The publication is reproduced in full below:
TRIBUTE TO MEGAN MERCER
Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, now on one final matter, it is a small group of people who become familiar faces right here on the floor of the U.S. Senate. There are the Senators themselves, the nonpartisan professionals on the dais, the Capitol Police, and doorkeepers.
And then, Madam President, you have the men and women of each party's cloakroom. These small and tight-knit teams keep information flowing from the Senate floor to Members' offices and vice versa. They track legislation and amendments. They negotiate procedure across the aisle. And in a thousand other duties, they all add up to tense days, late nights, and a truly front-row seat to Congress.
For the last decade, one of those special few has been a daughter of Kentucky and an alumna of my own office: Megan Mercer.
Megan's Senate story started about 15 years ago, when she spent a summer as a page. Before long, this impressive young woman took an internship in my personal office, serving Kentucky; then an entry-level position in my leadership office here in the Capitol; and then Megan came here to the floor, to the Republican cloakroom.
A decade ago now, she took a seat behind their big desk. She answered phones. She answered questions. She learned the ropes. And over 10 years, she worked her way up to a key role of senior floor assistant.
Pick any important vote, and Megan has been right here in the well, at this table, tallying the count for our side. She has cleared legislation and consent requests. She has negotiated with Democrat counterparts on a daily basis.
Through it all, Megan's colleagues have come to admire her patience, level-headedness, and the institutional knowledge she has built up; and so have we Senators.
Fortunately, the work has not been thankless. I remember Megan was especially thrilled when Senator Lamar Alexander made sure that Megan's help with the Music Modernization Act yielded a signed ``thank you'' note from Dolly Parton--one of her all-time favorites.
So as we, unfortunately, prepare for Megan's upcoming departure from the Senate, I want to thank her for her fine public service. Megan has made her native Kentucky proud; she has made her parents Dr. Albert and Robin Mercer very proud; and she has made me proud as well.
I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will call the roll.
The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that I be permitted to speak as if in morning business.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so ordered.
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SOURCE: Congressional Record Vol. 167, No. 177
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