TRIBUTES TO HON. MIKE JOHANNS 

Mike Johanns 

U.S. SENATOR FROM NEBRASKA 

TRIBUTES 

IN THE CONGRESS OF 

THE UNITED STATES 

UNUM

E PLURIBUS


congress.#15
Mike Johanns 

Courtesy U.S. Senate Historical Office 


91905.001
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE

WASHINGTON : 2015

S. DOC. 113–31 

Tributes 

Delivered in Congress 

Mike Johanns 

United States Senator 

2009–2015 

÷ 

Compiled under the direction 

of the 

Joint Committee on Printing 

[ iii ] 

CONTENTS 

Page 

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

Farewell Address ...................................................................................... vii 

Proceedings in the Senate: 

Tributes by Senators: 

Ayotte, Kelly, of New Hampshire ............................................. 23 

Bennet, Michael F., of Colorado ................................................ 26 

Boxer, Barbara, of California .................................................... 30 

Carper, Thomas R., of Delaware ............................................... 19 

Chambliss, Saxby, of Georgia ................................................... 10 

Collins, Susan M., of Maine ...................................................... 17 

Coons, Christopher A., of Delaware ......................................... 22 

Cornyn, John, of Texas .............................................................. 6 

Durbin, Richard J., of Illinois ................................................... 22 

Enzi, Michael B., of Wyoming ................................................... 24 

Fischer, Deb, of Nebraska ......................................................... 11 

Graham, Lindsey, of South Carolina ........................................ 27 

Hatch, Orrin G., of Utah ........................................................... 27, 29 

Heitkamp, Heidi, of North Dakota ........................................... 25 

Hoeven, John, of North Dakota ................................................ 18, 23 

Isakson, Johnny, of Georgia ...................................................... 10 

Johanns, Mike, of Nebraska ...................................................... 6 

Leahy, Patrick J., of Vermont ................................................... 28 

McCain, John, of Arizona .......................................................... 8 

McConnell, Mitch, of Kentucky ................................................. 3, 11 

Portman, Rob, of Ohio ............................................................... 13 

Reed, Jack, of Rhode Island ...................................................... 20, 21 

Reid, Harry, of Nevada .............................................................. 6 

Roberts, Pat, of Kansas ............................................................. 15 

Shaheen, Jeanne, of New Hampshire ...................................... 29 

Wyden, Ron, of Oregon .............................................................. 20 

[ v ] 

BIOGRAPHY 

On January 6, 2009, MIKE JOHANNS was sworn in as U.S. 

Senator for Nebraska. He won the support of an overwhelming majority of Nebraskans by demonstrating principled leadership throughout more than 30 years of public 

service. 

Senator JOHANNS served on four committees in the 113th 

Congress: Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry; Appropriations; Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs; and Veterans 

Affairs. In previous Congresses he served on the Committee 

on Environment and Public Works, the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, and the Committee on 

Indian Affairs. 

Senator JOHANNS established himself as a legislative leader on issues that are not only important to Nebraska but 

also the Nation. He introduced and championed commonsense legislation dealing with issues ranging from agriculture to veterans to small businesses. 

After hearing from businesses in Nebraska about a provision in President Obama’s health law that would have created a paperwork nightmare for job creators, Senator 

JOHANNS began an effort that gained bipartisan momentum 

and the 1099 reporting mandate was repealed. On agriculture, he led the fight against harmful government regulations and continued his work on a long-term, reform-minded 

farm bill that focused on risk management tools. One of the 

first pieces of legislation to be signed into law for 2013 was 

the National Defense Authorization Act, which contained 

Senator JOHANNS’ legislation to help returning veterans find 

civilian employment and supplied funding to continue work 

on the new command facility for the Strategic Command 

(STRATCOM) at Offutt Air Force Base. 

Before being elected to the Senate, MIKE JOHANNS was appointed the 28th Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture in January 2005. For nearly 3 years he worked to expand foreign market access for U.S. producers, promoted the 

growth of the renewable fuels industry, and advanced cooperative conservation. Additionally, MIKE JOHANNS developed 

an indepth farm bill proposal, which became the foundation 

[ vi ] 

for improvements and reforms adopted in the final 2008 

farm bill. 

MIKE JOHANNS also served as Nebraska’s 38th Governor 

from 1999 to 2005. As Governor, he promoted an agenda of 

tax relief, less government, building the economy, protecting 

families, and ensuring the health, safety, and success of Nebraska’s children. 

MIKE JOHANNS served on the Lancaster County Board 

from 1983 to 1987, and on the Lincoln City Council from 

1989 to 1991. He was elected mayor of Lincoln in 1991 and 

was reelected in 1995 without opposition. He successfully 

ran for Governor in 1998 and was reelected in 2002. 

He grew up on a farm where he learned a work ethic that 

has been put to use serving the people of Nebraska and this 

country. The values he developed while growing up serve as 

the foundation for his commitment to public service. MIKE

JOHANNS is a graduate of St. Mary’s University of Minnesota. He earned a law degree from Creighton University in 

Omaha and practiced law in O’Neill and Lincoln. 

Senator JOHANNS is married to Stephanie Johanns, former 

Lancaster County Commissioner and Nebraska State Senator. The couple has two children and five grandchildren. 

[ vii ] 

Farewell to the Senate 

Tuesday, December 9, 2014 

Mr. JOHANNS. I wish to start by saying I so appreciate 

the kind words by Senators McCain, Chambliss, and 

Isakson. I see there are others in the Chamber who may 

weigh in and offer a thought or two. I can’t express how 

much I appreciate it. 

I would like to offer a few thoughts—my farewell 

thoughts—today. 

I rise, first, to convey a very deep and sincere appreciation 

to the people of a really great State, the State of Nebraska. 

They have entrusted me with the high privilege and the solemn responsibility of representing them in this body. 

I am honored to have served as a Senator from Nebraska, 

and I hope and pray that I have done so in a manner that 

upholds the high standards that Nebraskans have rightly established for their elected office holders. 

If I could turn back the clock 32 years I would do it 

again—from my first day as the county commissioner, 

throughout my service as a Lincoln City Council member, as 

mayor of our capital city, Lincoln, as the Governor of Nebraska, in President Bush’s Cabinet, and now as a Senator. 

No doubt about it, if I could turn back the clock, I would just 

do it again. 

I am so grateful for the trust placed in me and the support 

of so many people who have made this service possible. 

Let me start with the top of the list, and that would be my 

family. My wife, Stephanie, has been an incredible pillar of 

support. 

One of my best friends refers to her as ‘‘spirited.’’ That 

would be an understatement. She is a true partner. She has 

given her whole heart to public service—both her own service as a State senator and as a county commissioner when 

we first met—and to mine. 

I thank my children, Justin and Michaela, who are now 

grown up. They have their own families. We have five beautiful grandchildren. They have been a source of true joy and 

pride. They too have cheerfully supported me despite the 

[ viii ] 

sometimes long hours and the missed birthdays—I could go 

on and on. It cut into that dad and grandpa time. 

I offer a special word of thanks to the hundreds or thousands of volunteers whom I could never thank individually. 

They went out there, pounded the yard signs, walked the 

precincts, worked the phone banks, and they probably wrote 

checks when the bank account was pretty low. Their belief 

in me is what has been inspiring in those campaigns. 

Another group of people near and dear to my heart are my 

current and former staff, campaign or government related. 

We have always called ourselves Team JOHANNS. It is an extended family and for good reason. Their hard work, their 

commitment, and their professionalism enabled me to represent and serve our great State and our country. 

I have not only been truly blessed by the privilege to serve, 

but I have been blessed by the privilege of meeting some 

very extraordinary people. 

In my various roles I have been with world leaders, spiritual heads, cultural icons, Presidents, Vice Presidents, 

Prime Ministers, Queens, and Kings—all memorable experiences to be sure. But I will say they are not the extraordinary people I speak about today. My real inspiration comes 

from ordinary people whom I have observed and watched do 

remarkable, extraordinary things. 

Each year for the past 6 years, I have had the privilege of 

selecting a Nebraska family to be honored as ‘‘Angels in 

Adoption.’’ Each year their stories of unconditional love show 

the limitless capacity of the human heart. 

One family, the Welchels of Harrisburg, NE, went from 

two children to seven. They adopted five children, all with 

special needs, but their selflessness did not stop there. They 

created a camp where these very special kids could share 

life’s journeys. How powerful is that? 

I have learned that heroes walk among us daily whose 

courage is revealed in split-second decisions, and in that split 

second they put the lives of others in front of their own. 

