Cord Byrd: “this is Constitution Week. Of course, I am talking about the U.S. Constitution. A point that all Governors and Senators…”

“this is Constitution Week. Of course, I am talking about the U.S. Constitution. A point that all Governors and Senators might well remember: No State constitution in this country is like the Federal Constitution. No State's constitution so clearly and so strictly delineates the separation of powers as precisely as does the U.S. Constitution. So it is here in the Senate that the Constitution is defended--the U.S. Constitution--and it is here that we support the separation of powers, the checks and balances; and the one Constitution that we are bound by in this institution is the U.S. Constitution, a copy of which I hold in my hand. I want to take a little while today to talk about this Federal Constitution. On Monday of this week we marked the 114th anniversary of the U.S. Constitution. Of course, the Senate was not in on Monday, and consequently I have been forced to wait until today to speak about the Constitution. Again, this is Constitution Week. In tragic and sad times, we instinctively reach for what matters most in our lives: Our faith, our families, and our fundamental rights as Americans. As we struggle with the horrific events of September 11, we should take a measure of strength from the events of another September day, an 18th century September day. On September 17, 1787, an extraordinary convention of American statesmen, meeting at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, adopted the Constitution of the United States of America.”