Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I rise today on a subject that is very timely and important, but before I go into that, I thank my colleagues, the Congresswomen from Maryland and Ohio, for their speaking truth about healthcare and what the negligence of this body is in not bringing up a bill for us to have to extend the subsidies. It is taking a toll on our families. It is really immoral, in my view.

However, I rise today in response to the unjust guilty verdict handed down by China against Jimmy Lai. Jimmy Lai is a publisher and a prisoner of conscience convicted not for committing a crime but for exercising the fundamental freedoms of speech and press.

His work at Apple Daily gave voice to the people of Hong Kong and held power to account. For that, he has been

targeted, silenced, and now formally condemned by a system designed to crush dissent.

This guilty verdict sends a chilling message that truth is on trial in Hong Kong. It shreds the promises of autonomy and rule of law and exposes the reality of Beijing's crackdown on democracy.

His son, Sebastien, and his daughter, Claire, have lobbied for his freedom.

The United States must speak with moral clarity. We must condemn this verdict. We must demand his immediate release.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today with deep concern at the President's outrageous and shameful pardon of Juan Orlando Hernandez, a man an American jury convicted of trafficking tons of cocaine into the United States and of corrupting his own government in the process.

I saw this firsthand when I brought a bipartisan delegation to Honduras when he was President. We refused to meet with him because he is/was a thug.

This is not a minor case. This is not a close call. This was a decisive conviction for crimes that have devastated American families and fueled violence and instability abroad. Yet, President Trump chose to use one of the most powerful powers of the Presidency to wipe it all out.

This is so hypocritical as he is bombing small boats that he describes as full of drugs coming to the United States. Perhaps they are, and that is a different thing. However, if he is doing that, why would he pardon a thug?

Hernandez once boasted at a meeting of narcotraffickers that ``together they were going to shove the drugs right up the noses of the gringos.'' What message does pardoning this criminal send to parents who have lost children to narcotics, to law enforcement officers risking everything to stop the flow of deadly drugs?

This disgraceful pardon should be met with bipartisan condemnation as an affront to our values, our safety, our rule of law, and our democracy.

Those who do not join in that condemnation are either pro-crime or do not care. It is another reminder the American people must be vigilant.

Mr. Speaker, I move that the House do now adjourn.

The motion was agreed to; accordingly (at 3 o'clock and 51 minutes p.m.), under its previous order, the House adjourned until tomorrow, Wednesday, December 3, 2025, at 10 a.m. for morning-hour debate.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor a visionary, steadfast, and deeply respected leader and an indispensable participant in advancing our mission for the people, my longtime chief of staff, Terri McCullough.

Terri is stepping down this month to spend more time with her family, her teenagers.

Terri's service has been defined by her wisdom, by her warmth, and by her unwavering belief in the power of public service to improve private lives.

From her beginnings as an intern in my San Francisco district office nearly 30 years ago to her outstanding leadership as chief of staff in the Speaker's Office, Terri has embodied the very best of her core values: integrity, excellence, and compassion.

Terri made history as the first woman to serve as a chief of staff in the Speaker's Office, a testament not only to her extraordinary capabilities, but to her trailblazing example for women across this institution and the Nation.

Her leadership helped guide our work through times of enormous challenge and change, from strengthening our institution to delivering historic progress for working families.

Her judgment, strategic insight, and care for every member of our office, our Caucus, and our Congress have been essential to our success.

While we will miss her daily leadership, we wish her every happiness in the next chapter of her life. We look forward to continuing our collaboration, friendship, and shared mission in new ways.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Terri McCullough for everything.

Mr. Speaker, and a grandmother.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding, Madam Chair once and the future chair of the Committee on Appropriations. I thank her for her leadership and her kind words.

I take heed, Mr. Speaker, of your comment to address my remarks to you and not to your colleagues, so I can say to you and perhaps you can tell them: Either they don't know what they are talking about, or they don't care about meeting the needs of the American people.

Did any one of them vote to eliminate a need for preexisting conditions in healthcare? Not one of them.

Did any one of them vote to say to children that, until they are 26 years old, they have access to your policy? Not one of them.

Did any of them vote to eliminate being a woman as being a preexisting medical condition? Not one of them.

The list goes on and on.

