Relate to each other and to our constituents and for the people of america. So, johnny, i have been honored and privileged to serve with you. It will always be one of the greatest honors in my life to have been able to serve in this body with you. I wish you and your family nothing but the best in the fewer and i hope that you will continue to contact me during the Football Games and throughout so that he woo can commiserate so that we can commiserate, the good, bad, and ugly about georgia football. I appreciate you. Thank good youve been here. A senator mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from colorado. Mr. Gardner mr. President , i yield to our tremendous colleague from georgia, senator isakson. Thank you. Mr. President , i want to agree with me colleague from alabama, senator jones. He hasnt been here as long as some of my other colleagues have been. But i think its fair to say that when senator jones and i have a colleague who is departing or the presiding officer has a colleague who is departing, there is one day of farewell, maybe theres an hour window where we can come to the floor or reception in the mansfield room to say thank you. I think its fair to say ive been in line for a long time to get to this day to say thank you to Johnny Isakson as has my colleague, senator jones. These tributes started when you first announced that you would be retiring from the senate and it is very fitting that they continue through this day because of the work that you have pursued, the accomplishments that you have made, but also the humanity that rests in your heart. All of us are better off because of your work knowing you and i hope that a little bit of Johnny Isakson rubs off on all of us that we can be here today knowing that were a better institution, better leaders, better Public Servants because of your model. Johnny isakson, senator isakson has done a lot of things thats been discussed on the senate floor, so i dont know how much i can add but i will add a few i think to the kind words that have been said. You know, so many people have said such great things. The first time that you and i had an opportunity to Work Together is something that will benefit generations of coloradans, and that was the v. A. Hospital in colorado, something that may have shaved off some of the patience that senator isakson has, which seemed to be unending patience at times. This one, though, im sure, took a little bit of a toll, frustration with a very crazy collapse of a v. A. Facility that had taken over a decade and, gork, hundreds of gosh, hundreds of millions of dollars to complete, a project that started out in the 1990s that didnt get done until, gosh, about a year ago or so, a project that started out at 300 million that ended up over 2 billion. But through it all you were mindful of a very simple purpose. Senator isakson was mindful of a very simple purpose, and that is that this facility is to benefit the veterans who have given so much to this country. And the first thing you said to me that senator isakson said to me was that dont worry, we are going to get this done and we are going to make reform so that this never happens again. Under senator isaksons leadership, weve seen changes at the v. A. And weve also seen changes about how new facilities are going to be completed and built so that we can avoid the kinds of mistake that led to the delays in colorado. But ultimately senator isakson knew this would be the crown jewel in the Rocky Mountain region for veteran service, veteran care, and thats exactly what it continues to do and we have senator isakson to thank you to thank for the completion of that and the the time on task it took to get the job done. Senator isakson held a field hearing in aurora, colorado, with, i think at the time the under secretary sloan gibson, to find out what had happened, why the delays occurred and to fix it and to hold the people who were responsible for the delays accountable. Thats the kind of leadership that senator isakson provided. You know, throughout that process senator isakson, i think i threatened to rename the colonoscopy unit after a couple of people, but, to you, we should name the town after you for the work you did to complete that facility. I remember the first time i gave him a little bit of a treat from colorado to thank him for his work, it was a box of toffee, a Family Company in western colorado, its a pretty incredible treat. I gave it to him thinking that hes never had it before. He said, i love this stuff. I used to give this out to my clients when i was in real estate. So i couldnt surprise him with what i thought was a special colorado treat. Johnny has the ability to cut through a problem, to cut through the smoke, to cut through the haze and fog of a challenge and to go right to the merits of it and to be able to very concisely rif on any issue at a moments notice and cut to heart of a problem and to provide a solution to that problem and to that challenge. So the old saying goes, youre known by the company you keep. You look around this chamber and you see the people who came to pay their thanks to senator isakson. It was pretty good company. And youve done such great things for georgia, for this country. I cant thank you enough, senator isakson enough for his leadership in helping us out in colorado and making this country a better place. Senator isakson, thank you for all that you have done. I yield the floor. A senator mr. President , is the senate . A quorum call . The presiding officer no. Mrs. Shaheen then i wont ask that it be lifted. I come to the floor this afternoon to pay tribute to our good friend because i say ours because i know he is the friend of everyone in this chamber to our good friend, Johnny Isakson of the great state of georgia. It was a real blow to me and i know to all of the senators to hear that senator isakson wouldnt be seeking another term and that he would be leaving early. Over the