[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 53 (Wednesday, May 3, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3275-S3280]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              MIKE EPSTEIN

  Mr. WELLSTONE. Mr. President, let me thank the leadership of both 
parties for allowing the Senate to talk to a very dear friend, Mike 
Epstein. I want you to know, Mike, and your family, that a lot of our 
staff are back here as well with me. I think this is a little unusual, 
that the Senate stops its business and focuses on an individual in this 
way. But I think there are some things that many of us want to say to 
Mike.
  I want to start out this way. When I mentioned in the past couple of 
days to Senators, but also support staff everywhere here, that my 
friend Mike was struggling with cancer, I just could never have 
anticipated the reaction. Mike, I want you to know I can think of at 
least four or five times where someone said to me: Mike? He's an 
institution.
  I know Mike's priorities, so let me be clear about the people who 
talk about Mike as an institution. And, Mike, I know you; this was 
real. This was real.
  Some of the people who said Mike is an institution were support 
staff. People said to me: Mike just treats everybody so well. He is 
such a nice, good person. He is great, just because of the way he 
treats people.
  Mike, that is the best compliment of all.
  Then Senators said to me: Paul, Mike Epstein is an institution in the 
Senate. Some may have been thinking about history. Some in the Senate--
I

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do not think that many because we have had a lot of new Senators--know 
of Mike's role with the Church committee and the important 
investigative research he has done.
  There are others who are familiar, Mike, with the kind of work you 
have done with Senator Kennedy. Mike did some of the most important 
investigative research on HIV infection and AIDS early on when other 
people in the country did not even want to focus on this.
  Then other Senators said to me: Paul, we are going to come to the 
floor and talk to Mike today because we have worked with him on the 
Senate Foreign Relations Committee when he was chief counsel to the 
committee.
  Then way down on the list of priorities--because I am talking to you, 
Mike, about great work that you do--has been the work that Mike and I 
have done together. Mike, I know you will not like me saying this, but 
I am going to say it anyway because it is true. I believe from the 
bottom of my heart that everything I have been able to do as a Senator 
that has been good for Minnesota and the country is because, Mike, you 
have been there right by my side, 1 inch away from me.
  A lot of the people in the Senate know that. As a matter of fact, I 
say to my colleagues on the floor, I will never forget one time when I 
finally learned at least a little bit of the rules and I was able to 
come to the floor and fight very hard a number of years ago for some 
assistance for victims of a tornado that hit Chandler, MN, and other 
small communities. Mike was there as my tutor, as my teacher, teaching 
me, as you do, Mike.
  It worked out well, but afterwards, Alan Simpson, a former Senator 
from Wyoming, came up to me and said: Paul?
  I said: Yes?
  He said: You see those fellows on the other side of the aisle?--
pointing to the Republicans, and I think Nancy Kassebaum was there as 
well.
  I said: Yes.
  He said: They have been looking at you.
  I said: Yes.
  Mike was a ways behind me about where Tinker is sitting right now.
  He said: He has been right next to you the whole time. It doesn't 
look good. It looks like you can't do it yourself. It looks like he is 
doing it for you. Paul, the trick is this: You want to have Mike far 
enough away from you so that it looks like you are doing it yourself 
but close enough to you in case they throw a whizzer on you, he can be 
1 inch away from your side.
  That has basically been my methodology as a Senator. I had Mike far 
enough away so it looked like I was doing it on my own, but Mike was 
close enough so that always when I needed the advice, I got it.
  Mike Epstein, I speak on the floor today in the Senate, and others 
are coming out to speak, because you are an institution and I want to 
make sure you and your family hear these words loudly and clearly.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Nevada.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, when I learned Mike was sick, I thought I 
should come down and say a few words. I thought: What can I say? I do 
not want to say anything that will not be appropriate. I went to my 
person who does my floor work in the Senate, Peter Arapis. I said: Tell 
me about Mike Epstein. What do you know about Mike Epstein?
  He said--and I made some notes--he always told us some jokes and he 
was always funny, always had a smile, and he appears to be Senator 
Wellstone's best friend. Those are the same things I felt about Mike 
Epstein.
  The feelings about Mike are pretty well known in the Senate. He has a 
great sense of humor. He always had that sly grin on his face when he 
was in the Senate, which I appreciated a lot.
