instance, my own legislative journey commenced when I was 

elected to fill my late husband’s seat in the Maine House of 

Representatives. I felt then, as I have throughout my career, 

that our role as public servants, above all else, is to solve 

problems. I have often reflected on my 6 years in the State 

house and the State senate in Augusta, ME, because that is 

where I found politics and public life to be positive and constructive endeavors. Once the elections were over, my colleagues and I would put the campaigns and the party labels 

behind us to enact laws that genuinely improved the lives of 

Mainers. 

I also inherited a legacy of bipartisanship and independence from Senator Margaret Chase Smith, who is best remembered for her remarks made during only her second year 

of her first term in the U.S. Senate when, with truly uncommon courage and principled independence, she telegraphed 

the truth about McCarthyism during the Red Scare of the 

1950s with her renowned ‘‘Declaration of Conscience’’ speech 

on the Senate floor. In 15 minutes she had done what 94 of 

her colleagues—male colleagues, I might add—had not dared 

to do, and in so doing slayed a giant of demagoguery. 

So when people ask me why I may be challenging a particular party position or why I don’t simply go with the flow, 

I tell them: ‘‘Please don’t take it personally. I can’t help it, 

I am from Maine.’’ That is what Maine people truly expect 

from their elected officials—they expect you to do what you 

believe is right for the right reasons and in the right way. 

We have seen that reflected time and again, not only with 

Margaret Chase Smith but in the distinguished service of 

great Senators who have preceded me from Maine, from Ed 

Muskie to Bill Cohen and the former majority leader of the 

Senate, George Mitchell. 

Throughout my tenure, I have borne witness to government’s incredible potential as an instrument for that comVerDate Aug 31 2005 15:36 Apr 24, 2014 Jkt 081112 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 H:\DOCS\BYEBYE\BYEBYE12\81112.TXT KAYNE
[ xiii ] 

mon good. I have also experienced its capacity for serial dysfunction. Indeed, as I stated in announcing I would not seek 

a fourth term in the Senate, it is regrettable that excessive 

political polarization in Washington today is preventing us 

from tackling our problems in this period of monumental 

consequences for our Nation. 

As I prepare to conclude my service in elective office, let 

me be abundantly clear: I am not leaving the Senate because 

I have ceased believing in its potential or I no longer love the 

institution, but precisely because I do. I am simply taking 

my commitment to the Senate in a different direction. 

I intend to work from the outside, to help build support for 

those in this institution who will be working to reestablish 

the Senate’s roots as a place of refuge from the passions of 

politics, as a forum where the political fires are tempered, 

not stoked—as our Founding Fathers intended. Because the 

Senate in particular is our essential legislative mechanism 

for distilling the vast diversity of ideologies and opinions in 

America, so that we might arrive at solutions to the challenges we face. 

The fact is, we are a can-do country, infused with an irrepressible can-do spirit. It is in our blood, and in the very 

fiber of who we are. It is in our hard-working families, and 

in the limitless entrepreneurship and innovation of our people. It is profoundly reflected in our heroic men and women 

in uniform—whose unflagging bravery and professionalism I 

have been privileged to witness first hand throughout my 

tenure in Congress as they answer the call in places like 

Iraq and Afghanistan, with many having made the ultimate 

sacrifice so that we may live and that freedom may always 

ring. 

Here in this Chamber, I have spoken with many of you 

who came here to get things done, to solve problems and 

achieve great things for our Nation. I have heard you lament 

the inability to accomplish more in today’s polarized atmosphere. As I have traveled throughout Maine and America— 

even overseas, people ask me, has it always been this way? 

I tell them, I am so passionate about changing the tenor 

in Congress because I have seen that it can be different. It 

has not always been this way. And it absolutely does not 

have to be this way. 

I have been in the Congress long enough to have experienced first hand what can be accomplished when individuals 

from various political backgrounds are determined to solve a 

problem. For instance, when I first came to the House of 

[ xiv ] 

Representative in 1979, I joined the bipartisan Congressional 

Caucus on Women’s Issues, which I ultimately cochaired for 

10 years with Democratic Congresswoman Pat Schroeder. 

We certainly did not agree on everything, but with only 17 

women in the House and Senate, we simply could not afford 

to draw political lines in the sand when it came to matters 

of importance to women. 

So when we spoke on these issues, we spoke as women, 

not as Republicans or Democrats. That is what drove our 

agendas at the caucus—and, together, we started to make a 

real difference for women. That was a time in America when 

child support enforcement was viewed as strictly a woman’s 

problem, a time when pensions were canceled without a 

spouse’s approval, a time when family and medical leave 

wasn’t the law of the land, and a time when, incredibly, 

women were systematically excluded from clinical medical 

trials at the National Institutes of Health—trials that made 

the difference between life and death. 

As Senator Mikulski eloquently described yesterday in this 

Chamber, she was waging a battle for equity in women’s 

health research in the Senate while Pat Schroeder, Connie 

Morella, and I were fighting in the House. At a pivotal juncture, Senator Mikulski launched a key panel to explore this 

shocking discriminatory treatment which further galvanized 

national attention. In the end, together, we produced watershed policy changes that, to this day, are resulting in lifesaving medical discoveries for America’s women. 

In the House, we often worked across party lines to craft 

our Federal budgets, in sharp contrast to today’s broken 

process where we cannot pass a budget in 3 years, even with 

unprecedented deficits and debt. When President Reagan 

was elected in 1980, he knew he had to build coalitions to 

pass budgets that would address the tumultuous economy. 

The result was that the moderate northeast Republican 

group called the Gypsy Moths and the conservative-tomoderate Democratic group called the ‘‘Boll Weevils’’ negotiated budgets together, to help reconcile our political and regional differences and in a model for bipartisanship, all of us 

spent days and weeks fashioning budgets, literally going 

through function by function. 

Arriving at compromise was not easy by any means. It 

never is. But the point is, we can undertake the difficult 

work, if we choose to do so. 

I was able to make a difference even as a member of the 

minority throughout my entire tenure in the House, by 

[ xv ] 

reaching across the political aisle. In 1995, when the voters 

of Maine entrusted me to be their voice and their vote in the 

U.S. Senate and I was finally serving in the majority, I believed this kind of cooperative disposition would remain an 

indispensable commodity in meeting the challenges of the 

times. 

That is why I joined the Senate Centrist Coalition shortly 

after arriving in the Senate, which had been formed by Senators John Chafee and John Breaux during the 1994 health 

reform debate to bridge the political divide. After Senator 

Chafee passed away in 1999, Senator Breaux and I thought 

it was an imperative that we revive the coalition to help foster bipartisanship following the divisiveness of the Senate 

impeachment trial. Following the landmark Supreme Court 

ruling in Bush v. Gore that adjudicated the Presidential election, and an evenly split Senate with 50 Republicans and 50 

Democrats, Senate leaders Lott and Daschle joined with 

nearly one-third of the Senate at a meeting of the coalition 

to explore how to move forward in a bipartisan fashion. 

It is precisely this kind of approach that is crucial, because 

it is only when we minimize the political barriers that we 

can maximize the Senate, allowing it to become an unparalleled incubator for results that truly matter to the American 

people. 

It was a cross-aisle alliance that produced the so-called ERate Program in 1996. This was a landmark law ensuring 

every library and classroom in America would be wired to 

the revolutionary resources of the Internet, which one publication has ranked as fourth in a list of innovations and initiatives that have helped shape education technology over 

the past generation. 

My good friend and colleague Senator Rockefeller, with 

whom I have been privileged to work on so many issues, was 

doggedly determined to enact this benchmark initiative. In 

typical fashion, Jay was not going to take no for an answer— 

which made us perfect partners and coauthors, as I was 

equally determined. By working with Members of both parties who were willing to hear the facts and judge on the merits, we overcame the hurdles and the E-Rate Program was 

born. 

During the 2001 tax debates, Senator Blanche Lincoln and 

I as members of the Finance Committee joined together to 

increase the amount of the child tax credit and make it refundable, so that low-income families who didn’t earn enough 

to pay Federal taxes could still benefit from the credit. UltiVerDate Aug 31 2005 15:36 Apr 24, 2014 Jkt 081112 PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 H:\DOCS\BYEBYE\BYEBYE12\81112.TXT KAYNE
[ xvi ] 

mately, our measure was enacted, becoming only the second 

refundable tax credit ever, and ensuring the child tax credit 

would assist an additional 13 million more children and lift 

500,000 of those children out of poverty. 

