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[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 9 (Thursday, January 15, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Pages S593-S594]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

                          TRIBUTE TO SENATORS

                              John Sununu

  Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. Presdient, I have really enjoyed working with 
John Sununu.
  John Sununu grew up in Salem, NH, and is one of eight children. He 
was first introduced to public service at a young age, when his mother 
served as chairman of the local school board.
  John attended public schools, graduated from Salem High School, and 
received bachelor's and master's degrees in Mechanical Engineering from 
the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
  John also earned a master's degree in business administration from 
the Harvard Graduate School of Business.
  John Sununu first ran for public office in 1996, winning election in 
New Hampshire's 1st District and serving 3 terms in the U.S. House.
  In 2002, John defeated both an incumbent Senator and the sitting 
Governor to become the youngest Member of the U.S. Senate.
  As a Senator, John distinguished himself as an innovative legislator, 
bringing his extensive background in science, engineering, and small 
business to his work in Washington.
  Senator Sununu has been a staunch advocate for low taxes, smarter 
regulation, and civil liberties.
  Since he is still a young man at the age of 44, I suspect that we 
will be hearing a lot more from John Sununu in the years to come.
  I wish him well in his future endeavors.

                              Gordon Smith

  Mr. President, Gordon Smith has served the people of Oregon extremely 
well.
  Before coming to the U.S. Senate, he served as director of the family 
owned Smith frozen foods company in Weston, OR, where he created jobs 
and spurred economic growth.
  Gordon Smith entered politics with his election to the Oregon State 
Senate in 1992, and he became president of that body in 1995.
  Since winning election to the U.S. Senate in 1996, Senator Smith has 
worked with his colleagues on both sides of the aisle on critical 
issues.
  Senator Smith chaired the Special Committee on Aging, and he also 
served on the following Senate committees: Commerce, Science and 
Transportation, Energy and Natural Resources, Finance, and Indian 
Affairs.
  Senator Smith has also courageously led the effort to educate 
Americans on ways to prevent the tragedy of suicide of young men and 
women.
  In 2004, I was so proud when President Bush signed the Garrett Lee 
Smith Memorial Act, authorizing $82 million for suicide prevention and 
awareness programs at colleges.
  Because of his business experience, he was a Senate leader on issues 
and regulations that impede economic growth.
  Senator Smith also distinguished himself by championing rural 
Oregonians, including the many farmers and ranchers throughout the 
mountains and lake areas of his beautiful State.
  I thank Gordon Smith for his dedication and service, and I wish him 
well.

                              Ted Stevens

  Mr. Presdient, Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska has served in the U.S. 
Senate for 40 years, and is the longest-serving Republican Senator in 
history.
  On a personal note, I have enjoyed working with Senator Stevens, and 
it has been a true privilege to collaborate with him on some of the 
most important issues facing our great Nation--including energy, health 
care, and national defense.
  Senator Stevens' service to the United States didn't begin when he 
stepped inside this chamber. Rather, his service began decades 
earlier--during some of the most harrowing days of World War Two.
  Senator Stevens was part of the Greatest Generation who fought and 
won that global struggle for freedom--flying a C-47 in the China Burma 
India Theater.
  Incredibly, over 1,000 of Senator Stevens' fellow airmen died 
``flying the hump'' and elsewhere in the Chinese Burma India Theater--a 
sobering reminder of the high price of freedom.
  For his heroic efforts, Senator Stevens later received two 
Distinguished Flying Crosses and two Air Medals, as well as the Yuan 
Hai medal awarded by the Republic of China.
  After the war, Senator Stevens completed his education at UCLA and 
Harvard Law School, and then moved to Alaska, which was then a U.S. 
territory.
  In the city of Fairbanks, Senator Stevens practiced law for several 
years, until he came to Washington, DC, to serve in the Eisenhower 
administration, and also to lobby for Alaska's admittance into the 
Union--a mission that succeeded in 1959.
  When Senator Stevens returned to Alaska, he ran for--and won a seat 
in the Alaska House of Representatives, and later became House majority 
leader.
  Then, in December 1968, Governor Walter J. Hickel appointed him to 
fill a vacancy in the U.S. Senate.
  In 1970, the voters of Alaska ratified that choice by electing 
Senator Stevens to finish that term in a special election, and then re-
electing him six more times.
  Senator Stevens' achievements are legendary in this chamber--
including chairman of the Senate Rules Committee, the Appropriations 
Committee, the Commerce Committee and President pro tempore of the U.S. 
Senate--from January 2003 to January 2007.

[[Page S594]]

  For his many decades of service, Senator Stevens has received and 
accepted numerous honors--including having the Anchorage International 
Airport named after him.
  Back in 1993, when I first arrived in the U.S. Senate, I was one of 
only seven female Senators, and if the Senate was a men's club, then 
the Appropriations Committee was its inner sanctum.
  There was not a single woman on the Defense Appropriations 
Subcommittee, but that is where I wanted to serve.
  I explained to Senator Stevens--who was then the ranking member of 
the committee--that Texas has more Army soldiers than any other State, 
more Air Force airmen and women stationed in Texas than any other 
State, and our defense industry builds everything from fighter aircraft 
to Army trucks to artillery systems to sophisticated electronics 
equipment for the Pentagon.
  Therefore, I hoped to be able to serve on that committee.
  After some careful thought, Senator Stevens agreed, and welcomed me 
to the Committee.
  Senator Stevens has been known to show dramatic performances on the 
Senate floor, keeping wandering eyes focused on the urgent issues that 
need to be addressed.
  One day, during a mark-up in the Senate Appropriations Committee, 
Senator Stevens, who chaired the committee at the time, grew very 
animated and laid down the law.
  When a frustrated senior Senator told Senator Stevens that ``there 
was no reason to lose your temper,'' Senator Stevens glared back and 
responded, ``I never lose my temper. I always know exactly where I left 
it.''
  Senator Stevens acknowledges his quick temper; but those who know him 
see the other side--a compassionate heart.
  I will never forget when a group of protestors gathered outside of 
the Appropriations Committee conference to demand increased funding for 
breast cancer research.
  One particularly agitated advocate got in Senator Stevens' face and 
said, ``If men were dying of breast cancer, you wouldn't think twice 
about increasing the funding.''
  Needless to say, those words made quite an impact on Senator Stevens, 
but probably not what this advocate anticipated.
  When Senator Stevens walked back into the conference, he repeated the 
charge and then looked around at his mostly male colleagues.
  He knew that at least 6 of them suffered from prostate cancer.
  He also noticed that the bill they were considering didn't fund 
prostate cancer research.
  But thanks to the excellent suggestion of the woman in the hallway, 
he became an advocate for breast cancer research and prostate cancer 
research. Senator Stevens became a leader on these issues.
  He has been a champion of a strong national defense and of the men 
and women who serve in the military.
  I wish him and his family the best.

                          ____________________
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