Portman honors John Glenn, ‘an American icon,’ on Senate Floor
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Press Release-
On Thursday night, U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-Ohio) delivered remarks on the Senate Floor to honor his predecessor as United States Senator from Ohio, John Glenn, who passed away Thursday at the age of 95.
The following is a transcript of Portman’s remarks:
“Mr. President, I rise today on a sad occasion, and that's to talk about the loss of an American icon. He is a fellow Ohioan. He held this seat in the United States Senate. He is one of our true heroes, as an astronaut, a fighter pilot, a successful businessperson, senator and later someone who helped young people throughout the state of Ohio through establishing his own school at the Ohio State University.
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“I’m talking about John Glenn. We lost him today at age 95. I was watching some of the coverage on television about his career, and it focused a lot on his orbiting the Earth—being the first American to orbit the Earth—in Friendship 7, a capsule you can see down at the Air and Space Museum. It is not much bigger than two of these desks put together. Somehow he wedged himself in, and he did something important for America at that time. In a space flight competition with the Soviets, he was the one who succeeded.
“But I didn’t hear too much about his career before him being an astronaut and that amazing flight that ended with him addressing a joint session of Congress, or what he did after that. I want to talk about that for a second and say that I appreciate that my colleagues tomorrow will help me and join to pay tribute to him through a Senate resolution. But prior to him being a famous astronaut, he was an American hero, to my mind. He was a fighter pilot who signed up after Pearl Harbor—the 75th anniversary of which we celebrated this week. He flew 59 missions as a fighter pilot in World War II. He later flew about 90 missions in Korea.
“He was highly decorated as a fighter pilot. He then was a test pilot and he broke the transcontinental flight time record… And then he decided to join the astronaut corps. He was part of that group of Friendship astronauts who became famous later for having ‘the right stuff.’ He was the right stuff.
“He then had a successful career in business and then he decided he loved public service. He wanted to be in the United States Senate. He was elected to the United States Senate and then was re-elected with historic numbers in my home state of Ohio. I got to serve with him during part of his time there. We worked on projects together. He was on the same committee as my colleague from Delaware was on and both of them have chaired it, the Governmental Affairs committee, and he loved good government.
“One of his big issues was stopping unfunded federal mandates. I was the House sponsor, on the Republican side. He was the Democrat sponsor here, and we ended up in the Rose Garden together for a ceremony. He was tenacious. And that issue not all Democrats agreed with him on. Yet did he what he thought was right in the name of good government. We also worked on other projects together and always I found that his focus was on his state, the people he represented, and how to make their lives better.
“After his Senate career, he started a new project. It was called the Glenn School of Public Affairs at the Ohio State University. I had the honor of teaching there for a few years before running for the Senate. I was a co-teacher for four different courses, and I got to know John Glenn in an entirely different way. He asked me to join their advisory board. I did join. I am still on the advisory board for now the Glenn College. Last year, we elevated the school to a college. This was John Glenn's greatest single accomplishment in the latter years of his life: to create an institution where young people could come and be inspired to go into public service and give them the tools to be able to succeed. He loved that school, and he loved those students. He chaired a board meeting only last month, and he did it with humor, as he always did, and passion.
“One of his big issues he talked about last month was how he wanted to have a leadership institute to ensure that more young people could understand the importance of government service, which he thought was a noble undertaking—military service, service for your country, service greater than yourself.
“We lost an American icon. He was also a man who loves and loved his family. His wife Annie Glenn many of us know in this chamber, and we love her because she is an amazing woman in her own right. For 73 years they were married. They knew each other as little kids, they virtually grew up from the crib until now together. Annie Glenn was at his side constantly. That relationship—their partnership—is an example for my wife Jane and me and for all of us here in this chamber.
“Earlier this year, Mr. President, my staff and I had a retreat in Ohio. We brought all of our D.C. staff and Ohio staff together to talk about how to better serve our constituents, how to define the mission, and I asked John Glenn to come address that group. What a treat. Our staff had the opportunity to sit and talk to John Glenn about his career, but more importantly, to talk about his passion for public service and the mission he gave us was one of honor and respect and decency for our constituents and to serve the people. That was his life. John Glenn's life story touches our hearts today, and his life story also is part of American history.”
