Welcoming the Guest Chaplain

Floor Speech

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Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, I want to join with my colleagues and say a few words celebrating the tremendous life and times of James Mountain Inhofe. He had a great name, and it seemed to fit him amazingly well.

My memories of Senator Inhofe were similar to those that Senator Thune mentioned. When I came to the Senate, he was the chairman or ranking member of the Environment and Public Works Committee. I remember him telling me one time: I am a true conservative. I believe in a strong national security, lower taxes, and infrastructure.

And, of course, the job of the Environment and Public Works Committee was largely to handle the regular highway bill reauthorization and funding. And he was true to his word. He believed, as a true conservative, in those three important things, and, he said: Pretty much everything else we do is way down the list in terms of priorities.

But perhaps the time I remember the most is working with him when he was leading the Armed Services Committee. I know he believed that there was no more important job for us to do--those of us who have the privilege of serving in the U.S. Senate or in the Congress--than to defend and protect our country and our way of life. And he believed that with all of his heart and all of his mind.

And so the exercise that we do every year, which is called the National Defense Authorization Act--which we have done, I think, now 63 years in a row--he was passionate about making sure that we did that on time and got it done because of his commitment not only to our national security but to the men and women who serve our country in uniform and the families who love and support them. And he was passionate about making sure we did our work and supported them and kept our country safe and our way of life protected.

His physical stamina was legendary. We have already heard some of our colleagues talk about some of his trips around the world. Some of our colleagues, when they travel, believe in what I would call almost a ``death march'' pace. And, certainly, Senator Inhofe believed in making the most of his overseas travel, but, frankly, most of them were focused on either supporting our men and women in uniform, most recently in Iraq and Afghanistan, but also making sure that he got the most out of those trips. So if you agreed to go with him, chances are you wouldn't get much sleep, but you would get a chance to see and do a lot. He would regularly make his trips to Africa, where he would reach out to leaders through a common belief and a common faith.

He was very active in the National Prayer Breakfast. I remember, on most Wednesday mornings here in the Senate, he would almost always be at the Senate Prayer Breakfast. For those of us who can attend from time to time, it is one of the times where we sort of take our masks off--where we are not Republicans or Democrats and where we share a common faith. This is something that I know was very important in his life.

Certainly, he was a wonderful example and exemplar for the rest of us in how to be a whole person, not just a political animal coming here or maybe a performance artist but somebody who was a genuine human being, who had a strong foundation in his faith and strong beliefs and convictions about what he was here to do.

One of the things I will never forget is his annual quail hunt in Altus, TX--excuse me--Altus, OK. I said Altus, TX. We call Oklahoma ``North Texas'' sometimes, and they call Texas ``South Oklahoma,'' but we share a common border and a lot of common interests. One of those was the annual quail hunt in Altus, and it was a great community event. They are primarily connected with the airbase and trying to make sure that community support is strong for that airbase in Altus. I would go up to his each year, and then he would come down to one that I have in Hondo, TX, outside of San Antonio.

The other thing I remember--and Senator Lankford, I know, has carried on this great tradition--is that they would have their annual quail breakfast here in DC. It is not something you would ordinarily find at your breakfast table here in Washington, DC, but they would have an annual quail breakfast with the Altus delegation each year.

I just think we have lost a great man, a great Senator, a great human being, a great friend.

I wanted to come to the floor to express my condolences to Kay and his wonderful family--who meant everything to him--for their loss. We share in their sense of loss, but we also share in their celebration of a great life lived.

He had a good run. There is not a lot you can complain about in terms of living to 89 years old and having the sort of fulfilling life and accomplishments he had in his life. So we do want to send our condolences to the family because we know they are grieving now, but we also want to hold up Jim Inhofe as an example of what we should all aspire to as Senators--a great representative of his State, a great human being, and a great, great friend.

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