TRIBUTES

Senator Dick Durbin

Assistant Senate Majority Leader, Illinois

Today there is an empty chair in our Senate and an empty feeling in our hearts.

We all waited expectantly during Ted's struggle with cancer for the Senate doors to swing wide and that great Irish spirit to once again return.

His voice roared as he battled for the poor and the victims of injustice yet he had a smile that could light a room, a laugh that would draw a crowd and a heart always ready to share your sorrow. America was blessed to have the gift of Ted Kennedy and I was blessed to count him as a friend.