On March 21, the Senate honored Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) for becoming the longest-serving woman in the history of Congress.
Sen. Mikulski was elected to the House of Representatives in 1977 after serving for five years on the Baltimore City Council. During her tenure in the House, then-Rep. Mikulski was the first woman to serve on the Interstate and Foreign Commerce Committee, which would become the Energy and Commerce Committee. She was a founding member of the Congressional Caucus for Women’s Issues. Then-Rep. Mikulski served five terms in the House before running for the Senate.
In 1986, Sen. Mikulski became the first woman Democrat elected to the Senate without succeeding her husband or father. Currently in her fifth term, Sen. Mikulski has served on the Appropriations; Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions; Small Business and Entrepreneurship; and Intelligence Committees. From 1994-2004, she served as secretary of the Democratic Caucus, the third highest-ranking position in Senate Democratic leadership.
“I wish to say it has been one of the joys of my time in the Senate to work with Senator Barbara Mikulski,” said Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX). She continued, “[A]nd I think this 4-foot-11-inch mighty-might has ten times the impact. She has made an impact on Congress and an impact on America because she is relentless, she is reasonable, she understands an issue, and she understands the importance of listening as well as talking. She is effective and she is respected. If there is anyone in the Senate who doesn’t like her, respect her, and work well with her, I have not met them.”
In honor of her friend and colleague, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) said, “Today we take it for granted that a woman can be secretary of State – we have had [three] – or Speaker of the House – we have had one – or a candidate for president…And one day soon, a woman will sit in the Oval Office of this great country. When she does, she will owe a great deal to Barbara Mikulski. But on this day, let the Congressional Record of this Senate reflect and forever record that Senator Barbara Mikulski is the longest serving woman in the history of the United States Congress, and this country is forever better because of it.”