On the recordDecember 9, 2016
today I wish to pay tribute to my friend Dan Coats. Dan has twice served the people of Indiana as Senator, first in the late 1980s and 1990s, and again for the past 6 years. Dan is a man of integrity and a leader in the fight against government waste. He will be missed. Senator Coats was born in Jackson, MI, in 1943 and attended Wheaton College in Illinois and Indiana University School of Law. He served in the U.S. Army from 1966 to 1968, during which time he deepened his lifelong love of our country. Dan began his career in politics in 1976 when he went to work for future Vice President Dan Quayle, who at the time was serving in the House as a Representative from Indiana. When Representative Quayle decided to run for the Senate in 1980, Dan ran for and won Quayle's House seat. Dan served four terms in the House before being appointed to the Senate in 1989 to fill the remainder of Senator Quayle's term after Quayle was elected Vice President. Dan served in the Senate until 1999. He was a leader in tax and entitlement reform and provided unwavering support to our Armed Forces. After Senator Coats retired from the Senate, President George W. Bush appointed him Ambassador to Germany, where he developed a close working relationship with future Chancellor Angela Merkel and oversaw construction of a new embassy near the Brandenburg Gate. But Dan soon felt the pull of the Senate again and decided to return to this body in 2010, winning election to his old seat.…