  Mike, I always appreciated your being so courteous to me. I had a lot 
of dealings with you because as we proceed in the Senate--and I say 
this through Senator Wellstone to Mike--it seems one of my 
responsibilities is to get the legislation moving. A lot of times 
Senator Wellstone threw a monkey wrench into legislation moving. Who 
would I go to to find out what really was happening? I would go to the 
back row and talk to Mike and say: Mike, what is going on here? He 
would have a grin on his face as he would tell me what was going on. He 
was always the person I would go to to break through the Wellstone 
logjam that was created.
  I was looking this morning for something to describe you, Mike. I 
found a quote by James Barrie that is pretty good. I believe it really 
sizes up what you appear to be to me. Barrie said, ``Always be a little 
kinder than necessary.''
  Certainly with Mike Epstein, that is the case. Mike was always a 
little kinder than necessary to me. Always kind. A lot of times I 
thought to myself: Wow, that is really a nice person. I guess I thought 
maybe he was a little kinder to me than was necessary.
  I never looked at Mike's resume. My staff gave me a little background 
resume of Mike today. Here is a man who graduated from Brown 
University. Brown is an Ivy League school. It is a wonderful school; 
some say the best school in America. It is very hard to get in. It is a 
small school, and they only take the best people whom they think can 
academically be a success.
  Then, of course, he went to Boston University Law School, which is 
one of the top law schools in the country.
  He had a resume. He could have gone anyplace in the world to work in 
the legal field. He could have gone anyplace in the legal field in 
America to work. He decided very early on that he wanted a life in 
public service, and that is what he did. As soon as he got out of law 
school, he served in the Justice Department as staff counsel, 
prosecuting attorney, special assistant to the Attorney General, and 
worked in the Criminal Division.
  In 1970 or 1971, Mike moved to Capitol Hill where he spent the rest 
of his career. What a career it was. I repeat, at any juncture of 
Mike's career, he could have gone anyplace in Washington to make the 
big bucks as a lobbyist, as an attorney in one of the big law firms, 
but he decided not to do that.
  He decided to be a counsel to the special commission to investigate 
intelligence activities--Senate counsel on the Intelligence Committee. 
He was counsel to one of the Senate Democratic leaders. He was chief 
counsel to the Foreign Relations Committee. And he, of course, for the 
last 10 years or so has been the legislative director for Senator 
Wellstone.
  At any juncture of his career, including any time he worked for 
Senator Wellstone, he could have gone anyplace in town to make a lot of 
money. He has a great academic background, and of course his experience 
is tremendous.

  So I feel very moved to say nice things about Mike Epstein, things I 
wish I had said earlier.
  So, Mike, I certainly wish you the best. I know your health isn't as 
good as we would like it. But I certainly hope you have some peace and 
rest in the next little bit and that you recognize how much we would 
like to see you in this back row, helping Senator Wellstone--kind of 
the ``Mini-Me'' of the Wellstone operation.
  I think it is also important that Jonathan and Bob--your two 
children--recognize the great contributions you have made to Government 
in America. Things are better because of you. Certainly, I know the 
many contributions Senator Wellstone has made during his career have 
been directly related to your expertise.
  I yield the floor.
  Mr. WELLSTONE. Mr. President, I thank the Senator from Nevada.
  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I am not sure what the time allocation 
is, but I will use my leader time to make a few remarks, if I may.
  Mr. President, every day--until very recently--if you looked toward 
the west entrance to the Senate floor, as my colleague from Nevada has 
just noted, chances are, you would see Mike Epstein--with that 
wonderful, warm smile--Senator Wellstone's learned and much-loved 
legislative director.
  Today, however, as so many of my colleagues have already noted, Mike 
is not with us. He is at home resting, because he is very, very sick. 
His absence from this floor, from this Senate he loves so well, is 
conspicuous. It is being felt in the hearts of every member of the 
Senate community. Indeed, it is being felt in the very heart of this 
institution itself.
  For Mike Epstein is actually an institution within an institution.

[[Page S3277]]

  He is a Senate staffer of the old school. He came to the Senate in 
1971--before virtually every member of the Senate staff, and before all 
but seven sitting Senators.