years, johnny and i have had chance to partner on a number of bipartisan initiatives. He has established a reputation in this body as an honorable and hardworking senator who cares deeply about his constituents and beyond that is just a kind person. And, you know, as we think about one of the accolades that we could say about somebody, somebody who is kind to everyone they meet, thats about as nice a thing i think as you can say. And his what johnny does has been demonstrated time and time again in congress. He develops trust and good working relationships and he gets things done. As chairman of the Veterans Affairs committee and a veteran himself, johnny has taken on the difficult but critical task of making reforms to the v. A. To better deliver care to those who have fought for our country. And having been through some of those challenges with veterans in New Hampshire and see what theyre facing with getting the care they need, to be able to go back to them and say because of the work of senator isakson and senator tester, that we now have the mission act which is Bipartisan Legislation to expand care and services to veterans has been very reassuring. We also know that senator isakson is a fierce advocate for local priorities in his home state. I have a sister in georgia, in atlanta, and when i ask her about senator isakson, she speaks very positively about what shes seen that he does in georgia. And of course many of us here have been reminded time and again of the importance of the port of savannah and its dredging needs. I can especially identify with those since we have small ports, much smaller than savannah in New Hampshire but they consistently have dredging needs. So i know how important it is to have an advocate who is there all the time making sure that the needs of those ports are being seen to. One of the many areas where senator isakson and i have found Common Ground is on reforming our budget process. And i think its not a secret to anybody in this body that the federal budget process is broken. And since 2011, i have worked with senator isakson who had been working on trying to get a biennial budgeting process for the federal government. Thats something that i think makes sense. 19 states including New Hampshire operate on a biennial budget. We believe that taxpayers would be better served by a process whereby Congress Budgets for two years rather than one and is able to use the second year for oversight. But as we know its not easy to change things in washington. But i couldnt have asked for a better partner in this effort. And one of the things that i have especially appreciated about johnny is that he has very little time for partisan sniping which has too often chargt rised much of what we do characterized much of what we do here. One of the gestures thats always that mattered to me and that has stood out about what his character is and how hes operated in the senate has been the fact that he came to New Hampshire to advocate for our biennial budget efforts in 2013. A year when i was in cycle for reelection and it didnt matter to him. What mattered was we were working on this issue and it was important to the american people. I had the opportunity to go down the following year to atlanta and we did the same presentation down in atlanta to again show that we could work in a bipartisan way to try and address what wasnt working in hamm. In New Hampshire. And i appreciate he has taken that approach on everything we have worked on. I also know senator isakson cares deeply about the institution of the senate. He served as chairman of the Senate Ethics committee, a committee that ive always been a member of though not nearly as long as he has. But ive seen close up how he has faithfully and honorably conducted the committees business. And again how partisanship has not been any part of how hes approached his duties on the ethics committee. What has been important is preserving the integrity of the senate and the responsibility that each of us has as a senator. You know, there have been so many ways in which Johnny Isakson has bridged the partisan divide. One of those is through food. I think all of my colleagues would agree with me that one of the highlights of our year is when senator isakson has his bipartisan barbecue lunch which features not just the dishes that his home state is known for but as he points out, the best barbecue in america. Now, in ham in New Hampshire we dont have a lot of barbecue so i dont have a basis of which to judge but i certainly would agree its very good barbecue. And i think as somebody who served in the army, he understands that the way to our hearts is through our stomachs. And we know if we keep our troops eating well, that they do better. And i think the same is probably true of senators. If we can if we can keep eating well and collaborate when were doing that, its great for our morale and its a great way to help work better together. So in closing, i just want to say that throughout his time in congress, Johnny Isakson has been a statesman and hes been a gentleman of the highest order. And, you know, they say that we remember people not by what they say as much as by how we feel we are treated. And i know its fair to say whether its the person operating the elevator, the person whos serving us lunch or each of us as senators or his constituents, Johnny Isakson has made all of us feel very important and he recognizes the value that each individual in the senate contributes to this body. And for that i am very appreciative and i will miss you, senator isakson. Thank you for everything youve done for all of us. A senator mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from mississippi. Mr. Wicker mr. President , let me join my dear friend and colleague from New Hampshire in paying tribute to so many things about Johnny Isakson. Mr. President , i know were supposed to abide by the rules, address each other address remarks to the chair and