[Senate Document 114-19]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
TRIBUTES TO HON. BARBARA BOXER
Barbara Boxer
U.S. SENATOR FROM CALIFORNIA
TRIBUTES
IN THE CONGRESS OF
THE UNITED STATES
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
S. Doc. 114-19
Barbara Boxer
Tributes
Delivered in Congress
Barbara Boxer
United States Congresswoman
1983-1993
United States Senator
1993-2017
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
WASHINGTON : 2017
Compiled under the direction
of the
Joint Committee on Printing
CONTENTS
Biography.............................................
v
Farewell Address......................................
ix
Proceedings in the Senate:
Tributes by Senators:
Boozman, John, of Arkansas.....................
31
Boxer, Barbara, of California
............................................
7, 13, 14, 15
Cardin, Benjamin L., of Maryland...............
8
Casey, Robert P., Jr., of Pennsylvania.........
8, 30
Collins, Susan M., of Maine....................
22
Durbin, Richard J., of Illinois................
18
Enzi, Michael B., of Wyoming...................
24
Feinstein, Dianne, of California...............
20
Hirono, Mazie K., of Hawaii....................
29
Inhofe, James M., of Oklahoma..................
13, 14
Isakson, Johnny, of Georgia....................
17
Klobuchar, Amy, of Minnesota...................
28
Leahy, Patrick J., of Vermont..................
24
McConnell, Mitch, of Kentucky..................
11, 28
Mikulski, Barbara A., of Maryland..............
15, 26
Peters, Gary C., of Michigan...................
30
Portman, Rob, of Ohio..........................
32
Reed, Jack, of Rhode Island....................
23
Reid, Harry, of Nevada.........................
3
Stabenow, Debbie, of Michigan..................
16
BIOGRAPHY
A forceful advocate for families, children, consumers,
the environment, and her State of California, Barbara
Boxer became a U.S. Senator in January 1993 after 10 years
of service in the House of Representatives and 6 years on
the Marin County Board of Supervisors. In November 2010,
she was reelected to her fourth term in the Senate.
A national leader on environmental protection, Senator
Boxer was the ranking member on the U.S. Senate's
Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW).
Senator Boxer was also the ranking member of the Senate
Select Committee on Ethics. She was a senior member of the
Senate Foreign Relations Committee, where she chaired the
first subcommittee ever to focus on global women's issues.
Senator Boxer was also a member of the Democratic
leadership in the Senate, serving as the chief deputy whip
since 2005.
In 2012, as chairman of the Environment and Public Works
Committee, she led efforts to pass a bipartisan
transportation bill that would save or create nearly 3
million jobs nationwide. In 2010, she spearheaded the
effort in the Senate to extend the highway trust fund to
help protect 1 million jobs in transportation nationwide.
A leader in efforts to improve America's infrastructure,
she secured passage of the Water Resources Development
Act, which authorized $1.3 billion for 54 flood control,
ecosystem restoration, and navigation projects in
California. The bill had languished for 6 years until she
led the fight to pass it and override a veto by President
George W. Bush.
Senator Boxer won numerous awards for her efforts to
create a cleaner, healthier environment and for her
dedicated work to address the threats of climate change.
She fought to remove arsenic from drinking water and
authored an amendment ensuring that drinking water
standards protect children. She led efforts in Congress to
protect California's coast from offshore oil drilling and
fought to end the unethical use of human subjects in
pesticide testing by Federal agencies.
A champion of quality public education, Senator Boxer
wrote landmark legislation establishing the first-ever
Federal funding for afterschool programs. Her law covers
1.6 million children. She continued to work to expand
afterschool programs nationwide as chair of the Senate
Afterschool Caucus.
To ensure that future generations of Californians will
be able to enjoy our natural heritage, Senator Boxer wrote
laws designating more than 1 million acres of California
wilderness. She wrote the Senate bill that elevated
Pinnacles National Monument into America's 59th national
park. She helped champion the creation of the Fort Ord
National Monument and Cesar Chavez National Monument, as
well as efforts to expand the Gulf of the Farallones and
Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuaries. She also
authored the California Missions Preservation Act to
protect and restore California's 21 historic missions, and
led the effort in the Senate to create the Manzanar
National Historic Site.
To protect children from dangerous toys, Barbara Boxer
authored a provision in the 2008 consumer product safety
commission law requiring children's products sold over the
Internet to list cautionary warnings in their
advertisements. She also led efforts to protect children
from lead and other dangerous chemicals.
Senator Boxer was a champion of airline passengers'
rights, and her legislation with Senator Olympia Snowe (R-
ME) to protect passengers from being stuck on planes for
hours without food, water, or access to restrooms, became
the centerpiece of Department of Transportation rules that
have reduced tarmac delays nationwide.
In 2010, she founded the Senate Military Family Caucus
to help address the challenges faced by families of U.S.
servicemembers who sacrifice so much for our country. She
worked to establish the West Coast Combat Care Center in
San Diego to ensure that severely wounded servicemembers
in the West have access to the highest quality care. She
also helped create the Defense Task Force on Mental Health
and secured millions in Federal funding to improve medical
care for severely burned soldiers.
Senator Boxer wrote the United States-Israel Enhanced
Security Cooperation Act, which President Obama signed
into law in July 2012, reaffirming our country's special
relationship with Israel and strengthening economic and
security cooperation between the two nations.
She was the author of the Syria Accountability Act,
which strengthened sanctions against Syria over the
country's support for terrorism. She also wrote a
bipartisan measure to ensure that POWs who died in
captivity would be eligible to receive the Purple Heart.
In response to the September 11 attacks, Senator Boxer
wrote the law requiring that air marshals be on board
high-risk flights and the law allowing airline pilots with
special training to carry guns in the cockpit.
A strong supporter of the 1994 crime bill, she worked to
fund antigang programs, pass the Violence Against Women
Act (VAWA), and the Community Policy ``COPS'' Program. Her
bill to prevent the criminal use of personal information
obtained through motor vehicle records was signed into law
and upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court.
A leading defender of a woman's right to choose, Senator
Boxer helped lead the floor fight for passage of the
Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act. In the Senate,
she fought back against repeated attacks on women's health
and a woman's right to privacy.
A strong proponent of life-saving medical research,
Senator Boxer wrote bipartisan legislation to accelerate
America's contribution to combat global HIV/AIDS and
tuberculosis.
In 2010, she wrote a measure to end taxpayer bailouts of
Wall Street by ensuring that financial firms--not
taxpayers--will pay all the costs of liquidating failing
Wall Street firms. She also cowrote legislation to
increase lending to small businesses through community
banks.
Senator Boxer has worked to revitalize the economy by
supporting targeted tax cuts, a permanent research and
development tax credit, accelerated depreciation of new
business equipment, and tax credits for broadband
investments focused on rural and underserved areas.
To help homeowners defend against foreclosure, Senator
Boxer wrote a measure requiring that homeowners be alerted
within 30 days if their lender sells or transfers their
home mortgage loan. She wrote a bipartisan measure to
ensure that banks cannot act as real estate brokers to
prevent conflicts of interest. Additionally, in October
2011, the Obama administration announced new efforts based
on the bipartisan Boxer-Isakson Helping Responsible
Homeowners Act to help homeowners who are current on their
loans to refinance at historically low rates. These
changes, along with others taken from the Menendez-Boxer
Responsible Homeowners Refinancing Act, have helped over 1
million borrowers save thousands of dollars a year on
their mortgages.
Senator Barbara Boxer met her husband of over 50 years,
Stewart Boxer, at Brooklyn College. The couple moved to
California in 1965 to raise their two children, Doug and
Nicole. They have been blessed with four grandchildren--
Zachary, Zain, Sawyer, and Reyna.
Farewell to the Senate
Wednesday, December 7, 2016
Mrs. BOXER. Madam President, this is a moment for me
that, I think it is fair to say, I will never ever forget.
I am so honored. I am so honored to have members of my
family here, staff from past and present from both my
personal office and committee, extraordinary colleagues
whom I adore and love, whom I worked with, fought with,
and debated. I am so honored that Senator McConnell and
Senator Reid have said really nice things about me. I
think, in Senator Reid's case, we go back so long, and I
will talk a little bit more about that. In Senator
McConnell's case, we didn't talk for a long time, and then
we did get together and we did some great work together.
But I think he was here just to make sure I am leaving. My
leader over in the House is here--Nancy Pelosi. I will
talk about her more. My colleagues from the House came
over in the midst of all their work. I love them. I have
enjoyed working with them.
I look around this Chamber, and I realize the reason I
am able to actually leave is because I know each of you
and your passion to make life better for people, and that
is what it is all about.
When I decided not to run for reelection, you know how
the press always follows you around. They said: ``Is this
bittersweet for you?''
My answer was forthcoming: ``No way is it bitter. In
every way it is sweet.''
Why do I feel that way? It is because this has been a
dream, to be in a profession that I think is noble, no
matter how beaten up it gets, for 40 years--for more than
half my life--and I was able to do every day what I always
wanted to do, which is simply to make life better for
people. I didn't always succeed. Were there frustrations?
Yes. Were there disappointments? Yes. Were there defeats?
Yes, many, but every morning when I woke up, I knew I had
a chance to do something good.
As a first generation American on my mother's side,
and, most particularly, as a woman, I never in my wildest
dreams imagined that I could be in the U.S. Senate. It was
an uphill battle, and I know I speak for a lot of people
sitting right here who know what I am talking about.
When I first ran for the Marin County Board of
Supervisors in 1972, it was a Republican landslide year.
It was more than tough. I will never forget one woman I
spoke with after knocking on her door. I introduced myself
and said, ``Hi, I am Barbara Boxer. I am running for
county supervisor.''
She greeted me by saying, ``I never thought you would
be so short.'' Then, she said she wasn't supporting me
because, ``You have four kids, and you are going to
neglect them if you are elected.''
Well, never mind that this was a part-time job just a
few minutes from the house. Never mind that the man I was
running against had a family and a full-time job. Never
mind that I actually had two kids, but she insisted. She
said, ``I know you have four kids because I read it in the
newspaper.''