I also think of how my friend, Senator Landrieu who is sitting here in the Chamber as well, and I formed the Senate 

Common Ground Coalition in 2006, to rekindle cross-party 

relations. Not only have Mary and I made history as the first 

women to serve simultaneously as chair and ranking on a 

standing committee, but we have worked together on numerous measures that are assisting America’s greatest jobs generators, our small businesses. 

In a shining example of what is possible with civility and 

bipartisan teamwork, Senator Ted Kennedy and I coauthored 

the landmark Genetic Nondiscrimination Act—to stop insurance companies and employers from denying or dropping coverage based on genetic tests, so individuals would not forgo 

those potentially life-saving tests. At that juncture, Democrats were in the majority—and traditionally, the chair of a 

committee takes the lead name on legislation. But Ted approached me and said essentially that, because my work on 

GINA had made it possible, it should be ‘‘Snowe-Kennedy’’ 

not ‘‘Kennedy-Snowe’’—a magnanimous legislative gesture 

from the legislative lion of the U.S. Senate. I am proud to 

say GINA passed in 2008 and has been referred to as ‘‘the 

first major civil rights act of the 21st century.’’ 

So there are templates for working together effectively in 

the U.S. Senate on behalf of the American people. On occasion, it is the very institution of the Senate itself that is preserved when we stake out common ground. 

Even in the highly charged atmosphere of the Presidential 

impeachment trial, we made the process work. During a 

gathering of the Republican Caucus, I advocated that we 

hold a bipartisan meeting in the Old Senate Chamber, to 

generate agreement between the parties on the conduct of 

the trial. The Senate had been about to decide the guidelines 

of the trial on a purely partisan basis, but by convening both 

parties, we were able to chart a logical, reasonable, and judicious course. 

In 2005, I joined the so-called ‘‘Gang of 14,’’ comprised of 

7 Republicans and 7 Democrats and spearheaded largely by 

Senators John Warner, John McCain, Robert Byrd, and Ben 

Nelson. The group was formed to avert an institutional crisis 

as a result of repeated, systematic filibuster of President 

Bush’s judicial nominees that had been a corrosive force on 

[ xvii ] 

the Senate. In response, the Republican majority was seeking to break the logjam by exercising the so-called ‘‘nuclear 

option,’’ that would have jettisoned long-standing rules requiring 60 votes to end a filibuster. 

That 60 vote threshold had always been a bulwark protecting the rights of the minority, but would have become 

just a simple majority vote. Yet, just as we were about to 

cross this political Rubicon, the Gang of 14 forged a pact 

based on mutual trust, that we would only support a filibuster of judicial nominees under what we labeled ‘‘extraordinary circumstances,’’ and we would oppose the ‘‘nuclear option,’’ an agreement that embodied the very manifestation of 

the power of consensus building. 

So as this body contemplates changes to its rules in the 

next Congress, I would urge all of my colleagues who will return next year to follow the Gang of 14 template and exercise a similar level of caution and balance. Because what 

makes the Senate unique, what situates this institution better than any other to secure the continued greatness of our 

Nation, is that balance between accommodation of the minority and primacy of the majority. Regardless of who is in the 

minority, any suppression of the ability to debate and shape 

legislation is tantamount to silencing millions of voices and 

ideas—which are critical to developing the best possible solutions. 

I have mentioned all these examples as illustrations of the 

boundless potential of the Senate—and that our problems 

are not insurmountable, if we refuse to be intractable. It is 

not about what is in the best interests of a single political 

party, but what is in the best interests of our country. 

As far back as the fledgling days of our Nation, our Founding Fathers warned of the dangers of undue allegiance to political parties—a potential that Alexander Hamilton and 

James Madison specifically cited in the Federalist Papers. 

Now, one study by three political scientists pegs Congress at 

its highest level of polarization since the end of Reconstruction in 1877. It is true that, in the intervening years, we 

have had no duels to settle disagreements and no canings on 

the Senate floor as occurred in the earlier years of the Senate—although there was a physical brawl on the Senate floor 

in 1902. Yet, the fact we are still more polarized now than 

at any moment in 140 years speaks volumes. 

So instead of focusing on issues as the Senate was uniquely established to do, we’ve become more like a parliamentary 

system where we simply vote in political blocs. We have deVerDate Aug 31 2005 15:36 Apr 24, 2014 Jkt 081112 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 H:\DOCS\BYEBYE\BYEBYE12\81112.TXT KAYNE
[ xviii ] 

parted and diverged from the Senate’s traditional rules and 

norms in a manner that is entirely contradictory to the historical purpose of the Senate and the role the Founding Fathers intended for the Senate to play. 

The very name of our institution, the Senate, derives from 

the Latin root senatus, or council of elders, where the council 

of elders represented the qualities of experience and wisdom 

and not just some experience and some wisdom in a deliberative body, but more experience and more wisdom in the highest deliberative body. 

For thousands of years, and for the Greeks and our Framers alike, the Senate has stood as an assembly where the lessons of individual experiences were translated by measured 

wisdom into stable collective judgments. Therefore, understanding through patience, appreciation through tolerance, 

and consensus through moderation are all required to reach 

such judgments and to do the work of the people. Indeed, I 

would argue it is only by recognizing and striving to meet 

the institutional ideals of the Senate that we can aspire to 

fill our obligations to those we represent. 

We all take an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States and to bear true faith and allegiance to the same. I have always believed this oath necessarily included a duty to support and defend the Senate as 

an institution and the integrity of its deliberative process. 

That requires the ability to listen before judging, to judge before advocating, and to advocate without polarizing. It also 

includes a capacity to differ with one’s own party, and even 

to reach agreement and compromise with another party 

when one’s own party is unable to prevail. Such leadership 

necessarily requires all Members to recognize their individual duty to serve the people best by serving our Chamber 

with the highest standards of consideration, deliberation, 

and explanation. 

Former Supreme Court Justice Souter once said, and I am 

paraphrasing: All of the Court’s hard cases are divisive because one set of values is truly at odds with another, and the 

Constitution gives no simple rule of decision. For, in truth, 

we value liberty as well as order, we value freedom as well 

as security, and we value fairness as well as equality. 

So in the tough cases judges have a hard job of choosing 

not between those things that are good and those that are 

evil, but between the many, and often competing, good 

things that the Constitution allows. Justice Souter could 

have been talking about the work of the Senate and the 

[ xix ] 

often difficult choices we too are required to make. This observation accepts the intrinsic competition that defines these 

difficult choices but resolves to rely on reason, meaning, and 

the reputational integrity of the process to make and explain 

the ultimate decisions. 

Indeed, the Justice concluded his remarks by saying he 

knew of ‘‘no other way to make good on the aspirations that 

tell us who we are—and who we mean to be—as the people 

of the United States.’’ 

We have witnessed the heights the Senate is capable of 

reaching when it adheres to its founding precepts. Just think 

about how we came together in the aftermath of the catastrophic events of 9/11 to secure our country and to help heal 

our Nation. Just think about the major debates of the 20th 

century on such watershed issues as the establishment of Social Security, Medicare, and the Civil Rights Act. None of 

these profound advancements would have been woven into 

the fabric of our society today if they had been passed simply 

on party-line votes rather than the solidly bipartisan basis 

on which each of them was enacted. 

I am not claiming there was some kind of golden age of bipartisanship where everyone all sang from the same legislative hymn book, and I am not advocating bipartisanship as 

some kind of an end unto itself. That is not the point. What 

I am saying is we have seen how cooperation in the past has 

resulted in great achievements, which likely never would 

have occurred if bipartisanship had not intervened as a 

means to attaining those most worthy ends. 

Our grandest accomplishments in the Congress were also 

a reflection of the particular compromises and level of urgency required by the times in which they were forged. Recently, New York Times columnist David Brooks summarized 

this concept well when he wrote that there are policies that 

are not permanently right and that: 

[S]ituations matter most. Tax cuts might be right one decade but wrong 

the next. Tighter regulations might be right one decade, but if sclerosis sets 

in then deregulation might be in order. 

