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Tom Lantos 

LATE A REPRESENTATIVE FROM 

CALIFORNIA 

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MEMORIAL ADDRESSES 

AND OTHER TRIBUTES 

HON. TOM LANTOS ÷ z 1928–2008 

HON. TOM LANTOS ÷ z 1928–2008 

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Tom Lantos 


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U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

WASHINGTON : 2008

Memorial Addresses and 

Other Tributes 

HELD IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

AND SENATE 

OF THE UNITED STATES 

TOGETHER WITH A MEMORIAL SERVICE 

IN HONOR OF 

TOM LANTOS 

Late a Representative from California 

One Hundred Tenth Congress 

Second Session 

÷ 

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Compiled under the direction 

of the 

Joint Committee on Printing 

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[ iii ] 

CONTENTS 

Page 

Biography .................................................................................................. v 

Proceedings in the House of Representatives: 

Tributes by Representatives: 

Baca, Joe, of California .............................................................. 40 

Baird, Brian, of Washington ..................................................... 46 

Berman, Howard L., of California ............................................ 32, 58 

Biggert, Judy, of Illinois ............................................................ 17 

Blumenauer, Earl, of Oregon .................................................... 62 

Blunt, Roy, of Missouri .............................................................. 52 

Bonner, Jo, of Alabama ............................................................. 56 

Capps, Lois, of California .......................................................... 20 

Cardoza, Dennis A., of California ............................................. 39 

Carnahan, Russ, of Missouri ..................................................... 30, 60 

Carson, Andre ́, of Indiana ......................................................... 63 

Christensen, Donna M., of Virgin Islands ............................... 58 

Cohen, Steve, of Tennessee ....................................................... 30, 51 

Crowley, Joseph, of New York .................................................. 60 

Davis, Susan A., of California ................................................... 33 

DeGette, Diana, of Colorado ...................................................... 44 

Diaz-Balart, Lincoln, of Florida ................................................ 52, 58 

Dreier, David, of California ....................................................... 8, 65 

Engel, Eliot L., of New York ..................................................... 55, 59 

Eshoo, Anna G., of California ................................................... 16, 45 

Faleomavaega, Eni F.H., of American Samoa ......................... 31 

Fortenberry, Jeff, of Nebraska .................................................. 62 

Green, Al, of Texas ..................................................................... 35 

Harman, Jane, of California ...................................................... 39 

Hastings, Alcee L., of Florida .................................................... 56 

Hirono, Mazie K., of Hawaii ...................................................... 40 

Hodes, Paul W., of New Hampshire ......................................... 26 

Holt, Rush D., of New Jersey .................................................... 42 

Honda, Michael M., of California .............................................. 37 

Hoyer, Steny H., of Maryland ................................................... 10, 52 

Hunter, Duncan, of California .................................................. 18 

Jackson-Lee, Sheila, of Texas ............................................... 27, 28, 61 

Klein, Ron, of Florida ................................................................. 43 

LaHood, Ray, of Illinois ............................................................. 38 

Lee, Barbara, of California ........................................................ 21, 60 

Lewis, John, of Georgia ............................................................. 18 

Lowey, Nita M., of New York .................................................... 63 

Lungren, Daniel E., of California ............................................. 51 

Maloney, Carolyn B., of New York ........................................... 34 

McCollum, Betty, of Minnesota ................................................. 37, 62 

McCotter, Thaddeus G., of Michigan ........................................ 63 

McGovern, James P., of Massachusetts ................................... 53, 58 

Meek, Kendrick B., of Florida ................................................... 3 

Nadler, Jerrold, of New York .................................................... 13, 57 

Payne, Donald M., of New Jersey ............................................. 59 

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Page 

Proceedings in the House of Representatives:—Continued 

Tributes by Representatives—Continued 

Pelosi, Nancy, of California .................................................... 4, 61, 63 

Rahall, Nick J., II, of West Virginia ......................................... 47 

Rangel, Charles B., of New York .............................................. 42 

Ros-Lehtinen, Ileana, of Florida ............................................... 12, 59 