I said, ``Lady, when you give birth, you never forget
it, and I did it twice.''
Well, I lost that seat, but two things helped get me
through it. The first was an article by Gloria Steinem,
who essentially said women tend to take losses too
personally. We have to understand that we could be just a
little bit ahead of our time, and we can't give up.
Second, my son Doug, only seven at the time, ignored
any attempts to cheer me up by saying, ``Mom, can you make
me a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch?''
The point is that life goes on no matter how deep the
disappointments. You pick yourself up, and you keep
fighting because this is your country. It is our country,
and it is worth fighting for. I ran again 4 years later
and won. I was eager to get to work on issues such as:
afterschool for kids; protecting the natural beauty of my
county; and ensuring that a child walking to school would
be safe. I put up so many stop signs to protect kids that
I soon became known as the ``Stop Sign Queen.''
It was local government, and the world was changing.
The Vietnam war was raging. The women's movement was
ramping up. The oil companies wanted to drill off the
pristine coast of California. Even from my position as a
local county supervisor representing only 40,000 people, I
was exposed to these national issues that would soon
require all of my attention.
Tip O'Neill, one of Nancy Pelosi's great predecessors,
was known for his saying that ``All politics is local,''
but the global became local when Marin County got a
Federal grant saying the threat of nuclear attack is real,
and you have to have a plan to evacuate the county in case
there is a bomb dropped in San Francisco. This was in the
1980s.
The Reagan administration, I think, missed the obvious.
Getting in a car on a narrow road to evacuate to Napa or
going under your desk was not going to protect you, so all
five supervisors--three Republicans and two Democrats--
rejected the grant. Instead, we mailed an informational
booklet to every household, telling them there was no way
to evacuate from a nuclear bomb; you have to prevent it in
the first place.
During that same period, James Watt wanted to drill off
the coast of California. We put together business people,
environmentalists, farmers, and we said no. The tourist
industry joined us, and we stopped it.
That was my first attempt at very broad coalition
building. As national issues unfolded before my eyes, I
had to do more if I really wanted to stay true to making
life better for people.
When John Burton's seat for Congress opened up in 1982,
I jumped in. It was a long shot. I will always be grateful
to the people who brought me to that dance: working
people, environmentalists, children's advocates. They put
me over the top.
After I won that election, I began hearing about the
mysterious disease that was stealing the lives of so many
in my congressional district. I remember feeling so
helpless because we didn't know what it was and what
caused it. One thing was clear: AIDS was devastating, and
too many in Washington were not taking action.
When we found out it could be transmitted sexually, I
had to go up against the far rightwing who didn't want to
provide any information about the disease. Yet here I was,
a middle-aged mother of two from the suburbs, talking
about condoms. It was uncomfortable, but this would become
my way. In the face of a crisis, never look away, never
back down, and never be afraid.
In the case of AIDS, I got to work with the chairman of
the House Appropriations Committee, a Southern gentleman.
He had never heard of AIDS. He said to me: ``If people are
sick, then we must help.'' We got the first double-digit
Federal AIDS funding, and we established an AIDS Task
Force and brought in people such as Elizabeth Taylor and
Elizabeth Glaser, and we fought back. We took it under our
wing to solve this crisis--both adult AIDS and pediatric
AIDS.
By that time, I had an extraordinary new partner in the
House, Nancy Pelosi. We immediately bonded. I was so
impressed with her passion and her energy. We remain the
dearest of friends to this day. I am so proud of her.
Nancy has changed the face of politics in America, and she
will go down in history as one of the most influential
leaders of our time.
Recently--on a recent issue--I was expressing deep
disappointment, and Nancy told me: ``Don't agonize.
Organize!'' This was 2 nights ago. She is right. When
things get tough, that is what you do.
Over the years, the issues kept coming my way and came
the way of a lot of people in this room: the Violence
Against Women Act, LGBT equality, protecting a woman's
right to choose, workers' rights, protecting the Clean Air
Act and the Clean Water Act, and the Safe Drinking Water
Act. Those are all examples. These fights continue, and
they keep coming whether you are in elected office or not.
They come to you if you are a single parent trying to
raise a child and struggling to make ends meet on a
minimum wage that is not fair. They come to you if your
kid gets asthma. They come to you if your job has been
outsourced and you have nowhere to turn. They come to you
when college tuition gets out of reach.
Whether it is happening to you or someone else, the
great thing about our participatory democracy is each of
us has a chance to make a difference. You can make a
difference by holding an elected office or working for
someone who does. You can make a difference by working for
a campaign. You can make a difference by starting a
business and employing good people to help you build it.
You can make a difference by becoming a teacher, a nurse,
a firefighter, or a police officer.
There are so many noble ways to make a difference in
America. The one thing you cannot do, even when it is
tempting: You cannot turn away--never. The forces and the
people who shape you cannot be ignored. I say to everybody
within the sound of my voice that you have it within you
to step out and make your mark.
A lot of young people come up to me and say, ``I would
love to do what you do. How do I become a U.S. Senator?''
I am sure a lot of us get that question.
I always say, ``It is not important to be something; it
is important to do something.''
If you choose my path and the path of many in this
room, I want to be clear: You will need mentors and you
will need friends like two of mine--John Burton and
Barbara Mikulski. John encouraged me to run for the House,
where he had always been a fighter for those without a
voice.
Barbara had been my friend in the House and encouraged
me to run for the Senate. When I went to see her, she
said, very simply, ``Go for it.'' That and $40 million--
that was good advice. I did. Senator Mikulski is
everything a Senator should be. She is intelligent,
caring, always focused, and as an added bonus, she can
have you in stitches. I am so grateful for her guidance
and, most important, her friendship.
I launched my campaign for the Senate. It was very
difficult. No one predicted I would win. I was less than
an asterisk in the polls. I was filled with doubt. Coming
to my aid was my senior Senator, Dianne Feinstein. She
stood by my side, even though it could have cost her
votes. I will never, ever forget that. Thank you, Dianne.
I also need to pay tribute to Anita Hill because
without her, I never would have been elected to the
Senate. Anita Hill courageously told her story to the all-
male U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, breaking the silence
on this painful issue. In addition, people saw there were
only two women in the Senate.
Anita Hill, you showed us all that we must never be
afraid to take on the powerful. It certainly isn't easy,
but if you learn to be tough in the right way, you can
find the sweet spot, even in this atmosphere where the
parties have grown so far apart. This is one of my biggest
regrets--how far the parties have grown apart, especially
when it comes to the environment.
Remember, Richard Nixon created the Environmental
Protection Agency. He signed the Clean Air Act, the Clean
Water Act, and the Endangered Species Act. George H.W.
Bush signed the extension of the Clean Air Act. Many
Republicans led the charge for environmental protection.
Now, unfortunately, protecting the environment has become
a divide where we truly duke it out.
As I leave here, I intend to do everything in my power
to work to bridge that divide because we all live on one
planet. It doesn't matter what party we are. We all
breathe the same air. We all want our families to be
healthy and live on a planet that can sustain us and all
of God's creations. In this time of deep division, we have
to find areas to work together.
I think I found a proven formula in my relationship
with my friend and chairman of the Environment and Public
Works Committee, Senator Jim Inhofe. We never surprise
each other, even where we disagree--ever. Our word is our
bond to each other. We found that we could work as a
winning team to build and strengthen our Nation's
infrastructure, and we have made incredible progress for
the American people on those issues--long-term highway
bills, long-term water bills and the first update on the
Toxic Control Act. That was a doozy for us. I will never
forget that battle.
Transportation turned out to be a sweet spot between
Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and me. We hadn't talked
seriously for 20 years because of the Packwood case. It
was: Hello, hello. That was it. But we did come together
to save the highway trust fund at an urgent time.
Our work together surprised so many of our colleagues,
but I think it surprised the two of us more than anything
else. It worked because we set aside all of our past
legitimate divisions in order to rescue America's
transportation system. We took a risk, and the risk paid
off. Of course, all of my colleagues helped make that
possible.
Also, I want to mention my Republican counterpart on
the Ethics Committee, Senator Johnny Isakson, because when
it comes to ethics, we have proven there is no room for
partisanship. All we want to do is make sure the Senate is
a respected institution. Friendship and trust with Members
on both sides and in the House of Representatives--I am so
proud so many of you are here--that is the only way to get
things done.
Having a leader who has your back is essential. A good
leader knows and understands each member of his caucus and
where they draw the line. Harry is so humble. Whenever you
talk about him, he puts his head down.
Harry, could you just look at me for a second?
A good leader knows when to speak up and when to
listen. A good leader knows when to pick up the gloves and
fight like hell. That is what Harry Reid has done. He is
not a show horse; he is a workhorse.
He is a soft-spoken man. How many of us have to say,
``Harry, could you speak up?'' He is a soft-spoken man of
a few words, but he chooses his words wisely, and he
chooses his fights wisely. He doesn't seek the spotlight.
When it comes to standing up for what is right, he is
right there when others try to slip out of the room.
Harry has not only been an extraordinary leader and
colleague, he and his wife, Landra, have been close and
treasured friends of me and my husband, Stewart. I call
him the brother I never had, and he calls me the sister he
never had. He treats me like a sister; he always hangs up
on me when I call him. He never calls on me when I madly
wave my hand at caucus. You know, I am like a sister. You
don't have to worry, the love will be there. I am forever
grateful for his leadership and his friendship.
Another quality of Harry Reid is that he encouraged
women to run for the Senate. Once we got here, he made
sure we had major responsibilities. Harry, you will go
down in history for that.
I am, of course, ecstatic that my successor is Kamala
Harris, who served as attorney general for my State with
great distinction and who will continue the tradition of
having a strong, progressive woman in this seat.
Kamala, you heard it here--a strong, progressive woman
in this seat is what we need.
