David Thomas: “I want to talk about a friend who will be leaving the Senate, a man whom I respect greatly, a man who--to quote a phrase…”

“I want to talk about a friend who will be leaving the Senate, a man whom I respect greatly, a man who--to quote a phrase he uses--is ``a friend of his friends,'' and that is Senator Alan Simpson, from Wyoming, who will be retiring from the Senate at the end of this session. Al Simpson is particularly close to me. He is from Cody, WY, a town of 10,000 or 12,000. Cody is also the same town I am from. We were both there last weekend at the Buffalo Bill Museum event. Al is a lifelong friend, a good and gracious man. He comes from a family of good and gracious leadership. The first person that I remember as a kid, who was an outstanding citizen, one of those kinds that you remember, was Milward Simpson, Al's dad. Interestingly enough, the thing I remember the most was that he is the first guy I ever saw who could simply stand up and talk without being prepared, or without needing notes, and do it so eloquently. I guess that is where Al Simpson acquires his ability to do the same thing. So many here in the Senate have known Al Simpson for a very long time, too, and are his friends. Al has been here for 18 years representing our State, battling for our State, battling for this country, and all of us feel so fortunate to have had him here.”