[Page S6068]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         NOMINATION OF DR. HENRY FOSTER, TO BE SURGEON GENERAL

  Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I say to Members of the Senate, the 
Senate Labor and Human Resources Committee has just a few minutes ago 
concluded its testimony from Dr. Foster, who is the nominee for Surgeon 
General. I wanted to take this opportunity to personally thank Senator 
Kassebaum, chair of that committee, for doing an outstanding job of 
giving Dr. Foster the opportunity to present himself to the Senate and 
to the United States of America. I felt that the hearing was very fair 
and very well conducted by both Senator Kassebaum and all the members 
of the committee.
  I also wanted to take this opportunity to commend Dr. Foster who, for 
the last several months, has been a person we have only known as a 
cardboard cutout; who, in the last day and a half has, I believe, 
really presented a very strong image to this country of a man who is 
caring, who is compassionate, and who can be a very forthright Surgeon 
General, to speak to the issues of the day that are of concern to so 
many of us; who will be a person, I believe, who will speak to women's 
health care issues in a way that needs to be done in this country 
today; who will speak to the issue of teen pregnancy and provide 
leadership; and a man who I think is a person who we can all look up to 
in terms of being a model public servant; who understands that we 
cannot just sit in our houses and close our blinds and shut our doors, 
but we need to personally get out and work with young kids today and be 
a personal role model for all of them.
  I think he has done an outstanding job of answering all the questions 
that have been brought to him, and I believe that both Dr. Foster and 
the committee deserve a debt of gratitude from the Senate.
  I look forward to having an expeditious vote on his nomination and to 
being allowed, as a U.S. Senator, to vote up or down on his nomination 
very soon on the floor of the Senate.
  I thank the Chair and yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a 
quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. ABRAHAM. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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