As I wind down my remarks, I must be completely honest
about my broken heart. I worked hard, along with so many
millions of Americans, so that we would have our first
female President. It was not to be this time, but we made
history with Hillary Clinton, the first female nominee of
a major party, who, I might add, won the popular vote by
millions and still counting. She truly shattered the glass
ceiling and showed that women had the ability to take it
on the chin again and again.
My message to everyone who supported Hillary is, the
work goes on. Yes, you build on success and you learn from
failure, but you never stop working for human rights,
civil rights, women's rights, voting rights, children's
rights, and the environment. I certainly don't plan to
stop.
I am not only fortunate to have had this extraordinary
career, but I am also so fortunate to be going home to a
State that stands for everything I believe in.
I wish to thank every one of my staffers--those who
worked for me in Washington, either on my personal staff,
committee staff, those who worked for me in the State, and
those who helped me get elected. A lot of them are here
today. Without them, I never ever could have done my job,
and I never could have accomplished the things I have
accomplished that I am proud of.
I also wish to thank the floor staff. The floor staff
never gets thanked enough because they deal with us when
we are very nervous. They have to deal with us when we are
about to have an amendment come up or about to vote on
something and need to understand the rules and our rights.
To Gary and his team, Trish, Tim, and all of you--thank
you.
When I look back on everything I fought for, there are
more than a thousand accomplishments, and I am certainly
not going to talk about all of those, but I am going to,
briefly, very fast, go through 10 of my favorites. The
first afterschool programs that were funded by the Federal
Government, covering more than 1.6 million kids every day;
1 million acres of California wilderness preserved; the
first-ever comprehensive combat casualty care center in
California for our most wounded warriors; ensuring that
our transportation programs remain in place for years to
come with millions of jobs protected; upholding our
landmark environmental laws, and I hope that continues,
but I will not go off on that; setting clean drinking
water standards to protect pregnant women, children, and
other vulnerable people; the dolphin-safe tuna label;
protecting victims of rape in the military from
irrelevant, harassing questions that have already been
barred in civilian courts; establishing the first-ever
subcommittee to oversee global women's issues, which
Jeanne is going to carry on; and recommending a diverse
group of supremely qualified judicial nominees who are
carrying out our laws in California's Federal courts.
There are many more I could talk about, and we all know
this because each one of them is like a child to us and we
remember how hard it was to get it done, but let me be
clear, you don't get anything done here unless your
colleagues help you from both sides of the aisle.
My biggest regret is that I couldn't end the war in
Iraq. It hurt my soul. I came down to the floor every day
and read the names of fallen soldiers. I was accused of
being too emotional. I asked probing questions in
committee to expose the fact that we were in the middle of
a civil war. Day after day I made my case, but the war
went on. It took President Obama to finally end that war,
and I will always be grateful to him.
Of course, there is unfinished business, and I know my
colleagues are going to carry on. We must restore the
Voting Rights Act. We need to restore trust between our
communities and law enforcement. We have to continue to
protect and provide affordable health care. We must take
action on climate change or we are in deep trouble as
humankind. We must protect the DREAMers and immigrants who
contribute to our communities every day. We must raise the
minimum wage and ensure equal pay for equal work. We must
protect reproductive freedom and work across party lines
for a safe world.
I have often joked about some of the things that have
been said to me over the years that are too colorful, in a
negative way, to repeat here, but I want everyone to know,
whether friend or foe, whether critic or admirer, I do
appreciate the fact that you let me know how you felt
about my work one way or the other.
To close, I will read a handwritten letter I received
in October from one of the greatest jazz musicians in our
country, Sonny Rollins, into the Record. He was recently
honored at the Kennedy Center. He wrote in longhand the
following:
Greetings--so so sorry that we are not going to have you
for us anymore. I've always been interested in politics,
marching as a 6 year old with my activist grandmother for
civil rights. It has been such a joy and inspiration
knowing that Barbara Boxer was there for us.
God bless you, your family, and loved ones--And thank
you.
You will be missed and we all love you.
Have a beautiful life, just like you have made life
beautiful for so many citizens.
I wish to thank Sonny Rollins. I don't know him
personally. I met him once, but what he said is all I
wanted to do--make life beautiful for people. I didn't
always succeed. I didn't always prevail. I felt the pain
of losing many times, but I can honestly say I never
stopped trying. I was able to do it because of the love,
understanding, and support of my husband of 55 years,
Stewart, who is here today. He gave me so much, including
the best political name ever. I did it because of my son
Doug, my daughter Nicole, my daughter-in-law Amy, my son-
in-law Kevin, and four incredible grandchildren, Zach,
Zain, Sawyer, and Reyna, and because of the people of
California who sent me here time and time again--10 years
in the House and 24 years in the Senate. I had the
opportunity to never stop trying. I had the opportunity to
speak out, and no matter how many times I had to try, I
did. Here is the thing. I have this platform, which is an
extraordinary honor. This is a sacred position, and I say
to my colleagues that no matter who says what about it, it
is a sacred position. Hold your head high.
So many here have fought the good fight and will
continue to fight the good fight, and I will always
treasure my time serving the people. They gave me a
purpose in my life that I will always cherish. They made
me a better person. They made my life more beautiful than
I ever could have imagined, and for that I am forever
grateful.
I thank the Presiding Officer and yield the floor.
(Applause, Senators rising.)
TRIBUTES
TO
BARBARA BOXER
Proceedings in the Senate
Wednesday, November 30, 2016
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I have served in Congress now
for 34 years. Throughout that time, I have tried to be
pleasant and helpful to my colleagues. I feel very
fortunate to have become personally close and friends with
Members of Congress from all over this great country.
Barbara Boxer and I were members of the House class of
1982. Such fond memories do I have of that class--Tom
Carper, Dick Durbin, and scores of others. We had a huge
class.
At first glance, Barbara Boxer and Harry Reid had very
little in common. She was from California. It is a heavily
populated and liberal State. I was from Nevada, a much
smaller State in area and in population. I was the only
Democrat in my State's congressional delegation. I was
stunned when I was asked to join this huge California
congressional delegation. Being from Nevada and being part
of the largest congressional delegation in America was
extremely helpful to me.
The Californians were good to me in so many different
ways, just allowing me to be part of their meetings every
Wednesday morning. I was flattered when I was asked to be
secretary-treasurer of that large delegation. I have so
many memories of the work we did together, California and
Nevada.
Howard Berman, who was the leader of that freshman class
from California, was the head of the steering committee.
Don Edwards was the chairman of the delegation at those
meetings we had every morning. The Burton brothers and
just so many others went out of their way to help me.
I came to know quickly that Barbara Boxer was no
ordinary public servant. She was relentless--I mean
relentless--and dedicated and very principled. She was
raised by hard-working, first-generation immigrants in
Brooklyn, NY. She attended Brooklyn College, graduated
with a degree in economics. Over the decades, we have
gotten to know each other's families very well. We talk
about each other's children. We have exchanged family
experiences many times.
My favorite story of Barbara Boxer's family is the time
when she was a girl coming home from elementary school,
with her mom, from a window that was up high, yelling down
to her little daughter coming home from school--excitedly
yelling out the window of the upstairs apartment, ``Daddy
passed the bar. Daddy passed the bar.''
Barbara knew that her dad did not go to bars. But she
quickly learned from her excited mother that she was
talking about her dad having passed the very difficult New
York bar examination. I always remember that story.
In 1965, Barbara moved to northern California from
faraway New York. In California, they sat down their roots
and raised their two children, Doug and Nicole. Stew
became a very prominent lawyer and Barbara, a stockbroker.
It was in California where Barbara began to make her
mark very quickly as a trailblazer. In 1976, after having
been in California not very long, in that very big county,
part of the metropolitan area of San Francisco, she became
a member of the Marin County Board of Supervisors. She was
elected to that post. She quickly became the board's first
woman president.
Shortly thereafter in 1982, Barbara ran successfully for
Congress. Her campaign slogan tells us all you need to
know about her because that year her slogan was: ``Barbara
Boxer Gives a Damn.'' That was on all of her campaign
literature, posters, everything. So I guess with a slogan
like that, it should not be any surprise that she won
handily.
In 1992, she was elected to the Senate. She stood no
chance to win. Everybody told her that--all of the
editorials, not only of the California papers but all over
the country. Barbara Boxer was in with the big time, and
things were going to change for this upstart Member of the
House of Representatives. She had tried to move too
quickly. She should have stayed in the House, but she won
by a really nice margin. This surprised everybody except
her.
In 1992, she was elected to the Senate--the year that
was popularly referred to as the ``Year of the Woman,''
and rightfully so. She was part of the memorable class
that came here in 1982: Dianne Feinstein, Patty Murray,
Carol Moseley Braun, and, of course, the underdog, Barbara
Boxer.
In the Senate, Barbara and I have worked together on
matters of importance to Nevada, California, and our
Nation. I have watched Barbara Boxer lead on so many
important issues. I am going to name only a handful of
them. She worked to designate more than 1 million acres in
California as a wilderness, keeping that land in a
pristine condition for our children, our grandchildren,
and generations to come. I say ``our'' because the
wilderness in California or in Nevada does not belong to
California or Nevada, it belongs to the people of this
country. She fought for the Pinnacles National Monument to
become America's 59th national park. It became such.
She helped lead the fight to stop drilling in the Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge, and, of course, along the
California shoreline. She has spoken about that so many
times. It succeeded. We have had no oilspills on the coast
of California because of a number of reasons, but there is
no one more responsible for that nondegradation than
Barbara Boxer.
She advocated to eliminate government military waste as
a Member of the House of Representatives and the Senate.
It was her first breakthrough where she exposed the
outrageous, exorbitant cost of purchases made by the
military. She did that while she was in the House. Why was
she taking on the establishment? Well, that is who she is;
that is who she was.
She discovered that our military paid defense
contractors unbelievable amounts of money: for a hammer--a
claw hammer--$430; for a toilet seat, $640; for a
coffeemaker, $7,622. That is quite a coffeemaker. For an
aluminum ladder, which must have been one that would get
you over the fence that Trump is going to build between
Mexico and the United States, it cost $74,165.