Did any one of them vote for the Affordable Care Act, which, Mr. Speaker, you can tell them was paid for? It was paid for. Later, when we decided that we could extend the tax credits further so that more people could have more access to care, did anyone vote for that? No.

Mr. Speaker, all they have done is try to eliminate access to healthcare in our country. The public is catching on to them.

You might tell them: If a woman is born with a child who has a heart condition, she is out of luck with what they are proposing.

If a father gets a stroke, forget about it.

If you have a sibling with a disability, they don't care.

If your wife has breast cancer, you have big bills to pay because they want to take away healthcare, whether it is Medicaid to tens of millions of people, half a trillion dollars for Medicare for seniors and people with disabilities, and millions of dollars added to the cost for families to access the Affordable Care Act.

The list goes on and on. Either they don't know, or they don't care.

I will say one more thing. As a grandmother and mother, how about the President of the United States having a Halloween party on Halloween night and saying to the Supreme Court: Please don't make me feed the children or the poor people in our country.

Mr. Speaker, going to the Supreme Court for that means that ``cruelty'' has not even come close to the word that is needed for that kind of behavior. This is the worst President for children that America has ever seen.

Mr. Speaker, the horrific murder of Charlie Kirk was reprehensible. Members of Congress pray for Charlie's wife, Erika, their two young children, and all who loved him during their time of mourning and grief. We also extend our prayers to all who were present on the Utah Valley University campus at the time of this tragedy, who will carry the trauma of that day with them forever.

In recent years, a disturbing and unacceptable pattern has emerged: individuals being targeted for their role in public life or for their association with political discourse. Violence of this nature is not an attack on one person alone--it is an assault on democracy itself, meant to silence debate, sow fear, and tear at the fabric of our civil society.

We remember the assassination attempt on Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, which left her critically injured and six innocent lives lost. We remember the shooting at a Congressional baseball game practice, which seriously wounded Congressman Steve Scalise and injured five others. We recall the chilling plot to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer. We will not forget the storming of the United States Capitol on January 6th, which resulted in the deaths of five law enforcement officers and shook the very foundations of our democracy.

My own family still lives with the trauma of a near-deadly attack on my husband, Paul, in our home by an individual seeking to kidnap me--an act of violence that underscored in the most personal way the escalating threats that public officials and their loved ones endure.

We have also seen assassination attempts on the life of President Donald Trump; the arson targeting Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro's residence and family; the heartbreaking assassination of Minnesota House Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband, and the attempted assassination of State Senator John Hoffman and his wife. And now, we are horrified by the murder of Charlie Kirk, targeted while exercising his right to speak freely on a college campus.

All of these incidents must be denounced unequivocally and without qualification. Violence has no place in our political process, in our communities, or in our country. At the same time, we have a solemn responsibility to act. Congress must work with state and local leaders, law enforcement, and communities to ensure the security of Members, staff, and constituents alike--so that all Americans may fully participate in civic life without fear. That also means we must address the epidemic of gun violence in our country to keep our children and their families safe.

Let us be clear: political differences must be resolved at the ballot box and through dialogue, never through the barrel of a gun or the threat of violence. The strength of our democracy lies not in unanimity, but in the peaceful contest of ideas. Together, we must recommit to protecting that principle and the American

people, to lowering the temperature of political rhetoric, and to honoring the dignity and humanity of every person engaged in public service.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to join the leader in gratitude to Bob Fischer for decades of service to the Congress, many of them decades I was Speaker or leader. I know firsthand how indebted we are to him.

I join the distinguished leader in saluting Bob's family and thanking them, as he did, for sharing Bob with us.

As all of our staff who are here know, we never know when it is going to be a late night or an additional Saturday or whatever day. We thank them so much for sharing him.

Mr. Speaker, today, we celebrate and thank Bob Fischer for his extraordinary service to the House of Representatives, especially the House Democratic Cloakroom, where he has been a trusted presence for decades. My colleagues know that.

Bob's journey began with a leap of faith. After a spur-of-the-moment decision over lunch in 1987, he followed in the footsteps of his hometown mentor, Doorkeeper Jim Malloy. That is a legendary name here for those of us who have been here a long time.

Bob found his way to Washington. It was supposed to be a short stay. Over time, Washington became home, and Bob became a fixture on Capitol Hill.

