[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 6 (Wednesday, January 10, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S122-S123]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                  SNOW

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, we have seen a fair amount of snow here in 
the last few days. I have sometimes taken the floor of the Senate and 
been critical of things closing down for 2 or 3 inches of snow, and 
have said we do not do it that way in Vermont. But I must admit, this 
would be a significant snowstorm even in Vermont. It would be a welcome 
one, because of our ski industry, and we would cope, but this would be 
a lot of snow in any other place.
  I do know the distinguished Senator from Vermont, Senator Jeffords, 
had his office open during this time as did I. He is on the floor and, 
I might ask, Mr. President, my good friend and colleague from Vermont, 
would he agree with me that this is finally a Washington snowstorm that 
comes up to the standards of what we expect back home in Vermont?
  Mr. JEFFORDS. If the Senator will yield, I would say it is getting 
close, anyway. It was, I think, an official 17 inches.
  I would just comment, before I came down I shoveled off the roof of 
my house in Vermont. There was almost 4 feet of snow on the roof that I 
shoveled off. So, when I say it is getting there, it still has a ways 
to go. On the other hand, I have noted drifts in front of my house here 
that have totally buried the car, which makes it drifting over 5 feet. 
I think the drifts are more significant than the snowfall and that has 
certainly created a lot of problems.
  Mr. LEAHY. I would say to my friend from Vermont, Mr. President, I 
looked out the window. One of my neighbors usually parks a car on the 
street. I thought it had been stolen until I saw about an inch and a 
half of antenna sticking out and realized the car was under that.
  I know the area where my friend from Vermont lives, one of the most 
beautiful ones. He at least got his roof shoveled off. We had a little 
trouble with the roof on my house, I might say, and have had a bit of 
damage. We have had a lot of snow back home.
  I would note that, while the Congress might close down the 
Government, we would have reopened it, but we found out there was a 
much higher power, as I am sure the Chaplain would agree, that closed 
the Government right down again. I hope it will be back open. I know 
there are so many thousands of good, hard-working men and women who 
want to get back to work.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, could I just ask the Senator to yield for 
a second? 

[[Page S123]]

  Mr. LEAHY. Of course.
  Mr. WARNER. I have lived in this area all of my life, northern 
Virginia and the greater metropolitan area. I do not know that we have 
ever experienced anything like this, except perhaps the storm of 1979, 
which I remember very well.
  Mr. President I want to say, on a serious note, how in the community 
here--certainly I can speak to northern Virginia but I am certain it is 
throughout the metropolitan area--citizens have really rendered help to 
one another in this crisis, be it shoveling snow or driving. The 
hospitals have asked for the 4-wheelers, and it is a great credit to 
the community and those who live in it, how they have reached out a 
hand to help their fellow citizens who are suffering as a consequence 
of this very severe storm.
  Mr. LEAHY. If the distinguished Senator from Virginia will yield on 
that point, I absolutely agree with him. I told the distinguished 
Senator from Virginia I consider him my Senator when I am away from 
home. Of course, I consider Senator Jeffords my Senator when I am at 
home. But down here I have a home in northern Virginia where I live 
during the Senate session and I have seen exactly what the Senator from 
Virginia has said. People working hard, people come by asking elderly 
neighbors do they need something from the store? They were going to ski 
to the store, whatever.
  When he talks about the hospitals and the 4-wheel drives, I know 
about that from firsthand experience. My wife is a nurse on a medical 
surgical floor in this area. She was on the shift that ended Saturday 
and Sunday and Monday night around midnight. As you know, the snow was 
coming down pretty hard at that time. Complete strangers were coming 
into the hospital with 4-wheel drives, people who were working at other 
jobs, to take nurses and doctors back and forth, pick up medical 
supplies, to take critically people back and forth. Total strangers 
were bringing her home. We could not get out at first, out of our 
street, to go ourselves. But they were doing that. There was that sense 
of cooperation that, frankly--and I mean this as a great compliment to 
the Senator from Virginia--it is the kind of cooperation we see in our 
State where we do get hit with heavy snowfalls like this, I know, 
whether it is in the little town of Middlesex, VT, where my farm is, or 
Shrewsbury, VT, the beautiful area where Senator Jeffords is from.
  I yield to the distinguished colleague from Vermont.
  Mr. HEFLIN. I wonder if the Senator will yield to the Senator from 
Alabama?
  Mr. JEFFORDS. Mr. President, I will be happy to yield to the Senator 
from Alabama.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Warner). The Senator from Alabama.
  Mr. HEFLIN. Mr. President, I just want to comment on the snow, that 
it suits the people in Alabama and it suits the Senator from Alabama, 
that Vermont have most of this snow with the exception, I see as he 
leaves the chair, the Senator from Alaska is leaving, relative to his 
State.
  They can have all of this snow. We will take 2 inches in Alabama 
every 3 years and let that suffice. Otherwise, we just want to leave it 
to Vermont and to Alaska.
  Mr. JEFFORDS. I thank the Senator from Alabama for that generous 
offer, and I assure him that we will take him up on it. We will use 
every bit that we can.

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