On the recordJuly 19, 2000
as the American Revolution drew to a close in 1782, a Philadelphian turned to his friend, Dr. Benjamin Rush, and remarked, ``It looks as if the battle for independence has been won.'' Dr. Rush replied, ``Sir, you are mistaken. The Revolutionary War may be over, but the battle of independence has just begun.'' On the day before he died, as I had the opportunity to spend time with Paul Coverdell and his family, I thought about these words, and they have stayed in my mind over the last 48 hours because that idea-- that only constant vigilance can keep the flame of freedom from being extinguished--is one that perhaps no one believed in more, at least since I have been in the Senate, or acted upon more decisively than Paul Coverdell. With his passing, America has lost one of its most principled leaders and freedom, one of its staunchest friends.
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