[Senate Document 106-22]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Paul Douglas Coverdell
LATE A SENATOR FROM
GEORGIA
a
MEMORIAL ADDRESSES
AND OTHER TRIBUTES
S. Doc 106-22
Memorial Addresses
and Other Tributes
HELD IN THE SENATE
AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
OF THE UNITED STATES
TOGETHER WITH MEMORIAL SERVICE
IN EULOGY OF
PAUL DOUGLAS COVERDELL
Late a Senator from Georgia
One Hundred Sixth Congress
Second Session
a
z
U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
WASHINGTON : 2000
Compiled under the direction
of the
Joint Committee on Printing
CONTENTS
Page
Biography........................................... vii
Proceedings in the Senate:
Tributes by Senators:
Abraham, Spencer, of Michigan................ 34
Akaka, Daniel, of Hawaii..................... 90
Allard, Wayne, of Colorado................... 121
Baucus, Max, of Montana...................... 77
Bennett, Robert F., of Utah.................. 9
Boxer, Barbara, of California................ 27
Breaux, John B., of Louisiana................ 48
Brownback, Sam, of Kansas.................... 7, 32
Burns, Conrad R., of Montana................. 81
Byrd, Robert, of West Virginia............... 98
Campbell, Ben Nighthorse, of Colorado........ 70
Chafee, Lincoln D., of Rhode Island.......... 88
Cleland, Max, of Georgia..................... 16
Cochran, Thad, of Mississippi................ 112
Collins, Susan M., of Maine.................. 4, 89
Conrad, Kent, of North Dakota................ 71
Craig, Larry, of Idaho....................... 4, 40
Crapo, Mike, of Idaho........................ 129
Daschle, Tom, of South Dakota................ 21
DeWine, Mike, of Ohio...................... 19, 109
Dodd, Christopher J., of Connecticut......... 95
Domenici, Pete V., of New Mexico............. 61
Dorgan, Byron L., of North Dakota............ 43
Durbin, Richard J., of Illinois.............. 76
Edwards, John, of North Carolina............. 124
Enzi, Michael B., of Wyoming................. 90
Feingold, Russell D., of Wisconsin........... 94
Feinstein, Dianne, of California............. 23
Fitzgerald, Peter G., of Illinois............ 75
Frist, William, of Tennessee................. 12
Gorton, Slade, of Washington................. 108
Gramm, Phil, of Texas........................ 22
Grams, Rod, of Minnesota..................... 42
Grassley, Charles E., of Iowa................ 94
Gregg, Judd, of New Hampshire................ 68
Hagel, Chuck, of Nebraska.................... 59
Harkin, Tom, of Iowa......................... 57
Hatch, Orrin G., of Utah..................... 36
Helms, Jesse, of North Carolina.............. 60
Hollings, Ernest F., of South Carolina....... 87
Hutchinson, Tim, of Arkansas................. 41
Hutchison, Kay Bailey, of Texas............ 18, 113
Inhofe, James M., of Oklahoma................ 26
Jeffords, James M., of Vermont............... 33
Johnson, Tim, of South Dakota................ 107
Kennedy, Edward M., of Massachusetts......... 85
Kohl, Herb, of Wisconsin..................... 16
Kyl, Jon, of Arizona....................... 11, 106
Landrieu, Mary L., of Louisiana.............. 124
Lautenberg, Frank R., of New Jersey......... 88, 93
Leahy, Patrick J., of Vermont................ 83
Levin, Carl, of Michigan..................... 78
Lieberman, Joseph I., of Connecticut......... 55
Lincoln, Blanche, of Arkansas................ 120
Lott, Trent, of Mississippi.............. 3, 5, 100
Lugar, Richard, of Indiana................... 63
Mack, Connie, of Florida..................... 110
McCain, John, of Arizona..................... 46
McConnell, Mitch, of Kentucky................ 30
Mikulski, Barbara A., of Maryland............ 70
Miller, Zell, of Georgia..................... 125
Moynihan, Daniel Patrick, of New York........ 7, 86
Murkowski, Frank H., of Alaska............... 47
Murray, Patty, of Washington................. 72
Nickles, Don, of Oklahoma.................... 7, 79
Reed, Jack, of Rhode Island.................. 67
Reid, Harry, of Nevada....................... 8
Roth, William V., Jr., of Delaware........... 53
Santorum, Rick, of Pennsylvania.............. 118
Sarbanes, Paul S., of Maryland............... 73
Sessions, Jeff, of Alabama........ 72, 81, 116, 129
Shelby, Richard C., of Alabama............... 74
Smith, Bob, of New Hampshire................. 49
Smith, Gordon, of Oregon..................... 127
Snowe, Olympia J., of Maine.................. 24
Specter, Arlen, of Pennsylvania.............. 28
Stevens, Ted, of Alaska...................... 66
Thomas, Craig, of Wyoming.................... 105
Thurmond, Strom, of South Carolina........... 14
Voinovich, George, of Ohio................... 82
Warner, John W., of Virginia................. 45
Wellstone, Paul, of Minnesota................ 20
Proceedings in the House of Representatives:
Tributes by Representatives:
Barr, Bob, of Georgia..................... 133, 148
Bishop, Sanford D., Jr., of Georgia.......... 139
Blunt, Roy, of Missouri.............. 131, 134, 159
Chambliss, Saxby, of Georgia.............. 133, 141
Collins, Mac, of Georgia.................. 134, 146
Deal, Nathan, of Georgia.................. 132, 144
Dreier, David, of California................. 156
Fowler, Tillie K., of Florida................ 154
Gibbons, Jim, of Nevada...................... 135
Gilman, Benjamin A., of New York............. 155
Goss, Porter J., of Florida.................. 162
Isakson, Johnny, of Georgia............... 132, 150
Kingston, Jack, of Georgia................ 134, 151
Lewis, John, of Georgia................... 132, 135
Linder, John, of Georgia.................. 131, 137
McKinney, Cynthia A., of Georgia............. 143
Norwood, Charlie, of Georgia................. 147
Rangel, Charles B., of New York.............. 133
Souder, Mark E., of Indiana.................. 163
Wamp, Zach, of Tennessee..................... 158
Memorial Service.................................... 165
BIOGRAPHY
Senator Paul Douglas Coverdell was born in Des Moines,
IA, January 20, 1939. He graduated Lee's Summit High
School (MO) in 1957 and earned a B.A. in journalism from
the University of Missouri in 1961. He subsequently
received an honorary Ph.D. in business administration from
Piedmont College in 1994 and an honorary J.D. from Mercer
University in 1995.
After serving as a captain in the U.S. Army from 1962 to
1964, Senator Coverdell returned to Georgia to help his
parents turn a small family business into a successful,
national financial product marketing firm, Coverdell &
Company, serving as its president. In 1970, while
continuing to run the family business, he was elected to
the Georgia State Senate, where he was elected Senate
Minority Leader in 1974, a post he held for 15 years. He
served as chair of the Georgia Republican Party from 1985
to 1987 and as chair of the Southern Steering Committee,
George Bush for President, 1987-1988. In 1989 he became
the Director of the U.S. Peace Corps under President
George Bush, where during the next 2 years he redefined
the agency's mission by addressing the needs created by
the emerging democracies of Eastern Europe. His vision is
being carried forward by the Peace Corps to this day.
Senator Coverdell was elected as a Republican to the U.S.
Senate on November 14, 1992.
After joining the U.S. Senate in 1993, Senator Coverdell
emerged as one of the most ardent defenders of American
freedom. In recognition of his hard work on behalf of
Georgia and the Nation, Senator Coverdell was elected by
his colleagues to a Senate majority leadership post,
giving Georgia an important voice in how the government
conducts its business.
Senator Coverdell believed that our freedom is under
attack by the international drug Mafia who pollute and
corrupt our children with drugs. As the most recent former
Chairman of the Foreign Relations Subcommittee with
jurisdiction over international narcotics and terrorism,
he led the fight against drugs, winning increased funding
for enhanced law enforcement efforts along U.S. borders.
At home, he initiated Operation Drug-Free Georgia, which
represents one of the best examples of effective
cooperation among parents, teachers, students, and their
communities in the Nation.
Senator Coverdell believed that freedom is nurtured by a
well-educated citizenry. He served as Chairman of the
Senate Republican Task Force on Education and introduced
the Senate Republicans' sweeping education reform bill,
The Safe and Affordable Schools Act. That legislation
provides schools, communities, and States the tools they
need to fight drugs and violence in the classroom, and
provides measures to ensure that all children--regardless
of income--have access to a good education from
kindergarten through college. Earlier this year, Senator
Coverdell's tax relief proposals making college more
affordable became law.
Senator Coverdell believed that the freedom and means to
raise, educate and care for families are threatened by a
government that takes more than 50 percent of the average
family's income in taxes and cost of government. As a
member of the Senate Finance Committee and Small Business
Committee, Senator Coverdell consistently fought for lower
taxes and a fairer tax code. In August 1997, he won
passage of his bill to outlaw the practice by rogue IRS
agents of ``snooping'' through the private tax files of
ordinary citizens.
As Chairman of the Agriculture Subcommittee on
Marketing, Inspection and Product Promotion, Senator
Coverdell successfully fought for changes that promote
Georgia's contribution to this Nation's outstanding
tradition of agricultural exports and the family farm. He
recently secured passage of his proposal to increase
research on how to improve food safety.
Senator Coverdell believed that freedom is enhanced by
ensuring that the decisions that affect our lives are made
by families, local communities, and charitable
organizations whenever possible and then worked to promote
the spirit of volunteerism. His Volunteer Protection Act,
which shields volunteers from outrageous lawsuits
involving charitable and nonprofit activities, was signed
into law by President Clinton in June 1997.
Thoughout his years of public service, Senator Coverdell
was honored at local, State, and national levels for his
efforts to improve the quality of life for all Americans
in the areas of health care, education, tax reform, and
small business growth, and for his attention to
maintaining the balance between corporate and community
interests. Highlights from a long list of awards spanning
more than two decades of public service include: Second
Sidney Marcus Public Service Award (Atlanta Fulton County
League of Women Voters, 1985); Summa Cum Laude
presentation for public service (Georgia State University,
1987) and the Legislative Service Award (Medical
Association of Georgia, 1989). In 1990, Senator Coverdell
received the Man of the Day award from Vanity Fair
Magazine, and the Oklahoma Foundation Award for
Excellence. Recognition followed from the Americans for
Tax Reform in 1996 (Friend of the Taxpayer) and from the
104th Congress, U.S. Chamber of Commerce 1995-1996 (Spirit
of Enterprise). The U.S. Chamber of Commerce also
presented Senator Coverdell with the Taxpayer Appreciation
Award in 1997, and he received the Guardian of Small
Business Award from the National Federation of Independent
Business in 1994, 1996, and in 1998.
Senator Coverdell died Tuesday, July 18, 2000, after
undergoing surgery for a cerebral hemorrhage at an Atlanta
hospital. He was married to the former Nancy Nally, of
Sandy Springs, Georgia. Their parents and families reside
in Atlanta, Decatur, Sandy Springs, and Marietta, Georgia.
MEMORIAL ADDRESSES AND OTHER TRIBUTES FOR PAUL DOUGLAS COVERDELL
Proceedings in the Senate
Monday, July 17, 2000
The Senate met at 12 noon and was called to order by the
President pro tempore [Mr. Thurmond].
prayer
The Chaplain, Dr. Lloyd John Ogilvie, offered the
following prayer:
We praise You, dear God. You have promised never to
leave or forsake us. Our confidence is in You and not
ourselves. We come to You in prayer, not trusting our own
goodness but solely in Your grace. You are our joy when we
get down, our strength when we are weak, our courage when
we vacillate. You are our security in a world of change
and turmoil. Even when we forget You in the rush of life,
You never forget us. Thank You for Your faithfulness.
At this moment we claim that faithfulness for our
friend, Senator Paul Coverdell, as he undergoes surgery.
Bless him, care for him, and heal him.
And now dear God, filled with wonder, love, and
gratitude, we commit this week to live and work for You,
inviting the indwelling power of Your spirit. Bless the
Senators. Control their minds and give them Your
discernment. Give them boldness to take stands for what
You have revealed is the application of Your righteousness
and justice for our Nation.
Thank You for the privilege of living this week for You.
In Your all powerful name. Amen.
Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I express my appreciation to
our Chaplain of the Senate, Lloyd John Ogilvie, for his
remembering our friend and my most trusted confidante,
most reliable lieutenant, the Senator from Georgia, Paul
Coverdell. I do not know of a Senator who works any harder
or has a more indomitable spirit. I noticed particularly
Friday afternoon how happy he was as he took leave of this
Chamber because of the vote that we had just taken,
realizing that he would have the opportunity to be home in
Georgia on Friday afternoon and on Saturday. Our thoughts
and our prayers are with him as he apparently undergoes a
surgical procedure at this hour. I thank the Chaplain for
his prayer.
Coincidentally, this weekend I also had a little more
time than I anticipated and was able to spend some time
thinking about our country and reading some books. One of
those that I read was ``Going For The Max,'' by Senator
Max Cleland, also of Georgia. It is a really inspirational
book about his life and his experience as a Vietnam
veteran and the recovery period he went through and the
inspiration from things he had learned in his life--12
principles of life that he had learned and on which he
relies. I talked to him this morning to tell him how much
I enjoyed his book; that I was inspired by it. And he said
he was at that very moment standing there looking at
Piedmont Hospital where our friend, Senator Coverdell, is,
and he was saying a prayer for him. He offered to cover
any meetings or appointments that needed to be done today
or this week by Senator Coverdell.
That is the kind of real love and appreciation and
bipartisanship we need more of in this institution and in
our lives. So I encourage my colleagues in the Senate to
get a copy of ``Going For The Max.'' It will be an
inspiration to you.
Mr. CRAIG. Mr. President, before I deliver my remarks on
the marriage tax penalty, for just a moment, let me say
that our colleague, Paul Coverdell, is struggling at this
moment. Our prayers and thoughts are with him and his wife
Nancy as he struggles with his health in an Atlanta
hospital. He is a champion of the issue of marriage
penalty tax relief.
CONCERN FOR SENATOR PAUL COVERDELL
Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I want to express the sorrow
that is in my heart, and I know in the hearts of all of my
colleagues and, indeed, everybody who works in the Senate,
about the sad news of the unexpected ill health of our
friend and colleague, Senator Paul Coverdell of Georgia.
My heart and my prayers go out to him, his family, his
staff, his constituents, and all of the many people who
care so much about our good friend. He will be in our
hearts and in our prayers. I know I speak for all of my
colleagues when I wish him a speedy recovery.
Tuesday, July 18, 2000
The Chaplain, Dr. Lloyd John Ogilvie, offered the
following prayer:
Gracious Father, You have all authority in Heaven and on
Earth. You are sovereign Lord of our lives and of our
Nation. We submit to Your authority. Bless the Senators as
they serve You together in this Senate Chamber and as they
recommit to You all that they do and say this day. Make it
a productive day. Give them positive attitudes that exude
hope. In each difficult impasse, help them to seek Your
guidance. Draw them closer to You in whose presence they
will discover that, in spite of differences in
particulars, they are here to serve You and our beloved
Nation together. Gracious Lord, You have made this Senate
a family, and we care for each other. Together we
intercede for the needs of our friend, Paul Coverdell, and
ask You to guide and keep him this day. All praise and
glory and honor be to You, Gracious Lord. Amen.
THE DEATH OF SENATOR PAUL COVERDELL, OF GEORGIA
Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I have one of the most
difficult things to do now that I have had to do since I
have served as Majority Leader of the Senate, and that is
to announce that our beloved colleague from Georgia, Paul
Coverdell, passed away today at approximately 6:10 p.m. in
the Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta, GA. Paul has been a
close friend and confidant, an outstanding Member of this
body, and we will miss him greatly.
At the appropriate time, I will join the rest of my
colleagues in trying to make appropriate remarks to pay
tribute to Paul, but for now I cannot do any more than
just make this announcement. I do want to say to Nancy
Coverdell and the family that we extend our sympathy and
our love. Our hearts are breaking also.
Mr. President, I send a resolution to the desk and ask
for its immediate consideration; further, that the
resolution be read.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The resolution will be stated by
title.
Senate Resolution 338--Relative to the Death of the
Honorable Paul Coverdell, a Senator from the State of
Georgia
Mr. LOTT (for himself, Mr. Daschle, Mr. Abraham, Mr.
Akaka, Mr. Allard, Mr. Ashcroft, Mr. Baucus, Mr. Bayh, Mr.
Bennett, Mr. Biden, Mr. Bingaman, Mr. Bond, Mrs. Boxer,
Mr. Breaux, Mr. Brownback, Mr. Bryan, Mr. Bunning, Mr.
Burns, Mr. Byrd, Mr. Campbell, Mr. L. Chafee, Mr. Cleland,
Mr. Cochran, Ms. Collins, Mr. Conrad, Mr. Craig, Mr.
Crapo, Mr. DeWine, Mr. Dodd, Mr. Domenici, Mr. Dorgan, Mr.
Durbin, Mr. Edwards, Mr. Enzi, Mr. Feingold, Mrs.
Feinstein, Mr. Fitzgerald, Mr. Frist, Mr. Gorton, Mr.
Graham, Mr. Gramm, Mr. Grams, Mr. Grassley, Mr. Gregg, Mr.
Hagel, Mr. Harkin, Mr. Hatch, Mr. Helms, Mr. Hollings, Mr.
Hutchinson, Mrs. Hutchison, Mr. Inhofe, Mr. Inouye, Mr.
Jeffords, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. Kerrey, Mr. Kerry,
Mr. Kohl, Mr. Kyl, Ms. Landrieu, Mr. Lautenberg, Mr.
Leahy, Mr. Levin, Mr. Lieberman, Mrs. Lincoln, Mr. Lugar,
Mr. Mack, Mr. McCain, Mr. McConnell, Ms. Mikulski, Mr.
Moynihan, Mr. Murkowski, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Nickles, Mr.
Reed, Mr. Reid, Mr. Robb, Mr. Roberts, Mr. Rockefeller,
Mr. Roth, Mr. Santorum, Mr. Sarbanes, Mr. Schumer, Mr.
Sessions, Mr. Shelby, Mr. Smith of New Hampshire, Mr.
Smith of Oregon, Ms. Snowe, Mr. Specter, Mr. Stevens, Mr.
Thomas, Mr. Thompson, Mr. Thurmond, Mr. Torricelli, Mr.
Voinovich, Mr. Warner, Mr. Wellstone, and Mr. Wyden)
submitted the following resolution; which was considered
and agreed to:
The legislative clerk read as follows:
A resolution (S. Res. 338),
Whereas the Honorable Paul Coverdell served Georgia in
the United States Senate with devotion and distinction;
Whereas the Honorable Paul Coverdell served all the
people of the United States as Director of the Peace
Corps;
Whereas his efforts on behalf of Georgians and all
Americans earned him the esteem and high regard of his
colleagues; and
Whereas his tragic and untimely death has deprived his
State and Nation of an outstanding lawmaker and public
servant: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate has heard with profound sorrow
and deep regret the announcement of the death of the
Honorable Paul Coverdell, a Senator from the State of
Georgia.
Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate communicate
these resolutions to the House of Representatives and
transmit an enrolled copy thereof to the family of the
deceased.
Resolved, That when the Senate adjourns today, it stand
adjourned as a further mark of respect to the memory of
the deceased Senator.
Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that
all Members of the Senate be made co-sponsors of this
resolution, and further that the resolution be agreed to
and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so
ordered.
The resolution (S. Res. 338) was agreed to.
The preamble was agreed to.
Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, we will announce for the Senate
and all those who knew and loved Paul, the details of the
services for him when they are available. We do not have
that information at this time. I presume sometime tomorrow
we will know that. And also I want colleagues to know that
they are encouraged to make statements of sympathy during
the proceedings tomorrow when we are in session, if they
feel so inclined. But, as is the tradition, we will
designate a specific time at a later date so that all
Senators will have time to appropriately express their
feelings for this fine Senator.
I ask the Assistant Majority Leader to conclude our
proceedings this afternoon.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from New York.
Mr. MOYNIHAN. Mr. President, might I join with our
distinguished Majority Leader in expressing the grief we
all feel for a man of peace who did so much in his life,
and brilliantly, as Director of the Peace Corps under
President Bush. We know him so well and miss him so much
and can only share in the thought that he rests in peace.
Mr. NICKLES. Mr. President, the announcement the
Majority Leader just made that our friend and colleague,
Paul Coverdell, passed away at 6:10 p.m. today is a very
sad statement. Paul Coverdell was an outstanding Senator
from the State of Georgia. This is Georgia's loss, but it
is also a loss for all of our country.
I join with my colleagues in expressing our sympathy to
Nancy Coverdell, to the Coverdell family, to all the
friends and associates of Paul Coverdell, for he was truly
an outstanding Senator. He served this body with great
distinction, with great humor and leadership. Frankly, he
was a leader in everything he did, certainly in the Peace
Corps and his service in the Senate. He will truly be
missed, not just by Georgians but, frankly, by all
Americans.
Mr. BROWNBACK. Mr. President, before we close, I ask
that we have a moment of silent prayer for the family of
Paul Coverdell.
(Moment of silence.)
Mr. NICKLES. Mr. President, I thank my friend and
colleague from Kansas, and I wish to reiterate the
statement that all of us are praying for the Coverdell
family.
Mr. President, if there is no further business to come
before the Senate, I now ask unanimous consent that the
Senate stand in adjournment under the provisions of S.
Res. 338, out of respect for our colleague, Senator Paul
Coverdell.
Wednesday, July 19, 2000
The Chaplain, Dr. Lloyd John Ogilvie, offered the
following prayer:
Gracious Father, we need You. Our hearts are filled with
grief over the death of Senator Paul Coverdell. The Senate
has lost a great friend, fellow leader, distinguished
American, and outstanding legislator. We praise You for
his intelligence, his integrity, and his intentionality.
No one worked harder, longer, with greater commitment than
this truly good man. He spelled love l-o-y-a-l-t-y and
gained the respect, admiration, and esteem of Senators and
staff alike. Lord, we will miss the Senator's smile, his
warmth, his caring concern. You have enriched our lives
through this kind and gracious Georgian. Bless his wife
Nancy. Comfort her and give her courage this morning.
Tenderly watch over his dear mother and family. Uplift the
Senator's staff whose faithfulness and admiration he was
given with such enthusiasm.
Now Father, we reaffirm our conviction that death is not
an ending, but a transition in eternal life, and only a
small part of the whole of eternity. So help us to live
our lives more fully, more selflessly for the cause of
democracy, and more completely in trust in You. In You we
live and move and have our being--forever. Amen.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I learned shortly before
Senator Lott came to the floor last night that Senator
Coverdell had passed away. I felt it was in my best
interest to leave at that time and not be present on the
floor, as I usually am.
It was unique, in that I am in the minority--Senator
Coverdell was in the majority--that I got to know him as
well as I did. I always knew that things were moving along
and that we were going to get legislation completed when I
would look over and Senator Coverdell had been called into
the Chamber by Senator Lott to help move legislation.
As I look back, I remember the bankruptcy legislation.
We started out with a little over 300 amendments on that
legislation. Everyone thought it was futile to even try to
pass it, but, of course, Senator Coverdell came in and
worked with me and the Senators on his side and my side,
and we were able to get that legislation cleared and
basically completed. That was the story for many, many
different pieces of legislation.
I got to know him. He was very calm and deliberate and
extremely courteous and polite--a real gentleman. I think
it speaks volumes to recognize that the first person
Senator Lott called upon when there was trouble on the
floor was Paul Coverdell. I think it speaks volumes to
indicate that Paul Coverdell was Governor Bush's No. 1
person in the Senate.
He was someone whom the people of Georgia will miss;
this country will miss; the Senate will miss; and whom I
will miss.
I have the honor of working on the minority side to help
move legislation along. He was a very good legislator, in
addition, obviously, to being such a good friend to
everyone.
I express my sympathy to Nancy and his staff. Speaking
for the entire minority, we will miss a great legislator.
Mr. BENNETT. Mr. President, when my constituents ask me
what the nicest thing is about being a Senator, what I
enjoy the most, I have a ready answer: ``It is the people,
the people we meet, the opportunities we have to interact
with some of the most extraordinary individuals throughout
the world.''
When I say that, my constituents immediately think of
the great names: Presidents of the United States,
Presidents of other countries, famous Prime Ministers.
Schoolchildren look at me and say: ``Have you ever met
President Clinton?'' They are always a little in awe when
I say ``yes.'' Then others, when I tell them of having met
President Gorbachev, President Mubarak, or Chairman Arafat
or some of the other names they read about all the time,
say: ``Well, we can understand why you think that the
people you get to meet is the fun part of the job and the
most extraordinary benefit that comes from being a
Senator.''
That is true--meeting these famous people is something
of a trip and a great opportunity.
I always explain to them that the great privilege is not
only meeting the famous names. It is meeting my fellow
Senators. This is an extraordinary body, filled with
extraordinary individuals, many of whose names never get
into the headlines beyond their own States or outside of
the circle of the beltway, but who bring to this body an
incredible background of wisdom, experience, humor,
perspective, balance, and understanding that makes it a
great privilege and blessing for the rest of us to be with
them.
Paul Coverdell and I came in the same class. We were
sworn in on the same day. We went through the experience
of being freshman Senators who did not quite know our way
around.
We would get together on a weekly basis, those in that
class, and swap stories about how we had foolishly gone to
the wrong room, or lost our way in a corridor, or found
ourselves buried in the unexpected tide of work, mail,
phone calls, and requests. We went through all that
together as friends. We decided that, in taking advantage
of our situation as freshmen and serving in the minority,
we would use the time that comes with that condition--time
which more senior and majority Senators do not have--to
educate ourselves and prepare ourselves for the service on
which we were embarking.
Paul Coverdell arranged a trip to Kennebunkport to see
his good friends, George and Barbara. The rest of us did
not call them George and Barbara. It was Mr. President and
Mrs. Bush. Paul knew them well enough, went back long
enough with them, that he arranged for the freshman class
of Republicans to go up to Maine and spend a day with the
Bushes. It was about 3 or 4 months after President Bush
had lost the election. He was full of stories,
reflections, and philosophic observations. It was a
wonderful time. We also went together, under the
sponsorship of Senator Dole, to New Jersey to have a
similar day with President Nixon.
Paul was one of those who would use that, and any other
occasion, to learn as much as he could soak up, to prepare
himself as much as he could for whatever might come. That
was one of the delightful things about him. He was
enormously curious, always searching, and always anxious
to find out how he could be of greater help.
We finally stopped meeting every week as we got busier
ourselves and as we got a little more experienced in the
way the Senate works, so that we did not need to
commiserate quite so much about our earlier blunders. But
our class remained close. We gathered together when Kay
Bailey Hutchison was under fire in Texas and gave a little
party for her before she left for her trial. We told her
we would keep things straight until she could come back
fully exonerated, which, of course, she has done. Paul was
a moving force in putting together that bit of solidarity
among the members of our class.
Paul is the one who moved on to a leadership position in
our class. We were all proud of him, all happy to support
him. It goes without saying that we will miss him
terribly. But it is my conviction, Mr. President, that as
we mourn, we do not mourn for Paul. I do not know the
details of what goes on, but I think it is not out of the
question to think that John Chafee may be showing Paul the
ropes now, suggesting to him that ``it will work a little
better if you go this way,'' or, ``Yes, I tried that when
I first got here. Paul, let me show you the ropes.'' That
may not be happening, but I do not think it is beyond the
realm of possibility.
We do not mourn for Paul; we mourn for ourselves, for
the loss we have sustained, not for the problems he faced.
The problems he faced are behind him now, as far as this
life is concerned. And, knowing Paul, he will be learning,
inquiring, asking questions, trying to find out and
progressing still further, as he always did as a Member of
the Senate. It is our loss that moves us to tears--the
fact that we will no longer have his companionship and his
wisdom and his friendship. But just as I suggest John
Chafee may be greeting Paul, we can be confident that
whenever the time might be for the rest of us, Paul will
be there to greet us, and that helps lift some of the
gloom and sorrow we feel on this occasion.
I extend to Nancy and other members of Paul's family my
deepest sympathy and condolences at this time. And I
express gratitude, once again, for the experiences I have
had as a Senator of knowing great people, meeting
extraordinary individuals, and partaking of their wisdom
and guidance. I count Paul Coverdell in the first ranks of
that group.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Roberts). The Senator from
Arizona is recognized.
Mr. KYL. Mr. President, except for those who knew Paul
Coverdell and his constituents in Georgia, I suspect it is
very hard for others who may be watching here today or who
hear other tributes to Paul Coverdell to appreciate the
depth of sadness that all of us in this Senate family feel
by the loss of Senator Paul Coverdell.
Paul Coverdell was a special man. He was so active in
nearly everything going on in the Senate that it is
impossible to believe he is gone. The images of Paul
smiling, gesturing, counseling, are still so fresh. If
there was an indispensable Senator, Paul Coverdell was it.
Paul was a doer, as we all know. He was successful not
because of his energy alone--though that was
considerable--but because he was trusted by all, and he
sought no recognition for himself. His judgment was sound,
his intelligence keen. He was always kind and cheerful,
never critical. The word ``helpful'' does not even begin
to describe the aid and assistance he was always so ready
to provide.
I have lost a real friend and a confidant. Georgia and
America have lost a great leader. Paul's family's loss is
incalculable, especially for Nancy and his mother. Our
sense of grief is tempered only by the faith that the Lord
has His own purposes. We take comfort in the wisdom of
Abraham Lincoln who said:
Surely God would not have created such a being as man,
with an ability to grasp the infinite, to exist only for a
day. No, no, man was made for immortality.
Godspeed, Senator Paul Coverdell.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The distinguished Senator from
Tennessee is recognized.
Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, as the American Revolution
drew to a close in 1782, a Philadelphian turned to his
friend, Dr. Benjamin Rush, and remarked, ``It looks as if
the battle for independence has been won.''
Dr. Rush replied, ``Sir, you are mistaken. The
Revolutionary War may be over, but the battle of
independence has just begun.''
On the day before he died, as I had the opportunity to
spend time with Paul Coverdell and his family, I thought
about these words, and they have stayed in my mind over
the last 48 hours because that idea--that only constant
vigilance can keep the flame of freedom from being
extinguished--is one that perhaps no one believed in more,
at least since I have been in the Senate, or acted upon
more decisively than Paul Coverdell. With his passing,
America has lost one of its most principled leaders and
freedom, one of its staunchest friends.
There will be a number of comments made today by people
who have known Paul well, who have observed his
commitment, his discipline, and his willingness to do jobs
that most people leave to others, jobs he did in a way
that was humble, gentle, and gave others the credit. We
will hear again and again today because they were the
hallmark of Paul Coverdell's work in this wonderful
institution called the Senate.
As a Senator from the neighboring State of Tennessee, I
had the opportunity to work side by side with Paul
Coverdell as we addressed issues important to both our
States. But if there is one idea, one word, that best
summarizes Paul Coverdell, his commitment to public
service, to family and community, the word is ``freedom.''
Paul Coverdell was a relentless, tireless champion of
freedom.
I first met Paul 6 years ago when I was still Bill
Frist, the physician who wanted to be a U.S. Senator. Paul
sat down and talked to me about freedom. He came to help
me with a campaign event in Chattanooga, TN, and his whole
talk--while saying, ``Yes, people, come out and support
this new guy on the block, Bill Frist''--was about
freedom.
And since I have been in the Senate, he continually
fought for freedom. He fought for the rights of
individuals to raise, educate and provide for their
families free of government intervention and excessive
taxation. He fought to protect the privacy of individual
tax returns. He fought to free local education from too
much Federal control. Believing freedom to be under
genuine attack from the corrupting influence of drugs, he
fought to increase funding for law enforcement, especially
along our borders, and created a program to coordinate
resistance to drugs among parents, teachers and
communities that became a model for the Nation.
Understanding, as Jefferson did, that a well-educated
citizenry is the surest foundation for freedom and
happiness, Paul Coverdell fought to ensure that all
children, regardless of income, receive the very best
education from kindergarten to college.
Perhaps it was his service with the U.S. Army in Okinawa
that fanned the flames of freedom that never seemed to
diminish in his heart. Perhaps it was his parents'
ability--and I got to know his mom over the last 48
hours--to turn a small family business into a successful
nationwide enterprise that strengthened his belief in the
power of the individual to achieve the American dream.
Perhaps it was his experience with emerging democracies as
President Bush's Director of the Peace Corps that deepened
his resolve to ensure that freedom, once planted, has
everything it needs to survive. President Bush and I spoke
about that shortly after Paul was admitted to the
hospital. Or perhaps it was his beloved wife, Nancy, who
is going through such a difficult time right now, who
helped him realize that love and freedom are the great
gifts God has planted in the human heart, and so we must
do all we can to preserve them.
Whatever the reasons, Paul Coverdell believed in
freedom, and he believed in America--the greatest
expression of freedom next to man himself. He fought for
both America and freedom because he understood, as Justice
Brandeis once wrote, that ``liberty is the secret of
happiness, and courage, the secret of liberty.''
Over the past few years, I had the honor and the
privilege of seeing Paul Coverdell's courage up close--in
the Senate Republican Working Group on Medicare, where his
commitment to our seniors was very apparent; in the
Foreign Relations Committee, where he specialized in areas
of the world not addressed by others; a commitment that
obviously grew out of his work with the Peace Corps; in
Republican strategy sessions, where his expert guidance
helped us ensure that the American people, as well as our
colleagues, understood the importance of the issues before
us. It was a quiet courage, characterized not by bluster,
but by humility and respect for others.
Paul Coverdell knew what was right, and every day on
this floor and in strategy sessions behind the scenes, he
worked for what was right with all his might. Through men
like him, the American Revolution is constantly reborn,
the reservoir of freedom continually replenished, and all
that is best America preserved for those who will follow.
He was a wonderful husband, a great citizen of Georgia
and the United States, an outstanding Senator--as
reflected by his position of leadership--and a great
patriot. He will be sorely missed by all Members of this
body.
May the Lord God who loves us all, shine His perpetual
light upon our colleague, and comfort Nancy, his mother,
and Nancy's parents in the days ahead.
Mr. President, I thank the chair and yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The distinguished Senator from
South Carolina is recognized.
Mr. THURMOND. Mr. President, I rise to say a few words
regarding the death of Senator Paul Coverdell.
Winding its way to the sea, the Savannah River forms a
natural boundary between South Carolina and the State of
Georgia. Yet the river is not a barrier dividing these two
States. Rather, its lakes, tributaries, and bridges bring
the people of these two States together as neighbors and
friends. As neighbors, we share many fine attributes of
southern living and culture, agriculture, and the values
that Americans hold dear. As friends, we work and play
together, while raising our families and supporting our
communities.
Today, I rise to pay tribute and respect to my neighbor
and friend from Georgia, Senator Paul Coverdell. Senator
Coverdell was my neighbor. He was more than just a
colleague from a neighboring State. For the past 8 years
we have walked together and worked in the same corridor of
the Russell Senate Office Building.
Senator Coverdell was also my friend. Everyday, each of
us looked forward to his warm smile, kind words, and
expressions of care and concern. As I worked with him on
regional issues, in the Senate Republican leadership
circle, where he served as Republican Conference
Secretary, or in more general circumstances, Senator
Coverdell always was thoughtful and considerate of others.
Senator Coverdell leaves a great legacy. His life was
dedicated to serving others and his Nation. After serving
in the U.S. Army, he returned to Georgia and built the
family business into a successful nationwide company.
Elected to the Georgia State Senate, he was chosen by his
peers to serve as Senate Minority Leader, a post he held
for 15 years. In 1989, President Bush named him as
Director of the U.S. Peace Corps, where he redefined the
agency's mission to serve the emerging democracies of
Eastern Europe.
Since his election in 1992, Senator Coverdell has worked
hard in the Senate as a defender of freedom. He led the
fight against international narcotics and terrorism.
Understanding that freedom is nurtured by a well-educated
citizenry, he introduced education reforms, and served as
Chairman of the Senate Republican Task Force on Education.
Senator Coverdell fought to protect the individual
economic and political liberty of individuals and
families.
We mourn the loss of Paul Coverdell. We shall miss his
companionship, but we will not forget the bond we had with
him. Though his voice is silenced, we shall not forget the
encouraging words he had for others. Though he now rests
in peace, the impact of his good deeds will be felt for
years to come.
Shortly before his death, our former colleague Senator
Everett Dirksen, responded to the question which each
person faces. It is found in the Bible, in the book of
Job: ``If a man die, shall he live again?'' (Job 14:14.) I
quote Senator Dirksen's words published in U.S. News &
World Report, November 8, 1965, p. 124:
What mortal being, standing on the threshold of
infinity, has not pondered what lies beyond the veil which
separates the seen from the unseen? What mortal being,
responding to that mystical instinct that earthly
dissolution is at hand, has not contemplated what lies
beyond the grave? What mortal being, upon whom has
descended that strange and serene resignation that life's
journey is about at an end, has not thought about that
eternal destination and what might be there?
If there be a design in this universe and in this world
in which we live, there must be a Designer. Who can behold
the inexplicable mysteries of the universe without
believing that there is a design for all mankind and also
a Designer? . . . ``If a man die, shall he live again?''
Surely he shall, as surely as day follows night, as surely
as the stars follow their courses, as surely as the crest
of every wave brings its trough.
William Wordsworth, the revered poet, captured in verse
a glimpse of this glorious plan and entitled his classic
``Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of
Early Childhood'':
Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting:
The Soul that rises with us, our life's Star,
Hath had elsewhere its setting,
And cometh from afar:
Not in entire forgetfulness,
And not in utter nakedness,
But trailing clouds of glory do we come
From God, who is our home:
Heaven lies about us in our infancy!
Paul Coverdell was a bright star in this world. Though
it is now out of view, it is not dimmed. We take comfort
that he has returned home, to his eternal destination.
This day, my thoughts and prayers are with his wife Nancy,
his family, his staff, and his constituents. I yield the
floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The distinguished Senator from
Wisconsin is recognized.
Mr. KOHL. Last night, as we began consideration of the
agricultural appropriations bill, we were informed of the
death of Senator Coverdell. The bill officially is still
on the floor this morning for Senators who wish to speak
on the bill but more appropriately for Senators who wish
to speak about Senator Coverdell, who we all remember as
an outstanding Senator, a good, a kind, and a decent man,
a great patriot, and a great American.
We will be officially in session on the bill but more
appropriately here to listen to remarks by fellow Senators
on his behalf.
Mr. CLELAND. Mr. President, it has been my honor, and a
privilege, to know our distinguished friend and colleague,
Paul Coverdell, for a long time. I have had, overnight,
the opportunity to think about his life and about his
death.
When a man dies, especially a friend, we are inevitably
struck by the frailty of life, the speed of death, and the
very painful void that is left behind. With the passing of
our friend and colleague, Paul Coverdell, we are also
struck by the promise of a truly brilliant future left
unfulfilled.
Alphonse de Lamartine once said: ``Sometimes, when one
person is absent, the whole world seems less.''
Today, that is exactly how I feel. The world seems less
today.
Paul and I worked together for many years. We were sworn
into the Georgia State Senate on the same day, in January
of 1971. In Georgia, we sit not as partisans, across the
aisle, but we sit by numbers of our State Senate
districts. Fate had it that Senator Paul Coverdell sat
right in front of me. So even though he was of one party
and I another, we shared space on the floor of the State
Senate. We worked together in harmony for 4 years. It was
a joyous time. It was a marvelous time to get to know this
young talent.
When I came to the U.S. Senate, Paul had preceded me.
Paul stood on the floor of the Senate here with my parents
watching from the balcony as I was sworn in. After that
day, he helped me, he guided me, tutored me in the same
way we had worked together so beautifully in the early
1970s in the Georgia Senate. From time to time in this
body, on different sides of the aisle, we were on
different sides of the issues. But he helped me learn. He
helped me because he was a good man and a great friend,
because he knew it was good for Georgia and for the
country.
I watched him work, incredulous--putting in 12- and 14-
and 16-hour days. In Georgia, we have a saying: You are
either a workhorse or a show horse. He was certainly a
workhorse. He fought hard for our State, for our farmers
and businesses and the average taxpaying citizen. He used
his deep breadth of knowledge in international affairs,
which he had gained as Director of the Peace Corps, to
fight what he called the most serious threat to America's
freedom today--the war on drugs.
Our colleague, Senator Moynihan, yesterday called Paul
Coverdell a man of peace. I will reiterate that
observation. From his time in the Georgia Senate to his
post as head of the Peace Corps under President Bush, to
his quiet and wonderful leadership in the Senate, Paul had
a peaceful and resolute efficiency about his work that I
think we could all try to emulate. He worked hard. He
achieved results. And he did not care who got the credit.
To lose a leader of this quality in this body in this day
of ``gotcha'' politics and one-upmanship is a loss for
this body and for our country and for Georgia.
