[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 38 (Thursday, March 6, 2008)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1699-S1700]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      THANKING SENATORS AND STAFF

  Ms. KLOBUCHAR. Mr. President, I am here today to thank the many 
Senators and staff who worked on this sweeping consumer protection 
reform. This is going to mean so much for so many children across this 
country. It is going to make a difference, and we are really never 
going to know it.
  I can tell you from the parents I have met who have had to deal with 
their kids ingesting Aqua Dot that morphed into a date-rape drug, or 
another whose child swallowed a charm that was 39-percent lead, those 
mothers came to the Capitol because they did not want it to happen to 
anyone else. Today, we told them we are listening to them, and we are 
making a difference in the lives of families throughout the country.
  The difference started with the Commerce Committee and the very good 
staff we have on that committee. Before I acknowledge them, I wish to 
acknowledge my own staff.
  I am so proud of the work they did. Tamara Fucile took this issue on 
as a personal matter. Her children actually had some of the Thomas the 
Train sets. I cannot tell you to how many hearings she carried those 
trains, chewed on by her own children, and I would hold them up to show 
Senators this was a real thing. I thank Tamara, and I also thank her 
children for parting with their toys, although they are recalled toys.
  Kate Nilan has been doing a wonderful job with our office working on 
these consumer issues. In the last week, Kate was very involved in 
making sure that our amendment, which banned industries paying for 
travel, industries that the consumer protection agency is supposed to 
be regulating, the amendment that Senator Menendez and I did got voted 
on in this body 94 to 0. It is because of the good work of Kate Nilan 
in putting that amendment together and working out the procedural 
issues.
  I thank both of my staff members for their fine work on this bill. 
Tamara was also very involved in the lead standard. She originally 
worked with me when we said: Why would we not have a Federal lead 
standard for toys? Why would we have State-by-State standards and some 
States do not have them and they are different all over the place? We 
finally have an aggressive lead standard that basically bans lead in 
children's toys, the first year allowing some trace levels and going 
down after that. That was Tamara's good work.
  I wish to acknowledge the Commerce staff who worked hard on this bill 
from the beginning: David Strickland was there every step of the way, 
as well as Alex Hoehn-Saric for his work, and Price Feland, a member of 
Senator Pryor's staff, as well as staff of Senator Durbin who got 
involved in this issue early on when Senator Durbin and I met in 
Chicago with a number of the toy retailers and manufacturers that were 
concerned about this and knew something had to change in Washington in 
terms of the funding for this agency, as well as the tools they have to 
do their jobs.
  Senator Nelson has played such an instrumental role when it came to 
making sure we had third-party verification, as well as the durable 
goods standard in the bill; then, of course, Senator Stevens and 
Senator Collins, who assisted in getting bipartisan support for the 
bill, and Senator Pryor, who managed it during this week flawlessly.
  We are very excited about the change today, that I can go home 
tonight and tell my 12-year-old daughter--who, I have to tell you, was 
rather embarrassed about this whole thing when her mom was involved 
when it was about SpongeBob SquarePants, but when the Barbies started 
getting recalled, she came into the kitchen and said: Mom, this is 
really getting serious. So I am going to be able to go home today and 
tell her we did something good in the Senate.
  I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.

[[Page S1700]]

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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