Chapter Ten

The End and a Beginning

My favorite part of the Constitution is the preamble. When I get the chance to visit classrooms, I always start the conversation about our nation by having the students read it out loud and then we discuss what they think it means.

“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”

Only fifty-two words, but to me it says it all. It’s elegant and clear. It’s guided me ever since I got to Congress. It’s what I have fought for ever since. When I watched the amazing documentary about the Roosevelts by Ken Burns, I was really pleased to learn that FDR felt that the preamble was in many ways his guiding light too.

I love the words “a more perfect union.” Our founders didn’t say we had already formed a perfect union, but that we should strive to do so. They knew that nobody’s perfect and nothing is perfect and our union, our nation, will never reach perfection. But perfection is what we should strive for. Gouverneur Morris, who wrote that preamble in 1787 when he was a thirty-five-year-old delegate from Pennsylvania to the Constitutional Convention, was a statesman and politician who believed in one nation, not a collection of states. He was totally opposed to slavery. He was the champion of an executive branch, but wanted to be sure it could never become a monarchy. So Morris was a leader who won a few and lost a few. Some of his concerns are still being resolved today.

Fortunately, many men and women who have led our nation since the Constitution was written understood what Morris meant in those fifty-two words. They have done everything in their power during their flash of time in the arena to make it “more perfect.” They have tried to represent the people of our nation and they have struggled for America’s soul. Sometimes they have done so against enormous obstacles and, as I know from personal experience, very tough odds. They have fought for justice, peace, and individual rights, for a society that’s fair and strong from within and without.

All of them, like Gouverneur Morris, have won some and lost some.

It’s important for every one of us in America to understand the difference one person can make in the White House, the Senate, or the House of Representatives. I’ve tried to show that in this memoir. It’s easy to become disenchanted, because just as our nation isn’t perfect, neither are our leaders. They all make mistakes, as have I. But the ultimate test is whom these elected leaders fight for every day: themselves or their constituency; the everyday people of our nation or the wealthy, big business, and connected special interests. The fact is, so much of what we take for granted is present in our lives because good people have won office for the right reasons.

How do you think we got free public education, Medicare, and Social Security? How did we build roads, highways, and bridges? Where do you think the minimum wage comes from? And child labor laws? How did we get student loans? National parks and wilderness areas? Or emergency help after a natural disaster? Clean water? Clean air? Vaccines against polio and measles? AIDS treatments? Safety standards for automobiles? Healthcare reform?

All of these crucial aspects of our lives and much more were achieved by individuals who believed in the political philosophy that Abraham Lincoln described at the end of his first inaugural address. Speaking on March 4, 1861, just after seven southern states had actually seceded from the Union, he used conciliatory tones in an effort to maintain peace and preserve the Union. He described secession as anarchy and explained, “We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.” The better angels of our nature.

I love that sentiment, but even Lincoln with all his eloquence, strength, and toughness could not stop the Civil War. Instead, he had to win it. And when he did, he exhibited “the better angels of our nature” when the country came back together and slavery was ended because of his extraordinary leadership.

Lincoln represents a level of spiritual devotion to the perfection of our union matched only by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt during the deep, dark days of the Depression and World War II. But I also greatly admire brave congressmen and senators like Sam Ervin, the Democrat from North Carolina, whose leadership of the Senate investigation committees brought down both Senator Joseph McCarthy in 1954 and Richard Nixon in 1972. It was Ervin who led the Senate Select Committee to Investigate Campaign Practices, also known as the Watergate Committee, and his fearless work brought about the end of a nightmare. Those were dark times and we needed what Ervin gave us in everyday common sense and courage, all wrapped up in his country humor and cracker-barrel authenticity.

Another politician who stepped up at a time when destiny called was Congresswoman Barbara Jordan, an African American who was the first woman to represent Texas in the House. Lyndon Johnson helped her get on the House Judiciary Committee and in 1974 Congresswoman Jordan made an influential televised speech supporting the impeachment of Richard Nixon. She also gave memorable keynote speeches at the Democratic National Conventions in both 1976 and 1992. I remember watching her with the greatest admiration and respect. I can still close my eyes and hear her strong, distinctive, and unforgettable voice.