Paul was a leader. He led in his own quiet, positive
way. I never heard him speak an ill thought or an ill
phrase or a mean-tempered comment about anyone. He was a
great legislator and a dear personal friend.
I extend my deepest sympathies to his wife Nancy, whom I
have known for almost 30 years. I knew them when they
first got married.
Proverbs tell us: Good men must die, but death cannot
kill their names.
I think we can all take great comfort in that. Nothing
will lessen the impact that Paul Coverdell and his legacy
have had on the State of Georgia and on this country. It
is not the time for political thoughts or words but only
words to remember one of the best U.S. Senators this body
has ever known. Paul Coverdell, U.S. Senator from Georgia,
a peach of a guy.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The distinguished Senator from
Texas is recognized.
Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, cheerful, fun,
accessible, down to earth, loyal, friend--those are the
words you think of immediately when describing Paul
Coverdell. I am not going to make a long statement today
because I know there will be a time set aside for our
memorials to Paul Coverdell. I have seen some of our
friends today--Paul's friends, my friends--and many of
them do not feel capable of talking about him right now.
It is not that he was not one of our greatest friends.
They are not here because they cannot talk about him yet.
This is a man who served our country in so many ways,
all the things a good citizen should do: He served in the
Army; he was the head of the Peace Corps; he was a
wonderful Senator, one of our leaders in the majority--the
fourth highest ranking among us.
I do want to say more about him later, but for now I
think our Majority Leader said it very well last night.
All of our hearts are broken for the loss of this
wonderful man who will have every tribute that we can give
him in the future weeks.
Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, this is a sad day for all of
us. It is a sad time in the Senate. Paul Coverdell was,
first of all, our friend. He was someone who, if we took a
secret poll in this Senate, I think many Members would
say, was their best friend. That tells us something about
this man.
He was a kind, he was a gentle, he was a sweet man. This
Senate will not be the same without Paul. It will not be
the same because of that kindness, because of that spirit,
because of that unbelievable energy he brought to any task
he took on, and did he take on the task! Whatever it was,
Paul would do it and do it effectively. He was one of the
key people in making this Senate run. Candidly, he was
that person not because of his leadership position, which
was significant, but the leadership position he obtained
was a result of the fact that he was one of the key
players in the Senate and he got things done.
That effectiveness came because of his energy, because
of his drive, because of his determination, but it also
came because he could get along with people on both sides
of the aisle. He knew people, he understood them, he liked
people and people liked him back, and that made him
effective.
He was effective because he did not have a big ego. We
all have big egos in the Senate, but Paul did not seem to
have one. He did not seem to care if he got credit;
another rarity, I suppose, among politicians. He just got
the job done. He was always seeking some way to get it
done. He did not seek the limelight. He did not worry
about who got the credit.
Each one of us brings different stories or remembers
different things about Paul Coverdell. I worked with him
on Central American issues, Caribbean issues, and Latin
American issues. Paul Coverdell is from Georgia. It was
not necessarily logical that he had to concentrate on this
hemisphere or worry about this hemisphere, but he did. He
did because he understood it affected the people of
Georgia and it affected the people of this country. He
brought his passion to deal with the drug problem to that
concentration and work on this hemisphere.
I worked with Paul when we worked on the Caribbean
initiative, when we worked on the initial drug bill we
passed several years ago on drug interdiction in this
hemisphere, and I worked with him when we were able to
pass the Colombia aid bill.
I remember on both bills going to Paul at different
times and saying: Paul, this is not going very well. What
do we do?
Not only did the leadership responsibility go to Paul
Coverdell to get things done, but people who are not in
leadership went to Paul to get things done. I remember
Paul would look at you, as only Paul could, and say: Well,
let's do this. And he would tick off three or four things.
Basically then I had the plan. We got it done. That is
what we are going to miss in this Senate.
The last time I talked with Paul was as we were leaving
for the weekend. I said: I am worried about what is going
on in Colombia. Why don't you and I go down there.
He said: Let's do it. So we were talking about a trip
sometime in the next few months to Colombia to look
firsthand at the problem.
I know all of us at a later date will have more formal
comments to make, but I wanted to pause here for a moment
with my colleagues to say thank you for the life of Paul
Coverdell. He is someone who made a difference every
single day he was in the Senate. We will miss him very
deeply.
Mr. WELLSTONE. Mr. President, I want to speak about my
colleague, Senator Coverdell. I know other Senators have.
I absolutely have nothing rehearsed. There are many
Senators who will speak about Senator Coverdell probably
in a more profound and moving way than I can.
There is one moment I want to remember about Senator
Coverdell because this small story tells a large story. We
had had a major debate about the Colombia aid package.
Senator Coverdell and I were in a debate. We did not
agree. It was a pretty good debate back and forth. I know
from time to time during the debate I would reach over and
touch his hand and say something to the effect: I just
cannot believe you said this; this is wrong--something
like that.
At the end of the debate, I said, because I believed it
and believe it: Senator Coverdell is a really good
Senator.
He smiled and touched my hand and said: Senator
Wellstone is a really good Senator.
I do not know if the latter part is true, but the point
is that is the way he was. That is the kind of Senator he
was. We talk about civility. He was just a beautiful
person. I really enjoyed him. We need a lot of Senators
like Senator Coverdell: Paul, you might be wrong on the
issue but you are a really good person.
The Senate has lost a wonderful person and a wonderful
Senator, and the United States of America has lost a
wonderful person and a wonderful Senator.
As a Senator from Minnesota, I send my love to Paul's
family.
I will not forget Paul Coverdell.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The distinguished Democratic
Leader is recognized.
Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, we are all stunned and
saddened by the sudden death of our friend and colleague.
Our hearts and prayers are with Senator Coverdell's wife
Nancy, with his parents, with his family members, his many
friends, and, I may say, particularly our colleagues on
the other side of the aisle who have lost not only a close
friend but a gifted leader.
The great English poet Alfred Tennyson wrote of a dear
friend who died suddenly: ``God's finger touched him, and
he slept.''
Yesterday, God's hand touched our friend. Now he sleeps.
And now we mourn.
Paul Coverdell's life was too short in years, but it was
long in accomplishments: A husband, a son, a friend, a
loyal ally, an honorable opponent, an Army veteran, a
business owner, a State Senator, a Peace Corps Director,
and a U.S. Senator.
In his 61 years, Paul Coverdell filled all of those
roles--and more--with dignity.
He spent half his life, and nearly all his adult life,
in public service. He and I did not see eye to eye on a
lot of matters. To be honest, I can't think of too many
times we found ourselves on the same side of the debate.
But I cannot think of a single time that he was not fair,
that he was not decent, and that he was not honest.
Paul Coverdell, above and beyond anything else, was a
gentleman. He was a reminder to us that we can all
disagree without being disagreeable. He is also a
reminder, sadly, that none of us knows how long we will be
here; how many more opportunities we will have in this
life to right a wrong or to advance a peace or to make a
difference.
Last night, I was reading an interview Senator Coverdell
gave a year or so ago. He was asked why he worked so hard
on so many tasks, usually with very little public
recognition. He replied, characteristically: ``If you have
been given a moment here, you should not let the dust grow
under you.''
Paul Coverdell felt that in the marrow of his bones. He
worked hard every day--to advance the causes he believed
in and to serve the Nation he loved--until God's finger
touched him.
Now he sleeps the sleep of the just. We have lost a good
and honorable friend. I will miss him.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The distinguished Senator from
Texas is recognized.
Mr. GRAMM. Mr. President, at this time of shock and loss
we tend to focus on Paul's death, but it seems to me that
it is really a time that we should focus on his life. As
we weigh how our lives and the life of our Nation has been
diminished by the loss of Paul Coverdell, I think it is
important that we also reflect on how our lives have been
enriched.
I first met Paul Coverdell when I went to Georgia. He
was campaigning for the Senate. And he was doing an event
in a dingy old steel mill about industrial renewal. I had
talked to him on the phone, I was chairman of the
senatorial committee, but I had not seen him in action. So
I got up and spoke, and then Paul got up and spoke in that
squeaky voice, and he sort of had a way of jumping up and
down when he was speaking and waving his hands, so I tried
to delicately whisper to him, quit jumping up and down, be
still, but little did I know at that moment that with all
of his outward appearance and the squeaky voice, that this
man had the heart of a lion.
He went on and won in that campaign. As chairman of the
senatorial committee I was involved in 67 Senate
campaigns. And he won the toughest race, defeated an
incumbent, was in a runoff after the general election when
everybody else would have sat down, given up, gotten
tired.
Paul Coverdell did not sit down and give up or get
tired. He came to the Senate and we were immediately
involved in the Clinton health care debate, and he and
John McCain and I traveled all over America. We did 147
events in this crusade to defeat the Clinton health care
bill. And in all those events and all that travel--you all
know Paul Coverdell--he never got tired or never let on he
was tired or got irritable.
In the Senate where we all want glory, we all want to be
out front, we all want to see our picture in the paper,
Paul was one of those remarkable people who simply wanted
to get things done. There was no job too small for Paul
Coverdell. And there is no job too big for Paul Coverdell.
Paul Coverdell managed in 8 short years to become
absolutely indispensable to the U.S. Senate.
And I am very happy today about one thing--not much I am
happy about today, but I am happy about one thing. We
often feel something about people--we often love people,
but we do not often tell them that. It is especially hard
for men to tell other men that they love them. But what I
am happy about is the following point. I realized over a
year ago that Paul Coverdell had become an indispensable
Member of the Senate, that he was the greatest Senator
from Georgia since Richard Russell. And so I always went
to great lengths to say it. Here, in Georgia, and
everywhere I got the opportunity to say it.
This is a hard time for the Senate, and I just would
like to conclude on the two points I tried to open up with
but did not quite get said. In these terrible moments when
we are shocked and hurt we tend to think about how someone
died. But at these moments it is critical that we focus on
how they lived. We tend to look at how our lives and the
life of our Nation have been diminished, but it is
important that we focus on how our lives were enriched by
Paul Coverdell. My grandmother used to say that as long as
anyone remembers you, that you are not dead. As long as I
live, Paul Coverdell will be remembered.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Hutchinson). The
distinguished Senator from California is recognized.
Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, yesterday this body lost
one of its finest Members. I greet this day with a very
heavy heart.
Paul Coverdell was not only a good Senator, he was a
good and decent man. I found him to be a very nice man. I
worked with him closely as an original co-sponsor of his
Education Savings and School Excellence Act. I found him
very dedicated and very easy to work with. I found him to
be above political correctness; he strived to do what he
believed would work and would help people.
We shared a common interest. We worked together on many
antinarcotics efforts. We debated together on
certification. I was his Democratic co-sponsor of the
Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act. We talked
together about what was happening. We tried to plan
together. I found him to have a deep and abiding knowledge
about Mexico, Central America, and Latin America.
He had a kind of energy, enthusiasm, and dedication well
known on both sides of the aisle here in the Senate. He
was never one to seek the spotlight, but all of us here
know how hard he worked. He was not the proverbial ``show
horse''--he was a workhorse.
He was a man who served the people of Georgia and this
Nation with great distinction. He worked all of his adult
life in public service. Simply put, Paul Coverdell made
this body a better place and a more collegial place. All
one really had to do was spend time alone with him in an
office and listen to him and his thoughts as he sought to
frame and advance an issue.
Senator Harkin was in the elevator as I came up this
morning. He said: ``It is so hard because on Friday he was
alive and well in the Senate and today he simply is not
here.''
There is a passage from the Book of Ecclesiastes--
chapter 5, verse 12--I will leave with the Senate: ``The
sleep of a laboring man is sweet.''
Paul Coverdell, you have labored hard. Your sleep will
be sweet.
Ms. SNOWE. Mr. President, it is with profound sadness
and the heaviest of hearts that I come to the floor today
to pay tribute to the memory of a friend, a colleague, and
a man who brought honor upon the State of Georgia, our
country, and the institution of the Senate--Paul
Coverdell. My deepest sympathies go to his wife Nancy,
Paul's family, friends, and his staff at this most
difficult of times.
It is tragedies like this that remind us that, beyond
the policy and the politics and the tremendous gravity of
the issues we deliberate--beyond the grandeur of this
Chamber and the history we write on a daily basis--we are
at heart an institution of individuals--of people. And
when one of our own is lost to us forever, all of us are
diminished by that loss.
I first met Paul when I was a member of the House
Foreign Affairs Committee and he came before us as
President Bush's Director of the Peace Corps. I recall
being struck not only by his obvious qualifications for
the job, but by his warmth and his obvious esteem for the
mission he was chosen to fulfill. To help foster the
ideals of freedom and democracy for people throughout the
world was for Paul a high and noble calling. And it was
one he answered with typical energy and enthusiasm,
optimism and hope.
Indeed, when I think about all that Paul was--all that
he symbolized, all that he meant to those who cared about
him and the people he served--the single word that comes
to my mind is, ``decency.'' Paul Coverdell was many
things: a devoted husband, a talented legislator, a strong
and principled leader--but above all else, Paul was simply
one of the most decent human beings one could ever hope to
know. And any of us should be so fortunate to be
remembered as that.
I well remember when I first came to the Senate from the
House in 1995, Paul had of course been here for 2 years,
and he knew how difficult it was to get started, to get
your feet firmly planted on the ground in these foreign
surroundings.
And so he helped us freshmen--and women--to find our way
around, to set up offices, to figure out the basics of how
things work around here. While it is perhaps true that
none of us has ever really figured out that secret, Paul
and his staff certainly did their best to give advice and
lend a helping hand. But then, knowing Paul as I do now,
that really comes as no big surprise.
Paul was always helping people, always contributing to
the world around him. From his service in the U.S. Army to
the State Legislature to Director of the Peace Corps to
U.S. Senator, Paul believed that to serve others was a
privilege, not a burden. He truly believed that he could
make a difference in people's lives. And he was right.
What a lesson his life can teach an often cynical world.
We ask ourselves, what can one person do? What kind of a
positive impact can government truly have on the lives of
others? What happened to the idea of public service as a
noble calling?
To those questions there is one simple answer--people
like Paul Coverdell exist in the world: Good, honorable,
trustworthy people who call to our better nature, who
exemplify what the framers of this Nation had in mind when
they created what they hoped would one day be the greatest
deliberative body on earth.
He personified another virtue that often seems in short
supply in a world where the volume of one's indignation is
all too frequently the sole measure of one's passion--and
that virtue is civility. Paul let the weight of his
arguments speak for themselves, and where there were
disagreements he respected those who disagreed with him.
Perhaps that is why he engendered such deep respect in
return.
It is little wonder, then, that Paul rose so rapidly
through the ranks of leadership. He had a keen grasp of
policy and detail, and nobody worked harder on behalf of
his constituents and his party.
He was truly a ``legislator's legislator''--not only
creative in developing solutions, but always focused on
moving the ball forward, on producing results for the
people of Georgia and America whether in the areas of
education, keeping drugs out of the hands of our children,
or allowing hardworking Americans to keep more of their
hard-earned money.
In fact, I remember at one point my staff commented to
me that everything we were considering in the Senate
seemed to have Paul's stamp on it. But that was typical of
Paul. He never stood still--and he never forgot the sacred
trust that must exist between elected officials and those
they are obliged to serve.
Just as important, Paul was a man for whom his pledge
was his bond--and that only counts for everything in this
institution. His words had credibility, his ideas merit,
and his actions sincerity. He made me proud to be a Member
of the U.S. Senate. He made us all proud.
Once again, my heart goes out to Paul's wife Nancy, his
family, friends, and all of his staff--whom I know are
heartbroken as we all are--and to the people of the State
of Georgia, who have lost a great leader and true friend.
He will surely be missed by all of us who were fortunate
to have known him, but his legacy will just as surely live
on in all those whose lives he has touched.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oklahoma.
Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, after watching my colleagues
and the depth of concern and personal passion they have at
the loss of Paul Coverdell, I want to tell them of an
experience I had last night. Something came to me when I
was at a dinner and we had just heard the news. It was the
seventh Beatitude: Blessed are the peacemakers: for they
shall be called the sons of God.
It occurred to me that this was really Paul Coverdell;
he was the ultimate peacemaker. It was impossible for Paul
to walk into a roomful of people, whether Democrats,
Republicans, liberals, conservatives--hostility, anxiety,
it all subsided when Paul came in.
I remember when I was first elected from the House into
the Senate in 1994. Paul had just arrived here. He did not
give the first impression as being a dynamic person, even
an articulate person. You had to know him and know him
well. But after you did, he was unlike anyone else we have
been exposed to here in this body.
I thought last night about all the things we deal with
here in the Senate. It was articulated in Matthew 9,
starting with verse 35. It says:
Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching
in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the
kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he
saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they
were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
This is kind of the way we are. We are dealing with the
problems of poverty, the problems of crime--a multitude of
problems. So somebody has to be the one to take on those
responsibilities.
I read the following verse:
Then he [Jesus] said to his disciples, ``The harvest is
plentiful, but the laborers are few. Ask the Lord of the
harvest, therefore, to send out laborers into his harvest
field.''
When I, last night, thought of that verse, I thought,
really, Paul Coverdell is the laborer who was sent, was
raised up to deal with these problems, and all the
problems we deal with on a daily basis, in his own unique
way. So I would just say our prayer for Paul Coverdell
right now is the last verse of the 23d Psalm: Surely
goodness and mercy shall follow me all the rest of my
days; and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
Amen.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from California.
Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I come to the floor to
express my sadness at the passing of a very kind
colleague. I want to say to his family and to his close
friends, in Georgia and here in the Senate, who really
loved him and who worked with him every day, I send you my
strength and my prayers.
Paul Coverdell was never afraid to disagree because he
came here with beliefs. But he never, ever was
disagreeable. I went back through the Record this morning
because I remember actually several occasions where he and
I were on different sides on issues, tough issues. Gun
control, for example, was one of them, where we disagreed
on a particular piece of legislation; Education, where we
disagreed on a particular piece of legislation. We were
yielding time back and forth, and every single time it was
``my friend from Georgia,'' ``my friend from California.''
The disagreement was deep on the issue, but it was always
collegial; it was a model for what should happen here in
the Senate where we definitely have deep, heartfelt
disagreements but we can disagree in a way that shows
respect for one another and caring for one another. And he
did that.
I wanted to come to the floor to say that because it is
perhaps a quality we do not see enough of, and all of us
ought to think about that.
I do not want to repeat what has been said about his
contributions to this country. The record shows they were
powerful and strong--from the Peace Corps, to serving in
the Senate, to helping his party, to helping Governor
Bush. He was his key person, as I understand it, in the
Senate. People trusted him with these responsibilities.
I wanted to say as a Member from the other side of the
aisle that I am stunned and saddened, and I see my
colleagues are very affected by this. I feel for everyone
who feels this loss in a very personal way. I feel it in a
way of someone on the other side of the aisle who really
did respect this man and enjoyed the colloquies and
debates we had because it never was with animus. It was
always done with great respect. He will be missed. Again,
I send my sympathy to his family and his friends. I yield
the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Pennsylvania.
Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, there is a heavy cloud
hanging over the Senate Chamber today. A bouquet of
flowers with a black tapestry is on the desk of our
departed colleague, Senator Paul Coverdell, whose presence
will be greatly missed.
There is a saying that in Washington, in Congress, in
the government, a great deal could be accomplished if
there was less concern--perhaps no concern--for who gets
the credit. Paul Coverdell epitomized that concept.
He was always in the thick of the action. He was always
prepared to help. He did it with conciliation, with good
will and accommodation, and in the spirit of compromise;
self-effacing and never interested in the credit, not
interested in the news reports or the television acclaim
or any of what is customarily associated with the
politics, the public relations of the Congress in
Washington, DC. That kind of effective, quiet Senator
behind the scenes is a relative rarity here.
He had a very distinguished career in the Georgia
Legislature, in the Georgia State Senate, going back to
1970. He was the Republican Leader. Just this morning I
talked with people who knew him in Georgia. It was the
same Paul Coverdell 30 years ago whom we saw in Washington
heading up the Peace Corps, a nonglamorous but a very
important undertaking to project America around the world
with young people, and then in his election to the Senate
in 1992 and the immediate recognition of his colleagues
who knew him well, even though he was not so well known
with the television cameras but very well known by his
colleagues, and elected to a leadership position, No. 4 in
the Republican caucus.
He was the point man for the Republican caucus on
education. He brought to that very important subject, a
subject of priority second to none in America today and in
the world today, again his quiet effectiveness.
I had the opportunity to work with him on the
appropriations bills on the subcommittee which I chair
which covers, among other agencies, the Department of
Education. For the last 2 years, we had a list of a couple
hundred amendments, and in the flurry of floor action,
Paul Coverdell was enormously effective in talking to
Senators about their amendments, saying which ones could
be accepted, which ones could be accommodated without
coming to the floor even for a voice vote, and then
narrowing the frame of reference as to which ones had to
be debated with time agreements and which ones had to be
voted upon.
The management of a Senate appropriations bill is a
complicated matter, especially when you have a $100
billion-plus budget and you have to worry about Head
Start, drug-free schools, the National Institutes of
Health, worker safety, and the myriad problems. Paul
Coverdell was an effective man to get that job done.
Senator Bill Frist--Dr. Bill Frist--gave us all a report
on the medical aspects of what happened to Senator
Coverdell: that it was not painful, an extraordinary
medical incident with problems which simply could not be
contained or controlled.
I know every Senator sends sympathies to the Coverdell
family, to his wife Nancy. He will be sorely missed for
the great contribution which he has made.
There are tough days in the Senate. Last year, in
October, we had the passing of our dear friend, John
Chafee, and now the passing of Paul Coverdell. While we
intend to focus on matters of government and high finance,
international affairs and war and peace, nothing is more
sobering than to see what is really important with the
loss of a very special friend and a really great Senator.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Kentucky.
Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, we celebrate today the
life of our friend and colleague, Paul Coverdell. On
behalf of my wife Elaine, who succeeded Paul in the job as
Director of the Peace Corps, and myself, I extend to Nancy
and all of Paul's friends our sincerest condolences.
I first met Paul in 1988. I was traveling around the
South during the Republican presidential primaries. I was
a supporter of then-Vice-President George Bush. I happened
to find myself in Georgia, and ran into a State Senator in
Georgia named Paul Coverdell, who was also active in that
campaign. Paul, as he often did, made an immediate good
impression. I recall the people in the Georgia meeting
were all quite deferential to him. It was clear he had
achieved a level of respect at that point in his career.
Having served in the State Senate in Georgia for 18 years,
having been the leader of a rather small group of
Republicans in that body, he had nevertheless achieved a
level of respect at that point.
As we all know, Vice President Bush became President
Bush, and the next time I met Paul Coverdell, he had been
nominated to be Director of the Peace Corps. As many
Senators have said, he did an extraordinary job running
that well-known agency.
Sometime in 1991, Paul came into my office and said: I
am thinking of running for the Senate. I am going to be
running against an incumbent Democrat in the South. I know
that is rather difficult to do.
We talked about the experience I had running against an
incumbent Democrat in the South. We struck up the
beginnings of a real friendship during which we talked off
and on during his extraordinary quest for the Senate.
It was indeed an extraordinary quest. Because of the
peculiarities of Georgia law, Paul Coverdell is surely in
the Guinness Book of Records because he won four elections
in 1 year. I am not certain what the law of Georgia is
today. I think it is still the same with regard to
primaries. In order to be the nominee of a party in
Georgia, you have to get 50.1 percent of the vote. Paul
had a very contested primary for the nomination. He did
not get 50.1 percent of the votes, so he was in a runoff
in order to achieve the nomination. So it took our good
friend two elections to get the nomination.
Then Georgia had--I believe they have since changed this
law--a requirement that in the general election, in order
to become a U.S. Senator, you had to get 50.1 percent of
the vote.
Election day came and went, and neither Paul nor his
opponent, the incumbent, had achieved 50.1 percent of the
vote. So there was a runoff for the general election--a
hotly contested, spirited contest--in which Paul came out
on top, I believe, in early December of 1992.
So he had won four elections in 1 year in order to find
his way to this body. Paul was indeed tested right from
the beginning in his quest to become a Senator.
I remember in the early stages of that campaign, people
did not take Paul very seriously. As I watched his growth
and development, almost from the beginning it seemed he
was consistently underestimated. But in his
extraordinarily effective and friendly manner, he managed
to make himself a force in the Senate very quickly, to the
point, as many have said already, that he was elected as
one of our leaders in his first term.
One of his staffers lives in my neighborhood. I noticed
on the back of the car the Coverdell bumper sticker, which
says: ``Coverdell Works.'' There may have been another
bumper sticker somewhere in America that said: ``Someone
Works,'' but I cannot think of a bumper sticker or, for
that matter, a better way to sum up our friend and
colleague Paul Coverdell than ``Coverdell Works.''
He was ubiquitous. He was everywhere. As all of us who
work in the Senate know, in order to make anything happen,
you have to develop little groups to work in an area to
try to advance the ball in the middle of these 100
substantial egos, each of which has its own goals and
aspirations. Paul was literally ubiquitous, all over the
place, in a group here, in a group there, always advancing
the cause. He did it in a friendly, effective, and
intelligent manner.
No one is irreplaceable. The Senate continues to
function. We are functioning today, although probably not
very effectively. But if I have ever met somebody about
whom I could say he was almost irreplaceable in the
Senate, it was Paul Coverdell.
So it is with extraordinary sadness, not only personally
but in terms of the loss in this institution, that we say
goodbye to our good friend, Paul Coverdell.
I yield the floor.
Mr. BROWNBACK. Mr. President, I rise to recognize and
celebrate the life of Paul Coverdell, as many of my
colleagues have today, a beautiful, warm-hearted, deep-
souled man who was constantly encouraging and engaging
people. I know he is hearing these comments. I wish I
would have said them to him physically as well, but we
know he is here, as we celebrate a life well lived.
It is a very sad day for us in the Senate. I caught the
comments of Senator Gramm earlier wherein he said that
instead of staring at the death, we should stare at the
life; instead of staring at our loss, we should stare at
our gain from having known Paul Coverdell. That is a very
appropriate way for us to look at and think about it.
Paul touched so many of us in the Senate in many
wonderful ways. One of the things he did for my family
that I most remember was sending us a book by a Georgian
author. The title of the book was ``Lights Along the
Way.'' It was a collection of vignettes of people of
faith, acts they had performed--many of them very obscure,
some of them well known--to help people along the way. For
example, one person had adopted 10 children, and the light
this person had been along the way; some of the things
Abraham Lincoln had done, a clear light along the way. My
daughter and I would frequently read one, maybe two of
these stories at night before going to bed. They were
uplifting, happy, light, joyous stories of lives well
lived, of somebody being a light along the way.
That is exactly what Paul Coverdell was, a light along
the way. If you saw him during the day, it was never a
confrontational meeting. It was always a happy meeting.
Even though you may disagree about something, he was
always trying to be helpful. He was a peacemaker. As you
would pass through your day, he was one of those lights
along the way. That is why our grief is so great. When you
lose part of that light, it makes it very difficult. He
clearly was that. He was one of those people who talked
about the Scripture of God working through an individual,
and it was God working in him to be that light along the
way.
I think Paul was truly that, a beautiful, deeply caring
man. He cared for his country, cared for his friends. He
cared for people who were not his friends. I never saw him
give a harsh or a cross word to anybody. I never saw him
hardly give a frown to anybody, let alone a harsh word. It
is those sorts of vignettes of Paul's life that I
remember, that stick out in my mind, his being such a
light along the way.
I hope he is a light we do not forget. I hope he is a
light we learn from. Light cleanses. Light shows us the
way. Light points to where we ought to be and where we
ought to go. Many times, it is a point of light in the
distance that we seek, toward which we aim, whether it is
a lighthouse or a distant shining light.
That is what Paul is to us now, one of those lights we
seek and aim toward, hoping that in some way, at some time
in our life, we will be able to draw closer, move toward
it, be purer, be a greater light; that when we enter a
room, people will react as they did when Paul entered a
room. You can enter a room and there are shadows that come
out, frowns, or you can enter a room and people start to
smile and be happy, even though they are not exactly sure
why you are there. Paul was one of those where the room
started to light up rather than get darker when he
entered.
I hope his is a light we will always remember. As we
mourn today, we celebrate that light among us, a light for
us to aim toward. He was a great man.
Mr. JEFFORDS. Mr. President, I want to spend a few
minutes today to join in paying tribute to our former
colleague, Paul Coverdell. Memories of Paul consistently
paint a picture of a hardworking, even-tempered consensus
builder. He sought results, not headlines. He was not one
who basked in a national spotlight, but his quiet
influence within this body has made a profound impact on
public policy affecting all Americans.
My last opportunity to work with Paul was during
consideration of the Educational Opportunities Act this
spring. It is fitting that our final work together
addressed the subject of education, as this is an area
where we had many dealings over the years. We did not
always agree on the specifics, but the one thing about
which we wholeheartedly agreed is the importance of
education.
During the S. 2 debate, Paul made a compelling case for
the need to assure a good education for all of our
citizens. He said:
From our very founding, we have understood that a core
component of maintaining a free society is that the
population is educated. To the extent that any among us
who are citizens do not have the fundamental skills, the
basic education, they are truly not free. They cannot
enjoy the full benefits of American citizenship because
they are denied the ability to think for themselves, for
their families, for their communities, for the Nation.
In all my work with Paul, I found him to be fair and
accommodating. He was always one to search for the areas
of consensus, and he was enormously successful in finding
ways to reach accommodation to move things forward. His
persistence and his commitment to making things happen--no
matter how many obstacles were placed in the path--earned
him the respect of all who had the privilege to work with
him.
I join in extending my deepest sympathy to his wife
Nancy. I also offer my condolences to members of his
staff, who have lost not just an employer but an inspiring
example of the work and rewards of a life devoted to
public service.
We will miss Paul, but his inspiration to me and to all
the others of this body will continue until we are gone
from here also. I join all my colleagues in the deep
sympathy that we feel at this moment.
Mr. ABRAHAM. Mr. President, I rise today to join my
colleagues in expressing our condolences to Paul
Coverdell's wife Nancy and all the members of his family.
I think that anybody who has watched the expressions and
condolences that have already been offered would recognize
immediately the extent to which Senator Coverdell touched
all of us in the Senate and the extent to which he was a
beloved colleague and friend.
Paul's life achievement, in so many different ways,
obviously deserves the tributes we are paying today. I
wish to comment on some of those achievements. First, Paul
Coverdell was one of the really remarkable leaders of our
time. He began his political career in the Georgia
Legislature and rose up to the leadership position in the
Republican Party in the Georgia State Senate. He then came
to Washington and made his mark as the Director of the
Peace Corps. He was very instrumental in expanding and
successfully helping the Peace Corps to transition into a
new era.
Paul was a leader in his party. He served as chairman of
the Georgia Republican Party at a time when there weren't
a lot of Republicans in Georgia. But thanks to him, the
party grew in strength. That is when I actually first
became acquainted with him, because I chaired the
Republican Party in Michigan at that time and we met in
the context of national party meetings. Then, of course,
Paul was elected to this body in 1992. I think everybody
here is aware of how effective and how competent and able
he was. He moved into the leadership of this Chamber
fairly quickly--in, I think, his first term in the Senate.
That does not happen too often in a place where seniority
counts so much. But his observable abilities, talents, and
incredible work ethic brought him to the attention of all
of our colleagues on both sides of the aisle. On our side
of the aisle, it resulted in him being put in a leadership
role early in his career.
More than being an effective leader, Paul was a
tremendous colleague when it came time to needing some
assistance on a project. I cannot think of one important
piece of legislation that I have worked on in the time I
have been in the Senate when Paul Coverdell was not
helping me in some fashion to get it through. I remember
coming here in my very first couple of legislative efforts
on amendments and bills as a freshman Member who did not
know how this place worked and looking to him, who was a
slightly more senior Member, for guidance and help; he was
always there. He has been there for all of us. That is why
I think today is such a tough day. It would not really
matter what the issue was, he was somebody who would try
to help you. His staff was built by him to be of similar
assistance.
Of course, for all of us, probably the principal thing
we would acknowledge in terms of Paul's attributes was the
tremendous friendship he offered to all of us who were his
friends. I had a unique relationship with him in the sense
that he served as a mentor and friend to me in my first
couple of years. When he sought a leadership position, I
was proud of the fact that he asked me to place his name
in nomination for that. I did so on the second occasion he
sought to be in the leadership of our party. When you are
asked to nominate somebody for one of these jobs, it
obviously means a lot to you and tells you that you are
well regarded by that person. I have to say it means an
unbelievable amount to me to think that Senator Paul
Coverdell thought of me as someone who he would want to
play that role in his political career.
As I said earlier, the reaction of his colleagues today
demonstrates that others share my high opinion of Paul. So
many have given statements already, and I know more will
follow that will move us all. We have seen people express
themselves in ways we never thought we would see. People
who are known to come to the Senate floor and wage verbal
debates back and forth on serious topics have already come
here today and demonstrated, in the most human way, that
they were so close to and touched by Paul Coverdell, and
that all of the partisanship and the political debate is
really second to them in importance to describing the
friendship he provided all of us.
So as I close we pray for the best for Paul's wife and
family. We give thanks for having been able to share his
friendship. On a personal level, I say: Goodbye, Paul, we
will never forget you. You were a key part of all we have
done here, and you will continue to play a role as our
memories of you continue.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Utah is
recognized.
Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, many years ago William
Wordsworth wrote a wonderful poem entitled ``Ode:
Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of Early
Childhood,'' in which he said:
Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting:
The Soul that rises with us, our life's Star,
Hath had elsewhere its setting,
And cometh from afar:
Not in entire forgetfulness,
And not in utter nakedness,
But trailing clouds of glory do we come
From God, who is our home. . . .
I feel particularly bereft today because of the loss of
Paul Coverdell.
I have served here for 24 years and I have seen great
people come and go. There are people in this body who are
just as great as the Founding Fathers were. There may not
be many, but there are people here who by any measure
qualify as great leaders.
These great people, who are able to cross party lines
and bring people together, make this body the greatest
legislative body in the world. Paul was one of those
people.
He was kind, he was considerate, a good listener; he was
wise and he was a person with whom you would want to
counsel if you had any concerns.
But Paul was more than that. He was politically astute.
He knew when to get tough about matters and stand up for
what he believed. But there was also a kindness, a
softness, a decency about him that is going to live long
after today.
I know that ``our birth is but a sleep and a
forgetting,'' and that we come ``from God, who is our
home.''
I know that Paul was one of God's chosen people. He was
given the privilege of coming here to be with us in the
Senate. We had the privilege of knowing him.
William Cullen Bryant once said:
So live that when thy summons comes to join
The innumerable caravan that moves
To that mysterious realm, where each shall take
His chamber in the silent halls of death,
Thou go not, like a quarry-slave at night,
Scourged to his dungeon, but, sustained and soothed
By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave
Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch
About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams.
Paul was like that. We are all going to miss him. The
fact that he died such a quick and unfathomable death has
made a mournful impression on all of us.
Paul was one of those people who could move mountains
because of his personality, because of his intelligence,
because of his background, because of his experience,
because of his kindness, because of his love, because of
his fairness, and because of his leadership.
I could go through all of his leadership qualities, all
of the things he was working on and the accomplishments he
made. Right now, I am thinking more of the mourning and
the sense of loss we feel in losing Paul Coverdell.
Tennyson wrote this wonderful poem called ``Crossing the
Bar.''
Sunset and evening star,
And one clear call for me!
And may there be no moaning of the bar,
When I put out to sea,
But such a tide as moving seems asleep,
Too full for sound and foam,
When that which drew from out the boundless deep
Turns again home.
Twilight and evening bell,
And after that the dark!
And may there be no sadness of farewell,
When I embark;
For though from out our bourne of Time and Place
The flood may bear me far,
I hope to see my Pilot face to face
When I have crossed the bar.
I have no doubt that Paul is going to see his pilot face
to face. I have no doubt that he does not want any moaning
of the bar as he puts out to sea. I know he does not want
any sadness or farewell now that he has embarked on this
next phase of eternity.
Let us today concentrate on all the good that Paul stood
for on all his amazing accomplishments, not only as a
Senator, but also as a man.
We all know about Paul's love for education--he led our
caucus on that issue--and all the work he did as chairman
of the Senate Republican Task Force on Education to
encourage learning opportunities for America's
schoolchildren.
Paul worked hard to make sure that every parent, every
child, and every teacher could devote enough time
throughout each year to educational matters. He made
encouraging a love of reading his special priority for
students, pupils, and teachers alike. He was a leader in
formulating ``A+'' tax-free accounts for education. His
landmark Safe and Affordable Schools Act has been widely
regarded as a model program to improve our country's
education policies. Paul authored bills to make sure we
appreciate the hard work of our Nation's teachers,
something we tend to forget so easily when formulating
education policy.
Paul must also be memorialized for his steadfast work to
lower taxes and make our tax policies more fair. Many
times Paul reminded us of his belief that the freedom and
means to raise, educate and care for our families are
threatened by a government that takes more than 50 percent
of an average family's income in taxes and cost of
government. Paul was very proud of his work on tax issues
and in particular, of the law he authored to stop
unscrupulous IRS workers from rummaging through the tax
files of private citizens. It is many ways so ironic that
the last vote he cast was on repealing the death tax, an
important policy change he had worked so hard to advocate.
I worked closely with Paul on his antidrug efforts, his
work to stop narcotics trafficking, and his efforts to
make the workplace drug free. All of these things Paul
did, and he did them well.
Paul never forgot the needs of his home State, whether
it was through his work as chairman of the Agriculture
Subcommittee on Marketing, Inspection and Product
Promotion, or through his work as a member of the Finance
Committee and the Small Business Committee. His record is
replete with accomplishments that benefited his
constituents back home.
Of course, there were so many other legislative things I
would like to mention, but let me leave it at that.
Another side of Paul was his love for baseball. He was
as excited as anybody I have ever seen when Hank Aaron
broke Babe Ruth's Major League home run record as a
beloved Atlanta Brave.
I am deeply saddened by his passing. I am going to miss
him very much.
One of my favorite poets is a poet named Sara Teasdale
who wrote an interesting poem. Although this was surely a
love poem, I think it applies to our memories of Paul as
this poem is called ``The Beloved.''
It is enough of honor for one lifetime
To have known you better than the rest have known,
The shadows and the colors of your voice,
Your will, immutable and still as stone.
The shy heart,
Which Paul had--
so lonely and so gay,
The sad laughter and the pride of pride,
The tenderness, the depth of tenderness
Rich as the earth, and wide as heaven is wide.
I like that. Even though it was meant for someone else,
I think it applies to a large degree to Paul Coverdell.
Paul was a good man. He did the right things. He set a
good example. He was a good colleague here. He was one of
the most respected Senators in this body for all of these
qualities, qualities that very few people can come close
to matching.
I wish Paul the best in his afterlife.
My sympathy and heartfelt feelings to Nancy, his wife,
and to the rest of his family who are mourning him.
I thank God for the privilege of knowing Paul, working
with Paul, accomplishing things with Paul, laughing with
Paul.
I am grateful for our colleagues in this body on both
sides of the floor. We do learn that these people are here
for a very important reason. They have been selected by
their respective constituents to do good things. I can say
as one who has been here long enough to know that Paul
Coverdell did good things while he was here and that his
legacy will be that all of us need to do better in the
things we have been and are doing. All of us need to
follow and emulate his example so that we can hopefully be
as good as he was.
My sympathy and my best to Nancy and other members of
his family, and to my fellow colleagues who are mourning
Paul Coverdell this day.
Thank you, Mr. President. I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Idaho.
Mr. CRAIG. Mr. President, I join with all of my fellow
Senators today to express our feelings and mourn the death
of our colleague, Senator Paul Coverdell.
I always find these kinds of circumstances difficult to
speak to, to find the appropriate words to reflect my
emotions or to in some way express my love for a man such
as Paul Coverdell and the way he worked for all of us and
for his country.
I grew up in a ranching environment in the State of
Idaho. Oftentimes I think back to those experiences when I
am caught in emotion or when I cause myself to sit down
and contemplate how to deal with an issue or a situation.
My experience with Paul was largely a part of our time in
the Senate, a leadership time.
I was one of four Senators elected by the Republican
majority to lead them in the 106th Congress; Paul
Coverdell was a part of that leadership team. He was
Secretary of what we call our Republican Conference, or
all Members on the Republican side. It was through that
relationship that I grew to know Paul and to appreciate
the tremendous talents that he had. We all know he was an
activist on the floor on many occasions, in pursuit of
what the leadership team and ultimately the Republican
Conference decided was a direction we ought to head in or
an issue we ought to debate. He did it with phenomenal
energy and talent.
