[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 94 (Thursday, June 27, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Page S5480]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           IMMIGRATION REFORM

  Mr. GRAHAM. Mr. President, to all my Senate colleagues, today was a 
good day, a historic day for the Senate. Thank you all, whether you 
opposed or supported the bill. It was a great debate.
  To the staff, this bill could have died a thousand times. You would 
not let it.
  To Matt Rimkunas, you are awesome. Sergio Sarkany and David Glaccum 
of my staff, thank you for endless hours of work below minimum wage.
  Mark Delich, in Senator McCain's office, thank you for working for 
Senator McCain. Your reward will be in Heaven.
  Chandler Morse, you are awesome working for Senator Jeff Flake.
  Enrique Gonzalez, you are one of the smartest people I have ever met. 
Jon Baselice, Senator Marco Rubio was a game changer.
  Leon Fresco was the star of the show. Stephanie Martz, you kept Leon 
and Senator Schumer from killing each other. Well done.
  Joe Zogby, thank you for being a strong voice.
  Kerri Talbot, for Senator Bob Menendez, you always reminded us we are 
dealing with people.
  And to Sergio Gonzalez, in Senator Michael Bennet's office, you all 
were an incredible calming force.
  To Senator Hatch, you came into the debate at a time when we needed a 
lift. Orrin Hatch, I want to thank you profusely for jumping into the 
debate, adding to the momentum that was created by the so-called Gang 
of 8. You provided momentum in committee. It meant a lot.
  To Kelly Ayotte, you jumped on board at a time when people were 
talking about what was bad with the bill. You came out to give us a No. 
5, along with Senator Hatch, to give it momentum. That was an act of 
tremendous political courage and you did the country a service by 
standing up and standing out at a time when it was tough.
  To Senators Hoeven and Corker, you put us over the top. I have never 
enjoyed working with two people more. But Senator Bob Corker and 
Senator John Hoeven, your efforts to come up with a new amendment, 
along with Senator Hatch and Senator Ayotte, really made the 
difference.
  I wanted to recognize these people--that they came along at a time 
when America needed them--and this bill is the result of the hard work 
of many people at the staff level, but key Senators who were not in the 
original bipartisan group came to the aid of the cause at a time we 
needed it.
  I will yield.
  Thank you very much for allowing me to say these words.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Utah.
  Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I want to thank my colleague from South 
Carolina for his kind remarks. He is right, a lot of these folks came 
to the forefront on this bill.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Rhode Island.
  Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, let me also congratulate our friend 
Senator Graham for his extraordinary leadership.

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