The following is a transcript of Portman’s remarks:
“Mr. President, I rise today on a sad occasion, and that's to talk about the loss of an American icon. He is a fellow Ohioan. He held this seat in the United States Senate. He is one of our true heroes, as an astronaut, a fighter pilot, a successful businessperson, senator and later someone who helped young people throughout the state of Ohio through establishing his own school at the Ohio State University.
[[In-content Ad]]
“I’m talking about John Glenn. We lost him today at age 95. I was watching some of the coverage on television about his career, and it focused a lot on his orbiting the Earth—being the first American to orbit the Earth—in Friendship 7, a capsule you can see down at the Air and Space Museum. It is not much bigger than two of these desks put together. Somehow he wedged himself in, and he did something important for America at that time. In a space flight competition with the Soviets, he was the one who succeeded.
“But I didn’t hear too much about his career before him being an astronaut and that amazing flight that ended with him addressing a joint session of Congress, or what he did after that. I want to talk about that for a second and say that I appreciate that my colleagues tomorrow will help me and join to pay tribute to him through a Senate resolution. But prior to him being a famous astronaut, he was an American hero, to my mind. He was a fighter pilot who signed up after Pearl Harbor—the 75th anniversary of which we celebrated this week. He flew 59 missions as a fighter pilot in World War II. He later flew about 90 missions in Korea.
“He was highly decorated as a fighter pilot. He then was a test pilot and he broke the transcontinental flight time record… And then he decided to join the astronaut corps. He was part of that group of Friendship astronauts who became famous later for having ‘the right stuff.’ He was the right stuff.
“He then had a successful career in business and then he decided he loved public service. He wanted to be in the United States Senate. He was elected to the United States Senate and then was re-elected with historic numbers in my home state of Ohio. I got to serve with him during part of his time there. We worked on projects together. He was on the same committee as my colleague from Delaware was on and both of them have chaired it, the Governmental Affairs committee, and he loved good government.
“One of his big issues was stopping unfunded federal mandates. I was the House sponsor, on the Republican side. He was the Democrat sponsor here, and we ended up in the Rose Garden together for a ceremony. He was tenacious. And that issue not all Democrats agreed with him on. Yet did he what he thought was right in the name of good government. We also worked on other projects together and always I found that his focus was on his state, the people he represented, and how to make their lives better.
“After his Senate career, he started a new project. It was called the Glenn School of Public Affairs at the Ohio State University. I had the honor of teaching there for a few years before running for the Senate. I was a co-teacher for four different courses, and I got to know John Glenn in an entirely different way. He asked me to join their advisory board. I did join. I am still on the advisory board for now the Glenn College. Last year, we elevated the school to a college. This was John Glenn's greatest single accomplishment in the latter years of his life: to create an institution where young people could come and be inspired to go into public service and give them the tools to be able to succeed. He loved that school, and he loved those students. He chaired a board meeting only last month, and he did it with humor, as he always did, and passion.
“One of his big issues he talked about last month was how he wanted to have a leadership institute to ensure that more young people could understand the importance of government service, which he thought was a noble undertaking—military service, service for your country, service greater than yourself.
“We lost an American icon. He was also a man who loves and loved his family. His wife Annie Glenn many of us know in this chamber, and we love her because she is an amazing woman in her own right. For 73 years they were married. They knew each other as little kids, they virtually grew up from the crib until now together. Annie Glenn was at his side constantly. That relationship—their partnership—is an example for my wife Jane and me and for all of us here in this chamber.
“Earlier this year, Mr. President, my staff and I had a retreat in Ohio. We brought all of our D.C. staff and Ohio staff together to talk about how to better serve our constituents, how to define the mission, and I asked John Glenn to come address that group. What a treat. Our staff had the opportunity to sit and talk to John Glenn about his career, but more importantly, to talk about his passion for public service and the mission he gave us was one of honor and respect and decency for our constituents and to serve the people. That was his life. John Glenn's life story touches our hearts today, and his life story also is part of American history.”