[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 24]
[Senate]
[Page 33275]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               CONGRATULATIONS TO NEW REPUBLICAN LEADERS

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I have a unanimous consent request I am 
going to enter in just a minute, but I would like to say that I extend 
my congratulations to Lamar Alexander in his recent victory to be part 
of the Republican leadership. I respect and admire him. He will do a 
wonderful job.
  I also extend my appreciation to Mr. Jon Kyl, a Senator from Arizona, 
a neighboring State of Nevada's, who is going to replace Trent Lott. I 
have expressed to Senator Kyl personally--I haven't had that 
opportunity with Senator Alexander because we didn't know how that vote 
would turn out, but I expressed to Senator Kyl my admiration and 
respect for him. I know he will do a good job for the State of Arizona, 
the country, and the Senate, and I look forward to working with both of 
them.
  As we often do on the Senate floor, as Senator Kyl knows--before 
coming here he was a distinguished lawyer, and I spent a lot of time in 
the courtroom myself--it is totally appropriate that we on the Senate 
floor advocate for our constituency, for our party, and for individual 
Senators in the best way we know how. But it is also very important 
that we maintain cordial relationships.
  As we learned in our court experiences, no matter how difficult the 
case might be, no matter how tense it might be arguing to a jury or to 
a judge, when that courtroom is adjourned, the attorneys walk out, 
shake hands, go have a sandwich, have a drink, and go on and prepare 
for the next case. And that is what I say to my friends, Lamar 
Alexander and Jon Kyl. We are going to have some debates on the Senate 
floor. That is what the Senate is all about. Some say it is the 
greatest debating organization in the history of the world. I don't 
know whether that is the case, but I have been involved in a few 
debates and a few tense times on the floor, but I always try--and I 
haven't always been totally successful at this--to put my emotions 
aside and walk off the Senate floor and try to be friends with those I 
was advocating against.
  So I say to these two fine Senators from the States of Tennessee and 
Arizona, I wish them the very best in their new duties.

                          ____________________