[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 18 (Wednesday, February 12, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S1297]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       TRIBUTE TO PAMELA HARRIMAN

  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, I was shocked and deeply saddened by 
Pamela Harriman's death last week in Paris. All of us in the Kennedy 
family cherished her friendship, and we will always have many warm 
memories of her close ties to our family.
  In a very real sense, throughout the Reagan and Bush years, she was 
the First Lady of the Democratic Party. I especially admired her 
leadership, her extraordinary ability, and her abiding commitment to 
the best ideals of public service.
  Pamela's friendship with the Kennedy family goes back more than half 
a century. It began in the difficult days of World War II in England 
during my father's service as Ambassador in London. Pamela became an 
especially close friend of my older sister Kathleen, and her friendship 
with our family continued ever since.
  Her marriage to Averell Harriman in 1971 brought us even closer. 
Averell had been a great friend and key adviser to President Kennedy on 
foreign policy, and his wise counsel had been instrumental in the 
passage of the Limited Test Ban Treaty between the United States and 
the Soviet Union.
  In one of her most extraordinary accomplishments, Pamela became one 
of the pillars of the Democratic Party during the 1980's. She never 
lost faith in the enduring principles of our party. She held those 
ideals high, and she inspired legions of others to do so as well. Her 
leadership was especially effective in revitalizing our party in all 
parts of the country during the Reagan and Bush years, and President 
Clinton's dramatic victory in 1992 was her victory too.
  Pamela's unique qualities of leadership and ability earned her great 
additional renown during her recent service as Ambassador to France. On 
a host of challenging issues ranging from the war in Bosnia to 
disagreements over NATO and international trade, she served with her 
trademark combination of skill, grace, and sensitivity that made her so 
respected and beloved by all who knew her and by the entire diplomatic 
community.
  All of us in the Kennedy family admired her leadership and her 
statesmanship, but most of all, we were grateful for her friendship. 
The Nation has lost a truly remarkable public servant, and we will miss 
her very much.

                          ____________________