J. Exon: “the senior Senator from Maine, Bill Cohen, is among those Senators who have decided to not seek another term in service…”

“the senior Senator from Maine, Bill Cohen, is among those Senators who have decided to not seek another term in service to their country. Senator Cohen and I both arrived in the Senate in January 1979 and we have served together on the Armed Services Committee ever since. Bill Cohen's skills as a United States Senator were evident from the beginning. His mastery of detail along with his understanding of the larger implications of legislative policies has made him a universally respected oracle on a wide range of issues. His views are no more revered, perhaps, than those in the area of national defense and foreign policy. I can attest firsthand to how important Senator Cohen has been in furthering our national security interests over the past two decades. There is no aspect of our collective national security policy over this time that has not benefitted from Senator Cohen's contribution. Whether in the area of arms control or military reorganization or shipbuilding, Senator Cohen has displayed an effective ability to analyze problems and propose workable solutions that garnered bipartisan support. This is Bill Cohen's legacy to the United States Senate and the country as a whole. He has been a renaissance man of sorts during these past 18 years: A best-selling novelist and published poet, an articulate speaker, and a gifted legislator. His departure will certainly deprive the Senate of one of its most meaningful and respected voices.…”