{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.thune.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=8E01FC1B-AE4F-4163-B660-8B9AE7EF509F", "Thune Honors Retiring Senator Richard Burr", "2022-12-14", "2022", "2022-12", "Republican", "Senate", "SD", "John Thune", "T000250", "www.thune.senate.gov", "thune", "https://www.thune.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases", "scraper", "Click here to watch the video.\n\nWASHINGTON \u2014 U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) today honored retiring U.S. Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) on the Senate floor.\n\nThune\u2019s remarks below (as prepared for delivery):\n\n\u201cMr. President, it\u2019s hard to believe that my friend Richard Burr is leaving Congress.\n\n\u201cHe\u2019s someone I\u2019ve known since my days in the House of Representatives, and we\u2019ve been friends from the beginning.\n\n\u201cAnd it\u2019s difficult to imagine serving in the Senate here without him.\n\n\u201cOur wives are very close friends as well, and we\u2019ve had many wonderful times with the Burrs.\n\n\u201cI\u2019ve enjoyed hosting Richard in South Dakota on a number of occasions.\n\n\u201cRichard is an outdoors guy like I am, and he fits right in in South Dakota \u2013 well, except for the fact that he\u2019s the only guy not wearing socks.\n\n\u201cOne of our favorite pastimes in South Dakota is pheasant hunting, and I\u2019ve had Richard out to South Dakota during pheasant season on more than one occasion.\n\n\u201cHe\u2019s a great shot.\n\n\u201cAnd \u2013 as I discovered when Kimberley and I visited Richard and Brooke in North Carolina \u2013 he\u2019s also a great handyman.\n\n\u201cApparently he thinks his guests should be as well, since he put me right to work on a new door he was installing.\n\n\u201cBut I was well-paid for my trouble with the meal Richard cooked for us.\n\n\u201cOne of the privileges of visiting Richard is getting to enjoy his cooking.\n\n\u201cHe is an outstanding cook \u2013 he can really make anything.\n\n\u201cI\u2019m not saying he should open a restaurant in his retirement, but if he did, I would certainly be the first in line at the opening.\n\n\u201cRichard has certainly left his mark on Washington.\n\n\u201cHis car \u2013 a 1974 Volkswagen \u2018Thing,\u2019 often parked outside the Russell building with the top down, no matter the season, and adorned with his colleagues\u2019 campaign stickers \u2013 was a fixture of Capitol Hill.\n\n\u201cAnd Richard \u2013 who as well as being a handyman is a capable mechanic \u2013 could often be found working under the Thing\u2019s hood to keep it running.\n\n\u201cA true labor of love.\n\n\u201cBut, Mr. President, in this chamber, of course, what Richard is really known for is being an outstanding legislator.\n\n\u201cHe\u2019s always been someone who knows how to get things done, how to build a coalition and get legislation across the finish line.\n\n\u201cAnd that\u2019s evident in his record of accomplishment here in the Senate.\n\n\u201cPromoting medical research and innovation.\n\n\u201cSupporting veterans.\n\n\u201cChanging the way student loan interest rates are set to save families money.\n\n\u201cWorking to ensure that child-care settings are safe and high-quality.\n\n\u201cEstablishing ABLE accounts for individuals with disabilities to help better their lives.\n\n\u201cAnd the list goes on.\n\n\u201cLong before COVID, Richard was working to prepare our nation to respond to the threat of a disaster or a pandemic, and since COVID, he has worked to ensure that our nation\u2019s future pandemic response reflects the lessons we have learned.\n\n\u201cRichard has been a strong advocate for his state, in particular for North Carolina veterans.\n\n\u201cHe\u2019s worked to bring new VA facilities to North Carolina and to ensure that veterans and their families who were exposed to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune receive VA medical care.\n\n\u201cI think all of us get into this life in the hope that we can one day leave Congress knowing that we have done something to make life better for our fellow Americans.\n\n\u201cRichard can leave Congress with that assurance.\n\n\u201cMr. President, I will miss Richard.\n\n\u201cIt\u2019s a privilege and a blessing when you are able to serve with a friend for so long.\n\n\u201cAnd I will miss our daily interactions.\n\n\u201cBut I know that in Congress or not, our friendship will endure.\n\n\u201cI look forward to seeing all that Richard will do in his next chapter, and to many more happy hours spent with the Burrs.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:41:06Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.thune.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=8E01FC1B-AE4F-4163-B660-8B9AE7EF509F"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 2.1167451050132513, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}