Democrats of St. Mary's County Maryland

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The statement of U.S. Senator Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.) follows:

“I join the nation and the world in mourning U.S. Senator Edward M.
Kennedy. He was truly gallant, both in public and in private. He was a
magnificent example of grace, courage and valor. He cared about others and
was modest about himself. He was a dedicated colleague, a loyal friend, and
a loving father, husband, son and uncle. He kept faith with the American
people. He was my friend.

“We were first brought together by the War on Poverty in the 1960s.
Medicare had just passed and I was a young social worker in Baltimore
organizing seniors to troubadour the new programs. I was invited to testify
before the Senate Subcommittee on Aging, which was chaired by Senator
Kennedy.

“Little did I know then that a decade later I would be elected to the
House of Representatives and have the honor of serving as a national
co-chair for his 1980 Presidential campaign or introducing him at the
convention.

“Twenty years after I first met him, I was elected as a U.S. Senator
from Maryland. I was just one of two women Senators and the first
Democratic woman elected to the Senate in her own right. Though I was all
by myself, I was never alone. Maryland’s senior Senator Paul Sarbanes and
Senator Kennedy were what I call my ‘Sir Galahads.’

“When I arrived, Senator Kennedy was on the Democratic Steering
Committee. He wanted me to join him on the health committee and served as
my precinct captain for committee assignments. He knew how to
operationalize good intentions. He understood the legislative framework. We
called it doing good by doing well.

“So by January 1987, I was on the HELP Committee, but also on
Appropriations Committee because Senator Kennedy knew you can take the best
ideas to create real opportunities in an authorizing bill, but it doesn’t
mean much unless there is money in the federal checkbook.

“Senator Kennedy was a fierce and determined advocate for women and for
equality. I absolutely know that millions of women are alive today because
of what we did together in establishing an Office of Women’s Health at
the NIH.

“We knew there was big a problem. Study after study showed women were
being systematically excluded from clinical research at NIH. The famous
study about aspirin and heart disease was conducted on 22,000 men, but not
one woman. A study on heart disease risk factors examined 13,000 men, but
not one woman. We heard about a study on the normal process of aging that
didn’t include women. Yet the results of these studies were being applied
to both men and women.

“After years of getting nowhere under Republican administrations, in
1990 I said to Senator Kennedy, let’s establish an Office of Women’s
Health at NIH. So we took the whole legislative framework to Senator Tom
Harkin who chaired the Appropriations Subcommittee that funds NIH. He put
it into the NIH appropriations bill and, as the authorizer, Senator Kennedy
allowed it to move forward.

“The impact has been profound. The Office of Women’s Health
successfully lead the large scale ‘Women’s Health Initiative’
clinical trial in 2002. It found that the use of hormone treatment in women
for symptoms of menopause lead to slightly higher breast cancer rates.
After the release of the study findings, breast cancer rates dropped by 15
percent. We found definite gender differences in heart-disease. We
established mammogram quality standards. We have increased breast cancer
research funding by 700 percent since 1992. I think that’s phenomenal.
And he was phenomenal.

“In his 47 years in the Senate, he was a titan on issues that
strengthen our opportunity structure. Issues like education, civil rights,
voting rights, and expanding Medicare and Social Security. In addition to
our work on women’s health, I am proud and honored to have teamed up with
Senator Kennedy on the HELP Committee to establish AmeriCorps and increase
access to higher education.

“People know Senator Kennedy as an icon, but what they don’t know is
what a support he is to his colleagues. There were some rough spots in
being the only Democratic woman Senator while the nation was in the midst
of a generational change. But Senator Kennedy was always encouraging. He
was always on my side. He lifted my spirits.

“Senator Kennedy drew people to him because truly liked people and was
genuinely interested in their lives. He brought out the best in those
around him. He was the same good-hearted guy whether he was at a bowling
alley or meeting with international leaders.

“Senator Kennedy and I had a lot of fun together. He was a bit of a
prankster. He liked to tease and to banter. We also had a lot in common. We
are Catholic. Our parents both were in business. My father had a small
grocery store. His father owned Boston. We had devoted mothers. We shared
chunky genes and many, many diets over the years.

“Senator Kennedy had tremendous personal energy that he shared
generously with those around him. He was a good sport and had a boundless
wit.

“He was one of a kind. My motto is that each and every one of us can
make a difference, but together we can make change. Senator Kennedy changed
the people and the world around him for the better.”