[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 3]
[Senate]
[Page 3053]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                PASSAGE OF FAIR MINIMUM WAGE ACT OF 2007

  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, this momentous achievement that helps so 
many millions of Americans would not have been possible without the 
dedication and hard work of our staff.
  Of my own staff, I want to give a special thank you to Lauren 
McGarity for her strong commitment, her deep knowledge, and her hard 
work on this issue over many months. Lauren, you have really made a 
difference.
  I thank Portia Wu for her help and leadership and especially her able 
work over the past 2 weeks in handling the many amendments to this 
legislation.
  Thanks also to Missy Rohrbach for helping us manage the floor 
schedule and for all she does so well.
  Thanks, too, to Jonathan McCracken, Jeff Teitz, Dave Ryan, Esther 
Olavarria, and Laura Capps.
  As always, I am grateful also for the leadership of Michael Myers, 
who has been with me for many years as staff director of our HELP 
Committee.
  But above all my special thanks go to Holly Fechner, my chief labor 
counsel. This momentous vote is a tribute to her--to her skill, 
professionalism, and deep dedication to those who are the backbone of 
this country. Working men and women in America could not have a better 
friend and champion. Holly is a true leader, and we all owe her a great 
debt today.
  I commend Senator Enzi's staff, too. Katherine McGuire, Ilysse 
Schuman, Brian Hayes, Kyle Hicks, and Greg Dean. They are real 
professionals. It is a pleasure to work with them, and I thank them for 
their courtesies.
  Thanks, too, to Senator Baucus' able staff for making this victory 
possible--Russ Sullivan, Pat Heck, and Bill Dauster.
  And special thanks for the able leadership of Senator Reid's staff, 
especially Darrel Thompson and Bob Greenawalt. And, of course, Marty 
Paone, Lula Davis, Tim Mitchell, and Trish Engle as well.

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