Tom Carper bids the U.S. Senate farewell in final address on Capitol Hill

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today marked the end of an era in Delaware politics. Tom Carper took to the floor of the U.S. Senate to bid farewell to his colleagues and commemorate what has been a lifetime of public service for the First State.

“In just a few weeks I’m going to be stepping down as one of Delaware’s two United States Senators, ending a half-century of service,” Sen. Carper said at the beginning of his remarks on the Senate floor Wednesday.

Carper’s service includes three tours of duty in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War, two terms as Delaware’s Governor, five terms as a Congressman, and more than two decades as a U.S. Senator. Achievements that he attributes to the values that were instilled in him and his siblings by his parents.

“We didn’t have much but we had the good fortune of being raised in a home by parents who instilled in us a strong work ethic,” Sen. Carper said. “Along with a deep faith that embraced the Golden Rule – to treat other people the way we would want to be treated.”

His first role in elected office would be that of Delaware State Treasurer at the age of 29 where he was instrumental in helping restore the state’s failing credit rating. But, it was during his time as Governor that he says he met someone who, all these years later, would influence his decision to retire.

“Why did you decide not to run for re-election? And, I tell them with tongue and cheek – only partly in cheek – that I was following the advice of singer, songwriter Kenny Rogers,” Sen. Carper said. “You gotta know when to hold em’ and know when to fold em’.”

One of Carper’s proudest accomplishments was his effort to protect the environment, but he says there’s still so much work to be done, especially when it comes to Delaware.

“Our state is sinking,” Sen. Carper emphasized. “The seas around us our rising, that’s not a good combination.”

Now, as he prepares to pass the torch to Senator-elect Lisa Blunt-Rochester, he had nothing but high praise for the Congresswoman during his final address: “When my Senate colleagues tell me, ‘TC, we’re really going to miss you in the Senate,’ I tell them, ‘Two weeks after Lisa joins you all in the Senate, you won’t even remember my name!'”

In closing, Sen. Carper thanked the people of Delaware for allowing him to serve for so long in a number of different roles.

“It has been a privilege,” he said. “And a source of great joy that I will always cherish.”