releases: https://www.heitkamp.senate.gov//public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=61EC0FD9-436D-40D9-BBFE-294E4677FD33
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| https://www.heitkamp.senate.gov//public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=61EC0FD9-436D-40D9-BBFE-294E4677FD33 | Heitkamp Delivers Farewell Speech on Floor of U.S. Senate | 2018-12-12 | 2018 | 2018-12 | Democrat | House | ND | Heidi Heitkamp | H001069 | www.heitkamp.senate.gov | legacy | During Her Six Years in the U.S. Senate, Heitkamp has Fought for the Priorities of Rural America, Children, Working Families & Indian Country WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp today delivered her final speech on the floor of the U.S. Senate. During the speech, she highlighted her accomplishments in the Senate, the work that still needs to happen on many issues, and a call for bipartisanship and compromise in the chamber. Click here to watch Heitkamp's full remarks on YouTube. Click here to watch her full remarks on Facebook. Below are excerpts from Heitkamp's U.S. Senate farewell address: Beating the Odds In 2000, I was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer. My oncologists told me you have a 28 percent chance of living more than ten years. Think about that. So I knew right away that I had a chance to use what time God gave me for good and noble purposes. To try and do the things that I always thought needed to be done in this country. It's an important lesson for all of you. The greatest gift you have is not your bank account. Your greatest gift that you have is the amount of time you have left on this earth and what you do with that time. And I chose for good or for bad to come to the United States Senate. My family struggled to get by and when you look at it, you think about this, you think about a country where somebody from my background could actually become a United States Senator. I'm a Democrat from a very conservative state, but against all odds, in fact the prediction was only 8 percent, I got elected to the Senate. A Legacy of Bipartisan Achievement When you look at the time and the opportunity to rise above partisanship and rancor, I have found so much common ground with so many members of this body. I am incredibly proud of what we've been able to accomplish. I've advocated for Native American communities in my bill to stand up for Native American children, which I did with Lisa [Murkowski] from the very beginning. The first bill I introduced and it was symbolic for me because we have to do better. And I found great partnerships with Lisa not just on this, but on other issues. But I know her heart. And I know that she cares. And when you find people who care the way you care, you can do amazing things. My legislation to create an Amber Alert with our colleague John McCain in Indian Country became law. We're on our way to passing Savanna's Act, which is going to recognize for the first time the challenge and the tragedy of missing and murdered indigenous women. [We passed] bipartisan legislation to help crack down on human trafficking online. We shut down Backpage. We shut down people who were in fact selling children for sex. You think about that. That's a noble act that we took and the challenge continues. Congress passed my bill to give first responders more training and resources to keep our communities strong and safe. I've led a successful effort again with my colleague from Alaska, Lisa Murkowski, to lift the age-old ban on exporting oil and pairing it with renewables that we did with my other colleagues on this side of the aisle when we looked at enhancing renewable energy. A flaming success on both sides. We are exporting literally millions of barrels of oil resulting in energy independence and helping our allies, but we also are growing our renewable energy industry because of that effort. I secured a Vet Center in Grand Forks and a CBOC. Might be small to this body, but huge to the veterans it serves. I got needed funds for flood protection across North Dakota working with Senator Hoeven. I passed my bill to secure the Northern Border working with Kelly Ayotte. Legislation I helped to provide relief to community banks with Senator Crapo, Senator Donnelly, Senator Tester, and Senator Warner. Recognizing the challenges, no one thought we could get that done but we did because we believed we could. Think about that. I worked with the Republicans and Democrats probably the crowning achievement together in terms of bipartisanship to deal with carbon capture. The first major piece of carbon legislation that's been passed since I've been here. I can't speak to other pieces. How did that happen? It happened when Senator Barrasso and Senator Capito and I and, by the way, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse collaborated and said we can't agree on climate, but we will agree on development of technology that will change outcomes. This technology is absolutely essential to tackling problems of carbon emissions in this country. So don't say it can't be done. If you can get Sheldon Whitehouse and Mitch McConnell on a bill that involves carbon and the coal industry, that's a good day here. That's a really good day here. In six years, I've held over 3,400 meetings in North Dakota, both in Washington and in North Dakota. My office has provided responses to over 204,000 North Dakotans who reached out to me on various issues. And my office has helped over 18,000 North Dakotans with federal agencies getting their V.A. benefits, fixing social security, helping resolve immigrations and much, much more. Sounding the Alarm on Trade The administration's trade war not something I have been shy talking about is causing an emergency in rural America. But I think it is going to cascade into a challenge, and it's going to domino into an economic peril for this country. I'm not saying that we don't need to address disparities, inequities in trade agreements I am saying that you don't need a 17th century solution, which is called a tariff, to deal with a 21st century problem. The Need for Political Courage in Congress There are many around here on both sides of the aisle who know how to get results. And I encourage them to speak loudly, work clearly, seek compromise, and continue to do great and good works. And I hope more Senators will join them. We also need more political courage in Congress. We need members of Congress who are willing to take tough votes because it's the right thing to do, even if it puts their reelection in jeopardy. We need more members who are not too scared to stand up when someone in their party uses fear and lies to win support. Challenges on the Horizon I want to tell you about a Native American principle called seven generations. It urges decision-making in any way to look at how the current decisions that are made in this generation will affect the next seven generations. And to think about how you can look to a much broader purpose. I had a thing I did in my office when people could come in and they would have the issue of the day. I would say, Look up. What is on the horizon? Debt and Deficit, a looming retirement crisis, a crisis in education, a crisis in addiction. Look up. What do we need to do today that seven generations of people will look back and don't worry about a public opinion poll. Because you're making decisions for the next seven generations, and they have to be the right decisions.' Ending a Culture of Failure We have to get out of the shared culture of failure believing it can't happen. It can happen. We can do really big and great things when we believe we can, and when we refuse to accept failure, when we refuse to believe that we are somehow limited. No one's tying you, no one's limiting you. Thank You I want to just also thank other people. First is the Capitol Police. Some of my best friends here are Capitol Police. Some of the nicest people you're going to meet serve you in the dining room. Some of the greatest people are painting the walls out there. Say Hello. Don't just walk by them. They serve you, and they're proud. They're proud of the work that they do. And so they are wonderful people. And I want to thank them for their friendship. I want to thank so many more who cared about this place. I also wanted to thank my staff which are all here. Many of them are amazing people, and they're going to go on to do amazing things. I have a thing that I do when I sign things. I say, Go do great and good things.' We've seen that throughout history. Go do great and good things and they will. They are amazing. They've given so much, and I know you all think that you have the best staff. Unfortunately, I do. A lot of them, you know, are available just want to say. So I want them to take what they've learned into their future endeavors. And I want to make sure that the legacy that we leave is a legacy of service, of who we serve, and who we stand for. Finally, I want to thank my family. My husband, Darwin, who's toiling away in the clinic as we speak. My daughter, Althea, and my son, Nathan. My six brothers and sisters who are fairly famous all across North Dakota. I would like to just say they've been my rock. Finally, I want to thank my mom and dad, because they taught me and my siblings to stand up for what is right. To have our voices heard, and I know they're watching me from above, and I wanted to thank them for raising a rowdy, boisterous, and determined crew who made each other's best friends. My mother and father made us strong. ### | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z |