January 6, 2009 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S7 

to give some remarks at a later time 

today, and I would notify all Senators 

we are going to be in a period of morning business, with Senators allowed to 

speak for up to 10 minutes each. I welcome my distinguished colleague back 

publicly, as I have privately, and congratulate him on his election. He ran a 

very spirited, strong election, and I 

look forward to—and I will address this 

in my remarks—our work during this 

next Congress. 

f 

MORNING BUSINESS 

Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that we proceed now to 

a period of morning business. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without 

objection, it is so ordered. 

f 

APPOINTMENTS 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Pursuant 

to S. Res. 1, the Chair appoints the 

Senator from Nevada, Mr. REID, and 

the Senator from Kentucky, Mr. 

MCCONNELL, as a committee to join the 

committee on the part of the House of 

Representatives to wait upon the 

President of the United States and inform him that a quorum is assembled 

and that the Congress is ready to receive any communication he may be 

pleased to make. 

The Chair appoints the Senator from 

California, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, and the 

Senator from Utah, Mr. BENNETT, as 

tellers on the part of the Senate to 

count electoral votes. 

Mr. REID. Mr. President, are we now 

in a period of morning business? 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Yes, we 

are. 

f 

WELCOMING THE 111TH CONGRESS 

Mr. REID. Mr. President, on the 

Fourth of July of the year 1851, the legendary statesman Daniel Webster, himself a former Senator, laid the cornerstone for the Senate Chamber where we 

now gather. He said: 

Be it known that on this day the Union of 

the United States of America stands firm. 

Today marks the 150th year that this 

Chamber has housed the Senate of the 

United States. 

When Vice President John Breckinridge gaveled the 34th Congress open in 

this Chamber in 1859, our Republic had 

a population of one-tenth what it is 

today. There were just 64 Senators. 

Each Senator enjoyed a little more leg 

room, and that is an understatement. 

Many of these desks we see behind me, 

and behind the Republican leader, are 

from the original Senators of this 

country. They are real old. This Chamber, for 150 years, has served as the primary working space for most Members. 

The first session held here 150 years 

ago began as it did today, with the 

Vice President of the United States administering the oath of office to new 

Members. 

Today, nine new Senators joined 

what many have said, and I agree, is 

the greatest deliberative body the 

world has ever known—certainly the 

greatest legislative body. So I extend 

my warmest welcome and congratulations to Senator MARK UDALL of Colorado, Senator TOM UDALL of New Mexico, Senator MIKE JOHANNS of Nebraska, Senator JEANNE SHAHEEN of 

New Hampshire, Senator MARK WARNER of Virginia, Senator JIM RISCH of 

Idaho, Senator KAY HAGAN of North 

Carolina, Senator JEFF MERKLEY of Oregon, and Senator MARK BEGICH of 

Alaska. 

To the profound challenges we face, 

these nine men and women bring vast 

judgment and experience at all levels 

of Government and public service. I am 

confident every one of them will serve 

their States and our Nation with distinction and pride. 

It was just 2 years ago this inaugural 

day of Congress that we heralded a new 

majority for Democrats in both the 

Senate and House of Representatives, 

but in the Senate that was a very tenuous majority. We began with 51, but 

TIM JOHNSON became very ill and the 

crowded Democratic primary field left 

us oftentimes short of an outright majority and far short of the 60 votes 

needed to prevent filibusters and pass 

legislation. Although we made substantial progress in the 110th Congress, partisanship with divided Government too 

often ruled the day. 

I have said from the day the election 

was over, we are looking forward. We 

are not going to be concerned about 

the previous 8 years, we are concerned 

about the next 8 years. Since 2006, we 

Democrats have received a net gain of 

14 Senate seats, 45 to 59. Just 2 weeks 

from today, Barack Obama will become 

the 44th President of the United 

States. We are ready to answer the call 

of the American people by putting the 

past 8 years behind us and delivering 

the change our country desperately 

needs. 

We are grateful to begin anew with a 

far more robust Democratic majority. 

But both parties learned an important 

lesson over the past 2 years: When we 

allow ourselves to retreat into the 

tired, well-worn trenches of partisanship, when we fail to reach for common 

ground, when we are unable, in the 

words of President-elect Obama, to disagree without being disagreeable, we 

diminish our ability to accomplish real 

change. 

To my Republican counterpart, Senator MCCONNELL, and all Republican 

colleagues, a number of whom I have 

called and personally visited with, I 

say to them: With American troops 

fighting two wars overseas, we are together in all of this. With the American people suffering a staggering economic crisis here at home, we are in 

this together. With the middle class 

struggling to make one paycheck last 

until the next one, we are in the middle 

of this together. With health care, college tuition, and retirement more expensive and harder to reach than ever, 

we are in this together. With our climate in crisis and energy prices rising 

and falling unpredictably, we are in 

this together. 

Some may fear the depth of the challenges we face, but I remind them that 

adversity is no stranger to this Chamber or to our country. In America and 

in this Chamber, we have never failed 

to persevere and ultimately to prosper. 

In this Chamber, our Union came unraveled and was mended, great wars 

were declared and peace has been celebrated. Here, our most fundamental 

freedoms were challenged, upheld, and 

expanded. In this Chamber for 150 years 

we have watched things happen. 

In more recent years, we watched the 

passing of the New Deal by Roosevelt, 

Truman’s Fair Deal, Kennedy’s Great 

Frontier, and Johnson’s Great Society. 

Over these many years, we have outlawed child labor, brought electricity 

to the western frontier, and ensured a 

college education for those who serve 

in uniform. 

I had the opportunity yesterday to go 

to the funeral of Claiborne Pell, a man 

of wealth, a patrician, a man who went 

to the finest schools in America but 

dedicated his life to public service so 

that other people who were not in his 

situation could be educated. That is 

where the Pell grants came from—Claiborne Pell, a very aristocratic man 

who devoted his life to public service. 

We have done those things right here 

in this Chamber. Of course, we passed, 

after long, hard struggles and much 

anxiety, the Civil Rights and Voting 

Rights acts. 

There is no question that the challenges ahead of us are staggering. I do 

not think anyone would disagree. But I 

am confident that if we renew, in this 

body, our commitment to bipartisanship, the 111th Congress will be a tremendous success. 

Just a short way from here yesterday 

afternoon—and I don’t remember the 

exact time, 3 o’clock or something like 

that, or 3:30—we had a bipartisan meeting of the leadership of the House and 

Senate. It was a wonderful meeting, 

with an exchange of ideas. The President-elect was here. I was very impressed. I heard Senator MCCONNELL

say to him: There are some things I 

need to talk to you about. Senator 

Obama said to him, when the meeting 

broke up: Let’s talk now. I assume 

they talked sometime in the next little 

bit. But that is what we need: the ability to talk to each other. 

There is no script that can be written 

where Senator MCCONNELL and I will 

agree on everything that happens here. 

But there is a script being written 

today that says that even though we 

disagree on things that take place in 

this body, we can do it in a way that is 

constructive and works toward the 

good of our country. The State of Kentucky is much different from the State 

of Nevada—they are two different 

States. That was the genius of our 

Founding Fathers, that this Senate, 

which came about by reason of the 


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