Bob joined the Cloakroom staff in 1993. Through consistency, commitment, and professionalism, he earned the confidence of Members, staff, and colleagues.

In the years since, he has been a trusted adviser, problem-solver, and calm presence during intense moments. He has been a resource for countless Members who rely on him. He was a valued part of my leadership team and now the distinguished leader's, soon-to-be Speaker's, leadership team, as well.

Bob's work in the Cloakroom has gone far beyond logistical support. He

built relationships. He built trust. He built continuity in an institution that is ever changing. As former Buffalo Representative Brian Higgins, who preceded Tim Kennedy, has said, he became the go-to guy.

Most importantly, as his colleagues know well, Bob did it all with grace, professionalism, and good humor, whether he was explaining floor procedures, helping Members navigate the often complex legislative day, or flipping on the TV to the Buffalo Sabres games.

Mr. Speaker, Bob's departure now is bittersweet for us. We are sad to see him go, but we are deeply grateful for what he contributed and for the legacy he leaves behind. Bob has always sustained not just the function of the House but the spirit of service that undergirds it.

As we honor Bob, let that be a message to all the staff who serve us that we appreciate what they do for the American people and for our democracy. We thank them all.

Bob has made the Cloakroom in this House a better place. He has done it quietly, responsibly, and without fanfare. That kind of service is often invisible, but it is indispensable. Bob has strengthened the very fabric of the House.

Today, as we wish him well, we honor not only his work but the spirit of loyalty and friendship he brought here.

Before I end by congratulating Bob, I acknowledge Congressman Tim Kennedy for what he did in honor of Bob Fischer's name. He had Densmore Street in Buffalo, New York, named ``Bob Fischer Way.''

Mr. Speaker, we congratulate Bob. We thank him. We wish him the very best in whatever comes next. We want him to know he will be very missed. I ask him to please not be a stranger to us.

Let us all be grateful for the legacy and the leadership of Bob Fischer.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to express condolences and gratitude to the family of John Burton for sharing him and his leadership with the Nation. I join with my colleagues--Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Congressman Mike Thompson, Congresswoman Doris Matsui, and Congressman Mark DeSaulnier--and so many others in expressing our appreciation to him.

Mr. Speaker, let me tell you about him. Working families have lost one of

the most outspoken, ferocious, and unyielding champions our Nation has ever seen. John Burton was a towering and progressive warrior who for half a century never pulled a punch in his dogged fight for a fair future for our children.

Paul and I are heartbroken to hear of his passing, as he was my longtime mentor, close confidant, and dear friend. All who knew John knew that behind his sometimes profanity-laden language was a profound progressive voice for how to make real the promise of America.

As I wrote in the forward to his memoir in his book, ``I Yell Because I Care,'' John yelled a lot because he cared a lot, especially about our most vulnerable neighbors.

He dreamed of a city without homelessness or hunger and a society dedicated to full equality, no matter the person or who they love. He also dreamed of an economy where every working family could succeed and a world at peace where every child could reach his or her fulfillment.

Guided by a big heart and aided by a brilliant, strategic mind, John was boundlessly effective in every arena in which he served, whether in the United States Army as a patriotic American; bringing the concerns of Californians to Congress; as a member of the California State Assembly; as a member and the president pro tempore of the California Senate, the Democratic leader of the Senate; or twice serving as the chair of the California Democratic Party.

He cultivated his friendships in politics, music, community, and sports, nurturing deep decades of long relationships and always engaging new people.

Personally, I will always be grateful to John for managing my very first campaign for Congress in 1987 to fill the seat that belonged first to his brother, Phillip, and then to his sister-in-law, Sala.

Someone just sent this to me. When we were in the Speaker's private office right before I was sworn in, John had felt overwhelmed and just left. Speaker Wright wouldn't start the ceremony without him because whether it was for Congress or the Assembly or the State Senate, the people who served with John knew the power of his legacy even more than he sometimes realized.

When I came to Congress, I told them: Sala sent me. I came here to fight against HIV and AIDS. Sala did send me, but it was John who helped me get here.

My campaign promise was: A Voice That Will Be Heard.

I am sure everyone can just imagine how he savored that when I became Speaker of the House. Enough about me. Let me get back to John.