As we confront the impending confluence of issues known 

as the fiscal cliff, we are at a moment of major significance 

that requires the application of the principle that Brooks describes. For the sake of the country, we must demonstrate to 

the American people that we are, in fact, capable of making 

the big decisions by putting in place an agreement and a 

framework to avoid the fiscal cliff before we adjourn this 

year. 

[ xx ] 

We are surrounded by history perpetually in the Senate as 

well as throughout the Capitol. How could we not be inspired 

by it to rise to this occasion? Indeed, if you know history, you 

understand the very story of America’s most formative days 

was defined by an understanding that effective governance 

requires the building of consensus, and such consensus is 

achievable even after the exercise of passionate advocacy, 

which, in conclusion, brings us back to the creation of a document we all cherish and revere; that is, our U.S. Constitution. 

Madam President, 225 years ago, 55 leaders from divergent geographic and philosophical backgrounds converged on 

the city of Philadelphia to draft a new structure of government to strengthen our fledgling country. These were no 

shrinking violets. They had risked their lives and fortunes to 

establish a new nation under God, indivisible, with liberty, 

and justice for all. 

They were strong willed and unabashedly opinionated. 

They disagreed and argued about a great many matters, 

both petty and consequential. Thomas Jefferson even considered Virginia, and not the United States, as his country. Yet 

by September of that year, 39 of the original delegates 

signed the most enduring and ingenious governing document 

the world has ever known, the Constitution of the United 

States. 

It didn’t happen because 55 people who shared identical 

viewpoints gathered in a room and rubber-stamped their 

unanimous thinking. It happened because these visionaries 

determined that the gravity and the enormity of their common goal necessitated the courage to advance decisionmaking through consensus. 

I worry that we are losing the art of legislating. When the 

history of this chapter in the Senate is written, we don’t 

want it to conclude it was here that it became an antiquated 

practice. So as I depart the Senate that I love, I urge all of 

my colleagues to follow the Founding Fathers’ blueprint in 

order to return this institution to its highest calling of governing through consensus. For it is only then that the United 

States can ascend to fulfill the demands of our time, the 

promise of our Nation, and the rightful expectations of the 

American people. 

Thank you, Madam President. May God bless you, and 

may God bless the United States of America. 

TRIBUTES 

TO 

OLYMPIA J. SNOWE 

[ 3 ] 

Proceedings in the Senate 

THURSDAY, December 6, 2012 

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, many of our colleagues will 

be leaving us at the end of this Congress, and I wish to take 

time this morning to pay tribute to some of my colleagues, 

particularly those with whom I have worked most closely. Of 

course, I must start with my colleague and friend from 

Maine, OLYMPIA SNOWE. 

In ancient Sparta, there was a saying that roughly translates as this: It seems all the world knows what is the right 

thing to do, but it is only the Spartans who will do anything 

about it. 

As my friend, colleague, and senior Senator from Maine, 

OLYMPIA SNOWE, ends her service in the Senate, I rise to pay 

tribute to this descendant of that legendary civilization. 

OLYMPIA is a true leader who has always devoted her considerable intellect, energy, and commitment to doing what was 

right for Maine and for America. OLYMPIA SNOWE has dedicated her life to public service: 18 years in the Senate, preceded by 16 representing Maine’s Second Congressional District, plus 5 in the Maine Legislature adds up to a remarkable record of commitment to our Nation and the great State 

of Maine. 

That span of nearly four decades tells us only part of the 

story, for OLYMPIA has truly set the gold standard for public 

service. From the State house to the U.S. Capitol, OLYMPIA

has built an outstanding reputation as an informed, thoughtful, and effective legislator. She can always be counted on as 

a leader with integrity who pursued solutions and who had 

no interest in just scoring partisan political points. It is 

OLYMPIA’s character that has made all the difference. 

The private acts of public figures can tell us a lot about 

their character, so I wish to share with my colleagues this 

morning a story about OLYMPIA SNOWE that I witnessed personally. There was a Republican fundraiser going on one 

night and I was arriving late, driving up in a car. People 

were streaming out of the fundraiser and each of them was 

[ 4 ] 

passing by a man who was on crutches, with only one leg, 

clearly destitute, clearly down on his luck, who was asking 

for money. Everybody but OLYMPIA SNOWE passed him by 

without a word, as if he were invisible. OLYMPIA went over 

to this destitute man on crutches, with one leg, and she not 

only handed him some money but she took the time to talk 

with him. I think that tells us so much about who OLYMPIA

SNOWE is—her kindness to this individual, when everyone 

else was passing him by, her kindness to him when no one 

was watching, her kindness to him was a private act that 

told all of us so much about her character. 

With her retirement from the Senate, OLYMPIA SNOWE will 

join the pantheon of great leaders our State has produced: 

Margaret Chase Smith, Ed Muskie, George Mitchell, and Bill 

Cohen. All of them, similar to OLYMPIA, exemplify the principle that public office is a sacred trust. 

OLYMPIA’s inspiring record of service is but part of an even 

more inspiring life story. Several times, from childhood on, 

OLYMPIA has been visited by tragedy that would have caused 

most people to become discouraged, disheartened, and negative. Each time OLYMPIA rose, transcended her personal tragedy, and was more determined than before to succeed and to 

contribute to a better life for others. Her well-deserved popularity among Maine people transcends party lines and is testament to her strength and her spirit. 

The people of Maine and America are grateful for her 

many years of service. I am grateful for her leadership and 

her friendship. I know OLYMPIA SNOWE will continue to influence national policy for many years to come. 

WEDNESDAY, December 12, 2012 

Mr. MCCONNELL. . . . This morning I would like to say a 

few words about my friend and longtime colleague, Senator 

SNOWE. 

She has devoted the last 40 years of her life to serving the 

people of Maine. It has been an honor to work alongside this 

remarkable woman for the last 18 years and to see up close 

her tenacity and tough-mindedness in the service of her constituents. Some have described Senator SNOWE’s advocacy for 

Mainers as ferocious, and I think there are few better examples of that than the fight she waged on behalf of Maine 

after the BRAC recommendations of 2005. 

[ 5 ] 

When the list of targeted facilities came out, Senator 

SNOWE mounted what has been described as a relentless 

months-long campaign akin to a defense at a trial. She marshaled all the data and the best arguments. When decision 

day finally arrived, not only were two of the three Maine facilities told to remain open, one of them was actually expanded. It is stories such as this that help explain why 

OLYMPIA’s constituents keep sending her back to Washington 

by such wide margins and why so many were shocked to 

hear that she would be leaving at the end of the year. 

As one shipyard worker in Portsmouth whose job she 

helped save put it: ‘‘We love her, and she loves us. I can’t recall ever saying that publicly about a U.S. Senator, but truly 

she’s such a wonderful person.’’ 

As Senator SNOWE will tell you, many of her political 

views solidified during her modest Maine upbringing. Her 

parents ran a diner near Augusta. While they didn’t have 

much, her father was adamant she receive a good education. 

So much so that he was dismayed to learn her kindergarten 

only lasted half the day. ‘‘He was convinced,’’ she once said, 

‘‘that I was getting off on the wrong foot.’’ 

It was at school that OLYMPIA first discovered her passion 

for politics. At St. Basil’s Academy, a Greek Orthodox girls’ 

school she attended until she was 15, she won her first election—as dorm president. She later graduated from Edward 

Little High School in Auburn, ME, and subsequently attended the University of Maine where, in 1969, she earned 

a degree in political science. It was also in college that she 

met Peter Snowe. Peter shared OLYMPIA’s passion for politics. They married shortly after graduation. In 1972 Peter 

was elected to the State legislature, while OLYMPIA went to 

work as a legislative staffer for Maine Congressman Bill 

Cohen. 

The young couple seemed well on their way to building a 

life together, but in 1973, in the midst of a winter snowstorm, tragedy struck. Peter was killed in a car crash, and 

at a still young age OLYMPIA was left to build a life for herself. 

What could have marked the end of her political aspirations became a new beginning instead. As OLYMPIA once put 

it, she resolved to ‘‘make a positive out of a terrible negative.’’ She ran for office in the special election held to fill her 

late husband’s seat, and she won. It was the start of a long 

and distinguished career in public service. 

[ 6 ] 

OLYMPIA was subsequently reelected to the Maine House 

in 1974 and elected to the Maine Senate in 1976. In 1978, 

when Bill Cohen, her friend and former boss, ran for the 

U.S. Senate, she ran for his seat in the House of Representatives and won again. 

