Setting Forth the Congressional Budget for the United States Government for Fiscal Year 2020 and Setting Forth the Appropriate Budgetary Levels for Fiscal Years 2021 Through 2029--Motion to Proceed

Floor Speech

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Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, as millions looked forward to an early summer weekend, Virginia Beach, VA, became the latest community where lives were shattered by violence. Twelve workers at the Virginia Beach Municipal Center were shot and killed when a lone gunman--a fellow employee--opened fire on Friday afternoon. Some of the victims had worked for the city for decades, one for just under a year. All of them leave behind a grieving community that must now try to make sense of the senseless. And several more of their colleagues were injured.

As the community rallies behind those in grief and shock, the Nation is also learning about the selfless heroism of the law enforcement officers who bravely brought the violence to an end. Four officers moved quickly through the municipal building that housed 400 workers. They quickly located the shooter, hemmed him in to prevent further innocent casualties, and engaged him in a firefight. Reportedly, one officer was actually shot but was spared serious injury due to his bulletproof vest.

Thanks to their bravery, about 45 minutes after the shooting began, the suspect was in police custody.

Such stories of courage strike us as remarkable. They inspire gratitude and remind us of humanity's best, just as we are faced with its worst. They should also be occasions to remember just how many men and women across America put on their uniforms every day and report to work, knowing they might be called on for heroism just like this. Hundreds of thousands of police officers and other first responders across our Nation protect and serve every day.

I know that all of my colleagues join me in prayer and solidarity for the victims of this evil violence, for their families, and for all of the first responders who stand ready to jump between their neighbors and harm's way. Remembering Thad Cochran

Mr. President, on Thursday morning, we received sad news out of Oxford, MS. Our friend and distinguished former colleague, Senator Thad Cochran, had passed away.

Thad took retirement a little more than a year ago to focus on his health and his family. That day concluded a truly remarkable career in the history of the Senate: seven terms; nearly four decades; the second longest serving Senator from Mississippi; and the tenth longest serving Senator, period, in American history.

To put it all another way, when Senator Cochran first arrived in 1978, only one of our current colleagues was here to witness it. The other 99 of us are all newer at this club than Thad was.

Such a storied career was far from guaranteed when Thad decided to give politics a try back in the early 1970s. I have always enjoyed the story about his very first run for Congress.

Remember, Mississippi had only had one other Republican Congressman since Reconstruction. So when this young rising-star lawyer asked Rose how she might like being married to a Congressman, here was her response: ``I don't know, which one?''

If Thad's presence here in Congress at one point seemed improbable, it quickly became difficult to imagine Capitol Hill without him. His fruitful career produced a huge number of legislative accomplishments and a sterling reputation as a thoughtful, measured, and effective leader. He chaired the Appropriations Committee, the Agriculture Committee, and the Republican conference. He was at once a powerful force within our ranks and a trusted friend and partner to many of our friends across the aisle as well.

In just the past few days, the authors of eulogies and tributes have enjoyed noting all the ways that Thad seemed to embody a whole region and era, as though he had come right out of central casting. One obituary talked up the ``traditional catfish fries,'' ``homespun politics,'' and ``Southern charm.'' Another newspaper described his ``Southern gentility'' as a ``courtly'' and ``understated style,'' seeming to suggest that approach was at odds with his impressive and powerful perch.

It is true that over seven terms in this body, Chairman Cochran appeared on ``Meet the Press'' only twice. To say he did not crave a national spotlight would certainly be an understatement. He was just too busy racking up progress for the people of Mississippi and for the country--busy managing the appropriations process; busy finding new ways to elevate historically Black colleges and universities with scholarship opportunities, research grant funding, and new initiatives; busy working across the aisle on matters of national security, like the bipartisan Cochran-Inouye National Missile Defense Act; busy using his voice to champion the concerns of farmers and rural communities, clearing obstacles on commodity pricing and wetlands conservation.

Thad was so confident in American agriculture that he used it as a tool for international development. Now overseas farm delegations learn U.S. techniques firsthand through the Cochran Fellowship Program.

As much as the long list of achievements continued to grow, Thad Cochran's character and his values stayed steady. Thad may not have followed his schoolteacher parents into the education business, but he sure did take us all to school. His colleagues learned firsthand that a dogged work ethic and compassionate friendship are not incompatible here. His constituents learned that their ``quiet persuader'' kept his promises. And the Nation learned from a first-rate example of humility and grace in public service.

So while we mourn that we no longer have our friend Thad in this life, we should also celebrate all of those lessons he taught us and celebrate the fact that they aren't going anywhere.

On Thad's last day in the Senate, he left us with a remarkable farewell statement. In it, he noted that John Stennis, another long- tenured Mississippian, had previously used Thad's desk and had signed it, per Senate custom. But while Senator Stennis had noted his start date in 1947, he never wrote down any end date on the other side of the dash. ``Perhaps there is symbolism there,'' Thad wrote in his farewell, ``that our service does not end when we depart this Chamber.''

Isn't that the truth? When it comes to Thad Cochran, his legacy and his example are part of this place for good. His impact continues. His service still inspires all of us.

I want to close with a reference to one more part of Thad's farewell. Here are his very last words in the Congressional Record, the capstone to 45 years of statesmanship. This is what he said:

I will now return to my beloved Mississippi and my family and my friends there. I will miss this stately Chamber and this city. I will not miss the power or politics. I will miss people: you, my colleagues. . . . I trust, if your travels bring you to Oxford, MS, you will not hesitate to visit and join me for a refreshment on the porch. We can listen to the mockingbirds together.

That was our colleague--gracious, generous, always with his home State and his fellow Mississippians at the top of his mind and deep in his heart.

Today, at the State capitol in Jackson, Mississippians gathered to return the favor. Thad Cochran is at the top of their minds. He is deep in their hearts, and, most importantly, our friend is on his way to a just reward in his Father's house.

So the Senate today sends our condolences and our prayers to Thad's wife Kay; his two children, Clayton and Kate; his grandchildren; and many, many friends. We stand together in remembering our good friend.

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