When I think of that relationship, I can only come to
this analysis; I think it so well fits Paul: A team
approach, as in a western ranching environment. We all
remember the great cattle drives that used to come out of
the Southwest into the Plains of the West to graze,
thousands of head of renegade cattle moving all in one
direction. The reason they were moving in one direction
was because there was a trail boss who headed up this
drive. There were a group of wranglers on horseback who
were out there working day to day to keep that drive
shaped and headed in the direction in which the trail boss
wanted them to head.
There is no question that in the Senate Trent Lott is
our trail boss. He decides the direction with the consent
of the herd, if you will, and head Members. There is a
group who are the wranglers, who work with that herd, to
help shape it and keep it moving. Paul Coverdell was one
of those wranglers and probably the best among us. He was
constantly out there from daylight until dark and, if it
were on the range, we would say in all kinds of weather
because he was doing what he was asked to do but more
importantly because he believed in what he was doing and
he was very passionate about it.
All of us are here for a reason; some of us for larger
reasons than others. Clearly, to be here with the kind of
passion and energy that Paul Coverdell from the State of
Georgia came here with is unique. As a result, he was
selected to be one of those wranglers, to follow the
leadership, to follow the directions of the trail boss, to
make sure that we all stayed headed in the right
direction.
I will miss him. I will miss his talents as a wrangler.
He was a great American and history will record that. He
has made his mark. But never once in the business of
making that mark, or leading, shaping the herd, or
wrangling the herd, did he ever do it for Paul. He did it
for his country and for what he believed was the right
cause and the right belief.
Paul, I think God has called you to a different trail
herd. He obviously needed a hell of a good wrangler, and
He's got one. We will miss you. We love you.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Arkansas.
Mr. HUTCHINSON. Mr. President, I join my colleagues in
rising to offer my sympathies and condolences to Nancy and
the Coverdell family.
Today, we all grieve Paul's passing, but we also
celebrate his life. What a life it was; a life of
achievement, a life of incredible service and
accomplishment.
I did not know Paul Coverdell until I came to the Senate
in 1996. I followed his career, as many Americans did. I
followed with interest and admiration his campaign for the
Senate and his election to the Senate from Georgia. It was
only when I arrived at this institution that I got to know
Paul Coverdell, the man.
Much has already been said this morning and yesterday
and has been said well. He was ubiquitous. It seemed Paul
was everywhere. The breadth and number of issues he was
involved in takes your breath away. It was amazing how
much he knew and how much he was willing to invest his
time and energy. He was incredibly hard working and
willing to do what others did not want to do, did not have
time to do. He made time and he was willing to take on the
nonglamorous jobs. He did not seek glory and he did not
seek adulation. He gave credit away freely because he did
not seek it for himself. He was a consensus builder; he
was a doer. If you wanted it accomplished, you gave the
task to Paul Coverdell.
One quality which I as a junior Member of the Senate
especially appreciated and admired was his deep respect
for his fellow man and his deep respect for his
colleagues, regardless of their rank or status. I served
on the education task force with Paul. We had a lot of
strategy meetings. We had meetings in Senator Lott's
office in which we would talk over the education issue and
discuss not only how we would communicate our message but
how we would pass legislation. There were a lot of senior
Members on the task force. They were always quick and bold
to speak out and give their opinion. What I noticed about
Paul Coverdell was that he was always observing who had
spoken and who had not, who had expressed their opinion
and who had not. At every meeting he said: Tim, you have
not said anything yet. What are your thoughts? Do you have
an opinion?
Or he would see Susan Collins and say: Susan, how do you
feel about this issue?
He always included junior Members. He included everyone
because he respected not only their opinion, but he
respected them as human beings.
He epitomized what service is all about. I think that
Paul Coverdell provides the lasting role model of what a
U.S. Senator should be, what a public servant should be.
Many of my colleagues have struggled to find words and
to find Scripture and verses to express what they felt
about Paul Coverdell. I have found a verse that I think
applies most appropriately to Paul. It is Mark 10:31.
Jesus said: But many that are first shall be last; and the
last first. Paul was a leader. But he was a leader among
us because he was servant of all of us.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Minnesota.
Mr. GRAMS. Mr. President, I rise today to join my
colleagues in paying tribute to the life and legacy of a
man I considered a friend first, a Senator second, and a
great American above all.
Senator Coverdell was everything that those of us who
were blessed to serve with him strive to be: effective,
committed, compassionate, and tenacious when it meant
doing right by the people of Georgia and the American
taxpayers he revered.
Paul was a voice for families, for children, for the
Nation's workers, and every individual seeking to build a
better life for themselves, their family, and generations
to come.
Of all my colleagues, I think I spent more of my working
hours with Paul Coverdell, in meetings, strategy sessions,
and casual conversations.
I considered him to be the ``sparkplug of the Senate''
because of the life and energy he brought to this body.
As others have said, very little went on here that Paul
was not somehow involved in, and he was the man I went to
when I needed a friendly ear. I did not always hear what I
wanted to hear, or get the sympathy I thought I needed, of
course, but I always received the counsel of a man who
spoke from the heart.
He leaves behind a remarkable legacy of service, and not
just here in the Senate. Other colleagues have spoken of
his leadership of the Peace Corps, his 16 years in the
Georgia State Senate, his military service, his real-world
experience in business.
In this Chamber he will be especially remembered for his
unyielding dedication to working Americans, whether
through his work on education, and in particular his
education savings accounts, leading the fight against
illegal drugs, promoting volunteerism, and lifting up
America's farmers.
I think, though, that Paul will be remembered foremost
as an ardent defender of freedom.
The highest tribute one can pay to colleagues is to say
that, day in and day out, they got the job done. Senator
Paul Coverdell got the job done, with humility, with
enthusiasm, and always with good humor.
With Paul's passing, the State of Georgia has lost a
leader, the Senate has lost its sparkplug, many of us have
lost our best friend, and the Coverdell family has lost a
truly exceptional man. My prayers, and the prayers of our
colleagues and our staffs, are with Nancy and her entire
family during this difficult, difficult time.
Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, I join my many colleagues
here in the Senate today expressing my sympathies to the
Coverdell family and telling them our thoughts and prayers
are with them during this difficult time. A poet once
said: There is no joy life gives like that it takes away.
I expect the Coverdell family and all who loved Paul and
understand the hurt and anguish at his passing, today know
well what that verse means.
This is an unusual place, this Senate. There are 100 of
us, men and women from all parts of the country. We have
days where we have pretty aggressive debates and fights
about public policy. Paul Coverdell was in the middle of
many of those. I never heard Paul Coverdell say a mean
word to anyone in the Senate. I told him one day at the
end of a rather lengthy debate in which I was on the other
side and the vote was called and we were standing in the
well: ``You and I don't agree on this issue, but you are a
very good Senator.''
We served in different political parties. We, in many
cases, believed differently about issues. But Paul
Coverdell was a very good Senator and served this country
well.
The important part about Paul was, though he felt great
passion about public policy and the issues he brought to
the floor of the Senate, again, he never uttered a mean
word about anyone in debate. You can always disagree in
this country without being disagreeable. Paul Coverdell
demonstrated that every day in his pursuit of the public
policy he believed was important for this country.
We are so busy and our schedules have us on our way here
and there and everywhere all week, and then often to our
respective homes in the 50 States on weekends, so it is
hard to get to know each other very well. But each day, as
we move around in this Capitol, all of us in the Senate
exchange greetings and words, occasionally a story or two.
Last week, I was in the elevator with Senator Coverdell.
We laughed a bit about his being compared, from time to
time, in his presentation, to George Bush. I always used
to kid him about that, that sometimes he had a cadence
that reminded me of the ex-President.
He sort of kidded me and said someone told him he was
doing Dana Carvey who was doing George Bush, so he was two
steps away from the impression. We laughed about that.
Last Friday, as we were having a long series of votes,
toward the end of the votes I visited with Senator
Coverdell because Georgia has been a State hardest hit by
drought. I told him we had been hit so severely with
respect to floods. On behalf of our farmers, I was trying
to see if we could put together a piece of legislation
that would deal with crops that had been flooded out,
destroyed by water, and crops in Georgia and elsewhere
that were being destroyed by drought. On Friday morning,
Paul indicated he wanted to join me in an amendment to
this bill, the agriculture appropriations bill that is
being considered in the Senate, to provide some assistance
for family farmers who were victims of the drought that
was occurring in his State and throughout the South.
He was always available to talk about public policy and
what was happening; always especially available and
concerned to talk about the people of his State of
Georgia. I wanted to come today to say the Senate will
miss Paul Coverdell. He was not only a good Senator, but
he served this country very well. He was a friend to all
of us. My thoughts and prayers go to his wife and his
family. We say thank you to his memory.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Virginia.
Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, in the 211-year history of
the Senate, the State of Georgia has one of the richest
and most storied legacies. Since the formation of the
Senate, and that was in 1789, Georgia has sent to the
Senate 62 individuals as Senators. I have had the distinct
privilege of serving with six of them, including our
beloved Paul Coverdell. When the people of Georgia elected
Paul Coverdell to represent them here in the Senate 8
years ago, they sent to Washington a unique, especially
talented, and gracious gentleman; a gentleman of the
South, I say to those of us who are privileged to come
from that region.
Paul began his service to the Nation nearly 30 years ago
when he served his Nation in the U.S. Army, stationed in
Okinawa, Taiwan, and Korea, and he never stopped in his
quest to serve the people. He was truly a public servant.
He gave almost half his life to serving the Nation and
the State of Georgia. It is no overstatement to say that
his presence in public life has made this Nation more
prosperous and more secure. He was a leader in the fight
against drugs and the fight for better education and the
struggle to keep this Nation strong, both economically and
militarily.
We have a saying around the Senate: There are show
horses and workhorses. We know for sure Paul was no show
horse; He was a workhorse. He worked hard and often he
worked behind the scenes. He did not seek the headlines.
Paul Coverdell did not seek the headlines. He would seek
results--he wanted to get the job done, let others take
the credit--and always results that were in the best
interests of our Nation. That was his guide; that was his
compass.
All of us here, before we cast the first vote, before we
discharge the first responsibility, take the oath of
office. We solemnly commit ``to support and defend the
Constitution against all enemies.'' We commit ``to bear
true faith and allegiance.'' We undertake ``to faithfully
discharge'' our duties.
Paul Coverdell fulfilled each of those constitutional
obligations under the oath of office. He was a man of his
word and he has lived his life in the Senate true to his
principles and true to that oath.
He was a quiet man. His office was right across the hall
from mine in the old Russell Building. How often we would
meet walking to and from the votes. Those are the moments
when Senators do not have staffs around them, constituents
are waiting somewhere, and you share those private
thoughts, comments, and ideas. How often I shared them
with this giant of a Senator.
The Nation lost a true patriot, a true gentleman, a true
statesman. But his memory and his legacy will remain with
us forever.
May God bless his family. God blessed America with this
man's service.
Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, I join my colleagues on both
sides of the aisle who have come today to express sorrow
and deep regret over the loss of a treasured friend and
colleague. I have watched many of the tributes that have
been made to Paul Coverdell this morning. There is very
little I can say to add to some of the wonderful comments
that have been made about this truly remarkable American.
I want to talk for a minute about my personal
relationship with Paul Coverdell.
When he was running for the Senate for the first time,
he was running against an incumbent Senator who was
popular in his State. I came to the State of Georgia and
campaigned for him. Before I arrived, I thought I was
doing what a lot of us in politics do, and that is doing
what is necessary for a losing cause. But after spending a
few days with Paul Coverdell, I could see this man was
going to win his election because he was a man of
integrity; he was a man who knew the issues, a man who was
dedicated to the concept and belief of public service, a
man who had served his country in other capacities and had
prepared himself over many years of public life to serve
the Nation as a Senator from the State of Georgia.
As we all know, he won a very close race, perhaps one of
the closest races in the history of certainly the State of
Georgia, if not the entire Senate, which required a runoff
election. Then he was reelected rather handily.
Again I went down to Georgia to help him in his
reelection, and I saw that during his first term, Paul
Coverdell had established a unique relationship with his
constituents. Everyplace I went with him, they recognized
him, they showed their appreciation for him, and whether
they were Republican or Democrat, they respected him for
his strongly held values and views.
As I talked to his citizenry around the State of
Georgia, it was clear, whether they were going to support
his candidacy for reelection or not, they held him in the
highest regard because they knew, as we who have had the
privilege and honor of working with him and serving with
him in the Senate know, that he was a man who worked
incredibly hard, a man of firmly established values and
ideals, and one who believed and acted in the public
interest.
As all of us experience deep emotion and sorrow over the
loss of a dear friend, I am sometimes reminded that we
should also celebrate the fact that we were blessed to
have the opportunity to know and appreciate a man of such
enormous and wonderful qualities, and the people of his
State and the people of this Nation, including my own
State of Arizona, were honored to be in the presence of
and have the service of this dedicated, wonderful
American.
As our best wishes and condolences go out to the
Coverdell family and friends, we also offer our hardiest
celebration for a life well lived and one which is written
in the pages of America's history, in the history of the
Senate, bright pages filled with the Coverdell name in the
State of Georgia with glory.
Mr. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, as I enter the Chamber and
look to the rear to the seat occupied by our dear friend,
the late Senator Paul Coverdell, it reminds me of the
reality of the fragility of the lives we lead. The message
is one of taking stock of what our real priorities are.
Life is so short, so fragile, and our period on Earth is
so temporary.
At this time we join together in grieving with the
family of our beloved colleague who passed away Tuesday
evening. Our thoughts and prayers are certainly with his
wife Nancy and the family during their time of
extraordinary grief.
We all share in the reality that this was a tragic and
unexpected loss. We all feel it in this Chamber, in the
halls of the Senate office buildings and, of course, in
Paul's beloved State of Georgia. But we cannot be blinded
by grief to the point that we fail to recognize and
celebrate the life of this outstanding public servant.
He was an extraordinary public servant. I listened to
some of the comments made last night after we learned of
his passing. The Senator from New York said he was a man
of peace. Reflecting on Paul's public service, he served
his country in the Army, with deployments in Okinawa,
Korea, and the Republic of China, came home to Georgia,
joined the family business, helped it thrive and grow and
then, beginning in 1970, served his State in the
Legislature, serving as Minority Leader for a period of 15
years. In 1989, he continued his commitment to peace as
Director of the Peace Corps. In this capacity, Paul saw
the fall of the Berlin Wall, the end of the cold war. He
seized the opportunity to place Peace Corps volunteers in
former Eastern bloc nations in an effort to speed their
transition to democracy and peace.
The wise people of Georgia, in 1992, elected Paul to the
U.S. Senate. I vividly recall that this genuine, quiet man
made an immediate impression upon all of us. As we got to
know Paul, we found him to be deeply thoughtful, hard
working, and utterly unconcerned about the limelight. His
Republican colleagues recognized his efforts and selected
him to the leadership post of Republican Conference
Secretary.
As a U.S. Senator, Paul did superb work in the issues of
education, food safety, protecting our children from
drugs, promoting volunteerism, lowering the tax burden on
working families and small business, and protecting the
rights of citizens in their dealings with the Internal
Revenue Service.
We were all privileged to know Paul. He enriched our
lives. My prayers and thoughts are with Paul's family,
especially his wife Nancy. The Senate will miss his work
ethic and thoughtfulness. The Nation will miss his ideas
and his example.
Mr. BREAUX. Mr. President, I rise, as have some of our
colleagues today, to express my deepest sympathy to
Senator Paul Coverdell's friends, family, and to his wife
Nancy, as others throughout the State of Georgia as well
as throughout this country mourn the passing of one of our
colleagues who, indeed, was a very special person.
I think when we reflect on the times we had and the
opportunity we had to spend with Paul Coverdell, we will
certainly remember him as a Senator's Senator; by that I
mean a person who was really interested not so much in the
message of the day but, rather, in actually working
together to bring to this floor and to the American people
legislative products that were appropriate to get the job
done.
I think all of us, when we see our legislative branches
becoming more and more partisan and more and more
separated by imaginary aisles that separate us, can think
back and remember Paul Coverdell as a person who was
willing to work with anyone who was willing to work with
him in order to accomplish legislation that was in the
interest of this whole country.
I had the opportunity, as so many of our colleagues did,
to work with him on education. I think his approach to
that major legislative effort was one from which we can
all learn a great deal--how he handled the product he was
trying to get passed into law.
What I mean by that was he was willing to sit and talk
with Democrats as well as his Republican colleagues to try
to fashion a compromise that could accomplish the reform
of our legislative system. Far too often, that is sort of
unique and different in the way things are done--both in
this body and in the other body across the Capitol.
I think as we remember the experiences and good times we
had with him, we can take with us the admiration and
respect all of us have expressed of him, but also, at the
same time, the lesson he taught us by his actions. That
lesson, in my mind, was how we work together to accomplish
good things for the American people. He did that. We can
remember and we can learn from his actions. That is how I
want to remember the good times I had and the privilege of
experiencing it with him during the legislative process.
He will be missed, of course, by his family and close
friends back home. He will be missed by the people of
Georgia. He will, indeed, be missed by the people of
America--those Americans who think that the function of
this body and our Congress in general is to do whatever we
can, working together, to make lives better for all
American citizens. That is what Paul Coverdell attempted
to do as he was able to accomplish so many things in that
fashion.
He will be particularly missed by this institution and
by everyone who wants to make government work better for
the American people. Paul Coverdell represented that type
of Senator. He, indeed, was a Senator's Senator. He will
be sorely missed but very fondly remembered.
Mr. SMITH of New Hampshire. Mr. President, as have so
many of my colleagues, I rise today to pay tribute to a
friend, Paul Coverdell.
It is very difficult to look at those flowers, which are
silent. As my colleagues do, I find it difficult to deal
with. It is something that is very hard for all of us to
understand.
We are here to pay tribute to Paul Coverdell and to
express our sincerest condolences to Nancy and his entire
family.
They say true friends are there when you need them most.
We know Paul Coverdell was there when we needed counsel. I
remember about a year ago I went through some rather
difficult times on the floor of the Senate. Paul was there
to counsel me and to give me a lot of advice through all
that--for which I will always be grateful--in a political
world often poisoned by partisanship. Paul was always
there for counsel and friendship. He was there for all. He
was not a partisan person. He could be partisan when he
had to be. There is a difference between being partisan
and being mean.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution said it best when they
said there is a lot of meanness in politics. But he was
not one of the mean people. I do not think it can be said
much better than that. He was a fierce partisan on the
battlefield of ideas but not among friends. We are 100
people here who are friends. Even though we have our
partisan differences from time to time, we do not take it
off the floor. Paul was certainly a stalwart in leading
the way in that. He knew what friendship was and what it
meant. Friendship to Paul could not be obscured by any
party label or disagreement or an argument.
That is why so many of our colleagues have been here
today to make tributes. It is also one of the reasons why
history will record Paul Coverdell as a great Senator. I
remember vividly the first time I came to the well and
signed the book, being joined with a very distinguished
few individuals, a little over 2,000 people throughout the
course of our country who have become U.S. Senators.
Senator Robert Byrd came over to me and said: ``Don't ever
forget that. That is something that they can never take
away from you.''
When you think through the years of all those people,
Paul will be remembered in that way as one of the best in
terms of friendship, in terms of his own issues he felt so
passionately about--drugs, what drugs were doing to our
society, especially to our young people, and education for
which he fought so hard.
He was a passionate man, a caring man. I do not believe
anyone who has ever served here who was not compassionate
and did not care could ever be considered an outstanding
Senator. Paul was the best when it came to that.
He had the disarming personality, the humor, the quick
mind. He had rock solid philosophical groundings. These
are traits that made for a great and potent legislator.
Most important, if he gave you his word, that was it. You
could trust his judgment. You could trust his instincts.
Most of all, you could trust his motivations were right.
They were heartfelt; they were sincere; they were
honorable. I think that is the most important.
There is a campaign slogan that Senator Coverdell had:
Coverdell works. Those who worked with him every day knew
he was tireless. He was working on the day that he was
stricken. He was a hard worker. He worked hard for his
State and he worked hard for his country and the people in
whom he believed.
In 1732, when the colonists came to Paul's great State
of Georgia, they came onshore, touched the shore, they
kneeled down and said: Our end in leaving our native
country is not to gain riches and honor but singly this--
to live in the glory of God.
I think Paul Coverdell has lived up to that about as
well as any human being could, certainly as well as any
Georgian could. You can certainly be proud of this
Georgian.
Abraham Lincoln, on the passing of Henry Clay, said
about the ardent patriot and profound statesman: ``He had
a quality possessed by few of the gifted on Earth. His
eloquence has not been surpassed in the effective power to
move the heart of man.'' Paul Coverdell was without an
equal. I think I agree with Abraham Lincoln on that.
We all have vivid memories of the last time we spoke to
Paul Coverdell. I remember on the Senate floor, with all
the confusion of the votes on Friday, all the things going
on, and although I cannot recall a specific conversation,
you can always remember Paul engaging somebody in a
conversation.
The worst part for me, when I reflect on a sudden death,
is that if I had the chance to say goodbye, what would I
have said? I also find myself wishing I had known so I
could take the time to say goodbye. I did not get that
opportunity to say goodbye to a friend that I loved and
respected, but if I had the chance, I would have thanked
him for his friendship because it means more than anything
else here. I would have said: Thanks, Paul, for being
there for me.
In his letter to Mrs. Fairbanks, Mark Twain wrote about
friendship:
. . . I remember you and recall you without effort,
without exercise of will; that is, by natural impulse,
undictated by a sense of duty or of obligation. And that,
I take it, is the only sort of remembering worth having.
When we think of friends, and call their faces out of the
shadows, and their voices out of the echoes that faint
along the corridors of memory, and do it without knowing
why save that we love to do it, we can content ourselves
that that friendship is a Reality, and not a Fancy, that
it is built upon a rock and not upon the sands that
dissolve away with the ebbing tides and carry their
monuments with them.
That is how I feel about Paul Coverdell today.
The second thing I would have thanked Paul for, if I had
had the chance to say goodbye, was his sense of humor. He
had a great sense of humor. Lord knows, one needs a sense
of humor serving in this place. It gets intense from time
to time. I remember two cases, one recent and one a long
time ago, which I will recall. I will take the long time
ago first.
Some of my colleagues will remember Paul had a very
interesting election. Georgia, at that time, had a law
that candidates had to get 50 percent of the vote to win.
Paul got a little less than that. His opponent got a
little bit more than Paul but less than 50 percent. So
Paul was here and he was talking to Members, saying: I
want to join you guys, but I need a little help, a few
contributions. We need to have another election and I have
to face this guy again with the third guy out.
I said: I will help you, but I am not sure that law is
right. Maybe the other guy should have won; he got more
votes than you the first time.
Paul said: Well, it is all right to change but not yet.
I remember that. Paul said that in his gregarious way,
not meaning anything malicious.
The second memory I have of his humor was more recent,
about 2 or 3 weeks ago. Paul, who is the Conference
Secretary, came out with this little card. He held the
card up proudly. He wanted people to have this for the
Fourth of July recess. It proudly boasted ``The Republican
Priorities for the Surplus,'' and he went down through the
list. We all looked at them and after he finished, Senator
after Senator stood up and said: I do not know where you
got that, that is not my priority. Who gave you this? And
on and on and on for 10 minutes. Paul took it well.
After it was over, I walked up to him and I said: Do you
regret you printed the card?
He said: ``Were those guys drinking something? What was
going on here?''
It was a fond memory, but so typical. There was no
animosity, no anger, just rolling with the punches.
He said: ``Next time, I will check with a few people
before I print the card.''
If I had the chance to say goodbye, I would have thanked
Paul for that.
Let me close by referring to comments that were made
several years ago on this floor by our distinguished
colleague, Robert Byrd, who was talking about the death of
William Fulbright. He quoted Longfellow. In quoting
Longfellow, Senator Byrd said:
There is no death! What seems so is transition;
The life of mortal breath
Is but a suburb of the life Elysian,
Whose portal we call death.
Then he went on to say about William Fulbright the same
thing I would say right now about Paul Coverdell:
Life is only a narrow isthmus between the boundless
oceans of two eternities. All of us who travel that narrow
isthmus today, must one day board our little frail barque
and hoist its white sails for the journey on that vast
unknown sea where we shall sail alone into the boundless
ocean of eternity, there to meet our Creator face to face
in a land where the rose never withers and the rainbow
never fades. To that bourne, from which no traveler ever
returns, [Paul Coverdell] has now gone to be reunited with
others who once trod these marble halls, and whose voices
once rang in this Chamber--voices in this earthly life
that have now been stilled forever. Peace be to his ashes!
Paul Coverdell loved his God; he loved his country; he
loved his native Georgia; he loved Nancy and his family.
He served them all, and he did it well. I am proud to be
called a friend of Senator Paul Coverdell.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Delaware.
Mr. ROTH. Mr. President, often the most difficult
moments we have on this floor are not when we're trying to
advocate a political philosophy, or debate a legislative
initiative, but when we pause to remember friends and
colleagues who have left us. Words, which come easily on
most occasions, seem suddenly inadequate to express the
feelings we have stirring in our hearts--the fond
recollections, the abiding respect, and the sudden,
overwhelming feelings of loss.
Paul Coverdell was a friend to each of us, a leader with
a spirit that was as buoyant as it was inspiring. His
vision and ability to get things done elevated him quickly
into increasingly more important roles in this
distinguished body. As a leader, he was unwavering in this
dedication to freedom, his support for the bedrock of
liberty--family, community, education, and personal
responsibility.
I fondly remember the many occasions we worked together,
the discussions we had, and the ever-increasing sentiment
that in Paul I had found something of a kindred political
spirit. In fact, I was in Atlanta on Monday, at an event
he sponsored on my behalf. As always, it was tremendously
successful, indicative of how well Paul is regarded by
those he serves.
It is easy to understand why. From efforts to make
education more affordable, to reforming the Internal
Revenue Service, to working to roll back the tax burden,
Paul has been a leader, as articulate and convincing as he
was constant and unwavering.
He intuitively understood the values that bless America.
His background and upbringing groomed him to understand
the importance of family, the concerns of small business
owners, the value of learning, and the ability of
government to promote an environment that supports these
areas. Just as important, Paul understood the necessity of
service and the blessings that come through service.
Not only was he a distinguished soldier, but after the
Army--as Paul succeeded in business--he gave back through
his service in the Georgia State Senate, where he served
for many years as the Minority Leader. His service
continued as he led the Peace Corps under President Bush
and focused that important organization on building and
sustaining the fundamentals of freedom in the emerging
democracies of Central and Eastern Europe.
Because of his service, Paul was well prepared when he
came to the Senate in 1993. He knew what he would do here,
and I can think of no one with whom I have served who
accomplished more than he did in the time he spent among
us. His work will remain his legacy. His memory will
continue to inspire. And the successes he achieved here
will bless the lives and brighten the futures of families
and children for years to come.
At this time I express my appreciation for Paul and his
leadership, and I want to express my condolences to Nancy
and the family, along with my gratitude for their
willingness to share a great man with all of us.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Connecticut.
Mr. LIEBERMAN. Mr. President, I rise to join my
colleagues in paying tribute to our departed friend and
colleague, Paul Coverdell.
The Senate today is a very sad place, it is a shaken
place, because of the suddenness of Paul's death. It is
also a day on which I think we, by this tragic event, are
reminded that underneath the headlines and the great
debates and the partisan divides and all the rest of the
sound and the fury, ultimately this institution, as so
many others across America, is 100 people coming to work
every day, trying to get a job done. It is the hundreds
and hundreds of others who work with us here, our staffs
and support personnel, who constitute what to me has
always seemed to be a small town.
Today we are saddened and we are shaken by the loss of
one of the prominent people in this small town of ours on
Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, United States of America,
Senator Paul Coverdell.
My wife said to me once: ``Remember that being a Senator
is just your job; it's not you. It's a great job. It's an
honor to hold it. It is an extraordinary opportunity. But
ultimately there is a `you' there.''
That personal side of all of us comes home today as we
confront, and try to absorb and deal with, the death of
our friend, our colleague, our co-worker, Paul Coverdell.
It reminds us, of course, of the limits of human
understanding and human capacities. As great as we are as
a species, as high as we have gone, as exciting as the
reaches of technology are today, ultimately we reach a
point of human limitation. It is the point where we meet
up with faith in God that, hopefully, transcends those
limits, capacities, and doubts and moves us forward.
Thinking about Paul Coverdell's death and his life,
there are two quite disparate thoughts that came to my
mind--but both of them, I think, fit him. I remember when
I first came to Washington--this is an old expression--
somebody said to me: ``Remember that there is no limit to
what you can accomplish in Washington if you are not
looking for credit.'' In so many ways that have been
testified to here on the Senate floor today, that wisdom
fits the career of Paul Coverdell. He was a quiet and
gentlemanly person, not looking for headlines but
committed and anxious to be part of making this place
work.
The second sentiment is something I heard from my own
beloved mother, and I will bet everybody heard it from
their mother, which is, when I was growing up, she always
said to my sisters and me: ``You know, it never hurts to
be kind to people. You gain nothing by being harsh.''
That, too, is a very apt description of Paul Coverdell:
a very fine human being, a very kind human being. In the
normal interactions of this extraordinary place where we
work together trying to get things done, Paul always had a
smile, always a kind word. Even in the partisan moments we
all are involved in on the floor, they never seemed to
become personal with him. That, in both senses, is the way
it should be.
It is, of course, sad but always true: We tend to
appreciate people more when they are gone and speak more
openly of them when they are gone. I think that is the
case of this quiet, strong, decent, productive man. I have
a sense, in listening to the comments made, of the
critical role he played in this Chamber within the
Republican caucus, to transcend the divisions that exist
in any group of people, particularly any group of
political people, and the critical role he played helping
the Senate Majority Leader in trying to keep the place
moving and getting some things done.
I can testify, of course, to the fact that Paul was
clearly a proud Republican loyal to his party. He was not
hesitant to reach across party lines to look for support
for something in which he believed or to offer support to
someone on our side of the aisle for something in which he
believed and felt was right and necessary.
I had the greatest opportunity to work side by side with
Paul Coverdell as a co-sponsor of the pioneering,
progressive, very important education savings account
proposal he made which would have taken the basic idea of
higher education savings accounts and expanded them to
cover K-12 education to help parents support the
improvement of their children's education. There is
nothing we can do in this Chamber that is much more
important than facilitating a better education for all of
our children.
It was easy to work with Paul. He was obviously very
bright, he was understanding, and he was energetic and
steadfast. It is an idea I hope those of us on both sides
who support it will carry on because it is a good idea,
but it is also a tribute to him.
I was thinking earlier this year about a proposal that
became associated with the Clinton administration; namely,
the aid package to Colombia to deter and diminish the
problem of drugs coming in from that country. Paul stepped
forward and gave sturdy, steadfast, effective support,
which ultimately resulted in its adoption with bipartisan
backing of a problem that is obviously complex and indeed
cannot but help us as we go forward.
We all think of Nancy today and Paul's family. We extend
to them our condolences, and we hope, of course, that they
are strengthened and, in some measure, comforted at this
difficult time by good personal memories of their time too
short with Paul, and I am sure they are strengthened and
comforted by the pride they should feel and the
extraordinary record of public service that was Paul
Coverdell's life, and hopefully given ultimate strength by
their faith in God. The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh.
Blessed be the name of the Lord.
I thank the Chair. I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Iowa.
Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, the State of Georgia and the
United States of America lost a great, decent leader
yesterday. Paul Coverdell was one of the quiet heroes of
this Senate Chamber. He was not showy; he was not proud;
he was not here for the credit or the prestige or the
power. He was a gentle man in every sense of the word and
in every aspect of his being.
He was here because he loved his State and loved his
Nation. He was here because he wanted to improve
education. It was a profound concern of his. He was here
because he wanted to end drug abuse and the scourge of
drugs among young people. He was here because he wanted to
protect our national security and secure our children's
future and open America's promise to all of those he
served. He fought for all these things with a humble
dignity and a quiet passion that touched each one of us.
In a way, Paul was the Senate peacemaker. We get a lot
of contentious issues around here. We are all human
beings. Tempers flare. Voices rise. It seems as if you are
never going to get together with people again across the
aisles. Paul Coverdell could step in and work his way back
and forth and calm things down.
Recently, we had the Labor, Health and Human Services,
Education bill up. I am the ranking member on that
subcommittee. The chairman is Senator Specter from
Pennsylvania. It seems that every year when that bill
comes up the debate gets hotter. The decibel level goes up
a little bit. We seemed to be locked in a week-long
struggle on that bill, and I had a chance, once again, to
watch Paul Coverdell at work in soothing the tensions on
both sides, of reaching across to Democrats and his own
Republicans to find that common ground and just calm
things down. He was really good at that. I watched him
work. I said once to Senator Specter: ``I am sure glad we
have Paul Coverdell around here because he was able to
keep things calm.''
He helped us reach the compromises, as we must do around
here, and to find a common ground between people.
I also served with Paul on the Agriculture Committee. We
shared a common love of farmers and rural people. Again,
in his own quiet way, I saw the determination and the grit
of Paul Coverdell in fighting for his farmers in Georgia
during many deliberations on the Agriculture Committee and
especially in the passage of the last farm bill.
A lot of people do not know this--but Paul and I talked
about it often--he was born in Des Moines, IA, not more
than 10 miles from where I was born and reared.
It is an honor that I represent a State that produced
someone as good and as decent as Paul Coverdell. He was
one of the finest leaders this body has ever seen.
Standing here and looking over at his desk and looking
at the black cloth and the flowers on the desk cannot help
but remind each of us of the transitory nature of human
life. Just last week--it seems like yesterday--I was on
the floor talking with Paul Coverdell about an issue,
asking for some help and seeing if he could work some
things out. He was as alive and as vibrant and as engaged
and committed to the smooth functioning of this
institution as anyone else. Four days later, he passed on.
Looking at his desk, and thinking about seeing him just
a few days ago, being alive and vibrant and full of
health, and looking forward, not only makes us think about
the transitory nature of human life but it also should
serve to remind us we should make every day count--make
every day count in emulating the kindness and the
gentleness and the caring nature of a Paul Coverdell.
One of my political heroes, Hubert Humphrey, once said:
``To be a leader means a willingness to risk--and a
willingness to love. One must ask: Has the leader given
you something from the heart?''
Paul Coverdell had the guts and the courage to take
risks. He had a great will to love. And to that question
by Hubert Humphrey, I can say yes about Paul Coverdell. He
gave us all something from that wonderful heart of his.
So I join with my friends and colleagues in extending to
Nancy and to his family our profound sorrow. We share your
sorrow. But we hope you take comfort, as we do, in knowing
that the kind and gentle and caring life of Paul Coverdell
is now rewarded by the kind and gentle and caring hand of
Almighty God.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Nebraska.
Mr. HAGEL. Mr. President, I, like most of my colleagues
today, have listened carefully to the remarks made about
our colleague, Paul Coverdell. What it has been is a
weaving together of a magnificent tapestry representing
the life of a unique and complete human being--Paul
Coverdell.
Paul Coverdell was a complete human being. We are all
judged by many facets of our lives. In the end, what is
really most important is: Did you leave the world better
than you found it? That question has been answered rather
assuredly today in the case of our friend Paul Coverdell.
I found part of a speech that President Ronald Reagan
gave. As a matter of fact, it was the last speech that he
gave before the United Nations in September of 1988,
before he left office. I think it captures, rather well,
Paul Coverdell--a man who served his country in uniform, a
man who served his country as head of the Peace Corps, who
truly touched the world and made the world better, who
served his country as a Senator, who helped all of us as a
friend, and who was a faithful and wonderful and loving
husband.
These words--that I would like to recite in closing my
remarks about Paul Coverdell--truly capture the essence of
this remarkable colleague and friend of ours. As President
Reagan ended his speech to the United Nations on September
26, 1988, he said--and we hear the echo of Paul Coverdell
in these words--
. . . when we grow weary of the world and its troubles,
when our faith in humanity falters, it is then that we
must seek comfort and refreshment of spirit, in a deeper
source of wisdom, one greater than ourselves.
And so if future generations do say of us that, in our
time, peace came closer, that we did bring about new
seasons of truth and justice, it will be cause for great
pride. But it shall be a cause of greater pride still, if
it is also said that we were wise enough to know the
deliberations of great leaders and great bodies are but
overture; that the truly majestic music--the music of
freedom, of justice, of peace--is the music made in
forgetting self and seeking in silence the will of Him who
made us.
Thank you for your hospitality over the years. I bid you
now farewell. And God bless you.
We bid farewell to Paul Coverdell. And God bless Paul
Coverdell.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from North Carolina.
Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, none of us knows precisely
when the hereafter begins, when the life of one of the
Lord's servants ends. I myself have lost an unusually
large number of good friends during the past few weeks.
But I find it helpful to imagine that I can visualize each
of them sitting on some sort of Cloud Nine up there,
listening to those of us who are mourning the loss of good
friends.
Yes, I do have a hunch that Paul Coverdell is up there,
cheerfully and busily lending a hand to Saint Peter. For
me, it serves the purpose of reassuring that Paul is all
right--in fact, better off than he has ever been before.
We all remember a hundred different personal vignettes
at times like this. In Paul's case, my first acquaintance
with him was very early in the morning the day after he
was first elected to the Senate in 1992.
I had gone quietly into the den of our Raleigh home and
turned on the television set--the volume very low, so as
not to awaken Mrs. Helms. I wanted to catch up on the late
returns from the election the day before.
I heard a voice; and I was intrigued and impressed by
that voice. Then I looked carefully. I did not recognize
the young man who was speaking. It was Paul Coverdell. I
saw the picture of him that appeared on the screen. It was
a live interview. Paul had not yet gone to bed. He had
been up for about 36 or 40 hours.
There he was fielding questions politely, intelligently,
and with that inevitable smile on his face.
That was the moment my respect and admiration--and
affection--for Senator Coverdell began.
Now fast forward: Like most, if not all, other Senators,
I realize today that I will forever have special memories
of Paul Coverdell. He was a good man, an honorable man, a
dedicated man with whom I shared a great affection for
today's young people--the responsible ones, the ones who
understand their good fortune of living in this country--
those who, as Paul Coverdell once put it, understand that
the strength and the goodness and the very future of
America will shortly be in their hands.
I have sat and listened to others who have spoken so
eloquently today of the Senator's rapid rise in the
leadership of the Republican Party in the Senate. That
happened because Paul believed in the Senate. He believed
in the meaning of the U.S. Senate, and he believed that we
have a duty to endeavor to achieve a spirit of cooperation
and understanding--including the realization that we have
the duty to make the tripartite system work.
So, Paul, if that is you whom I think I am looking at on
Cloud Nine, you know that we are missing you and that we
are so dearly grateful for the years that we enjoyed
working with you. I have a notion that the Lord will be
blessing you for being His good and faithful servant while
you were among us.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from New Mexico.
Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I thank Senator Helms. He
asked if he could speak before me. I said, of course, and
that permitted me to hear what he had to say. It was
beautiful, and I was privileged to hear it.
Most of us are privileged to believe in a hereafter.
Frankly, it is difficult for me to conceive of an adult
human being with a mind and a heart, difficult for me to
see how they do not all believe there is a hereafter. But
there is no doubt in my mind that what I believe by faith
is true, and there is no doubt in my mind that Paul
Coverdell is in the hereafter.
I did not come to the floor today to speak about matters
of great depth or of religion or faith or hope. I came to
talk about the Paul Coverdell I knew day by day.
Let me first say it is very difficult to put the flowers
and the cloth where they actually belong, because Paul
Coverdell is not known as much for being at that desk as
he is being in this aisle and taking somebody's place in
this chair. For most of his time in the Senate, he was
either putting together a group of Senators to address an
issue or he was trying to get the Senate's work done,
because he was asked either by a chairman or by the leader
to do it. The more difficult the task, the more it was
given to him.
When you had an education bill with 200 amendments or a
Labor-Health and Human Services appropriations bill with,
at one point, 270 amendments, somebody quietly asked that
one of our Senators help. It was almost always Paul
Coverdell who was asked. He was so good at it and so
friendly and could bring people together so well that the
chairman willingly accepted his help. I can see the last
time he pulled up his coat and was given, after he
accepted the assignment, a list with hundreds of
amendments on it. The task was: Narrow them down. By the
end of the day, they were talking optimistically about
finishing. And by the next day, Paul Coverdell, not at
that desk but walking these aisles and sitting with
Senators everywhere, was getting the work done, always
being considerate, kind, and understanding.
Sometimes we herald Senators because they have been here
a long time. I suggest that Paul Coverdell and his wife
Nancy and those who knew him, those who elected him, and
those who supported him must know by now that he was a
wonderful Senator. That was not measured by his having
four or five terms as Senator, as I have been lucky to do,
or my friend, Thad Cochran, who sits here, from the State
of Mississippi. But he, in a few years, captured all of
our hearts and all of our hopes for success. We would
transplant them over to him.
I came with no speech but with a letter. Two days, three
days before he died, I arrived at my desk and found a
letter. My staff had taken it out of the mail and put it
on my desk. Frankly, I left it there not knowing he would
die. I was going to read it in due course. Surely, the day
that he died, I sat down at my desk and read his letter.