  That is not the kind of thing Mike would ever tell you. As a staffer 
of the old school, he isn't given to boasting or self-promotion. Then 
again, he doesn't have to: his experience and his ability speak for 
themselves.
  During Mike's tenure here, he has served on the staffs, as I am sure 
my colleagues have already noted, of some of our most distinguished 
Senators to serve in my lifetime, including Senator Robert C. Byrd, 
Senator Ted Kennedy, Senator Paul Sarbanes, and now--for the last 9 
years--our dear, dear Senator from Minnesota, Mr. Paul Wellstone.
  He also served as a member of the staffs of the Committees on Foreign 
Relations, Ethics, Labor and Human Resources, and Judiciary.
  He first came to Washington in 1962 as a young attorney working at 
the Department of Justice for Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy.
  Along the way he picked up a library full of knowledge, and a mind 
full of wisdom.
  He became--at the elbow of the master, Senator Robert C. Byrd--an 
expert in Senate history, rules, and parliamentary procedure.
  He also became a friend, teacher, and mentor to generations of Senate 
staff.
  And he became a valued and trusted counselor to the Senators for whom 
he worked, and for many others--this Senator included.
  What a career. What a remarkable achievement. But then again, what a 
remarkable man.
  What is perhaps most remarkable about Mike is his passion.
  Even though all those years of public service tends to wear someone 
down, Mike is still fiercely, proudly committed to the ideals of a 
progressive agenda, much like his boss, Senator Wellstone.
  But ``boss'' is the wrong term to use in describing the relationship 
between Mike and Paul. They are more like family. In fact, Mike says 
Paul is like a brother to him. I know Paul feels exactly the same way 
about Mike.
  Before joining Paul's staff in 1991, Mike told a friend that his 
dream job would be to work as Senator Paul Wellstone's legislative 
director. That dream came true for Mike, and he and Paul have been 
inseparable ever since.
  So, Mr. President, on behalf of the Democratic Conference, the 
Democratic staff, and frankly, the entire Democratic Party, not to 
mention our Senate community, I thank my friend, Paul Wellstone for 
being here today and for telling this Senate how much Mike Epstein 
means to this institution and to all of us.
  Most of all, I want to express our heartfelt gratitude to our 
gallant, courageous colleague, Mike Epstein, for his friendship--and 
for his inspired service to the Senate and to the Nation.
  Mike, we are keeping you and your family very much in our thoughts 
and in our prayers.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from North Dakota.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, yesterday Senator Wellstone told our 
caucus of the health challenges Mike Epstein has been facing. I am 
someone who knows Mike. Am I his closest friend? No. But Senator 
Wellstone had his office next to mine in the Hart Building. Every day--
during votes, and coming and going in the Senate--I would see Mike 
Epstein and see my colleague, Senator Wellstone, moving back and forth. 
I watched, with some wonder, at the work he did for Senator Wellstone.
  I know he is now facing a health challenge that is difficult. I know 
there are times in this fast-paced world of ours--especially here in 
the Senate, with the travel and the hearings and the moving about 
quickly--that it is easy to forget what makes this work and what has 
real value in our lives.
  This is a moment, as Mike faces this challenge, to say to Mike: Our 
thoughts and prayers are with you today as you face this serious health 
challenge. But we also want, as we think of you, to say thanks for what 
you have done here. The people who serve here, especially my colleague, 
Senator Wellstone, know how important personal relationships are.
  The only thing we really have, as we try to deal with public policy, 
is our work. Personal relationships are everything. But it is not just 
personal relationships between Senators; it is also the relationships 
that exist around here between Senators and some talented, dedicated 
people who help make this institution work. One of those is Mike 
Epstein.
  Each of us aspired to serve our country in different ways. That is 
what persuaded us in the Senate to seek public office. It is what 
inspires some of the most talented, dedicated men and women in our 
country to want to come and serve and work in these Senate offices.
  Mike Epstein has worked with Senator Wellstone for many years. I know 
Senator Reid just talked about at the end of considering pieces of 
legislation. I say to Senator Wellstone, at the end of the 
consideration of pieces of legislation that are long, torturous trials, 
trying to get all the amendments in, Senator Reid and I have always 
tried to figure out, how do we get these amendments compressed? In 
almost every case, at the end of the process, it has been Senator 
Wellstone who has had three or four amendments.
