Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act

Floor Speech

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Mrs. CAPITO. Madam President, I want to thank the Senator from Maine for her great words of serving so long with our friend and colleague Tom Carper.

First of all, I want to say to Tom, I appreciate the very kind words that he mentioned about me and us in our work together on the committee. As we have said, he has dedicated nearly his entire adult life to the service of our country in many different ways and to the home State of Delaware.

But don't let the ``Delaware'' next to his name fool you. All those good family values, all those good sturdy qualities of honesty and service, steadfastness were rooted in his birth in the great State of West Virginia. Anytime I tried to get anything over on him and say, ``Yeah, but I'm from West Virginia,'' he would always say, ``I am too.'' So he is always very proud of his West Virginia roots. He had a couple of family reunions there during our time of service together.

Then, in 2021, we had the opportunity to have an EPW field hearing in his birthplace of Beckley, WV, and I will tell you, at that particular--not one relative of mine was there, but Tom had his relatives there to cheer him on. So I know it was a very special occasion for him, and it certainly was for me as well.

As the ranking member of the EPW Committee, serving alongside my chairman, Senator Carper, over the last 4 years, I have had the distinct pleasure to work in tandem with him on things he has mentioned, most especially infrastructure and energy and the environmental challenges our country faces. We don't always see eye to eye, but we have developed a relationship that is centered on trust and respect.

We do talk every Thursday afternoon, and I want to tell you that I told your successor that I think this is something we need to continue because we kept that valuable relationship going through times when we might not have agreed and couldn't get to the same place.

But I think it is essential that the relationship we created really did give us these bipartisan achievements: the surface transportation reauthorization legislation, the drinking water and wastewater infrastructure legislation. Those bills became the foundation of the bipartisan infrastructure law. Had they not been there, I am not sure we would have ended up as well as we did as a body. It is paying dividends in my State, in his State, in Senator Collins' State--all across the country.

Additionally, we led the charge by offering the ADVANCE Act, which is the Advanced Nuclear Act. That bill, which is now law, I think will maintain America's nuclear energy leadership by encouraging more innovation and investment right here in our States. It sets the stage for the proliferation of reliable and safe nuclear power.

We also just recently crafted our--I think it might be our second or third Water Resources Development Act. It is pending. Hopefully, we will get it across the floor here in the next day or two, and it is my hope that we will soon pass this. But I did name this bill, so everybody is going to listen to this. Get down here and vote for the Thomas R. Carper Water Resources Development Act. Hopefully, we will do it tomorrow.

But outside of Chairman Carper the legislator and the native West Virginian I have known, I have gotten to know the person as well. He is just a very kind man. He is always advising people.

We call them in our office--I don't know that I have ever told you this, but we call his sayings Carperisms. We have many Carperisms. I am skipping a few, but I am telling you the one that always, I think, embodies you, and that is to follow the Golden Rule and treat others as you would like to be treated. He has always shown respect to my staff, to our committee's witnesses, and to all of those who have worked together through the years.

He is also a very pragmatic leader, obviously being elected numerous times in Delaware in all different kinds of posts, guided by his mantra of--here is another Carperism--figuring out what works and doing more of it. It is a pretty simple thing. And he is a self-proclaimed recovering Governor, but he is well-versed in the art of getting things done.

Above all, Chairman Carper is a true American. He served his country bravely overseas in wartime, and he has given the last 23 years of his life to the service of this Chamber. Chairman Carper has consistently dedicated himself to making our country as strong as it can be and delivering for the people he represents. His character, compassion, and, yes, dogged determination will certainly be missed in the U.S. Senate, but the impacts of his work will continue to make a difference for generations to come.

Chairman Carper--my friend Tom--it has been an honor to work with you, alongside you, and deliver for our country and for the people we both love so very, very much. So I wish you the best--you and Martha the best.

I will tell you what. That man loves his wife Martha.

The way he talks about you in such a venerated way is the way we should all be talking about our loved ones. I have a deep appreciation for that.

So I wish you all the best. Thanks for your years of service, your friendship, and thanks for giving me a little part of your heart over these last several years because it has really helped me, and it has helped us work together so well.

Thank you.

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