Murkowski Comment on Passing of Senator Daniel Inouye
Senator Praises Legendary Legislator as “A Soldier, a Hero, a Statesman, a Patriot, a Gentleman and a True Friend to all Alaskans"
WASHINGTON, DC – Senator Lisa Murkowski today reacted to the news that Hawaiian Senator Daniel Inouye, a longtime ally to the state of Alaska, passed away at the age of 88:
“I am deeply saddened to hear that we lost Senator Daniel Inouye today. Senator Inouye was a soldier, a hero, a statesman, a patriot, a gentleman and a true friend to all Alaskans. His loyalty was as solid as a rock, and his commitment to his principles and his country was something you could bank on."
“Senator Inouye entered into public service when he enlisted at age 17 after the Pearl Harbor attack. His military work cost him his arm when he charged a machine gun bank, but he never, ever lost his fighting spirit."
“He was the first Congressman that Hawaii ever had, being sent to Washington as soon as they became a state in 1959. He fought for his people and his culture every day since on Capitol Hill, and he was a stalwart defender of his state’s first people – as well as Alaska Natives and Native Americans. He felt the bond shared by the two ‘island states’ of Alaska and Hawaii, taking a lasting pride in his close friendship with Senator Ted Stevens, a man he called his brother. Both he and Ted were members of the Greatest Generation, who saw the value in putting people over politics and spent their lives literally building the states they represented. They don’t make them like Senator Inouye anymore."
“I am told that he was with his wife and son when he passed away, and that his last word was ‘Aloha.’ I join every Hawaiian and Alaskan in saying ‘Mahalo’ to him.”
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