Watson Coleman: “I serve on the Governmental Affairs Committee. I served on the conference committee that helped draft this bill, and I…”

“I serve on the Governmental Affairs Committee. I served on the conference committee that helped draft this bill, and I am going to be very proud to vote for this bill this afternoon. I wish to start and end by thanking the chair, Senator Collins, for her incredible leadership. This was not easy to do. When we left around Thanksgiving, there were a lot of folks who said this would not happen, that it could not be done. We had people who had some very strong opinions about a wide range of issues, and there were differences. Leadership makes a difference. The leadership of Chairman Collins made a difference. The leadership of Ranking Member Lieberman made a difference. I will also note, I am sure before we finally vote on this the chairman will talk about staff. But I see Michael Bopp, who is the staff director and chief counsel of the Governmental Affairs Committee. Staff worked very hard. They did an extraordinary job. We were on break, weren't around, but folks were working day and night over holidays to give us this opportunity to get it done. I do want to compliment Mr. Bopp and all of the staff, on a bipartisan basis, including my own staff who worked so hard. America should thank them because this bill is good for America. This bill makes America safer. As I look back on the opportunities I had in my first session of Congress, the 108th, I believe the passage of this bill is the most significant thing this Congress has done. We have made America safer.”