Sa ́nchez, Linda T., of California ............................................... 36 

Schakowsky, Janice D., of Illinois ............................................ 49 

Shays, Christopher, of Connecticut .......................................... 22 

Sherman, Brad, of California .................................................... 20 

Shuler, Heath, of North Carolina ............................................. 48 

Sires, Albio, of New Jersey ........................................................ 61 

Slaughter, Louise McIntosh, of New York ............................... 19 

Smith, Christopher H., of New Jersey ..................................... 14, 59 

Speier, Jackie, of California ...................................................... 65 

Stark, Fortney Pete, of California ............................................ 3, 7 

Tauscher, Ellen O., of California .............................................. 36, 62 

Thompson, Mike, of California .................................................. 55 

Van Hollen, Chris, of Maryland ................................................ 62 

Wasserman Schultz, Debbie, of Florida ................................... 25 

Watson, Diane E., of California ................................................ 24 

Waxman, Henry A., of California ............................................. 49 

Weller, Jerry, of Illinois ............................................................. 60 

Wilson, Joe, of South Carolina .................................................. 3, 41 

Wolf, Frank R., of Virginia ........................................................ 44 

Woolsey, Lynn C., of California ................................................ 47 

Proceedings in the Senate: 

Tributes by Senators: 

Boxer, Barbara, of California .................................................... 77 

Durbin, Richard, of Illinois ........................................................ 76 

Feinstein, Dianne, of California ................................................ 74 

Hatch, Orrin G., of Utah ........................................................... 71 

Kyl, Jon, of Arizona ................................................................... 74 

McConnell, Mitch, of Kentucky ................................................. 70 

Reid, Harry, of Nevada .............................................................. 67 

Memorial Service ...................................................................................... 79 

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BIOGRAPHY 

Congressman TOM LANTOS was the only Holocaust survivor ever to serve in the U.S. Congress. An American by 

choice, he was born in Budapest, Hungary, on February 1, 

1928. His family were teachers—one uncle was a professor at 

the University of Budapest and his grandmother was principal of a Gymnazium (high school). 

TOM vividly remembered the first newspaper he ever 

bought, which was when he was only 10 years old. On March 

13, 1938, while walking home from school, he was struck by 

the headline: ‘‘Hitler Marches into Austria!’’ He recalled that 

occasion, ‘‘I sensed that this historic moment would have a 

tremendous impact on the lives of Hungarian Jews, my family, and myself.’’ 

TOM was only 16 when Nazi Germany occupied Hungary 

in March 1944. With the German troops came Adolf Eichmann with orders to exterminate the Jewish population of 

Hungary. By the end of the summer most of the Jews outside of Budapest had been sent to Auschwitz, and round-up 

and the extermination of those in the capital city began in 

earnest. 

In Budapest, many Jewish young men were sent to forced 

labor camps. TOM was sent to Szob, a small village about 40 

miles north of Budapest, where his labor battalion was responsible for maintaining a key bridge on the BudapestVienna rail line. He would often recall with mixed feelings 

watching American bombers destroy the bridge—knowing 

that this was helping to end the Nazi war machine, but at 

the same time knowing that he and his fellow inmates would 

be forced to rebuild the bridge. 

On one occasion he managed to escape from the work 

camp, but he was caught and severely beaten. Conditions 

were so dire that he doubted that he would survive. Feeling 

he had nothing to lose, TOM attempted another escape, and 

this time succeeded in returning to Budapest. He sought refuge with an aunt, who lived in a Wallenberg safehouse—one 

of the apartment buildings Swedish diplomat Raoul 

Wallenberg had rented and nominally placed under Swedish 

diplomatic protection. 

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Because of his ‘‘Aryan’’ coloring (blond hair and blue eyes), 

TOM was able to move around Budapest in a military cadet’s 

uniform, delivering a loaf of bread or a bottle of medicine 

that could mean the difference between life and death for 

others in various safehouses. He knew that he was in constant danger of being exposed as a Jew. ‘‘But,’’ he stated, ‘‘I 

figured I probably would not survive, so I might as well be 

of some use.’’ 

