[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 1]
[Senate]
[Pages 1382-1383]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO TODD WEBSTER

  Mr. COONS. Mr. President, I rise today to express my thanks to my 
chief of staff of the last 5 years, Todd Webster. It is a bittersweet 
day for me because my office says farewell to someone who has been a 
trusted, loyal, reliable, energetic, patient, faithful leader of the 
Coons team for my first 5 years here in Washington. He is someone who 
has been warm and humorous, caring, and always ready with a funny story 
to tell. He is down to earth, someone who takes interest in whomever he 
is speaking to; who seems to know everyone here, and who is well liked 
and well respected. He is a true family man who helped plan a surprise 
birthday party for his father Peter who recently turned 75; whose 
delightful and beautiful wife Lisa last fall was named president and 
CEO of Physicians for Peace and who joins him in their commitment to 
public service; and whose wonderful children, his daughter Sydney, son 
Peter, and daughter Catherine have sustained and supported him in his 
service--his 5 years with me in the Senate and his years before that 
with other Senators. Even their dog Kili, an Irish doodle, has been a 
part of the extended Webster family that has helped engage and 
entertain and support my office these last 5 years.
  When I first came to Washington, under the most unlikely 
circumstances in 2010, I was looking for someone who could help me 
navigate the culture and folkways of this building, and there was no 
one better suited for that than Todd Webster. He worked on the 
campaigns of Senators Harkin and Byrd, as the deputy communications 
director for the Gore-Lieberman campaign, and as the communications 
director for Senator Patty Murray. After that he was the communications 
director for Senator Tom Daschle.
  After those years of service in the Senate, he had gone off on his 
own to form the WebStrong Group, and he was the owner of Webster 
Strategies and a regular commentator on MSNBC.
  So when I had the chance to first meet him in 2010, I was encouraged 
that he was willing to offer his significant skills and talent to the 
challenge of helping me shape my team and decide on my trajectory here 
in the Senate. So this 9-year Senate veteran, this

[[Page 1383]]

graduate of Bowdoin College and possessor of a master's degree from the 
GW Graduate School of Political Management set off with me on a 
fascinating and at times challenging trip.
  Todd is a great athlete. He is someone who is a dedicated golfer, 
``an honorable player,'' as was commented by JJ Singh, one of our great 
team members in the office. You can tell a lot about a person by how 
they behave on the golf course, and Todd is a gentleman. He plays fast 
so as not to hold up others, but will go out of his way to look for 
your lost ball in the woods.
  If Todd left the office a few minutes early on Fridays, he would 
announce that he was ``going to investigate some greenspace.'' Although 
rare, his outings on golf courses, I know, were a source of 
encouragement and relief.
  On the softball field he was also a great contributor. A member of my 
team commented that ``he was a valuable member'' of our team, known as 
the Small Wonders, after Delaware's nickname, ``and was known for his 
ability to turn triples into doubles and sacrificing his body at first 
base to get much-needed outs.''
  ``He was also instrumental,'' JJ wrote, ``to the team's magical 2014 
turnaround season and Cinderella run to the playoffs.''
  On the management side, Todd would constantly walk around the office 
unannounced, just to check in and see how folks were doing. Rather than 
making staff find him, he would proactively seek out staff. His door 
was always open, whether to chat about something work-related or to 
vent or to listen about something personal. He always had a funny story 
to tell and was willing to listen and offer meaningful advice.
  When Tom sensed that the afternoon was dragging on and our 
subterranean executive suite was in need of a pick-me-up, he would go 
on what we call in Delaware a ``WaWa run,'' picking up snacks and 
caffeinated beverages to keep everybody focused until the end of what 
are sometimes very long days.
  I got one interesting comment from a constituent staffer who has 
worked for me and for several other Senators in her many long years at 
the Senate. She commented that on one visit to DC, Todd cared enough to 
make sure our whole constituent relations team had lunch in the Senate 
dining room. She was astonished that he took time out of his busy day 
to have lunch and get to know them and get to know what they do on 
behalf of the people of Delaware every day.
  Todd also understood and connected with my commitment to my home 
State and enthusiastically made an annual trek to the Delaware State 
Fair and devoted himself to learning more about Delaware's all-
important poultry business. I will say that in equal part I did my best 
to learn more about sports, going to Caps events, Wizards events, and 
on golf outings with Todd. He joined me in going to memorable visits of 
processing plants where thousands of chickens made the eye-opening 
transition from being broilers to being dinner. In addition, I want to 
thank him for his strong constitution and his dedication for advancing 
the agricultural interests of my home State, which even included trying 
scrapple on one occasion.
  At a time when congressional budgets have constantly been under 
pressure and many in America believe our political system is 
dysfunctional, Capitol Hill depends on dedicated, loyal, optimistic, 
and positive public servants like Todd--not only for the kind of policy 
and political accomplishments that ultimately show up on a resume or a 
job description but even more for the qualities and characteristics 
that make this place function--an unquestioningly positive attitude, a 
management style that makes everyone from interns to seasoned 
professionals feel welcome and valued, a willingness to speak candidly 
about himself and the office, about our challenges and prospects, a 
keen perspective on the absurdity of the many aspects of the modern 
political process, and the relentless idealism that inspires those 
around him to keep believing and working hard. These are the hallmarks 
of Todd's time over the past 5 years.
  In the 5 years I have had the joy of working with him. He has always 
been at my side, helping my office get up and running and teaching me 
the ways of this town and this institution. Walking around Capitol Hill 
with him was often like walking beside the ``mayor of the Senate.'' 
Every few steps, every few minutes, someone would stop to say hello, to 
catch up, to reconnect or talk about what is next. Far too often, 
people leave the Hill, having forgotten long ago why they ever got into 
public service in the first place. Todd never has. Throughout his 9 
years serving three different Senators, he has remained cheerful, 
optimistic, tireless, and committed.
  His car is often the very first one in the Russell garage in the 
morning, and he often has been the last staffer to leave and go home at 
the end of a long workday. Whether it is his willingness to call a 
staff member after the passing of a family member or bounding into the 
office every morning with a smile, saying, ``top of the morning to you, 
hello friends, hello Meg, hello T, hello Chels,'' my office will simply 
not be the same without him--without his cheer, without his loyalty, 
without his hard work, without his energy, and without his optimism 
about what we can still do together here in this greatest institution 
in the American constitutional order.
  So with that, I would like to offer my thanks and best wishes to my 
departing chief of Staff, Todd Webster.
  Thank you.

                          ____________________