Senator Johnny Isakson Va Regional Office Act of 2022

Floor Speech

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Mr. WARNOCK. Mr. President, I come to the floor today to honor a friend, our late Senator from Georgia, my predecessor, Senator Johnny Isakson, as we work across the aisle, just as he did, to rename the Department of Veterans Affairs Atlanta Regional Office in his honor.

I thank my brother and fellow Senator from Georgia for leading this effort.

Without a doubt, Senator Isakson loved Georgia, and he cared deeply for our country. He was a patriot, a public servant, and I am proud to say that there are members of my staff who used to work for Johnny Isakson. They will tell you that he never hesitated to show up.

In my other job as a pastor, I talk often about the ministry of presence. Sometimes, it is not about what you say, because there are some situations, quite frankly, for which there are no adequate words. When someone has lost a loved one, and you are standing there at graveside or standing in a hospital at bedside with a patient, sometimes the issue is really showing up--the ministry of presence.

Johnny Isakson had it. He knew how to show up. Whether it was paying a visit to an ill patient or seeing a disabled veteran, he was there. Senator Isakson, the consummate public servant, dedicated his years of service to our beloved Georgia, to veterans, to our families, and to our children.

He always made it a point to show up at Ebenezer Baptist Church. Every year in January, as we celebrate Georgia's greatest son, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Johnny Isakson, without fail, was always in the house. Now, to be sure, when the King holiday rolls around, politicians do tend to show up, but what was so impressive about Johnny Isakson is that, not only did he show up for the service, he stayed for the whole service--a service which, I will admit, is long, even by Baptist standards. He stayed there the whole time.

He was unafraid to work across ideological and political differences in our State, in our country. I shall never forget his example of public service.

We talked from time to time. In fact, it occurs to me that the first time I stood in this Chamber, I stood not as a Senator but as Chaplain of the day, and it was at Johnny Isakson's invitation. I remember his graciousness on that day and on so many occasions.

When he announced his retirement, he called me and said: Raphael, I am retiring, and I want to drop by Ebenezer and say goodbye.

When he came that Sunday, he asked the members of our church who are veterans to stand. As he looked across the audience and saw all the veterans who were in our church, he said: I want to leave a special offering for the veterans ministry in this church.

That was Johnny Isakson.

So I am thrilled that today, with great appreciation and admiration for Senator Johnny Isakson, our bipartisan legislation honors his life and his legacy by renaming the Department of Veterans Affairs Atlanta Regional Office in his honor, and I am thrilled that it has passed in the Senate in a bipartisan way with unanimous support.

Isn't that fitting? Johnny Isakson is doing now in death what he did in life--bringing us together. And in this moment in which we are in a debate about what to do for our veterans, isn't it appropriate that his spirit summons us to common ground--and the higher ground--so that we can do all we can for those who have our back in dangerous places all over the globe.

Senator Isakson cared deeply for Georgia's veterans and for veterans all across our country. He understood that there are some things bigger than politics. So we recognize his amazing service, his incredible legacy of life and self-sacrifice by renaming the Atlanta Regional Office of the Department of Veterans Affairs in his honor.

I am proud to sit in the seat where he sat, and it is my honor to help lead the passage of this bipartisan piece of legislation that will help preserve the legacy of our late and dear friend.

Long live the spirit of Johnny Isakson.

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