  The reason: I know Mike Epstein would be sitting behind Senator 
Wellstone, and Senator Wellstone would be exhibiting this passion, 
saying: No, we have to do these. This is important. It has been because 
he shares Mike's commitment to give voice to the voiceless, and hope to 
the hopeless, and to not let the big things obscure things that are 
important to average Americans and people who are struggling out there 
every day.
  That is the legacy of the service of someone such as Mike Epstein to 
this Senate. As he struggles with this health challenge, I just wanted 
to comment, as a member of this caucus, and to say to Senator 
Wellstone, and say directly to Mike Epstein, our thoughts and prayers 
are with you. This country is better because of your service in this 
Senate.
  We wish you well.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Iowa.
  Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, first of all, I thank my friend and 
colleague, Senator Paul Wellstone, for having the foresight and the 
intelligence to have Mike Epstein on his staff for all the years he has 
been here in the Senate.
  I say to you, Mike, you could not have picked a better person to work 
for in the Senate. Paul is in the great tradition of those you have 
worked with before in the Senate.
  I also want to thank you, Mike, for all of your work in the Senate 
over all these years. When I heard the other day that you were home 
battling cancer, I said, it is impossible; I saw him right back here 
just the other day, in back of the balustrade over here. Many times I 
would be sitting here when debate would be going on, and I would go 
over and say, ``Mike, tell me what is happening,'' or ``What is going 
on here on the floor?'' or ``What is the amendment? What is our 
strategy?''
  Mike would fill me in. I thank you, Mike, for keeping me up to speed 
as to what was happening on the floor a lot of times. Mostly, I also 
want to thank you, Mike, for all the times we rode back and forth on 
the subway cars together. It seems around here that sometimes you just 
kind of meet certain people at certain times. It is unplanned and it 
sort of happens. I don't know why, but you and I, Mike, seemed to be on 
the same schedule to ride the subway. I don't know what the subway ride 
is, a couple or 3 minutes. There was always time for me to get a 3-
minute briefing from you, Mike, on what we were doing and what we were 
fighting for. It revolved around I think what I would like to say is 
the liberal cause.
  If there is one thing I would like to really thank both Mike Epstein 
and Paul Wellstone for, it is for fighting for the liberal cause. I 
can't think of anyone who embodies more of what I believe is the real 
face of liberalism in this country than you, Mike. I think of what 
President Kennedy once said. I may get the words a little wrong because 
I am reaching into my memory bank now. But President Kennedy was

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once asked--I believe when he was running for President--about being a 
``liberal,'' whether he was a liberal or not. President Kennedy 
responded by saying: Well, if by liberal you mean someone who is soft 
on defense, someone who is not concerned about ethics and morals, 
someone who doesn't believe in responsibility and accountability--if 
that is what you mean by liberal, that is not me. But if by liberal you 
mean someone who cares deeply about the health and the welfare and the 
happiness of our people, and if by liberal you mean someone who fights 
for the education of all of our kids, even the most disadvantaged, and 
if by liberal you mean someone who will fight for the elderly and their 
rights in our society, if that is what you mean by liberal, then I am 
one, and I am proud to be one.

  So, Mike, I think you embody exactly what President Kennedy was 
talking about. In all the years I have known you, that has really been 
your mantle. In all the strategies we had here in fighting for 
legislation, I think you, Mike, really represented those who didn't 
have a high paid lobbyist pushing for them, such as children in 
poverty, working parents who needed some help, and even my people 
living in rural areas--a lot of times you helped them.
  I just wanted to take this time to thank you, Mike, for always 
fighting for what I believe is in the best traditions of liberalism in 
this country. It is the liberal attitude that I believe makes us more 
compassionate and understanding toward one another, and you have 
embodied that during the entire time I have known you for all these 
years.
  Again, I thank you for that. You have been a great person, a 
remarkable person. For as long as I am here, I am always going to turn 
back to the balustrade and look for Mike Epstein to tell me what is 
going on and what our strategy is and to keep me focused on what really 
matters around this place, and that is what we do to enhance the lives 
of people at the bottom of the ladder. That really is the mark of what 
we are about and should be about as a Senate.
