[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 1 (Wednesday, January 4, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Page S14]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page S14]]
              PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE IN THE 104TH CONGRESS


                       The Changing of the Guard

  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, with the opening of the 104th Congress, 
we again witness a historic transfer of power as the Republican Party 
takes control of the Senate and Senator Strom Thurmond earlier today 
replaced Senator Robert C. Byrd as President pro tempore of the Senate. 
In this transition, we are witnessing one Senate institution replacing 
another.
  Together, these two outstanding legislators total three quarters of a 
century service in the Senate. Each not only has witnessed, but 
participated in, so much history and in the enactment of so much 
legislation, that Senators of my generation often are left in awe. As 
we prepare our legislative agendas and prepare for the upcoming debates 
and battles, this historic transition should not be lost upon us.
  Senator Byrd, for the past 6 years, has presided over the 
deliberations of the Senate.
  A look at the record reveals that he is indeed an institution within 
this institution. The senior Senator from West Virginia has served in 
the Senate for nearly 40 years. He has served as chairman of Senate 
Appropriations Committee, as the Senate Democratic whip, 6 years as 
Senate minority leader, 6 years as Senate majority leader, and, since 
1987, President pro tempore of the Senate.
  His unparalleled knowledge of the Senate's intricate rules and 
procedures, his overwhelming knowledge of the history of this 
legislative body that he loves so deeply, and, his presence in this 
Chamber combined to make him a most effective and impressive President 
pro tempore.
  What an honor it has been for me personally to watch him preside. We 
will miss him and his presence in the chair. While there is not a 
stronger, more ardent fighter for the causes in which he believes and 
supports, no one could have been more fair or more impartial in 
presiding over the Senate.
  Although he leaves the chair of President pro tempore, I can assure 
you he is not about to fade away. As the new Democratic leader of the 
Senate, I will need, I will seek, and I will certainly appreciate his 
wisdom, experience, his insight, and his foresight. I know that 
Senators from both sides of the aisle will continue to value the 
benefit of his unique perspective and the importance of this 
institution as well as his unique ability to resolve problems within 
it.
  Mr. President, at the closing of the 99th Congress, the Senate 
approved a resolution recognizing the outstanding service Senator Strom 
Thurmond had performed as President pro tempore of the Senate. The 
resolution expressed the Senate's appreciation for the courteous, 
dignified, and impartial manner in which the senior Senator from South 
Carolina had presided over the deliberations of the Senate.
  In the 104th Congress, Senator Thurmond again will occupy this 
important and prestigious position. Like Senator Byrd, he, too, is an 
institution within this institution. While a Member of the Senate, he 
has been a member of both political parties and a candidate for 
President of another. While serving in the U.S. Senate, Senator 
Thurmond has had highways, courthouses, Federal buildings, and schools 
named in his honor--honors usually reserved for those who are no longer 
with us. In the Senate, he has been an active participant--sometimes 
controversial--but a participant in the legislative struggles of our 
times. I have not always agreed with his positions, past or present, in 
those contests, but I have never seen or encountered a more worthy, a 
more dignified opponent or one for whom I have greater respect.
  As everyone who has had the pleasure of serving in this Chamber with 
him knows, Senator Thurmond has been a consistent champion of the South 
and of conservative causes, but we also know he has been able to blend 
and bend when democracy took a different course. He has remained a 
southern gentleman of the highest order.
  As the Democratic leader, I want to extend my congratulations to 
Senator Thurmond for his reelection as President pro tempore and 
welcome him back to this position. I look forward to working with him 
as well. I am confident that in the 104th Congress, Senator Thurmond 
will perform the duties of President pro tempore of the Senate in the 
same courteous, dignified, and impartial manner in which he presided 
over the deliberations of the Senate in the 99th Congress.


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