At the age of 31, she was at the time the youngest Republican woman ever elected to Congress and 1 of just 16 

women in the House. OLYMPIA served eight terms in the 

House. She was a member of the House Budget Committee, 

the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and the former House 

Select Committee on Aging. Working with an Arizona lawyer 

named Jon Kyl and a Mississippi whip named Trent Lott, 

she helped turn minority Republicans into a potent legislative force, ensuring some of the biggest legislative victories 

of the Reagan era. 

It was while serving in the House that OLYMPIA met Jock 

McKernan, who was a rising political star in his own right. 

Elected as Maine’s second Congressman in 1982, Jock served 

alongside OLYMPIA in the House and was later elected Governor of Maine. The two were married in 1989, and they 

have been a great team since. As OLYMPIA puts it: ‘‘I have 

a wonderful partner in life. We’ve been able to ride the 

waves together.’’ 

When George Mitchell announced his retirement in 1994, 

OLYMPIA threw her hat into the ring and won by a landslide 

with 60 percent of the vote against her opponent’s 36 percent 

and carrying every county in the State. Believe it or not, it 

was the smallest margin of victory she has enjoyed in three 

Senate races. With this victory, OLYMPIA became the only 

woman in history to serve in both houses of her State legislature and both Houses of Congress. 

In the Senate, OLYMPIA has worked tirelessly as a member 

of the Finance Committee, the Armed Services Committee, 

the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, 

the Select Committee on Intelligence, and as chair of the 

Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship. 

A lot of people like to focus on OLYMPIA’s independent 

streak, but my experience is that she herself has always 

cared most deeply about the people of Maine. She has gone 

through great efforts over the years to talk to her constituents directly. She once said, ‘‘I’ve made main street tours 

across this State a hallmark of my tenure in public office. 

They are like my secret poll.’’ 

It is through these tours that OLYMPIA decides which problems to fix—whether it was storm relief after the 1998 ice 

[ 7 ] 

storm, the fight I already mentioned to keep Maine’s military 

facilities open, or reauthorization of the Northeast Dairy 

Compact on behalf of Maine’s dairy farmers. 

Of course, this isn’t to downplay OLYMPIA’s penchant for 

independence or for joining gangs. Senator SNOWE’s maternal grandparents immigrated to the United States from 

Sparta, which may help explain her fighting spirit. Just like 

the Spartan King Leonidas, she has never been afraid of a 

fight—even with members of her own party. 

She headed the Centrist Coalition with Senator Breaux. 

She cochaired the Common Ground Coalition with Senator 

Landrieu. In 1999 she was one of five Republicans to vote to 

acquit President Clinton of both articles of impeachment. 

And in 2005 she joined the bipartisan Gang of 14, which 

helped defuse an earlier dispute about threats to change the 

Senate rules. 

Yet what many fail to mention is that despite her vaunted 

independence, OLYMPIA has always been a very proud Republican. She recently said: 

We believe as Republicans that the individual is more important than the 

State. We believe that the great days of our past can be a steppingstone to 

an even greater future. We believe a job is preferential to a handout and 

independence is better than dependence. We believe that the private sector 

is more productive than big government will ever be. 

When it comes to a balanced budget—a top priority for the 

party—Senator SNOWE has been a true leader. She has been 

a longtime supporter of a balanced budget amendment. As 

far back as 1993, when she was still serving in the House, 

she was one of four initial sponsors of the legislation that 

would have mandated a balanced budget. One of her first 

acts as a Senator was to deliver a speech before a Senate 

committee in support of a balanced budget amendment. 

OLYMPIA’s many accomplishments have attracted broad notice outside of Washington. In 2004 Forbes named her ‘‘One 

of the 100 Most Powerful Women in the World,’’ rating her 

even more influential than J.K. Rowling or Oprah. In 2006 

Time named her one of the ‘‘Ten Best Senators,’’ noting that 

she is ‘‘in the center of every policy debate in Washington.’’ 

I do not think anything compares with the honor that was 

bestowed on Senator SNOWE by the townspeople of Bethel, 

ME, who, in 1999, created the ‘‘Olympia SnowWoman,’’ a 

122-foot tall snowman that still ranks as the tallest snowman—or woman—ever built. It required 13 million pounds of 

snow, took more than 1 month to build, wore a 100-foot-long 

[ 8 ] 

scarf, had 2 entire 27-foot evergreen trees for arms, and required 16 pairs of skis for eyelashes. 

‘‘It’s just my luck,’’ Senator SNOWE said of the monument, 

‘‘I’d have a world record breaking monument named after 

me, and it will be gone by summer.’’ 

OLYMPIA, you have had a truly remarkable career. We 

thank you for your service to this Chamber and most especially to the people of the great State of Maine. We wish you 

all the best in the next phase of your life and, as you think 

of what to put in your memoir, I would only ask one thing: 

Please, go easy on us. 

Ms. MIKULSKI. Madam President, I rise during this 

morning business hour to speak—particularly during this 

time of tension as we are looking at the fiscal cliff—to really 

use a few minutes to pay a tribute to two wonderful, outstanding Senators with whom I have served and who will be 

leaving us at the end of this term. They are wonderful 

women named Senator OLYMPIA SNOWE of Maine and Senator KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON of Texas, dear friends across 

the aisle. Although they were on the other side of the aisle, 

there was no great divide between us. We have known each 

other for many years. 

I would like to say a few words about my very dear friend, 

Senator OLYMPIA SNOWE. I served with Senator OLYMPIA

SNOWE in the U.S. House of Representatives and then in the 

U.S. Senate. Wow. What an outstanding Senator and 

Congressperson she has been, and I know we will continue 

to see Senator SNOWE in some type of role in public service 

because that is just the kind of person she is. She is deeply, 

in her DNA, a public servant. 

Senator SNOWE has served her State of Maine and our Nation so well. She is one of our most respected Members of 

Congress, known for her civility, her sensibility, and her 

mastery of the issues. I might add that she brings that New 

England sense of a more frugal government but at the same 

time shows that you can do it in a compassionate, smart 

way. 

I know her as a cherished friend, a dear colleague, and a 

crucial partner on so many issues. As I said, we served in 

the House and the Senate together. We worked on those 

issues I talk about, the macro-issues and the macaroni-andcheese issues. We fought for a better economy, particularly 

in the area of small business; a safer country, as we worked 

on the Intelligence Committee together; and a more efficient 

government. Also, we worked together on many issues perVerDate Aug 31 2005 15:36 Apr 24, 2014 Jkt 081112 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 H:\DOCS\BYEBYE\BYEBYE12\81112.TXT KAYNE
[ 9 ] 

taining to women. In the area of small business, she is currently the ranking member on the Small Business Committee, with our other colleague, Senator Mary Landrieu. 

She knows the backbone of Maine’s economy is small business, and she also knows it is the backbone of the American 

economy. 

I have watched her day in and day out being concerned 

about her fishermen who were out there working in the cold 

waters off of Georges Bank for lobsters and the small shop 

owners on Main Street. From the potato fields and lumber 

yards to L.L. Bean, OLYMPIA SNOWE has stood for them but 

also for the big issues in terms of jobs in the Bath shipyards. 

In national security, we have worked together to look out 

for our troops over there and to protect our communities 

from predators back here. She has been steadfast and true. 

It is a committee that meets often behind closed doors, but 

I will tell you, this is a Senator who continually looks after 

the safety of the American people. 

One of the areas in which I have worked the closest with 

her is the area of women’s health. You might be interested 

to know that Senator SNOWE and I received the Good Housekeeping Outstanding Achievement Award for what we did to 

advance the cause of finding a cure for breast cancer. Now, 

when I called my sisters and told them I was getting a Good 

Housekeeping award, they thought it was the funniest thing 

they had ever heard. When I told them I was getting it with 

OLYMPIA SNOWE, they knew it had credibility. I say that because what we did in working together was in medical research and in clinical trials. 

You might be interested to know that when I came to the 

Senate, the only other woman Senator was Nancy Kassebaum—another wonderful person across the aisle. Women 

were not included in the protocols at NIH. Can you believe 

that? That famous study—take an aspirin a day, keep a 

heart attack away—was done with 10,000 male medical students. Not one woman was there. They regarded including 

women in research as presenting deviant results. We were 

known as the deviant results. Well, Pat Schroeder; OLYMPIA

SNOWE; another Republican Congresswoman, Connie Morella 

from Maryland—we said this couldn’t continue. So we organized across the dome, across the aisle, and we went across 

the beltway to NIH. We pulled up and we demanded answers, scientific answers, on why we weren’t included. 

