Liz Saville Roberts: “it is both an honor and a personal privilege for me to join my colleagues and rise today to pay tribute to a great…”

“it is both an honor and a personal privilege for me to join my colleagues and rise today to pay tribute to a great Senator, a great patriot, and now the longest-serving Senator in our Nation's history, the most distinguished Senator from South Carolina, Strom Thurmond. Mr. President, the challenge for one trying to capsule this great American's service to South Carolina and our Nation is considerable. All Americans, however, should be encouraged--and I certainly encourage them to do this--to access Senator Thurmond's home page and discover the truly remarkable and unprecedented achievements of this man. Mr. President, it has become very commonplace in public service today, especially in this city, to refer to individuals of accomplishment as ``great Americans.'' And in some respects it is so commonplace that the term has even been overused, and sometimes even in humorous fashion. But that is not the case with Senator Thurmond who has been and is truly a great American in every sense of the word. This man has 27 honorary degrees to go with his BS degree from his beloved Clemson University. He has been a superintendent of education, a judge, a decorated veteran and hero of World War II, and he earned 18 decorations, medals, and awards. He has been a Governor of the Palmetto State. He has been a candidate for President, the first person ever to be elected to a major office on a write-in, a leader within three--not two--three political parties.”