Two Nebraskans did exactly that in 2012. A schoolbus had 

collided with a semitrailer on a rural road near a community 

called Blue Hill, NE. These individuals, Ron Meyer and Phil 

Petr, arrived on this horrific scene. They bravely ran onto 

that burning bus and pulled five children to safety. A witness who was there at the scene expressed absolutely no 

doubt those five children would have perished, as others 

sadly did, if not for the remarkable courage of Ron and Phil. 

[ ix ] 

I have been so moved beyond words by my conversations 

with the parents of our fallen men and women in uniform. 

I would call them to offer them my condolences, and I have 

found their strength to be so astounding. To a person, they 

speak with such passion about love of country and pride in 

their loved one’s service, despite sorrow. They honor their 

children with their patriotism. They honor their children 

with their fortitude. Their grace through incomprehensible 

grief inspires immeasurable gratitude. May God bless them 

and all of the families of the fallen. 

Walking the streets of a tornado-ravaged community—and 

I have done that too many times as Governor and as a Senator—I saw ordinary people doing extraordinary things. 

One stands out especially in my mind. I watched in amazement as Kim Neiman, the Pilger, NE, city clerk, attempted 

to take care of every conceivable need of every single resident following a devastating tornado that literally leveled 

this Nebraska community. 

Her tireless advocacy, her raw determination was focused 

entirely on the community she loved. She had virtually no 

regard for her personal loss. You see, her home was destroyed, and her life was turned upside down by this tornado 

as well. But for Kim, community came first. 

These are good people, and there are so many more like 

them. They inspired me, and they have motivated me to 

search for solutions to break through partisan rancor that 

too often dominates this government. 

But they also fuel my optimism for the future. You see, I 

believe that America’s strength is in the fabric of which we 

are woven. The threads of this fabric include both the character of our people and the wisdom recorded in our Constitution. 

It is a very strong and very durable fabric that withstands 

the overreach of any one President and the misguided policies of any one administration. 

That is why I look back, not with any regret—I would do 

it all over again—but with gratitude. There were victories 

won during my time here, and I am pleased to have lead 

some of those charges. But I have to admit many battles remain. 

I would be dishonest if I denied some feelings of frustration about the absence of the will to address issues of paramount importance to our country, but I know that no issue 

is powerful enough to shred the fabric of this great Nation. 

Rather, these challenges are overpowered by the ordinary 

[ x ] 

people who do extraordinary things, by the character of our 

people, and by the wisdom of our Founders. So I reject the 

prophecy of hopelessness. 

As the challenges we face grow more urgent—and they 

will—so grows the collective fortitude to address them, and 

I believe that is about to intensify. 

On January 3, I will officially pass the baton to Senatorelect Ben Sasse, and I wish him the best. With the 114th 

Congress, there will be a new day in this Chamber, a new 

majority, and a lot of new faces. I hope they embrace the 

new opportunities to exemplify true statesmanship. 

Although confidence in our Nation’s ability to solve problems may be shaken, I still believe ordinary people can do 

extraordinary things—even here in Washington, DC. May 

God guide those efforts and may God bless this great country, the United States of America. 

I yield the floor. 

TRIBUTES 

TO 

MIKE JOHANNS 

[ 3 ] 

Proceedings in the Senate 

THURSDAY, December 4, 2014 

Mr. MCCONNELL. Mr. President, I wish to pay tribute to 

a truly outstanding Senator, who will soon retire from this 

body after more than 30 years of public service. 

Of course, I am speaking of Senator MIKE JOHANNS. MIKE

has had a remarkable career. He is the only current Member 

of this body—besides Senator Alexander—who has served as 

Senator, Governor, and Cabinet secretary. 

Yet for all he has accomplished, MIKE isn’t the flashiest 

Senator. He doesn’t hold the most press conferences, he 

doesn’t yell the loudest, and you never have to worry about 

him knocking you over to get to a TV camera, but in his 

steady and determined style, MIKE has proven himself a remarkably successful Member of this body. 

That was true in his successful battles to defend Nebraska’s rural communities against government overreach, it was 

true when he worked with the late Senator Byrd to sink a 

national energy tax that threatened his constituents, and it 

was true when he led the first successful legislative effort to 

revisit Obamacare, working with many Democrats to repeal 

the so-called 1099 provision. 

MIKE has never looked for drama. He is always aiming for 

results. So it didn’t take long for people in the Senate to recognize that MIKE was more than just another freshman in 

the minority. He became the guy you would turn to if you 

wanted to get an amendment up to 60 votes. 

That is truly remarkable for a first-term Senator. It is especially remarkable when we consider that MIKE came to the 

Senate at a time when Republicans were in the deep minority. But then again, MIKE is a very remarkable guy: county 

commissioner, city councilman, mayor, Governor, Secretary 

of Agriculture. You name it, MIKE has done it, and that was 

before he even set foot in the Senate. 

Some think MIKE must have a secret that allows him to 

assemble bipartisan coalitions on conservative issues, but I 

don’t think it is much of a secret at all. MIKE works across 

[ 4 ] 

the aisle. He works in good faith, and he works hard. He 

doesn’t care what party you are from and absolutely no one 

can outwork him. 

MIKE makes sure of that by getting up earlier than anyone 

else. It is a habit he learned growing up on a farm in northern Iowa. He would get up at 5 a.m. every day and then from 

age 4 he would work. He would shovel muck. He would fill 

the hog tanks. He would even deliver piglets. 

The point is, MIKE developed an appreciation for hard 

work and responsibility at an early age. Along with his 

strong Catholic faith, these are the traits that still define 

him today, but they don’t paint the whole picture, because 

MIKE JOHANNS may be an accomplished man, he may be one 

of the smartest and most capable public servants you will 

ever meet, but he is absolute putty in the hands of his wife 

Stephanie. She is always by his side. She is his best friend, 

and they complement each other perfectly. 

Their idea—listen to this—of a perfect night out is a night 

in together. They are both Husker fans and, as MIKE put it, 

‘‘Steph is almost never in a bad mood.’’ He said, ‘‘She jumps 

out of bed, and she’s got a big smile on her face and she 

thinks this is bound to be the best day of her life.’’ 

It is a personality perfectly suited, as one can imagine, to 

the campaign trail, which is a good thing because the two of 

them have logged tens of thousands of miles together campaigning across Nebraska, usually in matching T-shirts, 

sometimes in a beat-up old Corsica. 

They have plenty of stories from the trail, too, but one 

from MIKE’s run for Governor stands out particularly. This 

is what happened: The Johanns were driving home after a 

long day of marching in parades in the hot Sun. They passed 

a barn on the way, assuming it was a cattle sale. They figured they would drop in and press a few palms. Stephanie 

parked the car, MIKE opened the door, and dozens of welldressed Nebraskan eyes fell on them. 

The Johanns, in their sweaty T-shirts, hadn’t dropped by 

a cattle sale; they had crashed a wedding. I will give them 

this, they made the best of it. MIKE ended up dancing with 

the bride, and of course he went on to win the election as 

well. 

This is the sequel: Months later, at an inaugural ball in 

Lincoln, two uninvited guests showed up. It was, of course, 

the bride and her husband. 

They had a simple message: ‘‘You crashed our wedding, 

Governor, and now we’re crashing your inaugural.’’ 

[ 5 ] 

So the senior Senator from Arizona [Mr. McCain] may like 

to brag about his Hollywood cameo with Vince Vaughn, but 

our colleagues know the truth. Senator MIKE JOHANNS is the 

original—the original—wedding crasher. 

MIKE and Stephanie certainly have traveled a long and interesting road from when they first met while serving on the 

Lancaster County Board in the 1980s, when MIKE would 

draft up walking lists on an old typewriter and they would 

go out and campaign door to door. 

A lot has changed. For one thing, MIKE isn’t a Democrat 

anymore. But much is the same too. MIKE still cares deeply 

about mental health issues. It is what brought him into politics in the first place. It is what he considers his crowning 

achievement as Governor. He still has loyal fans on staff who 

remember all of his efforts on the issue. 

It is a rare thing, the loyalty MIKE inspires in people. This 

is the Senator with staffers who have been with him for 

many years, some since his days in local politics, and here 

is what they all say about MIKE JOHANNS: Senator JOHANNS

is a man who cares—cares about his family, he cares about 

the people who work for him, and he cares about his constituents. That is why he has given his cell phone number 

out to half of Nebraska. 

He has made his mistakes, of course. As mayor of Lincoln, 

he had to cancel Halloween one year. But that is old news. 

To many Nebraskans he is still Governor, to others he is 

simply MIKE. But whatever Nebraskans call MIKE JOHANNS, 

they respect him, and I know they are going to miss him. 

And so are we. 

