As this session of Congress draws to a close, so draws to a close also the storied career of a lion of the right, Henry Hyde of Illinois.
As the chairman of several major committees at the center of repeated national controversies, Henry Hyde, as members on both sides of the aisle know, has been a paragon of dignity, civility and commitment to principle, and I would add he has been a lion of the right to life, and this chamber will miss his roar.
I'll offer legislation today to name the Rayburn International Relations Committee room after this storied legislator, and I urge my colleagues to support this measure.
When I think of Henry Hyde's career, I of think 'Ulysses' by Alfred Lord Tennyson, who wrote:
Tho' much is taken, much abides; and tho'
We are not now that strength which in the old days
Moved earth and heaven; that which we are, we are;
One equal-temper of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.
Let us honor this rare leader, and may God bless the golden years of the gentleman from Illinois.