Date: 1996-06-11
Speaker: BOB DOLE (republican)
Chamber: S

BOB DOLE has responded to the call of duty throughout all of his adult life. and we are all the richer for his dedication and his work. His life and his service have made a difference. American politics is a rough and tumble occupation. and we in this Chamber are all too familiar with the savagery. the criticism. the negativity that have so infected political life in our day. But there are times when politics must be put aside. and the honest. heartfelt contributions that we each and all make as servants of the people must be acknowledged. I congratulate the majority leader on his long and distinguished service in the Senate. and before that in the House of Representatives. and before that. in the Kansas Legislature. to which he was elected at the young age of 26. As one of his fellow Americans. I thank him for his service and his bravery during World War II. It has been a privilege and it has been a pleasure to work with Senator DOLE in the leadership positions given to both of us by our colleagues. first when he was majority leader and I was minority leader. and then when our roles were reversed. Senator DOLE and I are the only floor leaders An Senate history to move from majority leader to minority leader and then back again to majority leader. I guess it is a classic case of what comes around goes around. or what goes around. comes around. Often. I have pondered this turning of the Senate wheel. a continuing rotation of individuals of different temperaments and talents. of opposing beliefs and varied backgrounds. I have been honored to serve in the Congress of the United States for almost 44 years. I have witnessed the comings and I have witnessed the goings of many fine men and women. Some were extraordinary leaders. like Joe Martin. of Massachusetts. Sam Rayburn. of Texas. Lyndon Johnson. of Texas. Everett Dirksen. of Illinois. Hugh Scott. of Pennsylvania. and Howard Baker. of Tennessee. and Mike Mansfield. of Montana. who served as Senate majority leader for 16 years. Many made outstanding contributions to their country and were considered irreplaceable in their time. And yet our brief appearance upon the Senate stage is only temporary. It is applauded. remarked upon and then forgotten. washed away like footprints in the sand by the next turn of the wheel and the next wave of events. But through it all. the Senate endures and goes on like Tennysons brookforever. It is far. far greater than the sum of its 100 parts. Senator DOLE. in his four terms in the House and five in the Senate. has been a serious and successful legislator. He was the 1.645th person to have taken the oath of U.S. Senator. He has served as leader of his party in the Senate longer than any other Republican10 years. 11 months and 20 days. today. BOB DOLE has served longer as a Republican in Congre--35 years. 5 months and 8 days--than any other current Republican Member of the Senate and House. Additionally. he is the only Kansas Senator to have chaired the Senate Finance Committee. He has earned the respect of his colleagues. He has been a handson leader. often working personally with other Senators and staff to craft legislative compromises and solutions to difficult national questions. As Republican leader. both when he served as majority leader and as minority leader. he was always available to work on solutions to problems of both a national and international nature. He gave his time. including the hours spent away from the Chamber and the Hill. wrestling with those solutions. I have fond memories of the time that we worked together in the 100th Congress. when I served as majority leader and he was the minority leader. and we succeeded in crafting important legislation. including the landmark Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988. Together. we developed a new trade tool for the United States called "the super 301 law." which required annual reviews of foreign trade practices. the identification of priority foreign country practices against American products. and the triggering of automatic investigations against such countries practices. Senator DOLE has been particularly attentive and active in the foreign policy and national security areas. While we have not always agreed on specific policies. he has been a major contributor to our Nations policies regarding the Soviet Union before its collapse. arms control. Bosnia. and the Gulf war with Iraq. to name a few important examples. When he was majority leader in 1985 and I was minority leader. together we created the arms control observer group to monitor arms control negotiations and treaties with the Soviet Union. Together. we led a Senate delegation to the opening of United StatesSoviet arms control negotiations in Geneva that year. We also traveled together at the request of President Reagan to Moscow to celebrate the historic exchange of instruments by Presidents Reagan and Gorbachev ratifying the INF treaty. In the order of domestic policy. Senator DOLE has been a longtime central figure on farm legislation. He has amassed an impressive record of service on behalf of the disabled and the handicapped. He has particularly advanced the cause of handicapped children. While I have enjoyed working together with BOB DOLE. and sometimes have equally enjoyed working at odds with him on various issues. I am saddened that he is leaving the Senate. He will cast a long shadow as he goes. It isnt enough to say in our hearts That we like a man for his ways. It isnt enough that we fill our minds With psalms of silent praise. Nor is it enough that we honor a man As our confidence upward mounts. Its going right up to the man himself And telling him so that counts. So when a man does a deed that you really admire. Dont leave a kind word unsaid. In fear to do so will make him vain And cause him to lose his head. But reach out your hand and tell him. "Well done." And see how his gratitude swells. It isnt the flowers we strew on the grave. Its the word to the living that tells. And so I say to my friend. BOB DOLE. "Well done."