For more than three decades in Congress, I was blessed to have John as a source of wise counsel, sound judgment, and brash humor. He always served as a constant reinvigoration of my inspiration to carry on the fight for the people.

From the work of his foundation to end child homelessness, especially among homeless foster children, to a strengthened California Democratic Party fighting for our values to a new highway that was named for him to ensure future generations will know his name, it is fitting that the legacy of this legislative and legendary liberal lion will live on in our State in so many ways.

May it be a comfort to John's beloved daughter, Kimiko, or Kimi, as we call her; grandchildren Juanito and Mikala; and all of his loved ones that our State and, indeed, the entire Nation join his family in mourning during this sad time.

We all want John to rest in peace.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of one of the bedrock principles of our economy: the independence of the Federal Reserve Board.

For more than a century, the Federal Reserve has served as a cornerstone of the economic system of our country, tasked with safeguarding price stability, maximizing employment, and preserving the health of our economy, independent from political pressure, insulated from partisanship, and rooted in data and discipline.

When I first came to Congress, Mr. Speaker, I was a member of what was then called the Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, now the Financial Services Committee. At that committee, as it is today under the new name, we heard from the Chair of the Fed on the specific amount of time required by Congress on two subjects. According to the Humphrey-Hawkins law, they would report to us on inflation and employment/unemployment, and that was part of the purview in their communication with Congress that was required on a regular basis.

I heard one of the Chairs of the Fed say unemployment is dangerously low. It scared me to death. How could it be? He was reporting as to its impact on inflation. That was when I was a new Member.

When I was Speaker, our Members said frequently: Why don't we have the Fed be more accountable to us?

I said: It has to be independent. They have their own funding. They don't have to depend on us for that because their independence is essential.

Any of us who had economics in college or beyond knows that independence of the Fed is essential to the respect that our country commands in terms of our own economy throughout the world. The Chairman of the Fed is the Chair of the central bank and serves as the Chair of the central banks globally. It can't be a party hack. It can't be somebody who is there because the President wants to create interest rates. That is not what the President's job is, to create interest rates. It is the Federal Reserve Board that does that. It is really important.

I come to you on this day to say this because of the rumors that we hear of the flirtation with making the Fed just a handmaiden of the Presidency. It would be wrong to do. It would be wrong to do, and we would be viewed disrespectfully if we were ever to go down that path.

Now, this comes at a time when we are observing the 15th anniversary of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. As some of us here know who served with Barney Frank, he was the chair of the then Financial Services Committee and a master of his agenda there. Senator Dodd from Connecticut was on the Senate side with that.

It was necessary, Mr. Speaker, because of what was happening in the financial community. I mean, it was awful. It was horrible. We all know that in September of 2008, we were told that our financial system was melting down. It was doing so because of--well, I have written about it in my book, and I won't go through the whole thing right now--what was happening terribly in the financial system by the banks and financial institutions.

What happened? Millions of people lost money, trillions of dollars from the wealth of the country. Millions of people losing their jobs, so many losing their homes, losing their savings, and the rest. Therefore, this bill was necessary.

Of course, after the bill was passed and to this day, still the banks and other financial institutions try to undermine it and weaken it. The Volcker Rule, named for a former Chair of the Fed, was a provision in Dodd-Frank relating to the security of our economic system.

These notions that they are putting forth of making the Fed Chair a party hack is just so very wrong. I will just say this, again: In school you probably learned of fiscal policy, and that is what the Congress of the United States does. We create the budget of the United States. Fiscal policy is here, and monetary policy is at the Fed, establishing the rates in terms of relating to inflation.

Let's rid ourselves, disabuse ourselves of notions. Instead, we need serious ideas about how to make our economy work for the American people.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding and for his leadership. We are so proud of him.

Now, tonight is a dangerous night for our country. I am not even talking about the defense bill and whether we agree or disagree on that. I am talking about what is happening in this Rescissions Act.

Don't take it from me. Just take it from Navy Admiral William McRaven, who was a Navy SEAL and a 4-star admiral. He warned that cutting State Department USAID will put every American at risk.

This is the quote: ``This is no time to weaken any element of America's power. The dismissal of highly trained diplomats at the State Department and the dismantling of USAID will jeopardize national security and make the military's job much more difficult. Our national security has never depended on military strength alone; rather, it relies on collaboration with a strong Foreign Service and diplomatic corps,'' and I am adding with our USAID.