During the 1976 election that pitted Gerald Ford against Democrat Jimmy Carter, Barbara Jordan said something that I carry in my heart every day:

“Let each person do his or her part. If one citizen is unwilling to participate, all of us are going to suffer. For the American idea… is realized in each one of us.” Then in 1992, as Democrat William Jefferson Clinton was nominated for president, she said, “Some people say that it makes no difference who is elected president of the United States. You must say to those cynics: You are perpetuating a fraud. It does make a difference who is president.” She pointed out Supreme Court appointments and “principles, programs and policies which help us help ourselves.”

Barbara Jordan was a trailblazer who died from complications of leukemia at the young age of fifty-nine, only four years after that speech. I see America very much the way she did, and her words inspired me throughout my years in office.

Another national legislator I learned much from and admired greatly was Ted Kennedy, the “Lion of the Senate,” who served for forty-seven years and wrote more than three hundred bills that were enacted into law. Kennedy’s first major priority from 1962 until his death in 2009 was health care for all, which he called “the cause of my life.” He worked very well with Democrats and Republicans alike, reaching compromises on such issues as immigration, AIDS, education, and children’s health.

None of these men and women had it easy. They had to be tough as nails to fight the battles against those who represented only the wealthy few or who thought they would advance their careers by dividing us through prejudice and hatred, people like Joe McCarthy and Newt Gingrich. But despite those who try to turn us away from “the better angels,” the union can be made more perfect. And as we look over time this has happened, although we have a long, long way to go. Battles are constantly being fought, on such fronts as civil rights for African Americans, Latinos, women, and the LGBT community. But it’s my firm belief that if everyone stays involved in the process, if everyone pays attention and votes, we’ll keep moving in the right direction.

To quote Barbara Jordan again: “If one citizen is unwilling to participate, all of us are going to suffer. For the American idea… is realized in each one of us.” How can we become a nation “of, by and for the people,” if we don’t? The sad truth is that so many Americans don’t realize how important it is to vote. They fail to realize how their vote can elect members of Congress and the Senate who have a profound impact on their personal lives. I’m so frustrated when people tell me it doesn’t make a difference, it won’t count. I keep trying to connect the dots, to explain how we achieved Medicare and child labor laws and all those efforts to change things and make a more perfect union—by voting.

Only 57.5 percent of eligible voters turned up at the ballot box for the national election between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney. That means 126 million voters exercised their privilege and responsibility to participate in our democracy and 93 million didn’t. Ninety-three million didn’t vote at all. It breaks my heart.

Not only that, fewer than 25 percent of eligible voters ordinarily turn up at the ballot booth for so-called “off-year elections,” that is, when there’s not a presidential race at the top of the ballot. But that’s crazy: it’s never an off year when we’re voting for local, state, and federal officials who can and will make a big difference in our lives.

How can we achieve a more perfect union if all of our citizens don’t step up and understand that whom they elect is important?

I’m one of those politicians who has run for office with the notion that the founders were right to focus our efforts on perfecting our union. I have devoted my heart and mind for more than forty years to fighting for the issues of our time that I believed were critical to the well-being of my state and nation: for ending war and promoting peace, for health care, for individual rights, for education and the environment, for consumer rights, for dignity and opportunity for all of our citizens.

So why, you might ask, did I announce on January 8, 2015, my decision not to seek re-election in 2016, and thereby retire from the Senate? People have, and here’s my answer.

First, let me say this. It’s not because I’m too old. It’s no secret that I was born on November 11, 1940, so do the math. But I feel as young as I’ve ever felt, and my retirement has nothing to do with my chronological age.

The chief reason is that, whereas I want to keep up the battle for America’s soul, I feel that I can be more effective by being in different settings, outside the Senate, where I can speak and act with little constraint other than my own sensibilities. And I would not have left had there not developed over these many years a deep bench of progressives in California. Just as you will find in baseball, we have terrific hitters and pitchers waiting their turn, ready to get into the line-up.

