Haley Stevens: “I am humbled by the statement of the President pro tempore and the current chairman of the Appropriations Committee. He…”

“I am humbled by the statement of the President pro tempore and the current chairman of the Appropriations Committee. He and I have served together now for many years. I know he did not know earlier today in our conference I told the conference that I thought that this resolution that has been crafted by our two leaders was, in fact, extending a hand of friendship across this aisle based upon trust. He, in his normal way, has stated it more clearly and precisely than I. Senator Byrd honors us all. But we are here as senior Members. As our leader on this side of the aisle has said, this is a 50/50 split in the Senate. But it is still the Senate of the United States. Coming from Alaska, I know the value of the vote that comes from the Vice- Presidency. It was the only vote that Vice President Agnew cast that broke the tie on the Alaska pipeline and brought our Nation billions of barrels of oil. We face issues all the time when we are split and have a tie. This time we start with a tie, but we start also with the friendships and the knowledge of one another that have been built up over the years.”