Thomas Daschle: “one year ago today, America awoke to the terrible news that we had lost three extraordinary public servants: Governor…”

“one year ago today, America awoke to the terrible news that we had lost three extraordinary public servants: Governor Mel Carnahan, his son Roger, and their friend and aide Chris Sifford. Mel Carnahan was a remarkable man--the kind whose work proved that politics and public service can indeed be a noble profession. Like another man from Missouri, Harry Truman, Mel Carnahan was a man of plain speech and enormous political courage. Throughout his career, he worked to help people, to make government efficient, and to use the tools at his disposal to make a difference in people's lives. Whether it was improving public schools, expanding health insurance for children, protecting seniors through stricter safety standards for nursing homes, or making communities safer--Mel Carnahan never stopped working to make a difference. I have no doubt that he would have been a great Senator, just as he was a great Governor. Sadly, he never got the change to show us that-- at least, not directly. But his spirit does live on in this Senate.”