At least retirement will give MIKE more time to pursue his 

hobbies. We hear he is a voracious window washer. He has 

even been known to pull out the Windex on vacation. Whatever he does, we know this is a retirement that is well 

earned. He has dealt with bird flu, mad cow disease, the 

farm bill, deficit reduction, and just about any other issue 

you can think of over a long and distinguished career in public service. 

We all want to thank Senator JOHANNS for his loyal and 

dedicated service to the Senate and to the people of Nebraska. We wish MIKE and Stephanie the best as they look 

forward to their next adventure together. 

The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The majority 

leader. 

[ 6 ] 

Mr. REID. Mr. President, I want to join in the remarks of 

the distinguished Republican leader, but add to that that 

Stephanie is one of the funniest people Landra and I have 

ever known. She has a great sense of humor. What the Republican leader laid out is perfect, except this woman has a 

sense of humor that is really quite remarkable. 

I suggest the absence of a quorum. 

The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Will the Senator 

withhold his request? 

Mr. REID. Yes, Mr. President. 

The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from 

Nebraska. 

Mr. JOHANNS. Mr. President, just a word or two to both 

leaders. Thank you so much for your kind words. I also want 

to say thank you for mentioning my wife Stephanie. This has 

been a remarkable partnership for a lot of years, and I could 

not have done what I did without her. So thank you to Senator McConnell. Mr. Leader, thank you. It has been an honor 

to serve in this body. I will have more to say next week in 

my farewell speech, but I did not want this day to go by 

without expressing my appreciation. Thank you. 

I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a quorum. 

MONDAY, December 8, 2014 

Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, in the waning days of the 

113th Congress it is a bittersweet moment as many of us are 

saying goodbye—although not on a permanent basis but at 

least in terms of our official relationships working together 

as Senators—to so many of our good friends and valued colleagues. Every other December we find ourselves bidding 

farewell to some of the most admired and respected Members 

of this Chamber. Today I want to say a few words about 

three of these esteemed Members, starting with my good 

friend, the senior Senator from Georgia [Mr. Chambliss]. . . . 

Next, I would like to turn to my colleague from Nebraska, 

the senior Senator MIKE JOHANNS. Even if MIKE JOHANNS

had never been a Senator, he would have compiled an extraordinary career of public service. It started with a stint on 

the Lancaster County Board of Commissioners and continued with 2 years on the Lincoln City Council, followed by 8 

years as mayor of Lincoln, NE. 

[ 7 ] 

In 1999 MIKE left the mayor’s office and moved over to the 

Nebraska State Capitol, where he served for 6 years as Governor. He said one of his proudest gubernatorial accomplishments was enacting a mental health reform law that helped 

improve the lives of some of Nebraska’s neediest and most 

vulnerable residents. That to me tells a lot about his character and sense of compassion. 

Born and raised as a farmboy, MIKE was named America’s 

28th Secretary of Agriculture in 2005. Over the next 3 years, 

he held more than 50 separate forums on the farm bill— 

more than 50. Not surprisingly, he continued to work on 

agriculture-related issues when he joined the Senate. Indeed, 

he has been a true leader, fighting passionately to defend the 

rights and livelihood of farmers and ranchers everywhere— 

especially in Nebraska. 

These are issues that are vitally important to millions of 

Americans, including MIKE’s constituents, but they are not 

the kind of issues that help land you prime time appearances 

on cable news. Luckily for us, MIKE doesn’t care about media 

attention, but what he does care about is doing the right 

thing for his State and for our country. 

He understands something that many of us too quickly forget—that taxes and regulations should be forced to pass a 

simple cost-benefit test. That is why MIKE worked so hard to 

block the national energy tax known as cap and trade, and 

that is why he has consistently demanded that the Environmental Protection Agency and other Federal agencies demonstrate how their proposed rules would affect American jobs 

and American workers. 

It is also why he has so aggressively pushed to abolish the 

IRS 1099 reporting requirement in Obamacare, which would 

have placed a costly new burden on America’s small business 

owners and indirectly on the jobs that they create. MIKE did 

more than anyone else to help highlight the problems with 

this requirement and to demand its repeal. Thanks in large 

part to his efforts, 81 Members of this Chamber voted to 

abolish it back in 2011. 

There is an old cliche in politics that there are two types 

of politicians—show horses and workhorses. MIKE has never 

sought the limelight, and has certainly done more than his 

fair share of the work. But he has done so in a very quiet 

and thoughtful manner. He is someone who has kept a low 

profile while working behind the scenes, building bipartisan 

consensus and being infallibly polite and gentlemanly in the 

process. 

[ 8 ] 

He is the type of Senator who is universally admired and 

respected by all of our colleagues. His accomplishments here 

in the Senate—I have just mentioned a few—have been 

manifold. Yet I am quite certain his proudest accomplishments are his family—his wife Stephanie, their two children, 

and five grandchildren. They have been generous enough to 

share MIKE with us for the past 6 years, and now it is time 

for MIKE to be with the people he cares about the most. We 

will miss him a whole lot, but he is moving on to perhaps 

the most rewarding chapter of his life. 

MIKE, thanks for all you have done. Thanks for your service, your guidance, and most of all for your friendship. 

TUESDAY, December 9, 2014 

Mr. MCCAIN. Madam President, I come to the floor to 

praise the public service of and bid farewell to my friend and 

valued colleague from Nebraska, Senator MIKE JOHANNS. 

With my remarks, I celebrate not just MIKE’s last 6 years 

in the Senate but also his 30-plus years in public service 

that will culminate with the end of this term. 

At the highest levels of government in both the legislative 

and executive branches, MIKE’s life of public service has been 

punctuated by great accomplishment. From the Lancaster 

County Board in Nebraska to the Lincoln City Council, from 

his service as mayor of Lincoln to his service as the 38th 

Governor of Nebraska, from his service as the 28th U.S. Secretary of Agriculture and throughout his tenure in the Senate, MIKE has demonstrated a commitment to those with 

muted voices in our political system, including small business owners, veterans, those impaired by mental illness and 

most certainly America’s farmers and ranchers. 

In the Senate, MIKE’s leadership and bipartisan efforts to 

repeal purposeless tax reporting requirements in Obamacare, 

his championing new trade agreements, and his contribution 

to the development and final passage of a new farm bill this 

year all describe a strong conservative legislator committed 

to stimulating economic growth through reduced government 

spending, lower tax rates, and reduced regulatory burdens 

on American business. 

I have appreciated MIKE’s partnership on key legislation, 

including his joining me to cosponsor the bipartisan Congressional Accountability and Line-Item Veto Act of 2009. During 

the 112th Congress, we were both cosponsors of the Foreign 

[ 9 ] 

Earnings Reinvestment Act, a bipartisan effort to let corporations reinvest earnings kept overseas by our high corporate tax rates back into the American economy. 

I was also proud to join MIKE as an original cosponsor of 

his bill, the Two-Year Regulatory Freeze Act of 2011, which 

sought to give the American economy a much needed reprieve to burdensome and confusing Federal regulations that 

frequently hinder economic growth. MIKE was also an original cosponsor of the Jobs Through Growth Act, and many 

others. 

I am also grateful that he joined in helping replenish the 

Forest Service’s aging air tanker fleet. A decade ago the Forest Service had roughly 40 large air tankers to fight wildfires 

that burned millions of acres of land across Western States, 

including Nebraska and Arizona. 

Today they own eight large air tankers. Senator JOHANNS

and I saw an opportunity to transfer several excess Department of Defense aircraft to the Forest Service to temporarily 

address this shortage, and that has happened. 

While MIKE and I have had disagreements along the way, 

I have always respected his knowledge and experience as a 

farmer, foreign trade expert, and the Nation’s former Agriculture Secretary. 

I am proud of the areas where we agree: reining in certain 

farm subsidy programs, advocating for free trade agreements 

with Colombia, Panama, and South Korea, and even working 

together to kill the proposed USDA catfish office—a little 

known $15 million program inside the last farm bill that we 

both highlighted as wasting taxpayer money and that, from 

a trade perspective, was negatively impacting our cattlemen 

and soy farmers. 

We also agree on the need to help returning veterans seeking to reenter the workforce as beginning farmers, an effort 

he championed in our last farm bill. I have long applauded 

Senator JOHANNS for calling on Congress to pass laws to stop 

farm subsidies from going to millionaires while he was a sitting Secretary of Agriculture. 

As much as I respect the substance of MIKE’s accomplishments in public service, I have valued how he has achieved 

them with a quiet, purposeful dignity and, indeed, a vibrant 

sense of humor. He has never been opposed to bipartisan cooperation whenever it is needed to further the interests of 

his constituents or the greater Nation. 