  Mike, I thank you, and I thank Paul for getting us together this 
morning to pay tribute to you. I know you are struggling right now, and 
I just want you to know that you are always in my thoughts and you are 
always in my prayers. I can just tell you that all the things you have 
fought for and believed in so strongly in the Senate, believe me, we 
are going to keep on going with them. So take care of yourself and just 
know that we are with you.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Massachusetts is recognized.
  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, I join with my other colleagues, first of 
all, in thanking a very special friend and someone we admire and care 
so much about, our colleague, Paul Wellstone, as Tom Harkin has said, 
for bringing us together. I thank him for persuading our leaders who 
have responded positively that we take a few moments from the business 
of the Senate to give recognition to an individual who has given so 
much of his life to this institution and, really, to our country.
  I am grateful to join with my colleagues in adding a word about this 
extraordinary individual because, in a very important way, his life has 
been the U.S. Senate. I was fortunate enough, along that pathway of 
his, to have the opportunity to work with him, as several of my 
colleagues did, those who are here now, such as Senator Sarbanes, and 
some who are not with us, Phil Hart and Claiborne Pell, as well as 
Senator Byrd. So I welcome this chance to join with others in 
recognizing Mike Epstein's extraordinary service.
  Mike Epstein came to the Senate Judiciary Committee after 9 years at 
the Department of Justice, where he served as a Federal prosecutor. He 
used those same skills that made him a top-notch prosecutor to 
investigate some of the most difficult issues before our country. If 
there was a lead, he pursued it. If there was a fact to be found, he 
would find it. He left no stone unturned. He served the committee well, 
and I am proud that he was a member of my staff.
  It was during that period that Mike's love for this institution grew 
and matured. Though he left briefly in 1974, he couldn't stay away for 
very long. Within months, he was back working for the Senate 
Intelligence Committee, and later for three additional committees, and 
then for several of my colleagues.
  It is a mark of the man that Mike worked for so many different 
committees and Senators. His career in the Senate reflects an 
extraordinary breadth of interests and a genuine love for this 
institution. He is well-versed on issues ranging from international 
affairs to education; from health care to drug treatment and 
prevention. In fact, the country owes Mike a debt of gratitude for his 
tireless work on the 1988 drug policy legislation. He was an articulate 
advocate for a more balanced and comprehensive approach to drug policy.
  Because of his landmark work, the country began to enhance its 
enforcement efforts by also considering the importance of drug 
prevention and treatment, as well as a fairer approach to sentencing.
  Mike's work on each of these issues was guided by a love for national 
policy and also for the Senate and its procedures. He understands so 
well the relationship between the rules and the outcome of a 
legislative debate, which is so key in being a useful and productive 
and effective Member of this body.
  The rules form a framework that ensures the fairness of the debate 
and an outcome that can be respected. Mike knows that, and it is 
reflected in his work. In so many instances, his knowledge of the ways 
of the Senate was drawn upon by so many of our colleagues in ways to 
advance the cause of our common humanity and decency.
  Mike Epstein's work in the Senate will be long remembered--the 
legislative battles he helped us win, and the losing battles he helped 
us fight so well. But his true legacy will be his commitment to public 
service, and his dedication to the institution. He is among the ranks 
of those who choose to give deeply of themselves to make a significant 
difference in the lives of so many people across this country. That 
achievement will stand as a shining example to everyone who works in 
the Senate--Senators and staffers alike.
  I grew up in a family where members of the family were taught that 
they should and they could make a difference, and that each of them 
should try.
  I remember listening to the members of our family who said you do not 
have to be a United States Senator to make a difference. All you have 
to do is give of yourself and work towards a purpose.
  This country is a better country because of Mike Epstein. Today there 
are scores of people--there are children who are getting better 
opportunities, young people who are getting better educations, older 
people whose lives have been enhanced--who will never know the name of 
Mike Epstein. But because of Mike, their lives are more graceful and 
more useful and more productive, and their sense of hope is realized--
all because of the extraordinary service of an extraordinary human 
being.
  We love you, Mike, and we always will.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. L. Chafee). The Senator from Maryland.
  Mr. SARBANES. Mr. President, I join my colleagues in expressing 
appreciation to Senator Wellstone for arranging for this period this 
morning to give us a chance to send a message to Mike, and to talk with 
him, as it were, long distance for just a few minutes.