It is legendary what she has done with the military.
Ever since she did that, the military was no longer
untouchable. Barbara Boxer proved that. She put an end to
all of the wasteful spending. Yes, she did--Barbara
Boxer--not all of it; some things slipped through the
cracks, but she sure headed everyone in the right
direction.
Maybe of lesser importance, but something we all watched
very carefully in the House--it did not happen overnight,
but she caused the all-male House gym to admit female
Members of Congress. She went up against some big people
to do that--the very well-known Dan Rostenkowski, the
chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, and others--but
she won.
Barbara and I have worked together to protect Lake
Tahoe. We share that. The States of California and Nevada
share that alpine glacial lake. There is only one other
lake like it in the world, and that is in Siberia, Lake
Baikal. We feel good about what we have been able to do to
promote the richness of this beautiful national treasure,
Lake Tahoe.
She has also promoted clean energy. I can remember her
going after a substance that was in gasoline to put in a
car that ruined the environment. She came out strongly
against that. Again, she prevailed. We no longer do that.
She has also done a lot to protect our public lands.
I mentioned just a little bit of what she has done. I
can say without any hesitation that Barbara Boxer has been
one of the best and most effective environmental leaders
in the history of this country. That says a lot. She has
made California and the entire country a cleaner,
healthier, and a better place, especially as chair and
ranking member of the Committee on Environment and Public
Works. I loved that committee. It was a committee I was
placed on when I first came to the Senate. I had the good
fortune to be chairman of that committee twice.
She has done so much in her advocacy. For a lot of the
things she was not able to declare a legislative victory,
but she certainly declared a victory in the minds of the
American people because she took on the big guys without
any fear.
Barbara is also a champion of women. She has been a
groundbreaker on issues like sexual harassment and women's
rights in the workplace, access to women's health, and
clinic violence. She took that on. Barbara Boxer has
worked to protect women's access to health care and make
sure that Planned Parenthood continues to help millions of
women who depend on their services every year.
I lament the fact that Barbara will not be here because,
as you know, the new Republican majority has threatened to
do away with Planned Parenthood. I don't know what they
expect to do with the 2 million women who go there every
year for help, but that is what they have said they are
going to do.
I can remember, oh so clearly, because it was such a
difficult time, working on the Affordable Care Act in my
office just a short distance from here. Barbara was there
the better part of 2 days. We were facing incredibly
contentious issues regarding women's health, and this
required close attention. But it worked out. We were able
to accomplish this in spite of some people who said we
couldn't do that.
Barbara has always been ideological, pure but with a
sound mix of pragmatism on Obamacare and other issues
relating to women. I told her personally--and I said it
publicly, but I wish to say it again--that I have enjoyed
working with her. She has helped and mentored me and led
me to understand issues important to the women of America
like no one else, and I appreciate it very much.
I can remember writing her a letter in my longhand, my
cursive. In that letter I told her a number of things, but
this is something I said--a direct quote: ``Barbara, I
have three brothers. I've never had a sister. You are the
sister I've never had.''
That was what I said. To this day, we still refer to
each other as brother and sister.
Stew and Barbara are an exemplary team. They are
partners in every sense of the word. Landra and I have
been guests in their southern California home. We have
been together many times in Nevada.
For decades, Barbara and I have worked together
politically, campaigning in different parts of the
country, different parts of California, and different
parts of Nevada. We have raised money together for the
cause of Democrats. We have raised money for each other.
It has always been a pleasure to work with her on this and
other issues.
Barbara and I came to Washington together in 1982, 34
years ago. Barbara and I will be leaving Washington
together after 34 memorable years together.
Senator Barbara Boxer, congratulations on your historic
career as a Senator for 40 million Californians and 300
million citizens of the United States.
Barbara, remember, you are and always will be my sister.
Godspeed, Barbara.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from
California.
Mrs. BOXER. Senator Reid, my leader, I can't tell you
how humble I feel to hear you talk about my career and to
put it, in many ways, in a historic place.
I am going to have a lot to say about your career, what
you have meant to me. Today I won't get into it, but you
are a man--you just don't throw words around. I know how
humble you are because every time I try to praise you,
even in a situation with just a few people around you, you
look down like you are doing now. It makes you
uncomfortable. I don't want to make you uncomfortable. So
here is what I am going to say today. I am going to make
you uncomfortable in the near future when I talk about
your career and what it has meant to me. But today,
hearing you talk about what you just said, weaving our
friendship, our work together, and our family friendship
has meant a lot to me.
Obviously, I am going to miss you, but I will say this.
As we enter into uncharted territories in terms of
politics, I know you and I are not going to lose our
voices. We will have a platform. We are not leaving
because we are tired of the fight. We are not leaving
because we have nothing more to say, we are leaving
because we think it is time for the next generation. I
look forward to working with you in the future--and I mean
that sincerely--just fighting for the things we care
about, whether it is Lake Tahoe or whether it is clean
air, whether it is fighting against the ravages of climate
change, whether it is fighting for the right of the
American people, from children to seniors, to have
affordable health care. We are not going into the
wilderness. That I was able to protect more than a million
acres--I am so proud you mentioned that.
Today you have humbled me with your words. I will always
be your sister. Thank you very much.
I yield the floor.
Tuesday, December 6, 2016
Mr. CASEY. Mr. President, in the interest of time, I
will limit my remarks.
I rise this afternoon to commend and salute three
Senators from the Democratic caucus who are leaving the
Senate this year. I will have longer written statements
for the Record to appropriately pay tribute to their
service. In alphabetical order, Senator Boxer of
California, Senator Mikulski of Maryland, and Senator Reid
of Nevada.
I will offer some specific remarks about Leader Reid,
in the interest of time, but I do want to commend and
salute Senator Boxer for her service to the people of
California and to our Nation, as well Senator Mikulski for
her great work--two great advocates, two individuals whom
we are going to miss terribly here in the Senate. As I
said, I will put longer statements in the Record. ...
Mr. CARDIN. Madam President, for the 10 years I have
been in the Senate, I have been privileged and have had
the pleasure to serve alongside the Senator from
California, Barbara Boxer, on the Committee on Environment
and Public Works and on the Committee on Foreign
Relations. She is the ranking member of the Environment
and Public Works Committee and previously chaired the
committee, the first woman to do so.
Senator Boxer has spent the last 40 years in elective
office--24 years here in the Senate, 10 years before in
the U.S. House of Representatives, and 6 years on the
Marin County Board of Supervisors. She was the board's
first woman president. Earlier, she worked as a
stockbroker while her husband Stewart, whom she met at
Brooklyn College, attended law school. Senator Boxer has
been a journalist and is the author of two books.
The first time Senator Boxer ran for the Sixth
Congressional District seat, in 1982, her campaign slogan
was ``Barbara Boxer Gives a Damn.'' Her constituents have
agreed. She ran for reelection four times and never
received less than 67 percent of the vote. In 2004, when
she was running for a third term in the Senate, she
received 6.96 million votes--the most votes any candidate
has ever received in the history of the U.S. Senate.
Oscar Madison and Felix Unger may have been the
original odd couple, but Senator Boxer and the Senator
from Oklahoma, Senator Inhofe, have been the Senate's odd
couple. An unabashed liberal and unabashed conservative
working together to pass some of the most important
legislation of the last quarter century--our periodic
surface transportation bills and the Water Resources
Development Act reauthorizations. These bills have put
millions of Americans to work and made our economy more
efficient.
Senator Boxer understands the importance of building,
and she also understands the importance of preserving. She
has helped to set aside more than 1 million acres of
Federal land in California as wilderness. The omnibus
public lands package, which became law in 2009, includes
three Boxer bills to protect 57,000 acres in Big Sur and
the Los Padres Forest and another 273,000 acres of
California coast as wilderness. She wrote the Senate bill
that elevated Pinnacles National Monument into America's
59th national park. She helped champion the creation of
the Fort Ord National Monument and Cesar Chavez National
Monument and was instrumental in expanding the Gulf of the
Farallones and Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuaries.
She also authored the California Missions Preservation Act
to protect and restore California's 21 historic missions
and led the effort in the Senate to create the Manzanar
National Historic Site.
Senator Boxer's concern for the environment hasn't been
just a parochial interest; no one has fought harder to
defend and improve our Nation's landmark environmental
laws, such as the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act.
She fought to remove arsenic from drinking water. The air
we breathe, the water we drink, and the food we eat are
better because of Senator Boxer.
Senator Boxer's environmental bona fides are well
known, but she has been a superbly effective legislator on
so many other issues. She is a champion for women. In
1991, she led a group of women Members to the Judiciary
Committee to demand that the committee, which was all-male
and all-White at the time, take Anita Hill's charges
seriously. Senator Boxer has defended women's reproductive
health choices and privacy. She was involved in passing
the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act and the
Violence Against Women Act. She is a senior member of the
Foreign Relations Committee, where she chairs the first
committee to focus on global women's issues.
In a business meeting earlier today, the members of the
Senate Foreign Relations Committee unanimously passed a
resolution honoring Senator Boxer's work on that committee
and her work in the U.S. Senate. At that time, we noted
that she was the ranking member on the subcommittee that
provided help for women and girls globally, and her work
in Afghanistan was most notable. She has made a difference
around the world for young women.
Senator Boxer authored the first-ever specific
authorization for afterschool programs, a bipartisan bill
that then-President George W. Bush signed into law in
2002. Today's afterschool programs are funded at $1.15
billion, allowing them to serve 1.6 million children. She
was the author of another bipartisan bill to accelerate
America's contribution to combat global HIV-AIDS and
tuberculosis.
Senator Boxer wrote two laws to enhance economic and
security cooperation with Israel. In 2012, she worked with
the Senator from Georgia, Mr. Isakson, on the United
States-Israel Enhanced Security Cooperation Act, which
extended loan guarantees to Israel, increased the U.S.
military stockpile in Israel, and encouraged NATO-Israel
cooperation. In 2014, she worked with the Senator from
Missouri, Mr. Blunt, on the United States-Israel Strategic
Partnership Act of 2014, further strengthening economic
and security cooperation between the two countries.
