[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 13 (Wednesday, February 5, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S1046]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      THE LIFE OF PAMELA HARRIMAN

  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, it is with sadness that I note the 
passing of a unique public servant, our Ambassador to France, Pamela 
Harriman. Perhaps President Clinton said it best this morning: Pamela 
Harriman represented the best of America's immigrant tradition. She was 
someone who enjoyed the opportunities this country offered but gave 
back so much more in return.
  Pamela Harriman's legacy will be remembered both in this Capitol 
Building and in capitals across the world. As a private citizen in the 
1970's and 1980's, Pamela Harriman plunged into the rough-and-tumble of 
American politics.
  The early 1980's were a difficult time for the people in my party. An 
incumbent Democratic President had lost the White House and Democrats 
had lost control of the Senate. But Pamela Harriman helped breathe life 
into an ailing Democratic Party when she formed ``Democrats for the 
`80s,'' helping to bring my party's communications operations into the 
modern age when she gave crucial support for the Harriman Center at the 
Democratic National Committee Building.
  She also was a host to numerous functions at her elegant Georgetown 
home, asking nothing but a passionate commitment to public service and 
Democratic values from those she assisted.
  As most of our colleagues know, politics in Washington can be a 
contact sport. Pamela Harriman played the game well. She played with 
great dignity, elegance, and style. She did not become involved in 
politics for personal enrichment or to gain social position; she 
already had both. She chose to share the fruits of her hard work and 
good fortune with a generation of Americans who were eager to serve 
their country in Washington.
  Hers will be a lasting legacy for all Americans who believe in the 
nobility of public service and think that politics today does not have 
to be mean, petty, or destructive.
  Late in her life, Pamela Harriman brought her tremendous skills and 
ability to the world stage when President Clinton asked her to be 
Ambassador to France. Some critics suggested she did not have the 
experience to handle such a sensitive post. She proved them wrong. She 
began her assignment in Paris in 1993 with the respect of President 
Clinton and those who knew her well in the United States. She quickly 
earned the respect of the people of France and other European 
countries.
  Her keen understanding of Washington ways and the experiences of her 
early life in Europe allowed her to skillfully navigate disputes over 
trade, CIA activities, Bosnia, the Middle East, and NATO. Her 
diplomatic acumen protected America's interests without alienating 
powerful and important allies all through the world.
  The French Government's unique recognition of her contributions was 
all the more evident when they made her a commander of the Legion of 
Honor's Order of Arts and Letters, their country's highest cultural 
award. No doubt she will be missed in France and across Europe almost 
as much as she will be missed in America, her adopted home.
  So this is a sad day for me and many others in this country and 
across the world whose lives were touched by a very special woman. I am 
confident that the examples she so graciously established will live on 
with us and future generations of public servants. For that we should 
be joyful.
  Thank you, Ambassador Pamela Harriman.
  I yield the floor.

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