Although TOM never had a personal meeting with 

Wallenberg, the Swedish businessman-turned-diplomat, the 

official was an inspiration to him—an example of what 

human conduct ought to be in such horrible times. After becoming a Congressman, the first legislation TOM LANTOS introduced was to make Wallenberg an honorary citizen of the 

United States, and he was in the forefront of efforts to determine his fate in the Soviet Union. This legislation became 

law, which made Wallenberg the second-ever honorary citizen, the first being Winston Churchill. 

For a month in December 1944 and January 1945 the Russians and Germans fought from house to house for control of 

Budapest. Bombs and artillery shells from both sides constantly pounded the city. Early one morning at 3 a.m., TOM

was liberated when a Soviet soldier burst into the safehouse. 

In mid-January, the German army withdrew and the Soviet 

Army occupied Budapest. TOM searched in vain for his mother and other members of his family, but he gradually came 

to the realization that they had perished. 

TOM managed sporadic contacts with members of his family and his childhood friend Annette Tillemann, who had 

gone into hiding with her mother shortly after the German 

occupation. TOM attempted to find out what happened to Annette. The last known address he had for her was the home 

of family friends in Switzerland. Unbeknownst to TOM, Annette and her mother had managed to escape to Switzerland 

as the Russian army reached Budapest. Although the Hungarian postal system was not functioning, TOM managed to 

send a letter to Annette’s friends in Switzerland with a 

friend who was leaving Hungary. When Annette received the 

letter, she stared at the envelope for a long time before opening it—she knew it meant that TOM had survived. 

Annette had no way of responding to TOM’s letter. She 

simply waited for another letter, but nothing arrived during 

the summer or fall of 1945. That winter, Annette could wait 

no longer. Clutching a parcel of food for her trip, she boarded 

an old bus for an exhausting 10-day journey back to BudaVerDate Aug 31 2005 11:07 Jul 02, 2008 Jkt 040700 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 C:\DOCS\LANTOS\LANTOS3.BST CRS1 PsN: SKAYNE
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pest. She made her way to her grandparents’ home and was 

devastated to learn that her father, grandparents, and all 

but one relative who remained in Budapest had been killed. 

Annette was able to get word to TOM that she was at her 

grandparents’ home in Budapest, and they were reunited 

again after well over a year’s separation. 

TOM began studies at the University of Budapest in fall 

1946. In summer 1947 he was awarded a Hillel Foundation 

scholarship to study in the United States. He arrived in New 

York City in August 1947 with no money and only a prized 

Hungarian salami which was promptly confiscated by U.S. 

Customs officials. 

TOM LANTOS earned his B.A. in 1949 and M.A. in 1950 in 

economics from the University of Washington in Seattle. In 

June 1950, he and Annette Tillemann were married in Los 

Angeles, CA. In fall 1950, TOM and Annette moved to the 

San Francisco Bay Area, and he began graduate study at the 

University of California, Berkeley. He received a Ph.D. in economics 3 years later. 

Prior to his service in Congress (1950–1980), TOM LANTOS

was a professor of economics at San Francisco State University. In addition to his academic activities, he was an international affairs analyst for public television and a consultant 

to a number of Bay Area businesses. He also served in senior 

advisory roles to Members of the U.S. Senate and was active 

in a number of Democratic campaigns. 

As a former professor and chairman of the Millbrae Board 

of Education, TOM was a consistent supporter of public education. 

TOM LANTOS was elected in 1980, narrowly defeating incumbent William ‘‘Bill’’ Royer. His election restored the historically Democratic district which had been lost in the 1978 

special election after the death of Congressman Leo Ryan. 

As a Member of the House of Representatives, TOM LANTOS worked diligently to address quality of life issues in Bay 

Area communities. He had a strong record on environment 

protection and fought for reform of our Nation’s energy policy. 

As a member of the House Committee on Oversight and 

Government Reform, TOM led a major investigation of waste, 

fraud, abuse, and mismanagement at the Department of 

Housing and Urban Development, and he was a leader in 

congressional oversight over Federal Government programs. 

