[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 6]
[Senate]
[Pages 8030-8031]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                     PRAYERS FOR THE CAPITOL POLICE

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I was here this morning when the Senate was 
opened and the Chaplain gave a prayer. The prayer was dedicated to the 
police officers all over the country because this week we honor these 
brave men and women who have lost their lives in the line of duty. We 
recognize them. But the part of the prayer the Chaplain gave that I 
thought was so moving was directed to our Capitol Police force.
  We take for granted these men and women who stand at the doors and 
patrol these large facilities. We take them for granted because we 
don't see them often directing traffic or arresting people, even though 
they do that. In fact, we know they are moments away from danger or 
terror at all times of the day.
  That was recognized a few years ago when two of our finest were 
gunned down blocking an entrance to this building saving the life of 
the majority whip in the House of Representatives.
  I appreciate the prayer of the Chaplain. These men and women do a 
remarkable job for the country.
  All around the world today there are evil people who if they could 
figure a way to do damage to these representative buildings of this 
great democracy or to the people who work in them, would do whatever 
evil they could. But what keeps them from doing that is the Capitol 
Police force. They are well trained. We are now, in fact, working 
towards developing our own academies

[[Page 8031]]

so these men and women can be trained in this area and not have to 
travel hundreds of miles away in Georgia to do their training.
  There is no better trained police force any place in the world than 
the Capitol Police. Whatever the danger, whether it is a bomb threat, 
the need to call in a SWAT Team, or protecting the many dignitaries who 
come here, they do it, and they do it very well--without any fanfare 
and without seeking any glory or aggrandizement of any kind.
  Again, I very much appreciate the prayer of the Chaplain today. I 
hope we will all join in recognizing the fine work done by the men and 
women of our Capitol Police force. Every day I see them I recognize 
they are there to protect me, my family, the people of this country, 
and these beautiful buildings in which we have the privilege of 
working.

                          ____________________