In this bill, over $8 billion is taken away from what we do to alleviate poverty in the world, to lessen things like HIV and AIDS and other diseases, which have an impact on global health, by stopping the funding for the World Health Organization.

I gave praise to President Bush when he put forth PEPFAR. We worked closely with him to fund it as appropriators. There were 25 million people's lives saved, but we are saying the alleviation of poverty and the eradication of disease is no longer the point. They did this in the 1990s, too, when they took control of the House. Do you know what they did? They opened the door for China and Russia to go into these countries, have geopolitical victories funded by our money that they made in trade against us, speaking of China, and then, and then us walking

out the door. This is absolutely a shame, an absolute shame.

Mr. Speaker, I urge everyone to vote ``no'' on this and understand what this is.

Mr. Speaker, the Supreme Court's ridiculous decision this week to allow the President to proceed with mass layoffs at the Department of Education is a grave blow to the rule of law and defies congressional authority.

Justice Sotomayor's dissent warns that the Court is enabling the executive branch to undermine Congress' power of the purse, and she is absolutely right.

Perhaps the Republicans in the House and in the Senate and the White House do not understand that nothing brings more money to the U.S. Treasury than the education of the American people, early childhood education, K-12, higher education, post grad, and lifetime learning for our workers. They are cutting education to give tax breaks to the richest people at the expense of America's future, the education of the American people.

The Court's disregard for the authority of the legislative branch empowers executive overreach at the expense of accountability and democracy. My colleagues should take pride in being a Member of the House, support this institution and our constitutional right of the power of the purse.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Virginia for calling us together on this anniversary week of losing John Lewis. Many of us served with him in this body. I served with him for 30 years, my brother. He challenged us each day to do our very best for the American people by his words and by his example.

As the distinguished former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, we marched with him in Atlanta. We marched with him in Selma again and again. We marched in Washington. We followed his lead wherever he took us to make this statement.

As a distinguished chair of the Caucus, Congresswoman Clarke of New York mentioned earlier voter suppression and how John was here to fight it. I will go into that in a moment. First, I want to quote John Lewis: ``In my life I have done all I can to demonstrate the way of peace, the way of love and nonviolence, is the more excellent way.''

``Now it is your turn,'' he said, ``to let freedom ring.''

Mr. Speaker, John Lewis' lasting legacy represents both the progress of our Nation and the promise of what our Nation can become. He believed in a better tomorrow and a more perfect Union, one country and one destiny. He believed in all of us. He had a deep faith in the goodness of people, and he believed that everyone was worthy of respect.

Again, I was honored to serve with him for more than 30 years, and I learned from him all that time. I saw in this Congress how he taught us through words and actions what true moral leadership looks like.

From time to time, when he rose to speak, he reminded us of our duty to the American people, to lift up our voices and to guide them to a future where freedom and justice are not just ideals but guarantees.

As the distinguished chair of the Caucus and the former chair, Mr. Steven Horsford, as well as Congresswoman Beatty, mentioned, he was there. He said that the right to vote was so central to our freedom. He wrote the first 300 pages of the For the People Act, which was to end voter suppression.

We all know of his leadership, as we see in the title of the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which is still not there.

Today, as we witness attacks on civil rights, democracy, diversity, and even people's basic necessities, many Americans are looking for hope.

In these moments, let us be reminded of John's spirit and honor him not just with words but with deeds. It is on us to rise to the moment and to get in good trouble for the children. Let freedom ring.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern) for his leadership.

Mr. Speaker, the gentleman just ended by asking us to vote for the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. If beauty is in the eye of the beholder, the GOP has a very blurred vision of what America is about.

Is it beautiful to cut off food from seniors and children? Is it beautiful to cut off 17 million people from healthcare? Is it beautiful to do this to give tax cuts to billionaires in our country? Is it beautiful to take money from education and the rest? The list goes on and on.

Nearly 60 years ago, Dr. King said: ``Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health is the most shocking and the most inhuman because it often results in physical death.''

We come to this floor with the moral force of Dr. King's words in our hearts. Let us not with this bill turn the American Dream he talked about into a nightmare for America's seniors, the disabled, and our children. Let us vote ``no'' on this shameful bill and throw a punch for the children.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to amend the rule to make in order the amendment at the desk that protects against any cuts to Medicaid and SNAP.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding and for his exceptional leadership, recognizing that the budget should be the statement of values of our country and how we allocate our resources reflecting those values.