The day we pulled up in our cars on a bipartisan basis, 

George Bush the elder appointed Bernadine Healey to head 

[ 10 ] 

NIH. Then, again working together across the aisle and 

across the dome, working with Senators Kennedy and Harkin, we established the Office of Research on Women’s 

Health at NIH. The famous hormonal replacement therapy 

study was done. It resulted in massive change in the way 

doctors treated women, and it has reduced breast cancer 

rates 15 percent. 

So I say to all, when you ask, what did OLYMPIA SNOWE

do, she would say: ‘‘I worked on a bipartisan basis.’’ And because of what she did, we did, we all did working together, 

men and women, House and Senate, we have saved the lives 

of women 1 million at a time. I think that is a terrific accomplishment. No matter what Senator SNOWE does, she can 

cherish in her heart that she did that. 

While we were busy doing the big picture, she helped me 

with an individual picture. We went to the refugee camps of 

Cambodia together, along with the Congresswomen. It was 

when the killing fields were at that time the highest. We 

saw the horrible consequences of war. We worked together to 

feed and care for the children. 

I met a young girl in a refugee camp, in the Catholic Relief 

feeding camp. Working with Senator SNOWE, we brought 

that little girl to the United States of America. She is alive 

here today, married and living as an American citizen. 

So what did OLYMPIA SNOWE do? She saved jobs and she 

saved lives. I am proud to work with her, and we are going 

to miss her. . . . 

I am pretty emotional, actually, when I think about OLYMPIA and KAY. We have been together a long time. We welcome the Acting President pro tempore and your generation, 

but for those of us who maybe didn’t build the Pyramids— 

and I hope Senator HUTCHISON can say the same—there is 

a lot of meaning in a Latin phrase I learned in Catholic girls 

school many years ago: Exegi monumentum aere perennius: 

We will build a monument more lasting than bronze. 

When Senator HUTCHISON returns to Texas again to find 

a new way to serve the people of this country, she will know 

that here in this institution, along with Senator OLYMPIA

SNOWE, they built monuments to last far longer than any 

statues made of bronze. They made a difference in the lives 

of people, and they have done it in a way they can be proud 

of and for which we can all be grateful. 

[ 11 ] 

THURSDAY, December 13, 2012 

Ms. LANDRIEU. Madam President, for those of us in the 

Chamber, and those of us listening, that [Ms. SNOWE’s farewell speech] was one of those beautifully crafted and beautifully deliberated and eloquent statements not only about a 

Member’s service as a Member of the U.S. Senate, but a vision of the world we created and what we can be again. It 

is so appropriate for the parting words of the Senator, who 

is truly among the great who has served here. 

I have had the great pleasure of working with the Senator 

from Maine. As she very graciously pointed out, we served 

together on the Small Business Committee. We were the 

first of two women to chair a major committee for an entire 

Congress. 

There are Members here—Senator Mikulski and others— 

who served for many years with Senator SNOWE. For the 

minute that I have before others speak, I just wanted to say 

that she has served for over 34 years in public office. Her integrity is beyond reproach. She served with intelligence and 

grace that is widely admired, not just on Capitol Hill and in 

her home State of Maine, but broadly throughout the United 

States and the world. Her capacity for hard work and tedious negotiations on important matters is inspiring to us all. 

She has been a clear and clarion voice for women and girls 

in Maine, the United States, and around the world, for their 

legal rights, their economic advancement, and their social 

advancement. 

Above all, as we just heard, she has been a clarion call for 

common sense and common ground. She was literally involved in every major effort in the last 30 years to find common sense and common ground in a place that is getting 

harder and harder to find those two qualities every day. So 

it is with a deep sense of regret that I, for one, am going to 

have to say goodbye to her as a colleague and a Member of 

the Senate. 

I want her to know that I will continue—and I know many 

of my colleagues feel this way—to work as closely with her 

in any capacity of her choice to continue to be a great voice 

for compassion, compromise, and common sense. 

The people of Maine are losing a great Senator. The 

United States is losing a unique talent that has served this 

country and this institution so magnificently. We wish her 

the best, and we say a respectful goodbye. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Maryland. 

[ 12 ] 

Ms. MIKULSKI. Madam President, yesterday I had the 

honor of addressing the full Senate to pay a more amplified 

tribute to the gentlelady from Maine. I will miss her dearly 

and deeply. We have served both in the House and the Senate together. We have done real good things, including one 

of our finest bipartisan efforts in the area of women’s health 

in getting women included in the protocols appropriately, the 

scientific way at NIH when we were excluded. We helped to 

advance the whole issue of more money for research for 

breast cancer and other diseases that are generally specific 

to women. 

I will never forget the day when Good Housekeeping called 

and said that Senator SNOWE and I were going to get an 

award. I immediately called my family and told my sisters 

that I had won the Good Housekeeping Award. Well, they 

thought that was hilarious. I have many awards for speaking, longest serving, but not Good Housekeeping. When I 

told them I was getting the award with Senator SNOWE, they 

knew it had integrity, credibility, and was well deserved. 

So I just want to, from the bottom of my heart, thank the 

people of Maine, who will express their gratitude for her 

service. She has a duty-driven approach, an uncommon sense 

to get the job done in a way that is inclusive and has benefited our entire country whether they be small business or 

the little people whose voices are never heard. 

So we wish her God bless, Godspeed, and we hope to see 

her speaking out exactly on what she did today, a call toward citizenship and more bipartisanship and less partisanship. 

God bless you, Senator SNOWE. 

Mr. CONRAD. Mr. President, I also pay tribute to my 

friend and colleague, Senator OLYMPIA SNOWE, who is retiring from the Senate after 18 years of exemplary service representing the people of Maine. 

Though thousands of miles apart, Maine and North Dakota face similar challenges. In particular, we share very 

similar climates. Our States’ residents must endure long 

winters, and, for the most vulnerable, keeping their homes 

warm is sometimes a challenge. Senator SNOWE has always 

understood how difficult it can be for some families to pay 

their utility bills and keep their heat on through harsh winters and has been a tireless supporter of the Low Income 

Home Energy Assistance Program, which provides struggling 

families in our States with the certainty of a warm home. 

[ 13 ] 

Senator SNOWE’s constant attention to constituent concerns have made her one of the most popular Senators in the 

Nation, and her dedication to her State and country has not 

gone unrecognized. Throughout her 37 years of public service, Senator SNOWE has earned many honors and distinctions. In 2005, Forbes rated her as the 54th most powerful 

woman in the world. Later, in 2006, Time magazine recognized her as one of America’s Best Senators. She was also 

recognized as one of eight female politicians that could run 

and be elected President of the United States. 

Senator SNOWE is a true statesman and public servant, 

never hesitating to put people over politics and fiercely representing the values and needs of her constituents. Throughout all her years of service, her steady resolve, moderate 

voice, and willingness to work across the aisle have been a 

force in Washington. It has truly been an honor working 

with her to find practical solutions to our Nation’s most 

pressing issues. In a time of partisan excess, Senator 

SNOWE’s ability to reach compromises with Members on both 

sides of the aisle was extremely valuable to this venerable 

institution. She will be sorely missed. 

I thank Senator SNOWE for her service to her country in 

the U.S. Senate and wish her the very best in the future. 

TUESDAY, December 18, 2012 

Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, I come to the floor now to bid 

farewell to one of the Senate’s most respected Members, Senator OLYMPIA SNOWE from the great State of Maine. She 

chose to retire this year after a distinguished career in public 

service spanning nearly four decades, first in the Maine Legislature, 6 years in the U.S. House, and the last 18 years 

here in the U.S. Senate. 

Throughout this remarkable career, she has been respected for her independence, always putting her values and 

country ahead of party and partisanship. She can, of course, 

be a very persuasive advocate for the conservative causes she 

holds dear, but, as we all know and appreciate, she is willing 

to buck party loyalty when she believes it is in error or when 

she believes in what is better for our country. Our future depends on bipartisanship. I cite, for example, when she voted 

in favor of the Recovery Act and the Dodd-Frank reform of 

Wall Street. 

