Frank Lautenberg: “I want to be sure before I go into my remarks that neither of the leaders, the majority leader or the Democratic leader…”

“I want to be sure before I go into my remarks that neither of the leaders, the majority leader or the Democratic leader, is waiting for some floor time for some special things they want to go ahead with because I hope not to cover every day of the 18 years I have served here. But I do want to make some remarks about this moment in time --a moment that I have kind of looked at with some amount of trepidation because this is the end for me, at the bottom of the ninth inning, and we have a couple of things to do before it is pretty much all over. I am probably speaking now for the last time in the U.S. Senate. After 18 years as a Member of this institution, some time ago I made a reluctant decision to step down--not to try again after three terms. And, to be perfectly honest, there are those moments when I look at that decision not to run for a fourth term with considerable regret. This has been an incredible experience--an experience that so few ever get to have and such a worthwhile thing to do. While my friends, the Democratic leader and the Democratic whip, are on the floor, I want to express to each one of them how deep my appreciation is for the cooperation and the ability to work together on issues of concern--not just for my State but for the country at large-- and how helpful Senator Daschle, our leader, has been; and my good friend Harry Reid from Nevada, the only State that really competes with New Jersey in the hospitality of the gaming industry.…”