The letter is not profound. The letter is Paul
Coverdell. It is the Paul Coverdell who is so considerate
that after coming to my office and spending an hour and a
half of his time with a staffer of his and two of mine, he
had asked me if I would be of help. He did a job for the
Republicans in preparing something we needed, and then he
wrote a letter on top of all that he was doing--the labor,
the work. He wrote this letter:
Dear Pete: Thanks again for meeting to discuss our
recess communication efforts. As always, your insight has
been quite helpful in determining how to craft a credible
short term message on the surplus. Bill Hoagland and Jim
Capretta of your staff were of invaluable assistance to us
as well. Thanks again.
Sincerely,
Paul D. Coverdell
I submit there are not too many of us who would be so
considerate that when we wrote a Senator to say it was
good to be with you, would mention the staff people who
really got the work done because they knew more about it
than we did. But here is Paul Coverdell, the last sentence
of his letter, thanking Bill Hoagland and Jim Capretta by
name. He puts it in here. How many Senators are that
considerate as to add the names of staffers who they meet
in another Senator's office? Some of us are not
considerate enough to say: ``Would you please repeat your
name because I would actually like to know your name.''
I believe this is typical of Paul Coverdell. I surmise
that for his whole life, certainly while he was in the
Peace Corps, and the public service part of his life, he
was always considerate.
Let me suggest that being considerate does not mean
being weak. Being considerate does not mean you do not get
something done. Being considerate does not mean you cave
in. Being considerate is being like Paul Coverdell.
As I indicated, I will never remember him in that seat
that we honor him by today because that is his assigned
seat. I will remember him as more the epitome of a Senator
who worked on the floor of the Senate. That is a very
special kind of Senator. First of all, most of us do not
know how to do it. Second, most of us are not asked to do
it. He was asked. He knew how to do it in terms of helping
people bring difficult matters to a head, to solutions,
and helping his party with great insights on strategy.
Mr. President, I say to his wife Nancy and his beloved:
We do not know how to explain this to any of you. We are
incapable of doing that. But, clearly, if you do not know
it now, in very short order you will understand that he
lived a very great life as a Senator, and the respect and
admiration that has been shown, and will be shown, is
probably an indication that he was as close to all of us
as any Senator around.
With that, I say goodbye, Paul; God bless you and your
family.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Indiana.
Mr. LUGAR. Mr. President, our colleagues have spoken so
well about Paul Coverdell as a gentleman, as a person who
was thoughtful and persuasive. As Senator Domenici said,
he worked the aisles indefatigably with the ideals that he
held.
First of all, it is fundamental that Paul Coverdell was
elected to the Senate. It was a very difficult contest--
one not decided on election day, the day of his first
election. He was an extraordinarily experienced politician
and statesman in the State of Georgia, with remarkable
legislative experience as a leader throughout much of his
tenure. But those from our party in Georgia have a very
difficult time with that, and that was the case for Paul.
It was a very close contest. He won graciously, came to
the Senate, and had a difficult reelection contest for
which he began to prepare early and in which he asked many
of us to participate. But he did it all so gracefully, so
thoughtfully, so constructively, that we rarely think of
Paul Coverdell as a very tough political competitor and
someone who was in a difficult arena. It took great
courage to make those races to begin with and remarkable
tenacity to follow through to success.
My own first impressions of Paul Coverdell came during
the often commented period in which he served as head of
the Peace Corps. Paul Coverdell was in Latin America and
various other places where some of us tried to work for
democracy in those days. They were remarkable days--the
1980s--in which all of the countries of our hemisphere
finally landed on their feet with democratic institutions.
That was true of countries in Asia and countries elsewhere
around the world. Paul Coverdell's tenure in the Peace
Corps is distinguished by the fact that the Peace Corps
had matured, literally.
Many members of the Corps were now very mature
individuals, not young persons out of college, or in some
type of transition before they went into another
professional career. As a matter of fact, under Paul's
tenure, the Peace Corps evolved into a group of teachers,
environmentalists, and farm experts, in addition to,
still, a very strong component of young idealistic people.
It was this combination of people that gave sustenance to
democracy, helped the economy, helped the pushing forward
of intellectual pursuits, and likewise forged an
increasing friendship and reverence for the United States
and for our traditions.
Therefore, it was with great excitement that I welcomed
Paul Coverdell to the Foreign Relations Committee. That is
a committee on which he belonged. He made huge
contributions on that committee. We focused frequently on
Latin America, Central America, South America, and the
Caribbean--areas with which he was well acquainted from
previous times when he had observed first hand the
beginning of the evolution of many democratic
propositions. I sat next to him in the committee through
the markups, through the hearings. He was always cheerful.
He was always thoughtful in exchanging views in a very
forthright way. I admired and I listened to Paul. He made
a very strong contribution day by day in the work of the
committee.
But my close association with Paul came in the
Agriculture Committee. I will mention that Paul was
chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, Subcommittee
on Marketing, Inspection and Product Promotion. He did a
great job. We have just four subcommittees in the
Agriculture Committee. These are committees that have
opportunities to hold hearings independently, or to
contribute to the body as a whole as they may wish. Paul
Coverdell had a broad philosophical view of agriculture
that included freedom--freedom for the farmers whom he
represented to make decisions with regard to management of
their land and their crops and their livestock, and the
prospects for their communities. He championed that idea
without apology. But he also was very much in tune with
the very specific problems of Georgia farmers.
They included an interest in peanuts. Paul and I had
disagreements about the peanut program. In fact, it has
either been my fate or privilege for many years to suggest
reform. Paul always feared that those reforms would come
during his time, and he tried to dissuade me and, having
failed in that respect, to at least bring me up to date on
what the actual problems of peanut farmers were, how they
could be helped, and how the legislation I was suggesting
could be brought before the committee and modified, and
ways to be helpful to the overall policy and to the
constituents whom he saw very much in need of his support.
Mr. President, he prevailed in that area. We made
reforms. But I think they were reforms that were very
heavily influenced by the hand of Paul Coverdell. Due to
the fact that he did his homework, he was persuasive, and
he knew the farmers. He spoke for them.
In addition to the peanut situation, which was always
with him, in recent years, severe drought--and this is one
of those years in Georgia--occupied much of Paul
Coverdell's time, working with specific landowners and
communities, with much of his State in the throes of a
very difficult predicament. As I looked at the weather map
just last week, I saw how the drought problem has shifted
just in a very few weeks in our country from patches that
covered much of the area of the United States to very
isolated situations. Unfortunately, Georgia is one of
those situations. It is especially cruel because the rains
have come to the Midwest and to many of the Plains States
with isolated problems still--in some parts of Nebraska,
Iowa, and the Dakotas.
But Paul, in his own way, always made certain we knew
about Georgia and the very specific problems there. So
when we had the large debates that we were privileged to
have on the floor, dealing with risk management, dealing
with payments to farmers to supplement their income in a
very difficult year, and with specific emergencies, Paul
was very active in that debate. He was successful in that
debate.
As Senator Domenici pointed out in his beautiful
statement, Paul Coverdell was always one who thanked
everybody involved and made certain that they knew of his
care and attention and appreciation. It was my privilege
to receive one of those notes after the debate which we
had here. It is very difficult to try to think about the
representation of that State without thinking of Paul
Coverdell. He was so good, so faithful and, really, so
effective and articulate. He was such a good friend. We
will miss him. Our thoughts are with him and with Nancy.
I yield the floor.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I join my colleagues today
in expressing my sadness over the loss of a valued
colleague. I think we have lost a great friend.
I was looking over some of the correspondence I had with
Senator Coverdell. He sent me some Vidalia onions and told
me they had a punch. He had a way of writing that was very
interesting, in fact.
I think Senator Coverdell grew in stature every year he
was here.
I remember so well when he came to us. We had known him
as part of the Peace Corps group. I believe his wife was a
Delta stewardess at the time. He came around to visit each
one of us. He told me a little bit about some of his
background. I knew then that we had a person who was going
to be outgoing because not many Senators do that. He took
time to visit with each one of us as he came to the
Senate.
I think the skills he developed as a mediator will be
missed in this Senate. I remember some of the bills he
worked on even just this year--the Health and Human
Services bill, for instance--bills with so many
amendments, and it took committed work on the floor of the
Senate.
Paul Coverdell was a volunteer. He volunteered himself
for the task; he worked with Senator Reid from Nevada. I
think he assisted members of our committee on an enormous
number of disputes. Without his help and without his
skills, I think we would still be involved in some of
those bills.
He also came to us with some educational background from
his life in Georgia. He brought us some educational
concepts that are going to last, I hope, for years to
come. His education savings account program, for instance,
is one.
He also helped us in the field of general education
because of his approach. He prodded us, I think Senator
Specter would agree, to not only meet but to exceed the
President's request this year on educational funding.
He was a very interesting and complex man. He was an
advocate for keeping drugs out of the hands of children.
He saw the appropriations process--as Senator Cochran and
others who work with me on appropriations know--as a means
to try to solve problems through the proper use of public
funds.
As chairman of the Defense Subcommittee of our
Appropriations Committee, I met with him often on problems
of military families in his State. I know of no person who
was a more vigorous advocate for production from a State
than Paul Coverdell. When it came to the C-130 aircraft,
he was a workhorse and not a show horse. I do not remember
seeing Paul Coverdell's name in the paper in terms of some
who sought publicity, but I saw in him a great deal as a
man who sought results.
I say to the Senate that we lost a great friend and a
valued colleague. I join in expressing my sadness over his
loss.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Rhode Island.
Mr. REED. Thank you, Mr. President. I would like to join
my colleagues in expressing my sadness and my condolences
on behalf of the family of Paul Coverdell.
In the more than 3 years that I have had the privilege
of serving in the Senate, he was someone who was respected
for his work, for his effort, and for his sincere
commitment to ensuring that all the viewpoints were heard,
and that we moved forward and acted for the people of this
country.
He was particularly protective, obviously, of his State
of Georgia and his constituents because he felt deeply for
their needs. He worked hard to achieve benefits for his
constituents. He had talent, personality, and character.
You could disagree with him, but he was not a disagreeable
person. He was a consummate gentleman. He was polite. He
was civil. He was approachable. He had those personal
qualities that endeared him to all who serve in this body.
He was someone respected by all of us. We all admired him.
Other colleagues have talked about his many efforts in
educational policy, such as his efforts to ensure
appropriate response for our military posture around the
world.
I had the occasion just briefly in the last debate about
Colombia to work with him and speak with him. He was
committed to ensuring that our policy in that part of the
world was not only consistent with our ideals as a
democratic nation but also helped decisively stem the tide
of drugs that has weakened this country. He did it in his
typical fashion--quietly, diligently, without a lot of
fanfare but with great success and great results.
We shall miss his temperament. We shall miss his
commitment to this process. We shall miss his character
and his contribution to the country.
To his family I offer my sincerest condolences.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from New Hampshire.
Mr. GREGG. Mr. President, I rise with my colleagues to
express my deepest sympathy for Nancy and Paul's family.
I had the great good fortune to come to the Senate with
Paul Coverdell, as did the Senator from North Dakota, who
I see sitting across the aisle.
Paul was a special individual. He brought to this Senate
an infectious enthusiasm and gracious energy which
dominated the institution and those of us who worked with
him. He always had a smile. He always had an idea. He
always had a purpose. The purpose was tied to making this
country a better place to live--for all of us and for our
children.
He used to wander around this institution with a
styrofoam cup that had ``Waffle House'' on it. That was
one of the great mysteries to me in this institution--how
Paul Coverdell managed to get Waffle House coffee sent all
the way from Georgia.
It was a great promotor of Georgia. He never missed an
opportunity to promote Georgia. That was only one of the
minor ways he did it.
He was a great friend, also. I had lots of discussions
with him. We worked on lots of issues--our concerns about
the original health care proposal put forward by this
administration, to when we set up the first aggressive,
active task force that I got involved in and that he was
also involved in. Even at the time we were both new to
this institution, he had an incredible amount of ideas and
initiatives on ways to address the issues. He was always
tactically two or three steps ahead of the rest of us. He
understood the way the institution worked long before some
of us--I put myself in that category--who did not fully
understand the institution. He had an intuitive sense
about the Senate--a feel for it and a love of it. He knew
how to work an issue, to address an issue in order to
produce better policy and better government for our
country. I worked with him on that.
It seemed almost all of the time we were working on an
answer with Paul Coverdell because he was involved in
about every issue that came through the institution that
had significance. The last major issue I worked with him
on, of course, was education. We had a task force on our
side to put forward what I thought was an extremely
positive educational agenda, much of which came from his
thought processes, which I was proud to support.
We worked a lot, of course, on Governor Bush's campaign.
I had a discussion last Friday with him about that. He was
working hard on an issue having to do with that campaign,
and he was very hopeful that Governor Bush would become
the next President.
He also had, as I mentioned, a deep regard for this
body.
I think one of the discussions I will remember fondly
occurred last week when we were sitting in my office. Some
of the offices in the Russell Building have unique marble
fireplaces. Many offices have unique desks. He was very
concerned that we did not really have a historical
database of where these desks came from, who had these
desks, and we did not have a historical database of where
the marble, for example, of the fireplaces came from; We
had not, as a Senate, done our job of maintaining our own
traditions and our own history as well as we might. We got
to talking about that and the history of the Senate. His
love of the institution was exuberant.
What a huge impact he had in such a short time. We only
came here 8 years ago--the two of us. At that time, I
think there were 11 after the class finally got settled
in. He took a while to get here because he confronted a
number of races, but with his perseverance he was totally
committed and won them all. In that time, he left a huge
mark.
One of the true strengths of our democracy is that it
totally exceeds any individual. This institution includes
Daniel Webster, Calhoun, Clay; people in our century who
had a huge impact, including Taft, Bob Dole. When they
leave, the institution goes on; it functions. It functions
extraordinarily well for a democratic body--as well as a
democratic body can function. It produces governance for
our people which is fair and honest and committed to a
better life.
Recognizing that the institution goes on, there are
still people who leave a mark. There are still people
whose memory will be there, and will be there for a
considerable amount of time. Paul certainly falls in that
category. It will be hard for me to turn and look at that
door and not see Paul standing by it, working on some
issue. That is where he usually worked from, the pillar
back there, addressing some concern, planning some
initiative, all of which was directed at one single
purpose: Preserving and keeping our democracy.
We will miss him.
I yield the floor.
Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, I rise to pay tribute to
the life and legacy of Senator Paul Coverdell. His passing
has shocked and saddened us all. It has left a void in the
Senate and in our Nation.
For Senator Coverdell, public service was his profession
and his passion. After serving in the Army, he began his
public life as a member of the Georgia State Senate where
he served as Minority Leader. After working in the private
sector, he was appointed Director of the Peace Corps. In
this important position he worked to spread American
values around the world. This experience helped him when
he later served on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee,
where he was a leader in our international effort to
strengthen our antidrug efforts.
In the Senate, Senator Coverdell was known as a hard
worker who often reached across the aisle to build
coalitions. Senator Coverdell fought hard for his
principles. We did not always agree on policy--but he
always treated those on the other side with dignity and
respect. He knew that despite our different views, we all
shared a common goal. We all want to do what is best for
our constituents and our Nation. He understood that we can
get more done with civility than with contention.
Senator Coverdell will be greatly missed. My thoughts
and prayers are with his family.
Mr. CAMPBELL. Mr. President, I would like to address the
terrible loss the Senate suffered yesterday, when Paul
Coverdell left this Earth. I was truly shocked by the
news. Just last week, Paul was on the floor of the Senate,
working in his quiet and nonassuming way. Yesterday, I was
writing him a get well card. Today, he is gone.
Paul was a dedicated public servant. He served the State
of Georgia and this Nation in the Army, the Legislature,
as a businessman, as the head of the Peace Corps and in
the U.S. Senate. The respect he had earned from his
colleagues here is evident in his appointment to numerous
task forces and his election to a leadership position. His
passing is a major loss to this body and this great
country.
Since I am also from a State where agriculture is an
important part of the economy, Paul was a valuable ally in
ensuring the family farms do not disappear. I also admired
his work to keep our children safe from drugs and crime, a
priority he and I shared. Paul represented the best of
America: a belief that people flourish when they have the
freedom to work and make their own decisions.
Paul will truly be missed. He stood out in the Senate
for the simple reason that he never drew attention to
himself. In a business where egos can run rampant, Paul
did not display one. He preferred to get things done.
My thoughts and prayers are with his wife, Nancy, and
their family. They have some tough days ahead of them. I
hope they can look back, as I do, at the impressive record
of Paul's work with a sense of pride. I am thankful for
the chance to know such a man.
Mr. CONRAD. Mr. President, I rise today to join my
colleagues in mourning the sudden and untimely death of
our colleague from Georgia, Paul Coverdell.
Senator Coverdell had a long and distinguished career of
public service, capped by his dedicated service in the
U.S. Senate. Senator Coverdell served his country in the
U.S. Army in Japan, Taiwan and Korea. In 1970, he embarked
on a career in politics in his native Georgia, serving as
a State Senator and chairman of the State Republican
Party. In 1989 he was selected by President Bush to lead
the Peace Corps.
We here in the Senate, though, knew Paul Coverdell as a
friend and as a real gentleman. We did not always agree on
the issues, but Paul Coverdell never took policy
disagreements personally and never let them affect his
relationships with other Senators. Senator Coverdell was
always very positive, very upbeat. On every issue, even
when we disagreed, I found Paul to be fair, decent, and,
above all, honest.
In this body, some Senators are known as ``workhorses.''
Others are known as ``show horses.'' There is no question
that Paul Coverdell was a workhorse. He was not flashy. He
did not seek the media spotlight. Paul Coverdell worked
tirelessly with the leadership on his side of the aisle on
some of the toughest issues facing the Senate. He was
interested in getting results, not credit. His focus, his
determination, and his willingness to bring other Senators
together to get things done served the Senate well, served
Georgia well, and served our country well. His spirit and
energy will be sorely missed in this body.
Put simply, I liked and respected Paul Coverdell. We
will miss him. My thoughts and prayers go to his wife,
Nancy, his family and friends, and his staff.
Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. President, I join all of my
colleagues, the staff of the Senate, the people of
Georgia, citizens across America and around the world in
morning the death of Paul Coverdell.
A thoroughly decent human being, he worked long and hard
for what he thought was right. His career reflected the
combination of principle and effective leadership that
were characteristic of the way he did business. In his
quiet way, he managed to navigate some very difficult
waters, keeping his equanimity and dignity intact, while
gaining not only his goal, but the respect of all who
associated with him.
Many in the Senate can claim friendships with him that
extend to several decades. I met him only after he was
elected to the Senate in 1992, but from the first, I was
impressed by the same things his friends loved and admired
in him--his kindness, his sense of humor, and his work
ethic. A skilled legislator, he was often asked by the
leadership to help move matters along. He did this in
concert with colleagues on both sides of the aisle, always
managing to ``disagree without being disagreeable.'' He
was a public servant of the highest order.
His family, friends, staff, constituents, and colleagues
certainly know what has been lost for we know what he was
and what he did with his life. He will be missed in so
many circles, but his influence and his good works will
continue.
Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I want to join with my
colleagues in expressing my deep sorrow at the loss of our
friend and colleague, Paul Coverdell. During this
difficult time, I want to extend my thoughts and prayers
to Nancy and all of his family.
Paul and I both came to Washington, DC, in January of
1993. In the years that I've know Paul, I've always been
impressed by his thoughtfulness and his work ethic.
I always had the utmost respect for him because of his
quiet demeanor. He did not seek headlines, and he did not
seek credit. Whether it was fighting illegal drugs or
working on education or tax policy, he simply did his work
with a quiet determination, an open heart, and a kind word
for anyone who crossed his path.
My predecessor in the Senate, Warren Magnuson, had a
phrase for someone like that--``a workhorse not a show
horse.''
Paul Coverdell was a workhorse in the finest sense.
Paul earned the respect of everyone here because he
treated everyone else with respect and dignity.
Paul's work here in the U.S. Senate was really just an
extension of a lifetime of service. Whether it was serving
his country in the U.S. Army, serving the people of
Georgia as a State Senator, or helping people around the
world through his work as Director of the U.S. Peace
Corps, Paul brought his generous spirit and his
determination to everything he undertook.
Mr. President, the people of Georgia are fortunate to
have been served by a person of Paul's character and
skills.
Those of us who worked with him here in the U.S. Senate
were fortunate to have him as a friend and colleague. His
passing is a loss to our Senate, to Georgia and to the
Nation. I will miss him as a friend and colleague.
Mr. SARBANES. Mr. President, I rise today to join my
colleagues in honoring a distinguished public servant and
a valued Member of the U.S. Senate, Senator Paul
Coverdell, who died Tuesday evening at the Piedmont
Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia.
Senator Coverdell was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1992
and served as the Republican Conference Secretary since
December 1996. He was a member of the Senate Finance,
Foreign Relations, and Small Business Committees and
chaired the Agriculture Committee's Subcommittee on
Marketing, Inspection and Product Promotion.
Before entering public life, Senator Coverdell served in
the U.S. Army in Okinawa, Taiwan and Korea. He earned a
bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of
Missouri before returning to Georgia to work in his
family's business.
Paul Coverdell's political career began in 1970 when he
was elected to the Georgia State Senate serving as
Minority Leader for 14 years. In 1989, he accepted
President Bush's appointment as Director of the Peace
Corps, where he refined the agency's mission to serve the
emerging democracies of Eastern Europe.
While Senator Coverdell and I rarely agreed on the many
issues that came before the Senate for consideration, I
greatly respected his hard work and his unfailing courtesy
and civility. He was a modest man who valued results more
than he valued headlines. Indeed, Paul Coverdell was well-
respected by every Member of this body, engendering the
affection of all those with whom he served.
Senator Coverdell served the citizens of Georgia and the
Nation well and we are all deeply saddened by his untimely
death. I would like to take this opportunity to pay
tribute to him and to extend my deepest and heartfelt
sympathies to his family.
Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I rise today to join some of
my fellow Senators in remembering the extraordinary life
and service of our friend and colleague, Paul Coverdell.
It is a somber day in the Senate Chamber, as we deal
with this loss. Paul Coverdell served the people of
Georgia with distinction for over 30 years. His passing
leaves a significant mark on the many lives he has touched
over his lifetime. On behalf of myself and my wife
Annette, I offer my condolences to Paul's wife Nancy and
his family.
Anyone who dealt with Paul Coverdell over the years came
to respect him. He was honest, loyal, and dedicated to
public service. It was these characteristics that Paul
brought to the table every day in his life. Paul's vision
as a legislator and commitment to the principles and
values for which he truly believed were demonstrated time
after time in this Chamber. His commitment to improving
education in the United States sets a high standard for
all public officials. His hard work in the Republican
leadership and his vision of a prosperous future for all
Americans deserves tremendous praise.
Personally, it was truly my privilege to know and work
with Paul over the years. We sat next to each other
recently in the Senate, as can be seen.
He will be remembered as a dedicated American who gave
much of his life in service to his Nation. I offer my
thoughts and prayers to those close to Paul in this
difficult time, especially to his family.
Mr. FITZGERALD. Mr. President, I rise today to deliver
some remarks upon the death of our beloved colleague, Paul
Coverdell.
It is no exaggeration to say that the whole Senate is in
a state of shock that we no longer have Paul with us. Just
last week, Senator Coverdell was among us on the Senate
floor debating legislation, visiting with us in the
Cloakroom, speaking up in our weekly Republican
Conference. And now, only a short period later, he is no
longer with us. To my knowledge, Paul never seemed to have
had any health problems. He certainly seemed fine last
week.
My last remembrance of him is just how happy he was when
we adjourned on Friday afternoon after we passed that
landmark legislation repealing the death tax. I guess the
fact that Paul is no longer with us reminds us all that we
need to keep life in perspective.
I met Senator Coverdell when I was first campaigning for
the Senate 2 or 3 years ago. From that first time I met
him, I came away with a very powerful impression that he
was a most sincere and decent and friendly person. In all
my dealings with him in my year and a half in the Senate,
that impression never changed. Paul was always in a good,
cheerful mood. He was always positive and upbeat. I never
once saw him raise his voice or get angry at anybody. He
was unfailingly polite and courteous at all times and to
everyone. He was the quintessential southern gentleman and
a delight to know.
In the Senate, we debate issues of great moment to our
country: war and peace, the economy, education policy. I
guess it is sometimes the little, personal, seemingly
inconsequential gestures of friendship that one remembers.
I used to sit next to Senator Coverdell every week in our
Wednesday Republican luncheons. I got to know Paul that
way, not only as a colleague but as a person. Every week
Paul would gently rib me for eating my main course before
I ate my salad. Week after week he would comment on that.
I think finally he just concluded that that was a peculiar
habit of midwesterners.
I will always remember the smile and the twinkle in Paul
Coverdell's eyes, and I will not easily forget him or my
friendship with him.
Paul, I am proud to have served with you. I am going to
miss you. We are all going to miss you. You enriched this
Senate, the State of Georgia, and the whole country by
your service. Our thoughts and prayers are with you and
your wonderful wife Nancy and your family. May God bless
you and keep you.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Illinois.
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I join my colleague from
Illinois in paying tribute to our fallen colleague,
Senator Paul Coverdell.
I have been in the Senate for 4 years and have worked
with many colleagues on both sides of the aisle. I agree
completely with Senator Fitzgerald: Senator Coverdell
brought to this floor a certain dignity and demeanor to
which we all aspire. He was a person of good humor. I
think it may be difficult for many people who follow the
debates in the Senate to believe that a Democrat who
believes very strongly in his party and a Republican who
believes very strongly can be engaged in a hot debate on
the floor of the Senate and then, as soon as the debate is
over, meet each other in the corridor or the well or at
another time and be friends. That was the case with Paul
Coverdell.
We disagreed on many issues, but I never found him to be
lacking a smile and always looking for some common ground
where we might come together. I recall the last
conversation I had with him several weeks ago, he walked
all the way across the floor to the Democratic side of the
aisle and came right up to me. I was wondering what this
could be.
He said: ``I need your help.''
I said: ``What is it, Paul?''
He said: ``I want to try to secure a gold medal for
Ronald and Nancy Reagan; will you help me?''
I knew he was from Illinois. I said: ``Of course, I
will.''
I signed onto it. That is the kind of person he was. As
different as we might be politically, he was always trying
to reach out and find some common ground. I think when we
get caught up so much in the political debate and the
furor here, we forget many times how important it is to
have a person such as Paul Coverdell here to remind us
time and again that after the debates are finished, we are
all basically human beings trying to do our very best in
the Senate.
I agree with my colleague from Illinois: It is hard to
imagine that only a few days ago he was standing in the
well and smiling and walking around as he always did as a
member of the Republican leadership team and then stricken
on Sunday, operated on on Monday and passed away. It is a
sad day for the Senate.
I have noted, interestingly enough, today, as many of my
colleagues on both sides of the aisle have come to the
microphone, some have known Paul Coverdell for a long
time. Some have known him in many different roles in life,
some for a very short time. Everyone from both sides has a
very positive take on what Paul Coverdell meant to each of
us and meant to this institution.
It is a great loss, not only for the Senate but for the
State of Georgia and for the Nation, which he served in so
many different ways so well.
I extend my sympathies to his wife Nancy and all his
family and friends in this moment of grief. The Senate has
lost a fine Senator. I am honored to have called him a
friend.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Montana.
Mr. BAUCUS. Mr. President, I join with my colleagues to
pay tribute to Paul Coverdell. I have listened to a lot of
tributes today. There have been so many themes, including
cheerfulness, optimism, a welcome hand, no rancor, no
bitterness. We all know that to be Paul Coverdell. I want
to mention one incident which, for me, encapsulates it
all. It is going to be the incident that is defining for
me. Whenever I think of Paul, I always think of this
incident, and I always will.
This outfit--the Senate--tends to be a little partisan.
Over the years, it has become too partisan, almost as two
armed camps, one over there and one over here. It is
regrettable, but that is something that has occurred and
evolved up here in the Senate.
Not too many years ago, I was in Atlanta, GA, speaking
at an event. I neglected, as is a common courtesy, to tell
Senator Coverdell I was there. Sam Nunn was a Senator at
the time. I did not tell Paul I was having an event in
Georgia, his home State. I felt kind of bad about it. But
like a lot of us, I kind of pushed it to the side and
rationalized that it was not that important.
Lo and behold, at that same hotel, Paul was speaking
about three or four rooms away, and I heard about it. I
said to myself: Oh, my gosh, Max, how stupid you are; why
didn't you tell him? How guilty I felt. Oh, my gosh, here
I am in Paul's home State and he doesn't even know I am
here. I am in his State and he is just down the hall. I
thought: You blew it, Max.
When I finished, I was walking out in the hall and Paul
happened to be coming up. He bounced up to me and said,
``Hey, Max, how are you? Welcome to Georgia. I hope you're
having a good time.''
That was Paul--positive, upbeat, cheerful, with a smile
and a good attitude and a gleam in his eye. That made me
feel even smaller and more guilty, but it made me feel
even better about Paul. That is the Paul Coverdell I will
always remember.
Mr. President, Wanda and I send our deepest sympathies
to Nancy and the family. Life is fickle, unpredictable.
There but for the grace of God go any of us. People with
the personal qualities of Paul Coverdell are the ones we
will treasure here. I know the people of Georgia will
treasure the same qualities in Paul Coverdell. He was a
great man.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Michigan is
recognized.
Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I join with all of my
colleagues today in praising the life and celebrating the
life and grieving the loss of Paul Coverdell. He was a
friend and someone whom I trusted. I think we all trust
each other here because we are family. But I had a special
fondness and a special trust for Paul Coverdell. He was a
man of tremendous integrity, directness, and modesty.
There are many instances over our time period together
that come to mind. But one in particular is perhaps the
most recent one. I had a matter that was of great personal
concern to me. It was an issue where he and I differed
philosophically but where I needed his help in order to
get my position heard. He agreed it should be heard, even
though he disagreed with it. I went to him and asked him
whether or not he might assist me in that process, and he
said, ``Carl, I don't agree with you on this issue, but
this is a matter of great importance for this country and
your views clearly should be considered by the
decisionmaker here. I am going to do everything I can to
make sure that in fact those views are considered.''
That said a lot about this man and about this place.
Although we disagreed on an issue, he believed that the
principle of having both sides heard was more important
than the specifics of the issue. His integrity was
indisputable and undoubted. We came to rely on him in so
many ways. His background made him particularly able to
make a special contribution to this Senate. He had great
skills as a legislative craftsman and tactician. He, of
course, had a wonderful background in the Peace Corps, and
there were so many other ways he was able to contribute as
a very special force in the deliberations on this floor.
Paul Coverdell rose to leadership in a very short period
of time, which reflected the deep respect and regard that
he had among his Republican colleagues. That special
affection and regard was matched on this side of the
aisle. The death of this very fine and gentle man is a
terrible loss to the people of Georgia. I consider it to
be a great loss to the people of Michigan and all of
America, and a great personal loss to me as well.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oklahoma is
recognized.
Mr. NICKLES. Mr. President, I appreciate the comments by
my friend and colleague from Michigan regarding the death
of our friend and colleague, Paul Coverdell.
Yesterday was a very, very sad day for the Senate. I was
at this desk when the Majority Leader announced that Paul
Coverdell passed away at 6:10 yesterday. Majority Leader
Trent Lott was a very close friend of Paul, as was I and
many other Senators. This is a tough, trying time because
we lost a very good friend and an outstanding Senator. It
is sad to see the vacant chair right behind me that Paul
Coverdell sat in. It demonstrates an enormous void his
death leaves behind here in our body.
I had the pleasure of getting to know Paul Coverdell for
the last 8 years. He did an outstanding job. Paul
Coverdell was the type of Senator who would do any work
assigned, and oftentimes, work not assigned. He was the
type of Senator who could enlighten the room, the type who
could work with all Members and make things happen. He was
the type of person who would be willing to take on tough
tasks and always say yes, and take them across the finish
line. He was the kind of person you would want to have on
your team at all times.
Paul was the kind of person who really added a lot to
this institution. It makes me proud to say he was my
colleague. He contributed so much in so many ways. His
death is an almost unspeakable loss for us, for the State
of Georgia, and for the country.
He showed great leadership on a lot of issues, with a
hallmark brand of analysis and execution that identified a
challenge for our conference, pulled out all the views
among our colleagues, and built consensus and success to
the betterment of not just our party, but our country. For
example, take primary and secondary education--something
overlooked for many years. He focused on that in the last
few years, and headed up a task force that cut across
committee lines, seniority lines, and philosophical lines,
to bring us together. He wanted us to do positive things
to improve education across the Nation. He successfully
blended our different viewpoints together, and together we
painted a vision on education that many Americans support.
That vision holds out real hope for change and improvement
when it comes to educating our kids for the challenges of
the 21st century. Further, many elements of his efforts
brought along our colleagues across the aisle.
Or, take our war on drugs. Senator Coverdell has worked
hard with colleagues to address this challenge, here in
the United States, and with the House and the
administration to carry the fight overseas. In waging
those battles, we came to realize that he was intense, he
was serious, dedicated, and sincere. He was also
successful, and many families today and in the future
should be gratified in his success.
And these are just a few examples of the many areas
where Paul placed his tremendous energies. He was so
involved in so many different issues, I even teased him
last year. I said, ``We are enacting all Coverdell
legislation, all the time'' because he had his name and
fingerprints all over so many things were doing, because
he was so proactive in trying to come up with positive
solutions to challenging problems in education, or
fighting the war on drugs here and overseas, or spending
the country's money wisely, or returning the tax surplus
to the people.
Paul also did not hesitate to join us in standing up on
behalf of the Constitution, our system of checks and
balances, or keeping the order we stand to defend. From
the beginning to the end of his time in the Senate, rarely
a day went by when he did not cast a thoughtful eye on the
activism and activities of the executive, cognizant of the
vision of our Founders who believed in a limited central
government.
When you got to know him, you would discover that he had
a real intensity, a keen curiosity to learn, understand,
grapple with issues great and small. And he had such a
great, congenial working spirit that made all of us
better, that built us all up. His personality was
infectious, his energy was admirable, his thoughtfulness
was considerable, and his friendship was valuable.
We want to let Paul's wife Nancy know that she is very
much in our thoughts and prayers. We are comforted by the
fact and have great confidence in the fact that Paul
Coverdell now resides in a wonderful mansion, eternally.
Our sympathies and prayers go with Nancy, and to the
Coverdell family.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Alabama.
Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. President, I thank the Senator from
Oklahoma for his comments. We celebrate the wonderful life
of Paul Coverdell. I have a heavy heart, and I miss him.
He was a great Senator. He contributed to this Nation in
extraordinary ways.
He was a good friend to me, and a good friend to many
others.
Yes, he was modest, self-effacing, encouraging,
positive, and unifying--all of those things. But he was a
courageous and positive leader for values that this Nation
holds dear. He advocated them with such a winsome and
effective way. We will miss him. I will miss him.
I say to the family and to Nancy particularly how sorry
we are, and I express my sympathy. Maybe next week I will
be better able to express my admiration and feelings for
Paul Coverdell. I feel his loss deeply. So many of us do.
I wanted to share those thoughts at this time.
I thank the Chair. I yield the floor.
Mr. BURNS. Mr. President, I rise this evening, along
with my colleagues, as we talk about and remember and
celebrate the life of Paul Coverdell. He was born in Des
Moines, IA. He was a graduate of the University of
Missouri. That is where I went to school. Paul Coverdell
was a person who came to the Senate with a history of
being a doer. He was a workhorse in this Senate.
Early on, he demonstrated that he could be relied upon
to take on the essential but unspectacular tasks for the
good of the Senate and this Nation. He was rewarded for
that when he was elected by his fellow Senators to be the
Secretary of the Senate Republican Conference. I know
something about that because he beat me. I could not have
lost to a better man.
He had his little mannerisms. He could put you in a box,
put a cap on you, do a lot of things. But his quiet
demeanor and lack of fuss in tackling whatever tasks were
assigned to him were characteristic of his effectiveness.
He served President Bush as Director of the Peace Corps.
He was a man of peace. He served as leader of the
Republican Party in the Georgia Senate for 15 years, from
1974 to 1989, skillfully guiding that body through some
difficult but rewarding years.
His leadership really surfaced when he came to the
Senate. We have talked about him as a stalwart on national
defense and on taxes, but I think he had his best vision
and his best grasp of this business in reforming public
education because he always referred to his vision for the
next generation. He always thought about the next
generation. As a proponent of equal education
opportunities, he introduced sweeping education and tax
reform bills. The list of his achievements in the Senate
is substantial, indeed.
Paul Coverdell holds a special place in our hearts as we
say goodbye to a brother, and a Member of this body, who
has shown us the way in the tradition of the Senate. We
are all better just for having known him.
Thursday, July 20, 2000
Mr. VOINOVICH. Mr. President, I rise today to pay
tribute to Paul Coverdell, our friend and colleague. Paul
was an extraordinary human being who really cared. He
looked at his opportunity to serve in the Senate as a way
to make a difference in the lives of his fellow man.
I will never forget Paul Coverdell. He was one of the
first people who reached out to me when I first came to
this body, greeting me with a warm welcome and caring
advice. Although he was in leadership and had many demands
on his time, he always had time for me and truly listened
to what I had to say. He had common sense and a common
touch. I have truly enjoyed working with him on several
legislative initiatives, particularly education and the
Ed-Flex bill we passed last year [The Education
Flexibility Partnership Act of 1999, P.L. 106-25].
Paul had a wonderful knack for being able to work with
people and to get things done. He led by example. He
understood that to be a leader one had to serve. There was
no job so small that he would not take it. His commitment
and ability always made you want to be on his team. His
enthusiasm was contagious. He made you feel good just
being around him.
My regret is that because of my short tenure in the
Senate, I did not get to know Paul or spend as much time
with him as many of my colleagues did.
He gave witness to his Christian faith every day. He
will continue to be my role model in the Senate. Paul
Coverdell will be missed by all of us, but my faith tells
me that he is eternally happy with our Father in Heaven. I
pray that thought will give comfort to his wife Nancy and
the members of his family.
Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, as have so many of my
colleagues, I speak with a sense of loss and sadness about
the passing of our friend, Paul Coverdell. Over the years
serving in the Senate, I have seen too often the flowers
on a Senator's desk and known, by that unique tradition of
our body, the reflection that we have lost somebody in an
untimely fashion--no one more untimely than the Senator
from Georgia.
I have had the honor to serve with many Senators during
the time the people of Vermont have been kind enough to
let me be here. Each of these Senators has brought special
qualities. It might be a knack for fiery oration or
professorial intelligence. But Paul Coverdell brought a
special formula of kindness and quiet persistence.
I first knew Paul when he was Director of the Peace
Corps. I was chairman of the Foreign Operations
Subcommittee which handled his budget. I recall times when
there would be an issue that would come up of some
contention. I remember President Bush calling and saying:
``Pat, sit down with Paul. I assure you you can work it
out.''
We would sit quietly in my office. We would go over the
issues, and we would work it out. We would work it out
because I knew that Paul Coverdell would keep his word; he
knew I would mine. I also knew that neither of us would
read about the intricacies of our agreements in the paper
the next day. We would keep each other's confidence.
When he came to the Senate, he was first and foremost a
tireless champion for the interests of the people of
Georgia. We all remember his relentless advocacy for some
of the military bases in his home State and how proud he
was to represent the State that hosted the Olympic games
in 1996. In that regard he entered the sometimes messy
realm of appropriations to bring full Federal support to
that gigantic effort.
In many ways, these efforts were an embodiment of the
people of Georgia, possessing a boundless energy,
ambition, and generosity.
What I remember most, though, about Paul Coverdell--and
so many of our colleagues have said the same thing--is how
he worked on everything with a paradoxically quiet energy.
He was not one to seek the cameras and head to the floor
to yell about every disagreement. If he had a
disagreement, he would call you. He would go and work with
you face to face. He was often convincing. I know he
changed my mind on issues.
I think one of the reasons he was so convincing is that
he was always openminded and attentive. I do not think
there is any case more obvious about that than the
Senate's recent consideration of the supplemental
appropriation for antidrug assistance in Colombia.
There were many disagreements on this aid package. But
everybody, whether they were on his side or on the
opposite side, admired the strength of his conviction and
the depth of the knowledge of the region.
I was privileged to work closely with him on a
resolution on a recent presidential election in Peru.
Senator Coverdell and I believed strongly that it was
important for the United States to send a strong message
throughout the hemisphere in support of democracy and to
condemn the blatant subversion of democracy by the
Fujimori government. Again, it was the strength of Paul's
convictions and willingness to stand for the most
important principles this country stands for. That is why
the resolution was there.
