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.
“MORNING BUSINESS” mentioning Chuck Grassley was published in the Senate section on pages S2061-S2062 on April 20.
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:
MORNING BUSINESS
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HONORING STATE PATROL SERGEANT JIM SMITH
Mr. GRASSLEY. Madam President, on April 13, I delivered remarks on the Senate Floor to share my condolences for Iowa State Patrol Sergeant Jim Smith, who lost his life in the line of duty. I was honored to attend Sergeant Smith's funeral on April 16 in Independence. Jim Smith was revered as a man of strong convictions, love of family, and deep-
rooted faith. Iowa State Patrol Colonel Nathan Fulk gave the following eulogy in honor of Sergeant Smith. I ask unanimous consent that the eulogy be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:
Col. Nathan Fulk Remarks at the Funeral for Sgt. James Smith
I'm going to ask all of you here today to do something for Jim Smith. I'm going to ask you to do something for Jim Smith's wife, Kathy, his son, Zander, and his daughter, Jazlyn. And what we're asking you to do today is to open your minds and your hearts to the Lord Jesus Christ. His presence is here today. Jim Smith is here with us today.
Our faith teaches us that in our suffering God is with us. Jim's priorities were faith, family, and his commitment to public service and his community. During a time in history when we wonder--with conflict, adversity, and challenge, we can doubt the support we have in society. However, the outpouring of support for the City of Independence has been truly amazing. You've reminded us why we love working, serving, and living in the state of Iowa. You've reminded us why we have a strong passion to serve and protect those in the community. And you've shown us that love, compassion, and respect are true Iowa values.
This senseless and tragic loss is difficult for everyone here today. Our Department of Public Safety family, our Iowa State Patrol Family, you know we're hurting but we're not broken. We are struggling but we're not lost. And we're deeply saddened but we will work to find peace in the days ahead. Commissioner Stephan Bayens and I are extremely proud of the work you do each and every day. His expectation for our leaders is we take the absolute best care of our personnel. Rest assured that we are here for you and we will keep you in our thoughts and prayers.
We will remain committed to serving Iowans with integrity, fairness, respect, honesty, courage, and compassion. This will be vital to our healing process and into the future. We are here for our troopers, our special agents, our communication specialists, our local law enforcement partners, and our first responders. We must navigate through this together, day by day, and week by week. We're going to continue to do our job and we're going to do it well. We're going to do it with confidence, professionalism, and integrity. We will work together to establish a pathway to heal while we honor Sgt. Jim Smith's sacrifice and his legacy.
Jim's faith and family was the foundation of his life. He loved being an Iowa State Trooper, but his job did not define who he was. What defined him was his family, his faith, and his true love for others. Sergeant Jim Smith worked for the State Patrol for twenty-seven and a half years, and twenty-five years on our tactical unit. During that time, he served as a team leader. And he was a humble man with a tremendous work ethic. Jim loved his job and he set an excellent example for others to follow. He mentioned how his parents provided him important qualities of hard work and determination that led to his success. He provided strong leadership in District Ten, alongside Lt. Senne, Sgt. O'Rear, and Sgt. Trimble. They all speak highly of his character, his integrity, and his commitment to do the right thing for the right reason. I learned this week that Jim's biggest vice was chocolate milk. Chocolate milk was a treat for him when he accomplished something special. I'm sure most of us in this room today wish chocolate milk was our biggest vice. This just speaks of Jim's character and who he was.
On the Area C Tactical Team for the Iowa State Patrol, he was extremely experienced in handling high-risk calls. He had quiet confidence that provided reassurance to the Area C Tactical Unit. This quiet confidence exhibited as `we got this.' Jim was a sheepdog, that protected sheep. He always wanted to be the number one man in the door. This was his struggle with becoming a team leader on the tactical team, was he would have to give up that number one position. Jim's wife, Kathy, recently mentioned to the State Patrol staff why he wanted to be the first to the door, and she now understands it. His priority was to protect his people.
Captain Olmstead and several other leaders in the organization challenged Jim to put in for a supervisory position. He struggled with this. Jim would politely decline and say, ``I love taking bad guys to jail and working the road.'' And he did it well. He felt that if he was promoted to become a supervisor he-couldn't do his road enforcement responsibilities, to protect and serve. One day Jim called Captain Olmstead and said he thought it was time to take on the leadership and supervisory position. He knew he needed to mentor young troopers, to show them what a work ethic and a commitment to the organization and to the State of Iowa meant to him. He went on to be promoted to sergeant and continue to do what he loved while mentoring, leading by examples, and encouraging troopers to work hard each and every day.
Jim was an extremely humble person that strove for excellence in his work, was strong in his faith, and he walked in Jesus' footsteps. He recently provided a sermon at church entitled Act Your Age. He brought in a Superman lunchbox and began to share the food that his wife, Kathy, had prepared for him. Jim pulled out an apple and he said that he asked his wife, Kathy, to pack him a Twinkie. He said Kathy reminded him that ``we're not on a diet, we're just making healthy life choices.'' But during that sermon he had a powerful message, a message he wants you to hear today. Jim said, ``I want my kids to know what's good and true.'' He spoke of sacrificial love and that children are adorable little creatures of God. He said that ``my kids fill my life with love.'' His correlation with that sermon was that God sees us as the children he created. You are a child of God, act your age. He closed with, ``Cherish God, know that God loves you, God still sees you as a child he created. So go to him as a child, depend on him, love him, and seek to be loved by him.'' It was a very captivating message he shared.
Family was extremely important to Jim. He often spoke of his wife, Kathy, and he loved you deeply. He spoke of his son, Zander, and his daughter, Jazlyn. He loved you two very much. He loved spending time with both of you and telling stories to all the troopers about the trips you took and the quality time you spent together. And that meant the world to him. He often spoke to the troopers--he was trying to be a good role model and a good father, and spoke of the dreams he had for both of you two. He wanted to be a good example for you. He wanted to lead you down a path of faith and to set you up for success in life. You both made him an extremely proud father.
I've been struggling to find the right words to comfort us all today. As we walk through this together, seeking to find a sense of purpose and a sense of peace, I don't have to look for those words because Jim left them for us. These handwritten words are from Jim. They were in his Bible, and Kathy provided them to us this week. The words were, ``Don't just know, do. Live in service. Know the goal, finish strong. Teach with application. Don't just tell, show. Don't just learn, do. Live out God's word. Live out faith. Teach, take care of our family, but also change the world.''
1 Peter 2:21 says, ``For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you. He is your example and you must follow in his footsteps.'' You know, reflecting on Jim's life has impacted us all this week. It has impacted me and challenged me to think about being the best person I can be. So I've asked myself some tough questions. Am I following in Jesus Christ's footsteps? Am I following in Jim Smith's footsteps? Can I be a man that cares for my community like Jim Smith cared for this community? Can I be a man that loves my children like Jim Smith loved Zander and Jazlyn? Can I be a man that loves my wife like Jim loved his wife, Kathy? And can I be a man that loves the Lord Jesus Christ, like Jim Smith loved the Lord, his God? We love you Jim, we will see you again
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