For these reasons, his approach to governance in legislating has earned him the respect of colleagues and constituVerDate Aug 31 2005 16:23 Jun 22, 2015 Jkt 091900 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 H:\DOCS\BYEBYE\BYEBYE14\91905.TXT KAYNE
[ 10 ] 

ents across the political continuum. It should also serve as 

an example to all of us in this body who remain behind. 

In an email MIKE wrote to his friends last February announcing his decision not to seek reelection in 2014, MIKE

wrote: ‘‘With everything in life, there is a time and a season.’’ 

Well, to my friend and valued colleague, MIKE JOHANNS, I 

bid fair winds and following seas in all that he and his lovely 

wife Stephanie do, and I thank him for his service and his 

friendship. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Georgia. 

Mr. CHAMBLISS. Madam President, I rise and second 

what my friend and colleague from Arizona said. 

It has been a privilege of mine to serve in this body for 12 

years—and I will be making some comments about that tomorrow—but during my early years in the Senate the Secretary of Agriculture was Secretary MIKE JOHANNS. 

Being a very active member of the Agriculture Committee 

and being chairman for 2 years during then-Secretary 

Johann’s tenure, I had the opportunity to work with MIKE on 

a day-to-day basis and, boy, what a pleasure it is to work 

with one of the finest gentlemen and public servants I have 

ever known. He is smart, and he is political when he needs 

to be political, but he has as much or more common sense 

as, again, any public servant I have ever known. 

For the past 6 years, he has been my next door neighbor 

in the Russell Building, so we see a lot of each other coming 

and going and have the opportunity to visit on a regular 

basis. 

As I leave at the end of this term, one of the real Members 

of the Senate I am going to miss is MIKE JOHANNS. I publicly 

thank him for his service and thank him for his commitment. I wish him and Stephanie the best, but what I really 

thank him for is the great friendship he and I developed over 

the years. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Georgia. 

Mr. ISAKSON. Madam President, I join the Senator from 

Arizona and the Senator from Georgia—my senior Senator, 

Mr. Chambliss—to rise for a minute and talk about MIKE

JOHANNS. 

I want to amend that. I don’t want to just talk about MIKE

JOHANNS, I want to talk about him and Stephanie Johanns. 

[ 11 ] 

In the South what we have is what we call a two-for. MIKE

and Stephanie are a two-for. They are a great pair for America, and they are a great pair for the State of Nebraska. 

As a Senator from an agricultural State, I know the value 

that MIKE brought to the Cabinet of the United States when 

he was Secretary of Agriculture. 

I know from his serving the State of Nebraska when he 

was Governor what a great job they did. I know the past 6 

years, working side by side with MIKE JOHANNS has been a 

real treat. He is a gentleman, and he is a scholar. He doesn’t 

do anything if he doesn’t know what he is doing, and if he 

is not always right, he is almost always right because he always has Stephanie there to guide him in the right direction. 

I pay tribute to a great Senator, and a great personal 

friend, MIKE JOHANNS, and his lovely wife Stephanie. 

Mr. MCCONNELL. Madam President, I had an opportunity to address the extraordinary career of the Senator 

from Nebraska the other day, and he was on the floor, which 

was welcomed, and his staff was in the gallery. I wanted to 

say again, in a much shorter version, how much we all appreciate his remarkable contributions to our country, to his 

State, and to the Senate and wish him well in the future. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Nebraska. 

Mrs. FISCHER. Madam President, I rise today to celebrate 

the legacy of my dear friend, my colleague, and my fellow 

Nebraskan, Senator MIKE JOHANNS. 

Senator JOHANNS has dedicated more than three decades 

of his life to serving the people of Nebraska and also this Nation. His career in public service began at the local level, 

where he was elected to the Lancaster County Board of Commissioners. He later joined the Lincoln City Council, and 

eventually became mayor of Nebraska’s capital city where he 

served for two terms. 

Perhaps the most infamous decision Senator JOHANNS ever 

made throughout his career in public service was in his days 

as mayor of Lincoln. After an early season winter storm 

dropped more than a foot of heavy wet snow on Lincoln in 

late October, Mayor JOHANNS decided to cancel Halloween. 

He cited power outages and hazardous downed powerlines. 

As you can imagine, this news was not received well 

among some of those Lincolnites. To this day, constituents 

haven’t forgotten and they still occasionally remind him of 

how he deprived an entire city of trick or treats on that fateful October evening. He made up for it, though, when he and 

[ 12 ] 

his wife Stephanie treated children who came to trick or 

treat at the mansion. 

Fortunately, this incident didn’t deal a death blow to Senator JOHANNS’ political career. He went on to serve as Governor of Nebraska and was reelected to a second term. 

As Governor, he focused on fiscal discipline and the responsible use of limited State tax dollars, principles he 

upheld here in the Senate as well. At one point, as Governor, 

he even vetoed an entire 2-year budget proposal because it 

raised taxes to expand government power. 

He also championed ambitious mental health reforms that 

allowed patients to receive care in the stability and in the security of their own communities where they could be near 

their loved ones. A decade later, these reforms in Nebraska 

are still regarded as a major milestone in improving mental 

health care. 

Before he was a Senator or a Governor or a mayor or a 

city councilman, he worked on his family’s dairy farm. That 

is not easy work. As MIKE puts it, it is a job that builds character and humility. Growing up on a dairy farm, he would 

milk cows every day before school, sometimes even taking 

the tractor halfway to town in the winter months when the 

roads were so bad that the schoolbus couldn’t get out to his 

farm. 

This upbringing gave Senator JOHANNS a great appreciation and a deep understanding for the needs of our Nation’s 

agriculture producers, so it was no surprise when President 

George W. Bush selected him to lead the Department of Agriculture as its Secretary. MIKE dutifully served in this role, 

overseeing a new reform-oriented farm bill and opening 

doors to new global markets for our Nation’s ag producers. 

As Secretary of Agriculture, he saw first hand the challenges facing hungry nations. It was in this role that he fell 

in love with the people of Africa, and he has worked here in 

the Senate to develop food aid programs that not only feed 

but also empower hungry populations around the world. 

Senator JOHANNS has tirelessly worked for our State and 

our Nation. He brought to the Senate a unique perspective, 

having served virtually every level of government. His wellrounded approach to his work here reflects that rare wisdom. 

Many of us here have had the pleasure of working closely 

with him because he always makes a point to work with his 

colleagues regardless of party affiliation, whether it be on 

complex legislation or that annual Senate secret Santa tradition. 

[ 13 ] 

We are all familiar with the confident, peaceful demeanor 

he brings to the Senate, and his plain-spoken clarity will 

truly be missed once he leaves Congress. This is who MIKE

JOHANNS is. It is who he has always been: a quiet workhorse 

with a soft spot for the world’s most disadvantaged, and a 

burning desire to help wherever he can. Friends back home 

who have known him since before he began his career in 

public service will tell you that he is the same man today he 

was back then—never losing sight of his goal of helping people, never getting a big head, and always putting Nebraska 

first. 

The Senator’s wife Stephanie has been by his side 

throughout every step of this tremendous journey, always 

supportive and steadfast. Anyone who knows MIKE knows he 

and Steph are inseparable. I am sure they are both looking 

forward to having more time to spend with family next year. 

MIKE, you are a statesman and a model citizen. I am 

thankful for all the work you have done for Nebraska and for 

the entire Nation. You have set such a great example for 

your fellow Senators, and we all appreciate your dedication 

over these past 32 years. You have served Nebraska with 

dignity and integrity. Good luck. I wish you and Stephanie 

all the best. God bless you both. 

I yield the floor. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Ohio. 

Mr. PORTMAN. Madam President, this is a bittersweet 

time for all of us. As you have heard, as we close the book 

on one term of Congress and look forward to the next, we are 

here to say goodbye to one of our esteemed colleagues who 

is finishing his service in the Senate. It is always tough, but 

it is especially hard for me with regard to Senator MIKE

JOHANNS—a guy I consider a fine Senator, also a good 

friend, and sort of the perfect example of the statesman. 

Through his impressive career as mayor, Governor, Cabinet 

member, and Senator, as his colleague has just said, he has 

displayed that. 

I first met Senator JOHANNS when he was Secretary 

JOHANNS. He was Secretary of Agriculture in the George W. 

Bush Cabinet, and that meant we got to spend a lot of time 

together. I was the U.S. Trade Representative, and I truly 

believe I have traveled around the world more with MIKE

than I have with my family. We went all over, from Asia to 

Europe to South America and Africa. We fought for farmers 

and ranchers. Our ideal was that we could expand exports, 

[ 14 ] 

and we were able to do that and make some progress with 

his hard work. 

We went to farflung corners of the world, such as Burkina 

Faso, to deal with cotton issues important to U.S. farmers. 