Our mutual concern for international human rights
extended to the effort to establish a global ban of
antipersonnel landmines. I was so pleased to work with
Paul on this issue. He would always consider my proposals
thoughtfully and thoroughly. He brought a very special
perspective. For him, banning landmines was about
protecting Peace Corps volunteers and the communities they
served. He had this unique way of looking at an issue that
went way beyond warring parties. He was concerned about
innocent civilians.
Paul took part in these debates and worked behind the
scenes with a big-hearted kindness. He was one of the
kindest people to grace this floor, and there was a
certain peacefulness about him that was always pleasantly
contagious. In a sometimes very divisive Senate, that
peacefulness was so respected.
That is why when I look at the flowers, like many of us
who have served here a long time, I think we have seen
those flowers too often. But it is hard to think of a time
when both Republicans and Democrats have felt the pain
more than on this occasion. Paul, we will all miss you.
I yield the floor.
Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, all of us are saddened by
the death in our Senate family. I join Senators on both
sides of the aisle in mourning the loss of our colleague
and friend, Paul Coverdell, and I extend my deepest
condolences to the members of his family.
Senator Coverdell and I differed on many of the major
issues of the day. But it was obvious to all of us who
served with him that he was a leader of genuine
conviction, deep principle, great ability, and high
purpose.
His commitment to public service was extraordinary. It
was always a privilege to work with him.
I especially admired his dedication to seeking common
ground--to exploring every aspect of every issue, and to
learn as much as possible about it--to going the extra
mile to achieve worthwhile compromise instead of
confrontation--and above all to finding practical answers
to the many serious challenges we face together in the
Senate.
He was deeply committed to enhancing the quality of life
for all Americans. We both shared a strong commitment to
improving education in all of the Nation's schools. I am
saddened that he will no longer be with us as the Senate
turns again in coming days to the important debate on
support for elementary and secondary education in schools
and communities across the country.
I also particularly admired Paul Coverdell's leadership
role as Director of the Peace Corps in the Bush
administration from 1989 to 1991, before he came to the
Senate.
Over the years, the Peace Corps has had special meaning
for all of us in the Kennedy family, because it is one of
the finest legacies of President Kennedy. I know that my
brother would have been proud of Paul Coverdell's
commitment to the Peace Corps and its ideals and its
service to peoples in need in many different lands.
In a very real sense, the campaign slogan that Paul
Coverdell used so effectively in his successful Senate re-
election campaign in Georgia 2 years ago sums up his
extraordinary career, and tells why he had so much respect
and friendship from all of us. That slogan consisted of
two simple words--``Coverdell Works.'' And it was true, in
every sense of the word. Paul Coverdell served the Senate
well, the Nation well, and the people of Georgia well, and
we will miss him very much.
Mr. MOYNIHAN. Mr. President, Howell Raines, editorial
page editor of the New York Times has written a warm and
wonderful tribute to Paul Coverdell, recalling his career
in the Georgia State Senate in the 1970s. It is part of
his life story that is not widely known here in
Washington--certainly not by me--and helps to account for
the great affection and respect in which he was held here
in the U.S. Senate. Withal this adds a touch to our
mourning, we are much indeed indebted to Mr. Raines'
memoir.
I ask unanimous consent that the ``Editorial Notebook''
from this morning's New York Times be printed in full in
the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be
printed in the Record, as follows:
[From the New York Times, July 20, 2000]
A Quiet Man in a Noisy Trade
(By Howell Raines)
paul coverdell's leap to the senate marked a shift in
southern politics
Senator Paul Coverdell of Georgia was a mild-mannered
Republican seasoned in political obscurity. As minority
leader of the Georgia State Senate in the 1970's, he was
part of a legislative bloc so small and impotent that it
was ignored, steamrolled and sometimes openly ridiculed by
the Democrats who controlled the legislature as if by
birthright. None of us covering the Georgia Capitol in
those days would have picked Mr. Coverdell, who died
Tuesday at age 61, as a future United States senator. Now,
in retrospect, we can see him as part of the second of two
transforming waves that swept Georgia politics in the last
third of the 20th century.
The first wave of change was driven by law. The Voting
Rights Act of 1965 brought hundreds of black Democrats
into office. The second wave of change was demographic, as
exemplified by fast-growing Atlanta. Georgia's progressive
Democrats had long dreamed of the day when Atlanta would
be big enough to outvote the state's rural conservatives.
What they had not foreseen was that thousands of the
newcomers flooding into the Atlanta suburbs would be out-
of-state Republicans who rejected both the Democratic
power structure and the Goldwater Republicans then in
control of the Southern G.O.P.
They created a ready-made constituency for Mr.
Coverdell, a classic mainstream Republican who was
fiscally conservative yet moderate on social issues.
``That was what made the Republican Party attractive to
these people who came in,'' said Bill Shipp, a veteran
political commentator from Atlanta. ``Until Coverdell and
Johnny Isakson [another Atlanta moderate] came along,
Georgia Republicans were disgruntled segregationist
Democrats.''
Unlike the sprinkling of ultraconservative Republicans
elected during the Goldwater boom, Mr. Coverdell was not
hostile to black aspirations. Indeed, by the time he left
the Georgia Senate in 1989, he had gained enough influence
to make his mark as a reliable legislative advocate for
Atlanta's black mayors. He was known as a policy wonk and
a nice guy, traits that would mark his service as director
of the Peace Corps under President George Bush. He worked
hard in that position to promote a program that is
unpopular with many Republicans because of its
identification with President John F. Kennedy.
A similar earnestness would mark Mr. Coverdell's career
in the United States Senate, but he did not get there by
wearing a halo or emphasizing his credentials as a
moderate. He won his seat from Wyche Fowler, a Democrat
popular with liberals, by running to the right, especially
on the abortion issue.
It is, of course, always tricky to define political
moderation among Southern Republicans. By any measure, Mr.
Coverdell, a big booster of tax cuts and school vouchers,
was plenty conservative. Lately he had grown close to
Trent Lott, the Senate's tough-guy majority leader. But
his primary alliances were with less hard-edged types like
President Bush and his son George W. Bush, the Texas
governor. He helped plan the coming Republican Convention.
In the event of a Republican victory, according to Senator
Max Cleland of Georgia, a Democrat, Mr. Coverdell, ``would
have played a big role in a Bush administration, in the
cabinet or as a special adviser.'' But in a region that
still tends to celebrate pols who are loud and flashy, Mr.
Coverdell will be remembered for his general decency, his
serious interest in good government and his unlikely leap
from the back benches of the Georgia Capitol.
Mr. HOLLINGS. Mr. President, I rise today to remember
our friend Paul Coverdell. The State of Georgia and the
United States have lost a talented and dedicated
statesman.
Senator Coverdell's workmanlike approach to government
was a breath of fresh air in today's atmosphere of glamour
politics. He did not aspire to be in the spotlight, but he
fought tirelessly to spotlight the issues in which he
believed. Whether you agreed with his position on those
issues or not, you admired his style--his lack of
pretense, willingness to complete tedious, but important
tasks, and pleasant demeanor during a tough debate.
His office was one floor above mine in the Russell
Building and we often rode the subway together over to the
Capitol. His easygoing nature always struck me as
particularly Southern. We shared a love for that slow,
gracious lifestyle of our home States and enjoyed working
together when it served the similar needs of our
constituents.
Paul had a deep appreciation for the office of U.S.
Senator having persevered in his quest for a Senate seat
in 1992 despite a highly competitive race that featured
two runoffs. For the next 8 years, he never took the
privilege of serving the people of Georgia or the Nation
lightly. We can all learn something from his example.
Service was an evolving theme in Paul Coverdell's life,
beginning with an overseas stint in the U.S. Army, later
followed by almost two decades in the Georgia State Senate
and a post in President Bush's administration as Director
of the U.S. Peace Corps. He was well prepared when he
arrived in the Senate Chamber and used his experience to
advance an aggressive legislative agenda. It was a
pleasure to serve in the U.S. Senate with Paul Coverdell.
He fought fairly, was gracious in victory and honorable in
defeat.
My sympathy goes out to his wife, Nancy, and other
family members and to the people of Georgia.
Mr. LAUTENBERG. Mr. President, I rise to pay tribute to
the senior Senator from Georgia, Paul Coverdell, who
passed away Tuesday in Atlanta.
While Senator Coverdell and I came from different
political parties and ideologies, we shared several things
in common. We both served our country in the U.S. Army,
and after our service we both returned home to run
successful businesses. With our military and business
background we decided to turn our attention to serving the
public, and Senator Coverdell had an impressive record of
public service.
Senator Coverdell served in the Georgia State Senate--
rising to the position of Minority Leader. He then served
as Director of the Peace Corps under President Bush,
focusing on the critical task of serving the emerging
democracies of post-Soviet Eastern Europe. In 1992, he was
elected to serve in the U.S. Senate.
Although we failed to agree on many issues before this
body, Senator Coverdell always demonstrated honor and
dignity in this Chamber. He argued seriously for the
positions he believed in. When he pushed legislation to
fight illegal drugs or promote volunteerism, it was
obvious that his heart was always in it. And his
motivation was sincere and simple--to help the people of
Georgia and the Nation.
I send my deepest sympathies to his wife Nancy, his
parents, and the entire Coverdell family. I also extend my
sympathy to the people of Georgia.
We will all miss Senator Paul Coverdell of Georgia.
Mr. L. CHAFEE. Mr. President, I rise today to express my
sympathy to the Coverdell family and my own sorrow at the
death of Senator Paul Coverdell. May his family find
solace in their memory of Paul's many contributions to a
better Georgia, a better United States, and a better
world. I followed Paul onto the Foreign Relations
Committee and also into his chair of the Western
Hemisphere Subcommittee. I will do my best to carry on
your good work there, Paul.
As many people have said, Paul Coverdell was a gifted
communicator. To every organization those skills are
valuable and especially here in Congress. Perhaps Paul
learned those skills at the prestigious Missouri School of
Journalism from which he graduated. But I suspect, despite
having known him only a short time, that Paul's easy
manner and obvious kindness were inherent traits. He was a
natural communicator and we mourn his loss.
Once again, my heartfelt sympathy to Nancy and all of
Paul Coverdell's family and friends.
Rest in peace.
Ms. COLLINS. Senator Paul Coverdell was a rare and
wonderful man--and a spectacular Senator. Anyone who had
the good fortune to work with him left more hopeful, more
committed, more convinced we could all make a difference.
Much is being said about his extraordinary ability to
get things done; I would like to talk about how he was
able to accomplish so much. Senator Coverdell had many
talents, but perhaps the secret to his success was high
ability to bring people together. In times of friction,
fractiousness, and pressure, he was always the one who
remained focused and calm in the eye of the legislative
storm.
It was common for him to hold meetings in his office
where conservatives and moderates, strategists and
ideologues, listened to each other, shared ideas and
figured out not just ways of accomplishing diverse goals,
but also what those goals really should be. And his energy
and willingness to take on the most difficult task with
little public recognition or thanks was legendary.
Senator Coverdell was a man who listened. He listened to
Senators and staff and policy experts. He listened to
those he agreed with and those he did not--and merged it
all into a comprehensive, concise and workable plan. He
respected all individuals with an honesty and sincerity
that set the tone for working together.
Most of all, and through it all, Senator Coverdell was
kind and gracious in his dealings with everyone. The
country, his State, and all of us who have been privileged
to know him will miss him terribly. We join in praying for
his family as they suffer his loss. We have all lost a
very good friend.
Friday, July 21, 2000
Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I rise to join my colleagues
in honoring the memory of our dear friend and colleague,
Senator Paul Coverdell. My deepest condolences and prayers
go out to Nancy, his family, staff, and the people of
Georgia.
Paul Coverdell's career in public service as a State
Senator in Georgia, as Director of the U.S. Peace Corps,
and as a U.S. Senator stand as an enduring tribute to his
fine character, many talents, and boundless energy and
commitment for his work. They also serve to remind us how
one individual, working quietly and resourcefully, can
accomplish so much in an all too brief period of time.
In his public life, Paul Coverdell was a vigorous and
congenial advocate for initiatives and issues he cared
deeply about and an effective leader in the Senate and for
his party. While I did not have many opportunities to work
closely with Senator Coverdell, we share a commitment to
quality education for our Nation's young people and
appreciation for the importance of agriculture to our
respective States' economies. Peanut farmers and sugar
growers are frequent allies when commodity issues came
before the Senate, and Senator Coverdell was a strong
voice for Georgia farmers and his State's agricultural
interests. On educational initiatives, Paul Coverdell and
I rarely agreed; but he was never disagreeable. I admired
his passion and tenacity on education issues, and
appreciated the courtesy and humanity that characterized
his work here in the Senate.
Paul Coverdell has left a mark for the better in the
lives of millions of people, in America and around the
world. He served his country and constituents
conscientiously, earning our respect, admiration, and
affection. We grieve for his passing from this life. I am
reassured that we will find comfort in his splendid legacy
of public service and the knowledge that death is a
transition to life eternal and he is now with God. As we
bid our dear friend and colleague one last fond farewell,
I am reminded of the passage from Scriptures, from Matthew
25:23:
His Master said unto him, ``Well done, good and faithful
servant; you have been good and faithful over a few
things, I will make you ruler over many things. Now enter
into the joy of your Master.''
May God bless Nancy, the Coverdell family and staff.
Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, it has been a difficult week
working in the Senate. All of us have had a heavy heart,
missing Paul Coverdell. My office is in the immediate
vicinity of his, and I keep thinking he will pop out the
door on my way to a vote or back.
In the Bible, there is a famous story about a man named
Paul. God had a special mission for him. Though Paul was
not aware of it, God made His presence known when He
needed him and called him into service. That Paul had no
choice. He answered the call and did as he was asked. God
calls us all like that, though some of us never hear it.
God called Paul Coverdell like that, too. When Paul heard
the call, he listened and he answered.
First, He called him to work in the Peace Corps, as
there was a need and someone had to fill it. During his
service there, he made a difference in a lot of lives. God
must have been very pleased with him because then He
decided to put him in charge of greater things.
Those greater things led him to serve in the Senate.
Again, there was a need and, again, Paul was there to
answer the call. He was a remarkable force here, an
incredible powerhouse of principles and ideas, and they
were all in motion whenever he would speak. He had an
infectious enthusiasm that seemed to emanate from every
fiber of his being as he made his points. His gestures and
his facial expressions always drew the listener in and
caught their attention as he spoke with passion about his
philosophy and his politics.
He was a great strategist because he could put himself
in someone else's shoes and understand how someone else
thought and felt about the issues that came up for debate
and discussion. He could see many perspectives, and all at
once he had an innate sense of how they would all
interplay, how they would connect and collide. That was
why he always seemed to have the answers. He knew what his
opponents were thinking before they were even thinking it.
But the biggest reason for his successes in the Senate
was his great devotion to the principles of common sense.
He knew that the best answer was the one that made the
most sense. All of his hard work and determined effort was
aimed at one target: finding common ground, working with
his colleagues, and creating a consensus that led to a
solution to the problem.
When I arrived in the Senate, I found myself on the last
rung of the seniority ladder, No. 100. I did not know how
lucky I was. After the room selections were made, I got
the office that was left, and it turned out to be a great
office in disguise. My staff and I moved in, added a few
touches to make it more like home, and then greeted our
neighbors. Paul Coverdell was the neighbor, along with his
staff. He was right next door, so we got to see him often.
He and his staff were always walking by or on their way
out, and I would see Paul as he left to go home. He was a
regular and a welcome sight to all of us.
When the bells would ring for us to vote, we seemed to
answer that call at the same time. We often came out of
our doors at the same time and walked over together. We
had a lot of interesting discussions about politics and
legislative strategy. I lapped it all up. I was an eager
and ready student, and he was a tremendous mentor.
Our staffs seemed to bond, too. We were all in this
together, and the camaraderie that developed among us
helped us take on some issues that needed to be addressed.
It is a tradition I have adopted from him that I hope to
continue through my years of service in the Senate.
Through the years, I remember the times we spent in
difficult meetings with emotions running high and pressure
coming down from all sides to get something done. That is
when Trent Lott would say: ``Let's let Mikey do it.'' I
was always relieved to see that he was talking about Paul.
I never knew Trent was making a reference to an old-time
television commercial, but I knew he meant Paul and not
me, which was a relief because Paul always got the job
done.
Paul Coverdell had a lot of jobs to do in the Senate,
and he took them all on eagerly and with enthusiasm
because he loved legislating; he loved serving the people
of Georgia, the people of this Nation, and his neighbors
around the world because he cared so very deeply about
each and every person.
I heard it said that there is no higher calling than
public service. It must be true because it caught Paul
Coverdell's attention. In all he did in his life, there is
no question that he was a remarkable public servant by any
standard.
Unfortunately, he will not get to a lot of the landmarks
we cherish around here, like casting 10,000 votes, but
every vote he did cast was with the greatest thought,
consideration, and reflection, and that is the true mark
of a legislator.
He lived every day with great enthusiasm, energy, focus,
concern, and imagination. In fact, I think of him as an
``imagineer.'' That is someone who can see a problem as a
challenge and then use a great reservoir of talent, skill,
and a little luck to solve it. That is the true mark of a
great human being and great friend. Someday when we leave
the Senate and return home to begin another adventure in
each of our lives, I have no doubt we will take with us at
least one or two special memories of Paul that we will
cherish for a lifetime.
As mortals we cannot see the great plan of the Master's
hand for the universe, so we cannot understand why He
works the way He does. The word ``why'' does not even
appear in the Bible, and there is good reason for that. It
is not for us to know the why; it is for us to hear the
word of our Lord and to answer the call when it comes.
At 6:10 p.m. on Tuesday, July 18, Paul Coverdell heard
that call for the last time, and once again he answered
it. The only understanding I have is that God must have
needed somebody with special talents and abilities, and so
He sent for Paul. Now heaven is richer for his having gone
home, and we are all richer for having known him and been
able to share his life. He will be deeply missed and
fondly remembered by us all.
I yield the floor.
Mr. LAUTENBERG. Mr. President, I rise to pay tribute to
the Senior Senator from Georgia, Paul Coverdell, who
passed away Tuesday in Atlanta.
Mr. President, while Senator Coverdell and I came from
different political parties and ideologies, we shared
several things in common. We both served our country in
the U.S. Army, and after our service we both returned home
to run successful businesses.
With our military and business background we decided to
turn our attention to serving the public, and Senator
Coverdell had an impressive record of public service.
Senator Coverdell served in the Georgia State Senate--
rising to the position of Minority Leader. He then served
as Director of the Peace Corps under President Bush,
focusing on the critical task of serving the emerging
democracies of post-Soviet Eastern Europe. In 1992, he was
elected to serve in the U.S. Senate.
Although we failed to agree on many issues before this
body, Senator Coverdell always demonstrated honor and
dignity in this Chamber. He argued seriously for the
positions he believed in. When he pushed legislation to
fight illegal drugs or promote volunteerism, it was
obvious that his heart was always in it. And his
motivation was sincere and simple--to help the people of
Georgia and the Nation.
I send my deepest sympathies to his wife Nancy, his
parents, and the entire Coverdell family. I also extend my
sympathy to the people of Georgia.
We will all miss Senator Paul Coverdell of Georgia.
I yield the floor.
Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, I was deeply saddened to
hear of Paul Coverdell's untimely passing. Paul was a man
of such energy and determination, it is difficult to
imagine this body without him. Paul was a skilled
legislator and one of the hardest working legislators
among us. I had the highest admiration for the way he
conducted himself here--how committed he was to the people
of his State, and to his many duties here in the Senate.
We did not agree on a lot of policy matters, but that
couldn't be less important as I stand here today, Mr.
President. We've all lost a colleague and a friend, who
was taken from this earth far too soon. At 61, Paul had
served his country in more ways than most Americans can
hope to in a lifetime. From his service in the Armed
Forces to the Peace Corps to the Foreign Relations
Committee, where we served together, Paul had a keen
understanding of foreign affairs. He was also a natural
leader, despite his soft-spoken personality and his habit
of avoiding the limelight. He served as the Minority
Leader in the Georgia State Senate from 1974 to 1989,
attaining that post just 4 years after he was elected to
the State Senate in 1970.
Paul and I were both first elected to the Senate in
1992, Mr. President. We arrived here at the same time,
both former State Senators who had the honor of coming
here and learning the ways of this Senate. And learn them
Paul did. He quickly rose through the ranks to a top
leadership post. And along the way he won the respect and
admiration of all who knew him. The Nation has lost a
skilled leader, and all of us have lost an honorable
colleague and friend. I join my colleagues in mourning his
passing, and in paying tribute to his memory. To his wife
Nancy, his family, his staff and his many friends, I offer
my condolences and my deepest sympathies. Mr. President, I
yield the floor.
Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I rise to share in the
memory of one of this body's most esteemed colleagues,
Senator Paul Coverdell. His untimely death Tuesday was a
shock to us all. My prayers and condolences go to his
family at their time of mourning.
It so happens that Senator Coverdell was born in my home
State of Iowa--in Des Moines. That made him an honorary
constituent of mine. For that reason, he was always a
special colleague to me.
We in this body knew of his background in the Peace
Corps just before he was elected to the Senate. He very
quickly began to show his outstanding leadership skills.
He built a respect among his colleagues because of his
hard work and his dedication to those issues most dear to
him--especially education and the war on drugs.
Senator Coverdell did almost all of his work behind the
scenes, work that the public never knew about. But we
knew, because we worked with him. His interest was not the
limelight. You rarely saw his name in the papers. Instead,
it was rolling up his sleeves and working one-on-one with
his colleagues in an effective way. No one among us had
such energy, enthusiasm for public service, and organizing
ability.
I worked closest with him on international narcotics
issues, as chairman of the Senate Caucus on International
Narcotics Control. He was chairman of the Foreign
Relations Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere, Peace Corps,
Narcotics and Terrorism. We worked very closely together
on narcotics matters. We would hold joint hearings on
fighting drug cartels in Colombia and other countries. No
one felt stronger about stopping the scourge of drugs in
this country than he did. He cared deeply about the
debilitating effect drugs have had on the future of our
country and our youth.
It was a real privilege to work with Paul Coverdell in
the U.S. Senate. He was a statesman, a public servant in
the true sense of the word. And he was a good friend. I
join my colleagues in expressing how much we will miss his
energy, enthusiasm and friendship. His presence will be
greatly missed in the Senate. I wish all the best to his
family, knowing of their profound grief at their loss.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Connecticut.
Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I rise to express my thoughts
and views about our good friend and colleague, Paul
Coverdell. I commend my colleague from Wyoming for his
very thoughtful and appropriate remarks about Paul
Coverdell.
I do not have a long set of prepared remarks about my
colleague, but I wanted to take a couple of minutes and
express some feelings about this fine man from Georgia
whom I got to know back in the Bush administration.
I was chairman of the Subcommittee on the Western
Hemisphere. President Bush nominated Paul Coverdell to be
the Director of the Peace Corps. Because I chaired the
committee with jurisdiction over the Peace Corps and the
fact I was a former Peace Corps volunteer--I think the
only one in this body to have served in the Peace Corps--
Paul and I developed a very quick and close relationship.
I helped him through the confirmation process, and over
the next number of years, as he served as Director and
traveled the world expanding and enriching the Peace Corps
as an institution, I developed a deep fondness for Paul
Coverdell. I did not know in those days that I would be
only a few years away from calling him a colleague.
In January of 1993, Paul arrived in the Senate, and
quickly joined the Foreign Relations Committee, and
quickly became, in those days, the ranking Republican on
the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee with jurisdiction over
the Peace Corps. What more appropriate place for Paul
Coverdell, in that he had been the Director of the Peace
Corps. He provided tremendous assistance, information, and
support for this wonderful institution that was begun by
President Kennedy back in the 1960s. It enjoyed remarkable
support over the years. Every single administration backed
and supported the Peace Corps. Even during difficult
economic times in this country, there was a sense that
this was a valuable institution. Paul Coverdell made it
even more so because of his tenure as Director and then
during his stewardship on the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee with particular jurisdiction over this area.
I then became his Ranking Member, as my friends on the
Republican side ended up in the majority, and Paul and I
worked together. In fact, just recently, we were able to
actually increase the funding for the Peace Corps. I do
not think we would have won the decision here about
whether or not to provide additional support to the Peace
Corps and those additional funds would not have been
forthcoming, had it not been for Paul Coverdell.
We also worked together on the narcotics issue. We had a
passionate interest in trying to do something to stem the
tide of narcotics, the use of drugs in this country, and
worked tirelessly on that effort internationally, through
the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee, to fashion a formula
that would reduce the consumption of drugs in this country
and reduce the production and the transmission of drugs
and the money laundering that went on all over the world.
In fact, he came up with a very creative idea of trying
to involve all of the countries that were involved in this
issue, either as sources of production, transition, money
laundering, or consumption--as is the case in the United
States. I used to tease him a bit because I think I was a
more public advocate of the Coverdell idea on narcotics
than he was.
Paul Coverdell was one of the most self-effacing Members
I have known in this body. George Marshall used to have a
saying: There was no limit to what you could accomplish in
Washington, DC, as long as you were willing to give
someone else credit for it.
Paul Coverdell understood that, I think, as well as any
Member who has served in this body. He came up with ideas,
such as he did, in the area of drugs and narcotics, and
then was more interested in the idea being advanced than
he was having his name associated with it.
I wanted to mention those two particular areas: The
Peace Corps and the drugs and narcotics effort. There were
others he was involved in substantively: Education and the
like. These were two areas where we worked most closely
together.
Paul Coverdell was a partisan, a strong Republican, with
strong views, strong convictions. But he also was a
gentleman, thoroughly a Senate person. I say that because
I do not think this institution functions terribly well
without both of those elements.
People who come here with convictions and beliefs, who
try to advance the causes that they think will strengthen
our country, are in the position to make a contribution to
this body and to the United States; but you also have to
be a person who understands that you do not win every
battle. This is a legislative body, a body where you must
convince at least 50 other people of your ideas, and in
some cases more than 60. If you just have strong
convictions and strong beliefs, and are unable to work
with this small body, then those ideas are nothing more
than that--ideas.
Paul Coverdell had a wonderful ability to reach across
this aisle--that is only a seat away from me--and build
relationships on ideas he cared about. That, in my view,
is the essence of what makes this institution work.
Usually it takes someone a longer period of time to get
the rhythms, if you will, the sensibilities of this
institution, that are not written in any rule book, that
you are not going to find in any procedural volume. You
need to know the rules--which he did--and understand the
procedures. But the unwritten rules of how this
institution functions are something that people take time
to acquire. What somewhat amazed me was that Paul
Coverdell, in very short order, understood the rhythms of
this room, understood the rhythms of this institution, and
was able to build relationships and coalitions.
He could be your adversary one day--and a tough
adversary he was; a tough, tough adversary--and, without
any exaggeration, on the very next day he could be your
strongest ally on an issue. Those are qualities that
inherently and historically have made some moments in the
Senate their greatest--when leaders have been able to
achieve that ability of being strong in their convictions
but also have the ability to reach across the aisle and
develop those relationships that are essential if you are
going to advance the ideas that improve the quality of
life in this country.
I suspect he acquired some of those skills in his years
with the Georgia Legislature. It has been said--and I can
understand it--when he was the Republican Leader in
Georgia, there were not a lot of Republicans in Georgia.
And even though we have our disagreements, there is a
respect for those who help build something. It is not an
exaggeration to say that Paul Coverdell, in no small way,
was responsible for building the Republican Party in
Georgia. I do not say that with any great glee, but it is
a mark of his tenacity, his convictions, his ability to be
responsible for building a strong two-party system in that
State.
So from the perspective of this Connecticut Yankee, to
the people of Georgia, we thank you for helping this man
find a space in the political life of Georgia and for
sending him here to the Senate on two occasions.
I send my deepest sympathies to his wife Nancy, to his
friends, to his staff in Georgia and those here in
Washington. Paul Coverdell will be missed. He was a fine
Member of this institution. He was a good and decent human
being. He will be missed deeply by all of us here. So my
sympathies are extended to all whose lives he touched so
deeply.
Monday, July 24, 2000
Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, today, as the Senate recalls
the tragic loss 2 years ago of two fine Capitol Police
officers, Officer Jacob J. Chestnut and Detective John M.
Gibson, our hearts also bear fresh bruises from the loss
of a Senator and a former Senator.
Mr. President, on Saturday I traveled with several other
Senators to Atlanta, GA, to attend the funeral of our late
Senate colleague, Paul Coverdell. Senator Coverdell's
departure from this life was sudden. It came without
warning. Paul was only 61 and he could look forward to
many fruitful years of service to the Nation and to his
people. But it was not to be. The Scriptures tell us:
As for man, his days are as grass; as a flower of the
field, So he flourishes. For the wind passes over it, and
it is gone; and the place thereof shall know it no more.
On Wednesday of last week, I journeyed to Rhode Island
with several other Senators to pay our last respects to a
late departed former colleague, John O. Pastore, and to
commiserate with his bereaved family and a great host of
friends. We said the last goodbye to a man who had given
much to the service of his country and who had retired
from this body 26 years ago. A great throng paid homage to
the remembrance of one whom they loved and who had served
them so well, as was the case with our beloved late
colleague, Paul Coverdell. There was a great throng, a
large church filled to overflowing.
Over a long life of more than 80 years I have traveled
this same journey many times. It is always the same. We
travel the last mile with a departed friend and we come to
the end of the way, when we can go no farther. That is as
far as we can go. There we must part forever--insofar as
this earthly life is concerned. From there, the loved one
must go on alone, to ``The undiscovered country,'' as
Shakespeare said, ``from whose bourne no traveler
returns.''
So it is, and so it has been since the very beginning of
our race, and so it will be in all the years to come. We
are here today, and gone tomorrow.
The clock of life is wound but once,
And no man has the power to know just when the clock
will strike,
At late or early hour.
Now is the only time you have, so live, love, work
with a will;
Put no faith in tomorrow for the clock may then be
still.
Mr. President, John Pastore lived to the ripe old age of
93; for Paul Coverdell, the Grim Reaper beckoned earlier,
and the end came at 61. For those of us who remain on this
side of the vale of trials and tears, the message from
both of these lives is clear: be ready, be ready to go.
William Cullen Bryant said it for you and for me:
All that breathes will share thy destiny. The gay will
laugh when thou art gone, the solemn brood of care plod
on, and each one as before will chase his favorite
phantom; . . .
As one who has lived in this town of inflated egos for
nearly half a century, I can testify that William Cullen
Bryant had it right. I have seen the great, the near
great, those who thought they were great, those who would
never become great; and each incoming wave of life's sea
surges forward on the sands of humanity's rocky coast, and
then, just as quickly recedes into the vast emptiness of
the past. But what cannot be washed away is the love and
the memory of man's deeds and service to his fellowman.
So, each of us will carry within ourselves the memory of
Senator Pastore's, Senator Coverdell's, Officer
Chestnut's, and Detective Gibson's deeds and service to
his fellow man. They have touched all of us, and we have
been changed by them, because it was Tennyson who said,
``I am part of all that I have met.'' And so, in this
small way, they live on in our hearts and in our
dedication to do good with the hours and days that remain
to us. The poet John Donne expressed it well, how each
man's life--and each man's death--touches ours:
No man is an island, entire of itself;
Every man is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main;
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
[America] is the less,
As well as if a promontory were,
As well as if a manor of thy friend's
Or of thine own were;
Any man's death diminishes me,
Because I am involved in mankind;
And therefore
Never send to know for whom the bell tolls:
It tolls for thee.
Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I rise at this time to talk
about our beloved friend, Senator Paul Coverdell of
Georgia. I had hoped to be able to make some further
comments last week, after it fell my duty to come to the
floor and announce his very untimely death, but I just
could not do it because I was grieving over the loss of
this good friend.
I guess maybe the week and the services Saturday in
Georgia have helped me come to peace with this loss and to
say farewell to my good friend from Georgia. But I wanted
to speak now because I felt, even this morning, a void for
this week; Paul will not be here. He will not be here
saying, What can we do next? How can I help? He was
willing to work with all of the Republicans and all of the
Democrats, going over to the Democratic side of the aisle
and seeking out Senator Harry Reid or Senator Torricelli,
trying to find some way to make a bipartisan piece of
legislation possible. So we will have a void this week.
But, there will be a void forever in the Senate with the
loss of Paul Coverdell because his was an unfinished
symphony. A lot more beautiful sounds were going to come
from that somewhat uncertain trumpet from Georgia.
Folks have talked about his flailing hands and his
squeaky voice, but that is what really made Senator
Coverdell all the more attractive. He was not always as
smooth as some of us like to think we might be, but he was
always effective. Maybe it was because of the way he
presented his speeches and the way he came across in his
daily relationships with all of us.
The Chaplain of the Senate, Lloyd Ogilvie, at the church
services in memory of Paul Coverdell on Saturday, referred
to him as a peacemaker. And maybe this is a good time of
the year to be thinking about the Beatitudes because I
think it really did describe Paul. Even though he felt
very strongly about the issues he believed in or that he
was opposed to, he was always binding up everybody else's
wounds. He would find a way to make peace and get results.
I thought the Chaplain's description of him as a
peacemaker was apropos. When I did my Bible study this
morning, I came to that particular passage, ``Blessed is
the peacemaker.'' Again I thought, that is just one more
message about Paul and the great job he did in the Senate.
I met Paul years ago actually, way back in the 1970s
when there was a very fledgling Republican Party in
Georgia. We did not have much of a Republican Party at
that time in my State, but we were beginning to make
progress. Maybe Georgia was even a little bit behind us. I
remember going down to Atlanta and then having to go to
Albany, GA, to attend events, then back into Atlanta. It
was one of those occasions where a number of Congressmen
and Senators came in to fly around the State, and then we
all came back in for the big dinner. It was logistically
hard to orchestrate. Then I finally met the maestro; the
maestro was Paul Coverdell.
Typically, I learned later, it was the way he would
work. He had five or six of us come in. We went to five or
six different places in the State like spokes on a wheel.
We came back. We had dinner. It was a very effective
event. Everything worked like clockwork because Paul
Coverdell was making it happen.
In those days, as I recall, he was in the State
Legislature, in the State Senate. They had three
Republicans. He was the Minority Leader. They had a
Minority Whip and they had a Whipee. There were three of
them. That is the way he used to describe his powerful
role in the Senate, although, as I came to find out a lot
later, he was a very effective member of the State Senate,
working as always both sides of the aisle, even though he
only had three in his party in the State Senate at that
time.
Of course, he went on to work in the Bush administration
in the Peace Corps. I was not quite sure what that meant,
but I am sure he did a great job at the Peace Corps. I
remember then supporting him when he actually ran for the
Senate in 1992. I was not that intimately involved in the
campaign but knew him to be a good man. I remember making
a pitch for him both here and in Georgia.
I really got to know him when he came to the Senate.
Almost immediately he started throwing himself into the
fray, whatever was going on. I remember we had the Clinton
health care plan. I think he made 147 appearances in one
State or another against the government takeover of health
care. He felt passionately about it. He took off on the
trail with Senator Phil Gramm and Senator John McCain.
They had a lot to do with the eventual, and in my opinion,
appropriate demise of that legislation. I learned that he
would not just talk a good game or would not just give
direction; he would put his body on the line. He would go
anywhere, anytime to see that the message was delivered.
Immediately he started saying if we are going to do this
in a positive way, if we are going to be fighting this
legislation, how are we going to get our message out? He
would be persistent about it. He would follow you around
and keep wanting to talk about it. I remember he actually
instituted meetings, at that time between the Speaker of
the House and me, first as whip and then as Majority
Leader, in which he would get the two of us together. He
would have charts. Here he is from Georgia in probably his
fourth year in the Senate, and he is using charts to
explain the situation to the Speaker of the House and the
Majority Leader. Only we listened because he had thought
about it; he was organized. He had some ideas.
I remember one occasion he said: ``You have to come to
Atlanta.''
I said: ``I don't want to come to Atlanta.''
He said: ``Just come for lunch; Newt and I want to sit
and talk with you.''
So I flew down. We had lunch. He had charts and he had a
video this time. He talked about how we should be planning
our strategy. Then we flew back. I thought about that many
times, in a way, the temerity of that. But that was Paul.
Nobody objected. Nobody took it as a threat. Nobody
worried that he was stepping on their turf. And thank
goodness, somebody was thinking and planning. That was
Paul.
After that he got involved as a member of the leadership
team. I really liked that because I can remember very
early on I realized that if there was a task that needed
to be performed that nobody else would do, I could call on
Paul; he would be glad to do it. I can remember going down
the leadership line: Would you have the time to do this?
Do you have the staff to do this? It would come down to
the third person. He always sat at the other end of the
leadership table. I would get to Paul, having had three
turndowns, and Paul would say: Sure, I'll do it.
Very quickly I began to call Paul ``Mikey.'' I like to
nickname Senators. Paul actually kind of liked being
called Mikey. Mikey came from the television cereal
commercial where the two kids are pushing a bowl of cereal
back and forth saying: You eat it; no, you eat it.
Finally, they push it to the third little boy and say:
Give it to Mikey; he'll try anything.
That was the way Paul was. When all the other great
leaders of the Senate were not willing to take the time,
not willing to do the dirty, difficult, time-consuming
job, Mikey would do it. I remember every time I called him
Mikey, he would break out in a big smile. Tricia, my wife,
picked it up, too. We liked to talk to Nancy about how
sorry we were to have kept him tied up a little extra,
too, sometimes in the Senate. But Mikey had his work to
do. So it was a very affectionate term I had for him, and
it described him so perfectly.
He was not a funny, ha-ha sort of guy, but he was
willing to laugh. He had a sense of humor. He was willing
to laugh at himself, which really made him attractive. He
was self-effacing. There was no grandeur there. He was, as
Clyde Rodbell said in his remarks at the services
Saturday: ``An ordinary man with extraordinary . . .
talents.'' He was willing to work hard to make up for
whatever he lacked in some other way. He surely was loyal.
I never had to worry about anything I said or asked Paul
to do being used in an inappropriate way against me or
against anybody else. He would handle it properly. And he
was sensitive. He was always sensitive: Did I do the right
thing? Did this Senator react in an uncertain way?
I remember asking him to come and help us on the floor
on issues he cared about. He really cared about education.
He wanted education savings accounts. He believed it would
help parents with children in school. He believed it would
help low-income parents have the ability to save just a
little bit of their money, just a little bit to help their
children with clothes or computers or tutoring. If we ever
find a way to pass that legislation, instead of education
savings accounts, it should be the Coverdell savings
accounts. That would be an appropriate memorial and
monument to Paul Coverdell. He believed in it. It was not
a partisan, political idea. It was something he thought
would make a difference.
As for drugs, I remember him following me around in the
well heckling me about the need to pay more attention to
the drug running in the Gulf of Mexico area across the
borders in the Southwest. The Senator from Arizona worked
with him on that issue. I remember his commitment to
trying to be helpful to the Government in Colombia to
fight drug terrorism there. He was passionate about it
because he felt it threatened our country, threatened our
very sovereignty, and it threatened our children. Once
again, as with education, he saw what it was doing or
could do to our children. Again, he was involved.
One of the last discussions I had with him was on the
intelligence authorization bill. There is a provision in
it which he did not like. He was determined to make his
case on that. In his memory, we will make sure his case is
made by Senator Kyl, Senator Feinstein, Senator DeWine,
perhaps others. He really dug into issues and made a
difference.
I also called on him at times when there really was
nobody else who could take the time to do the job.
He worked with us for a week on the floor on the Labor,
HHS, Education appropriations bill. I came in one day and
found that we had over 200 amendments pending. Somebody
had to take the time to work with both sides to get those
amendments reduced, accepted, eliminated, withdrawn, or
whatever. To his credit, Senator Specter said: I would
like to have Paul help me with this.
Other leadership members were involved in other issues.
I could not be here. Senator Nickles could not be here.
Within a short period of time, the 200 became 50. Before
the week was out, it was done.
Senator Reid will tell you that Paul really made the
difference. He did not just hang out on this side of the
aisle; he was rummaging around on the other side trying to
see if we could work through it. I remember at the end of
the week he was pale and, obviously, stressed. He came to
my office and said: Boy, do I understand a little bit
better what your job entails.
Well, he was able to do it because nobody felt
threatened by Paul. He was not getting in my hair,
stepping on Senator Nickles' turf, or pushing amendments
away. He was working with everybody. Nobody got mad.
Nobody got even. It is sort of a unique thing for a
Senator to be able to do that.
So I guess I will be trying to find another ``Mikey.''
But I do not think there is one. And so as I thought about
doing this speech, I tried to find some statement, poem,
something that would pay a tribute to Senator Coverdell. I
came across a passage from a poem, ``The Comfort of
Friends,'' by William Penn.
He said:
They that love beyond the world
Cannot be separated by it.
Death cannot kill what never dies,
Nor can spirits ever be divided
That love and live in the same divine principle:
[Because that is] the root and record of their
friendship.
Mr. President, I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Wyoming is
recognized.
Mr. THOMAS. Mr. President, I thank the Leader for his
comments and his very strong feelings about friends,
people with whom he has worked.
