[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 84 (Tuesday, May 22, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6456-S6457]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO BETH SPIVEY

  Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I would like to take this opportunity to bid 
farewell to my senior legislative assistant, Beth Spivey, who is 
departing my staff after almost 10 years of outstanding service to the 
people of Mississippi and the Nation.
  Beth has been an integral part of my personal office staff for so 
many years and we will genuinely miss her when she leaves. She joined 
my staff as an intern during the summer of 1997 and never left, 
starting as an employee that September. From the beginning, she 
demonstrated exceptional skills and confidence. Starting as a 
legislative correspondent, she showed that she could handle a large 
volume of mail, promptly answering all letters with well thought out 
responses.
  Beth was eager to learn the substance of large and small issues 
alike, and it was only a matter of time and an available opening on my 
staff before she was ready to move up to serve as a legislative 
assistant. She proved herself adept at handling a range of issues with 
skill and efficiency; from transportation to telecommunications, and 
from energy to the environment. She understands the key concerns, 
organizations, and people for her issues and knows how to bring them 
together to find common ground in order to advance legislation to 
become law.
  It is the latter quality that I found so valuable in Beth. As my 
colleagues know, I care about the Senate being productive in matters 
that are resolvable. While there will always be issues that define the 
differences between the political parties, the vast majority of bills 
can be worked out with a minimum of contested votes, or none at all, if 
Members and their staffs are willing to work hard to reach an 
agreement. Beth has the skills and the desire to move bills through the 
legislative process to enactment, sometimes negotiating two or more 
bills moving through the process at the same time.
  Beth excels at multitasking. It has not been uncommon for her to 
simultaneously work on the highest priority bills of the Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation Committee and the Energy and Natural 
Resources Committee. This skill was evident early on as she planned her 
Mississippi wedding from Washington while working a rigorous schedule. 
Whether I was chairing a surface transportation subcommittee or an 
aviation subcommittee, Beth was

[[Page S6457]]

my point person for moving nationally significant legislation through 
the committee and the Senate. When I was the majority leader, she led 
the Senate Energy Task Force staff efforts.
  Beth has been a key figure in the enactment of several important 
bills into law: the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and its previous 
incarnations, the Vision 100--Century of Aviation Reauthorization Act, 
the Aviation Investment and Revitalization Vision Act, and the Safe, 
Accountable, Flexible and Efficient Transportation Equity Act--A Legacy 
for Users. She also shepherded the Passenger Rail Investment and 
Improvement Act of 2005 through the Senate and the Advanced 
Telecommunications and Opportunities Reform Act through the Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation Committee during the 109th Congress. During 
the 110th Congress, she has already guided the Aviation Investment and 
Modernization Act through the Commerce, Science, and Transportation 
Committee. Beth always ensured that these bills were good for the 
Nation and good for Mississippi.
  While Beth is as gracious and charming as one would expect from her 
Mississippi upbringing, she is also assertive and confident, and 
deserving of respect for her abilities. She never hesitated to take 
charge of her areas of responsibility or speak up if she felt she or 
anyone else was being overlooked.
  Beth is not just a hard working, skilled staff member. She has been 
part of my personal office family for almost 10 years. Whether training 
a new staff member, guiding interns through their Washington 
experience, or cutting birthday cakes, Beth has been a trusted, steady, 
and caring colleague. As a former intern, she always ensured that our 
legislative interns were provided challenging assignments and treated 
with respect.
  Mr. President, Beth has come a long way from Brandon, MS, and the 
University of Mississippi. In addition to being a seasoned staff 
member, she also is a wife and a mother. Beth now moves on to a new 
phase in her life, leaving for the private sector and making more time 
for her husband Les and young daughter Ann Miller. We all will miss her 
very much. I wish her the very best as she heads out in a new direction 
and pray that God will continue to bless her and her family.

                          ____________________