We spent countless—and I mean countless—hours on something called the green room negotiating sessions, trying to 

reach a deal in the Doha round of talks with the World 

Trade Organization. 

I remember one time MIKE and I had the opportunity to 

brief reporters as we were going across Africa. We were racing across the Sahara Desert to make our way to an airport. 

Because the airport had no lights, the pilots insisted we get 

there while there was still light so they could see where they 

were landing. 

He taught me a lot, not just about arcane agricultural 

issues, such as what is a green box or an amber box subsidy 

in agriculture—fun issues such as that—but he also taught 

me a lot about negotiating and about how, as we said earlier, 

to be a statesman. 

We had some tough negotiating sessions, but MIKE was always a proud and relentless representative and champion for 

the interests of our great country and the interests of the 

farmers and ranchers he knew so well. He always did his job 

on the global stage with honor and with dignity. If there has 

ever been a more forceful advocate for American farmers, 

whether it was there or here in the Senate, I don’t know who 

it is. 

In 2007, he told me he was going to leave the administration and go home to Nebraska, and that he was considering 

running for the Senate. I never thought I would be able to 

serve with him, because I didn’t know I was going to follow 

him, but I knew when he told me that, he would be in the 

Senate and that he would put in the same level of dedication 

to this body as he had as Secretary of Agriculture, and that 

has been true. 

He is not flashy. His colleague from Nebraska has just 

called him a workhorse. I hope he takes that as a compliment. I would. He has never sought out the cameras or, 

for that matter, sought out recognition for his good work. He 

just does the right thing. A true statesman. 

So, MIKE JOHANNS, we are going to miss you. We are going 

to miss Stephanie. And we wish you Godspeed. 

I yield the floor. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Kansas. 

[ 15 ] 

Mr. ROBERTS. Madam President, the first time I met 

MIKE JOHANNS was in Hutchison, KS. Hutchison, KS, is 

where we have the State fair every year. I was somebody 

then. I was the chairman of the sometimes powerful House 

Committee on Agriculture, and I had made a pitch to get the 

Secretary of Agriculture to actually come to the fair, thinking that MIKE JOHANNS would be a far better speaker than 

myself and maybe I could avoid some trouble. So I had the 

Secretary come and I made the promise that every farmer 

who wanted to ask the Secretary of Agriculture a question 

would have that opportunity. I hadn’t bothered to tell MIKE

about it, but when he arrived on the scene, he nodded his 

head and said, ‘‘Fine.’’ He had this yellow tablet under his 

arm, and with ample staff, some who used to work for me, 

but that is beside the point. 

So cutting things short, all the activities in the State fair 

he attended, and he dutifully went around to every exhibit, 

and we finally ended up in the amphitheater and there must 

have been 150 to 175 farmers all lined up waiting to speak 

to or to question the Secretary of Agriculture. I thought to 

myself: Oh, my gosh, what have I done? The Secretary is 

coming in—I didn’t know MIKE that well at that particular 

time—and what have I gotten him into? 

But MIKE didn’t seem to be bothered at all. He was absolutely comfortable, unflappable. He had the microphone and 

he sat down at a table, put down the yellow tablet and said, 

‘‘Yes, sir, and what is your first question and what is your 

name?’’ The individual would give his name and the question, and MIKE would write down the question. He said, 

‘‘Thank you very much for that. It will receive all of our attention. Next.’’ 

He went through the whole 125 or 150 and never answered a question, but he wrote it down. Every farmer who 

came up later to me said, ‘‘You know, the Secretary wrote 

down my question.’’ They were tremendously impressed, as 

opposed to me. Silly me, I would have tried to answer their 

questions, and we would have been there 2 or 3 hours, Lord 

knows how long. So I asked MIKE, ‘‘How do you get by with 

that?’’ He said, ‘‘Well, it saves a lot of time and you never 

get in trouble by what you don’t say,’’ which always sort of 

stuck with me and what a class act he was. 

County commissioner, mayor of Lincoln, Governor, Secretary of Agriculture, U.S. Senator. I suppose if I floated a 

balloon for you to be President that you might—no, Stephanie wouldn’t buy it and you wouldn’t either. But that would 

[ 16 ] 

be the logical next step, MIKE, and I think we certainly could 

and probably will do a lot worse. But at any rate, since I 

brought up Stephanie, Franki and I extend our very best 

wishes and love. 

I do have somewhat of a minor discomfort, it isn’t a quarrel—I would never quarrel with Stephanie—but some degree 

of discomfort. 

We have to have meetings around here a lot, and some of 

us stay for the whole thing. We would always look around 

for MIKE. He would be around for the fireworks and then he 

would leave and he would always go home—because he had 

a home very close on Capitol Hill—to be with Stephanie. 

She is absolutely wonderful. She has the best smile ever. 

You cannot be unhappy or in a bad mood ever when you see 

Stephanie. 

So I would come to work in the Hart Building or here in 

the Capitol and I would happen to run into Stephanie and 

she would always come up with that big smile on her face 

and say, ‘‘Hi, Pat. How are things going?’’ 

What are you going to do? I mean, I am trying to be the 

curmudgeon of the Senate, but Grassley keeps edging me 

out. So here I would be in sort of a bad or a grumpy mood 

and she would flash that smile, and I would say, ‘‘Just fine.’’ 

Then I would be feeling pretty good and I would go into the 

office. They would say, ‘‘What is wrong? You have a smile on 

your face.’’ I would say, ‘‘I’ve been Stephanized.’’ I am truly 

going to miss that. 

I remember the time we were sitting probably right about 

here in the back. We had just concluded the farm bill for the 

first time, and then it took us 400 days to get the rest of it. 

MIKE is an expert on agriculture program policy. Ask anybody else if they would like to talk about agriculture program policy and you would get a high glaze after about 8 

seconds—but not MICHAEL. MIKE knows agriculture farm 

program policy. We call it farm program policy in Nebraska 

and Kansas, but he knows an awful lot about it. 

I asked him, ‘‘How many people do you think in this body, 

in this Senate, absolutely understand farm program policy?’’ 

He retorted, ‘‘How many people want to understand agriculture program policy?’’ We decided there were about 5 in 

the Senate and maybe about 10 in the House—which shows 

you why we have a tough time getting the farm bill done. 

I relied on his advice and counsel when I was the ranking 

member. I am so sorry—I regret—should I have the privilege 

of becoming chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, 

[ 17 ] 

I would look forward to a dynamic duo with regard to what 

we could accomplish. But Senator JOHANNS is like Shane: 

Come back, Shane. Come back, MIKE. But Shane rode away, 

and the Senator is going to ride back to Nebraska. I give him 

that, and I give him all of the success he can possibly have. 

Six years is all this man has served. Some people have 

been here a lot longer. I have. You can accomplish a lot in 

6 years. People say: What can you do in 6 years? 

No. 1, you can work on legislation and you can know what 

you are talking about and you can earn people’s respect and 

you can be smart about it. I don’t mean smart smart. I mean 

just smart, so that what you say and when you say it, people 

pay attention. That is precisely the kind of person MIKE is. 

You can have all the integrity in the world and you can do 

exactly what he says when he talks about the people of Nebraska. 

The people of Kansas are very similar to the people of Nebraska. My only complaint with the people of Nebraska is 

they chose to go play in the Big Ten and are finding it a little more difficult than running the track meets they used to 

run against Kansas State and KU. But if you want to go to 

the Big Ten and do that, why that is your business—but we 

have the same kind of roots. 

I have always said there are no self-made men or women 

in public office. It is our friends and the people we represent 

who make us what we are, and Senator JOHANNS has spoken 

so eloquently to that. 

MICHAEL, I was trying to think of a tag I could label you 

with that might be noteworthy of everything you stand for. 

Others will do better than I and others have already said 

that. I simply come up by saying that you are an uncommon 

man with a very common touch, and I am going to miss 

you—and everybody in the conference is going to miss you 

and I suspect everybody in the Senate is going to miss you 

for the way you have conducted yourself and the job you 

have done for Nebraska. 

We wish you all the best and we love you. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Manchin). The Senator 

from Maine. 

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, when Senator MIKE

JOHANNS stated in February of last year that he had decided 

not to seek a second term in the Senate, he did so in a way 

that revealed so much about his character. There was no 

dramatic press conference, there were no weeks of rumors, 

[ 18 ] 

there were no guessing games. Instead, there was just a simple and brief press release. 

Then, the very next day it was back to work for Senator 

JOHANNS, traveling throughout the State of Nebraska for a 

series of townhall meetings with the people he is honored to 

serve. 

Nine months later, in October 2013, his character again 

shone through. The Federal Government was shut down due 

to a massive failure to govern responsibly. It was stifling our 

economy and causing great harm to the trust the American 

people deserve to have in their government. 