I had a little different experience, I guess, with Paul
Coverdell in that he was here when I came. So I was not in
this business of leadership with him. Indeed, he took time
to spend time with those of us who were new and to say how
can I help you? How can we work together? This was the
kind of man that Paul Coverdell was. Certainly, he was an
image that each of us should seek to perpetuate--that of
caring, that of really feeling strongly about issues, and
then, of course, being willing to do something about it.
So I want to share with the Leader my sorrow and sadness
in not having Paul Coverdell here with us. I extend our
condolences to his family.
Mr. KYL. Mr. President, I appreciate the opportunity to
take a few moments to reflect on some things you said and
also on what the Majority Leader said a little while ago.
After our colleague Paul Coverdell died, I made a very
brief statement on the floor. I knew I should speak
briefly because it would be difficult to talk very long
about Paul without becoming too emotional.
I think at a time when politics generally and
politicians specifically are the subject of a lot of
humor--they are denigrated because of cynicism about the
political process, and in fact in some cases the
denigration of some politicians is probably warranted--it
is important for the American people to be reassured that
there are some extraordinarily fine public servants who
toil very hard on their behalf and who are responsible for
whatever good comes out of these institutions--the House
and the Senate.
Paul Coverdell was such a man. All of us who have spoken
about him have shared with our colleagues and with the
American people the same general notion that it is amazing
what you can do if you are willing to let others take the
credit for it. That was Paul Coverdell--self-effacing,
very hard working, totally trustworthy and honest.
Everyone could rely upon him to do the things that had to
be done without fear he would in any way attempt to take
advantage of any situation. He was as solid as a rock and
a very important part of this institution--someone who
really helped to make it run, and run in a good way.
I am sure my constituents in Arizona for the most part
are unaware of Senator Coverdell, but they and others all
around this country need to know how sorely he will be
missed--not only personally but professionally--and how
important a contribution he made to this country. There
are truly some wonderful public servants, and Paul
Coverdell was one of the best.
Mr. LOTT. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that
the Senate now proceed to the immediate consideration of
S. Res. 341, which is at the desk.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the
resolution by title.
The legislative clerk read as follows:
A resolution (S. Res. 341) authorizing the printing of
certain materials in honor of Paul Coverdell.
There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to
consider the resolution.
Mr. LOTT. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that
the resolution be agreed to, and the motion to reconsider
be laid upon the table.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
Without objection, it is so ordered.
The resolution (S. Res. 341) was agreed to, as follows:
S. Res. 341
Resolved, That the eulogies and other related materials
concerning the Honorable Paul Coverdell, late a Senator
from the State of Georgia, be printed as a Senate
Document.
Mr. LOTT. Madam President, I note, again, for all
Senators, that this authorizes the printing of certain
materials to honor Senator Paul Coverdell. We will
designate a specific period of time later on this week so
Senators who have not spoken will have an opportunity to
do so. Of course, we will then pull together all of the
statements that have been made about Senator Coverdell for
his widow, Nancy Coverdell.
Tuesday, July 25, 2000
Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. President, I rise today to add my
condolences to those of my colleagues on the passing of
our friend and colleague, Senator Paul Coverdell of
Georgia.
Senator Coverdell was a model of proper conduct and
decorum becoming of a Senator. He conducted himself in the
quiet, deliberative manner that reflected his commitment
to a thorough performance of his duties. He was a true
leader, willing to do his best for all Americans.
Most recently, he and I worked together to keep our
Nation's promise to provide health care coverage to
military retirees, when we introduced legislation together
earlier this year. As my colleagues know, Senator
Coverdell had extreme pride in this country. It was an
honor to work with him on making good to those people who
have served their Nation and are now in the years of
declining health. It was also an honor to work with
Senator Coverdell every day, for he was truly interested
in ensuring that our democracy remained strong and pushed
forward confidently into the 21st century.
Mr. President, I wish to extend my condolences to the
Coverdell family, to Senator Coverdell's many friends and
his staff. The entire Senate family has lost a friend and
the Nation has lost a leader. However, we are all enriched
by having known such an honorable man. His service and
commitment will have a definite and lasting legacy.
Wednesday, July 26, 2000
Mr. GORTON. Mr. President, all last week I deferred
coming to the floor to speak about my friend, Paul
Coverdell, on the grounds that it might be easier to do so
this week. It is not. It is not, but it is vitally
important to memorialize such a friend.
Every Monday evening or Tuesday morning, Paul Coverdell
and I sat at the end of the table during leadership
meetings in the Majority Leader's office, with an
opportunity to comment on all of the issues that came
before that group. Frequently, however, at the end of the
table, we would exchange whispered remarks on some of the
other people or subject matter, either present or not
present. Paul Coverdell had a wonderful sense of humor,
there and elsewhere: Dry, gentle, always to the point. It
was a delightful pleasure to share those moments,
sometimes stressful, sometimes marvelously relaxed, with
such a man.
If you sought advice on a matter of vitally important
public policy, Paul Coverdell was one of the first you
would seek out. You knew that anything he would discuss
with you would be filled with wisdom and common sense, and
that stacking your remarks against his would focus and
sharpen your own thoughts and your own ideas. It hardly
mattered what the subject was--education, taxes, national
security, a dozen others; the advice was always good and
always relevant.
If you then sought tactics or advice on how to
accomplish a shared goal, Paul Coverdell was a man whom
you sought out. Particularly if there were an individual
in your own party, or in the other party, whom you might
be reluctant, for one reason or another, to approach, you
could ask Paul Coverdell to do it for you, and he would.
There was no task, there was no detail that was too small
for him, none that he thought was beneath him, if it was
constructive, if it would help the cause in the long term.
One way in which you can determine individuals'
reactions to other individuals is in a group. At the
Republican Conference meeting immediately before the
Fourth of July recess, Paul Coverdell, as the Secretary of
the Conference, presented us a little plastic note card,
the top of which read ``Republican Policy.'' I no longer
remember the particular subject, but I do remember that
first one or two people said, ``I don't agree with point
3.'' Pretty soon, everyone was piling on. Finally, one of
our colleagues wrote across the top of his, ``One
Republican's Policy,'' and handed it back to Paul
Coverdell, who just went back to perfect his message.
Whom you tease, you generally love. That in many
respects was an expression of the love and respect his
Republican colleagues had for Paul Coverdell.
Paul Coverdell made us all proud of our profession, a
profession often criticized, in fact a profession rarely
praised. When a State sends a Paul Coverdell to the
Senate, it is proof positive that our system works. And
when the Senate of the United States listens to and
respects and follows a Paul Coverdell, that, too, is proof
that our system works. When, as was my privilege, you come
to know and are befriended by a Paul Coverdell, you are
especially privileged and especially honored. I was so
privileged. I was so honored.
I will not know his like again.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Ohio.
Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I congratulate my colleague
from Washington State on very eloquent comments about our
dear friend, Paul Coverdell. I had the chance a few days
ago to make some more extensive comments than I will
tonight about Senator Coverdell. But I just want to add, I
had the opportunity, as many Members of the Senate did, to
travel to Atlanta this past weekend to participate in that
very wonderful service for our dear friend. I do not think
it really hit me that he was really gone until I got back
this week to Washington and started contemplating this
Senate body without Paul Coverdell and all that he meant
to each and every one of us. He was our friend. We loved
him very much. This body, this institution, is a poorer
place because he is gone.
Each one of us is richer because we were privileged to
know this very gentle, this very kind, this very sweet,
this very good man.
Thursday, July 27, 2000
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Florida.
Mr. MACK. Mr. President, the 10 days since his sudden
passing and the outpouring of expression from many
different directions have given me the opportunity to
reflect on Senator Coverdell's life, the gifts he brought
to the Senate, and the impact his life had on people.
I want to focus my remarks on Paul Coverdell's humility,
which I think was his defining quality, his greatest gift,
and one which had the greatest impact on the lives of
others.
Many people might say that humility, sometimes defined
as freedom from pride or arrogance, is a quality not found
often in our society today. No one disputes, however, that
Paul Coverdell possessed a deep sense of humility.
During the past 10 days, Paul Coverdell has been
described as: Serious and low key; self-effacing;
uncomfortable in the limelight; a humble public servant
who became a political giant through selfless dedication
and quiet civility; a very gentle and courteous person; a
person people went to, felt really comfortable with, and
opened up to; a person who really cared for what happened
to others; a person many regarded as the Senate's leading
mediator; a person of scrupulous integrity and unblemished
character; a person with an unsurpassed work ethic and
standard of personal ethics and devotion to what he was
doing; a person who always kept his word and was someone
you could count on--just to mention a few
characterizations.
How many of us would like to be known as individuals who
possess these qualities?
Too often we think success results from aggressive,
enterprising, pushy, and contentious behavior. Paul
Coverdell's success came from his combination of humility
and energy which helped him to become the cornerstone of
the Georgia Republican Party. A person whose objective was
to make his State party credible and viable in what had
been virtually a one-party State; a political mentor to a
number of politicians on both sides of the aisle; a person
who was said by former Senator Sam Nunn to be ``the person
who makes the Senate work;'' and finally, a person of whom
Democrats in his State said that his legacy is one of
actions and deeds, not words and glory; friendship and
trust, not cynicism and betrayal.
There is no question that the outpouring of sentiment on
the subject of Paul's humility, humanity, and his
contribution to his State and to his Nation would have
overwhelmed him. He would have been embarrassed by all of
the adulation and attention.
Paul was the personification of Proverbs 22:4: ``the
reward for humility and fear of the Lord . . . is riches
and honor and life.'' Paul Coverdell surely conducted his
life in a manner that resulted in great riches and honor
of public opinion.
The Book of Revelation 20:12, states: ``and I saw the
dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and
books were opened. Also, another book was opened, the book
of life. And the dead were judged according to their
works, as recorded in the books.''
Our earthly judgment of Paul Coverdell will surely be
confirmed in heaven. Paul's works and his hardworking
qualities were legendary.
I want to take a moment to speak about a passion of
Paul's. He often talked of the importance of freedom,
challenging each of us to do our part to ensure that the
legacy of 1776 endures for generations to come. I picked
out a few passages concerning freedom from some of his
speeches, and I want to repeat them today.
From a Veteran's Day speech: ``In the end, all that any
of us can do with regard to this great democracy is to do
our part . . . during our time.''
From a speech to an annual meeting of the Georgia Youth
Farmers Association:
You live by the grace of God in the greatest democracy
in the history of the entire world. And each of us has our
own personal responsibility to help care for it, to love
it, and to serve it.
From a speech to an ecumenical service at Ebenezer
Baptist Church in Atlanta:
Several years ago I was in Bangladesh, the poorest
country in the world, on the day they created their
democracy. A Bangladeshi said to me, ``I don't know if you
or your fellow citizens of your country understand the
role you play for democracy everywhere. It is an awesome
responsibility and I don't envy you, but I pray, sir, that
you and your fellow citizens continue to accept it.
Finally, from a speech at an Andersonville, GA, Memorial
Day ceremony:
I am sure that each of you, like me, has wondered how we
can ever adequately honor these great Americans who made
the ultimate sacrifice for the preservation of our Nation
and the great Americans who suffered and endured on these
hallowed grounds as prisoners of war. We look across these
fields and see monuments. We have heard an elegant poem
written by a young American. We have tried through movies
to somehow express our gratitude. Nothing ever quite seems
to meet the challenge. I have finally concluded in my mind
and in my heart that the only way to appropriately express
our gratitude is through duty and stewardship to this
great Nation.
Paul Coverdell truly expressed his gratitude to his
country in the manner in which he lived his life--through
his service and stewardship to our Nation.
Perhaps the ultimate compliment for a politician was
accorded Paul Coverdell by one of his constituents, who
simply said: He gave politics a good name.
Paul was an unsung hero, the glue that bound us
together, particularly on the Republican side, but he also
had an unusually fair presence in the entire body of this
Senate. We are blessed and better off because of the
impact of Paul's humility.
I hope I have learned something from him about life. God
sent him so many friends--and he recognized us all and
embraced us. We are thankful and grateful for his presence
in our lives. And the loss of Paul Coverdell has made me
realize just how much I am going to miss each of you when
I leave the Senate in a few months.
Mr. President, I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Mississippi.
Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, it is very hard to adjust to
the sad reality of Paul Coverdell's absence from the
Senate. I miss him very much. And the Senate, we have to
admit, is not the same without him.
It was always a genuine pleasure to be in his company. I
enjoyed very much going to Georgia with him during his
reelection campaign. I also returned with him to learn
more about the severe problems his State's agricultural
producers were experiencing from the drought. We worked
together on these and other issues that were important to
our region on the Senate Agriculture Committee.
He was a very influential force in the Senate for the
people of his State. And he was a thoughtful leader on
national issues as well.
While we continue to mourn his passing, we should try to
carry on with the same determination and energy he brought
to the challenges he faced. His example will be a very
valuable legacy. Not only has Georgia benefited from his
good efforts to represent its interests, but also through
his leadership as Director of the Peace Corps, and on
other international issues, where he has made the world a
better and safer place for all mankind.
Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, I thank the Majority
Leader for setting aside time this morning so many of us
could pay tribute to Paul Coverdell. Certainly last week,
many of us who were friends with Paul really were not up
to giving him a proper tribute because the shock of losing
one of our friends was so enormous that we really did not
feel that we could get through the kind of tribute that
Paul deserves. So I thank the Majority Leader for giving
us this time.
We have now had a chance to collect our thoughts about
the sudden death of our colleague and friend, Paul
Coverdell of Georgia. One need only look at the breadth of
representation at the memorial service in Atlanta to
understand the many ways in which Paul's life affected
ours.
At the service, it was hard to miss the sweet but sad
irony that, for one last time, Paul Coverdell was the
great unifier. The Democratic Governor of Georgia,
Governor Barnes, called Paul Coverdell--one of just a
handful of Republicans in the State Legislature when
Governor Barnes, himself, was elected to the Legislature
in 1974--he called Paul his best teacher in politics.
Senator Kennedy, our colleague from across the aisle, with
whom Senator Coverdell had tangled on many important
education issues, sat right next to me in the church to
honor Paul Coverdell.
Senator Coverdell is sorely missed in the Senate and in
Georgia.
He is not missed because he was a great legislator--but
he was. His innovative approach to helping families have
more flexibility in education spending became the
Coverdell education savings account bill.
We do not feel his loss as badly as we do simply because
he was a great Senate Leader--but he was. His leadership
could bring disparate policy and political strands
together to form a single, strong bond that allowed us to
move forward with our priorities.
Others have said it, but I will repeat for emphasis:
Paul Coverdell was as close as any Senator comes to being
indispensable to his party.
He will not be missed most because he was a giant in
Georgia politics--but he was. Over the past third of a
century, he built, from virtually nothing, the Republican
Party of Georgia, starting at a time when, much as in my
own home State of Texas, Republicans numbered only a few
in the State Legislature.
Georgia is a better State today--and so is Texas--
because there is a strong two-party system. Paul Coverdell
is the reason why. And the people of Georgia registered
their appreciation by making him the first Georgia
Republican in over a century to be reelected to the
Senate.
And he will not be missed the most because he was an
outstanding administrator and a man of vision as the
Director of the Peace Corps--but that is certainly the
case.
Paul Coverdell was the right man for the job in 1989
when President Bush appointed him to head the Peace Corps,
just as the Berlin Wall came tumbling down.
In 1989, Poland, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia were
emerging from behind the Iron Curtain. Paul Coverdell
thought about his agency. It was a creature of the cold
war, created to keep the Third World from falling prey to
communism by exposing those countries to the energy,
promise and ideals of American youth.
The Peace Corps helped win the cold war, and Paul
Coverdell had the vision to know that it could also help
win the peace. Although it had been dedicated to helping
underdeveloped countries with subsistence agriculture and
infrastructure projects, Director Paul Coverdell saw the
promise of helping win the cold war peace when he asked:
``Why not in Europe, too?''
Under his leadership, the Peace Corps began sending
volunteers into Eastern Europe and the former Soviet
Union, blazing a new trail for this old cold war agency.
On June 15, 1990, President George Bush wished farewell to
the first such volunteers as they departed for Hungary and
Poland.
Today, those countries are firmly in the sphere of
freedom and democracy, and last year joined the North
Atlantic Treaty Organization. Paul Coverdell's vision had
become a reality.
When he was Director of the Peace Corps, Senator
Coverdell emphasized a particular program that had gone
fallow given the many other priorities the agency was
facing. This program, part of the Peace Corps' legislative
mandate to foster greater global understanding by U.S.
citizens, offered fellowship to returning volunteers in
exchange for their agreement to work in an underserved
American community as they pursued their degree.
Senator Coverdell placed renewed emphasis on this
program as Director of the Peace Corps and has been
credited by Peace Corps alumni for his leadership in this
area. These fellowships, funded through private-sector
financed scholarships or reduced tuition agreements with
universities and colleges, have been a great success.
Senator Coverdell obviously continued his pursuit of
excellence in education with many innovative proposals
right here in this body. I will be offering legislation
that renames the program the Paul D. Coverdell Peace Corps
Fellowship in memory of his commitment to both the Peace
Corps and education.
A greater legislator, a leader of his party and of his
State, a man of peace and vision: These surely describe
Paul Coverdell, but they do not explain the depth and
breadth of warm outpouring that we have seen since his
sudden death last week.
More than any other reason, Senator Coverdell will be
missed because he was a sweet, warm man, utterly without
pretension.
Paul Coverdell: statesman; husband; Senator; leader; but
above all, gentleman.
For all the wonderful tributes our colleagues have
offered here in the Senate, and those that were made at
Paul's service on Saturday, none surpass in sincerity and
simplicity those posted on the Atlanta Journal-
Constitution's tribute web site by ordinary Georgians.
A real reflection of Paul's impact is that there are
postings from all around the country. But one, in
particular, bears quoting. A man from Duluth, GA, quotes
from a well-known essay: ``The True Gentleman'' to
describe Paul, and it certainly fits:
The True Gentleman is the man whose conduct proceeds
from good will . . . whose self-control is equal to all
emergencies; who does not make the poor man conscious of
his poverty, the obscure man of his obscurity . . .; who
is himself humbled if necessity compels him to humble
another; who does not flatter wealth, cringe before power,
or boast of his own possessions or achievements; who
speaks with frankness but always with sincerity and
sympathy; whose deed follows his word; who thinks of the
rights and feelings of others, rather than his own; and
who appears well in any company, a man with whom honor is
sacred and virtue safe.
How true these words ring of my friend, Paul Coverdell.
I close with the words of a young boy from Georgia,
written early in the last century in his school notebook.
When assigned to write a short thought about how he wanted
to live his life, the young boy, just 10 years or so at
the time, wrote:
I cannot do much, said the little star, To make the dark
world bright.
My silver beams cannot pierce far into the gloom of night.
Yet--I am part of God's plan, And I will do the best I
can.
That sounds like Paul, another Georgian whose star
burned so bright and who fulfilled God's plan by doing the
best he could.
Those words were written by young Richard Russell, as a
fourth grade student. Richard Russell went on to become a
great Senator from Georgia, who, like Paul, died in office
in 1971. Russell's name graces the building that houses my
office, and Paul Coverdell's, too.
Today, we consider those great men and the reward they
have gone on to enjoy. We miss them; we miss Paul
Coverdell today, and the Senate is a lonelier, less happy
place without him. Godspeed to our friend.
Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. President, I rise this morning to
comment on the extraordinary and wonderful life of my
friend and our colleague, Paul Coverdell of Georgia. While
my abilities are unequal to this task, I believe I must
try, not because my mere comments will add the slightest
glimmer of luster to his sterling legacy but because it is
important for me and those living to contemplate his
exemplary character, ways of working, positive spirit,
courage, and enthusiasm.
The one thing I want to remember most about Paul is that
quick, genuine, and, at times, childlike smile he had. It
seemed a bit whimsical, sometimes a bit tired, a bit
resigned, at first glance; but on closer observation, that
smile was always full of understanding, compassion, and
insight into the difficulties we face. Paul's smile was
never silly or false but frequent, wise, encompassing, and
in empathy and comprehension for our frailties, completely
knowing our weaknesses and encapsulating the
precariousness of our human and political condition. Yes,
it was fresh and childlike and frequently given; yet in
that smile was great strength. There was a kind of
understanding there that was born of experience, study,
insight, and concern. Moreover, because it was founded on
an honest appreciation of our present condition in this
life, its warmth, its humanity never failed to inspire.
Paul Coverdell was an honest man, an honest broker, an
honest leader. Paul Coverdell had the courage to act on
that honesty, to speak the truth in a positive way. He
always saw the glass half full, not half empty. These
qualities have the capacity to inspire, and they have
never failed to inspire me. When I was frustrated,
doubtful, and concerned, I always looked for a chance to
speak with Paul. On occasion, if he sensed I was troubled,
he would seek me out. After those conversations I always
felt encouraged.
As I think on it today, he was a greater encourager for
me and for others than I realized at the time. His
friendship, insight, and advice were invaluable for my
start in the Senate 3 years ago. I will deeply miss him.
On the day following his death, I spoke on this floor
and said that I knew we rightly should celebrate his life
and not mourn, but I was not able to celebrate at that
time because of the hurt of his loss. I am better now, but
his death has struck me and others in this body hard.
Still, Paul Coverdell's life is, indeed, to be
celebrated. He loved his country. He understood its
greatness and uniqueness and deeply loved it. He loved the
Senate. His tireless work on matters great and small was
abundant evidence of that fact. Paul enjoyed the debate,
and helping develop strategy for the leadership, but his
ultimate goal was always to improve his country. That was
the constant goal of his service. He loved the Members of
the Senate--all of them--even those with whom he disagreed
and he was loved in return.
Paul Coverdell was a very effective Senator. He followed
through on his assignments. He passed legislation and he
helped many others pass important legislation. In that
small frame, he had, as Phil Gramm said, the heart of a
lion. Paul was a man of great principle and it was a rich
and deeply understood American tradition to which he
adhered with vigor. Paul was knowledgeable. He knew a lot
about a lot of things. Experiences like the Peace Corps
had taught him much. That knowledge made him wise and
helpful to all of us in this body.
Paul, though not at all naive, was certainly optimistic.
Even if he knew something bad was about to happen, he
looked beyond that bad event and saw possibilities in the
future for an even greater good. That was always the case
with him. I remember numerous occasions in which he saw
beyond temporary setbacks and could visualize a positive
future. His optimism helped shape the agenda of the
Republican Conference. It was always his method to focus
on our successes, and not on the frustrations. Once one
listened fairly to his arguments, one could have no choice
but to become optimistic also.
Certainly this Senate has lost a giant. He held a
position of great leadership, was projected to continue to
rise in leadership and was a tireless supporter of all
Members of this body.
My sympathies, and those of my wife, Mary, are extended
to Nancy, to his mother and to other members of the
family. They have suffered the greatest loss. The
Scripture says our time on this Earth is but as a vapor.
Indeed, James 4:13 puts us in our place. It says:
Come now, you who say, ``Today or tomorrow we will go to
such and such town and spend a year there and get gain,''
whereas you do not know about tomorrow. What is your life?
For you are but a mist that appears for a little time and
then vanishes. Instead, you should say, If the Lord wills,
we shall live and do this or that, and it is your boast in
your arrogance.
That was not Paul. He was not a person of arrogance.
More than any other person in this body that I can know,
he was a man of unassuming personality, a man of genuine
humility, a person utterly without pretension. I think he
showed us a lot.
I don't know any 150-year-old people. All of us must
expect to die. Our challenge is to keep the faith, to
maintain our ideals, to adhere to great principles and to
live with enthusiasm. Paul Coverdell was a good man and he
set a good example for all of us. His death should call us
all to intensify our own efforts to fill the void he
leaves so that we may serve our country with effectiveness
and strengthen the qualities that make up this great
Senate.
I pray God will give us the ability to meet the
challenges that are before us, that He will comfort those
who are mourning, and that we can continue to maintain the
ideals that Paul shared with us for a great and vigorous
and effective America.
Mr. SANTORUM. Mr. President, I come to the floor this
morning, following my distinguished colleague and good
friend from Alabama, feeling the same inadequacy to
express my thoughts and feelings about the life of someone
for whom I had a tremendous amount of respect. As Phil
Gramm so aptly put it in his eulogy on Saturday, if you
knew Paul Coverdell, he was your friend. Paul was a
friend.
I guess in the last week from reading and listening and
talking to people about Paul, it is incredible that in
this city someone could be so universally understood by
everyone. All of us are individuals. We are very complex.
Some often say in Washington that politicians have many
facets and many faces. Paul was Paul. He was like that to
me. He was like it to Jeff. He was like it to the
Presiding Officer. He was like it to everyone here.
Everyone who has gotten up and talked about Paul said the
same thing in the final analysis. They talked about his
decency, his good nature, his peacemaking, his optimism,
his energy, and his enthusiasm.
I understand we are going to compile all of the things
that have been said about Paul. The remarkable thing is
the sameness of what everyone says about Paul. It is a
remarkable quality in and of itself--that Paul was always
Paul. He was always himself. He was never trying to be
something for everyone to meet their expectation. He was
who he was, as genuine and as pure as you can possibly be.
That is a tremendous gift that he had.
It is so resoundingly amplified by the comments of our
colleagues whose eulogies and comments have been out of
the same embryo. That may be one of the great legacies and
lessons of Paul Coverdell and his life.
There are a few people who I want to thank. First, I
thank Nancy and his mother for the dedication that they
gave to Paul in allowing him to provide his service.
He spent an incredible amount of time working issues,
long days and long nights away from Nancy while she was in
Georgia. She made a tremendous sacrifice for him and for
his career in the Senate. Obviously, the impact she had on
Paul's life was profound and positive. The same could be
said for his mother. I cannot imagine a mother being more
proud of a son than Paul's mother was of him and the
contribution he made to Georgia, to the Senate, to this
country.
I thank the people of Georgia for sending the Senate
Paul Coverdell. He had some tough races but Georgia stood
behind him, supported him, and elected a Republican
Senator, twice, from the State of Georgia. Georgia should
be very proud of that choice.
Finally, I thank God for sending Paul, a truly
extraordinary person. When I found out on Tuesday Paul
very well may not make it, I was sitting in the back
talking to Senator Gorton. I was talking about what a
tragic loss it would be should Paul die. I looked around
at the desks, I looked at Slade, and I said: I don't know
where Paul's desk is. He never sat at his desk. He was
always running all over the place--down in the well, back
in the Cloakroom, running from place to place. He was
never at his desk. I thought to myself, where did he sit?
What a fitting analysis of the role that Paul Coverdell
played in this place. He was everywhere, doing everything,
never sitting back at his desk worried about himself or
what he would say or do but running around making things
happen, back in the Cloakroom with that styrofoam Waffle
House coffee cup. I don't know where he got all those
styrofoam Waffle House cups, but he had one in his hand
all the time. There would be two or three placed
throughout the Cloakroom by the end of the day. Everyone
knew where Paul had been. He was just working all the
time, putting every ounce of his energy--and it was an
incredible amount of energy--into his work in the Senate.
I was at the funeral on Saturday. Many things were said
about Paul moving on from one life to the next. It
reminded me of a quote from a funeral I attended earlier
this year for Governor Casey in Scranton, PA. The quote on
the back of the book we received when we came into the
church could not help but remind me of Paul: ``Death is
not extinguishing the light. It is putting out the lamp
because the dawn has come.''
Paul's light here in the Senate burned so bright. He
illuminated every conversation. Every room he walked into
with his energy, with his positive attitude, with his
optimism. That light will be missed. Lights that seem to
burn the brightest are doomed not to burn the longest. If
we are measuring the wattage or the illumination that has
been cast on this Earth, no one cast more light in 61
years than Paul ever did. It is a comfort to know that the
dawn for Paul has come and that he is experiencing a
brighter light than we all know right now. It is a comfort
to know he is experiencing that light and is in heaven.
As a Catholic, I believe in intercessory prayer. Those
in heaven can pray to God to help those on Earth. I know
Paul is praying for us. I ask for your prayers, Paul, for
all of us here, because we will miss you.
Mrs. LINCOLN. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute
to a noble Southern gentleman, Senator Paul Coverdell. All
of us in the Senate were saddened by the sudden loss of
such a fine man, and we will sorely miss him. As a
relative newcomer to the Senate, I have spent a great deal
of my time on the Senate floor observing my colleagues.
You can tell a lot about a person by his demeanor, and I
first grew to like Paul Coverdell simply by watching him.
He wore a cloak of peacefulness around him and he radiated
kindness. It was rare to see him without a smile.
When I began working with him on the Small Watershed
Dams Rehabilitation bill, I realized that my first
impressions of him had been accurate. He was, indeed, kind
and friendly. It was a pleasure to work with him in a
bipartisan manner on an issue that is vital to both of our
States. As is obvious by his rise within the leadership of
the Republican Party, he was extremely loyal to his party.
But he never let partisanship interfere with his
relationships in the Senate. In short, he was a statesman
in every sense of the word.
To his wife, Nancy, and the rest of his family, I extend
my sincere condolences. Public life is not an easy one,
and our country's greatest leaders can be identified by
the support system that is their family. Thank you, Nancy,
for sharing Paul with the rest of us.
Mr. ALLARD. Mr. President, as we today welcome Senator
Coverdell's successor, I wanted to talk about the man
whose shoes he must fill.
Last week the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's tribute
article to our late friend Paul Coverdell included the
following story. Once, at a county fair on a hot summer
day, someone asked Paul why he was wearing a coat and tie
in such a casual setting. Paul replied that he had noticed
that in an emergency, when people are trying to figure out
what to do, they always go to the guy with the tie on.
Well, tie or not, Senator Coverdell was a guy whom we
always went to.
I, like many of us on both sides of the aisle,
considered him a friend. His hand and arm gestures will
always be remembered as ``get up and go'' signs. I had the
privilege of lunching with Paul nearly every Wednesday for
the last several years and his presence there was a treat.
He was a hard worker. He knew where he wanted to go. And
he was willing to help those with whom he teamed on
issues--issues that were invariably important and
meaningful. I checked last night, and there are 103 pieces
of legislation listed as sponsored by Senator Coverdell.
Now, Paul did work on parochial legislation for his
State, and he had his share of technical bills, but he
also authored many significant and far-reaching national
provisions. He worked for the country as well as Georgia,
and strove to improve the education, the safety, and the
prospects of our children specifically and our citizenry
generally.
He had an IRS reform bill, the Safe and Affordable
Schools Act, education IRAs, antidrug legislation . . .
and then there are the countless hours spent working on
bills for his colleagues and conference. Even his
commemorative bills were significant--Reagan Washington
National Airport for example, a bill I jumped to co-
sponsor.
He had 30 productive years of service to his country--
Army postings in Asia, Georgia State Senate, Peace Corps
Director, and an invaluable Member of the U.S. Senate. I
was proud to be his friend and colleague. I will miss my
friend from Georgia.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to have printed
in the Record the article from the Atlanta Journal-
Constitution.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be
printed in the Record, as follows:
[From the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, July 19, 2000]
He Was a Great, Great Man
colleagues recall georgian as hard worker
(By Alan Judd)
Once, when he was chairman of the state Republican
Party, Paul Coverdell spent a hot Saturday at a county
fair in North Georgia. As always, he was spreading the
Republican word. And as usual, despite the casual setting,
he was dressed in coat and tie.
Lee Raudonis, a longtime aide, recalls that when he
asked why, Coverdell responded: ``Well, I've noticed that
if there's ever any kind of emergency and people are
trying to figure out what to do, they always go to the guy
with the tie on.''
For three decades, as a Georgia lawmaker, state party
leader, Peace Corps director and U.S. senator, Paul
Coverdell was the man people went to.
As word of his death spread Tuesday, many of those who
counted on Coverdell said they couldn't fathom a world in
which they couldn't turn to him.
``Unbelievable,'' said state Rep. Bob Irvin of Atlanta,
the Georgia House minority leader, a friend of Coverdell's
since they met at a campaign rally on July 4, 1968. ``He
was my oldest and best friend in politics.''
``We shall miss him as we would miss our own son,''
former President George Bush, one of Coverdell's closest
friends, said in a statement. ``We loved him dearly.''
Coverdell's death at age 61 came as he reached the
pinnacle of a life in politics. Although less than 2 years
into his second six-year term, he was the fifth-highest
Republican in the Senate's power structure. And he was the
Senate liaison for the presumptive Republican presidential
nominee, Texas Gov. George W. Bush.
It was a heady time for Paul Douglas Coverdell, an
insurance agent turned politician who moved to Atlanta as
a teenager in the early 1950s from his native Des Moines,
Iowa.
After graduating from Northside High School, he attended
the University of Missouri, where he received a bachelor's
degree in journalism. He spent 2 years in the Army before
returning to Atlanta to take over his family's insurance
business. Soon, his interests turned to politics.
In 1970, he was elected to the State Senate from a north
Atlanta district. At the time, Republican legislators were
rare, so Coverdell formed alliances with like-minded
Democrats. By the late 1970s, then-Lt. Gov. Zell Miller
had appointed Coverdell to chair the Senate Retirement
Committee--a first, said a former Senate colleague, Pierre
Howard.
``He was one of the hardest-working, most disciplined,
most incisive public servants I've ever known,'' said
Howard, who later became lieutenant governor. ``There was
nobody who surpassed his work ethic and his ethics and his
devotion to what he was doing. You might not agree with
him on an issue here or there, but you always knew that he
was sincere and that he was well-informed and that he was
going to work hard to achieve the objective that he had.''
Since the mid-1970s, his objective was to make the GOP
credible and viable in what had long been virtually a one-
party State.
``He really never, ever let go of this stuff,'' said
Rep. John Linder (R-Ga.). ``If there was an evening when
he was free from 9 to 12, he'd pace around his driveway
and think about what would be next.''
Coverdell and other Republicans--Mack Mattingly, a
future U.S. senator, and future House Speaker Newt
Gingrich, among them--met regularly at St. Simons Island
to establish long-range goals for the party.
``That group actually worked to develop what in many
ways became the modern Republican Party in Georgia,''
Gingrich said Tuesday night from California. ``We've been
a very close team for the last 26 years.''
Although a staunch Republican, Coverdell eschewed
partisanship. It was a quality that served him well,
Gingrich said.
``Paul had several strengths that combined in an unusual
way,'' Gingrich said. ``He was very intelligent. He had a
great deal of courage. He was willing to take
responsibility. He would work very, very hard. And he
always kept his word. That gave you somebody you could
count on and work with in a very remarkable way.''
Beginning in 1978, Coverdell formed a close friendship
with another politician, a relationship that would help
propel him to a higher political level.
While vacationing with his wife, Nancy, in
Kennebunkport, Maine, Coverdell opened the local telephone
book to look up one of the town's best-known residents:
George Bush, the former U.S. ambassador to China and the
United Nations. He knocked on Bush's door, and the pair
quickly became friends.
When Bush ran for president 2 years later, Coverdell was
one of his earliest supporters, serving as his finance
chairman in Georgia. Bush lost the Republican nomination
to Ronald Reagan. But as vice president, he remained close
to Coverdell. The two men were ``not only great political
allies, but very close friends,'' said Jean Becker, a
spokeswoman for Bush. The Coverdells were frequent guests
at the Bush home in Kennebunkport, Becker said. Just last
month, they attended Barbara Bush's 75th birthday party
there.
When Bush became president in 1989--inaugurated on
Coverdell's 50th birthday--one of his first acts was to
appoint Coverdell director of the Peace Corps. In that
job, Coverdell was such a workaholic, Raudonis said, that
when once asked to list his hobbies, all he could come up
with was ``dining out.''
After an Asian tour, Raudonis said, Coverdell proudly
pointed out that he had never checked into a hotel.
Instead, if he slept at all, it was on planes between
destinations.
``Paul was the type who's constantly on the go,'' said
Raudonis, who worked for Coverdell for 10 years in Georgia
and Washington. ``The idea of having to take 12 hours off
to go to a hotel, he couldn't figure out why anybody would
do that.''
After three years, Coverdell left the Peace Corps in
1992 to seek what friends say he had long wanted: a U.S.
Senate seat.
In a close race, he unseated Democrat Wyche Fowler. He
was re-elected in 1998.
Although he ascended to a leadership position in the
Senate and maintained a remarkably full schedule,
Coverdell had found time in recent years to relax a bit,
friends say. He developed a passion for gardening, and his
recent Christmas cards included a picture of his flowers.
``My greatest regret for him is that he didn't have the
time that he deserved to enjoy himself more,'' Howard
said. ``I feel a real sense of loss. He was a great, great
man.''
Mr. EDWARDS. Mr. President, I rise today to join with my
colleagues in mourning the loss of Senator Paul Coverdell
of Georgia.
He was a man whom I respected and admired. All of us
here in the Senate feel his absence acutely. Paul
Coverdell was a fixture in the Senate. I cannot recall how
often I sat at my desk and, looking up at C-SPAN, saw him
there leading his party on one difficult issue after
another. He did so honorably, tenaciously, and modestly.
And, of course, he did so effectively.
I feel a real void in the Senate Chamber without his
presence and feel a sense of surprise when I look up and
see someone other than Senator Coverdell at the Republican
floor manager's desk.
Paul Coverdell touched many lives. I am privileged to
have known him and count myself lucky to have served in
the Senate with him. He was a unique and truly special
person, taken from us too young and so suddenly.
I send to his family, his friends, and his staff my
deepest condolences. He was a good man who will be sorely
missed. But he will also be remembered by us all often and
his spirit will never leave us.
Ms. LANDRIEU. Mr. President, I join my colleagues in
expressing the grief felt by all of us at the passing of
Senator Paul Coverdell.
As a fellow southerner, I can tell you that Paul
epitomized all that is good and noble about the South. He
was principled, but always looked for workable solutions
to problems. He was a determined advocate, but always
added an air of civility to this Chamber. He was a
Republican through and through, but always sought out ways
to work with the other side of the Chamber.
My friend, the Senior Senator from New York, called
Senator Coverdell a man of peace. I think that sums up his
contribution to this world very eloquently.
His work, as Director of the Peace Corps during a time
of world transition, was extremely important. He brought
the Peace Corps the Nations of the Warsaw Pact and the
former Soviet Union. This single decision may harvest
benefits to this Nation that we will enjoy for many
generations.
Had Senator Coverdell's life work ended there, he would
have accomplished much for which he and the Nation could
be proud. However, fortunately for the people of Georgia,
he continued his life in public service.
When I came to the Senate in 1997, one of the first
bills that I worked on as a Democratic sponsor was with
Paul Coverdell. I will always remember the warm reception
that he gave me, and the encouragement to go forward with
the Coverdell-Landrieu Protecting the Rights of Property
Owners Act.
Since I had just finished a bruising campaign it was
such a pleasure to be welcomed in such a warm and
bipartisan manner by this southern gentleman.
Senator Coverdell was also an early and ardent supporter
of the Conservation and Reinvestment Act. As many in this
Chamber well know, I have pestered and cajoled my
colleagues on CARA for 2\1/2\ years. Paul must have seen
it coming and was one of the first to sign on.
For his leadership on this, I owe him a debt of
gratitude I cannot repay.
Senator Coverdell will be missed, in this Chamber, by
the people of Louisiana, and by people throughout the
country. My deepest condolences to his family.
Mr. MILLER. Mr. President, to the distinguished Members
of the Senate, first let me say how much I appreciate
those very generous welcoming remarks.
I do not rise this morning to tell you more about myself
or to introduce myself to you because there will be time
enough for that later. I rise instead to add my voice to
the remarkable chorus that has echoed forth from this
floor to the marble floors under Georgia's Capitol dome, a
chorus of praise for Paul Coverdell. The pain and the love
that the Majority Leader showed as he made that terrible
announcement on the Senate floor touched many hearts in
Georgia. The eloquence of Senator Moynihan's tribute still
rings in our ears. And the personal tribute from Senator
Gramm, a native son of Georgia, I found especially moving.
When he spoke of Paul as a man with a thin body, a squeaky
voice, but the heart of a lion, heads were nodding and
eyes were misting up from the Potomac River to the
Chattahoochee River.
Then this morning, I sat in the gallery and listened to
the outpouring of love and praise you had for Senator
Coverdell.
On behalf of the people of Georgia, I thank you. I thank
you for your words and your tears and your testimony to
one of Georgia's finest sons.
You who served with Paul knew him well. I served with
Paul and knew him well also. I served with him when he was
an up-and-coming State Senator and I was the Senate
President--Paul, a Republican; I, a Democrat. Yet Paul
impressed me with his ability and his integrity and his
bipartisan commitment to serving the people first and
politics second that I named him as one of the first
Republican committee chairmen since Reconstruction in our
heavily Democratic State Senate.
In that job and in that State Senate, Paul flourished.
He reached across party lines to build coalitions to
reform education, improve our schools, and open up our
government to the people.