When I first ran for the Senate, politics in my state was really purple, not blue, with a Republican senator, Pete Wilson, who then became governor, and many other Republican congressmen, particularly in southern California. That is no longer the case. Today I can leave the Senate confident of being replaced by someone just as strong, liberal, and progressive. A fighter. Maybe even a woman.

Second, there are now enough people in my Senate Democratic caucus who want to and will carry forward the issues to which I’ve given my heart: the environment, the survival of the middle class, infrastructure building, equality for all, the right to choose for women, and zero tolerance for violence against women, children, and seniors. All those things, plus a peaceful world where war is the last resort, not the first.

Also, retiring from the Senate means not having that huge weight on my shoulders of having to fund-raise for two full years out of the six-year term. All that time, stress, and the constant pressure of raising the money for myself: it’s awful for me. I would now have had to raise thirty to forty million dollars were I to run again. Not having to do that gives me two years to devote to my work in the Senate for Californians and to the never-ending battle for the soul of our nation. What a relief not having to raise that money for myself again!

I’ll have time to escalate my work with my political action committee, PAC for a Change. Raising funds for others is so much easier for me. Since I started the PAC, we’ve helped elect more than a hundred strong Democratic candidates and will continue to expand our impact and influence. I want to go toe-to-toe with Karl Rove and other right-wing players who have every right to influence election outcomes. We can’t sit back, decry the outrageous rules surrounding campaign finance, and complain about it. Until the Congress changes, or the Supreme Court, or until we can pass an amendment to the Constitution, we have to play by the rules of the game that essentially allowed unlimited money in campaigns and very little disclosure.

Even though this unlimited special interest money goes primarily to the right wing, we can’t give up. We must fight and I intend to. We can’t afford to cede the money chase to the Republicans. We have to make the case for reform and ending the current terrible system in which big money rules, while at the same time raising everything we can from everyone who stands for a fair and just government.

My PAC for a Change has been in existence for fifteen years now. My son, Doug, helped me get it started with forty thousand names and now it’s many thousands. That allows me to stay in touch with everybody, help my colleagues win their races, and push for issues I really care about.

In fact, I have a list of new initiatives that I call my “legacy issues,” the big problems I want to work on for the rest of my career in public life and beyond.

Among the first is Adapt America. My idea is to pass new legislation that will authorize the issuance of bonds to help us fund projects to deal with fallout of climate change. Like the old War Bonds during World War II. In those days you could buy one for $18.75 and in ten years get back $25.00. Eighty-five million Americans bought 185 billion dollars’ worth of these War Bonds, which is the equivalent of three trillion, seven hundred thousand dollars today.

The idea for these Adapt America climate change bonds is to set up a blue ribbon commission to determine what projects should be undertaken, like major flood control programs for places like Louisiana, desalination, recycling and other water supply projects for the west, crop adaptation to keep our farmers working, and new measures to protect our children from the microbes and toxins we’re seeing in lakes because of the heat. All of these projects will create jobs and help our people.

Another important legacy issue is going after tobacco companies, who are now hooking young smokers on e-cigarettes. Studies are showing us that 13 percent of high school students in the U.S. smoke e-cigarettes—a huge increase from a couple of years ago. So much for e-cigarettes being an alternative for old smokers who need to quit. And did you know that the same tobacco companies who were finally forbidden to advertise to kids and teenagers with cute cartoon characters like Joe Camel are now buying up smaller e-cigarette companies and advertising e-cigarette flavors like bubble gum, cotton candy, and cherry? So much for them not advertising to little kids.

It’s a great unknown story. But what is not unknown are the dangers of nicotine and the absolute lack of concern for the effect of these products on our children by the peddlers of nicotine delivery systems. More attention to this must be paid by the Congress and the Food and Drug Administration before we have another health crisis on our hands. Nicotine is addictive. It causes heart attacks and high blood pressure, and restricts blood flow to extremities. Other chemicals that we know of in e-cigarettes include benzene, formaldehyde, and cadmium. Believe it or not, the FDA will have to force e-cigarette manufacturers to list the ingredients of this lethal product on their packaging.