  I was struck as I listened to my colleagues as they spoke about 
Mike's attributes. His kindness, his warmth, which I think everyone who 
came in contact with him would subscribe to.
  I still remember him on the staff back row here in the Chamber with, 
I guess one might call it, a mischievous smile on his face, and his 
generosity with his counsel.
  Presumably Senator Wellstone was aware and gave a special 
dispensation to all of us to contact Mike, even though he was working 
for Paul, for his counsel and advice on matters that were before the 
Senate.
  I took advantage of that opportunity on many an occasion, and always 
benefited from it.
  He has been spoken about by many of my colleagues as an institution 
in the Senate, and I think that is very true.
  But I want to make this point in talking about Mike as an 
institution, and the impact he had on this body. I

[[Page S3279]]

think we are also paying a tribute to all of the loyal and hard-working 
staff in the Senate who make it possible for this institution to 
function and to play its proper role in the American constitutional 
system.
  He and Senator Wellstone developed a very close relationship. As some 
have noted, they were like family--like brothers towards one another. 
But Mike's family is also all of us because he was such a caring 
friend.
  So this is a trying time. Mike, we want you to know that you are very 
much in our thoughts and in our prayers, and as the Chaplain said this 
morning when he opened the Senate and pronounced his blessing we also 
hope that you will derive some peace and harmony from this 
conversation.
  I want to talk for a moment about Mike Epstein as a thoroughly 
committed fighter for progressive principles.
  As others have noted, when he finished law school in 1961 at Boston 
University where he graduated with honors and was an editor of the Law 
Review, he came to Washington and went to work for the Justice 
Department. That was headed at the time by another Kennedy. Mike 
enlisted in that effort and served with great distinction in the 
Department of Justice for almost 10 years.
  He then came to Capitol Hill and held a number of very significant 
responsibilities in the Senate: Counsel to Senator Kennedy; then 
Counsel to the special committee to investigate intelligence 
activities, the Church committee. He was counsel to the Select 
Committee on Intelligence; counsel to the Democratic leader. For more 
than two years, he was chief counsel to the Senate Committee on Foreign 
Relations, which is where I got to know him best. I had that wonderful 
opportunity to work closely with Mike and I still treasure the close 
relationship we developed.
  Consistently throughout all these responsibilities, Mike reflected 
his abiding commitment to the U.S. Constitution.
  He understood the significance of the Constitution in our political 
system, and Mike, again and again in carrying out your 
responsibilities, your determination that we should pay appropriate 
respect and deference to the Constitution constantly came through.
  Secondly, I was struck by Mike's commitment to American democracy. It 
is a complicated business to make American democracy work--We are a 
very diverse, pluralistic nation. We are now getting up towards 300 
million people. Mike understood the importance of opportunity and 
fairness for the workings of the American political system and was 
constantly committed to those goals and to those objectives.
  He had an abiding commitment to working people. As Senator Kennedy 
noted, there are hosts of people across the country who never met Mike 
Epstein and don't know his name, but lead better lives today because of 
the work and the commitment of Mike Epstein here in the Halls of the 
Congress for now almost three decades.
  So Mike, we want to take this opportunity to just talk with you and 
tell you how much you have meant to all of us.
  I want to close with one final observation. Mike, throughout all of 
this commitment and tough fighting for principle and for causes, you 
consistently reflected a civility and a decency and a respect for 
others which I think, explains, why you have come so much into the 
hearts of so many people.
  I join others in expressing my gratitude to you for all you have 
meant to us, and in wishing you the very best now in this difficult and 
trying time, and in saying a very heartfelt thank you for being our 
friend.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from California.
  Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, it is an honor to be able to talk to Mike 
for just a couple of minutes and to do so with my friends whom you and 
I care so much about and to say, particularly to Senator Wellstone, 
thank you for standing up in the caucus and for telling us about Mike's 
battle and inviting us to speak with him.
  The message I want to give you today, Mike, is that you have made a 
mark in the Senate. It is hard to do that because I am sure you know we 
have at least 100 fairly large egos around here. To make a mark in such 
a place is a tribute to you. You have made a mark among so many 
Senators--by the way, you picked some wonderful ones to work for--and 
also among staff.
  I don't know whether you can see the staff here, Mike, but there are 
quite a number of them here today. If they could grab a microphone away 
from us, I know they would. They also send their strong and best wishes 
to you and their love.
