Senate Proceeding 09-05-07 on Sep 5th, 2007 :: 0:00:00 to 0:20:00
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John Thune: and let the iraqk}ir the presiding officer: the senate will come to order. the senator from south dakota is recognized. the senate will be in order. a senator: i join to welcome my colleague and

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Speech By: John Thune

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John Thune: a friend, senator tim johnson back to the united states senate. senator johnson's return today to this illustrious chamber marks an incredible journey that took him to normal daily life to near

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John Thune: death to a remarkable recovery. for the last eight months people from all walks of life, democrats and republicans have approached me wanting to know how senator johnson was doing and nearly every

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John Thune: single one of those victims told me they were praying for him. shortly after this happened i was traveling in iraq and afghanistan and i ran into military personnel, members of the diplomatic corp, other

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John Thune: civilians always asking how senator johnson was doing, all offering up their prayers and support. i happen to believe it was those prayers from across south dakota, across the united states and from around

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John Thune: the world that brought senator johnson back from his life-threatening condition. since being released from the hospital senator johnson has learned how to walk and talk again. his doctors have been amazed

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John Thune: at his progress. some of us, it is no surprise, having faced him in a closely fought campaign i know how tough this man is. after all, senator johnson has a strong scandinavian background, something

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John Thune: we boat share. without question today is an important milestone in senator johnson's recovery. many of us will never know the struggles senator johnson and his family have been through. most of us take

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John Thune: for granted our health. we take for granted our time with family and friends -- birthdays and holidays. for me, senator johnson's experience has made me pause and appreciate the little thins that

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John Thune: make life so precious. senator johnson turned 60 in december. the party, obviously, had to be delayed. upon returning to south dakota last week, senator johnson and his family celebrated both his 60th

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John Thune: birthday and christmas. i'm guessing it was his best birthday and christmas ever. senator johnson and i come from different political backgrounds. we have worked to put our differences aside as we represent

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John Thune: the people of south dakota. in fact, since i was elected to the senate in 2004 we have worked closely on a number of issues of importance to south dakota -- everything from a highway bill to an energy bill,

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John Thune: to drought relief, water projects and of course, saving ellsworth air force base from closure under the brac process. i believe because we have worked to put our differences aside our offices coordinated

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John Thune: to serve the state of south dakota during his hospitalization and recovery. the senate is a very close knit body, mr. president. it is noticeable when a senator is absent for any length of time. today,

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John Thune: however, that absence no longer exists. by the grace of god, through the prayers of thousands upon thousands of americans, by the support of an amazing wife, barbara, and family, and network of friends

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John Thune: and by his shear will and determination, senator johnson is back. tim, i know today means a great deal to you and to your family. it's good to see you back if the united states senate. mr. president,

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John Thune: i ask unanimous consent the senate call up or i call up a resolution -- excuse me, i ask unanimous consent the senate now proceed to the consideration of senate resolution 306 which was submitted earlier

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today. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: senate resolution 306 concerning the return of senator tim johnson, whereas tim johnson is returning to the united states senate after

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Tim Johnson: an absence to recuperate from a hemorrhage suffered on december 13th, 2006. now, therefore, be it resolved, that as senator tim johnson returns to the senate, his fellow members of the senate

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Speech By: Tim Johnson

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Tim Johnson: extend their warmest welcome and express their personal happiness at his return and offer their very best wishes for his continued good health. mr. thune: i ask unanimous consent the resolution be

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Tim Johnson: agreed to, the preamblee agreed to and the mion it reconsider be laid upon the table. the presiding officer: without objection, so ordered. mr. thune: thank you, mr. president. mr. johnson: mr. president,

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Tim Johnson: thank you. the presiding officer: the senator from south dakota is recognized. mr. johnson: it sure does feel good to be back here again. i want to thank senators thune, reid and mcconnell, as well

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Tim Johnson: as all of my colleagues for their warm welcome back. in so many ways, in words and prayers, from you and your spouses on both sides of the aisle, supported both barbara and me and give us strength.

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Tim Johnson: you will never know what that means to us. i also want to thank representative samlon for critical support throughout the tough times. the milcon appropriations bill is now on the floor and i

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Tim Johnson: must also thank senators jack reed for working with my staff and for his leadership on the bill. before i get too far along in my remarks, it must already be clear to you that my speech is not 100%.

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Tim Johnson: doctors tell me that it will get there. but my thoughts are clear and my mind is sharp and i'm here to be a voice for south dakota in this senate. with patience, persist ensure and faith i have fought

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Tim Johnson: back and my will to keep fighting for south dakota is strong. my ability to think is paramount so i hope now as i return to my office people will focus on their work more quickly than i walk these days.

