we met at the suggestion of his previous boss and mentor senator howard baker. either he suspected our paths might cross a result two serious young guys with lively social lives. this may shock you, mister president but i'm afraid young lamar alexander and young mitch mcconnell did not go crazy and paint the town red. i will take a 5 decade friendship any day. both of us headed back home to continue our careers. it was clear a bright future in elected office likely lay in store for him. lamar's reverence for public service started early. i believe he was 10 years old when his father, himself a longtime local official, took him to meet his hometown congressman, howard baker senior, the father of his future boss shook the boy's hand and handed him a dime. i think lamar was hooked. decades later when lamar announced his 1996 presidential run he was in his hometown of murrysville, beginning with a story about his mother. she had read where he described his upbringing as lower middle-class and she had taken umbrage at that. after all, he had a library card and music

on march 9, 1967, senator howard h. baker jr., the newly elected senator from tennessee, made his maiden address, his first speech on the floor of the united states senate. he spoke for too long.

on march 9, 1967, senator howard h. baker junior, the newly elected senator from tennessee, made his maiden address. st speeh on the floor of the united states senate. he spoke for too long. the republican leader of the senate, also baker's father in law, senator dirksen, walked over to congratulat h

to the senate, there was howard baker and then there was the rest of us. my friend for 18 years has been lamar alexander. and then there's been the rest of us. so i'm sorry. but you're leaving this body and those of us in it in the nation that exist to serve stronger and better because you are here. >> thank you mr. president. thirty-one, let me add my words

on march 9, 1967, senator howard h. baker jr., the newly elected senator from tennessee, made his maiden address, his first speech on the floor of the united states senate. he spoke for too long. the republican leader of the senate, also baker's father in law, senator dirksen, walked over to congratulate him and then said, howard, occasionally you might enjoy the luxury of an unexpressed thought, which is good advice for a farewell address as well. as senator baker's legislative assistant, i was also his speechwriter for that maiden address, or at least i thought i was. he developed a bad habit of not saying what i wrote for his speech, so i asked to see him and i said do we have a problem with our relationship? he said, no, we have a perfect relationship. you write what you want to write and i will say what i want to say. i learned a couple of of other things about saying what i want to say. one came from alex haley, the author of "roots" who heard me speak once and called me aside afterwards and said may i make a suggestion

the republican leader of the senate who was also baker's father in law, walked to congratulate him and said howard, occasionally you might enjoy the luxury of unexpressed thought. which is good advice for farewell address as well. senator baker's legislative assistant, i was -- also a speechwriter that made an address, or at least i thought i was. he developed a bad habit of not saying what i wrote for his speech. i asked to see him, do i have a problem with our relationship? write what you want to write and say what i want to say. i learned a couple other things about saying what i want to say. one came from alex haley, the author of roots, you heard him speak once and said may i make a suggestion? if when you begin a speech you would start by saying, let me tell you a story. and david broder who gave this advice to ruth marcus when she got this opinion for the washington post, one idea per column. so here is a story about my one idea for this speech. in august of 1968 senator baker was in the republican leader's office where senator mcconnell is today. he overheard this conversation. senator dir

two, howard baker, whose campaign i volunteered for in 1966.bout being so much an eloquent listener. i heard his father-in-law, after hisrksen, say long speech on the senate floor, howard, occasionally you might enjoy the luxury of an unexpressed thought. that is good advice. and third, bryce harlow, who single-handedly gave lobbying a good name. he was president eisenhower's favorite staff member, in charge of congressional relations, president nixon's first appointee, and i was lucky to be his executive assistant, listening to him take phone calls from congressmen and senators and watching how he did it and how they reacted. bryce harlow gave me a phd in government and politics, besides howard baker. greta: given your last example, how did he impact you? i know you got to see him up close firsthand, but what advice did he give you? senator alexander: bryce harlow? number one was go home. in 1970. he always thought about going back home to oklahoma where he was from, and kept getting lured back to washington. another was just how he conducted