Senator Boxer has strong principles. She can be
outspoken when the need arises, but she is also a
consummate legislator, able to work across the aisle and
across the Hill to get important things done. We are going
to miss her skills and her leadership. I know we will
continue to hear from her because she is not the retiring
type, but she certainly has earned the right to spend more
time with her husband Stewart, their children Doug and
Nicole, and four grandchildren.
We wish her well, and we will miss her in the Senate.
I yield the floor.
Wednesday, December 7, 2016
Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, as each session of
Congress comes to a close, both leaders traditionally pay
tribute to the retiring Members of their own parties. This
year is a bit different, of course, with the retirement of
the Democratic leader. So in addition to what I will be
saying about him tomorrow, I figured I might shake things
up just a bit more, just this one time. I figured I would
tell my colleagues about two colleagues from across the
aisle who have made their own mark on this Chamber for
many years. ...
So here is what we have come to know about Senator
Mikulski: Her word is her bond, she is a passionate
advocate for the causes she supports, and good luck
stopping her once she puts her mind to something.
You could say the same thing about another Barbara I
know too. Senator Boxer, like her colleague from Maryland,
is hardly the tallest Member around here, but she is not
in the habit of getting overlooked either. The Boxer box
helps with that, of course. It is what she stands on at
press conferences to give her just a little more height.
Yes, if that sounds familiar, that is because it is that
box which once served as inspiration for an episode of
HBO's ``Veep.''
It is a good thing our colleague has a sense of humor.
She understands how far that can go around here. She has
often relied on it through her years in the Senate, in
fact, including when she announced her retirement via
rhyme: ``More than 20 years in a job I love,'' she wrote,
``thanks to California and the Lord above.'' You get the
picture. It goes on, but here is the key line: ``As long
as there are issues and challenges and strife, I will
never retire, 'cause that's the meaning of my life.'' That
sure sounds like the Senator Boxer I know.
It is not always easy to find common ground around here.
It takes hard work. It takes negotiation. It often takes
those intangibles too--like comic relief. So enter Senator
Inhofe. I am really going to miss the Jim and Barbara show
when it comes to an end next year, especially after such a
storied run over at EPW. One day, she is the boss; the
next day, it is he. They are the best of pals; they are
the fiercest of rivals. They work together on everything;
they agree on almost nothing. It sounds like the premise
for some buddy comedy from the 1980s, but here is what it
really is: a political masterstroke.
This unlikeliest of partnerships led this year to the
first significant environmental reform law in decades. It
also led this year to Senate passage of a waterways
infrastructure bill that will support important projects
across our country. While some may refer to Barbara Boxer
and Jim Inhofe as the ``oddest of Senate odd couples,''
here is what I would call them: pretty smart.
I remember Senator Inhofe always telling me how much he
enjoyed working with Senator Boxer and how there were
things they could actually agree on, so I made a note of
it and kept an eye out for an opportunity of my own. It
finally happened in this very Congress. Senator Boxer and
Senator Inhofe and I worked together to pass the longest
term highway transportation and infrastructure bill in
nearly two decades. This isn't something the critics
thought could be done. We each harbored our own doubts.
Yet, a bill that repeatedly threatened to come apart
actually never did. As Senator Boxer put it, it was ``the
impossible dream.'' It succeeded because we worked in good
faith, because we came together, and because we focused on
the areas where we did agree and not just the ones where
we didn't.
That is what happens around here when the Senate is
working the way it should. We see colleagues from opposite
sides working through political differences and coming
together on solutions for the American people. Perhaps
that is one reason why nearly a quarter of a century
later, Senator Boxer says she is leaving the Senate with a
full heart. I know she is leaving with the respect of many
of her colleagues, too, including some she might not have
expected when she first came.
Let me finish with some advice Barbara Mikulski gave to
young Barbara Boxer as she contemplated her first Senate
run. ``If you run,'' Senator Mikulski said, ``it will be
the toughest thing you will ever do,'' but, she added, it
will also be ``the best thing you will ever do.'' I think
this is something we can all relate to regardless of which
party we belong to and regardless of which State we come
from. At the end of the day, we all came here to
accomplish things for the people we represent, even if we
have different ideas on how to do them.
So, thankfully, there should be no disagreement over
this next task. I ask all Senators to join me in
recognizing our colleagues for their service and to join
me in wishing them good luck as they begin the next
chapters of their lives.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Coats). The Senator from
Oklahoma.
Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, that was a very emotional
and heartfelt speech [Mrs. Boxer's farewell address, see
p. ix]. As I look around, I know there are a lot of people
who want to respond and be heard, but I grabbed it first.
This will be real short.
I believe it was the majority leader who gave me a
quote this morning. He made the comment that the two of
you agree on nothing, but you get everything done.
Mrs. BOXER. That is right.
Mr. INHOFE. There is a reason for that. If you stop and
think about it, we came to the House and Senate at about
the same time. There are no two people in this body who
are further apart from each other than Barbara Boxer and
Jim Inhofe. Yet we have something beautiful. I hesitate to
show this AP picture of our embrace, but it has to be in
the Record here somewhere.
For 12 years, we swapped--back and forth--being
chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee. I
always remember when the Republicans were in the majority
back in--let's see. We lost it in 2006. I remember seeing
Barbara, Al Gore, and all these other people danced in and
out the door saying the world is going to come to an end
unless we do all of these things.
At that time, she said something very profound that I
never forgot, and I thought about it for the next 8 years.
She said that we look at things differently. We had an
election and elections have consequences. Remember that
elections have consequences. Well, 2 years ago, the
Republicans took over, and I gave her a T-shirt that said:
``Elections have consequences.'' During all that time, we
didn't really change in terms of what we were doing
together. I have a list of the things we have done that I
left someplace, but, nevertheless, we did the highway bill
in 1998 and 2005. All of the things we did actually
worked. I remember when we had a news conference on TSCA.
When I looked around, I saw all of my very liberal
Democratic friends and me, and I thought: Wait a minute.
How did this happen?
We have been able to work together and get things done,
and I have been very proud of that. In fact, I shouldn't
say this because I am going to divulge our confidence, but
we have meetings just as Democrats have their meetings.
All the chairmen get together, and when it was my turn to
make a statement, I said, ``Now, from the committee that
gets things done.'' Anyway, that is the way it has been.
I disagreed with Senator Boxer on a lot of the
regulations, and I have told her many times she has every
right to be wrong.
Mrs. BOXER. You do.
Mr. INHOFE. But on the things that were really
important, we did manage to get things accomplished. There
is an awful lot of hate around here, and it is so
unnecessary. You can disagree with someone and love them
anyway. I have to say that confession is good for the
soul, but I want my good friend to know I am truly going
to miss her around here.
Mrs. BOXER. I thank the Senator from Oklahoma so much.
Mr. INHOFE. I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from California.
Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, the relationship we felt was
based on trust and honesty. We never ever misled each
other. I just love the Senator's staff. I really do. Our
staff developed the same type of relationship that we
developed--disagreeing on many things but understanding
that we can work together and find common ground. I just
hope, as I step out the door--Lord knows when that will
be, given this place--that others will form this type of
bond across party lines because without it, things just
don't work right.
I want my friend to know it has been a great pleasure
to work with him in every way, shape, and form. One of us
is from Venus and one of us is from Mars, and that is just
the way it is. We just see the world differently, but it
hasn't stopped us from putting aside those disagreements.
We were never bitter with each other.
We had a pretty big divide. One person said climate
change is a hoax and the other said it is the biggest
threat we have to deal with, but we knew there was no way
we could come together so we kind of put it aside and
didn't let it spoil our friendship or our ability to work
together in any way.
So I think it is a very important message to many
chairmen and ranking members that if there is honesty--set
it aside if you can't work together, but where you can
find those sweet spots, do it because everyone wants--they
are cheering us on from the outside. I can't tell you how
many people at home tell me: We don't know how you do it,
but it is great what you and Senator Inhofe get done.
Fortunately, we never lost an election over our
friendship, which could have happened, you know. They
could have said: I am not going to vote for him; he talks
to her. But we were able to prove that we can do it.
So, Jim, I am honored that you came down to the floor.
I am honored that Senator McConnell said such nice things.
I am so honored that so many came to the floor to hear my
farewell remarks.
Again, I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Maryland.
Ms. MIKULSKI. Madam President, I thank the gentlelady
from California (Mrs. Boxer).
Mrs. BOXER. I like ``gentlelady.''
Ms. MIKULSKI. That is the way we talk here. I thank the
gentlelady from California for her kind words [about me].
We have been together through thick, thin, and the attempt
to get thin, and that story about bending at the waist is
a true one.
I am not the person with the best hairdo or sleek or
chic, but one of the things I have so admired about my
friend is her authenticity. We first got to know each
other in the House, and then I encouraged you to come to
the Senate, which certainly was the right thing to do. You
are yourself. You are true to yourself, you are true to
your beliefs. You are true to your constituents, and you
are true to the Constitution. You are such a true blue
person. There are many words to describe you, such as
outspoken, feisty, and all of that, but I would say the
word that describes you best is ``authentic.'' You are who
you are. The people of California have loved you for it
and sent you to the Congress.
We started out together basically in city council
roles, sometimes called the pothole parliament. It has
been a pleasure to serve with the Senator from California.
I have watched you stand up for your beliefs, and along
the way, as you stood up for your beliefs, you made
believers of us all.
Godspeed to you, Barbara. We are friends forever.
Ms. STABENOW. Madam President, I wish to speak about
Senator Mikulski and then also Senator Boxer, the two
great Senator Barbaras who have been such giants in the
Senate. We are so grateful to both of them. ...
It really is an honor to stand here. I can't imagine
the Senate without Senator Mikulski and Senator Boxer. ...
Madam President, as her name suggests, Senator Boxer
has always been a fighter, a champion for the people of
California, and a good friend.
Though Senator Boxer began her life in Brooklyn,
California has always been her home.