[ 14 ] 

I especially admire Senator SNOWE’s talent for reaching 

across the aisle and building bridges in order to get things 

done. On that score, she has represented the United States 

and her State of Maine at her very best, and that is just one 

of the many reasons why we are sad that she has chosen, 

voluntarily, to retire. 

OLYMPIA SNOWE has been a wonderful colleague and 

friend, always congenial, always willing to listen, always 

willing to examine different sides of an issue. What more 

could we ask of any U.S. Senator? We have been fortunate 

to have had a Senator of her high caliber, intelligence, and 

character in this body for the last 18 years. I join with the 

entire Senate family in wishing her and John the very best 

in the years ahead. 

THURSDAY, December 20, 2012 

Mr. REED. Madam President, at this time I wish to take 

a few minutes to salute my colleagues who are retiring at 

the end of this year with the conclusion of the 112th Congress: Daniel Akaka of Hawaii, Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico, Scott Brown of Massachusetts, Kent Conrad of North 

Dakota, Jim DeMint of South Carolina, Kay Bailey 

Hutchison of Texas, Herb Kohl of Wisconsin, Jon Kyl of Arizona, Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut, Richard Lugar of Indiana, Ben Nelson of Nebraska, OLYMPIA SNOWE of Maine, 

and Jim Webb of Virginia. They have all worked ceaselessly 

to give their constituents the best representation and give 

the country the benefit of their views, their wisdom, and 

their experience. They are men and women who are committed to the Nation, and they have every day in different 

ways contributed to this Senate and to our great country. 

I wish to thank them personally for their service, and, in 

so many cases, their personal kindness to me; for listening 

to my points and for, together, hopefully, serving this Senate 

and this Nation in a more positive and progressive way. 

In particular, let me say a few words about some of the 

Members with whom I have had the privilege to work more 

closely. . . . 

I have also had the privilege to work closely with another 

Member of this body, my colleague and friend, OLYMPIA

SNOWE of Maine. Her willingness to reach across the partisan divide to advance legislation to benefit the Nation and 

the Senate and her State of Maine is, in my view, legendary. 

[ 15 ] 

I was pleased to work with her when it came to supporting 

our fishermen and lobstermen, who are critical to our local 

economies. She and I have worked closely together on a host 

of other issues, including supporting strong investments in 

LIHEAP and our Nation’s libraries. . . . 

I could go on with all of my colleagues, just thanking them 

for their friendship, for their camaraderie, and for their commitment to the Nation and the Senate. As they depart, they 

have left an extraordinary legacy. Now it is our responsibility to carry on in so many different ways, and I hope we 

measure up to what they have done. If we do, then we can 

go forward confidently. 

With that, I yield the floor. 

FRIDAY, December 21, 2012 

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, it is an unfortunate reality 

that the number of people in Washington working for bipartisan solutions is significantly smaller than the number of 

people claiming to do so or proclaiming the need to do so. 

Nearly everyone seeks the ‘‘bipartisan’’ label; fewer wear it 

comfortably or practice bipartisanship regularly. 

That is one reason I am sad to see OLYMPIA SNOWE leave 

the Senate. Over three terms, Senator SNOWE has represented the people of Maine with intelligence and, yes, moderation. Here’s how Time magazine put it in 2006, in naming 

Senator SNOWE one of the Nation’s 10 Best Senators: ‘‘Because of her centrist views and eagerness to get beyond partisan point scoring, Maine Republican OLYMPIA SNOWE is in 

the center of every policy debate in Washington.’’ I’ve been 

lucky to observe her work in those debates. 

Start with her work on the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, where she has served both as 

chairman and ranking member. As a member of the committee, I have appreciated her dedicated advocacy for small 

business. She has worked hard to support SBA’s Microloan 

Program and programs for women-owned businesses. She 

has helped improve SBA’s trade and export finance programs; elevated the SBA’s Office of International Trade and 

added export finance specialists to the SBA’s trade and counseling programs; and established the State Export Promotion 

Grant Program, designed to increase the number of small 

businesses that export goods and services. 

[ 16 ] 

Senator SNOWE also has been an enthusiastic supporter of 

our Nation’s manufacturers. As a former cochair of the Senate Task Force on Manufacturing, she has worked to 

strengthen programs such as the Manufacturing Extension 

Partnership, which helps American manufacturers research 

and develop new technologies, increase efficiency, improve 

supply chains and out-innovate our overseas competitors. 

American workers from Maine to Michigan and beyond are 

better off for her support of this vital sector of the American 

economy. 

Beyond manufacturing, our States are linked in another 

way: the historical lighthouses that dot our shores. I was 

pleased that Senator SNOWE joined me in offering the National Lighthouse Stewardship Act, which would help local 

governments or nonprofit groups preserve these prized structures for the appreciation of generations to follow. 

I was also fortunate to serve with her on the Armed Services Committee, where she served as chair of the Seapower 

Subcommittee. She was a strong advocate for the men and 

women of the Navy and Marine Corps, and worked diligently 

to ensure that the Department of the Navy had the people 

and hardware the Navy needs to defend our Nation’s interests. 

On these and other issues, Senator SNOWE has worked 

across party lines for the good of her constituents and our 

Nation. I can think of no issue that better demonstrates her 

ability to reach beyond partisan interest than one of the 

most controversial issues of our time together here: the Iraq 

war. 

I worked with Senator SNOWE and a bipartisan group of 

Senators who believed the status quo in Iraq was no longer 

acceptable and who worked together to chart a new course. 

We joined together to advance our collective view that the 

primary purpose of U.S. strategy in Iraq should be to pressure the Iraqi political leadership to make the compromises 

necessary to end the violence in Iraq while accelerating the 

training of Iraqi troops to take responsibility for their own 

security. 

We made clear that the open-ended commitment of U.S. 

forces to Iraq was over, thereby undermining the Al Qaeda 

narrative that we were there as occupiers and signaling to 

the people and Government of Iraq that the time for political 

reconciliation had come. 

As Senator SNOWE rightly pointed out at the time: 

[ 17 ] 

The Iraqi Government needs to understand that our commitment is not 

infinite. Americans are losing patience with the failure of the leadership in 

Baghdad to end the sectarian violence and move toward national reconciliation. 

She continued: 

It is imperative that Congress understands the importance of placing the 

future of Iraq’s independence in the hands of those who should want it 

most—the Iraqi people and their government. 

As members of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Senator SNOWE and I also worked as part of the 

committee’s effort to investigate the misuse of pre-war Iraq 

intelligence by policymakers. 

Senator SNOWE’s support for the investigation and its findings, in the face of strong criticism from some in her own 

party, was important to bring transparency to the decision to 

go to war in Iraq and will help to ensure the American public is not similarly misled in the future. 

Senator SNOWE recently took another principled stand, in 

what will likely be her last vote as a member of the Intelligence Committee, when she was the only Republican member to vote to adopt the committee’s report on the CIA’s Detention and Interrogation Program. That report definitively 

shows that torture is not effective in eliciting intelligence 

and will hopefully significantly influence how our Nation 

deals with the detention and interrogation of those we capture in the future. 

OLYMPIA SNOWE’s service has been of enormous benefit to 

the people of her State. She is rightly respected in this 

Chamber, and around this country, as a leader who has not 

just talked a good game when it comes to bipartisanship, but 

has followed words with action, often at the cost of no little 

political discomfort for her. To the very end of her tenure 

here, she has fought, as she put it just last week on this, ‘‘to 

return this institution to its highest calling of governing 

through consensus.’’ 

I want to thank her for the many ways in which she has 

supported programs important to Michigan, and for the 

thoughtful approach she has brought to the many challenges 

we have faced together. As she returns to Maine, I wish 

OLYMPIA and Jock every success in whatever endeavors may 

come. And I hope we can take to heart Senator SNOWE’s wise 

words as we seek to answer the challenges before us. 

Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, it has long been a Senate tradition to take a moment as the current session of Congress 

draws to a close to express our appreciation and acknowledge 

[ 18 ] 

the many contributions each retiring Senator has made to 

our legislative deliberations both on the floor and in committee. We will miss them when the gavel brings to a close 

the 112th Congress—especially Senators like OLYMPIA

SNOWE who have made an important difference during their 

service. 

