Harry Reid: “I wish I had the words to express the thoughts I have in my heart now. I love history. I love the Senate. I have spent a…”

“I wish I had the words to express the thoughts I have in my heart now. I love history. I love the Senate. I have spent a lot of my life here. The mere fact that I am a Senator is, every day, hard for me to comprehend. But I am, and I am so thankful to the people in Nevada for allowing me to serve. But I want to say to the senior Senator from the State of Virginia that when the history books are written about this institution and someone flips through like a dictionary, wanting to have described what a U.S. Senator should be, John Warner has to be near the top of that list, if not at the top. He is a man who is a gentleman. I have served with him now for 23 years. He is a man who believes in this institution and has the record to prove it. He is a person who is a good member of his political party, but he is also a patriot. As important as the two- party system is to our country, to the Senator from Virginia, party comes second, country comes first. As I said, I don't have the ability to express my conviction about this man. But the statement he just made, his off-the-cuff statement, is what the Senate is all about. It is about protecting this country, the individual rights of Members of the Senate, and that is why John Warner is a great Senator. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Virginia.”