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Tim Johnson: last week, i went home to south dakota. today i come home to the united states senate. this has been a long and humbling journey, a journey that has taken longer than some people have liked -- and

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Tim Johnson: i count myself among them. but i return to work today, to this great body, with a renewed spirit and a sharper focus. i better appreciate today what haindividuals and families go through when they face

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Tim Johnson: crippling hardship, whether the hardship be the consequence of catastrophic health issues, economic hardship or a lack of an opportunity to reach one's full potential in life. i believe i have been given

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Tim Johnson: a second chance at life. i vow to take that second chance and work harder than ever to be the best i can be for my state and my nation, to be a voice for those individuals and families who so often are

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Tim Johnson: ignored or forgotten and to fight and live up to the ideals that have made this nation great. this is my focus. that is my commitment to my constituents back home in south dakota, to the people of this

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Tim Johnson: great nation and to my colleagues here in washington.~ it has been the greatest honor in my life to stand for and by the people of south dakota. i cannot thank them as well as the members of this

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Harry Reid: chamber enough for your patience and support. today my work begins anew. i relish the task. it's great to be home. thank you. and, mr. president, i yield the floor. [applause] [applause] [applause]

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Speech By: Harry Reid

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Harry Reid: mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding of ficer: the majority leader is recognized. mr. reid: before my republican colleagues leave the floor, i want to repeat what i said this morning when the senate

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Harry Reid: opened. the only person here was senator mcconnell. and that is, what the republicans have done during the illness of senator johnson has been exemplary. there have been occasions when, for ptisan advantage,

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Harry Reid: the minority could have taken advantage of the majority as a result of tim being incapacitated. that was never done on one occasion, even though there were opportunities to do that. as i said this

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Harry Reid: morning, i personally appreciate that. i know the johnson family does. but more importantly, mr. president, the american people do. this is the senate. and i will always remember during the past eight

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Harry Reid: months, as we've waited for tim to return, how -- i repeat -- the republicans never once ever tried to take advantage of his illness. thank you very much. [applause] mr. reid: mr. president, tim johnson

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Harry Reid: is a fourth-generation south dakotan, and i want to underscore and underline the fact that john thune and tim johnson remind me of harry reid and john ensign because we, too, had a very, very difficult

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Harry Reid: race for the senate. it ended up very similar to the thune-johnson race. but we have set those differences aside and now are friends. and above all, i say to my friend, john thune, i admire and appreciate

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Harry Reid: what you have done in helping tim in his absence and also being the person who would not allow anything to be done that would in any way harm tim johnson on a partisan basis. thank you very much,

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Harry Reid: john. mr. president, i've learned a lot about tim johnson the past eight months. i know he went to school in south dakota university, university of south dakota, that it's there that he met barbara,

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Harry Reid: his wife. it's in a town called vermillian that he started his law practice. it's there that they saw success in the legal field. he served four years starting in 1982 in the house of representatives

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Harry Reid: in the state of south dakota. he's received many, many awards. outstanding citizen of the state of south dakota, first recipient of the billy sutton award for legislative achievement, was elected to the house

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Harry Reid: in 1986. during that year, he was responsible for passing more legislation than any of the other 50 first-term members. he's now been in the senate doing outstanding work. and i noticed, mr. president, in

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Harry Reid: his resume he of course lists the appropriations committee, the budget committee, banking committee, energy committee, indian affairs committee. but he left off the ethics committee. [laughter] mr.

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Harry Reid: president, he was chosen on that committee -- to be the chair of that committee because he is the example of an ethical, honest legislator and person. tim and barbara still have their home in vermillian

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Harry Reid: but i've gotten to know that family so well. brooks served and is serving in the united states army, having been a combat veteran in bosnia, kosovo, afghanistan, and iraq. he's now an army recruiter.

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Harry Reid: brendan is a lawyer, private law practice, doing excellent work. kelsey, who i -- during his -- her father's illness, we spent lots of time together, especially waiting for her brothers to come. it

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Harry Reid: took a couple days for them to get here from around the country they are coming and air travel out of south dakota's not that easy. and as you proceed through life, you find people that you have such

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Harry Reid: admiration for, and of course we all admire tim. but, mr. president, there's a person in this chamber -- and i know the senate rules and we're not to refer to people in this chamber -- but i hope that

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Harry Reid: people will forgive me today in recognizing someone that i will never forget and that's his lovely wife, barbara, who's in the gallery. [applause] [applause] mr. reid: and i think barbara, because tim

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Harry Reid: was unconscious at the time, but barbara will never forget and i will never forget the first night that tim got sick. and the reason i mention this is there was a man who is a doctor doctor -- a doctor

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Harry Reid: -- and i don't want to in any way embarrass tim or his family, but i think the man deserves recognition. the man came to us -- i was asked to be with barbara and i was happy to be there. the children

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Harry Reid: were come that first terrible afternoon -- and things weren't going well. barbara recognized it first that he wasn't doing well. and a doctor came and said, we're going to have to relieve the pressure

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Harry Reid: and i'm going to have to go into his skull. and i said to this doctor, how many times have you done that? and he said, enumerable times. and he wasn't -- he was not an old man but he was surrounded by

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Harry Reid: old neurologists and neurosurgeons. came back awhile later, an hour and a half maybe, and he said, i'm going to have to do an ang joe gram. i don't know what's going on in his brain. so they put something

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Harry Reid: in there to look at his brain. i said how many times have you done that? he said over a thousand times. then he comes back, mr. president, about an hour and a half or two hours later and tells us they're

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Harry Reid: going to have to operate on tim. it's going to take a long time, probably about seven hours. and after he had worked all of this time, i said to him, who's going to do this? because he had to be

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Harry Reid: getting tired by then. and he looked at barbara with these piercing eyes and said, "i'm going to do it. that's what i do." he said, i'm not only a neurosurgeon, i have a subspecialty in the blood