Cord Byrd: “it is sad and unfortunate that I and this chamber must say farewell to Senator Max Cleland. As a student, a soldier, a…”

“it is sad and unfortunate that I and this chamber must say farewell to Senator Max Cleland. As a student, a soldier, a public servant, and a U.S. Senator, Max Cleland has always personified the best of this country. His has been a life of patriotism and sacrifice, of struggle and of triumph. After graduating from college, which included an internship on Capitol Hill, and receiving a master's degree in American history, Max Cleland volunteered for the Army and then volunteered for service in Vietnam. In that brutal conflict, he lost both of his legs and an arm in a grenade explosion. But Max Cleland never gave up. He refused to become simply a tragic symbol of an unwanted and unpopular war. At the age of 28, Max Cleland became the youngest State Senator in Georgia. In 1977, President Jimmy Carter appointed him to head the Veterans Administration, the youngest person ever to hold that post, and one of the best. In that position, among his many accomplishments, Max Cleland helped to improve the VA hospital system and reduce delays in paying veterans' benefits. After that, he was elected to four terms as Secretary of State of Georgia. In 1996, Senator Cleland was elected to the U.S. Senate. After being sworn into office, he told supporters: Your dreams can come true if you continue to believe in them long enough, hard enough, and never give up on them. What a role model Max Cleland is, not only for disabled Americans but for all Americans.…”