[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 4]
[Senate]
[Pages 4977-4978]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                            MAIDEN SPEECHES

  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, first of all, I thank the new Senators who 
are here. I heard my distinguished colleague from Nevada talk a little 
bit about what we are about to embark upon. It is a rich tradition of 
this body. In the last few years, we have gotten away from having what 
we call a ``maiden speech.'' It is not the first time we have heard 
from our freshmen Senators on both sides of the aisle, but it does give 
Members an opportunity to focus, as we just heard, on issues that are 
important to individual Senators but also are important to the American 
people in the broadest sense.
  In this body, because we are always on a particular piece of 
legislation or in Executive Session, this gives us an opportunity to 
pause for a moment and shine that spotlight and that focus on an 
initial speech or discussion.
  I am delighted we are reaching to the past--not the distant past--to 
something we have gotten away from in the last several Congresses, and 
as an initiative by our new Senators are embarking upon what I know 
will be a great and very meaningful and powerful experience for all of 
us.
  The PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Chair, in my capacity as the Senator 
from Alaska, asks the floor staff to notify me when such speeches are 
to be made of any Senator.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, while the majority leader is in the Chamber, 
I ask unanimous consent that the majority be given a full hour--we have 
taken some time today--and the Democrats, if necessary, extended 10 
minutes also. I ask unanimous consent.
  The PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The Chair recognizes the Senator from Tennessee.
  Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, I first thank the majority leader for 
his comments and his friendship and his encouragement of the new 
Senators in these first addresses. I thank the Senator from Nevada for 
his encouragement and his willingness to join me in cosponsoring the 
legislation that I hope to talk about. I thank my colleagues for taking 
the time to be here today.
  From the Senate's earliest days, new Members have observed, as we 
just heard, the ritual of remaining silent

[[Page 4978]]

for a period of time, ranging from several weeks to 2 years. By waiting 
a respectful amount of time before giving their so-called ``maiden 
speeches,'' freshmen Senators hoped their senior colleagues would 
respect them for their humility.
  This information comes from our Senate historian, Richard Baker, who 
told me that in 1906 the former Governor of Wisconsin--I am sensitive 
to this as a former Governor--Robert La Follette, arrived here, in Mr. 
Baker's words, ``anything but humble.'' He waited just 3 months, a 
brief period by the standards of those days, before launching his first 
major address. He then spoke for 8 hours over 3 days and his remarks in 
the Congressional Record consumed 148 pages. As he began to speak, most 
of the Senators present in the Chamber rose from their desks and 
departed. La Follette's wife, observing from the gallery, wrote:

       There was no mistaking that this was a polite form of 
     hazing.

  From our first day here, as the majority leader said, we new Members 
of the 108th Congress have been encouraged to speak up, and most of us 
have. But, with the encouragement of the majority leader and the 
assistant minority leader, several of us intend also to try to revive 
the tradition of the maiden address by a signature speech on an issue 
that is important both to the country and to each of us. I thank my 
colleagues who are here, and I assure all of you that I will not do 
what the former Governor of Wisconsin did and speak for 3 days.

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