With OLYMPIA’s retirement Maine has lost a very powerful 

and effective legislator and our Nation’s small business community has lost the support of a great champion. Throughout 

her service in the Senate OLYMPIA has shown her great understanding of our economy and her commitment to keeping 

our small businesses strong and vibrant. She knows that our 

small businesses are truly the backbone of our economies— 

on the local, State, and national level and everything we can 

do to keep them going strong will have the greatest impact 

on our efforts to keep our American dream alive and available to the people of our great Nation. 

OLYMPIA has very strong roots in Maine, and she has an 

in-depth understanding of the priorities of the people of her 

home State and what they expect her to work on here in 

Washington. That is why she has a well-deserved reputation 

for being a thoughtful and careful legislator, one who looks 

closely at all the details of a bill before making her decision, 

based on its merits. 

I don’t think I’ve ever met a Senator who was a more avid 

reader than OLYMPIA. Whenever the Senate takes up an 

issue, she is always looking for more materials to read that 

will help her develop creative and innovative solutions to our 

Nation’s problems. 

Then, when the matter comes up for our review in committee or on the floor, she has at the ready several articles 

that will drive home and anchor the point she is making. No 

one is better at researching an issue than OLYMPIA and then, 

when the matter is up for debate, making it clear what she 

believes to be the best way to tackle the problem. No matter 

the topic, it’s always a plus to have her on your side. 

In the years to come, I will always remember OLYMPIA’s 

dedication and firm resolve to get things done. As we worked 

together on several issues, it was clear she had a wealth of 

knowledge about how each provision of a bill would play out. 

She brought some very good ideas to the process and her 

input helped to make each bill better. 

OLYMPIA had always been known as a powerful and effective speaker. Someone with the ability to not only present 

her position with clarity and precision, but who could also 

[ 19 ] 

persuade others to her point of view with her commonsense 

approach to problem solving. Those skills and so many more 

helped her to make a difference throughout her home State 

of Maine during her career in public service. In the end, that 

is why she was so successful in the politics of her home 

State. The people of Maine know OLYMPIA and they appreciate her efforts on their behalf. Over the years OLYMPIA has 

compiled a record of success of which she can truly be proud. 

I know I join with the people of Maine in telling OLYMPIA

how much we appreciate her willingness to serve. She could 

have followed so many different career paths, but she was 

determined to make Maine a better place for our children 

and our grandchildren. Thanks, too, for her friendship and 

her support on the issues on which we worked together. 

OLYMPIA is an individual of great strength and firm convictions and will be missed in the months to come. 

I don’t know what the Senator has planned for the next 

great adventure in her life, but whatever it is I am certain 

we haven’t heard the last from her. We will always be 

pleased to hear her thoughts about the issues we have before 

us here in the Senate. 

THURSDAY, December 27, 2012 

Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, in today’s U.S. Senate, moderates are few. At the end of this Congress, we will lose another: Senator OLYMPIA SNOWE, who has served the State of 

Maine in the U.S. Senate for nearly two decades. She has 

spent nearly her entire adult life in public service, and the 

people of Maine have revered her dedication to her home 

State and to civic engagement. 

Just the 23d woman to serve in the U.S. Senate, Senator 

SNOWE has risen through the ranks in her tenure in this 

body, most recently serving as the top Republican on the 

Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee. There she 

has focused on promoting women in small business. She was 

instrumental in establishing Women’s Business Centers 

through the Small Business Administration, a network of 

nearly 100 centers designed to level the playing field for 

women looking to start a small business. Most recently, she 

has worked to advance legislation to establish a task force 

specifically devoted to women entrepreneurs. 

Senator SNOWE has been a great friend to the environment 

as well. She has worked closely with me to protect our naVerDate Aug 31 2005 15:36 Apr 24, 2014 Jkt 081112 PO 00000 Frm 00043 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 H:\DOCS\BYEBYE\BYEBYE12\81112.TXT KAYNE
[ 20 ] 

tional forests and environment. She has partnered with me 

to strengthen the Forest Legacy Program—important to both 

Vermont and Maine—as well as the Land and Water Conservation Fund. She has been a stalwart advocate for the 

Community Development Block Grant Program, and for 

years, she and I teamed together to protect this important 

community development program. Senator SNOWE has been 

a strong supporter of the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, LIHEAP. The shared challenges of our 

States—rural, New England States—have given us many 

reasons to work together, and our partnership in these 

issues is one that I will miss. 

Notably, Senator SNOWE, at a time when so many simply 

tow the party line, never feared voting her conscience over 

her political affiliation. Her support for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which spurred development amid 

the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, was instrumental in funneling necessary resources to the States. 

She supported advancing comprehensive health care reform 

legislation to the Senate floor, so the Senate as a whole could 

debate the issue. And she has stood up for women in important health care choices. 

When Senator SNOWE announced earlier this year that she 

intended to retire, she lamented the partisan shift she has 

seen in Congress. During her long career in public service, 

Senator SNOWE put her State and the Nation first. It’s a lesson we can all follow. I wish OLYMPIA the best in her retirement and I will truly miss serving with her. Her farewell 

speech to the Senate should be required reading in every 

high school and college civics and government class. 

FRIDAY, December 28, 2012 

Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, I would like to pay tribute to 

the Senators who will not be returning when the 113th Congress commences next month. I have already spoken about 

Senator Kyl and about Senator Inouye, one of the truly great 

Americans and giants of this institution. At the time of his 

death, Senator Inouye was just a few weeks short of celebrating 50 years of Senate service. Only Senator Byrd served 

in this institution longer. 

Turnover is a natural occurrence, but it’s important to 

acknowledge that the Senators who are departing have 

served in the Senate for a combined total of 237 years, or 

[ 21 ] 

nearly 20 years per Senator, on average. Add Senator 

Inouye, and the total is close to 300 years. That service represents an enormous amount of expertise on issues ranging 

from national defense and foreign affairs to the Federal 

budget to energy policy. The departing Senators will also 

take with them vast institutional knowledge and bipartisan 

friendships and working relationships that will leave a void 

we will need to fill. . . . 

Mr. President, few people have faced the personal adversity Senator OLYMPIA SNOWE has overcome on her way to becoming the youngest Republican woman ever elected to the 

U.S. House of Representatives; the first woman to have 

served in both houses of a State legislature and both Houses 

of the U.S. Congress, and the first Greek-American Congresswoman. Senator SNOWE, a first-generation American, 

was orphaned at a young age and then her uncle, who was 

raising her with his family, died a few years later. Her first 

husband was killed in a car accident when she was just 26 

and, later, her 20-year-old stepson died from a heart ailment. 

And yet, Senator SNOWE didn’t just persevere. She ran for 

her late husband’s seat in the Maine House of Representatives at the age of 26 and won. She was reelected to the 

State house in 1974 and, in 1976, won election to the Maine 

Senate. She was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives 

in 1978, and represented Maine’s Second Congressional District from 1979 to 1995. 

Senator SNOWE successfully ran for the seat vacated by 

former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell in 1994, winning 60 percent of the vote. She was reelected in 2000 and 

2006, winning 69 percent and 74 percent of the vote, respectively. In nearly 40 years of holding elective office, Senator 

SNOWE has never lost an election. 

During her time in office, Senator SNOWE has been a quintessential Yankee Republican, putting her constituents and 

the Nation ahead of political party. While she served in the 

House, she was a member of the moderate wing of the Republican Party known as Gypsy Moths, working with southern Democrats known as Boll Weevils to forge bipartisan 

budgets. Here in the Senate, she was a member of the Gang 

of 14. Prior to that, during the Senate’s 1999 impeachment 

trial of then-President Bill Clinton, she worked with her 

Maine colleague, Senator Susan Collins, to find a middle 

ground approach, drafting a motion that would have allowed 

the Senate to vote separately on the charges, and the remedy 

a ‘‘finding of fact’’ resolution. When the motion failed, SenVerDate Aug 31 2005 15:36 Apr 24, 2014 Jkt 081112 PO 00000 Frm 00045 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 H:\DOCS\BYEBYE\BYEBYE12\81112.TXT KAYNE
[ 22 ] 

ator SNOWE and Senator Collins demonstrated the courage of 

their convictions by voting to acquit the President on the 

grounds that his actions didn’t warrant his removal from office. 

