Herb Kohl

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. President, I rise for one final time to address the Senate. My remarks will be brief. Actually, I just want to say one thing: Thank you. I wish I could say it with the eloquence of one of my first friends in the Senate, Senator Dale Bumpers, who told his stories and always made his case pacing these aisles like a lion tethered to a specially made, extra long microphone cord, or with the breadth of vision of the late Senator Robert C. Byrd, who sprinkled his classic Mother's Day or Fourth of July speeches with memorized poetry and his vast command of history, or with the fire of my dear friend, the late Senator Ted Kennedy, who would bellow to the rafters his passion for the America that could be and then call on the Senate to make it so.

What a privilege it has been to serve with such men and so many other men and women who have made up this body over the last 24 years. You have been my friends, advisers, sometimes adversaries, always worthy, and my inspiration. I thank you. My colleagues in this body are, to a man or a woman, thoughtful, hard-working patriots. We do not always agree, understandably. But every Senator I have met is pursuing a course he or she believes is best for the Nation and advocating policies he or she believes are best for their States.

When I have come to any of you with my ideas about what is best for the Nation or my State, you have listened respectfully, counseled wisely, and helped whenever you could, and so I thank you.

The Senate is often referred to as a family, and that is certainly how I feel about my staff, many of whom are gathering today to say our goodbyes. Perhaps what I will miss the most on leaving the Senate is coming to work every day in Washington and in Wisconsin with such a bright, creative, and dedicated group of people constantly focused on what is best for our Nation and my State, challenging and pushing me to be the best Senator I could be. You cannot be a cynic about the future of this country when you work in an office such as mine and have the privilege to interact with generations of intelligent, civic-minded, and loyal staffers.

I thank them all for making a hard job not just easy but enjoyable and for serving the people of Wisconsin tirelessly and exceedingly well.

My final thanks go to the extraordinary people of Wisconsin. Thank you for letting me pay back, in part, the great debt my family owes to the State that took in my immigrant mother and father and allowed our family, including my brothers, Sidney and Allen, and our sister Dolores, to grow and thrive. Thank you for taking a chance on me in that first election 24 years ago and renewing my contract three more times. Thank you for trusting me with your problems and concerns, your hopes and dreams.

Please know we have listened to you carefully and fought for you always. Every Wisconsinite who wanted it, Democrat or Republican, rich or poor, farmer or city dweller, got full consideration in my office. Whether it was arranging a Capitol tour, finding a lost Social Security check, pushing for legislation to reform the Federal dairy program or reviving the shipbuilding industry in Marinette, WI, every Wisconsinite had an ally and an advocate in us.

It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve these 24 years in this hallowed institution, alongside my fellow Senators and my staff and as the voice for the people of Wisconsin. For that, I thank you all one last time.

I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I rise today to thank Rabbi Baruch Frydman- Kohl for his invocation this morning and welcome him and his beloved wife Josette to the Senate.

Rabbi Baruch's father Jack and my father Max were brothers and Europeans during the First World War. Both were exiled to Siberia. Later, after my father immigrated to America, he helped Jack and his family come to Milwaukee.

Baruch is the Anne and Max Tanenbaum senior rabbi of Best Tzedec Congregation, the largest synagogue community in Canada. The focus of his rabbinate has been family education, lifelong learning, and care for the housebound, hospitalized, and homeless. Beyond the synagogue, the rabbi is the president of the Toronto Board of Rabbis and recently organized the Path of Abraham mission to bring Jews, Christians, and Muslims to the Holy Land to explore the challenges of three religions, two nations, and one land.

Baruch's list of accomplishments and credentials is as impressive as it is long. I ask unanimous consent to have a copy of his biography printed in the Record following my remarks.

I will just add to this list his place in my heart as a beloved cousin, valued friend, and welcomed reflection of all about our fathers that was

strong, smart, and good. I thank the rabbi for his time and attention to the Senate today.

Exhibit 1

Rabbi Baruch Frydman-Kohl

Baruch Frydman-Kohl is the Anne and Max Tanenbaum Senior

Rabbi of Beth Tzedec Congregation, the largest synagogue

community in Canada. The focus of his rabbinate has been a

commitment to family education, life-long learning and care

for the housebound, hospitalized and homeless. Rabbi Baruch

initiated the development of a ``synaplex'' of innovative

ritual and educational opportunities to encourage more

participation in synagogue life.

Beyond the synagogue, the Rabbi is the President of the

Toronto Board of Rabbis and recently organized the Path of

Abraham mission to bring Jews, Christians and Muslims to the

Holy Land to explore the challenges of three religions, two

nations and one land. He serves on the Board of UJA

Federation of Toronto, has served on the Executive Committee

of the Rabbinical Assembly, and as past president of two of

its regions. He was awarded a Coolidge Fellowship to pursue

research in an inter-faith community at the Episcopal

Divinity School at Harvard University. The Rabbi received his

doctorate in Jewish Philosophy from the Jewish Theological

Seminary and is a Rabbinic Fellow of the Shalom Hartman

Institute of Jerusalem. Rabbi Frydman-Kohl is the author of

scholarly articles in the area of Jewish philosophy and

mysticism.

Rabbi Baruch's father, Jack, and Senator Kohl's father,

Max, were brothers and young teenagers during the First World

War when they were caught between the Austrian-Hungarian

Empire and Czarist Russia. They were taken captive and sent

to exile in Siberia. Later, after Max's immigration to

America, he helped to bring Jack and his family to Milwaukee.

Through their love and care for each other, the two brothers

enabled each other to survive war and to build a new life in

America.

Rabbi Baruch is married to Josette. They are the parents of

Yakov (married to Sarah), Rafi and Amir and the doting new

grandparents of Ilana Adi.