McConnell praises McSally.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell bid outgoing Sen. Martha McSally goodbye Tuesday in a tribute on the Senate floor, a day before Democrat Mark Kelly is set to take office.
Kelly defeated McSally, R-Ariz., in the special election to serve the remainder of the late Sen. John McCain’s term and is joining the Senate about one month before this year’s other senators-elect. Republican Gov. Doug Ducey appointed McSally to McCain’s old seat in 2018 and along with McConnell wanted to see her reelected.
In a 9-minute speech Tuesday, McConnell, R-Ky., thanked McSally, the nation’s first female combat pilot and a retired Air Force colonel, for her service to the nation in both the military and the Senate.
He recalled her path from a child challenged by motion sickness to a barrier-breaking combat pilot. After serving two terms in the House of Representatives, McConnell said she made it her mission to help Arizonans and fellow service members in the upper chamber.
“So, after swearing the oath on a Bible recovered from the bombing of the U.S.S. Arizona at Pearl Harbor, she brought her experience and expertise to solving issues that are personal to her and to others who’ve worn the uniform,” he said.
Along the way, McSally sought to preserve the A-10, shared her own experiences with sexual assault while in the Air Force, and helped to expand services for veterans transitioning back to civilian life.
McConnell said McSally should leave the chamber with her head high.
“Wherever life after the Senate takes her, I’m confident our colleague will continue to be the most enthusiastic advocate for her state … for its people, its prosperity, and its natural wonders,” he said.
“So Martha, on behalf of not just the Senate, but the nation, thank you so much for your service to our country — in uniform and here in the Senate.”
In her final floor speech last month, McSally wished Kelly well and said, “Becoming a U.S. senator was the ultimate expression of one of my life principles: ‘Do things afraid.’ I took on the mission with my eyes wide open,” she said. “I gave it my all and I left it all in a field in my fight for the Grand Canyon State.”