As a key member of our Common Sense Coalition, Senator 

JOHANNS worked effectively and quietly to restore government operations and to restore citizen trust in government. 

Again, no dramatics, no search for the limelight, just solid 

results, just effective leadership. 

Quiet, effective leadership guided by common sense has 

been the hallmark throughout the Senator’s 32 years in public service. From Lancaster County commissioner and mayor 

of Lincoln to Governor of Nebraska and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, he has been well informed, thoughtful, and 

untiring. 

The old farm country saying that sowing is easy, reaping 

is hard, perfectly describes his record of accomplishment and 

his determination to see any task to its completion. Most of 

all, the Senator from Nebraska always does what he thinks 

is in the best interests of our country and of the people he 

so proudly represents. 

In an interview shortly before he announced that he would 

be leaving the Senate, Senator JOHANNS said he hoped he 

would be remembered as ‘‘a guy who was good to work with.’’ 

Working with Senator MIKE JOHANNS has been more than 

just good. It has been an honor and a privilege and I wish 

him and Stephanie all the best. 

Thank you for your service. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from North Dakota. 

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I rise to also express my appreciation for Senator MIKE JOHANNS and for his wife Stephanie. 

I first met MIKE shortly after I was elected Governor of my 

State. At that time MIKE was serving as Governor of Nebraska. Right away when I went and visited with MIKE I 

could tell this was somebody who was not only somebody we 

[ 19 ] 

could count on but who had the right motivation in public 

service, had great ideas, and was somebody I could look to 

as a mentor, and I have ever since. 

From his experience at the local level as commissioner, 

then as mayor, then as Governor, then as Secretary of Agriculture, and then as a Senator, MIKE has been somebody all 

of us have counted on and somebody whose advice we have 

sought when we wrestled with tough decisions. 

So I just want to add my voice as well to the others who 

have expressed our appreciation for Senator MIKE JOHANNS

and for Stephanie and to say how much we are going to miss 

him. We are going to miss him not only on a personal level— 

because he is a great guy and a great friend and somebody 

we can count on—but we are going to miss his advice, his 

counsel, his participation in this process on behalf of the 

American people. 

I think MIKE epitomizes the kind of approach we need to 

have in this body to get work done—to listen, to think carefully, and to remember always that we work for the American people, and he has a long and distinguished career 

doing that. 

He is somebody who will be truly missed, and I think he 

is somebody who exemplifies the very best of this body and 

of public service on behalf of our great Nation. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Delaware. 

Mr. CARPER. Mr. President, our colleagues know the Presiding Officer is a recovering Governor, I am a recovering 

Governor, MIKE JOHANNS is a recovering Governor. So we 

are sort of a support group for one another, men and women 

who used to be somebody special. I am kidding because I 

think we still are. 

The Senator was talking about MICHAEL, and I had the 

privilege of knowing him and his wife for a number of years. 

We were Governors together, and my wife Martha and his 

wife Stephanie were First Ladies together and define what 

the standards should be for First Lady or First Man, if you 

will, if you have a female Governor. 

I will never forget when I first met him. I was talking 

about Stephanie and how we know each other and so forth, 

and he told me this great story about—I think they were 

county commissioners together. It was Lancaster County. 

I might be mistaken, I think he used to be in those days 

maybe a Democrat, and a long time ago I was a young Republican for Barry Goldwater, when I was a 17-year-old ReVerDate Aug 31 2005 16:23 Jun 22, 2015 Jkt 091900 PO 00000 Frm 00033 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 H:\DOCS\BYEBYE\BYEBYE14\91905.TXT KAYNE
[ 20 ] 

publican freshman student at Ohio State, and later found 

out Hillary Clinton was a Goldwater ‘‘Golden Girl’’ at the Republican Convention in 1964. 

In any event, I just want to say one of the reasons he is 

so thoughtful, and I hope maybe the reason I am fairly 

thoughtful, is because we have the ability to work across the 

aisle and to see and appreciate the views of other people. 

The story about how he and Stephanie, when they were on 

county council together, they met, started liking each other, 

started dating, fell in love and later got married—they even 

had lunch together every day they were on county council, 

and every day he was Governor they continued to have lunch 

together and here, too, for many days. That is a love, the 

kind you just don’t see. You just don’t see that very much. 

I just want to say: You are such an inspiration to the rest 

of us, you and your wife, the way you cherish each other and 

hold together and support each other and stand by each 

other. It is just a real source of inspiration. 

There is an old saying: It doesn’t matter who gets credit 

for something when you get a lot more done. You define that, 

a guy who doesn’t need headlines, a lot of attention. I hope 

the rest of us are that way, but you define that for us. 

We love working with you. We are going to miss you. We 

wish you the best and wish you Godspeed. As we say in the 

Navy, fair winds. God bless you. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oregon. 

Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, I am here to talk about the 

Intelligence Committee report, but before the Senator leaves 

the floor, I just want to tell my colleague from Nebraska how 

much I appreciate his service. I note for the body that in the 

effort to build a bipartisan coalition for major tax reform, 

MIKE JOHANNS was the Senator whose counsel we all 

thought we needed, and I thank him. 

Mr. REED. Mr. President, I would like to take a few minutes to salute my colleagues who are departing the Senate 

at the end of this year with the conclusion of the 113th Congress: Mark Begich of Alaska, Saxby Chambliss of Georgia, 

Tom Coburn of Oklahoma, Kay Hagan of North Carolina, 

Tom Harkin of Iowa, MIKE JOHANNS of Nebraska, Tim Johnson of South Dakota, Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, Carl 

Levin of Michigan, Mark Pryor of Arkansas, Jay Rockefeller 

of West Virginia, Mark Udall of Colorado, and John Walsh 

of Montana. 

[ 21 ] 

They have all worked hard, ceaselessly giving their energy 

and considerable time and service to their constituents, to 

their home States and to our country. I want to thank them 

for their service and for their kindness to me over many 

years in so many cases. In particular, I want to say a few 

words about these colleagues. . . . 

I have been proud to work with MIKE JOHANNS, an extraordinary Senator and an extraordinary gentleman, on a 

number of issues. We were particularly happy—both of us— 

when the HAVEN Act was incorporated into the pending 

version of the National Defense Authorization Act. This legislation will allow disabled and low-income veterans the 

ability to finance improvements to their homes so they are 

safer and more accessible. We also worked together on 

healthy housing efforts and to reduce lead hazards. This is 

consistent with so many things he has done, particularly 

with respect to veterans. Again, I wish him the best as he 

goes forward. . . . 

Along with all of my other colleagues who are leaving us 

at the conclusion of the 113th Congress, let me thank them 

for their service, their dedication to improving the lives of 

Americans, and on a very personal level for their friendship. 

I wish them all well. 

WEDNESDAY, December 10, 2014 

Mr. REED. . . . Before I conclude with my remarks regarding the traditional defense programs, I want to touch on two 

other aspects of the legislation, one in particular with respect to the defense act. I am pleased that it includes the 

HAVEN Act. This is bipartisan legislation that I introduced 

with Senator JOHANNS to help more veterans with critical repairs and modifications for their homes so they are safer and 

more accessible. 

This program is directed at our disabled and low-income 

veterans. They find themselves out of the service, they have 

benefits, but they have needs to fix their homes and this program will help them do that. It establishes a competitive 

pilot program allowing nonprofit organizations throughout 

the country to apply for grants administrated by the Department of Housing and Urban Development to help make key 

improvements to the houses of veterans with disabilities, or 

low-income veterans. 

[ 22 ] 

It is fitting we take this step to give back to those who 

have made a personal sacrifice for our Nation, and I am particularly delighted I was able to work with Senator JOHANNS. 

As I noted in my remarks yesterday, he is retiring, but his 

decency, integrity, intelligence, and commitment to his constituents and also to the men and women of the Armed 

Forces will be missed here. . . . 

Mr. DURBIN. I have some tributes here for my colleagues 

who are retiring, leaving the Senate. It is a lengthy list of 

tributes. . . . 

I want to say a word about three others on the other side 

of the aisle who are retiring: Saxby Chambliss of Georgia, 

Tom Coburn of Oklahoma, and MIKE JOHANNS of Nebraska. 

I got to know them when I gathered with one of these gangs, 

as they call them around here, to talk about deficit reduction. We spent more time together trying to explore the Federal budget in ways to reduce our deficit in a thoughtful 

manner so that we really got to know one another and respect one another. 

There is a world of difference in our political values and 

philosophies, but each of them in their own way made a positive contribution toward making this a stronger nation. . . . 

