[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 17]
[Senate]
[Page 25138]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



            TRIBUTE TO SECRETARY OF DEFENSE WILLIAM S. COHEN

  Mr. THURMOND. Mr. President, in a few short hours the 106th Congress 
will be a part of the history of this great Nation. As we resolutely 
work toward the goal of adjournment, I want to take a few moments to 
pay tribute to Secretary of Defense William S. Cohen, our former 
colleague and the nation's 20th Secretary of Defense.
  Secretary Cohen, better known as ``Bill'' to all of us, has since 
January 24, 1997, been at the helm of the Department of Defense and the 
leader of the greatest military force in the history of our great 
Nation. His tenure as Secretary of Defense will be marked by great 
advances in the quality of life for our military personnel and their 
families, the refocusing of the Department of Defense to the new 
threats of weapons of mass destruction and cyber-terrorism, and, more 
importantly, assuring this Nation's position as the world's only super 
power.
  Bill Cohen is a Renaissance Man of the same mold as the founders of 
this Nation. A forward thinker who has been an influential voice on 
defense and security issues since he was first elected to the House of 
Representatives from Maine's Second Congressional District in 1973. 
During his eighteen years as a United States Senator representing the 
State of Maine, Bill Cohen played a leading role in defense matters 
while a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. Not only was he 
a key sponsor of the Goldwater-Nichols Defense Reorganization Act of 
1986, but also the GI Bill of 1984, the Intelligence Oversight Reform 
Act of 1991, the Competition in Contracting Act of 1984 and the Federal 
Acquisition Reform Act of 1996.
  His long and distinguished service to the Nation and the State of 
Maine, both as a legislator and Secretary of Defense, will serve as a 
lasting tribute to William S. Cohen. I congratulate him on his long and 
distinguished career and thank him for the courtesies and friendship he 
extended to me during his service in the Senate and as Secretary of 
Defense.

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