I asked to speak because I hear Members on the other side talking about spending on the part of the Democrats, spending for education, healthcare, food, and all the needs for our children.

I want to remind all of them--speaking to you, Mr. Speaker--that tax cuts are expenditures. They are the biggest spending in this bill, to the tune of $5 trillion added to the national debt to give tax cuts to the wealthiest people in the country at the expense of feeding our children, healthcare for our people, and the education of our children.

Nothing brings more money to the Treasury than the education of the American people from early childhood through lifetime learning and every phase of it in between.

You should be ashamed of yourselves to mock spending on education. The best dollars we spend are on educating the American people and the investments in scientific research. The Biblical power to cure that science provides for us is cut in this bill to spend $5 trillion for the wealthiest people in America.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the signing of the United Nations Charter and the establishment of one of the world's greatest organizations for peace and the advancement of humanity.

As the Representative from San Francisco, this anniversary holds particular pride for the people of my city and for me. It was in San Francisco that we played host to the grand conference of delegates that wrote the U.N. Charter.

It was in the San Francisco War Memorial and Performing Arts Center on June 26, 1947, that the charter was signed. On that day, President Harry S. Truman came to the plenary session to offer his congratulations and his hopes for the future of a new United Nations.

He said: ``You have created a great instrument for peace and security and human progress in the world.'' President Truman said that, and he said: ``The world must use it now.''

The world must use it now. It was true then. It is true now.

Eight decades later, 193 member states have ratified the charter. It was 50 that day. Then Poland joined, which made it 51. Mr. Speaker, 193 members have ratified the charter.

The world's greatest leaders and thinkers have been among the United Nation's representatives. In 1946, United Nations General Assembly delegate and former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt helped draft the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which builds on Franklin Roosevelt's commitment to freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom from fear, and freedom from want for all people.

It has sought to advance human rights, human dignity, and opportunities for women and girls.

It has focused the world's attention on the plight of refugees and the urgency of the climate crisis with its sustainable development goals. It has been a bulwark for global peace and peacekeeping. In striving to fulfill the ideas and promises of its charter, the United Nations, its related agencies, programs, and staff have been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize 11 times.

In 1950, Ralph Bunche, an American, became the first person affiliated with the new organization to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. In his acceptance speech, he remarked: ``I am but one of many cogs in the United Nations, the greatest peace organization ever dedicated to the salvation of mankind's future on Earth.''

Under the leadership of Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, the United Nations remains a strong, resolute, and unwavering voice for peace in a world burdened by war. Today, the United Nations is convening a plenary meeting of the General Assembly in New York at the United Nations headquarters to ``revive the spirit of San Francisco and once again embrace the ideals that united humanity during its darkest hour, reaffirming our commitment to those values into the future.''

May we recapture the spirit of solidarity that existed in San Francisco 80 years ago as the United Nations continues to stand as a beacon of peace for the next 80 years and beyond.

Since I have a little more time, I want to tell a personal story.

When I was in high school, this would be about a dozen years after the founding of the United Nations, President, then-Senator, Kennedy came to Baltimore for a great event. It was the United Nations Association of Maryland dinner honoring someone named Jacob Blaustein, a civic leader in our community. My father was the mayor of Baltimore. My mother, knowing how much I admired the Kennedy family because we were taught by Irish-Catholic nuns from Boston, even in Baltimore, she said: I don't think I feel well going to the dinner tonight. Why don't you take my place?

Taking her place meant sitting next to Senator Kennedy for this dinner where he was giving the keynote address. There is a picture of that occasion.

The reason why I tell the story is because I was a member of the United Nations Youth in high school. I was a junior in high school at the time. There was a table of United Nations Youth, and they came over to me and said: Since you are a member of the United Nations Youth, we invite you to sit with us at our table.

Oh, my gosh, John F. Kennedy or United Nations Youth?

As conflicted as I was, how could I leave a vacant seat next to Senator Kennedy of Massachusetts who was soon to become President of the United States?

In any event, as I said at the beginning, this holds a special particular pride for me personally, as well as officially.