[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 96 (Friday, July 21, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7422-S7424]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   TRIBUTE TO SENATOR PAUL COVERDELL

  Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, it has been a difficult week working in the 
Senate. All of us have had a heavy heart, missing Paul Coverdell. My 
office is in the immediate vicinity of his, and I keep thinking he will 
pop out the door on my way to a vote or back.
  In the Bible, there is a famous story about a man named Paul. God had 
a special mission for him. Though Paul was not aware of it, God made 
His presence known when He needed him and called him into service. That 
Paul had no choice. He answered the call and did as he was asked. God 
calls us all like that, though some of us never hear it. God called 
Paul Coverdell like that, too. When Paul heard the call, he listened 
and he answered.
  First, He called him to work in the Peace Corps, as there was a need 
and someone had to fill it. During his service there, he made a 
difference in a lot of lives. God must have been very pleased with him 
because then He decided to put him in charge of greater things.
  Those greater things led him to serve in the Senate. Again, there was 
a need and, again, Paul was there to answer the call. He was a 
remarkable force here, an incredible powerhouse of principles and 
ideas, and they were all in motion whenever he would speak. He had an 
infectious enthusiasm that seemed to emanate from every fiber of his 
being as he made his points. His gestures and his facial expressions 
always drew the listener in and caught their attention as he spoke with 
passion about his philosophy and his politics.
  He was a great strategist because he could put himself in someone 
else's shoes and understand how someone else thought and felt about the 
issues that came up for debate and discussion. He could see many 
perspectives, and all at once he had an innate sense of how they would 
all interplay, how they would connect and collide. That was why he 
always seemed to have the answers. He knew what his opponents were 
thinking before they were even thinking it.

  But the biggest reason for his successes in the Senate was his great 
devotion to the principles of common sense. He knew that the best 
answer was the one that made the most sense. All of his hard work and 
determined effort was aimed at one target: finding common ground, 
working with his colleagues, and creating a consensus that led to a 
solution to the problem.
  When I arrived in the Senate, I found myself on the last rung of the 
seniority ladder, No. 100. I did not know how lucky I was. After the 
room selections were made, I got the office that was left, and it 
turned out to be a great office in disguise. My staff and I moved in, 
added a few touches to make it more like home, and then greeted our 
neighbors. Paul Coverdell was the neighbor, along with his staff. He 
was right next door, so we got to see him often. He and his staff were 
always walking by or on their way out, and I would see Paul as he left 
to go home. He was a regular and a welcome sight to all of us.
  When the bells would ring for us to vote, we seemed to answer that 
call at the same time. We often came out of our doors at the same time 
and walked over together. We had a lot of interesting discussions about 
politics and legislative strategy. I lapped it all up. I was an eager 
and ready student, and he was a tremendous mentor.
  Our staffs seemed to bond, too. We were all in this together, and the 
camaraderie that developed among us helped us take on some issues that 
needed to be addressed. It is a tradition I have adopted from him that 
I hope to continue through my years of service in the Senate.
  Through the years, I remember the times we spent in difficult 
meetings with emotions running high and pressure coming down from all 
sides to get something done. That is when Trent Lott would say: ``Let's 
let Mikey do it.'' I was always relieved to see that he was talking 
about Paul. I never knew Trent was making a reference to an old-time 
television commercial, but I knew he meant Paul and not me, which was a 
relief because Paul always got the job done.
  Paul Coverdell had a lot of jobs to do in the Senate, and he took 
them all on eagerly and with enthusiasm because he loved legislating; 
he loved serving the people of Georgia, the people of this Nation, and 
his neighbors around the world because he cared so very deeply about 
each and every person.
  I heard it said that there is no higher calling than public service. 
It must be true because it caught Paul Coverdell's attention. In all he 
did in his life, there is no question that he was a remarkable public 
servant by any standard.
  Unfortunately, he will not get to a lot of the landmarks we cherish 
around here, like casting 10,000 votes, but every vote he did cast was 
with the greatest thought, consideration, and reflection, and that is 
the true mark of a legislator.
  He lived every day with great enthusiasm, energy, focus, concern, and 
imagination. In fact, I think of him as an ``imagineer.'' That is 
someone who can see a problem as a challenge and then use a great 
reservoir of talent, skill, and a little luck to solve it. That is the 
true mark of a great human being and great friend. Someday when we 
leave the Senate and return home to begin another adventure in each of 
our lives, I have no doubt we will take with us at least one or two 
special memories of Paul that we will cherish for a lifetime.

