[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 176 (Tuesday, November 15, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6678-S6679]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       TRIBUTE TO JUSTIN GOODMAN

  Mr. SCHUMER. Now, let me finish, Mr. President, on a truly 
bittersweet note.
  Over the many years I have had the honor of serving in public 
service, I have learned that there are a handful of genuinely 
irrefutable truths, and one of them that certainly applied for me

[[Page S6679]]

my whole career is that no Senator can hope to succeed without the help 
of an amazing team of staffers who get you through the day, sometimes 
merely get you through the hour. Another truth I have learned is that 
there is never an easy way to say goodbye.
  Today, both of those truths come together as I say goodbye to one of 
my most trusted staffers, my amazing communications director, Justin 
Goodman.
  It is hard to remember the days before Justin was a part of my team. 
Like so many on my staff, he first joined the office as an intern back 
in the summer of 2009, where he quickly demonstrated his talent, his 
dedication, and his knack for communications, which was obviously 
totally an alien concept for me, shy as I might be.
  A couple of years later, Justin returned to work at the DPCC as a 
full-time member of my staff, and I am sure even he had no idea what 
kind of roller coaster he was in for in the years to come.
  Indeed, when he first joined my team as a full-time staffer, Congress 
was in the midst of a brutal government shutdown, and he had to wait 3 
whole weeks before being able to come to the office or get paid. What a 
way to start. Well, that was his introduction to the Schumer operation. 
And every day since then has been an absolute joy--for me at least, 
maybe not always for him.
  Over the years that Justin worked on my team, from his years leading 
the DPCC to working as my national press secretary, to serving as my 
communications director, he has become one of the people I lean on most 
to get through the day. To call him indispensable would be an 
understatement. One of the things I am going to miss is dialing 55 on 
my cell phone about 50 times a day.
  To describe Justin as one of the most decent people I know doesn't 
even begin to touch it. So let the record show that Justin began his 
time on my team in the midst of a shutdown and now departs as we finish 
one of the most successful sessions in recent memory. It is a pretty 
great record, if you ask me.
  So, Justin--I don't want to look at you because I will get a little 
weepy. So, Justin, thank you so much for your work over the many years. 
My best to you. My very best to your loved ones and your new little 
ones. And I don't think I need to tell you that you will always, 
always, always be part of the family here in ``Schumerland.''
  I yield the floor.

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