Harry Reid: “the next vote that will be cast by my friend from New Jersey, Senator Lautenberg, the junior Senator from New Jersey…”

“the next vote that will be cast by my friend from New Jersey, Senator Lautenberg, the junior Senator from New Jersey, will be his 7,000th vote. Senator Lautenberg was elected in 1982 to the Senate, and served three terms before taking a ``sabbatical'' in 2000. I repeat, he was not defeated, he took a ``sabbatical.'' He decided to take leave of the Senate for a while. He ran again in 2002, when Senator Torricelli retired, and the Democrats were desperate for someone who could win in New Jersey. He stepped forward because he is always a sure winner. Senator Lautenberg has the rare distinction of having held both of New Jersey's Senate seats. Senator Lautenberg may be a ``freshman'' of sorts, but the only other two Senators from New Jersey who have cast more rollcall votes than the junior Senator from New Jersey, my friend Senator Lautenberg, are Harrison Williams, who cast 8,349 votes over the course of his career, and Clifford Case, who cast 7,684 votes. Senator Lautenberg is third, having cast more votes than Senator Bradley, for example. Senator Lautenberg's parents were poor but hard-working immigrants who came to America through Ellis Island. Senator Lautenberg joined the Army when he was 18 and served in the European Theater during World War II. When he returned from the war, he went to Columbia University on the GI bill. Then he and two friends started a payroll company. It was very small. They started from scratch.…”