Tom Daschle

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the distinguished Senator from West Virginia retain the remainder of his time.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, after I have propounded this unanimous consent request. Unanimous Consent Agreement--H. R. 3210

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that immediately upon passage of H.R. 5005, the homeland defense bill, the Senate proceed to the terrorism insurance conference report to accompany H.R. 3210; that the Senate then vote immediately on cloture on the conference report; that if cloture is invoked, the Senate then immediately, without any intervening action or debate, vote on passage of the conference report; that if cloture is not invoked, the conference report continue to be debatable.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, if I can respond to the distinguished Senator from West Virginia, this has no effect at all on the debate on homeland defense. All Senators are protected with regard to their rights under cloture, if cloture is invoked on homeland security. This only deals with the next issue, the terrorism insurance bill, to be taken up once homeland defense has been completed.

Mr. DASCHLE. I thank all of my colleagues. I thank in particular the distinguished Senator from West Virginia. I yield the floor.

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I ask for the regular order which, as I understand, acknowledges 2 minutes remaining for Senator Byrd.

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Lieberman amendment No. 4902 be in order.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I very regretfully make a point of order that amendment No. 4902 is not germane.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I call up amendment No. 4911.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I have called up amendment No. 4911. I would like it read.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I retain the floor.

Mr. DASCHLE. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I call up amendment No. 4953.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I hold the floor.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. Madam President, I now ask that we return to the regular order.

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. Madam President, one of the privileges accorded to the majority leader is the opportunity to welcome and to introduce our fellow legislators from the European Parliament. This is a tradition that began in 1972, and it has continued every year since. Earlier this year in July, we welcomed the President of the European Parliament to the Senate. Today, I am pleased to welcome another 16 of his colleagues representing countries from across that great continent. As I said when Mr. Cox visited in July, this tradition is especially meaningful, because although the Atlantic Ocean separates us from our European friends, we are certainly connected--connected in beliefs and in the rule of law, and a commitment to the betterment of the people we serve and the world we share. Today's visit has added significance, coming as it does at a period of heightened concern across Europe about the potential new terrorist attacks. So we reiterate today our strong determination to stand together, united by our shared values and by our commitment to stand, as we have for now so long, on issues related to commerce, on issues related to trade, and on issues related to war. I ask unanimous consent that the names of our colleagues from the European Parliament be printed in the Record.

Mr. DASCHLE. I would also like to notify Senators that our colleagues from the European Parliament are available now to meet on the floor. I welcome them. I am delighted they are here. Madam President, I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I reiterate again our thanks to our colleagues for their willingness to join us on the Senate floor. It is a real pleasure for us to have the opportunity to talk with them. We wish them well in their travels within the United States. We again reiterate how welcome they are and how hopeful we are that we can continue to maintain the dialog, the friendship, and the partnership that we have as countries interested in a mutual goal. We thank them for being here.

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, today the Senate will be in a period for morning business wherein Senators will have the opportunity to eulogize our departed colleague Paul Wellstone, the late Senator from Minnesota, and to welcome Senator Barkley. I understand Senator Dayton and Senator Barkley, who was just sworn in, would like to speak. I ask unanimous consent that following my remarks and those of the Republican leader, Senators Dayton and Barkley be recognized to speak.