During consideration of the 2001 tax cuts, Senator SNOWE

worked with former Senator Blanche Lincoln, a Democrat 

from Arkansas, to increase the amount of the child tax credit 

and make it refundable, so that low-income families who 

don’t earn enough to pay Federal taxes could still benefit 

from the credit, ensuring that it would assist an additional 

13 million more children and lift 500,000 of those children 

out of poverty. But 2 years later, she joined Senators Lincoln 

Chafee and John McCain as the only Republicans to oppose 

the 2003 tax cuts. Pragmatism, not fealty to a rigid political 

ideology, has been her guiding principle. 

Senator SNOWE was one of eight Republican Senators to 

vote to repeal the ‘‘don’t ask, don’t tell’’ policy. Although she 

represents a largely rural, pro-hunting State, she has supported sensible gun control measures. She teamed with our 

former colleague, Senator Ted Kennedy, to coauthor the 

landmark Genetic Nondiscrimination Act, which prevents insurance companies and employers from denying or dropping 

coverage based on genetic tests. I have been proud to work 

with Senator SNOWE on a number of small business initiatives, including our legislation to increase the cap on surety 

bonds. 

Senator SNOWE has stated repeatedly that she inherited a 

legacy of bipartisanship and independence from former 

Maine Senator Margaret Chase Smith, who delivered her 

seminal ‘‘Declaration of Conscience’’ speech against the bullying tactics, smear campaigns, and intimidation of former 

Senator Joe McCarthy. As Senator SNOWE remarked in her 

farewell speech the other day, Senator Smith’s stand demonstrated truly uncommon courage and principled independence. Senator SNOWE has been a worthy heir and guardian 

of Senator Smith’s legacy. We will miss her common sense, 

her pragmatic approach to governing, and her ability to promote bipartisan consensus. . . . 

Mr. President, these men and women who will be leaving 

the Senate soon have made extraordinary sacrifices to serve 

our Nation. We are fortunate that they have chosen to spend 

significant parts of their lives in public service. All Americans owe them a debt of gratitude. Those of us who will be 

in the Senate next month when the 113th Congress convenes 

can best honor the legacy of our departing colleagues by 

[ 23 ] 

reaching across the aisle as they have done so many times 

to forge bipartisan consensus and solutions to our Nation’s 

most vexing problems. The men and women who will be leaving the Senate at the end of this Congress understand that 

compromise isn’t a dirty word; it is the genius at the heart 

of our political system. We will miss them. 

SUNDAY, December 30, 2012 

Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I rise to recognize my 

colleague and friend, Senator OLYMPIA SNOWE, as she plans 

to retire from the U.S. Senate. Her nearly four-decade career 

in Congress has been one of distinction and unwavering public service to Maine and the United States. 

Senator SNOWE’s achievements are numerous. In 1978 she 

became the youngest Republican and first Greek-American 

woman to be elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. 

In 1994 when she was first elected to the U.S. Senate, she 

became the fourth woman to serve in both Houses of Congress. She also has the distinction of being the first Republican woman to secure a full-term seat on the Senate Finance Committee. In total, she has won more Federal elections in Maine than any other person since World War II— 

a testament to how loved she is by her constituency. 

Senator SNOWE has worked extensively on a number of 

issues, including budget and fiscal responsibility, veterans, 

education, national security, welfare reform, oceans and fisheries issues, and campaign finance reform. It has been my 

pleasure to work with Senator SNOWE on the Senate Oceans 

Caucus, where together we have stressed the importance of 

ocean policy and the crucial role our oceans play in all aspects of life in our respective States and across America. 

I also appreciate Senator SNOWE’s leadership on the Small 

Business Committee, where she has been a strong advocate 

for small businesses in Maine and across the country. 

I know that I speak for all the female Senators in the U.S. 

Senate when I say it is sad to see such a well-respected female colleague retire. Senator SNOWE deserves the highest 

accolades for her service to this Nation. This is a woman who 

has done remarkably well by the American people, by her 

constituents in Maine, and by her colleagues in the U.S. Senate. 

I personally admire her efforts to always work in a bipartisan manner. Her moderation and willingness to listen to all 

[ 24 ] 

sides of an issue are examples for us all. I am encouraged 

that she intends to continue her efforts to advance good public policy by working to help elect those who are unafraid to 

stand in the middle and work to build consensus. 

On behalf of the U.S. Senate, I thank Senator SNOWE for 

her dedication to her country, and I congratulate her on her 

retirement. I also want to recognize her husband Jock, who 

has also been an amazing public servant. 

MONDAY, December 31, 2012 

Ms. KLOBUCHAR. Mr. President, I wish to recognize my 

colleague OLYMPIA SNOWE for her many years of distinguished service and leadership on behalf of our country and 

the great State of Maine. 

OLYMPIA has long been a friend and mentor to me. In fact, 

she was assigned to be my official Republican mentor in the 

Senate, and she has been a great one. 

That was almost 6 years ago. So much has happened in 

that time, but throughout it all I have continued to be impressed with OLYMPIA’s grace, composure, and unfailing ability to find commonsense solutions. Time and again, she has 

reached across the aisle to put politics aside and get things 

done for the good of her State and the country. 

In addition to being a voice for bipartisanship, OLYMPIA

has earned a reputation as one of the Senate’s most masterful policymakers. I’ve seen this first hand, while working 

with her on a number of different issues over the years. 

OLYMPIA cosponsored my very first major bill in the Senate, 

‘‘Carbon Counter’’ legislation to reduce carbon emissions and 

combat global climate change. 

I also had the pleasure of working with her to create an 

airline passengers bill of rights, which was included in the 

2011 FAA reauthorization bill and has led to a significant 

decrease in tarmac delays. We joined forces again this year, 

on legislation aimed at addressing sexual assault in our military by improving the process for tracking and reviewing 

claims. 

Working with OLYMPIA these last 6 years has been an incredible privilege for me. I’ve respected her as a policymaker, 

particularly for her work on national security and small 

business issues. I’ve admired her for her outspoken leadership and commonsense approach to legislating. And maybe 

most important, I’ve genuinely enjoyed her as a friend and 

[ 25 ] 

a colleague—for her kindness, her wisdom, and her unfailing 

good nature. 

OLYMPIA has been a truly outstanding voice for the State 

of Maine and a great leader for the people of this country. 

To say that she will be missed would be a tremendous understatement, but I know she will continue to find ways to improve our great country and give back to the State she loves 

so much. Thank you, Senator SNOWE. I wish you the best. 

WEDNESDAY, January 2, 2013 

Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to 

my colleagues, Senators Kay Bailey Hutchison and OLYMPIA

SNOWE. 

We have served together in the Senate for two decades and 

I will dearly miss their grace and their friendship. I know 

that whatever the next chapter brings, both Senator 

Hutchison and Senator SNOWE will leave a lasting and important legacy. 

Both of these Senators are true pioneers. When she first 

entered Congress, Senator SNOWE was the youngest Republican woman ever to serve in the House of Representatives. 

Senator Hutchison graduated law school in 1967 as one of 

only 5 women in a class of 445 men. When she arrived in the 

Senate in 1993, she became the first woman to represent 

Texas in this Chamber. 

Throughout her career, Senator SNOWE has been a strong 

advocate for the people of Maine. Whether they were children, families, consumers, or small business owners—the 

people of Maine knew they had a great champion in Senator 

SNOWE. 

Senator SNOWE always worked across party lines to get 

things done for the American people. During her time in the 

House, she worked with Senator Mikulski to lead the fight 

to end the exclusion of women in health trials at the National Institutes of Health. She worked with Senator Rockefeller to help bring the Internet to America’s libraries and 

classrooms. She worked with Senator Ted Kennedy to pass 

the Genetic Nondiscrimination Act. 

Senator SNOWE and I worked together on many bills over 

the years, but I will especially remember our work on the 

passengers’ bill of rights to provide basic protections for airline passengers. I will also remember the many times we 

[ 26 ] 

fought together to ensure equality for women around the 

world. 

Senator SNOWE was a true leader and her presence in the 

Senate will be greatly missed. . . . 

I will miss my colleagues, both on the Senate floor and at 

our monthly women Senators dinners. 

I wish them both well in all their future endeavors. 

THURSDAY, February 7, 2013 

ORDER FOR PRINTING OF TRIBUTES 

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 the retiring Members of the 112th Congress. 

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

Æ