And their advertising is really scary. Makes it looks like this product is a gift from God.

Fortunately, I leave behind some senators dedicated to this issue, including Senator Richard Blumenthal, Senator Jeff Merkley, and my pal Senator Dick Durbin, who was so instrumental in working with then Senator Frank Lautenberg to ban smoking on airplanes.

Another issue that never seems to go away in our country is race. We have to confront the crisis between our police and our communities, which in my view has come about for these reasons:

1. Not enough community policing—which is the best way to bridge the divide, by creating continuous interaction on both sides. Community policing becomes personal. It allows familiarity and friendship that can help avoid problems before they lead to a breakdown. I instituted community policing when I was a county supervisor, and relationships really blossomed.

2. The proliferation of weapons, which can lead to the police actually being outgunned. Fear on both sides becomes so real that incidents become life-and-death situations when, with more gun control, they could have been defused.

3. Not enough reflection of a community’s makeup on the police force or in local government. Ferguson, Missouri, was a classic template for this. When members of the police force live in and represent the communities in which they serve, things improve. Police officers are role models for our young people, and good officers really have an amazing influence. I have seen it and applauded it. We need to ensure that this is the goal. Then everyone will be much safer.

4. Not enough information. Every law enforcement agency needs to gather and make public information regarding injuries or deaths to both civilians and police officers. Senator Cory Booker and I have introduced legislation to make such information readily available so that the public has full disclosure on violence going in all directions.

These kinds of efforts require cooperation at the local level, but a strong federal attorney general can help a lot too, which is why there was such a fight over the confirmation of Loretta Lynch, a great pick to be attorney general. Some don’t want an active attorney general, but we need one now more than ever. I am hopeful that with her background and experience, she will take on this issue.

Another legacy issue around race is voter suppression. Ever since Stephanie Tubbs Jones and I worked together and I stood up alone in the Senate to protest the electoral vote in Ohio in 2004, I have dedicated myself to the fight against suppressing the vote, however it reared its ugly head. When more people vote, progressives win. That is the fact and that is the truth. That’s why Republicans do everything in their power to suppress voter turnout. We’ve seen it again and again. A few times they have been caught, as in the Obama–Romney race in 2012, when Michael Turzai, speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, boasted, “Voter ID is going to allow Governor Romney to win the state of Pennsylvania… Done!”

Wow. So this Pennsylvania politician felt that by jamming a law through his state legislature that would require a government-issued voter ID, he could guarantee that Mitt Romney would win. How could he say that? Because 750,000 Pennsylvania voters, mostly elderly African Americans who would vote for Barack Obama, wouldn’t have a government-issued ID and there wasn’t enough time to get one before the polls closed.

I understand that many voters have become disenchanted and don’t believe that anything they do can make a difference. The most recent example of this has been in Ferguson, Missouri, where for many years the African American community faced worsening relationships with their city police force, and yet they didn’t vote for a city council that had the power to change things. As we all know now, this disconnect resulted in months of deadly violence, civil unrest, and a non-representative government that is only now being painfully remedied. Our work needs to continue and I intend not only to continue my legislative advocacy on this but to visit communities that need encouragement to power through the obstacles. Senator Bill Nelson was very involved in my LINE Act and I trust he will continue this fight, since Florida has major issues.

Here’s a legacy issue that may surprise you. It’s hard to believe, but the leading cause of death, after heart disease and cancer, is medical errors. There are between 200,000 and 400,000 deaths a year from things like infections in a hospital setting from bedsores, inattention to hand washing, medication mix-ups, and more. This is a national disgrace and another issue that doesn’t get enough attention. I’ve visited many hospitals to call attention to this issue, which was first brought to me by one of my constituents, Joe Kiani, who founded a patient protection group. Imagine the suffering that can be avoided if we attack this straightforward issue.

Provisions in Obamacare require progress on reducing errors and saving lives. These improvements are tied to hospital reimbursements. Already tens of thousands of lives are being saved.