Later, as the Director of the Peace Corps, Paul's
dignity and decency inspired countless young people to
serve their fellow man; and then his service in this
Senate, where in less than 8 years he rose to be one of
the most influential, respected, and beloved Members of
this august body.
Now, when I think of Paul Coverdell, I am reminded of
St. Paul's letter to Timothy. It is as if it were written
by Senator Paul rather than St. Paul: I have fought a good
fight. I have finished my course. I have kept the faith.
Today it is up to us to take up that fight, to continue
that course, to keep that faith.
You are, of course, aware of Paul's tireless work here
in this body on behalf of the schoolchildren of this
country. Yet his work here was just an extension of his
lifelong commitment to education. We served together as
trustees on the board of that tiny college, Young Harris
College, in the tiny village that is my hometown.
Paul Coverdell had faith in education, and I intend to
keep that faith. In Georgia, Paul was a leader early on of
a reform movement that believed that sunlight was the best
disinfectant. So working together across party lines, we
opened up the Senate Chambers and the smoke-filled rooms
and gave government back to our people. Paul Coverdell had
a faith in open, honest government, and I will keep that
faith.
In the Peace Corps and in the Senate, Paul was convinced
that as the beacon of freedom for all the world, America
could not hide her light under a bushel. And so he worked
to keep America strong, to keep America engaged in the
world, to ensure that she is always an ally to be trusted
and an adversary to be feared. Paul Coverdell had
limitless faith in America, and I intend to keep that
faith.
In addition to what he accomplished, Paul will always be
remembered for how he accomplished it. He was as committed
a Republican as I am a dedicated Democrat. Yet he was
always looking for ways to get things done across party
lines. He did so not by abandoning his principles but by
heeding and listening to the proverb: A soft answer
turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.
I am a different man from Paul Coverdell. I have rarely
been accused of giving soft answers and, in my day, I
suppose I have uttered more of my share of grievous words
that have stirred up anger. But I also have the commitment
to getting things done for my State and our Nation, a
commitment to work with anyone, regardless of party, who
shares that commitment. Paul Coverdell had a powerful
faith in bipartisan progress, and I intend to keep that
faith.
Let me repeat to this Senate the pledge I made to my
Governor and to the people of Georgia when I accepted this
mission. I will serve no single political party but,
rather, 7.5 million Georgians, and every day I serve I
will do my best to do so in the same spirit of dignity,
integrity, and bipartisan cooperation that were the
hallmarks of Paul Coverdell's career.
Thank you.
Paul D. Coverdell Fellowship Program
Mr. SMITH of Oregon. Mr. President, I ask unanimous
consent that the Senate now proceed to the immediate
consideration of S. 2998 introduced earlier today by
Senator Hutchison and others.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by
title.
The legislative clerk read as follows:
A bill (S. 2998) to designate a Fellowship Program of
the Peace Corps promoting the work of returning Peace
Corps volunteers in underserved American communities as
the Paul D. Coverdell Fellowship Program.
There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to
consider the bill.
Mr. SMITH of Oregon. Mr. President, I ask unanimous
consent that the bill be read the third time and passed,
the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that
any statements relating to the bill be printed in the
Record.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so
ordered.
The bill (S. 2998) was read the third time, and passed,
as follows:
S. 2998
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives
of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Paul D. Coverdell Fellows
Program Act of 2000''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Paul D. Coverdell was elected to the Georgia State
Senate in 1970 and later became Minority Leader of the
Georgia State Senate, a post he held for 15 years.
(2) Paul D. Coverdell served with distinction as the
11th Director of the Peace Corps from 1989 to 1991, where
he promoted a fellowship program that was composed of
returning Peace Corps volunteers who agreed to work in
underserved American communities while they pursued
educational degrees.
(3) Paul D. Coverdell served in the United States Senate
from the State of Georgia from 1993 until his sudden death
on July 17, 2000.
(4) Senator Paul D. Coverdell was beloved by his
colleagues for his civility, bipartisan efforts, and his
dedication to public service.
SEC. 3. DESIGNATION OF PAUL D. COVERDELL FELLOWS PROGRAM.
(a) In General.--Effective on the date of enactment of
this Act, the program under section 18 of the Peace Corps
Act (22 U.S.C. 2517) referred to before such date as the
``Peace Corps Fellows/USA Program'' is redesignated as the
``Paul D. Coverdell Fellows Program''.
(b) References.--Any reference before the date of
enactment of this Act in any law, regulation, order,
document, record, or other paper of the United States to
the Peace Corps Fellows/USA Program shall, on and after
such date, be considered to refer to the Paul D. Coverdell
Fellows Program.
Friday, September 8, 2000
Mr. CRAPO. Mr. President, I rise to pay tribute to my
esteemed colleague, Paul Coverdell. I join with my
colleagues in expressing sadness at his passing. He was a
tremendous leader in the Senate and an asset for Georgians
and the rest of the country. His years of exemplary public
service have included the military, the Peace Corps, the
Georgia statehouse, and finally the U.S. Senate. Senator
Coverdell was an effective leader and demonstrated many
times his unifying influence in the Senate.
On a personal level, he was an unpretentious man who had
a quiet sense of humor and good mind for details. He was
instrumental in helping me make the transition from the
U.S. House to the Senate a couple of years ago, and
provided insight and advice in everything from how to set
up a Senate office to how to make time for my family.
There is not a day that goes by that his influence in my
Senate career has not been felt.
Paul was a friend and a model statesman. He spent a
lifetime of service to his country. I will miss him
dearly. I extend my prayers to his wife, Nancy, and the
rest of his family.
Thursday, September 14, 2000
Paul Coverdell National Forensic Sciences Improvement Act
of 2000
Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. President, not too long ago our former
colleague, Paul Coverdell, introduced the National
Forensic Sciences Improvement Act. It was a bill to
further Federal support to State forensic laboratories,
those places where DNA evidence is evaluated, where drug
evidence is evaluated, where fingerprints, ballistics, and
all the other scientific data from carpet fibers, and so
forth, are evaluated, and then reported out to the
prosecutors around the country so cases can be prosecuted
on sound science.
Today we have a crisis in our criminal justice system.
We clearly have a bottleneck, of major proportions, in the
laboratory arena. There is simply an exploding amount of
work. More and more tests are available. People are
demanding more and more tests on each case that comes down
the pike. We are way behind.
In my view, as a person who spent 15 years of my life
prosecuting criminal cases, swift, fair justice is
critical for any effective criminal justice system. We
need not see our cases delayed. We need to create a
circumstance in which they can be tried as promptly as
possible, considering all justice relevant to the cases.
I ran for attorney general of Alabama in 1994. I talked
in every speech I made, virtually, on the need to improve
case processing. The very idea of a robber or a rapist
being arrested and released on bail and tried 2 years
later is beyond the pale. It cannot be acceptable. It
cannot be the rule in America.
Yet I am told by Dr. Downs of the forensic laboratory in
the State of Alabama that they now have delays of as much
as 20 months on scientific evidence. We know Virginia last
year, before making remarkable improvements, had almost a
year--and other States. Another police officer today told
us his State was at least a year in getting routine
reports done. This is a kind of bottleneck, a stopgap
procedure that undermines the ability of the police and
prosecutors to do their jobs.
I was pleased and honored to be able to pick up the Paul
Coverdell forensic bill and to reintroduce it as the Paul
Coverdell National Forensic Improvement Act of 2000. We
have had marvelous bipartisan support on this legislation.
Senator Max Cleland from Georgia, Paul's colleague, was an
original cosponsor of it. He was at our press conference
this morning. Senator Zell Miller, former Governor of
Georgia, who has replaced Paul in the Senate, was also at
the press conference today, along with Arlen Specter, a
former prosecutor, Paul Wellstone, Dick Durbin, and others
who participated in this announcement.
Proceedings in the
House of Representatives
Tuesday, July 18, 2000
BEST WISHES TO SENATOR PAUL COVERDELL DURING A HEALTH
CHALLENGE
Mr. BLUNT. Mr. Speaker, about a year ago I began to work
closely on a number of projects with Senator Paul
Coverdell from Georgia. I just want to take some time
today to express my appreciation for his great work for
the House, the Senate, for America, and extend our best
wishes to him and his wife, Nancy, as they deal with the
challenge to his health right now.
Senator Coverdell brings humility to this job, a
humility that is rare in public office. He brings
dedication, an ability to work hard, a tremendous insight,
and certainly those of us in the House benefit more than
we know by his hard work in the Senate, his hard work for
this process.
I would like for him and his wife, Nancy, to know that
we are thinking about them as he deals with this health
challenge, and that we need him back here. We hope for his
speedy recovery. We know that if anybody can meet this
challenge in an extraordinary way, Paul Coverdell can.
Mr. LINDER. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. BLUNT. I yield to the gentleman from Georgia.
Mr. LINDER. I thank the gentleman for taking this time,
Mr. Speaker.
I have known Paul Coverdell since 1972. There was not an
important project in politics or policy that went on in
Georgia in the last 28 years in which he was not involved,
very often very quietly, very much behind the scenes.
Lynne and I have been friends with him and Nancy since
they were married.
We want Nancy to know that our prayers are with them. We
hope Paul recovers and gets back here. His country needs
him.
Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. BLUNT. I yield to the gentleman from Georgia.
Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for
yielding, and I thank him for his expressions for Paul and
Nancy. I, too, have known Paul Coverdell for the past 25
years, and no one in our State has contributed more.
The people of the Sixth District will join me, I am
sure, in their prayers and thoughts over the next few days
for a speedy recovery for Paul. As the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Linder) so eloquently said, his State needs
him, his country needs him, and we need him in the
Congress of the United States of America. He has our
thoughts and our prayers today as he meets his challenges
ahead.
Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman
yield?
Mr. BLUNT. I yield to the gentleman from Georgia.
Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman
for yielding, and for taking this opportunity to express
our concern for Senator Coverdell.
Like most of us in the Georgia delegation, we have
worked with Paul for many years. I worked with him in the
eighties when we were both members of the Georgia Senate.
He has always been one of those conscientious individuals
who dedicated himself to whatever task was before him, and
he has carried that same dedication here to the U.S.
Senate.
We wish him a speedy recovery, and our prayers and the
prayers of those in our State will be with him and Nancy.
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman
yield?
Mr. BLUNT. I yield to the gentleman from Georgia.
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my
friend and colleague for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, I have known Senator Paul Coverdell for
many years. We worked together in the city of Atlanta in
the Fifth District. He has been very helpful and very
supportive over the years.
Our prayers are with him at this time, with his family,
and we wish for Senator Coverdell a speedy recovery. We
ask that the divine hands of the Almighty be with him
during this hour.
Mr. BARR of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman
yield?
Mr. BLUNT. I yield to the gentleman from Georgia.
Mr. BARR of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the
distinguished Chief Deputy Majority Whip for providing
this time on the floor today as Paul and his family are
coping with a very serious medical illness that has
befallen our colleague from Georgia on the other side of
this great Capitol Building.
Paul Coverdell is a man of Georgia. He is a true patriot
of this country, and he works tirelessly on behalf of the
people of Georgia and the United States of America. But
first and foremost, he is a man of God. We ask the Lord's
blessing on him and his doctors today as they cope with
this very serious illness, and we ask for the prayers of
all of our colleagues and all of those many millions of
Americans whose very kind and gentle work and lives Paul
has touched with his work over the years.
Mr. BLUNT. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from
New York (Mr. Rangel).
Mr. RANGEL. Mr. Speaker, I would like to join with my
colleagues in praying for a speedy recovery of Senator
Coverdell. I have had many differences with the Senator on
legislative issues, but I have not met anyone who has been
more of a gentleman, more of someone who respects the
other view, and someone who really respects the
institution of the House and the other body.
It is times like this that we throw away the labels of
Democrat and Republican and realize that God's hand is
involved in everything that we do, and at a time like
this, only our prayers can be of any assistance to our
colleague.
Mr. BLUNT. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Chambliss).
Mr. CHAMBLISS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for
yielding to me.
I, too, would just like to echo the sentiment of all of
my colleagues. Paul Coverdell is a great American. Nobody
does more for his country or loves this country more than
Paul Coverdell. He is simply a great American and a great
individual to work with us.
Our prayers go out to Paul and Nancy as he goes through
this very difficult time. We just look forward to a very
speedy recovery for Paul and his return to the U.S.
Senate.
Mr. BLUNT. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Collins).
Mr. COLLINS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for
yielding to me. I thank him, too, for bringing this matter
and this announcement before the House of Representatives.
Paul Coverdell is a colleague, but most of all he is a
friend, a friend for years to many of us. In fact, Paul
Coverdell has been a role model for many of us who
followed him and served with him in the different bodies
of the Legislature.
When we received the call on Sunday afternoon that he
had been admitted to Piedmont Hospital, our prayers began
immediately, because we understood the severeness of his
problem.
I hope and I pray that all of my colleagues would join
us, join with the people of Georgia, the people of this
Nation in praying for a speedy recovery and a full
recovery of Paul Coverdell.
Mr. BLUNT. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Kingston).
Mr. KINGSTON. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for
yielding to me.
Mr. Speaker, it is times like this and many other times
when one is dealing with Paul Coverdell that one no longer
thinks of him as a U.S. Senator. One does not think of him
as one of the most influential men in America. One thinks
of him just as Paul, Paul and Nancy Coverdell, two friends
with whom we have all worked over the years, and whom we
have all known and respected.
One thing about Paul is one may agree or disagree with
him, but one always respects his energy level, his
knowledge of the issue, and the way he is so focused in
attacking things. We are all his friends. He is a friend
of the institution, and he is a friend of the governmental
process, somebody who respects everyone and has that
respect both ways.
Our prayers are with him, and that is the best that we
can all do at this time.
Mr. BLUNT. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friends for
participating today and the indulgence of the House as we
talk about a person who is really of great value to the
House.
About a year ago, I was given an assignment that allowed
me to work with Senator Coverdell every week. I told the
person that gave me that assignment several months ago I
would have done that job in retrospect if for no other
reason than to work with Paul Coverdell.
He is truly, as the gentleman from New York (Mr. Rangel)
said, one of the great gentlemen of this Congress. We need
him to get our work done. We wish him well. Our prayers
are with him and his family.
Wednesday, July 19, 2000
REMEMBERING SENATOR PAUL COVERDELL
Mr. GIBBONS. Mr. Speaker, yesterday America lost a true
friend, and we were all saddened to hear of the tragic
news that we had lost a colleague and friend in the U.S.
Senate.
Senator Paul Coverdell was a true leader of the Senate,
his beloved State of Georgia and this Nation. As an ardent
supporter of freedom and the American dream, the
distinguished Senator from Georgia believed that freedom
was best preserved and nurtured by a well-educated
citizenry.
As a result, throughout his career, Senator Coverdell
fought for education reform, which ensured that every
child in America received a quality education in a safe
environment.
Personally, I am honored to have had the recent
opportunity to work with the Senator in passing a bill to
award the Congressional Gold Medal to the Reagans, a
family which he held in high regard.
Senator Coverdell's tenacity and dedication to that
effort, as well as to any project he led, were two of his
most honorable attributes.
My deepest sympathies go to Senator Coverdell's family,
colleagues, and his staff during this most difficult time.
Senator Coverdell and his genuine love for our great
Nation will be missed by colleagues and friends alike.
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I offer a privileged
resolution (H. Res. 558) and ask for its immediate
consideration.
The Clerk read the resolution, as follows:
H. Res. 558
Resolved, That the House has heard with profound sorrow
of the death of the Honorable Paul Coverdell, a Senator
from the State of Georgia.
Resolved, That the Clerk communicate these resolutions
to the Senate and transmit a copy thereof to the family of
the deceased.
Resolved, That a committee be appointed on the part of
the House to join a committee appointed on the part of the
Senate to attend the funeral.
Resolved, That when the House adjourns today, it adjourn
as a further mark of respect to the memory of the deceased
Senator.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Barrett of Nebraska). The
gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Lewis) is recognized for 1
hour.
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such
time as I may consume.
It is with profound sadness that I rise today to offer a
resolution of condolences on the passing of Senator Paul
Coverdell. Paul Coverdell was the senior Senator from the
State of Georgia and, more important, he was a dear
friend.
It is with deep sadness that we say goodbye to our good
friend, our colleague and our brother, Paul Coverdell.
Paul's unexpected death is so sad and so hard for us. I
have known him for many years, almost 30 years. As young
men, we both campaigned for an open congressional seat in
1977. Later, we both came here to Washington to represent
the people of Georgia.
Over the years, we shared many rides together back and
forth to Washington. We would often see each other here
and in Georgia, and we spent a lot of time talking about
life and about what is good for the people of Georgia and
for the people of our Nation.
Paul was not just another colleague. He was like family
to me and to so many of our colleagues. His passing, his
death, hurts. It is painful. It is more than sad. We have
not just lost a friend, but we have lost a member of our
family.
Paul Coverdell's intelligence, commitment, ethics and
leadership stood out. He was a friendly, peaceful man. He
cared for his colleagues, his friends, the people who
elected him, and even people he did not know. He was
wonderful to work with, to be with, to travel with. He was
good to be around. A wonderful man. One of the good guys.
He was my friend, Mr. Speaker. He was my brother.
We occupied different sides of the aisle, and we did not
always agree, but always had the utmost respect and
admiration for this man. For three decades, as a Georgia
lawmaker, Peace Corps Director, U.S. Senator, Paul
Coverdell was a man who could be trusted to get the job
done. He focused on the war on drugs, worked to improve
education, and fought for the farmers and small business
people of Georgia. He was always prepared to help out and
take on any task that was required.
But Paul Coverdell never sought out the limelight. He
never sought the headline. He would never grandstand. He
worked hard behind the scenes without seeking any
recognition. In today's political climate, Paul Coverdell
was an unusual and extraordinary man who will be forever
missed.
When Paul was Director of the Peace Corps, he would come
in to see me from time to time after he had just come back
from a trip abroad. He was so enthused about what he saw
and what the Peace Corps was doing, whether in Africa,
Eastern Europe, Asia, Central America or South America,
that his enthusiasm rubbed off on me during those
meetings. I looked forward to talking with him and working
with him on those concerns. He wanted to help people meet
their basic needs--food, water, shelter--and he wanted to
stop them from having to struggle. I admired his
commitment and his work with the Peace Corps. Paul
Coverdell will be remembered not just as a citizen of
Georgia, an American, but as a citizen of the world.
Mr. Speaker, his death is a tremendous loss for the
members of the Georgia delegation, for the people of
Georgia, and a personal loss for me. We are all very sad,
not just the people of Georgia, but all of his colleagues
in the Senate and in the House. He will be deeply missed.
My heart and prayers go to Paul's wife, Nancy, to the
other members of the Coverdell family, and his staff here
in Washington and in Georgia.
Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the
gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Linder), a member of our
delegation from the State of Georgia.
Mr. LINDER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for
yielding me this time and for bringing this proposal to
the floor.
Mr. Speaker, I met Paul Coverdell in 1972. He was one of
22 or 23 members of the State Senate who were Republicans,
out of 56 members, and 3 years later I was one of 19
members, I believe it was, out of 180 members in the
Georgia House who were Republicans. And Paul never stopped
a moment from trying to build a party, to be competitive,
not because he thought Republicans were better than
Democrats, but he thought more Republicans would make the
Democrats better.
Paul had an unbelievable appetite for work, and those
who worked with him understand that he had one failing in
that appetite, and that was that he always wanted to have
meetings. Whatever he came up with, he called a meeting. I
recall helping him in 1977 in the race the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Lewis) referred to, a special election. I
said, Paul, how can I help you? He said, we are having a
meeting at 5:30. I showed up at his office and we talked
strategy for an hour; and then I said, I have to get going
and distribute some of this literature. And he said, well,
we are going to have another meeting tomorrow at 5:30. I
said, No, you are going to have a meeting at 5:30; I am
going to be out doing work.
He did that because he did not want to go off on his own
on any issue and he wanted to talk things through. It was
not uncommon to hear the phone ring at 11:30 at night, and
when I answered it, it would be, ``John? Paul. I have to
talk to you about something''; and he would talk for a
long time.
I would play tennis, he would study politics and policy.
To him they were exactly the same. Politics and policy
were not separate issues. He cared about them both and he
cared nothing about attention for his successes. There is
a reason why we did not see him on television a lot
because he preferred to work very quietly, very much
behind the scenes, bringing people together, building
coalitions as no one has in my lifetime.
I woke up this morning and thought there is a huge hole
in my life, because Paul has been a large part of it for
25 years; and he will be missed. I am sad that most of
America will not know how much he is missed because his
work was so quiet and so much of it was behind the scenes.
I thought a little while ago, when I was talking to a
reporter about this, that I cannot think of a single
former friend of Paul Coverdell's, not a single friend,
who ever left his side in anger, because he was such a
decent and gentle man. He has people working for him today
in volunteer capacities who have been with him since 1970.
They are still there because he was such a decent and
gentle man, and he included them, gave them opportunities
to excel, gave them their head and let them achieve, and
then let them get the credit. They are all there, too, to
this day. His loyalty to the people around him got that
loyalty back from them.
I am sad beyond words. There is little left that we can
do but say to Nancy and his mother and loved ones and
staff that we offer ourselves as poor substitutes for
their beloved Paul, and urge upon them the words of the
Psalmist, who, feeling the pain that we here today feel,
was moved to write ``The Lord is close to the
brokenhearted, and those who are crushed in spirit, he
saves.''
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as
he may consume to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Bishop).
Mr. BISHOP. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Lewis) for yielding me this time. I am deeply
saddened today by the loss of our friend and colleague,
Paul Coverdell. His passing is not only a great loss for
Georgia and our Nation, it is indeed a personal loss for
me.
I first met Senator Coverdell in 1974, when he came to
Columbus, GA, where I lived, and he did his best to
recruit me to run as a Republican for the State Senate.
Senator Coverdell was not successful in that endeavor, but
he impressed upon me his commitment to integrity in
government and his commitment to our two-party system.
I eventually ran for the Legislature 2 years later as a
Democrat, and I have served with Paul, I guess now for
nearly 20 years, both as a member of the General Assembly
and as a member of our State's delegation here in
Congress. He and I worked together on a number of issues
over the years, and he was an extraordinary leader whose
flexibility, his ability and commitment, and his integrity
were recognized by anyone who knew him and had the
opportunity to work with him. He was a thoughtful and
soft-spoken man, but he was a tenacious fighter for all of
the causes that he believed in.
Shakespeare wrote, ``All the world's a stage, and all
the men and women merely players: They have their exits
and their entrances; one man in his time plays many parts.
. . .''
So it was with Paul. He was a soldier, having served in
the Army in Korea and the Republic of China. He was a
legislator, and emerged as one of the most ardent
defenders of our American freedoms and our democracy, as a
real true fighter for our two-party system. He was a
Senator. He was elected by his colleagues to leadership in
the U.S. Senate where he served as adviser, counselor,
supporter, confidant for the Republican Party, and he gave
an important voice to how our government conducts its
business.
As a humanitarian, Paul dedicated a segment of his life
to leading the Peace Corps, an organization that needs no
accolades in its efforts to lift the untouchables to
places of respectability and to bring life and quality of
life to people all across the world.
That was Paul Coverdell's commitment. He made numerous
contributions in the Peace Corps, such as redesigning the
agency's mission to serve the emerging democracies in
Europe.
Paul was a family man. He loved Nancy and his family,
and he always held them dear. But Paul was also a
statesman; and everything that he did, he did with dignity
and with respect and with courtesy.
I have two personal stories or recollections and
memories of Paul. I have shared one, and that was his
efforts in our conversations as he worked to try to
recruit me as a Republican candidate for the State Senate
in 1974.
But even more important than that was the kind of
individual that Paul was, the kind of integrity that he
had. He was a man who was committed to integrity, who was
committed to fairness, and who was committed to that which
was right.
My colleagues may remember that former State Senator
Julian Bond had been a member of the Georgia State House
of Representatives and had made some statements regarding
the Vietnam war which angered his colleagues in the
Georgia House. They got together, passed a resolution, and
expelled him from membership in the Georgia House. So he
could not take his seat.
Then Representative Bond filed a lawsuit, took it all
the way to the Supreme Court; and the Supreme Court had to
order the State House to grant him his seat to represent
his constituents.
Shortly thereafter, Julian Bond ran for the State Senate
and was elected overwhelmingly and became a member of that
august body. But the hostility was so great in the Georgia
House because of the resentment for Senator Bond and what
he stood for that any piece of legislation that he offered
that passed the Senate, even if it passed unanimously,
once it got to the House it was doomed to a certain death,
a certain death.
So Paul and Julian were friends. Anything that Julian
felt so strongly about that he wanted it to be passed he
discussed with his friend, Paul Coverdell. Paul would take
Julian's ghost-written legislation and he would offer it
under his name; and when it got to the House, it would
secure the usual passage.
Paul did that not because he wanted the limelight, not
because he wanted the credit, but because he believed in
doing that which was right; and if it was a good piece of
legislation, he felt that it did not matter who wrote the
bill. What was important was the result.
Paul Coverdell set an example for all of us in elective
office to follow. It is not important that we be concerned
about the partisanship as it is that we be concerned about
the policy.
Yes, all the world is a stage and all the men and women
merely players. Each has his entrance and his exit. One
man in his time may play many parts.
And so to Nancy and to the Coverdell family, our prayers
go to you; and we will wrap our arms around you, and we
urge the Almighty to grant you the peace of spirit that
only he can grant at a time like this.
Paul was our friend, Paul was a statesman, and we will
miss him very deeply.
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as
he may consume to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr.
Chambliss).
Mr. CHAMBLISS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Lewis) very much as the dean of our
delegation for bringing this resolution to the floor.
Normally, we come down here to the well of the House to
debate bills; and while we are sometimes loud and in
heated debate, we are always having fun down here. This is
one of those times where we are not necessarily here
having fun, although I cannot help but think about Paul
Coverdell and some of the fun times we had together and
some of his traits that have been coming back to me over
the last couple of days.
I am reminded particularly about the fact that, I do not
care where you saw Paul, he always had that same white
shirt and tie on. I have the great pleasure of
representing the Okefenokee Swamp. We were down at the
Okefenokee a couple years ago, and some of my colleagues
were down there, and we were doing a press event. It was
as hot as blazes. We were out there in the middle of the
swamp, and all of us were dressed in our golf shirts and
our khaki pants. Just as the news conference starts, Paul
drove up with his white shirt, his suit pants, and his tie
on. What a classy guy.
Two years ago I was doing an event for him, and I
remember it was a farm event and we were over in Terrell
County. And again, it was in August. August in Georgia, my
colleagues, particularly south Georgia, is hot. We were
out in the middle of a field looking at some peanuts out
there. And again I was in my golf shirt and my khakis, and
Paul was out there just as cool as he could be in that
white shirt and that tie.
As we sat under the shade tree that day talking to a
group of farmers, he was just so impressive, not just in
what he was saying but in the way he looked and in the way
he carried himself. That is the Paul Coverdell that I am
going to remember.
Paul and I had a habit of talking to each other about
once a week over the last couple years just about things
in general. We did not always get a chance to sit down
face to face. Sometimes we missed a phone call. But the
guy had more political insight, not just partisan
political insight, but political insight about things in
this country.
I will always remember the fact that if I called him and
talked to him about an agriculture issue, which I did on a
regular basis, we talked about whatever it was; but then
Paul would say, ``Saxby, let me tell you what we are doing
with the Straight A's bill, this education bill that is
going to mean so much to the children that your wife
teaches and to other children all across this country.''
And you would be talking to him about a defense issue,
again which we do on a regular basis; and we talk about
our 130s or our F-22 problem, whatever it was, and Paul
would say, ``Well, let me tell you about one other thing
that I am working on, this drug issue with the Colombian
drug bill that we are working on. Let me tell you what
that is going to do for America. Let me tell you what a
difference that is going to make to people all across this
country.''
That is the Paul Coverdell that I am going to remember.
He was a very unique individual, a person who had the
ability to take difficult issues, to deal with difficult
people with difficult issues and bring common sense and
political responsibility to the forefront.
Paul Coverdell was truly a unique Member of the U.S.
Senate. He was a great colleague of all of ours, whether
you are Republican or Democrat; and that is evidenced by
the fact that this is being done in a bipartisan way.
Yesterday, on the floor of this House, it was evidenced in
a bipartisan way that there was tremendous respect for
Paul Coverdell.
We will miss him very much. We certainly wish the best
for his family. His staff are just great people who my
staff has had the pleasure of working with every single
day that I have been a Member of this House.
Paul Coverdell had gotten so political in his thoughts
that he probably designed his death to take place on the
day of the Georgia primary, which happened to be
yesterday. And I am betting you when he got to the pearly
gates last night, the first thing he asked St. Peter was
for a copy of the Republican election results from
yesterday. That is the kind of guy that he was.
He was a great friend, a great individual. This country
will miss Paul Coverdell.
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as
she may consume to the gentlewoman from Georgia (Ms.
McKinney).
Ms. McKINNEY. Mr. Speaker, I guess it is not a secret,
Paul Coverdell and I were about as different as night and
day. But vastly different paths in life led us both to
serve in the Georgia Legislature and then on to Congress
so that we could work together on behalf of the people of
the great State of Georgia. And when it came to the
interests of the people of Georgia, we often saw eye to
eye.
I want to send all of my deepest and most heartfelt
condolences to the Coverdell family and to all the people
who knew and loved Paul Coverdell.
Immediately after the 1996 election, when I had been
redistricted and had a vastly changed district and we were
able to pull out a victory in a very close race, Paul
Coverdell and I got together and decided that we needed to
build bridges with each other so that we could do the work
that the people of Georgia sent us both to do.
Our first project together resulted in about $20 million
being protected on the Senate side for my constituents who
live in and about the environs of DeKalb Peachtree
Airport.
Paul Coverdell's latest project that we all were working
on was a veterans cemetery for our Georgia veterans.
But more than anything else, I have to say that I am
struck by the finality of death and the incomplete way
many of us in public life lead our lives. We are so busy,
we are rushing here and rushing there and going to
meetings and going here and going there and always,
always, always in a rush and too busy to appreciate the
people around us, too busy to stop and say ``I love you,''
too busy to stop and say ``I thank you'' to the people who
make a difference in our lives.
This past weekend, I was looking at the Coverdell report
on television; and now I am standing here today sending
condolences to Paul Coverdell's family.
I want to thank the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Lewis),
the dean of our delegation, for providing us this
resolution so that we can pay our respects to our senior
Senator. I want to thank all of the people who are
responsible for all of us being here serving our people of
our State.
I would like to thank my colleagues, who, through
difficult times, have stood beside me in particular. And
perhaps I have not said thank you appropriately enough,
but I want to say thank you today. I want to say thank you
to my Georgia delegation members. Because we do not see
eye to eye on a lot of issues and we do not even meet as
often as we probably should, but I do not think there is a
single issue that will benefit the people of our State
that we do not come together and work on.
And then finally, I would like to thank the Coverdell
family for sharing their leader with the people of our
State and the people of our country for about 30 years of
public service.
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as
he may consume to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Deal).
Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman
from Georgia (Mr. Lewis) for bringing this resolution to
the floor.
This is a sad day for all of us, and I am dearly
impressed with the eloquence of my colleagues who have
already spoken.
Paul Coverdell was indeed a good friend of ours. And it
is difficult on occasions like this to say anything that
lends full value to the life that he shared with all of
us. I realize that labels and slogans themselves are often
inadequate. But I will be very brief, and I have a few
labels that I would like to put on Paul Coverdell.
The first is that he was a defender of democracy. That
may seem to be a very bland statement, but he truly
believed in this Republic that we have here as a country.
He believed that one of the great things that it
embodied was the free enterprise system. And he, as a
small businessman, grew his business to a successful
national enterprise. So he was indeed a defender of
democracy.
And he was a proponent of peace. We have heard the
statements about his service as the Director of the U.S.
Peace Corps. But in all of his dealings, both politically
and personally, he was indeed a man of peace.
And he was, of course, a patriot with passion. You have
heard of his service as a captain in the U.S. Army
overseas. But he also brought that same degree of passion
and patriotism to his public service, having been
recognized by educational institutions and by other public
institutions for his service both at the State level and
here in Washington. And he was a statesman with stature.
Like many of my colleagues, we served with Paul at the
State legislative level. Paul was in the State Senate when
I arrived in 1981, and even though he was in the minority
in that body, he was respected, because he displayed the
kind of dedication to public service that all of us would
like to have.
I recall that he was on the retirement committee. I want
to tell you, folks, when you get assigned to the
retirement committee in the Georgia Legislature, you
really do not aspire to that position. But he was one of
those individuals that everybody, regardless of political
party, would go to to ask about those intricate, detailed,
often boring and mundane issues relating to retirement,
and Paul always knew what the answer was, because he was
willing to do his homework. He was willing to work on the
things that other people would want to cast aside because
there was not enough public attention given to the
subject. But Paul knew how important things like that
were; and that is, of course, what distinguished him here
as well and made him a statesman with stature.
He was also and lastly a friend without reservation. He
was somebody who you could talk with on a personal and
intimate basis. You could rely on his judgment. You could
trust the fact that he would keep confidences and he would
give you the best and most sound advice that he possibly
could, both politically and personally.
Last, I would simply like to say that Paul Coverdell was
a quiet man of courage, and he will be deeply missed.
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as
he may consume to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr.
Collins).
Mr. COLLINS. I thank the gentleman from Georgia (Mr.
Lewis) for yielding me this time.
Mr. Speaker, Paul Coverdell's passing is a great loss to
the United States, to the other Chamber, to Georgia, to
his wife, Nancy, and his family. He was a hardworking,
thoughtful legislator who possessed the rare gift of
leadership and the even rarer gift of being a good man.
The news of his death hit me hard, because I saw Paul as
more than a colleague. I saw him as a true friend, and
more than that as a mentor.
When I was first elected to the Georgia Senate, he and I
took a walk through his neighborhood to talk about the job
that I would be facing. That was his style, quiet and
purposeful. He was a teacher who was less concerned about
who received the credit than he was of getting the job
done.
Mr. Speaker, many others in Georgia's Third
Congressional District feel the loss of Paul Coverdell. I
spoke with several this morning who worked with Paul to
build the Republican Party in Georgia or who served with
him in the Georgia Legislature, people like Barbara
Scruggs, chairperson of the Third Congressional District
Republican Party. She said, ``I've known Paul since the
first election he ran. I always admired how hard he worked
for us. He was always quiet and unassuming and a great
leader of the State of Georgia.''
Former Congressman Bo Callaway said this morning, ``This
is such a shock to have Paul in his prime of life so
suddenly taken from us. I really think the people of
Georgia and America will never know how much we have lost,
for Paul Coverdell was really on the way to becoming one
of our great leaders. It will be hard to imagine going on
without him.''
Ted Land, who served in Georgia's Senate with Paul,
said, ``Paul Coverdell was a man of highest integrity. I
never in my 10 years with Paul ever heard him speak a
mean-spirited word about anyone on either side of the
aisle. A man of boundless energy, he was totally dedicated
to serving his State and his party. The void created by
his death will be extremely difficult to fill.''
Former State Senator Arthur ``Skin'' Edge summed up Paul
in one word: patriot. He said that as he heard of the
death of Paul last night, the one thing that kept coming
back to his mind is that Paul Coverdell is a 21st-century
patriot. He stood for the principles that this country was
founded on and fought for them all of his life.
Mr. Speaker, on behalf of Georgia's Third District, we
mourn Paul Coverdell's death, and we cherish the memories
of his friendship.
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as
he may consume to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr.
Norwood).
Mr. NORWOOD. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Lewis) as dean of our delegation for bringing
this resolution today.
Mr. Speaker, Paul Coverdell was a sterling example of
what a U.S. Senator should be all about. He provided the
kind of leadership for Georgia, America, and the world
that will be sorely missed. Paul Coverdell was unshakeable
in his resolve to support the right policies for Georgia
and America. Yet in 6 years of serving with him in
Congress, I never heard him utter an unkind word toward
any opponent. He was a man of reason, of principle, and
provided a shining example of civility in action in the
arena of public debate. It is unusual to find a man such
as that.
He never to my knowledge backed down on principle; yet
he held his ground with dignity and respect for the
position of those who disagreed. And he never gave up.
Since coming to Washington in 1993, Senator Coverdell
fought to improve the education of America's children.
That fight continues today. But because of his effort, I
believe that fight will eventually be won because of his
enthusiasm and his sincere belief that we could make it
better. When it is, the final product will have the
fingerprints of Paul Coverdell on every page.
Senator Coverdell was likewise a champion of those who
served this country in our Armed Forces. When Congress
forgot the promises made to our veterans, Paul Coverdell
reminded us all of those commitments. His legislation to
restore those promises is still pending in both Chambers,
and the finest tribute I think we could all pay to this
true statesman would be to pass that measure into law
before this session ends. Today, I recommit myself to
helping make that happen.
There are far too many issues to mention in which
Senator Coverdell played a decisive role. But we need to
reflect on Paul Coverdell's public service before he
became a Senator, I think, because it reflects a lifetime
of public service.
He began adult life, of course, by serving America in
the U.S. Army in Korea and the Republic of China. He
served his State in the Georgia Senate for nearly 2
decades. He served America and the world as the Director
of the Peace Corps, as we have heard, where his leadership
in building democracy was vital in reclaiming much of
Eastern Europe from the dictatorship of Communism.
Our hearts go out to Nancy Coverdell and the entire
Coverdell family. They should be and are remembered in the
prayers of this Nation in their hour of loss. And we
should remember the loyal staff of Senator Coverdell.
Perhaps the strongest confirmation of the basic decency of
a Member of Congress can be found in the affection of
those who work with him every day, many times under the
most trying circumstances. From the true grief that I
personally know his staff to be feeling today, the decency
of this great American is affirmed in full measure.
That slender thread of life by which we were tied to
Paul Coverdell is now broken. But the wisdom, the
generosity, the civility, the patriotism, and the
dedication which he brought to this Congress will never
die. The leadership of Paul Coverdell will continue to
live in the legislation he has enacted and has sponsored.
We can best honor his memory by seeing the mission
through, from giving our children a choice in education to
restoring the health care of the defenders of America.
Mr. Speaker, let us pay tribute to a great leader by
picking up the fallen banner of Senator Paul Coverdell and
carrying it through to victory. I personally feel a great
loss for a dear friend; indeed, we all do, a man with whom
we have all become very close and have loved, a quiet,
gentle giant in the Government of America.
Today we pray for Paul's soul and pray God will give
comfort to Nancy and the Coverdell family.
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as
he may consume to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Barr).
Mr. BARR of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to rise
today in support of the resolution authored by the dean of
the Georgia delegation, the distinguished gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Lewis).
Let me first say to Paul's lovely bride, Nancy, you have
the love, the affection, and the prayers of this entire
body on both sides of the aisle, on both sides of the
Rotunda. We pay tribute today to the hardest working man
in the U.S. Senate. Although his venue has changed, the
job description has not. Paul Coverdell is now the hardest
working man in heaven. I can hear him already, sleeves
rolled up, white sleeves, of course, tie impeccable,
saying, ``There must be some unfinished work up here in
heaven, Lord. Point me in the right direction. I'm ready
to work.''
While Paul Coverdell never spoke from this well, but
rather from the well on the other side of the Rotunda in
the U.S. Senate, you could often hear his voice here, in
front of this American flag that he loved and the country
that it represents that he loved so deeply and so
passionately. You could hear Paul Coverdell whenever we
debated such issues of fundamental importance to the
American people as those he had championed and loved:
education, national defense, and always the needs, wishes,
hopes, and desires of our citizens of his and our beloved
State of Georgia. You could hear the passion, the
conviction, and the patriotism always of Paul D.
Coverdell. Those words, that passion, that commitment will
echo out now forever across the ages as part of what
former President Ronald Reagan called in his second
inaugural address, the American sound. Paul Coverdell is
now part of that American sound that President Reagan
identified as the sound of love, decency and compassion
that has always echoed out across America and through the
halls of its leadership and around the world, representing
the very best of mankind.
Paul Coverdell is a friend. Although we briefly found
ourselves, he and I, in a competitive race in the primary
runoff in 1992, we were friends before that race. Indeed,
Paul was my very first political friend when I moved to
Georgia in the 1970s.
I was referred to him by our mutual friend and my former
boss at the CIA, George Bush. We remained friends
throughout those two races in 1992, and we remained ever
closer friends both immediately after and in the years
since Paul was elected with honor and dignity to the U.S.
Senate in 1992.
I am reminded today in closing, as a man of God, I know
the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Lewis) is, too, of Matthew
who tells us in chapter 5 in those words that are so
familiar to all in the Beatitudes, blessed are the
peacemakers for they shall be called the children of God.
Paul Coverdell was a peacemaker. Paul Coverdell is a
child of God, now and for the ages. I thank the gentleman
from Georgia (Mr. Lewis) and God bless Paul D. Coverdell
and his family.