It is where she got elected to the Marin County Board
of Supervisors, becoming the first woman to hold the
board's presidency.
It is where she first got elected to the House of
Representatives, where she quickly rose and became a
leader we could all aspire to be.
As Senator, she has worked tirelessly for families,
children, consumers, everyone in the State of California,
and Americans everywhere.
Senator Boxer has always been a wonderful mentor to me,
and she has been relentless on moving forward on some of
the most critically important issues of our time.
As the first woman to chair the Environment and Public
Works Committee, she has provided the support that has
kept America's air and water safe and to fight climate
change. She defended mercury and lead standards and
installed choking warnings on packages.
I will personally always be grateful for her tireless
advocacy and support for the 100,000 Flint citizens who
have been poisoned by lead in their water.
We have her to thank when we know that children and
families all over the country can be safer and more secure
in their own neighborhood.
She has been an incredible supporter of transportation,
extending the highway trust fund, helping protect over 1
million jobs. Or her Mat Map-21 transportation bill, which
modernized Federal highway, highway safety, and
transportation programs.
She has fought for children and families, her work in
the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing
Adoptions Act--providing extra services for young adults
under 21 and helping some of America's young people who
need it most.
On a personal note, I have greatly enjoyed sharing a
love of music with my friend, Barbara. Her creativity and
passion for song has been a special part of who she is.
Her retirement, while well earned, will be a loss for
all of us.
Thank you so much for your service.
Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, this is one of those weeks
where, every 6 years or 4 years or 2 years, we pause and
pay tribute to those who have been elected to the Senate
and have served with us and will be retiring or were
possibly defeated in the last election. ...
At this point, I wish to pause and pay attention to
Barbara Boxer from California. A lot of my colleagues will
say: ``Wait a minute. Why are you talking about Barbara
Boxer? You are a Republican. She is an icon in the
Democratic Party. She is a liberal, and you are a
conservative.''
She is a great Senator, and I will tell you why.
Barbara and I served on the Ethics Committee for the last
9 years. When I was asked to go on the committee, she was
the chairman. Later on, I succeeded her as the chairman. I
am the chairman today, and she is still a member until she
retires.
The Ethics Committee is the one assignment nobody wants
to get. But when you get it, you want to have somebody who
will do what is right. Regardless of their party, you need
somebody who will do what is right for the Member, the
institution, and will carry out their responsibilities
under the Constitution, which all of us are obligated to
do in the Senate.
In the last 9 years, I worked with Barbara Boxer on any
number of complaints, allegations, and cases against
Members of the Senate for unethical conduct or conduct
unbecoming of a Senator. We have admonished some, cleared
some, and recommended the expulsion of some, and some have
resigned because of our investigation. I take no pride in
anyone leaving the Senate because of the actions of the
committee, but I take great pride in the fact that no one
in 9 years has questioned the integrity of the Senate
Ethics Committee, the job it has done, or the final
decision it has made, and I give most of the credit for
that to Barbara Boxer. She is a liberal Democrat, and I am
a conservative Republican, but when it comes to calling
balls and strikes in terms of ethics, we call them down
the middle. That is a credit to the institution, a credit
to her, and a credit to the Ethics Committee.
At this moment, I want to pause and say to my retiring
friend Barbara Boxer: Thank you for your service to the
country, thank you for what you have meant to the State of
California, and thank you for what you have meant to the
institution of the Senate and the commitment to ethical
behavior by our Members. Thank you for making it a
standard that you and I stood for. It was a pleasure for
me to serve with you and be called one of the members of
the odd couple. Isakson and Boxer, the two Senate chairs
that love our country, are committed to ethics and will
always try to do what is exactly right.
God bless you, Barbara. Best of luck to you.
I yield the floor.
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, in 1922, Rebecca Latimer
Felton was the first woman to sit in the U.S. Senate. She
served in this body for only 1 day, but during those 24
hours she made a bold prediction for her time about the
future role women would play in the Senate. She said:
``When the women of the country come in and sit with you
... you will get ability, you will get integrity of
purpose, you will get exalted patriotism, and you will get
unstinted usefulness.'' I will second that.
Barbara and I served together in the House--and we have
served together in the Senate for 20 years. Let me tell
you, no one embodies Senator Felton's prediction better
than Barbara Boxer.
Throughout the years, I have loved getting to know
Barbara as a colleague, but more important, as a friend.
Loretta and I joined Barbara and her husband, Stew, on
official trips, personal vacations, and countless dinners.
We have eaten, drank, joked, and bonded. As her career in
the Senate comes to an end, keeping those bonds of
friendship strong as she heads west is one my life goals.
Barbara made quite an impact on the Senate Chamber
before she even entered this body. On October 9, 1991, the
Senate Judiciary Committee was set to vote on the
nomination of Justice Clarence Thomas to serve a lifetime
appointment on the U.S. Supreme Court, without listening
to Professor Anita Hill's allegations of sexual
harassment. At the time, there were two women in the
Senate, Barbara Mikulski and Nancy Landon Kassebaum. Now,
while this was going on in the Senate, the women of the
House tried speaking out in that body. They were censured.
And they had enough. So they marched out of the House and
over to the Senate--29 women House Members, led by
Congresswoman Pat Schroeder from Colorado and Barbara
Boxer from California. American politics has never been
the same.
The following year, a number of esteemed women were
elected to the U.S. Senate. Several reporters deemed 1992
the ``Year of the Woman.'' Senator Mikulski, the dean of
women, as she is often referred to, said: ``Calling 1992
the Year of the Woman makes it sound like the Year of the
Caribou or the Year of the Asparagus. We're not a fad,
fancy, or a year.'' She was right. But California made
history. For the first time, one State sent two women to
represent them in the Senate: Dianne Feinstein and Barbara
Boxer.
Barbara often reminds me of the line from Shakespeare's
``A Midsummer Night's Dream'': ``Though she be but little,
she is fierce.'' In 1994, when Republicans took control of
Congress, one of the first things they did was go after
environmental regulations, including rules to limit the
amount of arsenic in the drinking water. Barbara
immediately launched a good old-fashioned, 3-day ``Ms.
Smith Goes to Washington'' filibuster. Like most of the
fights she takes on, she won.
Barbara is a call-it-as-you-see-it kind of person. Maybe
it is because she grew up in the no-nonsense, working
class town of Brooklyn. Or maybe it is because her parents
and Jewish grandparents, who immigrated to this country
from Russia instilled in her a deep love for America's
Constitution and freedoms--a sense of obligation to give
something back and a determination to fight for underdogs,
truth, and justice.
She has sponsored or cosponsored more than 1,200 pieces
of legislation and helped lead the fight on issues ranging
from women's rights to health care to protecting
California's natural wonders to keeping lead and other
potentially lethal hazards out of children's toys.
The vote that sealed our spiritual kinship took place in
October 2002 when she and I voted against the Iraq war
resolution. One of our dear friends, Paul Wellstone, also
voted against the resolution. Paul was in a tough
reelection fight that year. A reporter asked him if it was
a hard choice to vote against the war. Paul said it was a
risk, but not a choice. His conscience wouldn't let him
vote any other way. It seems to me that is how Barbara
Boxer approaches every one of her votes in Congress: It
might be a risk, but it is not a choice. She listens to
her conscience, and the people of California respect her
for it. Let me be clear: that doesn't mean she will not
work hard to find a compromise.
She proved that in recent years when she and Jim
Inhofe--the unlikeliest of odd couples--worked together to
pass important legislation updating regulations on toxic
chemicals and shepherding through a surface transportation
bill that no one thought could be done.
I will close with this. Early in Barbara's political
career, people used to come up to her and say, ``How did
you get so strong, how did you get so tough?'' Barbara
would humbly respond, ``Oh, not tough. I am just an
ordinary person, and I do what I think is right.'' I agree
with most of that, but let me tell you--Barbara is as
tough as they come. She can't be bullied or intimidated,
and she never loses her courage. I want to thank Barbara
for sacrificing so much time with her own family to make
the families of America safer, healthier, and more
hopeful. For that and a thousand other reasons, I will
miss her in the Senate. I know I can count on her to keep
pushing those of us who remain to listen to our
consciences--to fight for change and do the right thing.
Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, today I wish to honor our
colleagues who are leaving us at the end of this Congress,
six individuals who have done a lot to shape how the
Senate operates today.
First I would like to thank my three Republican
colleagues who are departing. Thank you not only for your
service to our country but your willingness to work with
me and other members of my party on a number of issues.
...
I would also like to speak to three of my closest
colleagues on our side of the aisle.
Over the past 24 years, I have had the pleasure of
serving in the Senate with Harry Reid, Barbara Mikulski,
and Barbara Boxer, and I am grateful not just for our
working relationships but for the close friendships I have
formed with each of them. ...
Mr. President, finally, I would like to talk about my
partner from California, Barbara Boxer.
Senator Boxer and I were elected to the Senate on the
same day in 1992, the ``Year of the Woman.''
The day Barbara was sworn in was historic; it was the
first time two women represented their State together in
the Senate. That is an honor I am grateful to have shared
with my good friend.
From the Marin County Board of Supervisors, to the House
of Representatives, to the U.S. Senate--Senator Boxer has
been a champion for families, children, consumers, and the
environment.
She rose to become the chair and now ranking member of
the Environment and Public Works Committee. I have great
respect for Senator Boxer's passion, dedication, and
enthusiasm for protecting the environment. No one does it
better.
She led an effort to protect California's coast from
offshore drilling. She authored the California Missions
Preservation Act to restore and protect the 21 historic
missions in California. She helped create Pinnacles
National Park, Fort Ord National Monument, and Cesar
Chavez National Monument. She led the effort to expand the
Gulf of Farallones and Cordell Bank National Marine
Sanctuaries.
In California, there are now more than 1 million acres
of protected wilderness thanks to Senator Boxer.
But she was more than just a champion for our
environment.
In the Senate, Barbara was a staunch advocate for issues
related to children.