the hard marble floors, elaborate courtesies, barry black's prayers, scratching my name besides howard baker and fred thompson's name in this desk drawer. i made a lot of friendships in the senate. my best friend began at a softball game between senator john tower's staff of texas and senator baker's staff in 1967 when a 21-year-old smith college graduate named honey slid into first base wearing red shorts. i was not only surprised, but captivated. and 18 months later we were married. and for 52 years she has been an unselfish and caring wife, mother, campaigner, advocate for parents and children, especially her own. in 1969, as the leader mention, senator baker said to me, you ought to get to know that smart, young legislative assistant for the new kentucky senator marlow cook. that smart, young legislative assistant was mitch mcconnell and it began a half-century of friendship. mario dee angelo first cut me hair in 197 when i came up for three months to work for senator baker when he was suddenly elected republican leader. some of my experiences in the senate haven't been so friendly, such

every senator coming in published eight years ago, how they operate, the majority leader, howard bakeris the minority leader and how they got things done for the american people and the authors meant the senate doesn't operate today, i was here for one of those years. senator leahy was here. it was more than when the book was published. he said america is adrift in turbulent and dangerous waters facing infamous challenges at home and abroad. we urgently need our once wanted political system to function at its best instead of at its worst. to be sure it is more difficult to be a senator today in the 1960s and 70s, the increasingly vitriolic political culture fueled by the 24 hour news cycle, the endless pressure to raise money, the proliferation of demanding organized interests and they take a toll. all those factors make it essential that our country has a senate of men and women who bring wisdom, judgment, experience and independence to their work along with an understanding that the senate must be able to take collective action in the national interests. please remember that as you g

two, howard baker, whose campaign i volunteered for in 1966. and he taught me so, so much about being an eloquent listener. i heard his father-in-law say to him after his too long maiden speech on the center floor, he said, howard, occasionally you might enjoy the luxury of an unexpressed thought. so, that is good advice. and then third, bryce harlow, who single-handedly gave lobbying a good name. he was eisenhower's favorite staff member, he was in charge of congressional relations. he was president nixon's first appointee. i was lucky enough to be his executive assistant, really aid, sitting there with him, listening to him take phone calls from congressmen and senators, and watching how he did it and how they reacted. me a phd in government and politics. >> in your last example, how did he impact you -- i mean, i know you got to see him up close firsthand, but what sort of advice did he give you? sen. alexander: well, one was go home, in 1970. he had always thought about going back to oklahoma, where he was from, and he kept getting lured ba

howard baker used to call anor eloquent listener, that the constituent on the phone might be right or even the staffer in the other office might be right. superior in courtesy to tennesseans fowhom we work. superior in insight. superior in resolving complex issues and wrapping the result up in a nice package with a ribbon tied around it, ready to passe and signed into law whenever the moment came that it could be passed, which would usually be surprise at an inconvenient time. superior in speaking and writing explain english in order to persuade at least half the people we're right. and superior in, woulding well together, something you're supposed to learn in kindergarten so we have a good time while we're working. unlike almost every other senate office at the sgestion of my chief of staff david cleary, we created a single team composed of personal office staff here and in washington, d.c., and the committee staff with did in charge of all of that. i original think thought that was a big mistake. in charge of all that.e could be but i was wrong about it because what it did was break

this is the same senate that once had howard baker, jack dent, morgan ruddman, dan coats, i could goin the list of people who wanted in to that senate who would not for a moment cave in to a person like trump. they had courage, they had the willingness to defend our institutions and not in any way contribute to undermining them by their silence, so it's disappointing. i had hoped that the senate, senators individually, would rise up and say, joe biden, you're the president-elect. until we see evidence otherwise, we have one senator saying, show me the evidence that you have that there's no evidence of fraud. which was quite stunning. and so it's easier for me to understand why the american people hold elected officials in such esteem today when they can look and see what's obvious, that all these states have had their balanlots counted, and so of them counted and recounted, and still the president can go around and say it's been stolen from me? mr. president, what's your evidence? he goes to court and they say, we don't see any. >> that's the thing, is it massive irregularities? no.