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, let me reiterate our welcome to Senator Barkley, but no one needs to be reminded how it is he is here. I begin our remembrance of Paul Wellstone with the recognition that at times such as this it is more important to celebrate a life than to mourn a death. I will do my utmost in the next couple of minutes to remember my own advice, the importance of celebrating a life. We mourn the loss of Paul Wellstone, his wife Sheila, their daughter Marcia, the staff, and the pilots who lost their lives. It has been a shock from which we have not yet fully recovered. Sometimes in these difficult moments, I turn to the Bible, sometimes I turn to expressions offered to me by others, and sometimes to poetry. An old Irish text was found in a Carmelite monastery in Tallow County, Wicklow, Ireland. The text was entitled ``Togetherness.'' I find solace in the words of Togetherness. Death is nothing at all-- I have only slipped away into the next room. Whatever we were to each other, that we are still. Call me by my old familiar name, speak to me in the easy way which we always used. Laugh as we always laughed at the little jokes we enjoyed together. Play, smile, think of me, pray for me. Let my name be the household word it always was. Let it be spoken without effort. Life means all that it ever meant. It is the same as it always was: There is an absolute unbroken continuity. Why would I be out of your mind because I am out of your sight? I am but waiting for you, for an interval, somewhere very near, just around the corner. All is well. Nothing is passed, nothing is lost. One brief moment, and all will be as it was before-- Only better, infinitely happier, and forever-- We will all be one together . . . Paul was all of 5 foot 5. But I remember what someone once told me: someone certainly more than 5 foot 5. He said it is not the size of the man in the fight, it is the size of the fight in the man. Paul Wellstone by that measurement was a giant. He fought. He spoke. He challenged us all. But he did so in a way that made him a friend, not an enemy, a friend with people on this side of the aisle and a friend, of course, with those on this side, too; he had friends. While he walked in this Chamber small in stature, everyone recognized that if you measure a man and, in so doing, measure the true weight of his being, you don't measure his size, you measure his heart. Paul Wellstone inspired me. With his physical challenges--his back, his knees, his legs from wrestling injuries, and then later with MS--I never once heard him complain. Never once did he come to me saying, Tom, you have to give me an opportunity to recover, to rest. He had an energy, a dynamism, that overcame all of those ailments. He seemed more well than those who are well. He inspired all with his joy, with his passion, with his energy. For those of us who believe in public service, there was no greater evidence of his deep sense of commitment to public service than his advocacy for mental health parity. Again, working across the aisle with Senator Domenici, that passion, that energy, that commitment, that determination, that persistence, all that was Paul Wellstone, flowed right up there from that desk. We knew he cared about mental health parity. I can think of no better monument, no better memorial, no better way to honor him than by passing mental health parity soon. We were all the beneficiaries. Perhaps those who will benefit most by his memory, his example, by his commitment, are our youth. I spoke to his staff on the Sunday following his passing. I reminded them that in the course of 5 years in my early life, I, too, lost heroes. Their names were John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther King. While I recognize their physical being is no longer here, as our poem said, I recognize, too, that they only slipped into the next room, and their spirit was very much alive. And that burns within me with my understanding and my belief in our democracy in this commitment you must make to public service. In remembering the Wellstones, we must also pay tribute to that remarkable woman, Sheila Wellstone, for her advocacy, her leadership, her commitment to abolishing domestic abuse. The commitment she made, the lives she saved, her willingness to be engaged, the extraordinary effort she made and the example she set, too, is something we will always remember and for which we will always be indebted. On this new day, let us not think of sadness but of celebration. Let us celebrate the life of Paul Wellstone as we acknowledge the loss of his physical being. Let us extend our heartfelt condolences to David, to Mark, and to Todd, to Cari, Keith, to Joshua and Acacia, Sydney and Matt, his family. The hole in their hearts is large. The hole in their lives may never be fully filled. To them I ask they, too, find solace in the words of ``Togetherness.'' Death is nothing at all--I have only slipped away into the next room. Whatever we were to each other, that we are still. I yield the floor.

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, Senator Lott and I would like to begin by welcoming Senator Barkley. He is the 39th Senator to represent the great State of Minnesota. He was born in Annandale, MN. He received his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Minnesota, so he is truly a son of the State. He ran for the House of Representatives in 1991 and for the Senate in 1994 and then in 1996 as a reform party candidate. He advised the Governor, Governor Ventura, in his successful campaign for the Minnesota governorship in 1998. He was appointed as director of Minnesota's Planning and State Strategic Long-term Planning Agency. In addition, as a businessman, he brings a great deal of experience and real-life perspective to this Chamber. I congratulate Senator Barkley, his wife Susan, and their three children and welcome him to the Senate family. Before I make my remarks in regard to our dear departed colleague, I yield the floor to accommodate Senator Lott's interest in welcoming Senator Barkley as well.