She pushed to protect children from dangerous toys by
removing lead or other dangerous chemicals and requiring
cautionary warnings on children's products sold over the
Internet. She fought to remove arsenic from drinking water
to protect children. As chair of the After School Caucus,
she wrote legislation to secure Federal funding for
afterschool programs. Thanks to Senator Boxer, 1.6 million
children now have a safe place to go after school.
She fought for our servicemembers.
She founded the Military Families Caucus to provide
support for the families of servicemembers. She helped
establish the West Coast Combat Care Center in San Diego,
so that southern California veterans with traumatic wounds
would have access to quality care.
Senator Boxer fought for consumers.
She authored a bipartisan measure to prevent a conflict
of interest with banks acting as real estate brokers.
After the housing crisis, she wrote measures to protect
homeowners whose mortgage is transferred or sold. She
pushed for legislation to help homeowners refinance with
lower rates--thanks to that effort, 1 million borrowers
were able to save thousands of dollars in interest
payments each year.
Finally, Barbara was a staunch defender of women's
rights.
She led the floor fight to pass the Freedom of Access to
Clinic Entrances Act and pushed back against repeated
attacks on women's health and a woman's right to privacy.
Her efforts led to the passage of the Violence Against
Women Act that protects women from domestic and sexual
abuse.
She worked closely with then-Senator Joe Biden to pass
that landmark bill. After she announced her retirement,
the Vice President said, ``You always knew in the Senate
if you had Barbara on your side, you didn't need much
more.''
Well, I have been lucky to have Barbara by my side for
the past 24 years.
She has been a strong advocate for the people of
California, and I am grateful to have served with her.
I am also grateful for the friendship we have shared
over the years.
Barbara and her husband, Stewart, are two of the
kindest, most caring people I have had the pleasure of
knowing. Their marriage of more than 50 years has brought
them considerable joy. Together they raised two wonderful
children and are now blessed with four grandchildren.
I am sure she is looking forward to spending more time
with them.
While she may be retiring from the Senate, the passion
Barbara displayed for public service will not end.
I know she will continue to advocate and remain a
powerful voice for the causes she championed here in the
U.S. Senate.
I look forward to seeing what she is able to accomplish
in the next phase of her life and offer her best wishes in
a well-deserved retirement.
Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, today I wish to pay tribute
to Senator Barbara Boxer, who has served her State and
country with boundless energy, enthusiasm, and exuberance.
Senator Boxer's 24 years in the Senate are only part of
her legacy of leadership and accomplishments. Previously,
she served for 10 years in the House of Representatives
for California's Sixth Congressional District and before
that as the first woman president of the Marin County
Board of Supervisors.
That remarkable record of service includes another
record. In her reelection in 2004, Senator Boxer received
nearly 7 million votes, the most in Senate history until
that time and a mark that stood for 8 years.
During her service in the Senate, Senator Boxer has
established herself as a champion of the environment,
infrastructure, and medical research. Along with Senator
Inhofe, she authored a 5-year transportation bill that
many thought was an impossible task in a gridlocked
Senate. But she worked across the aisle and did it. The
United States-Israel Enhanced Security Cooperation Act she
authored in 2012 reaffirmed the special relationship
between our two countries and is another of Senator
Boxer's accomplishments.
It has been especially rewarding to work with her on
legislation to better protect women from violence in our
country and around the world.
In her first campaign for Congress in 1982, she ran
under the slogan, ``Barbara Boxer Gives a Damn.'' She
always has and always will. It is a pleasure to thank
Senator Barbara Boxer for her years of service and to wish
her and her husband, Stewart, many more years of good
health and great happiness.
Thursday, December 8, 2016
Mr. REED. Mr. President, I want to take an opportunity
to salute and thank and commend my colleagues who are
departing. ...
We also have other colleagues departing: Senator Ayotte
from New Hampshire; Senator Boxer of California, Senator
Coats of Indiana; as I mentioned, Senator Kirk of
Illinois; Senator Mikulski of Maryland; Senator Reid of
Nevada; and Senator Vitter of Louisiana. Each has brought
passion in their work to best serve their constituents,
and the institution of the Senate and the Nation are
better for this service. I am better for knowing them,
working with them, and having the opportunity to share
with them, and I want to thank them for their service. Let
me mention a few words with respect to all of these
distinguished Senators. ...
Mr. President, Barbara Boxer and I had the privilege to
serve both in the House and the Senate together. My first
term in the House of Representatives was Barbara's last
term in the House before she was elected to the Senate.
She is an extraordinary, tenacious fighter--remarkably so.
She has fought for women's rights. She has fought for the
rights of families, for people who needed economic
assistance, and for people who needed a chance because she
realized that the essence of America is opportunity--
opportunity for all, not just for those who are privileged
or who have the benefit of wealth or power but for all.
She has done this extraordinarily well.
A great deal of her energy was directed to
environmental protection because that is something that
benefits all of us and that is something that is really
the biggest legacy we will give to the next generation and
the generations that follow. No one has more fiercely
defended the environment--not just for a narrow interest,
not just for a temporary expedient but for the long-term
health and wealth of the American people. ...
I have been very fortunate. I have had the privilege to
serve with these ladies and gentlemen, and I want to thank
them for their service.
Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, mountains, rivers, cities, and
plains separate Vermont and California, two States as
different as any in the country. But here in the U.S.
Senate, we are on equal footing. It is one of the
hallmarks of our Constitution and representative
government. For over three decades, Barbara Boxer worked
to advance the priorities of Californians. Thankfully, in
many ways, those priorities, despite the diversity of our
States, have mirrored those of Vermonters.
A trailblazer in her own right, Senator Boxer rose to
become the first woman to chair the Senate Environment and
Public Works Committee, where she fought to protect and
preserve our environment, promote clean and safe drinking
water, update our antiquated infrastructure, and improve
public safety.
Senator Boxer was an early and vocal supporter of our
efforts to reauthorize and expand the important Violence
Against Women Act. Her passionate pleas to Senators and
Members of the House to approve this critical--and life-
saving--bill was essential to the Senate's debate.
Of course, most important in Senator Boxer's life is her
family. Like many, I was touched when she announced her
retirement in an interview with her grandson. She has been
a tireless advocate for her home State and for the
country. Now, in retirement, I hope she enjoys even more
time with Stewart and her wonderful family. Far from
finished fighting, I know Barbara's voice will not be one
soon forgotten in the U.S. Senate.
Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, at the end of each Congress,
the Senate takes a moment to express our appreciation and
acknowledge the efforts of those Members who will be
retiring in just a few weeks. This year one of our
colleagues who will be returning home is Senator Barbara
Boxer.
Barbara will be leaving us after a career of over 30
years in the House and Senate. During her service, she has
impressed all those with whom she has worked with the
strength of her views, her courage, and her determination
to fight for the things in which she truly believes.
Regardless of the circumstances that drew her into each
legislative battle, she has always held true to the
principles that have guided her in her life.
For Barbara, her early career work as a stockbroker
soon found her heading to California with her husband
after he had completed his work in law school. She then
got interested in politics and became a strong voice for
the political views of the people who resided in the area
she now called home. Her constituents liked what they
heard from Barbara--and the way she expressed her views on
the issues and proposals she wanted to work on.
Her style of speaking soon became her trademark in
Congress. She has a convincing way of presenting her case,
and that is one reason why it was always good to be on her
side. She calls it speaking ``extremely candid and
straight from the shoulders, and not to be mealy-mouthed
or waffle.'' Anyone who has had a chance to come to know
her--or to tackle an issue either with her or opposed to
her--knows how accurate that description is.
Right after the tragedy of 9/11, I joined Barbara as
ranking member of the subcommittee she chaired regarding
terrorism financing. I was proud to join her in that work,
and I have appreciated the significant role she has played
on a number of highway bills, which are important to both
of our home States.
Over the years, there have been some other issues that
we could discuss and work on with an eye toward
compromise. For each of us, however, there were other
issues that were of such importance to our constituents it
would have been hard for either of us to move too far from
the path that we had been following from our early days in
politics.
Barbara and I both have a strong touch of the West in
our hearts that we express every day in everything we do.
That is why I was not surprised when she mentioned as she
spoke about her retirement that she felt that it was time
for her to return home--as she said so well--``to the
State I love so much, California.''
Barbara, Diana joins me in sending our congratulations
for your hard work and your dedication to your home State.
You have left your mark here in Congress, and I think it
is safe to say you will not be forgotten. Thanks again for
your willingness to serve and work so hard for what you
believe in. You have helped to encourage and inspire the
next generation of leaders from your State. In that way
and so many others, you have made a difference.
Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, I rise today to speak about
my longtime friend and colleague Barbara Boxer, who is
retiring from this body along with me this year.
Senator Boxer will be remembered as an inspiration to
young women across our country. Her career is a textbook
of how to get involved in public service. Starting at the
local level, she came out of the antiwar movement and got
involved in the environmental movement and local causes.
Taking lessons from grassroots organizing, she ran for the
Marin County Board of Supervisors. She lost that first
race, but she didn't give up. She ran again and won and
became the first female chair.
Eventually, she made her way to the U.S. House of
Representatives. Along the way, she heard a lot of ``no,''
but always turned it into a ``yes.'' She never quit, never
lost faith in herself, and never stopped trying.
When it looked like the accusations of Anita Hill would
be swept under the rug, I spoke out in the Senate against
it, but I was only one female voice. Barbara Boxer came to
my aid. Even though she was in the House, she led a troop
of fierce House women running up the steps to the Senate
to face down the Judiciary Committee and demand they shed
light on the accusations of sexual harassment. Barbara had
the crack team of Eleanor Holmes Norton, Pat Schroeder,
Louise Slaughter, Nita Lowey, Jolene Unsoeld, and Patsy
Mink to back her up. They marshaled the press and marched
right up these steps. They knocked on the door and were
going to be turned away because they weren't Senators. But
they pointed to that group of photographers and said, ``We
are going to tell them that you turned us away, what do
you think will happen then?'' So they were let in and made
their case. Those Senators couldn't face the calculation
and fury of Barbara Boxer and the House women, and those
hearings were convened. The Anita Hill hearings made an
indelible mark on this country.