[[Page S7423]]

  As mortals we cannot see the great plan of the Master's hand for the 
universe, so we cannot understand why He works the way He does. The 
word ``why'' does not even appear in the Bible, and there is good 
reason for that. It is not for us to know the why; it is for us to hear 
the word of our Lord and to answer the call when it comes.
  At 6:10 p.m. on Tuesday, July 18, Paul Coverdell heard that call for 
the last time, and once again he answered it. The only understanding I 
have is that God must have needed somebody with special talents and 
abilities, and so He sent for Paul. Now heaven is richer for his having 
gone home, and we are all richer for having known him and been able to 
share his life. He will be deeply missed and fondly remembered by us 
all.
  I yield the floor.
  Mr. LAUTENBERG. Mr. President, I rise to pay tribute to the Senior 
Senator from Georgia, Paul Coverdell, who passed away Tuesday in 
Atlanta.
  Mr. President, while Senator Coverdell and I came from different 
political parties and ideologies, we shared several things in common. 
We both served our country in the U.S. Army, and after our service we 
both returned home to run successful businesses.
  With our military and business background we decided to turn our 
attention to serving the public, and Senator Coverdell had a impressive 
record of public service.
  Senator Coverdell served in the George State Senate--rising to the 
position of Minority Leader. He then served as Director of the Peace 
Corps under President Bush, focusing on the critical task of serving 
the emerging democracies of post-Soviet Eastern Europe. In 1992, he was 
elected to serve in the United States Senate.
  Although we failed to agree on many issues before this body, Senator 
Coverdell always demonstrated honor and dignity in this chamber. He 
argued seriously for the positions he believed in. When he pushed 
legislation to fight illegal drugs or promote volunteerism, it was 
obvious that his heart was always in it. And his motivation was sincere 
and simple--to help the people of Georgia and the nation.
  I send my deepest sympathies to his wife Nancy, his parents, and the 
entire Coverdell family. I also extend my sympathy to the people of 
Georgia.
  We will all miss Senator Paul Coverdell of Georgia.
  I yield the floor.
  Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, I was deeply saddened to hear of Paul 
Coverdell's untimely passing. Paul was a man of such energy and 
determination, it is difficult to imagine this body without him. Paul 
was a skilled legislator and one of the hardest working legislators 
among us. I had the highest admiration for the way he conducted himself 
here--how committed he was to the people of his state, and to his many 
duties here in the Senate.
  We did not agree on a lot of policy matters, but that couldn't be 
less important as I stand here today, Mr. President. We've all lost a 
colleague and a friend, who was taken from this earth far too soon. At 
61, Paul had served his country in more ways than most Americans can 
hope to in a lifetime. From his service in the Armed Forces to the 
Peace Corps to the Foreign Relations Committee, where we served 
together, Paul had a keen understanding of foreign affairs. He was also 
a natural leader, despite his soft-spoken personality and his habit of 
avoiding the limelight. He served as the minority leader in the Georgia 
State Senate from 1974 to 1989, attaining that post just four years 
after he was elected to the State Senate in 1970.
  Paul and I were both first elected to the Senate in 1992, Mr. 
President. We arrived here at the same time, both former State Senators 
who had the honor of coming here and learning the ways of this Senate. 
And learn them Paul did. He quickly rose through the ranks to a top 
leadership post. And along the way he won the respect and admiration of 
