John Cornyn: “Texans have a profound sense of history, and it is only appropriate that Senator Hutchison should mention the fact that…”

“Texans have a profound sense of history, and it is only appropriate that Senator Hutchison should mention the fact that we both come from long lines of Texans, starting with Thomas Jefferson Rusk, who first held her Senate seat, and Sam Houston, who held the Senate seat I hold. I will never forget Senator Hutchison coming to the floor of the Senate every March 2, Texas Independence Day, and regaling the Chamber with Travis' letter from the Alamo, reminding everyone about another important event in Texas history, a tradition which she carried on after Senator John Tower did for so many years when he served here. This is a historic moment for many reasons. First, because we are paying tribute to an extraordinary woman who has made history by being the first Texas female United States Senator and someone who has spent the last two decades fighting for commonsense values in our Nation's Capitol. While it is hard to summarize Senator Hutchinson's great work in just a few short minutes, I am going to try. I am going to try to highlight some of her signature achievements and explain why she enjoys such outstanding support from her constituents back in our great State. To start with, I cannot think of any Senator serving in this Chamber who works harder than Kay Bailey Hutchison. Sometimes I affectionately refer to her as the Energizer Bunny of the Texas delegation.…”