Cord Byrd: “as we bring to a close the debate on the emergency supplemental, H.R. 1268, I thank my good friend from the State of…”

“as we bring to a close the debate on the emergency supplemental, H.R. 1268, I thank my good friend from the State of Mississippi, the chairman of the Appropriations Committee, Thad Cochran. Senator Cochran was recently installed as the new Chairman of the Appropriations Committee, and, although he has managed numerous bills on the floor in the past, this is the first appropriations bill that he has managed as the chairman of the Appropriations Committee. I compliment Senator Cochran for a job well done, and I especially thank him for his patience. In fact, all of the Members should thank him for his patience. We have been on this bill for the better part of 2 weeks, and we have given consideration to many, many amendments. Throughout all of these many days of debate on the underlying bill and on the numerous amendments offered by both sides, Senator Cochran has kept a level head, and he has shown patience in seeing that this supplemental is processed in an orderly manner and that no Member is denied an opportunity to have input on this bill. I also join with Senator Cochran in expressing gratitude to the staff members on both sides of the aisle who helped us with processing this bill and all those amendments. They worked late into the evening hours on some of these matters, and I appreciate not only their hard work but also their unstinting dedication to this institution. Mr.…”