Another legacy issue is finding cures for the diseases that cause such pain for our families. Senator Durbin is taking the lead on this. I believe the preservation of a fair and balanced estate tax can pay for such an initiative. Right now, if you leave less than ten million dollars per family, your survivors pay nothing when you die. But that’s not good enough for Republicans. They want to do away with all estate taxes whatsoever, so no rich person will ever have to pay a dime.

You know if the money from a good and fair estate tax were earmarked for finding a cure for Alzheimer’s, cancer, or ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease), most of us would say yes to that. Everyone would benefit, and the children of the very wealthy would still be keeping at least 60 percent of their parents’ wealth. Really. Truly.

There’s my legacy issue of making sure the middle class gets attention, not the shaft. Between the high costs of housing and education, it’s a wonder people aren’t marching every day on Capitol Hill. I think they must be too busy making ends meet. Where is the increase in the minimum wage? Where are the breaks for our college students, some of whom may still be paying off their loans when they’re grandparents themselves?

And finally, crucial women’s issues are a legacy issue close to my heart. Where is the guarantee of equal pay for equal work for our women and minorities? I can breathe easier knowing that Senator Elizabeth Warren will be front and center with all her passion and toughness, arm in arm with Bernie Sanders and Sherrod Brown on this, just like Kirsten Gillibrand is there for our women in the military and Patty Murray is there to organize our caucus around women’s health, including a woman’s right to choose.

And in California it is a great comfort to me that whoever takes my place will have the extraordinary guidance and friendship of Senator Dianne Feinstein, my partner in the Senate for all these amazing years.

I remember when I first arrived in the House of Representatives, my colleague George Miller from California sighed and said, “Thank God. Reinforcements.” This work I have chosen in politics is not a one-woman or a one-man show, it’s a collaboration. Yes, you need to be prepared to stand alone or almost alone once in a while. But usually it’s about a common effort and that is very rewarding. And I leave some incredibly talented colleagues behind to be the champions on those issues that united us while I was there.

I have been looking over my papers recently as I get them ready for my archives. Memories of work that I want to be available for as long as people are interested. I realized that since I got to the House of Representative in 1983 and then on to the Senate ten years later, more than one thousand of my initiatives were moved forward by legislation, appropriation, or presidential executive order. In many ways that’s one thousand stories unto themselves, but don’t worry, I won’t list them here. But my stories will be preserved.

People often ask me what I’m most proud of. It’s hard to say. It’s like picking which of all your children is the favorite. In a way, it’s easier to remember my biggest disappointments. I wish I could have been more effective in ending the war in Iraq sooner. I wish I would have fought harder to support Anita Hill and the other women who wanted to testify against Justice Thomas; another big disappointment is that I fell six votes short of a sixty-vote threshold to address climate change through a cap-and-trade system. That breaks my heart too. My next disappointment was not doing more to object to the Florida vote count in 2000 and then in 2004 standing utterly alone after the Bush-Kerry race, not being able to get even one senator to stand with me against the Ohio electoral vote count.

But since people do ask me all the time, here are a few accomplishments I’m happy about.

• The first-ever funding of after-school programs, now covering one million children.

• One million acres of California wilderness preserved.

• The first-ever Comprehensive Combat Casualty Care Center in California for wounded warriors.

• Setting clean drinking water standards to protect pregnant women, children, and other vulnerable people.

• Protecting the privacy of personal information on driver’s licenses.

• The dolphin-safe tuna label.

• Ensuring that our transportation programs remain in place for years to come, including a manifold expansion in interest-free loans to states for major transportation projects and prohibiting the rental of recalled vehicles.

• Establishing the first-ever subcommittee to oversee global women’s issues.

• Protecting victims of rape in the military from irrelevant, harassing questioning that had already been barred in civilian courts.

• Establishing mental health testing for soldiers being redeployed to combat zones.

There’s a more complete list of fifty top accomplishments that you can see in the Appendix.

