[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 145 (Wednesday, September 18, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Page S6137]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                      Tribute to Katherine Foster

  Madam President, the final point: We are losing--not America; we in 
the Senate are losing--one of our best and brightest. She is sitting 
right down here. Her name is Katherine Foster.
  Katherine grew up in Missouri. She went to the University of 
Mississippi 2008 to 2012. You will notice Katherine finished in 4 
years. She didn't hang around for 6 or 7 years and string it out. She 
got busy. She graduated.
  She started as a Senate page. She has worked as a staffer for a 
number of Missouri Members of Congress, including Senator Kit Bond. Her 
first full-time job was with Senator Roy Blunt. Then, in 2015, 
Katherine moved to the cloakroom.
  A lot of members of the public can't see the work that our cloakroom 
staff does, on both sides. Democrats and Republicans have a cloakroom 
staff. They make this place run. They keep us on time. They help us 
interpret the rules.
  How can I put this, the Senate rules are written like somebody who 
has lived in outer space most of their lives. OK? They make no sense. 
We should fix them, but that is a topic for another day. The point is, 
the rules are the rules, and we depend on our cloakroom staff to 
interpret them for us. We depend on people like Katherine Foster.
  Katherine is smart. She is a good mama. She is a good spouse. She is 
steady. She never panics. She is very pleasant. She puts up with a lot. 
She is headed into the private sector, and we wish her well. I hope she 
makes bucketloads, truckloads, full of money. And I hope she has better 
hours than she has in the U.S. Senate.
  This is her last week, folks. And when I count my blessings, I count 
the members of our cloakroom staff, on both sides--Democrat and 
Republican--and I especially count Katherine Foster twice.
  So thank you, Katherine, for your extraordinary work and for giving 
so much to the U.S. Senate and for giving so much to your country.
  With that, I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Louisiana.