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as
he may consume to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr.
Isakson).
Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Lewis) for bringing this resolution to the
floor today. Mr. Speaker, I thank each of my colleagues
from Georgia for paying tribute today to our dear friend,
and I hope everyone in this room and everyone listening
recognizes that 11 Georgians, Democrat and Republican
alike, sit today under this symbol and in this room and
pay tribute to a man who transcends politics and who in
our State, as we have heard from each speaker, through
example after example, changed lives and made them better.
Mr. Speaker, rather than repeat everything that has been
said, I would just say this to those of us who are not
from Georgia; if you have ever flown through Hartsfield
International Airport, Paul Coverdell touched your life.
If you ever came into Atlanta and rode on its rapid
transit, Paul Coverdell touched your life. If you are a
Georgia citizen whose life or the life of a loved one was
saved because of a seat belt, Paul Coverdell touched your
life.
While so many politicians talk a good game, Paul
Coverdell lived one; but, you know, at a time like this
when a contemporary of all of ours dies, it puts life into
perspective.
It makes us think for just a minute: what if I die? But
for those of you who did not know him, let me just tell
you this, Paul did it all. He did it with dignity and with
grace. He did it with passion and with understanding, and
he did it with not a single evil touch to anything he ever
did. He did it for the best of the United States of
America and for the people of Georgia.
In my Sunday school class in Marietta, GA, in the
Methodist Church, we have a little book called ``Leaves of
Gold,'' and in it there is a poem, and I cannot remember,
but twice before that poem has been recalled to me in
paying tribute to an individual, but it just seems to fit
the life and the legacy and the lasting memory of Paul
Coverdell.
I hope I can get through it, but it goes a little bit
like this:
I would rather see a good person than hear about one
any day.
And I would rather have a good person walk with me
than merely
point the way.
For my eyes are better pupils and more willing than
my ear,
and fine counsel is confusing but examples crystal
clear.
And the best of all the people are the ones that
live their creeds,
for to see the good in action is what everybody
needs.
Oh, I will be very glad to do it if you let me see
it done,
but your tongue too fast sometimes may run.
And the lectures you deliver may be very wise and
very true,
but I would rather get my lecture by observing what
you do.
For I may misunderstand you and the high advice you
give,
But I will never misunderstand the way you act and
the way
you live.
Mr. Speaker, I associate myself with all of my
colleagues to pay tribute to a man who acted and lived a
life exemplary of the finest in public service, the finest
in commitment to his wife and to his family and in the
finest tradition of public service.
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as
he may consume to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr.
Kingston).
Mr. KINGSTON. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for
yielding me the time.
Nancy Coverdell has lost a great husband, as has the
Coverdell family lost a great member. The United States of
America has lost a great Senator. Georgia has lost a great
leader and the Republican Party in Georgia has lost the
father of our party.
Paul Coverdell was the Minority Leader in the State
Senate. He was the State Republican Party chairman. He was
the official Georgia connection to the Bush White House.
He was the Director of the Peace Corps. He was the U.S.
Senator, and then also in the great Bush-Coverdell legacy,
the official contact for the George W. Bush campaign.
He put our party on the map, and the reason I underscore
that is, I believe the State and its citizens are better
for it. I believe that having two parties gives our voters
every day a choice, and I believe I am a better Republican
because of Democrat opposition. I hope that our Democrat
counterparts, and I am sure they will agree, would say
they are better Democrats because of Republican
opposition.
The State, indeed, is the winner. Paul Coverdell was a
great strategist. I remember in 1974 my mother, who is a
great newspaper clipper, sent me an article called the
``Gospel According to Paul.'' And it was talking about
this young guy running for the State Senate in Atlanta who
was doing strange things, like going door to door and
having living room coffees and roadside sign wavings. And
he was struggling in an uphill battle in a Democrat-
controlled State to win, but he did win. I believe, as the
gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Linder) has already said,
there were only three Republican Members in the Senate at
the time. I know by the time I got to the State House,
there were a whopping nine Senators.
Paul Coverdell was the Minority Leader. But while he did
not have numerical superiority, he did not let that keep
him out of the ideas arena. And he was very competitive on
ideas. At that time, Governor Joe Frank Harris was
introducing a number of DUI laws.
The gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Isakson) will remember
Coverdell passed and sponsored a bill in the Senate that
said, you know, it is not just enough to give somebody a
heftier DUI penalty, what we have found through research
is a lot of these people are addicted to alcohol. We need
to put in a component of mandatory assessment to see if
they are addicted, and then we cannot just leave them
addicted to alcohol, we need to have mandatory or at least
optional treatment. This was a solid idea.
Mr. Speaker, I remember being on the Motor Vehicles
Committee as he pushed that. Paul Coverdell was an ideas
man. He also had a great world view. As Director of the
Peace Corps, he did not just use this, okay, this is my
political plum for helping President Bush along the
campaign trail. He used it to promote farming in Third
World countries, economic growth and development, medical
help. Indeed, he saw the formula for world prosperity
meant world peace, and it was great and important for the
United States of America to be there leading the way.
Paul Coverdell was a patriot in many ways. I remember
when he was running for the U.S. Senate and I had him in
my living room for coffee, and at that time all of these
people came, and they were asking very lofty intellectual
questions about the world situation. Paul was hanging in
there with the best of them. In the middle of this, my
small daughter, Ann, 4 years old at the time, had left the
playground where all of the kids were, came running into
the living room, crashed through the circle of adults to
the middle of where this dignified U.S. senatorial
candidate was speaking, and said, ``Daddy, it was my turn
in line to go down the slide and they pushed me down the
slide and I fell down and hurt my heinie'' to which the
whole audience starting laughing.
Senator Coverdell was there, acknowledged the little
girl and her plight and went on with his speech. And I
thought it was so cute because he did not lose control, he
kept that Coverdell dignity through the whole thing. And,
indeed, he carried that dignity and that gentleman manner
with him everywhere he went.
As the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Chambliss) has
already said, he was a great organizer and a communicator.
I remember in the 1992 campaign during the runoff one day,
he was at Georgia Southern University, all kinds of people
there, and he had done a television and a radio interview,
and he turned on his watch and he said, Jack, we have to
go to this event. I said, Paul, the game has not started.
He said, well, we have got a schedule. I said, but, Paul,
all of these people are here. He said, well, we really
need to get to Savannah and keep our schedule. Indeed, we
did leave and go to Savannah.
I was totally amazed and a little bit irritated by this,
and only later did I realize the importance of him in
terms of strategy; it meant everything, and that is why he
could accomplish all of the things that he did accomplish.
In our area, he fought as, the gentleman from Georgia (Mr.
Norwood) said, for the veterans, the active soldiers at
Fort Stewart, but the veterans in our area.
Agriculture--we all know in south Georgia good old
``Senator Cloverdale.'' That is what the farmers would
always call him. Well, let us just go ask Cloverdale. And
they loved Mr. Cloverdale.
Education--if I go to talk to the teachers about
educational savings acts, they like that idea. If I talk
to seniors about Social Security and lockbox ideas, they
like that idea.
Paul Coverdell had the uncanny ability, not just to have
an opinion on every issue, but have a thought on every
issue and a consequential action. He was a man of action.
His civility, as the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Bishop)
knows, he worked with him very closely on passing the C.B.
King Courthouse in Albany, Georgia. I remember, the
gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Lewis) knows, he was a friend
of Mr. Bond. When Mr. Bond left the State Senate to run
for the congressional seat, which the gentleman was
successful in obtaining, Paul Coverdell was one of the men
in the Georgia Senate who stood up and gave a great
farewell speech for Julian Bond.
I remember watching that and saying here is a liberal
Democrat and the conservative Republican Leader of the
State. What is he doing? I said there is a lesson here.
Bipartisanship and civility is important, and you should
never let politics rule over policy.
A week ago, he called me at my home on Sunday. We had an
issue in our area with the Federal Law Enforcement
Training Center, and we kind of got off path. He said,
``Jack, I think we are a little out of sync here. I just
want to make sure that you and I are okay on this.''
It was typical of Coverdell, because I think so many of
us, including me, and especially me, would have said, all
right, you are way off base, I am right and you are wrong;
not Paul, he made it so that it was just so easy to get
along.
He also told me a couple of weeks ago in a private
conversation about committing to the team, when you are a
Member of Congress, when you are a Member of an issue and
you are associated with that issue, commit to your team
and be proud to be on that team, even if the vote is an
uncomfortable one.
He talked to me about Nancy. He said, you know, we are
doing a little bit with real estate. I have to tell you
Nancy is better at real estate than I am. She is real good
at it. I will tell you what, you men know. It is a rare
man who really, privately, one-on-one takes time to brag
about his wife to another man, and that is a sign of a
great marriage and a great husband and true love.
Paul Coverdell was a good Republican, a great
strategist, a great ideas man, had a world view, had
civility and integrity, a great organizer. He was
energetic. He was a great communicator and a loyalist.
In short, Paul Coverdell was a statesman. Years ago,
there was another Paul on this earth, and he tells us in a
Scripture that it is better to wear out than rust out. I
would not submit to you that Paul Coverdell wore out, but
I would also say he certainly did not wear out, and maybe
in this institution which he loved so dearly, we could
say, and he would agree, the gentleman's time expired. But
while the gentleman's time has expired, I also think we
could evoke the words of St. Paul, one more time and say,
well done, that good and faithful servant.
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as
she may consume to the gentlewoman from Florida (Mrs.
Fowler), formerly from the State of Georgia.
Mrs. FOWLER. Mr. Speaker, I did grow up in the State of
Georgia, and it was with a really heavy heart yesterday
when I learned of the loss of Paul Coverdell. Paul and my
dad served together in the Georgia State Legislature, and
though they were in different parties, they became good
friends, and shared many funny stories together as they
served.
When I came to the U.S. Congress 8 years ago, Paul sort
of took me under his wing and was such a dear friend to me
and a mentor, and I could always go to him for advice and
know I could always rely on it. He was such an outstanding
man. We have been hearing people talk today about all the
wonderful qualities that Paul had, and when I think of
Paul, I think of someone who lived life with zest and
enthusiasm, who loved his family, who loved his country,
who loved serving the people.
He was the finest example of a public servant that I
have ever known, a decent, honorable man, such deep
integrity, who loved people so much and loved doing for
them. I look back when he was Director of the Peace Corps
and all he did to guide and mentor those young people that
were serving all around the world.
So really today, we all have very heavy hearts because
we will all miss Paul deeply, miss his friendship, miss
his service, miss his strength that he brought to the
representation of the State of Georgia in the U.S. Senate
but most of all, Paul, we are going to really miss you.
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as
he may consume to the gentleman from New York (Mr.
Gilman).
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Lewis) for yielding me this time.
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Georgia
(Mr. Lewis) for bringing this resolution to the floor at
this time. It is with deep regret that I rise to join my
colleagues in mourning the loss of the remarkable public
servant, Senator Paul Coverdell of Georgia. As chairman of
the Senate Foreign Relations Western Hemisphere
Subcommittee, Senator Paul Coverdell was dedicated to
fostering good relations with our neighbors in the
Americas.
Among his many contributions, Paul actively and ably co-
chaired our interparliamentary meeting with the Mexican
Congress, and I was pleased to have had a personal
relationship with Paul in relation to his work on the
Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Last year, Senator Coverdell was extremely proud to be
able to host our Mexican colleagues in Savannah, Georgia.
Paul went to great lengths to make all of us feel welcome,
including delivering a substantial portion of his opening
address in Spanish, and I recall Paul and Nancy guiding
Georgia and I through his hometown and pointing out where
they lived and pointing out his offices. He had a great
deal of pride in his city. It was certainly one of the
most productive and pleasant interparliamentary meetings
we held in Savannah.
Fortunately, Paul was able to see the Mexican people
secure full democracy for themselves through their recent
elections on July 2, something that Paul strongly
supported.
It was my privilege to work with Senator Coverdell on a
number of important regional issues. He was dedicated to
defining and defending American interests abroad. When it
came time to stand up to support our efforts in our fight
against illicit drugs, Paul Coverdell never failed the
American people. He always took the lead in galvanizing
support in the Senate for moving a substantial, meaningful
aid package to help our troubled neighborhoods in the
Andean region of South America and more recently
particularly in Colombia.
Just last week, President Clinton signed into law a
bipartisan emergency supplemental aid package for
Colombia, and it was gratifying that Paul was able to see
the consummation of his extraordinary efforts to help our
neighbors to the south.
Senator Coverdell was a principled man. He was a leading
voice in the Congress, calling for a firm response to the
undermining of democratic institutions through the
illegitimate elections in Peru; and we should honor
Senator Coverdell's leadership by strongly supporting his
respect for democracy in Peru.
My spouse, Georgia, joins with me in extending our
deepest condolences to Paul's widow, Nancy. Paul and Nancy
were loved by many. We extend our sympathy, too, to the
many people in Georgia and elsewhere who admired and
followed this remarkable public leader.
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as
he may consume to the gentleman from California (Mr.
Dreier).
Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the dean of the Georgia
delegation for yielding me this time.
Mr. Speaker, I am honored to be here with my colleagues
from Georgia and other parts of the country to talk about
our friend Paul Coverdell. No one could ask for a better
friend than Paul Coverdell. I first met him when he was
appointed Director of the Peace Corps in the late 1980s,
and at that time the attention in this House and around
the world was focused on the emerging democracies of
Eastern and Central Europe. In several meetings that we
had in my office, Paul Coverdell was talking with such
enthusiasm about creative ways in which we could help the
people of Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and
other countries that were starting to get that first taste
of freedom.
I was so struck with the dedication that this man showed
that I made a decision early on that I wanted to do
anything that I possibly could to help him. So he took me
up on that. He took me up on it when in 1992 he called me
and told me that he was going to run for the U.S. Senate.
I thought, what a great idea. He asked me to help him, so
I did. I will never forget the day that I was flying to
Atlanta from what is now, and I see Mr. Barr here,
affectionately referred to as Ronald Reagan National
Airport; and I was standing in the terminal with a former
colleague of ours from the other side of the aisle, and he
said, Well, why are you flying to Atlanta?
I said I am flying down to help Paul Coverdell win his
election to the U.S. Senate.
Well, this former colleague of ours from the other side
of the aisle laughed hysterically because he did not
believe that Paul had much of a chance to win, and there
were a lot of people who did not think Paul had a great
chance to win. In fact, I suspected that this former
colleague of ours from the other side of the aisle kind of
thought that Paul had about as much chance of winning as
he did of losing.
So we saw in Paul Coverdell a tenacity that was very,
very impressive. He was dedicated to his work.
I spent time traveling in Georgia with him, and he had a
couple of events. There were a few people who attended a
number of those events. I assumed it was because they had
announced that I was going to be there. But the fact was
that this guy never gave up. He was a real fighter.
One of the things that we have so often found in these
Members who worked with him closely in Georgia for decades
know that whenever someone wanted a job to be done, the
person to whom they would look was Paul Coverdell because
when this guy said that he was going to take on a job and
do it, he did it.
We so often hear the juxtaposition between workhorses
and show horses in this place, and we all know that Paul
Coverdell epitomized the workhorse. He was a guy who was
extremely dedicated.
I am so happy that the chairman of the Committee on
International Relations reminded us of his having hosted
the Mexican Interparliamentary Conference along with, I
remember, the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Kingston) was
there with us when we held that meeting. Paul was so proud
of the opportunity to host that very important meeting.
I served with him as a co-chairman of the Republican
House-Senate Dinner. Boy, that guy was absolutely
relentless when it came to our goal of building a strong
Republican Party, and as has been said by our colleagues
from the other side of the aisle, he, working for a strong
Republican Party, knew that ultimately working in a
bipartisan way was the only way that we could actually get
things accomplished.
My thoughts and prayers go to Nancy and other members of
the family, and I cannot say what a shocking and
devastating loss this is, not only for this great
institution of ours but for the Nation as a whole.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Barrett of Nebraska). The
Chair advises that the time of the gentleman from Georgia
(Mr. Lewis) has expired.
Pursuant to clause 2 of rule XVII, the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Kingston) is recognized for 1 hour on the
resolution.
Mr. KINGSTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may
consume to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Wamp).
Mr. WAMP. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Kingston) for yielding me this time.
Mr. Speaker, I believe for the ages Senator Paul
Coverdell will be remembered as one of the most
thoughtful, diligent, and detail-oriented Members in the
history of the U.S. Senate. Who would have ever thought
this time last week that we would be here today paying
tribute to the memory of Senator Coverdell?
There are times here where everything seems to stand
still, and this is one of those days where we come
together at the water's edge, as people, as God's
children, no differences, to pay the proper tribute to a
truly great public servant. A lot of political people skim
the surface, stay on the surface from fear of the details,
from fear of the slip of the tongue, from fear of
incompetency on very complicated matters of the day, but
not Senator Coverdell.
My experience with him was a fearless master of details
and complexity, never worrying about how far deep he would
swim into issues, about whether he could comprehend them
or always carry a host of things going on at the same
time. Unbelievable, really, in his capacity to carry all
of the different issues with him and stay that intricately
involved. It really bodes well for public service in
America that people like Paul would dedicate his life to
others through public service.
As a Tennessean who was born in Georgia when my dad was
on active duty at Fort Benning, my dad always said that it
cost $12 for me to be born at Fort Benning, and he still
wonders if he got his money's worth. Those are my Georgia
roots, and I am a southerner. Georgia mourns the loss
today of a truly great U.S. Senator, but the South has
lost one of its greatest leaders as well.
I come as a southerner today to say, Nancy, we are
sorry; to the Georgia delegation, we are sorry that they
have lost their friend and lifetime companion in the
flesh.
Last October I was coming to the Chattanooga Airport to
leave right after Payne Stewart had died tragically at the
height of his career, and you think about Paul at 61 years
old, he is really politically at the height of his career
and he is gone in the flesh, right at the height of his
ability to effectively carry out the responsibilities as a
U.S. Senator.
I said to R.V. Brown, a pastor who I know who I ran into
at the airport, ``Reverend R.V. Brown, is that not
unbelievable that Payne Stewart just vanished like that in
the flesh?''
He said, and it was a great comfort to me, and I hope it
is great comfort to Nancy and others who mourn the loss of
Paul Coverdell, ``sometimes the Lord picks the ripest
fruit to have the greatest impact on everyone around that
individual.''
I believe that the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House, the
State of Georgia, the South, the United States of America,
mankind at large can come closer together and truly
appreciate each other more because of this moment when we
forever and ever memorialize a fine person and a great
public servant, Senator Paul Coverdell. Goodbye, sir.
Mr. KINGSTON. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from
Tennessee (Mr. Wamp), the chairman of the Morning Prayer
Breakfast each Thursday, for his remarks.
Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the
gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Blunt), the deputy whip.
Mr. BLUNT. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Kingston) for yielding the floor to me.
Mr. Speaker, just yesterday some of us took the floor in
an unanticipated moment to wish the very best and to
extend our thoughts and our prayers to Senator Coverdell,
his wife, Nancy, and to their family, as they struggled
with this unanticipated challenge. Today, just a few hours
beyond, almost exactly 24 hours beyond, the time that we
were so hopeful in those last moments of Paul Coverdell's
life that he would continue to be with us, beyond the time
when we thought that if anybody could come back from any
challenge it would be Paul Coverdell, beyond the time when
we thought that if anybody else could do this, could be
back in a year, he could be back in a few months, we are
here today dealing with the loss of a person who has been
so important in this building to both the House and the
Senate and so important to the country.
I was moved by the observation that our friend, the
gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Wamp), just made about how
the Lord may take someone at such an inopportune time in
their life to challenge the rest of us to meet a new
standard in our life, a new standard with each other, a
new standard of public service, a new standard of being
able to reach out, as Paul was famous for to others, and
say, gee, you have got a lot to do here, can I help you?
At the same time, we know that Paul, when you would think
about it, surely had more to do than the person he was
offering to reach out and help, but his predisposition in
life was to help other people.
I did not know Paul Coverdell when I came to Congress
3\1/2\ years ago. In fact, I did not really know him
except to speak to him in the hallways of the House and
the Senate where he was always friendly to me until about
a year and a half ago when he and I were both asked to be
on the exploratory committee for Governor Bush. That was a
10-person committee. Our jobs were to represent the
Governor with the House and the Senate in that year and a
half. There was not a week that we did not talk on the
phone, and many weeks that we saw each other, just to
compare notes, just to talk about what was happening.
Even in that relationship, he would often say, well, you
have 200 people over there that you are talking to and
dealing with and I only have about 55 over here. Can I
help you do anything to make your job in the House easier?
I usually observed that probably it was easier to deal
with a couple of hundred House Members than 55 people from
the other body. He would always smile.
Mr. Speaker, I told somebody not too long ago that there
were many good reasons to do that particular job, as the
liaison for the Bush committee, but I would have done it
knowing what I knew then, and this was 2 or 3 months ago
with no anticipation of this moment, certainly. I would
have done it all just to have the chance to work with Paul
Coverdell. He was the kind of person that all of us who
got a chance to work with him I am sure were looking
forward to a couple more decades of that relationship, not
thinking that each time we saw him might be the last time
we saw him; but thinking, now, I wonder what it is that we
can next do that allows us to work together, because it
was such a joy and a privilege to work together with him.
I told someone earlier today that one of the things that
one really noticed when one dealt with our friends on the
other side of the Capitol was the interesting oil that
Paul Coverdell added to the process just to make things
work that otherwise you did not quite know during a
meeting how they might have worked if Senator Coverdell
had not been there. Of course now we are challenged to
know how they would work, but we do know the example he
set of making things work, the example he set of being
willing to reach out to other people, the example he set
of always trying his best to appear to be the most humble
guy in the room, the person who would be the most likely
to take the most difficult assignment, the person who
would never show any sense that there was any job that
needed to be done that was below or beneath him as an
individual. It is a standard that is hard to achieve,
frankly, in politics and government, and even hard to
achieve in this building; but it is one that he
established so well that he made serving others and doing
the most menial job seem like that, somehow, that was the
most important thing to do.
Mr. Speaker, we will miss him in this building. We will
miss him in our relationships between this House and our
friends on the other side of the Capitol. We will miss his
willingness to work, his capacity, his insight. But as the
gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Wamp) observed earlier,
maybe there is a challenge here. There is a purpose in
most things in life; and if we search for the purpose of
this, one of the purposes might be to emulate some of the
things that are so easy to say about Paul Coverdell.
Mr. Speaker, it is written somewhere, we will miss him
tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow.
Mr. KINGSTON. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from
Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume
to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Goss), the chairman of
the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.
Mr. GOSS. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate very much the
distinguished gentleman from Georgia, the honorable John
Lewis, the dean of the delegation, and the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Kingston) and the other members of the
Georgia delegation, affording us this time to speak about
Senator Paul Coverdell. The Rules of the House do not
permit us to refer to the other body or Members of the
other body, and we seldom do speak about them. This is
exceptional, because Paul Coverdell was really an
exceptional person. I think he did touch our lives.
Certainly those of us who live in Florida who have to fly
through Atlanta understand very well the meaning of having
the Atlanta airport there.
What I wanted to talk a little bit about today is the
loss to Nancy and his family, to the State of Georgia, and
to our country. I think it is an incalculable loss, and it
is obviously very painful if we have listened to the
speakers who have gone before.
We are going to miss Paul Coverdell deeply, and we are
going to miss him for a very long time to come, not only
as a person, but for the skills he brought to the art and
science of crafting legislation and people persuasion here
in these hallowed halls of the U.S. Congress.
To me, he had several distinctive hallmarks. They were
honor and decency, things that count for a lot here. And
effectiveness and accomplishment, of course, the way we
are measured. Those of us who were privileged to work with
him knew of this literally unrelenting energy. He was a
man who could tire out the most hard working of us. He
certainly had the intellect to challenge us as well. We
all admired his ability to find commonsense solutions that
seemed to work for all sides in a given debate. Those are
wonderful people skills. As the gentleman from Georgia
(Mr. Bishop) said in his testimony on the floor, that
unquestioning integrity was also another Paul Coverdell
trademark. That is very high praise.
I well recall his commitment to fighting the war on
drugs, just one of the many things he did here, and to his
finding a way to get the money to pay for fighting the war
on drugs, which is the harder part. His contribution to
that was characteristically second to none; and more
important, he was successful. And that success is now
being employed on the front lines in Colombia and in other
meaningful ways, and that will affect America as well and
those who are concerned about the scourge of drugs on our
youth and on our quality of life in this country.
So, Mr. Speaker, I would like to say for my wife and
myself and others in the neighboring State of Florida, we
send our condolences, our keen sympathy, and our love to
Nancy and the people of Georgia. Paul Coverdell was a man
who gave so much. He was taken too soon.
Mr. SOUDER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my
condolences to the family and staff of Senator Paul
Coverdell.
I admired and appreciated Senator Coverdell's commitment
to stopping the flow of illegal drugs across our borders
and his tireless efforts to expand educational opportunity
in America. Senator Coverdell demonstrated the
effectiveness of quiet, but persistent, leadership. He has
been hailed as a workhorse and, indeed, his dedication to
public service is an example to every official at every
level of government who works for the public good.
My former chief of staff, Ziad Ojakli, is the chief of
staff in the Senator's leadership office. On behalf of all
of us who are friends of Z and have worked with him over
the years, I wish to convey our deepest sympathy to the
family, friends and staff of Senator Paul Coverdell. They
are in our prayers.
Mr. KINGSTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of
my time.
Mr. Speaker, on behalf of my colleagues in the Georgia
delegation, Mr. Lewis, Mr. Norwood, Mr. Isakson, Ms.
McKinney, Mr. Linder, Mr. Bishop, Mr. Barr, Mr. Chambliss,
Mr. Deal and Mr. Collins, I move the previous question on
the resolution.
The previous question was ordered.
The resolution was agree to.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
Mr. McINNIS. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution
558, I move that the House do now adjourn in memory of the
late Honorable Paul Coverdell.
The motion was agreed to; accordingly (at 10 o'clock and
31 minutes p.m.), pursuant to House Resolution 558, the
House adjourned until tomorrow, Thursday, July 20, 2000,
at 10 a.m., in memory of the late Honorable Paul Coverdell
of Georgia.
A Service of Thanksgiving
for the Life of
PAUL DOUGLAS COVERDELL
January 20, 1939-July 18, 2000
Peachtree Road United Methodist Church
Atlanta, Georgia
Saturday, July 22, 2000
1:00 p.m.
Program
PRELUDES:
A Mighty Fortress Is Our God
Vaclav Nehlybel
Song of Peace
Vincent Perischetti
OPENING SENTENCES
(The congregation standing)
I am the resurrection and the life, says the Lord;
he that believes in Me, though he were dead, yet shall
he live;
and whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die.
I know that my Redeemer lives,
and that He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth;
and though this body be destroyed, yet shall I see God;
Whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold,
and not as a stranger.
For none of us lives to himself,
and no man dies to himself.
For if we live, we live unto the Lord;
And if we die, we die unto the Lord.
Whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord's.
Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord;
even so says the Spirit, for they rest from their labors.
We come to worship, to affirm our assurance of eternal
life, and to express our conviction that because Christ
lives, Paul Coverdell lives also!
Celebrant: The Lord be with you.
Congregation: And with your spirit.
Celebrant: Let us pray.
Almighty God, our Father, from whom we come, and unto whom
our spirits return: You have been our dwelling place in
all generations. You are our refuge and strength, a very
present help in trouble. Grant us Your blessing in this
hour, and enable us so to put our trust in You that our
spirits may grow calm and our hearts be comforted. Lift
our eyes beyond the shadows of earth, and help us to see
the light of eternity. So may we find grace and strength
for this and every time of need; through Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.
HYMN:
God of Our Fathers
National Hymn
God of our fathers, whose almighty hand
Leads forth in beauty all the starry band
Of shining worlds in splendor through the skies,
Our grateful songs before thy throne arise.
Thy love divine hath led us in the past,
In this free land by thee our lot is cast;
Be thou our ruler, guardian, guide and stay,
Thy word our law, Thy paths our chosen way.
From war's alarms, from deadly pestilence,
By Thy strong arm our ever sure defense;
Thy true religion in our hearts increase,
Thy bounteous goodness nourish us in peace.
Refresh Thy people in their toilsome way,
Lead us from night to never ending day;
Fill all our lives with love and grace divine,
And glory, laud, and praise be ever Thine.
(The congregation seated)
Isaiah 61:1-3
The spirit of the Lord God is
upon me,
because the Lord has
anointed me;
He has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed,
to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and release to the prisoners
to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor,
and the day of vengeance of our God;
to comfort all who mourn;
to provide for those who mourn in Zion
to give them a garland instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit.
They will be called oaks of righteousness
the planting of the Lord, to display his glory.
Celebrant: The Word of the Lord.
Congregation: Thanks be to God.
ANTHEM:
Amazing Grace
arr. Robert Shaw
Matthew 5:1-10
When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up the mountain, and
after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then He
began to speak, and taught them saying:
``Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the
kingdom of heaven.
``Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
``Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
``Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for
righteousness, for they will be filled.
``Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
``Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called
children of God.
``Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness'
sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.''
Celebrant: The Word of the Lord.
Congregation: Thanks be to God.
RECOLLECTION:
TRIBUTE BY CLYDE RODBELL
Please be patient with me as I struggle to deal with
this extremely difficult task. I have three handkerchiefs.
That may not be enough.
Millions of words have been or will be written and
spoken about this remarkable man. My few hundred are just
a feeble attempt to pay homage (in my own way) to someone
whom I loved very much. Fortunately I was able to tell him
so before he died.
There is great irony in my being up here today. I always
thought that Paul would deliver my eulogy.
Many years ago someone used the phrase, ``You're only
here for a visit.'' There's a great deal of truth in that
statement. But, Paul, your visit was just too damn short.
I want to share with you a few of my highly personal,
but probably fragmented, thoughts of Paul Coverdell as a
faithful servant of the people, as a man with wonderful
human qualities and as my dear friend.
Fred Cooper sent me article that appeared on the
editorial page of the Wall Street Journal dated Thursday,
July 20th. I borrow these brief but eloquent words. The
title is ``Mr. Inside.''
The most important U.S. Senator no one knew died
Wednesday of a stroke at age 61. Georgia Republican Paul
Coverdell managed to prosper by being everything most of
his colleagues are not. He was hard working, self-
effacing, nontelegenic, nonrich, serious about policy, a
conciliator and a listener. Our condolences to his
family.*
*Reproduced with permission of The Wall Street Journal.
How can I find the words to express to you how deeply I
respected this man, small in stature, but a giant in
attributes. Among those was his indomitable spirit. From
time to time he very privately shared his grave concerns
for his adored country and his frustration in dealing with
many of the difficulties in Washington. He likened it to
trying to herd a large group of cats. At the end of such a
recent conversation he quietly apologized and said: ``I
feel much better. I did not mean to be a whiner.'' My
retort was: ``Paul, you are never a whiner, but are always
a winner.'' I think he liked that. We then hugged and
parted for the night.
This highly intelligent man understood the political
process and he knew how to skillfully make it work. He had
marvelous leadership abilities and there are many in this
room who willingly and respectfully followed (often
blindly) his direction. I saw Paul as a man of clear
vision. He could take very complex societal problems and
even make me understand them. Incorruptible (to a fault).
Three or four years ago when Nancy needed two central air
conditioning units for their home, I told her that it
would be my pleasure to sell them at our cost. Paul
objected. I said OK, you stubborn son-of-a-gun, I'll sell
them to you at a dealer's price and I'll take our profit
and give it to a charity of your choice. Mr.
Incorruptible, Mr. Compromiser, agreed to that. Another
aside, Paul and Nancy, Robin and I were having dinner a
few weeks ago when a friend at a nearby table very
innocently sent over a bottle of wine. Without saying a
word the Senator abruptly left our table, located our
waiter and insisted that the wine be returned. When I
realized what was happening I asked Paul to explain his
actions. He replied, that a stranger had sent him a bottle
of wine, which he would not accept. I said, ``Paul, he
didn't send it to you, he sent it to me.'' Senator
Careful, with that cute perplexing, impish Coverdell smile
peers at me over those spectacles and said: ``Oh.''
Humble, never pretentious. He never got caught up in the
celebrity power stuff. Never sought the spotlight. Did not
have a big ego that needed to be massaged. No self-
promoter. No personal power grabber. He did his work and
his reward was the accomplishment of reaching the high
goals he set for himself and a job well done. In many ways
he was simply an ordinary man with extraordinary qualities
and huge talents that allowed him to reach out, touch and
influence people from all walks of life in unusual ways.
Folks liked him and trusted him. In my opinion, the U.S.
Senate was the ideal platform for him to ply his trade.
The other day a small group of family and friends was
discussing the funeral arrangements. Nancy suggested that
her preference would be to keep the ceremony short. She
further observed that Paul did not like to attend
funerals. My reaction was, ``I'll bet he is really ticked
off to be at this one.''
Observation. Nancy, I know you carefully selected the
music today that you believe Paul would most enjoy. But I
don't see Margie Lott's campaign song on the program.
Obviously an oversight.
Now about Nancy. Over the years, we observed thousands
of marriages. But the Coverdells were more than a solid
relationship. They were truly a unit. Deep rooted and
indivisible. She, like Paul, is a very private person.
Bright, incisive and quick to give Paul a wicked look when
she disagreed with his position. She's upfront, loyal, has
a keen wit and is an amazing friend. She possesses
enormous, but quiet inner strengths which our Nation has
witnessed over the past week. Nancy, Robin and I stand in
awe of how you have handled your tragic loss. You are one
great lady! The epitome of grace under fire. I know you'll
be comforted to know that Paul is up there with
``Whoofer.''
Mack Mattingly called me yesterday and made me aware of
the following quotation from Ronald Reagan on March 8,
1985: ``The challenge of statesmanship is to have the
vision to dream of a better, safer world and the courage,
persistence and patience to turn that dream into a
reality.'' That truly sums up Paul Coverdell's life.
So long good buddy. I mourn your departure. Rest well.
I'm sure going to miss you.
TRIBUTE BY THE HONORABLE PHIL GRAMM
Today we mourn, and we celebrate.
We mourn the passing of our dear and faithful friend,
Paul Coverdell. We mourn because our lives and the life of
our Nation are diminished by his death.
But while we mourn his death, we celebrate his life.
Loving Paul and having been loved by him has enriched
our lives in ways that even death can never erase.
While we are here to say goodbye, we will not soon be
forgetting that squeaky voice, the disheveled hair, those
flailing arms. And neither will we forget his lion heart,
his iron will, his unblemished character and his endearing
ways.
Will Rogers never met a man he did not like. Paul
Coverdell never met a man who did not like him.
Sweet. Selfless. Loving, Loyal. Courageous. And,
incredibly for a U.S. Senator, humble. Paul was all of
those things and more. If you knew Paul Coverdell, he was
one of your best friends.
No matter how highly you thought of Paul, he always
proved to be more than you thought.
He was the kind of man your momma always challenged you
to be, but you did not believe it was possible, until you
met Paul.
Surely Shakespeare's Mark Antony was speaking of Paul
when he said, ``His life was gentle, and the elements so
mixed in him that nature might stand up and say to all the
world, This was a man.''
I'd like to close with a prayer.
Lord, in our sorrow over Paul's untimely death, let us
remember not how he died, but how he lived.
In our grief over what we have lost at his passing, help
us to remember what we gained from his coming.
While we do not expect to see his likes again, we thank
you, Lord, for giving Paul to us and to America.
We feel, Lord, that he takes a part of us with him as he
passes. But he leaves with us a part of himself. And we
thank you, Lord, for giving us the better of the bargain.
TRIBUTE BY THE HONORABLE ROY BARNES
I first met Paul Coverdell in January of 1975 when I was
elected to the State Senate. I was 26, had a bushy head of
hair, and thought that I had all of the answers to the
problems of Georgia. I soon learned that most of my
solutions had been tried before, and failed. Paul, who had
been elected 4 years earlier, became my teacher on the ins
and outs of the Senate. That may sound strange, that one
of only a few Republicans would become the teacher of the
youngest Democrat, but that was Paul. He was as strong a
Republican as I ever met, yet he never let party get in
the way of the personal relationships that transcend
party. He was steadfast in his positions, but kind in his
friendships. He could disagree without being disagreeable.
I have thought over the last few days since Paul's
death, what separates him from the meanness that exists in
the politics of today? The answer, I believe, is simple.
You could trust Paul Coverdell. I think this was also the
attraction of the people of Georgia to Paul. Trust and
confidence was the currency, the coin of the realm, with
Paul. We became friends and exchanged secrets as friends
often do, but I never worried that Paul would disclose
anything I told him. He talked to me about running for the
U.S. Senate, and I discussed with him that I was
struggling over whether to run again for Governor, after I
had been defeated. I know this sounds strange now that I
recall it, that people of different parties would discuss
their personal strengths and weaknesses, but it shows the
trust that you could place in Paul and never doubt the
keeping of the secret. Oh, how we need more of that! I
would take away the acrimony and nastiness that we today
call politics.
Paul had one goal--to accomplish the best for the people
of Georgia regardless of who got the credit. A few weeks
ago Paul and I had breakfast as we had done on a regular
basis for 20 years. I had created during the last
legislative session a rural economic development program
called One Georgia. I had also received some stinging
criticism for it from some of the editorial writers. Paul
brought to the breakfast a folder of information to
support my program, and he told me I was right and to
ignore the criticism. He told me he would be glad to speak
out in my support if I needed him to do so. That was
Paul--just get the job done, forget about who gets the
credit.
What then is Paul Coverdell's legacy? I suggest to you
it is actions and deeds, and not words and glory. It is
service, not self-promotion. It is friendship and trust,
not cynicism and betrayal. Paul exemplifies a great man.
As Longfellow observed about great men who have fallen:
Lives of great men all remind us
We can make our lives sublime,
And departing, leave behind us
Footprints on the sands of time.
Footprints, that perhaps another,
Sailing o'er life's solemn main,
A forlorn and shipwrecked brother,
Seeing, shall take heart again.
Goodbye, my friend. See you in a little while.
TRIBUTE BY FRED COOPER
Mr. Cooper read the eulogy for Paul Coverdell written by
George Bush, as follows:
In June some close friends came to Kennebunkport
for Barbara's surprise birthday party. A friend
asked, ``Who are those two over there--the quiet guy
with the glasses and the beautiful woman.'' It was
Paul Coverdell from Georgia, a leader in the U.S.
Senate, a close friend for many years, and his wife
Nancy. I should have told my friend more about Paul.
That he loved politics. That he was good at it. That
he was a clear example of politics as a noble
calling. That quiet can be good.
Paul didn't whine from the sidelines. He helped
build an opposition party in Georgia when there was
none. He lacked flamboyance, but no one ever served
more effectively in the Georgia senate or in the
U.S. Senate. When in his wise and earnest manner he
spoke, people listened. He made a lot of fast
friends. He cared about people: ask those who worked
under him when he was Peace Corps director. Through
good times and bad, he was at my side--advising and
strengthening me by his love and friendship. Paul
was doing the same for our eldest son, helping him
navigate the tricky waters of the Senate, quietly
advising him on whom he could depend. He left behind
a lasting legacy that if you treat people with
unfailing kindness, you earn respect. We Bushes
loved him.
--George Bush, former President of the United
States*
* 2000--Time Inc. All rights reserved.
HYMN:
O Beautiful for Spacious Skies
Materna
(The congregation standing)
O beautiful for spacious skies, for amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties above the fruited plain!
America! America! God shed his grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood from sea to shining
sea.
O beautiful for heroes proved in liberating strife,
Who more than self their country loved, and mercy more
than life!
America! America! God mend thine every flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self-control, thy liberty in law.
O beautiful for patriot dream that sees beyond the years
Thine alabaster cities gleam, undimmed by human tears!
America! America! God shed his grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood from sea to shining
sea.
(The congregation seated)
A MESSAGE OF PEACE
THE PASTORAL PRAYER
THE BLESSING:
The peace of God which passes all understanding, keep
your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God,
and of His Son Jesus Christ our Lord; and the blessing of
God Almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be
among you and remain with you forever. Amen.
HYMN:
The Battle Hymn of the Republic
Julia Ward Howe
POSTLUDE:
Praise the Lord
with Drums and Cymbals
Sigfrid Karg-Elert
OFFICIATING CLERGY
Dr. Lloyd Ogilvie
Chaplain, United States Senate
HONORARY PALLBEARERS
Charles Allen
Fred Cooper
Jarvin Levison
The Honorable Mack Mattingly
John Parker
Clyde Rodbell
Frank Strickland
Kenny Wagner
BRASS ENSEMBLE IN RESIDENCE
Atlanta Brassworks
ORGANIST/CHOIR MASTER
Scott H. Atchison
ASSOCIATE ORGANIST
Michael L. Shake
CHOIR
Schola Cantorum
SOLOIST
Commander Robert Baird, USN
Peachtree Road United Methodist Church