Rounds Joins Colleagues in Honoring Late Oklahoma Senator Jim Inhofe on Senate Floor
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) joined several of his Senate colleagues in delivering a series of floor speeches honoring the late Senator Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.). Inhofe passed away earlier this week after a stroke. Rounds and Inhofe served alongside one another in the Senate for eight years before Inhofe’s retirement in January 2023, with both serving on the Senate Armed Services Committee.
“Jim Inhofe was a true ambassador for his state, his country and most importantly, Jesus,” said Rounds. “Whether he was in another country or attending our weekly Senate prayer breakfasts, he loved sharing his faith with others.”
“He was one of my best friends in the United States Senate,” continued Rounds. “Jim often said that real friendship did exist in the Senate, even if the news wouldn't necessarily show it. To Jim, it didn't matter if someone was a Republican, a Democrat or an Independent, he put political parties aside to get things done and trusted and respected the colleagues he worked with. Many of us in this chamber are lucky to have worked with Jim and to have called him a friend.”
View the full speech HERE. Read the full transcript of the speech below.
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I think many of us come down here to the floor with prepared remarks because we want to be precise in what we say, but after listening to my friend from Nebraska and her remarks, I have to admit that some of the memories that she has of Jim Inhofe are very similar to the memories that I have of Jim.
And before I go into fully prepared remarks, I just wanted to share with you that I don't know that anybody else has the record that Jim has of the number of snowballs that have been tossed on the floor of the Senate. Jim is one of those guys who could get away with coming in with a snowball and then looking at a young page and saying, “Be ready to catch this when I throw it at you.” And then in the middle of talking about climate change and the fact that he disagreed with a lot of the new ideas, he would pick up a snowball, show it to everybody and then toss it over to one young page, who I'm sure will never forget that for as long as he lives.
Jim made friends every place he went. Now, he had his own ideas about what things should look like and about how things should proceed, and I have to tell you that I think the vast majority of cases he was right. But he also wanted to have a discussion with other people. He liked to have debate. They were friends as far as he was concerned, and you could have disagreements among one another, and you could still be friends. Jim was one of those guys who truly believed that if you were his friend, and you agreed with him 80% of the time, you were never going to be an enemy. You were always going to be a friend.
I've traveled the world with Jim on more than one occasion, and no matter where he went, he went in what he called the spirit of Jesus. He believed that that Christian value that he had was the conduit between people from all different faiths, and that in his opinion, and as long as he was prepared to share his faith, he was going to be welcome. And he was. I don't think people realize that this guy from the middle part of the United States of America was a guy who later on could say that he was a man who shared a prayer with Muammar Gaddafi in Gaddafi's tent. But he did that because he thought it was the right thing to do.
Jim was my friend. He was a mentor, and the way that he treated other people is the way that I think all the rest of us should treat people. Jim's wife Kay became a very special friend of both myself and my late wife Jean. She treated both of us with that respect and that acceptance that you don't always get, and yet you see it as being very, very sincere. We became part of their family, and we'll never forget that.
You see, Jim Inhofe was a true ambassador for his state, his country and most importantly, Jesus. Whether he was in another country or attending our weekly Senate prayer breakfasts, he loved sharing his faith with others.
Jim and I traveled the world together, and we shared a love for Aviation. He was one of my best friends in the United States Senate. Jim often said that real friendship did exist in the Senate, even if the news wouldn't necessarily show it. To Jim, it didn't matter if someone was a Republican, a Democrat or an Independent, he put political parties aside to get things done and trusted and respected the colleagues he worked with. Many of us in this chamber are lucky to have worked with Jim and to have called him a friend.
I especially appreciated his leadership and partnership while working together on the Senate Armed Services Committee. Jim worked tirelessly each year to make sure that the Senate passed legislation providing for our national security and for our service members through the National Defense Authorization Act. It was fitting and well-deserved as a tribute to have the James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for the Fiscal Year 2023 signed into law.
He made many contributions on the national and international stage, including his deep love and appreciation for the people of Africa, particularly Ethiopia. He developed meaningful relationships across the world through a shared love of Jesus, and our world is better off because of it.
My thoughts and my prayers go out to Jim's wife, Kay, and to their family.
Jim has slipped the surly bonds of Earth. Now, he can put out his hand and touch the face of God. I will miss my friend, Jim.
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