all who knew him. The nation has lost a skilled leader, and all of us 
have lost an honorable colleague and friend. I join my colleagues in 
mourning his passing, and in paying tribute to his memory. To his wife 
Nancy, his family, his staff and his many friends, I offer my 
condolences and my deepest sympathies. Mr. President, I yield the 
floor.
  Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I rise to share in the memory of one of 
this body's most esteemed colleagues, Senator Paul Coverdell. His 
untimely death Tuesday was a shock to us all. My prayers and 
condolences go out to his family at their time of mourning.
  It so happens that Senator Coverdell was born in my home state of 
Iowa--in Des Moines. That made him an honorary constituent of mine. For 
that reason, he was always a special colleague to me.
  We in this body knew of his background in the Peace Corps just before 
he was elected to the Senate. He very quickly began to show his 
outstanding leadership skills. He built a respect among his colleagues 
because of his hard work and his dedication to those issues most dear 
to him--especially education and the war on drugs.
  Senator Coverdell did almost all of his work behind-the-scenes, work 
that the public never knew about. But we knew, because we worked with 
him. His interest was not the limelight. You rarely saw his name in the 
papers. Instead, it was rolling up his sleeves and working one-on-one 
with his colleagues in an effective way. No one among us had such 
energy, enthusiasm for public service, and organizing ability.
  I worked closest with him on international narcotics issues, as 
chairman of the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control. He 
was chairman of the Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Western 
Hemisphere, Peace Corps, Narcotics and Terrorism. We worked very 
closely together on narcotics matters. We would hold joint hearings on 
fighting drug cartels in Colombia and other countries. No one felt 
stronger about stopping the scourge of drugs in this country than he 
did. He cared deeply about the debilitating effect drugs have had on 
the future of our country and our youth.
  It was a real privilege to work with Paul Coverdell in the United 
States Senate. He was a statesman, a public servant in the true sense 
of the word. And he was a good friend, I join my colleagues in 
expressing how much we will miss his energy, enthusiasm and friendship. 
His presence will be greatly missed in the Senate. I wish all the best 
to his family, knowing of their profound grief at their loss.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Connecticut.
  Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I rise to express my thoughts and views 
about our good friend and colleague, Paul Coverdell. I commend my 
colleague from Wyoming for his very thoughtful and appropriate remarks 
about Paul Coverdell.
  I do not have a long set of prepared remarks about my colleague, but 
I wanted to take a couple of minutes and express some feelings about 
this fine man from Georgia whom I got to know back in the Bush 
administration.
  I was chairman of the Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere. 
President Bush nominated Paul Coverdell to be the Director of the Peace 
Corps. Because I chaired the committee with jurisdiction over the Peace 
Corps and the fact I was a former Peace Corps volunteer--I think the 
only one in this body to have served in the Peace Corps--Paul and I 
developed a very quick and close relationship. I helped him through the 
confirmation process, and over the next number of years, as he served 
as Director and traveled the world expanding and enriching the Peace 
Corps as an institution, I developed a deep fondness for Paul 
Coverdell. I did not know in those days that I would be only a few 
years away from calling him a colleague.