Finally, here is a suggestion for when you have watched 

all of the ‘‘shouting head’’ political TV talk shows you can 

take: Listen to Senator MIKE JOHANNS. MIKE’s quiet, reasonable approach was a real asset not only to the Gang of Eight 

negotiations, but to the entire Senate. We will miss his calm 

demeanor and his good-faith efforts to find smart, fair solutions to tough challenges. 

None of them is running for reelection so I can’t hurt them 

politically by saying that I regard each of these Senators as 

friends. They showed political courage when partisanship 

would have been easier. 

I wish them the best in all their future endeavors. 

Mr. COONS. . . . As I close, I would also like to thank those 

of our colleagues who will be leaving the Senate after the 

New Year. 

It is an incredible privilege to work in this Chamber and 

to represent the people. Every day I am awed by the dedication and talent of many of my colleagues, public servants 

who come to work to fight for their States and their government. 

To those who are ending their service in the Senate, know 

that I value your friendship and partnership. It has been an 

[ 23 ] 

honor to work with you, and I thank you for all you have 

done for our Nation. 

Ms. AYOTTE. Mr. President, I rise to thank my friend 

Saxby Chambliss. Senator Coburn spoke about leadership. 

We are very much going to miss Senator Coburn, Senator 

JOHANNS, and Senator Chambliss in this body. . . . 

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, in the new Congress we will 

welcome 12 new Republican Senators, and that is wonderful. 

They are great people. They are excited. They are enthusiastic. I think they are going to do wonderful things. We are 

going to lose 3 of our Republican colleagues. I am thinking, 

maybe that is about the right ratio; it is about 4 to 1. 

But these are three individuals who are unbelievable in 

what they have been able to do in the relationships they 

built, the friendships, and the work they have done on behalf 

of the American people. So I am looking at that statistic and 

I am thinking: Wow, these are three great people who have 

done the work of many, and I think they have laid the foundation in many ways for us to get to a majority: Senator 

JOHANNS, Senator Coburn, and Senator Chambliss. I think 

they have done a lot of that work required for us to get to 

majority. 

We have heard about the great Senator from Georgia. But 

I think the things I am going to talk about for a minute in 

regard to Saxby Chambliss apply to the two individuals sitting here with him. They are cut from the same cloth: Senator Coburn, Senator JOHANNS, true public servants. People 

who ran for the right reason; people who serve for the right 

reason. I think we could ask anybody in this body on either 

side of the aisle, and they would tell us that these three individuals served for the right reasons, and served the American people to the very best of their ability—not just the people of their State, but the American people. They will be remembered long after they are gone. They will be remembered because of the great, wonderful people they are, for the 

relationships they have built, and for that service. So I echo 

Senator Ayotte’s comments. 

Senator Coburn touched on it, too. One of the first people 

I looked to as a mentor when I came here 4 years ago was 

Saxby Chambliss. Now, that doesn’t seem intuitively like 

something I would do—I am from North Dakota, he is from 

Georgia. MIKE JOHANNS has been a mentor of mine since 

Governor days, so for more than a decade. But one of the 

first people I looked to as a mentor was Saxby Chambliss, 

[ 24 ] 

and I don’t even know why. It was one of those things that 

immediately you like the guy. But as you listened to him a 

little bit, you respected the guy. You thought: This guy has 

something to say. He knows what he is doing. But then, it 

is that relationship thing—that thing where he goes out of 

his way to work with you, to help you, to understand what 

you are trying to do in a friendly way, with great humor, and 

he does it naturally. It is just who he is. It is automatic. I 

think Senator Isakson really put his finger on it: It is just 

the way he is. You are naturally drawn to him. . . . 

When we talk about Saxby Chambliss, Tom Coburn, MIKE

JOHANNS, it doesn’t get any better than that. We will miss 

them a lot. 

I wish all three of them Godspeed, and may God bless you 

in your next career. 

Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, as the current session of Congress comes to a close it is our tradition to take a moment 

to express our appreciation for the faithful service of those 

of our colleagues who will be returning home at the end of 

the year. We appreciate their hard work and great service on 

behalf of their home States and our Nation. We will miss 

them and the thoughtful suggestions and good ideas they 

have brought to our deliberations on the issues before us. 

The word ‘‘service’’ brings to mind one of our retiring colleagues, MIKE JOHANNS. MIKE has followed a path that has 

brought him from his service as the mayor of Lincoln, to his 

post as the Governor of Nebraska, on to serve in the President’s Cabinet as Secretary of Agriculture and then on to the 

floor of the U.S. Senate. He has made important contributions at each post and now, as he has decided with the support and guidance of his family, ‘‘it is time to close this chapter in his life.’’ 

As a former mayor myself I have a great deal of regard for 

MIKE and his commitment to the people that he has served 

for many years. He has a great understanding of his home 

State of Nebraska and the workings of its State and local 

government. He understands the challenges that face his 

home State in the present, and the hopes and dreams of the 

people of Nebraska for the future. 

It did not take long to discover that MIKE is a workhorse, 

not a show horse. He is not someone to land on a weekend 

talk show every week talking about what needs to be done— 

he would rather be in committee or on the floor every day 

doing it. In everything he did MIKE always brought along an 

abundance of Nebraska common sense. He used that special 

[ 25 ] 

gift of his and his varied background as a starting point for 

finding common ground and a workable solution on a number of issues that would be acceptable to all. 

During his service in the Senate it has been good to have 

a neighbor to work with who understands agriculture and 

our rural way of life. He has been a great help in making 

the case clear to the Congress about the difference between 

living on a farm and living in a big city or town. 

That is why I will not be the only one who will miss him. 

Our rural communities in the West will miss his ability to 

understand the problems of rural America and what should 

be done to address them. 

MIKE has also been one to focus on the money side of each 

issue that came to the Senate. He knows how important it 

is for us to get a handle on our Nation’s finances to ensure 

that our children and grandchildren will not have to clean 

up the financial mess we are going to leave them if we are 

not careful. MIKE has said that our failure to act will cause 

our financial problems to appear sooner than we might 

think. 

I am sorry to see MIKE go when there is so much to be 

done that could use his understanding of the issues and his 

experience, as can be seen by the impact he has had on the 

local, State, and national level. 

Still we know where to find him whenever we could use 

some of his Nebraska-rooted common sense. Thanks, MIKE, 

for your service to the State of Nebraska and to our Nation. 

You can be proud of what you helped to accomplish and the 

seeds you planted that will lead to more accomplishments in 

the years to come. 

Thanks for your leadership and thanks for your friendship, 

too. Diana joins in sending our best wishes to you and our 

appreciation for all you have done. Please keep in touch with 

us. We will always be pleased to hear from you. 

Ms. HEITKAMP. Mr. President, I wish to honor my colleague from Nebraska, Senator MIKE JOHANNS, who is retiring from the Senate at the end of this year. Senator 

JOHANNS has been a friend since I started in the Senate, and 

I appreciate his willingness to work with me toward our 

shared goals. He is one of only two current Senators to have 

served as a Governor and Cabinet secretary, providing him 

with a tremendous amount of wisdom on how to get things 

done. It is his incredible knowledge and strong Midwestern 

work ethic that I admire most about him. 

[ 26 ] 

For more than 30 years, Senator JOHANNS has been a 

strong voice for the people of Nebraska. His first act in public service was in 1983 as a county board member in Lancaster County. He later went on to serve as both councilman 

and mayor of Lincoln. He would eventually become Governor 

of Nebraska and Secretary of Agriculture under President 

George W. Bush. Senator JOHANNS set no limits to his potential; readily serving in any capacity he could to make our 

great Nation a better place. 

Senator JOHANNS and I serve together on the Agriculture 

Committee and I greatly admired the thoughtfulness and expertise he brought to the negotiations on the farm bill. His 

knowledge as a former Agriculture Secretary was unmatched 

and ensured many improvements were made throughout the 

debate. Senator JOHANNS never forgot about our farmers and 

always kept his eye on providing them with the best possible 

outcome he could. 

We also had the privilege of working together on the Banking and Housing Committee. He and I worked together with 

a bipartisan group of committee members to draft and advance legislation reforming the housing finance system to 

protect the American taxpayer from another bailout and to 

guarantee that another housing crisis does not happen 

again. Once again, his voice on behalf of rural America during these talks was critical and something that I greatly appreciated. 

Senator JOHANNS has never been about taking credit or 

seeking the spotlight. He maintained a strong, hard work 

ethic throughout his time in the Senate and was one who 

was willing to cross the aisle to get things done. The American people expect that of their representatives, and Senator 

JOHANNS met those expectations on behalf of Nebraska. 

I will miss having him as my colleague in the Senate, but 

I also know that his wife and family will enjoy the free time 

they will have with him. I wish him happiness and success 

in the next chapter of his life. 

