Stevens Gives Emotional Goodbye To Senate Colleagues

November 20, 2008 1:30 p.m. EST

Washington, D.C. (AHN) - Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) on Thursday spoke for the last time on the floor of the chamber he had worked in for the last four decades, saying he bore no ill-will to any of his colleagues and expressing hope that the day would come when he can "remove the cloud that surrounds" him.

"My mission in life is not completed," Stevens said in his farewell speech. "I believe god will give me more opportunities to be of service to Alaska and to our nation. And I look forward with glad heart and with confidence in his justice and mercy."

"I don't have rear-view mirror, i can only look forward. And I still see the day when I can remove the cloud that currently surrounds me," he added.

Holding back his emotions and asking to be "excused" at one point if he "puddle[s] up a little bit," Stevens thanked his family and colleagues and said he "treasured every moment" he's spent representing his state. He spoke about how he was elected to the Senate in 1968, "when "poverty and illness reigned supreme" in Alaska, and his role in the transformation of the Last Frontier into "a great state."

"I came to the senate when Alaska had been a state for less than a decade," the 85-year old senator said. "We were then more of an impoverished territory than a full-fledged state." Now, Alaska is "an essential contributor to our nation's energy security and national defense... Working to help Alaska achieve its full potential has been and will continue to be my life's work."

Stevens said he had in his forty years of service in the Senate "tried everyday to live up" to his motto, which was "to hell with politics, just do what's right for Alaska." He thanked all his colleagues in Congress, in particular Rep. Don Young (R-AK) for his "counsel," Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), whom he called "a true friend," and Sen. Dan Inouye (D-HI), his "brother."

Before yielding the floor one last time to a standing ovation from colleagues, Stevens, the longest-serving Republican senator in U.S. history, said he prays for his "successor's success."

The Senate race was called for Anchorage Democratic Mayor Mark Begich Tuesday night after final absentee and questioned ballots were tallied. The same day, Stevens marked his 85th birthday, and avoided a vote by Senate Republicans on whether to expel him.

Stevens was found guilty eight days before election day of concealing $250,000 worth of gifts, including home improvements, from now-defunct oil services company VECO Corp. in his Senate financial disclosure forms from 1999-2006. He has maintained his innocence and plans to appeal his conviction.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), speaking immediately on the floor after Stevens, both praised the Alaskan Republican.

"For Ted Stevens public service has been more than a career, its really been his life's calling," Reid, visibly sad, said in his remarks, . "Events in the life of Senator Stevens in the past two years are deeply unfortunate. I wish nothing but the best for ted and family... In the senate he will always be remembered as a lion."

McConnell said in his brief address, "It's safe to safe without any fear of contradiction, no senator in the history of the us has ever done more for his state than Senator Ted Stevens. Alaska would not be what it is today but for him."