It really woke America up as to what was going on in the
workplaces around the country for women and how little
representation women really got in Congress. Watching that
all-male Judiciary Committee tear into Professor Hill for
daring to accuse her boss of sexual harassment, the women
of America took action and elected Barbara Boxer, Dianne
Feinstein, Carol Moseley Braun, and Patty Murray to the
U.S. Senate.
I was thrilled when Barbara came to me thinking about
running for the Senate. I told her it was the perfect
time: she can do more in the Senate and be heard in the
Senate. I said it would be worth the fight to get her here
with me, even if just to have someone I could see eye to
eye with on a daily basis.
Barbara even started an exercise program in the House
when we were there together. She showed up in colorful
leotards, and Geraldine Ferraro came looking like a photo
op for Vanity Fair, and Olympia Snowe wore this gorgeous
outfit. I show up, chunky yet funky, and the instructor is
yelling, ``Go for the burn! Put your hands on your waist
and bend, bend, bend!'' I turned to Barbara and said, ``If
I had a waist, I wouldn't be here.'' Well, those exercise
classes may not have lasted long for me, but her energy
just couldn't be beat.
Her zip and zest is pure California sunshine, and
Californians have more sunshine in their spirit because of
her work. Her energy has brought light to California and
light to the sometimes dreary Capitol hallways.
I am going to miss my good friend and irreplaceable
political partner. Democrats have had a lot of tough
fights over the last 25 years, and the two Barbaras have
always been there, side by side. We voted against the war
in Iraq, both believing it was a mistake. We were in the
minority, but both of us still believe it was one of the
best votes we have ever taken as Senators. We stood up for
what we believed in and what we thought was right--which
is exactly what our constituents sent us here to do.
Barbara Boxer has been there for our children, leading
the way for afterschool programs and making sure they are
kept safe. She has fought against wasteful spending in the
Pentagon--the $400 hammer and the $7,000 coffeepot. She
has defended women's right to choose and protected women
against domestic violence. She has held the feet of
polluters to the fire as the champion of clean air, clean
water, and our natural resources. It is too hard to
pinpoint just one thing the Senate will miss about her:
her political prowess, her dedication and determination,
her undying loyalty and friendship. All of those and more
will be missed.
As we end this session of Congress and our careers in
the Senate, I wish Barbara and her husband, Stewart, many
happy days ahead as they start writing this new chapter in
their lives. Even if we are on opposite sides of the
country, I know I will always have a friend in California.
Friday, December 9, 2016
Ms. KLOBUCHAR. ... Madam President, I will close my
remarks by turning to some of our retiring Senators and
speaking briefly on each one of them. ...
Finally, there is Senator Barbara Boxer, who joined the
Senate in 1993. When I got to the Senate, I was on the
Environment Committee. She was the new chair. I got to see
first hand her advocacy--her advocacy on climate change,
her advocacy on transportation and waterway
infrastructure--and the way she would just never give up
when she decided something was right for her State and
right for the country.
The one thing that everyone talks about is Barbara
Boxer's fiery advocacy and her incredible humor and
tenacity. Sometimes, I think people forget how productive
she has been when she worked across the aisle. I saw first
hand how she was able to work with Senator Inhofe on the
transportation bill and then later with Senator McConnell
on the last transportation bill.
She is someone who has credibility on our side of the
aisle. When she says she is willing to make a compromise
with the Republicans, people listen. She never gave up.
She would have dinners at Italian restaurants. She would
find ways, in kind of a mom's way, to get everyone
together. She passed some really incredible legislation,
including water infrastructure legislation with Senator
Vitter over the last few years.
That is what she has done. I can't think of anyone whom
we are going to miss more in terms of that presence and
that kind of hardscrabble advocacy, which is always
coupled with the pragmatic way of getting important bills
done. So we are going to miss Senator Reid, Senator
Mikulski, and, also, Senator Boxer.
Mr. McCONNELL. ... It goes without saying that keeping
the Capitol running is a vast undertaking. It requires a
passion for service, round-the-clock work, and great
sacrifice by everyone employed. The legislative process
simply wouldn't be possible without the dedicated work of
so many. On behalf of the Senate, I would like to
acknowledge their efforts and say thank you to the
following:
To my leadership team for their wise counsel; to our
committee chairs and ranking members for so much great
work over the past 2 years; to the many colleagues in both
parties for working so hard to make this Senate a success;
and, to those we are saying farewell to--Senators Coats,
Boxer, Mikulski, Reid, Vitter, Kirk, and Ayotte--for your
service to our country, I say thank you. ...
Ms. HIRONO. Mr. President, today I wish to recognize the
contributions of my colleague and friend, Senator Barbara
Boxer. While her distinguished time in the House and
Senate comes to a close at the end of the 114th Congress,
she will continue to be engaged and serve her community.
During her more than 30 years in the House and Senate,
Barbara worked tirelessly to create a better future for
all Americans. When she first announced that she would run
for the Senate in 1990, Barbara declared, ``I will be
running based on issues of the environment, a world of
peace, economic prosperity, individual freedom of choice
and freedom of the arts.''
This declaration defined her time in Congress.
Becoming the first woman to chair the Senate Committee
on Environment and Public Works reflected her decades of
dedication to protecting the environment. Barbara was
unafraid to take on big oil, and fought to block oil
drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska.
She also led the effort in the Senate to invest in the
development of clean energy technology and to strengthen
protections for our oceans.
Barbara knew that, for many, achieving ``economic
prosperity'' meant attaining a college education. But the
soaring cost of college keeps them from attaining a
degree. Each year, Barbara was one of the strongest
leaders to ensure that college students have access to
Pell grants, which nearly half of college students in our
country depend upon. Barbara's advocacy moved the ball
forward, and I was proud to join her in crafting a
caucuswide bill that included our provisions to strengthen
and protect Pell grants, and lower interest rates on
student debt.
Barbara also never forgot her promise to protect
``freedom of choice.'' She authored the Freedom of Choice
Act of 2004, which would have affirmed that ``every woman
has the fundamental right'' to make her own reproductive
health decisions. Without fail, Barbara leads us each and
every time that access to reproductive health care comes
under attack.
While Barbara's departure leaves the Senate without one
of its strongest champions for the environment, college
affordability, and reproductive rights, we will continue
to fight for these core priorities as she would have done.
It has been a privilege to serve alongside a steadfast
champion like Barbara.
She has served California with utter conviction, and I
know she will continue to be a progressive force in this
new chapter of her life.
Aloha, Barbara, and a hui hou, ``until we meet again.''
Mr. CASEY. Mr. President, today I want to pay tribute to
two colleagues who are retiring at the end of this year,
Senator Boxer and Senator Mikulski, two remarkable
Democratic women Senators leaving the Senate as four new
women come in.
Mr. President, for more than 40 years, Barbara Boxer has
committed her life to public service, over 30 of them in
Washington, first in the House of Representatives and,
since 1993, in the U.S. Senate.
When asked what advice she would give to her successor,
Senator Boxer said she should not be afraid to fight the
good fight every single day.
That is what Senator Boxer has done. Over the past four
decades, she has been an advocate for medical research,
women, workers, the environment, and infrastructure.
As ranking member of the Environment and Public Works
Committee, Barbara Boxer urged Congress and the country to
confront climate change, creating the Climate Action Task
Force with Senator Sheldon Whitehouse.
In closing, I am reminded of what Robert Kennedy once
said: ``The purpose of life is to contribute in some way
to make things better.''
Senator Boxer has told us that, while she is leaving the
Senate to return to California, she does not intend to end
her life of service. She will continue to work to make
things better. We wish her well and we thank her for her
public service in the House and here in the Senate.
Mr. PETERS. Mr. President, as this eventful 114th
Congress draws to a close, today I wish to honor a number
of our colleagues who will be ending their service in the
Senate. I was a newcomer to the Senate at the beginning of
this Congress and the only Democrat in the freshman Senate
class of 2014. I am eternally grateful for the guidance
and wisdom of my fellow Senators, particularly those with
decades of experience fighting for the American people.
Constituents, colleagues, and historians will recount
their accomplishments for years to come, but I will take a
few minutes now to convey some brief words of praise and
gratitude. ...
Mr. President, Senator Barbara Boxer is also a
trailblazing woman and a fierce advocate for what is best
for her State, and I have been honored to get to know her
through our work in the Senate. Throughout her career,
Senator Boxer has fought for commonsense consumer and
environmental protections to make us safer. She has been
an incredible partner in our fight this year to end the
water crisis in Flint, MI, and to reduce the threat of
drinking water contamination in cities across the Nation.
Senator Boxer knows that we must protect our children
and communities from the grave effects of environmental
contamination by investing in our aging infrastructure and
maintaining vigilance. We must also provide the extra
care, education, and health care services that these
children and communities need to recover.
She has always been a champion for children, from
establishing the first federally funded afterschool
program to protecting children from contaminated products.
Just as important, Senator Boxer has been a leader in
protecting the natural resources these future generations
will inherit. Her victories for clean water, job-creating
smart infrastructure projects, and environmental
protections should inspire us to keep looking toward the
future as we help our great States thrive today. ...
It has been a privilege to work with such talented and
committed colleagues. I wish them all the best in this
next chapter of their lives and thank them for their work.
Thank you.
ORDER FOR PRINTING OF SENATE DOCUMENTS
Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that
there be printed as a Senate document a compilation of
materials from the Congressional Record in tribute to
retiring Members of the 114th Congress, and an additional
Senate document a compilation of materials from the
Congressional Record in tribute to the President of the
Senate, Joe Biden, and that Members have until Tuesday,
December 20, to submit such tributes.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so
ordered.
ORDER FOR PRINTING
Mr. PORTMAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that
any tributes submitted by December 20, 2016, as authorized
by the order of December 10, 2016, be printed in the
January 3, 2017, Congressional Record of the 114th
Congress.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so
ordered.
[all]