about how the two congresses during the administration and how they operated the majority leader, howard bakerhe minority leader and how they got things done for the american people and the authors i met that the senate does operate today in that fashion, i was here for one of those years, senator leahy was here during that time. his closing is even more important today than when the book was m published. he said america is adrift and turbulent dangerous waters facing the normans challenges at home and abroad, we urgently call our one political system to function at its best instead of at its worst. to be sure it's more difficult being a senator today than it was in the 1960s and the 1970s, increasingly political culture fueled by the 24 hour news cycle or the pressure to raise money, the proliferation of lobbyist and demanding more from organize interest are all known and theyer take control bt all of those factors make it essential that our country has a senate amending women who bring wisdom, judgment, experience and independence to their work, along with the understanding and to take colle

dirkson, howard baker, ronald reagan. can you imagine any of them calling their followers victims, any of them calling their country a third world country? and i guess my question is when do you get your party back? >> well, to the first one it would be unmanly. to the second it would be unseemly, and it may be gone for a long, long time. you know, when you look at the great stalwarts of the party, the men and women who, you know, laid down the bricks from its founding in the 1850s to the reagan era, there was a general consensus about things when it came to governing the nation, when it came to dealing with our allies and enemies, and when it came to how we saw ourselves. the fact the president has now basically made the claim that republicans have always made about liberals, that they're all about creating victims, and they're all about victimhoodness. donald trump has now embraced that and thrown his arms around it in a way that i think emasculates the republican party and certainly dumbs down the narrative not just ar

this is the same senate, that once had howard baker, warren ruddman, dan coats, i could go on.t of people once in that senate. who would not, for a moment, cave into president trump. they had courage. they had a willingness to defend our institutions and not, in any way, contribute to undermining them by their silence. and so, it's disappointing. i had hope that the senate -- senators, individually, would rise up and say, joe biden, you're the president-elect, until we see evidence otherwise. we have one senator saying show me the evidence that you have that there's no evidence of fraud. which -- which is quite stunning. and so, i -- it's easier for me to understand why the american people hold elected officials in such low esteem, today. when they -- when they could look and see what is obvious, that all of these states have had their ballots counted. and some of them, recounted and recounted. and still, the president is going around saying that it's been stolen from me. and so, the question is, mr. president, where is your evidence? and he goes to court. and the courts say we

the hard, marble floors, the elaborate courtesies, scratching my name besides howard baker and fred thompson's this desk drawer. i wake up, every day, thinking i might be able to do something good to help our country. and then, i go to bed most nights thinking that i have. i yield the floor. [ applause ] es, we started by making the cloud easier to manage. but we didn't stop there. we made a cloud flexible enough to adapt to any size business. no matter what it does, or how it changes. and we kept going. so you only pay for what you use. because at dell technologies, we stop...at nothing. ♪ less sick days! cold coming on? zicam® is clinically proven to shorten colds! highly recommend it! zifans love zicam's unique zinc formula. it shortens colds! zicam zinc that cold! it s$$9.95? no way.? $9.95? that's impossible. hi, i'm jonathan, a manager here at colonial penn life insurance company, to tell you it is possible. if you're age 50 to 85, you can get life insurance with options starting at just $9.95 a month. okay, jonathan, i'm listening. tell me more. just $9.95 a month for colonial penn's nu

by four former majority leaders of the united states senate, senate bob dole, the late senator howard baker on the republican side, senator tom daschle and senator george mitchell on the democratic side. senator mitchell, of course, from the great state of maine, which you will hear shortly is a state, maine is very well represented here this morning. the country is indeed -- indeed the world, quite frankly, is experiencing a once in a lifetime pandemic, causing untold suffering and death. doctors, nurses, hospitals, health care providers are struggling to provide critical care under some very difficult conditions. but if there is any good, and there's not much, but if there's any good to come out of this virus it is that it has expedited the digital health transformation out there designed to help these providers deliver health care more quickly and efficiently. covid-19, i think, has put a laser focus on the use of telemedicine for diagnosing, delivery and treatment through digital health. now obviously telemedicine was a tool available prior to the on set of this terrible virus, but base