not speak to each other. And if i occasionally look over at the senior senator from georgia and call him johnny, i will apologize in advance to the chair and to the keeper of the rules. You know, i think one of the points that senator shaheen was making about the bipartisan barbecue dinner barbecue lunch every year is that we ought to do this more often. We choose up sides so many times. For those of us on this side of the aisle, its three times at lunch every week. Tuesday, wednesday, and thursday. We dont have a chance the senior senator and i have senior senator from New Hampshire and i dont have a chance. Johnny isakson decided at least one time a year when he was in charge of making that decision he would invite republicans and democrats. Sometimes we got pushback from the leadership of both parties because they didnt have us captive that particular hour. Some of us who tried it didnt do it year after year after year. Johnny isakson has done that and been an example of bipartisanship. I hope, johnny, were not making you weary of speech making. But i did want to make an extra point that perhaps others havent made and give a quotation that senator Johnny Isakson has made about others that he never would have made about himself because hes too modest. I first became aware of Johnny Isakson in 1990. He and i had not met at that point but i was in atlanta, georgia, for some party function. Johnny isakson was a successful businessman and a member of the Georgia Senate. And he was the republican nominee for governor that year and it was pretty well known he was not going to win that race. But he came before us and made a rip roaring talk, very impressive, and i said to myse myself, you know, he may not win this year but this Johnny Isakson fella has a future and hes going to go places. And it turns out that the impression i had that day was correct. He would go on to serve for some time in a bipartisan way in georgia and then when the speaker of the house of representatives resigned from office, Johnny Isakson was there to win the special election and became my colleague in the house of representatives. During that time when we served in the house together, we were on the Deputy Whip Team together. And johnny was usually you and i sitting next to each other at each of those weekly meetings of the whip team. And i began to realize on a personal daytoday basis what an outstanding leader he was, what an articulate leader he was, how persuasive he was, and how able he was to actually come up with some accomplishments in the congress. Boy, its hard to get a bill passed. And Johnny Isakson has gotten bill after bill after bill passed for our nations veterans of which im proud to be one. A list as long as my arms. Im proud to be a veteran. Im proud to be the father of an air force major and the son of an Army Air Force veteran from world war ii. We all appreciate in our family down through the generations the efforts that johnny has made. Hes been so effective because he understands people, because he understands the business about building consensus and using strong relationships and treating each and every one of us on both sides of this center aisle with dignity and respect, the kind of respect that we would hope to be treated with always. Now, senator isakson enjoys poetry as do i. And ive been known to quote a line or two from a poem. But today i want to quote from a poem entitled sermons we see by edgar guest. The reason i want to do this is that from time to time when we have honored people that Johnny Isakson adds mir admired, he would cite this poem or a verse or two from it as a way of honoring and pointing out the virtues of the person being honored. He would never be so bold as to quote the poem about himself. And so i submit today for the record, mr. President , the entire poem and ask that it be admitted at this point. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Wicker without objection, i will read the first two verses of sermons we see by edgar guest. Id rather see a sermon than to hear one any day. Id rather one should walk with me than merely tell the way. The eyes are better pupil and more willing than the ear. Fine counsel is confusing but examples always clear. And the best of all, the preachers are the men who live their creeds for to see good put in action is what everybody needs. I soon can learn to do it if youll let me see it done. I can watch your hands in action but your tongue too fast may run. And the lecture you deliver may be very wise and true but id rather get my lessons by observing what you do. For i might misunderstand you and the high advice you give, but theres no misunderstanding how you act and how you live. The first two verses of sermons we see. I am so grateful for the sermons that ive been able to see as a member of the house of representatives, as a fellow colleague of Johnny Isakson here in the United States senate. He has demonstrated in the way he has acted, the way we should always act. He has shown us how to be a gentleman and how to be an accomplished gentleman in the way he has lived and the way hes worked across the aisle. And how he ends this chapter gives us an opportunity to say thank you for the way hes made the nation better and the way hes made life better for millions and millions of his fellow americans. Thank you, johnny. And i yield the floor. Mr. Merkley mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from from oregon. Mr. Merkley it is my pleasure to also say some words of tribute to my colleague from georgia. When i first came here and found out about his real estate background and his interest in homeownership, i felt it was a powerful connection in that while i was never in the real estate business, when i went back to the oregon in 1991, i found a connection with habitat for humanity and eventually became their director, and it was all about homeownership. And so i spent a tremendous amount of time working to adva