ORDER FOR PRINTING OF SENATE DOCUMENT 

Mr. BENNET. I ask unanimous consent that the tributes 

to retiring Senators be printed as a Senate document and 

that Senators be permitted to submit tributes until December 23, 2014. 

[ 27 ] 

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

FRIDAY, December 12, 2014 

Mr. GRAHAM. Mr. President, I will now speak very briefly 

about my retiring colleagues and then turn it over to the 

Senator from Florida. I promise I will be brief. 

Everybody will face retirement, voluntarily or involuntarily. There will be a last vote to cast and a last speech to 

make. Only God knows when that day comes because we are 

all just one car wreck away from ending our careers. 

To the retiring Members, I have had the pleasure of serving with you, and I know you all. You did what you thought 

was best for our country and your State, and what more 

could anyone ask? My good friend Mark Pryor, who tried to 

find common ground at a time when it is hard to find. Mary 

Landrieu, who would drill under the Capitol if she thought 

it would help American energy independence. We have good 

friends on the other side, and I will miss you, and I wish you 

well. But I would like very briefly to speak about four. . . . 

MIKE JOHANNS—he introduced me to Bono. I said, ‘‘Who is 

Bono?’’ I don’t follow that music that much, but I actually 

did know Bono. 

MIKE introduced me to Africa. He was the Secretary of Agriculture for the Bush administration, and he had a passion 

for the developing world, particularly Africa. Through MIKE

I got to know The One Foundation and the Gates Foundation. Through MIKE and Stephanie I have been to Africa 

many times, and you represent the best in our country. You 

are absolutely wonderful people. You will be missed. My way 

to repay you is to stay involved in the developing world. . . . 

To all of you, Godspeed. I wish you nothing but the best. 

I am fortunate enough to go into my third term. To my colleagues, as we go into the next Congress, let’s try to do better. I know we can. If we do, all boats will rise. 

Mr. HATCH. Madam President, I honor my colleague and 

friend MIKE JOHANNS. For many years, Senator JOHANNS

has worked tirelessly for the people of Nebraska, first at the 

local level, then at the State level as Governor, and most recently as senior Senator from Nebraska. MIKE is a kind and 

thoughtful man, and I have been grateful to serve with him 

these past 6 years. 

[ 28 ] 

Senator JOHANNS was born and raised in Osage, IA, where 

he grew up working on his family’s farm. After high school, 

he attended Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota and 

Creighton University School of Law. Following law school 

MIKE clerked on the Nebraska Supreme Court and then 

practiced law in Lincoln, NE, where he was a founding partner at Nelson, Johanns, Morris, Holdeman, and Titus. 

In 1983, Senator JOHANNS was elected to the Lancaster 

County Board. Five years later he won election to the Lincoln City Council, and then, 3 years after that, became 

mayor of Lincoln. MIKE followed his success in local politics 

with success in State politics. In 1998, he won his first term 

as Governor of Nebraska, and was reelected by a landslide 

4 years later. 

Senator JOHANNS entered national politics in 2004 when 

President George W. Bush asked him to serve as Secretary 

of Agriculture. Four years later he won election to the U.S. 

Senate from Nebraska, where he has served with distinction 

ever since. 

When he retires later this month, Senator JOHANNS will 

have spent more than 25 years as a public servant. I commend him for his service to the State of Nebraska and to the 

people of this Nation. 

Although his tenure in the Senate was brief, Senator 

JOHANNS wasted no time. His previous experience as Secretary of Agriculture proved indispensable as a member of 

the Senate Committee on Agriculture. To this committee, he 

brought expertise on farming issues unrivaled by other freshman Senators. He also served actively on the Banking Committee and was a member of the Senate’s Gang of Eight during budget negotiations in 2011. Throughout his service, 

Senator JOHANNS always had the best interests of the Nation 

at heart. 

Madam President, Senator JOHANNS is a good man who 

has served his country well. His retirement is well deserved. 

I wish him, his wife Stephanie, and their children the best 

going forward. 

MONDAY, December 15, 2014 

Mr. LEAHY. Madam President, it is not uncommon for 

Senators to leave this Chamber to serve in Cabinet positions. 

Senator MIKE JOHANNS, however, brought that executive 

branch experience with him when he was elected by the peoVerDate Aug 31 2005 16:23 Jun 22, 2015 Jkt 091900 PO 00000 Frm 00042 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 H:\DOCS\BYEBYE\BYEBYE14\91905.TXT KAYNE
[ 29 ] 

ple of Nebraska to represent them in the Senate. A former 

mayor, Governor, and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Senator 

JOHANNS has served at every level of government. 

While we have often supported competing proposals, we 

have found important and meaningful places to work together. Senator JOHANNS joined me in coauthoring legislation to improve the Food for Peace Program, helping to feed 

an additional 200,000 people in dire need. Serving on the Agriculture Committee together, we are both committed to 

farming, family farming, and supporting our Nation’s agriculture sectors and the people and communities that are part 

and parcel of farming and food production in America. Senator JOHANNS has also been an important advocate for veterans, working on programs to help returning soldiers find 

civilian employment. 

I wish Senator JOHANNS, his wife Stephanie, and their 

family the very best in this next chapter of their lives. 

TUESDAY, December 16, 2014 

Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, as we wind down the final 

days of the 113th Congress, it is a good time both to reflect 

on the past and to look toward the future. I have been very 

moved as I listened to the farewell speeches of our departing 

Senators, and I wish I had time to pay tribute to each one 

of them. They have all been wonderful colleagues, and I enjoyed working with and getting to know every one of them. 

I wish them all the very best in all their future endeavors. 

They will most certainly be missed. . . . 

Mrs. SHAHEEN. Mr. President, over three decades as a 

public servant, my friend and colleague Senator MIKE

JOHANNS of Nebraska has proven time and time again that 

politicians can be deeply principled while still recognizing 

the need to find common ground on the complex and difficult 

choices we must make as a nation. I believe this is a lesson 

that all former Governors carry with them after holding executive office, and Senator JOHANNS and I were often able to 

reach an understanding on that basis. 

Before coming to the Senate in 2009, MIKE JOHANNS had 

already built a distinguished record of public service as a 

county board member, city council member, mayor, and twoterm Governor of Nebraska. Senator JOHANNS also served for 

3 years in the White House Cabinet as Secretary of AgriVerDate Aug 31 2005 16:23 Jun 22, 2015 Jkt 091900 PO 00000 Frm 00043 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 H:\DOCS\BYEBYE\BYEBYE14\91905.TXT KAYNE
[ 30 ] 

culture to President George W. Bush. While leading the Department of Agriculture, Senator JOHANNS helped U.S. agriculture producers find new markets overseas, promoted expanded use of renewable fuels, and encouraged conservation 

of agricultural lands. Having played a key role in developing 

the farm bill passed by Congress in 2008, then-Secretary 

JOHANNS decided to return to legislating full time and successfully ran to represent Nebraska in the Senate. 

Senator JOHANNS’ time in Congress is best characterized 

by his low-key approach to the most high-profile and consequential issues of the day. He was one of the bipartisan 

Gang of Eight Senators who tackled the challenge of crafting 

a comprehensive Federal deficit reduction plan in 2011, and 

in 2013 we worked together on a bipartisan deal to reopen 

the Federal Government and avoid a default on our national 

debt. I was also very proud to work with Senator JOHANNS

on legislation to address the unacceptable trends in military 

sexual assault. Senator JOHANNS always brought the work 

ethic he developed growing up on a Nebraska farm to our 

business in the Senate, and for that and many other reasons 

I very much enjoyed working with him. 

Senator JOHANNS has given many years to public service, 

earning him the right to seek a bit of a break from the spotlight, and I wish him all the best in his retirement. 

Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I wish to celebrate and thank 

the 13 outgoing Senators who have worked tirelessly to represent their home States in the Senate: Senator Mark 

Begich, Senator Saxby Chambliss, Senator Tom Coburn, 

Senator Kay Hagan, Senator Tom Harkin, Senator MIKE

JOHANNS, Senator Tim Johnson, Senator Mary Landrieu, 

Senator Carl Levin, Senator Mark Pryor, Senator Jay Rockefeller, Senator Mark Udall, and Senator John Walsh. 

I have worked side by side with these men and women for 

years—some for decades—and witnessed first hand their extraordinary commitment to public service and to the people 

they so proudly represent. 

Even when we didn’t see eye to eye on every issue, I always deeply respected and admired their service to our Nation and their dedication to fight for what they believe in. 

It has been a privilege to serve alongside each and every 

one of these extraordinary colleagues. I will miss their leadership and their friendship, and I wish them all the best as 

they embark on the next chapter. 

Æ