Daniel Inouye Biography Quotes 7 Report mistakes

Early Life and Education
Daniel Ken Inouye was born on September 7, 1924, in Honolulu, in what was then the Territory of Hawaii, to Japanese immigrant parents Hyotaro and Kame Inouye. Raised in a multiethnic community, he came of age in a period when Japanese Americans faced legal and social barriers yet contributed deeply to island life. He attended President William McKinley High School, developing an early interest in public service. On December 7, 1941, when Imperial Japanese forces attacked Pearl Harbor, the teenage Inouye volunteered as a medical aide, tending to the wounded in the emergency that swept Oahu. He initially planned a career in medicine, enrolling at the University of Hawaii with the goal of becoming a surgeon.

World War II Service
When Japanese Americans were finally allowed to enlist in a segregated combat unit, Inouye joined the U.S. Army in 1943 and was assigned to the famed 442nd Regimental Combat Team, the mostly Nisei formation that would become one of the most decorated units in American military history. He rose to the rank of second lieutenant and saw intense combat in Italy in 1944 and 1945. On April 21, 1945, leading an assault on fortified positions, he was gravely wounded; despite a shattered right arm, he continued to lead his men until their objective was secured. The injury ended his surgical ambitions and changed the course of his life. Initially awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for valor, his decoration was upgraded to the Medal of Honor in 2000, presented at the White House by President Bill Clinton alongside other Japanese American veterans whose heroism had been overlooked. During his long recuperation at Percy Jones Army Hospital, he befriended fellow wounded officer Bob Dole, beginning a bipartisan friendship that endured for decades.

From Law to Hawaii Politics
After the war, Inouye returned to the University of Hawaii on the G.I. Bill, completed his undergraduate studies in 1950, and earned a law degree from George Washington University in 1952. He entered public service in Honolulu and quickly became a key figure in Hawaii's Democratic renaissance, working alongside organizer and future governor John A. Burns in the territorial legislature. Elected to the Territorial House of Representatives in 1954 and later serving in the Territorial Senate, he helped usher in a generation of leaders who challenged the old order and advocated for labor rights, civil rights, and statehood.

When Hawaii achieved statehood in 1959, Inouye won election to the U.S. House of Representatives, becoming the first Japanese American to serve in Congress. He arrived in Washington with another Hawaii trailblazer, Senator Hiram Fong, and built partnerships that bridged party lines and cultural divides, a hallmark of his later Senate career.

United States Senator
Inouye was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1962 and would serve almost 50 years, becoming one of the longest-serving senators in American history. He worked closely with fellow Hawaii senators Spark Matsunaga and later Daniel Akaka, and with representatives such as Patsy Mink, to shape federal policy for a new state separated from the mainland by thousands of miles. A persistent advocate for Hawaii's infrastructure, defense installations, and research institutions, he also focused on Native Hawaiian issues and the health of the Pacific. He supported efforts that culminated in the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, a redress measure for Japanese Americans incarcerated during World War II, working alongside colleagues including Spark Matsunaga and Representative Norm Mineta; President Ronald Reagan signed the bill into law. In 1993, he backed the congressional apology for the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom, legislation signed by President Bill Clinton.

Over decades on the Senate Appropriations Committee, Inouye developed a reputation for diligence and discretion, often collaborating with powerful appropriators such as Robert C. Byrd and Ted Stevens. He became chair of Appropriations in 2009, a capstone to his influence on federal spending priorities, especially those affecting national security and the Pacific Rim.

National Spotlight and Committee Leadership
Inouye first came to national prominence as a member of the Senate's Watergate committee in 1973, 1974, chaired by Sam Ervin, where he worked with Republicans such as Howard Baker to investigate abuses of executive power. His measured questioning and insistence on fairness reinforced his image as a principled investigator. In 1968, he delivered the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention, calling for unity in a turbulent year.

In 1987 he chaired the Senate Select Committee investigating the Iran-Contra affair. In joint hearings with House leaders, including Representative Lee Hamilton, Inouye presided over testimony by figures such as Oliver North and maintained a calm but unyielding demeanor amid partisan turbulence. His assertion that the nation's strength rests on adherence to the rule of law helped frame the public's understanding of the scandal.

Beyond investigations, he steered complex legislation at the helm of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee and, later, Appropriations. In 2010, following the death of Robert Byrd, Inouye became President pro tempore of the Senate, placing him third in the presidential line of succession during the administration of President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden. The appointment recognized both his seniority and the esteem of his colleagues.

Personal Life
Inouye married Margaret Shinobu Awamura in 1949. They had one son, Daniel Ken Inouye Jr., known to family and friends as Ken. Margaret's death in 2006 marked the end of a long partnership that had sustained his demanding public life. In 2008 he married Irene Hirano, a civic leader who headed the Japanese American National Museum and later the U.S.-Japan Council. Irene Hirano Inouye became a prominent partner in his outreach to Japanese and Japanese American communities, strengthening bilateral ties alongside leaders such as Norm Mineta.

In addition to the Medal of Honor, Inouye received numerous honors for his service, including the collective Congressional Gold Medal bestowed by Congress on the veterans of the 100th Infantry Battalion, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, and the Military Intelligence Service. The government of Japan recognized his contributions to U.S.-Japan relations with high honors as well. In public life he faced scrutiny, including allegations in the early 1990s that he denied, but he retained the confidence of Hawaii voters and the seniority that made him a pivotal Senate figure.

Final Years and Legacy
Daniel Inouye died on December 17, 2012, in Washington, D.C., at age 88, from respiratory complications. Tributes flowed from across the political spectrum. President Barack Obama, who spent much of his youth in Hawaii, praised him as a pathbreaker who had cleared a space for Asian Americans in national leadership. Vice President Joe Biden, Senate colleagues from both parties, and Hawaii leaders including Senator Daniel Akaka and Governor Neil Abercrombie honored his service. Abercrombie appointed Brian Schatz to succeed him in the Senate, while Hawaii's congressional delegation, including figures such as Mazie Hirono, invoked his example of diligence and civility.

Inouye's legacy is visible in Hawaii's infrastructure, in the expanded voice of Pacific and Native communities in federal policy, and in the national memory of wartime sacrifice turned into peacetime service. His work on Watergate and Iran-Contra helped define congressional oversight in the modern era. His posthumous commemoration in Hawaii, including the renaming of Honolulu's international airport in his honor, reflects the state's recognition of a native son who rose from a segregated unit on the battlefields of Europe to the heights of American political leadership, and who, through alliances and friendships that spanned party lines and oceans, left a durable imprint on the nation he served.

Our collection contains 7 quotes who is written by Daniel, under the main topics: Justice - Military & Soldier - Decision-Making - Human Rights - Investment.