Patrick Leahy: “I thank the distinguished majority leader for his comments. He and I have been friends for decades. I also acknowledge…”

“I thank the distinguished majority leader for his comments. He and I have been friends for decades. I also acknowledge the distinguished Secretary of the Senate, who is here this morning. Mr. President, eight times the voters of Vermont--who are my neighbors, my friends, my family--have had the great faith to send me to the U.S. Senate to represent them. Yesterday, I told those neighbors and friends and my family that I would not run for reelection. I told the Vermonters who have humbled me since my first election to the Senate in 1974 that I will leave this seat at the conclusion of my term. It is a decision I do not come to lightly but one in which Marcelle and I find great peace. In the last nearly 47 years, the Senate has become a family to both Marcelle and me. Here we found friends, some of the best of friends, and relationships that will and have lasted a lifetime. But the Senate has always been where I have come to fight for Vermont, a State that has been my home since birth, the place where I met Marcelle, where we started our family, and to which in early 2023, we will return for good. It is time to go home. Here is the thing about the Senate. Here is where small States like Vermont have not just a seat at the table but a voice at the table.…”