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Floor Speech

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Mr. SCHUMER. Just parenthetically, true to Trish's dedication to the job, she just sat down and whispered to me: We are not in a quorum call. That will probably be one of the very last of about 10,000--maybe 100,000--proper, right instructions she has given me over the years that she has been here--or given all of us. So I thought that was a moment to remember.

Anyway, today, I want to take a moment to honor one of the--the--the most beloved members of the Senate team, and that is Trish Engle, who will be leaving the Democratic cloakroom after 26 years of service.

That means you started about a year before me, 1998--1997. I came here in early 1999.

Trish is the proud mom of two boys, William and Garrison.

Wave to us, William. Who is older--William or Garrison? William. Very nice. Both are in their nice blue shirts.

They are here with us today, and I am sure they are looking--are you looking forward to spending more time with your mom? You are saying you are. I am not quite sure, at your age, that is exactly the case. But I am sure it is good quality time, knowing Trish.

Trish's mom, Melva Ongstad, is here in the Gallery.

Hello, Melva.

I am glad her family could be here, and I know how proud everyone is of Trish. We all are.

We all know that Trish is one of the most familiar faces in the Senate, but even then, it is easy to miss just how important, just how critical she has been to making the Senate agenda come to life. There are so many--and Trish is at the top of the list--of these unsung heroes who make the place work. No one notices them, no one praises them, but without them, this place would collapse.

Without Trish, the Democratic caucus wouldn't have accomplished a fraction--that is true--a fraction of all the amazing things we have gotten done over the years: drug reform, infrastructure, CARES Act, ACA--the list goes on and on. The list of bills she has had a hand in literally spans decades.

Every Senator on our side of the aisle, every single one, and many of those who have retired, can think of some accomplishment we have been proud of at one point or another. You can bet that Trish was the one who helped make that accomplishment happen on the floor because it is Trish who comes up with these brilliant parliamentary maneuvers to achieve our mission. She is always writing the scripts that speed up the voting process. She is something truly unique, a legislative artist who knows the inner workings of this body like few others in the country. There are probably maybe fewer than 10 people who know as much about the Senate as Trish of the whole--how many?--8 billion people on Earth, approximately 8 billion people on Earth. That is pretty good.

Over the years, she worked wonders serving--I met her when Daschle was leader. He loved her and depended on her. She worked her magic under Harry Reid. He loved her and depended on her.

Today, I want to express how grateful I am for all the good work you have done during my time as leader.

Like so many parents around here, Trish had to juggle a very demanding job where she is almost on call all the time while making sure her wonderful family got all they needed. If that wasn't challenging enough, during all this time, she is like Superwoman. She earned an M.B.A. and M.A. from Johns Hopkins while working on the Senate floor. And to do that from any college is amazing; to do it from Johns Hopkins--wow. No slouch are you, Trish. Doing it all. Doing it all.

But these are only some of the wonderful reasons we will miss her. We will miss her because of her wonderful sense of humor. We will miss her because few people put up with Senators so regularly and never--I don't think I ever saw you get mad. Anybody? Oh, you got mad at Amy once. OK, I understand.

We will miss her because she is a wonderful person to work with no matter the day, no matter the issue, no matter the outcome. She is the best.

On behalf of the Senate, Trish, of all of us, the whole big Senate family, we thank you for everything you have done for this institution and derivatively for our country. We love you. We will miss you. And you will always have a home here in this Chamber. We wish you and your wonderful family the very best.

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