Tribute to Senators

Floor Speech

TRIBUTE TO SENATORS -- (Senate - October 02, 2008)

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Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I thank my good friend from Colorado. I am here to talk about his distinguished career.

WAYNE ALLARD

Mr. President, as the 110th Congress draws to a close, we must reluctantly say goodbye to some friends who will be leaving us. That includes, as we have been discussing, my good friend, the senior Senator from Colorado.

As the Republican leader, I get to work closely with each and every one of our colleagues on this side of the aisle. The thing that has always impressed me the most about Senator Allard is the fact that he is a true citizen legislator in the model our Founding Fathers envisioned.

The Founders favored ordinary citizens of extraordinary wisdom. Those who step forward from among the people they represent and return to them when their time here is done.

So it is with Wayne Allard. He is retiring from the Senate because he is following a two-term pledge he set for himself when he was first elected in 1996. In the spirit of George Washington, he voluntarily retires ``from the great theatre of Action'' to return to the people and the place he has so ably represented.

Anyone who knows Senator Allard knows he is a big believer in keeping close contact with the people he represents. As a member of the Colorado State senate, he passed legislation limiting the length of legislative sessions to 120 days to better ensure that State lawmakers stayed in touch with their constituents.

After election to the Senate, he made a promise to Coloradans that he would visit every one of the State's counties every year--a promise he kept, keeping him in sync with Colorado sympathies and values.

Even more impressive are the 700 town meetings across Colorado that Senator Allard has held since his election to the Senate.

As a Senator, he has hosted the Allard Capital Conference, which brings Colorado community leaders to Washington to see the workings of the Federal Government up close--and to keep the Federal Government accountable to the people who elected them.

If I may add, I have had the pleasure of speaking to the Allard Capital Conference attendees on more than one occasion, and I have always admired how Senator Allard has stayed tied to communities across Colorado. He is always seeking to bring them closer to their elected representatives.

For 12 years, Senator Allard has been a strong voice for returning power from Washington back to the people and to the States. He has been a strong voice for lower taxes and lower Federal spending. Hailing from the Rockies, he has been a strong defender and protector of our environment.

Senator Allard has a different background than most of his colleagues. Born and raised in Colorado, the son of a cattle rancher, he had a successful career as a veterinarian. He and his wife Joan started their own animal hospital. He maintained his successful practice while serving as a State senator, and was elected to the House of Representatives for three terms starting in 1990.

I have had the pleasure of working alongside Wayne on many issues over the years. We have been allies in pushing the Department of Defense to safely and efficiently dispose of deadly chemical weapons stored in the Blue Grass Army Depot in Kentucky and the Pueblo Depot in Colorado.

I have watched with admiration as he fought to establish the Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge, which is crucial to preserving the natural habitats of so many diverse species in Colorado.

That success came after he successfully pushed, as a Member of the House, legislation to make the Rocky Mountain Arsenal site a wildlife refuge, turning a site that was once a manufacturing center for nerve gas and other chemical weapons into what is now one of the largest urban wildlife refuges in the Nation.

Wayne has fought to get aid for workers in Colorado who were exposed to unhealthy amounts of radiation at nuclear weapons facilities. He has also taken the lead on passing legislation to preserve the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Colorado's Spanish Peaks mountain area. With his retirement, Colorado is losing a longtime champion of conservation and environmental protection.

Senator Allard has been a consistent and strong supporter of our military and our national security interests. He led the debate on establishing a system to protect America from ballistic missile attacks, and he has supported funding and rigorous testing for such programs.

He has passed legislation multiple times to improve the system of voting for our men and women in uniform serving overseas, making sure the brave warriors who protect America are heard when it is time to elect America's leaders.

With all these accomplishments, and many more, the senior Senator from Colorado is going to leave some very big shoes--maybe it is better to say boots--to fill come next January.

He is also going to leave behind many friends. I am proud to call myself one of them. Elaine and I have enjoyed getting to know Wayne and Joan and their family over the years. We have had a chance to have dinner together from time to time, just the four of us. We will miss the common sense and grace they have brought to our Nation's Capital.

We are sorry to lose such a fine Senator. But as Wayne has said himself about his pledge on term limits: A promise made should be a promise kept.

The people of Colorado should be proud that their Senator ends his tenure with integrity, with honor, with humility--the same integrity, honor, and humility he brought when he came to the Capitol.

Wayne, we all wish you the best of luck for whatever the future holds. You will always have friends in the Capitol. We look forward to seeing you and Joan in the coming years.

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