  It is kind of unusual for someone to have that kind of amazing 
respect and admiration from Senators and staffers alike. There is a 
reason for it. You chose this career for the right reasons--not for the 
power, not for the influence. In many ways, you have that through the 
powerful and effective people for whom you work.
  But that is not why you decided to make your career in public 
service. It is really because inside you, you have this burning feeling 
that we need to make life better for all the American people. That is 
reflected in the work you do, as well as the people for whom you chose 
to work. That is reflected in making life better for families, 
children, and workers, regardless of who they are or what their status 
is.
  But I want to tell you, Mike, I remember just a couple of weeks ago 
when I was feeling my oats because we had won an amendment on the floor 
dealing with sensible gun laws. It had been such a struggle. I found 
myself in the subway, going back to my office with you, Mike. Boy, I 
was feeling good because we don't win a lot around here these days. It 
was a good feeling. You looked at me and instead of saying, good work--
which is of course what I wanted to hear from you--you said: You know, 
we really have much more to do on this. We have to build on this. We 
have to take it the next step.
  At first, I thought, this was not what I wanted to hear. I wanted to 
relax and enjoy the moment. When I got back to my office I realized: He 
is right, we just have to build on our success. We have to keep on 
working and keep pushing.
  That gleam Mike always has in his eye really comes with this message 
of fighting. That is why I think he and Paul Wellstone are such a great 
combination. You can't have more of a fighter for the people than Paul 
Wellstone. It is a great and contagious quality. We need more of it 
around here. It is easy to give up, whatever side of the aisle you are 
on, or wherever you stand on the issues. It is tough to get in some of 
these battles. It is tough to stand and debate and fight for your point 
of view.
  There is a lot at stake, Mike, and you always understand that. I hope 
you can take that amazing spirit, fight, and spark with your family, 
engage in this fight you are in right now, and know that a lot of 
Members, including staff and Senators alike, really care about you and 
respect you so much.
  Thank you.
  Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, I am pleased that Senator Wellstone is 
on the floor at this point. I want to join my colleagues and speak 
regarding our good friend, Mike Epstein, and I send my thoughts to Mike 
as well. This is a wonderful place to work in the Senate and in this 
community. But it is a tough town. Mike Epstein is one of the warmest, 
best people I have ever met. For a while, I was a little jealous that 
he worked for Senator Wellstone, until I found out that Senator 
Wellstone, with Mike Epstein, is a team operation. Whenever I needed 
encouragement out here and Paul wasn't around, or somebody from my 
office, all I had to do is turn back and look at Mike who would give me 
a warm smile and good advice. He is a good friend. I am proud to be 
associated with Mike and to have worked with him over the years.
  I thank Paul very much for giving us this opportunity.
  Mr. WELLSTONE. Mr. President, my colleague from Wisconsin sent a 
wonderful letter that was read to Mike and he loved it. I thank him for 
that.
  Mr. WELLSTONE. I thank all of the Senators who spoke for Mike and his 
family. There are other Senators who will be speaking who could not 
work into this timeframe. It is quite amazing to have so many people 
come down.
  Mike, I want you to know that the Parliamentarian, staff, Republican, 
Democrat, everybody here has a look on their face, an expression of 
love and support for you and your family.

[[Page S3280]]

  I finish this way, Mike. It has not been our friendship--the 
relationship is not like I hired somebody to be my assistant; it is 
more like I hired somebody who has been my teacher. Maybe that is why 
we are joined at the hip.
  Sometimes when I come to the floor, probably I make mistakes, maybe 
get too intense, feel too strongly. I will ask Mike, how have I done? 
He will be willing to give me quite a bit of constructive criticism. 
But sometimes I will be down on the floor with other Senators and I 
will go back to the office and I will go to Mike and look for approval. 
I will say: Mike, how did I do? And he will say: That was just right.
  Mike, I hope you think this was just right.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Wyoming.
  Mr. THOMAS. What is the time status?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the time until 11:15 
is under the control of the Senator from Wyoming or his designee.
  Mr. THOMAS. Let me first say how touching and impressive it was for 
the Senators to come to the floor and make these comments. All of us 
have Mike in our hearts and prayers.
  I yield to the Senator from Idaho as much time as he desires.

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