  In January of 1993, Paul arrived in the Senate, and quickly joined 
the Foreign Relations Committee, and quickly became, in those days, the 
ranking Republican on the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee with 
jurisdiction over the Peace Corps. What more appropriate place for Paul 
Coverdell, in that he had been the Director of the Peace Corps. He 
provided tremendous assistance, information, and support for this 
wonderful institution that was begun by President Kennedy back in the 
1960s. It enjoyed remarkable support over the years. Every single 
administration backed and supported the Peace Corps. Even during 
difficult economic times in this country, there was a sense that this 
was a valuable institution. Paul Coverdell made it even more so because 
of his tenure as Director and then during his stewardship on the Senate 
Foreign Relations Committee with particular jurisdiction over this 
area.

[[Page S7424]]

  I then became his ranking member, as my friends on the Republican 
side ended up in the majority, and Paul and I worked together. In fact, 
just recently, we were able to actually increase the funding for the 
Peace Corps. I do not think we would have won the decision here about 
whether or not to provide additional support to the Peace Corps and 
those additional funds would not have been forthcoming, had it not been 
for Paul Coverdell.
  We also worked together on the narcotics issue. We had a passionate 
interest in trying to do something to stem the tide of narcotics, the 
use of drugs in this country, and worked tirelessly on that effort 
internationally, through the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee, to 
fashion a formula that would reduce the consumption of drugs in this 
country and reduce the production and the transmission of drugs and the 
money laundering that went on all over the world.
  In fact, he came up with a very creative idea of trying to involve 
all of the countries that were involved in this issue, either as 
sources of production, transition, money laundering, or consumption--as 
is the case in the United States. I used to tease him a bit because I 
think I was a more public advocate of the Coverdell idea on narcotics 
than he was.
  Paul Coverdell was one of the most self-effacing Members I have known 
in this body. George Marshall used to have a saying: There was no limit 
to what you could accomplish in Washington, DC, as long as you were 
willing to give someone else credit for it.
  Paul Coverdell understood that, I think, as well as any Member who 
has served in this body. He came up with ideas, such as he did, in the 
area of drugs and narcotics, and then was more interested in the idea 
being advanced than he was having his name associated with it.
  I wanted to mention those two particular areas: The Peace Corps and 
the drugs and narcotics effort. There were others he was involved in 
substantively: Education and the like. These were two areas where we 
worked most closely together.
  Paul Coverdell was a partisan, a strong Republican, with strong 
views, strong convictions. But he also was a gentleman, thoroughly a 
Senate person. I say that because I do not think this institution 
functions terribly well without both of those elements.
  People who come here with convictions and beliefs, who try to advance 
the causes that they think will strengthen our country, are in the 
position to make a contribution to this body and to the United States; 
but you also have to be a person who understands that you do not win 
every battle. This is a legislative body, a body where you must 
convince at least 50 other people of your ideas, and in some cases more 
than 60. If you just have strong convictions and strong beliefs, and 
are unable to work with this small body, then those ideas are nothing 
more than that--ideas.
  Paul Coverdell had a wonderful ability to reach across this aisle--
that is only a seat away from me--and build relationships on ideas he 
cared about. That, in my view, is the essence of what makes this 
institution work.

  Usually it takes someone a longer period of time to get the rhythms, 
if you will, the sensibilities of this institution, that are not 
written in any rule book, that you are not going to find in any 
procedural volume. You need to know the rules--which he did--and 
understand the procedures. But the unwritten rules of how this 
institution functions are something that people take a time to acquire. 
What somewhat amazed me was that Paul Coverdell, in very short order, 
understood the rhythms of this room, understood the rhythms of this 
institution, and was able to build relationships and coalitions.
  He could be your adversary one day--and a tough adversary he was; a 
tough, tough adversary--and, without any exaggeration, on the very next 
day he could be your strongest ally on an issue. Those are qualities 
that inherently and historically have made some moments in the Senate 
their greatest--when leaders have been able to achieve that ability of 
being strong in their convictions but also have the ability to reach 
across the aisle and develop those relationships that are essential if 
you are going to advance the ideas that improve the quality of life in 
this country.
  I suspect he acquired some of those skills in his years with the 
Georgia Legislature. It has been said--and I can understand it--when he 
was the Republican leader in Georgia, there were not a lot of 
Republicans in Georgia. And even though we have our disagreements, 
there is a respect for those who help build something. It is not an 
exaggeration to say that Paul Coverdell, in no small way, was 
responsible for building the Republican Party in Georgia. I do not say 
that with any great glee, but it is a mark of his tenacity, his 
convictions, his ability to be responsible for building a strong two-
party system in that State.
  So from the perspective of this Connecticut Yankee, to the people of 
Georgia, we thank you for helping this man find a space in the 
political life of Georgia and for sending him here to the Senate on two 
occasions.
  I send my deepest sympathies to his wife Nancy, to his friends, to 
his staff in Georgia and those here in Washington. Paul Coverdell will 
be missed. He was a fine Member of this institution. He was a good and 
decent human being. He will be missed deeply by all of us here. So my 
sympathies are extended to all whose lives he touched so deeply.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.

                          ____________________