As prepared for delivery: 

My goal as a member of Congress was to leave this place a little better than I found it, and I am proud of what we have done.

What we accomplished may not be on Fox News or MSNBC, it is not going to rocket around the internet, but they are simple common-sense efforts to bring people together to solve problems. 

At the beginning of each Congress for the last dozen years, I have hand-delivered a letter to each new member, with my thoughts about what they need to know to be able to navigate these strange waters in Congress. Together, we’ve been able to achieve some remarkable progress.  

I am proud of the work we have done with international water and sanitation, that has resulted in saving millions of lives and reducing the burdens on millions of women who struggle to get water, often dirty water, for their families every day. 

I am proud of the work we did to end the failed war on drugs and its disproportionate enforcement which has ruined millions of lives. 

I am proud of the work I have done in terms of agricultural reform, because it is past time that we stop subsidizing a diet that makes Americans sick. 

I am proud of the work we did in the midst of the pandemic, to create the Restaurant Revitalization Fund which helped save more than 100,000 independent restaurants. 

I am proud of the work we have done with transportation and infrastructure, to rebuild and renew America. Instead of having infrastructure week be a joke, we are actually doing it. That includes almost half a billion dollars to Albina Vision Trust in Portland.

I am proud of work I have done for bicycling, symbolized by the bike lanes in the middle of Pennsylvania Avenue, making it easier for people to burn calories instead of fossil fuel and transform the face of our communities. 

I am proud of the work we have done to save the lives of Iraqis and Afghans who put their trust in us. You don’t have to believe in the wars—I didn’t—but I worked to make sure that the men and women who were our allies: the drivers, the guides, the interpreters, were not left to the tender mercies of Al-Qaeda and the Taliban. Together with Senator McCain and Senator Kennedy, we created the Special Immigrant Visa program that saved the lives of thousands who worked with us and were able to seek safety in the United States. 

As I say, these are not things that people necessarily see in the news or on the internet. They aren’t going to raise campaign money, but they are the things that make the difference.

My last piece of advice that I give to the people that are coming in the next Congress, is to focus on things that bring people together rather than divides them. Look for ways to solve problems, rather than create new ones. Over the course of the last 28 years, I have seen this formula work, and I hope in the new Congress, that people will employ it in ways that will make a difference. 

Heaven knows we need to do it.