[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 142 (Thursday, September 12, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Page S6038]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     TRIBUTE TO CATHERINE FRANCOIS

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, now, the fine work of the 
communications center only makes it here to the floor because we have 
talented wordsmiths like my deputy speech writer, Catherine Francois, 
on the job. From her seat in the same noisy bullpen where the rest of 
the team wrestles with the news cycle, Catherine is engaged in a 
relentless process of air traffic control: digesting the latest news 
and research, helping me organize my thoughts on a given topic, running 
interference with fact checks and formatting, and getting the best 
possible draft on paper by the time the Senate opens every day, before 
doing it all over again the next day. It is a workflow that could make 
anyone's head spin, but Catherine's grace amid the chaos is all the 
more impressive when you consider that my team managed to poach her 
from the comparatively steady, contemplative world of policy analysis 
and think tanks.
  So the comms center may have been quite a culture shock, but the 
habits of a true policy wonk die hard. Catherine has lent us an 
invaluable knack for hunting down fresh sources, interesting data, and 
underdiscussed angles on the issues of the day and then helping me 
package them in a compelling way for delivery from this podium. And I 
am so grateful for her contributions.
  Catherine, thank you very much.

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