i came to the senate the unit howard baker left, but like lamar i had great appreciation for the contributions that staffers make to the work that we do around here. and i know many of his staffers are in the gallery today, as he leaves. also we lose tremendous amount of brainpower and talent that has contributed so significantly to the successes and accomplishments he's had as united states senator. the other is he and i both have served as chairman of the senate republican conference which is the messaging in communications office for republicans in the senator i succeeded lamar as chairman of the senate republican conference in 2012. i will tell you it was a very tough act to follow, but an inspiring one because he did such a tremendous job in leading our messaging in the conference. more has an ability to break down complex subjects and communicate them clearly. he can sum up an issue in one succinct phrase, and he mentioned earlier in his remarks the idea that there ought to be one column, one idea, when speech come one idea. he really didn't matter that. i can recall his summary when we

is willing to stand up and say that to donald trump, to take that trip to the white house, like howard baker with richard nixon in the '70s, and say that to him. and that is ultimately the sign of the rot that i was talking about when i started this, when i uncorked this rather lengthy soliloquy in answer to your question. >> we will spend many hours on this program examining the rot. but today there was a development that i think makes the folks who are worried even more worried. eli stokols, donald trump has a new ally for his assault on democracy in josh hawley, senator from missouri, today. just talk about this broader effort. you've got congressman gohmert suing mike pence, who in normal times are bosom buddies policy-wise, in terms of where they stand on the ideological spectrum. now you've got a senator -- here's "the washington post" describing the broader effort. trump allies launch desperate final efforts ahead of congressional confirmation of biden win. one lawsuit filed by a conservative group that supports trump targeted among others the electoral college, which does not exist a

bob byrd as the majority leader, howard baker as the minority leader, how they got things dob for -- done for the american people. and the author laments that the senate doesn't operate today nbltions fashion. i was here for one of those years. senator leahy was here. his closing is more today than it was when the book was published. america is adrift in turbulent and dangerous waters facing enormous challenges at home and abroad. we urgently need our once vaulted political system to function at its best instead of at its worst. to be sure, it's more difficult being a senator today than it was in the 1960's, in the 1970's. the increasingly vitriolic political culture fueled by the 24-hour news cycle, the endless pressure to raise money, the proliferation of lobbyists and organized interests are all known and they take a toll. but all of those factors make it essential that our country has a senate of men and women who bring wisdom, judgment, experience, and independence to their work along with an understanding that the senate must be able to take collective action in the national in

howard baker and the rest of us but my friend for 18 years has been lamar alexander and for the rest of us. i am sorry in a few more weeks. the rest of us left, you're leaving this body and those of us in it, the nation it exists to serve stronger and beer because you were here. >> democratic leader. >> thank you, mister president. first, let me add my words of fond farewell to my friend lamar alexander, the touching moments between the leader and the senior senator from tennessee moving to all of us. senator alexander and i have not always agreed, but what an amazing and capable legislator and true statesman he has been. he has been in the middle of things for much of his 18 years in the senate, not because he's some ideologue in his corner, because he is someone who has always been willing and insistent on reaching across the aisle, on hearing another senator's perspective, searching for common ground no matter how narrow it may be. he searches to do the right thing. i remember, the immigration bill. watched him wrestle with it and turn and i knew in my heart, to do the right thing

several years back pat i and honored bob dole and howard baker. pat had been asked to offer some remarks in bob's honor. apparently he decided a conventional toast would not cut it. the fancy evening would need shaking up. it happened that pat attended kennedy center honors that honored kneel diamond so when he took the podium with the famous tune sweet caroline stuck in his head, he wound out leading the audience in the new original song, sweet robert dole, bob, bob, bob. a little unusual? sure. but somehow it was the perfect contribution. it literally, mr. president, brought the house down. so, mr. president, we have here a senior senator from the state that expects greatness from its representatives. they gave america a young man from abilene who led the fight against tyranny in europe and became president. they gave us another son from russell who fought in that fight, came home, became majority leader, and ran for president. but let's add one more name, one more name to that distinguished company historians certainly will. he is the third kan