The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“Tribute to Ryan D. McCarthy (Executive Session)” mentioning Bill Cassidy was published in the Senate section on pages S120-S121 on Jan. 25.
Of the 100 senators in 117th Congress, 24 percent were women, and 76 percent were men, according to the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
Senators' salaries are historically higher than the median US income.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
Tribute to Ryan D. McCarthy
Mr. MORAN. Madam President, I want to visit this evening on the Senate floor and take this opportunity to recognize a public servant, a leader, our former Secretary of the Army, the Honorable Ryan D. McCarthy. Secretary McCarthy led our Nation's Army from September 30, 2019, to January 20, 2021, and during that time, he made it a more modern, agile, and lethal fighting force.
We have worked together on a number of projects for Kansans and those who serve or have served our Nation during his tenure as Secretary, Acting Secretary, and Under Secretary of the Army, and I have grown to consider him a good, solid friend.
One of my most memorable experiences in the Senate was visiting the 1st Infantry Division soldiers in Germany and Poland--soldiers who come from Fort Riley, KS--with the Secretary, followed by our trip to Afghanistan to meet with troops on the frontlines in the global War on Terror. Those visits marked the beginning of our friendship, and since then, I have appreciated his guidance and his support during his visits to Kansas and our many discussions here in our Nation's Capital.
In 2019, Secretary McCarthy joined me in Kansas to visit Seitz Elementary School, which serves the families of the Big Red One soldiers on Fort Riley. Secretary McCarthy was instrumental in helping to find funding for this school in 2011 when he was the Special Assistant to Defense Secretary Robert Gates, a Kansan. I was pleased he joined me in Kansas to visit the school--and its students--that he helped create in 2019. We also met with Fort Riley leadership and then traveled to Wichita to visit defense manufacturing and academic leaders to discuss the future of Army procurement.
These personal touch points with soldiers and with the Army community were some of the reasons why Secretary McCarthy was universally respected within the Army family.
While I will always appreciate our personal engagements with soldiers, I will also remember our efforts to support soldiers and veterans when they step off the battlefield or separate from military service.
This past Veterans Day, we coauthored an editorial that discussed our parallel efforts to support the mental health and well-being of soldiers and veterans. Reports show Americans across the country are feeling isolated and alone in today's socially distanced environment, including our Nation's service men and women and veteran populations. Between my efforts as chairman of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee to implement the Commander John Scott Hannon Veterans Mental Health Care Improvement Act and Secretary McCarthy's effort to build interpersonal connections between soldiers, we are working to give soldiers and veterans the tools they need to overcome mental health challenges they face.
As Secretary McCarthy transitions out of the watchful eye of public life, I rise this evening to express my appreciation for his leadership, his character, and his moral compass. He never let politics or convenience influence his decisions, and that has significantly benefited soldiers, Army civilians, veterans, and Kansans across the Nation.
As the chairman and now ranking member of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, I will always strive to help veterans find success after service.
Secretary McCarthy, I have no doubts that you will find success and happiness after your dedicated service to our country. I thank your family for their support of your public service. I know that you and your family will find a quality life with purpose and meaning as you enter the next phase.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Louisiana.
Mr. CASSIDY. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to complete my remarks before the scheduled rollcall vote.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered
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