On January 8, 2015, after news of my decision not to run for re-election in 2016 broke on the network news and in the major print media, I received telephone calls from President Barack Obama, President Bill Clinton, Vice President Joe Biden, Secretary of State John Kerry, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Robert Redford, and many other colleagues, friends, and family.

I had announced my decision in a unique fashion: a sit-down “interview” with my nineteen-year-old grandson, Zach. The interview idea was mine. The idea to have Zach ask the questions came from my son, Doug, and was heartily approved by Zach’s mom, my daughter, Nicole. I didn’t want to do the usual hectic press conference because I had a few important points to make. Those were:

1. I am not leaving the Senate because of all the partisan fighting there.

2. I am not leaving the Senate because of my age.

3. I am not retiring from working on the issues I love.

4. I intend to grow my PAC for a Change in order to help others win elections.

5. I intend to work to elect a Democratic president who will make history in 2016.

We taped the interview at our home in California on a Monday three days before it was released. It was nostalgic because my four-time-winning campaign manager Rose Kapolczynski had organized its rollout. Rose is an extraordinary strategist and showed a male-dominated field that yes, a woman can win a statewide race in a state that, if it were a country, would be the eighth largest in the world.

The reaction to the announcement was overwhelmingly rewarding. A few thought the interview was “soupy.” One right-winger called it “weird.” That’s fine with me.

The only truly vicious response was from southern California Congressman Darrell Issa, whose numerous shady dealings in the private sector have never inhibited him from wild attacks against me. Even when I announced my retirement from the Senate, he could find no gracious utterance.

“It’s always been a vacant office,” was his only comment.

Huh?

Well… I wrote at the beginning of this memoir that I never elicit a neutral response. I’ve always done it my way. I’ve always had this emotional fire, this art-of-tough way of operating. I’ve always believed if you are pleasing everyone, then you’re probably not doing a heck of a lot. And doing nothing for me is not an option. Not until I am horizontal.

As we approach the end of this memoir, moreover, I want to say again that my story is not unique. “The art of tough” is an approach to all the challenges of my life, but using techniques that can apply to everyone. Whether you’re in politics like me, or trying to be a great parent while holding down a job, running a small business, building or changing a career under difficult circumstances, out of work, or just between things—the principles are the same.

So this book is about me but for you. I’ve had the good fortune to learn a lot that I think can work for you, too. It’s an approach to the problems and challenges we all face based on our own strong set of values and our own sense of purpose. That’s the key. The art of tough must be accompanied by something unique… you. You need to be authentic and stay authentic, or being tough doesn’t work. It will only be a technique, not a way of life.

And I hope I’ve sparked your interest in getting more involved politically, now that you understand how one person can make a difference.

One of my close friends who knew I was writing this memoir told me that she felt there was nothing about her life that was worth a memoir or even an article. I was incredulous. This was a woman who was born into an ethnic family who held their children close. She rebelled as a teenager and became quite independent. She blazed the trail for women in business. She led a number of philanthropic causes and quietly befriended many in need. She found the love of her life in her fifties. She battled bouts of cancer with an attitude that made her a life force for me and many others. I told her, “Nothing for a memoir? I say there’s enough there for a movie.”

I wish more people understood that they have a unique story to tell about their lives. Each of us has so much to tell. My daughter, Nicole, wrote, produced, and directed a documentary film called How I Got Over. It’s about fifteen formerly homeless and addicted women who tell their life stories in a way that not only frees them from the grief but also inspires others.

Now I’m closing the door on my life as an elected official. I have a wide-open door for the next chapter. I’m excited about the future and I know whatever form it takes I will continue to stand up, speak up, and perhaps even make more history. Who knows? There is so much out there. The problems I care about will always need attention, many advocates, and dedicated people working to solve them.

But I bet I’ll still have to be tough.

Here’s a little lyric with no melody on this subject, the last for this memoir.

The Senate is the place where I’ve always made my case

For families, for the planet and the human race.

More than twenty years in a job I love

Thanks to California and the Lord above.

Although I won’t be working from my Senate space

And I won’t be running in that next tough race

As long as there are issues, challenges and strife

I will never retire ’cause that’s the meaning of my life.