TOM was the second most senior Democrat on the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, which has juVerDate Aug 31 2005 11:07 Jul 02, 2008 Jkt 040700 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 C:\DOCS\LANTOS\LANTOS3.BST CRS1 PsN: SKAYNE
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risdiction over the management, efficiency, and operation of 

Federal Government agencies. 

TOM LANTOS was a leading advocate of legislation to help 

our Nation’s working people. He consistently supported legislation to increase the minimum wage and to protect working 

men and women. 

Legislation he introduced includes the Young American 

Workers’ Bill of Rights to protect young people who work, to 

prohibit forced overtime hours for licensed health care employees, and to provide pension provisions for air traffic controllers on the same basis as pensions for Federal law enforcement officers and firefighters. 

As chairman of the Subcommittee on Employment and 

Housing (1986–1993), he focused attention on workplace 

safety, violation of child labor laws, labor-management relations, enforcement of Federal labor laws, and potentially serious shortfalls in the pension guaranty program. 

TOM LANTOS was a consistent advocate for effective government. He conducted major investigations into waste, 

fraud, abuse, favoritism, and mismanagement at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) during the 

1980s, which revealed that top officials abused their positions by funneling lucrative HUD contracts to favored developers with political connections at the expense of the poor 

whom programs were intended to help. The administration 

was compelled to appoint a special prosecutor to bring criminal cases against the abusers, which resulted in guilty findings in 16 cases. The respected journal, Congressional Quarterly (July 1, 1989), called the investigation ‘‘bipartisan, yet 

still relentless.’’ 

As ranking Democratic member of the International Relations Committee of the House of Representatives (2001– 

2006), he took the lead in a number of bipartisan efforts for 

American foreign policy. He introduced several bills, which 

were included in H.R. 1646, the International Relations Authorization legislation—the East Timor Transition to Independence Act (H.R. 675) and the Tibetan Policy Act (H.R. 

1779). His Russia Democracy Act (H.R. 2121), which became 

law, focuses on sharpening U.S. laws and programs to foster 

democratic development in Russia. In addition, he was the 

lead sponsor of the Afghan Freedom Support Act (H.R. 3994) 

to provide assistance for democratic reforms following the 

U.S. overthrow of the Taliban regime in late 2001 and early 

2002. An amendment to that legislation (approved in the 

House by a vote of 407 to 4) expressed concern about the seVerDate Aug 31 2005 11:07 Jul 02, 2008 Jkt 040700 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 C:\DOCS\LANTOS\LANTOS3.BST CRS1 PsN: SKAYNE
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[ ix ] 

curity situation in Afghanistan and required that the President report to the Congress on the administration’s strategy 

for meeting the security needs of Afghanistan. 

He led the fight in Congress for the United States to rejoin 

the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). His efforts resulted in the President’s 

announcement in September 2002 that the United States 

would rejoin this important international organization. 

He was appointed by the President to serve as a member 

of the U.S. delegation to the U.N. General Assembly (1995– 

1996). 

Following the fall of the Berlin Wall, he was a leader in 

developing policies to respond to the post-cold war changes 

in the international arena, in particular shaping U.S. policies 

and programs to encourage democratic and free market development in the republics of the former Soviet Union and 

the newly independent countries of Central Europe. 

As chairman of the Subcommittee on International Security, International Organizations and Human Rights (1993– 

1995), TOM LANTOS conducted 50 congressional hearings on 

U.N. activities, international arms control and nonproliferation policies, terrorism, international narcotics control and 

law enforcement efforts, and human rights issues. 

TOM LANTOS was founding cochairman of the bipartisan 

Congressional Human Rights Caucus, which focuses congressional attention on human rights violations around the 

world. The caucus membership includes 210 Members of 

Congress. He was a leading advocate for human rights in the 

Congress, calling attention to literally thousands of individual cases of torture, denial of rights, and official abuse. 

He was a spokesperson for the rights of persecuted racial, religious, and ethnic minorities. 

When he became chairman of the House Committee on 

Foreign Affairs, TOM used his position to advance a policy 

characterized by cooperation, engagement, and diplomacy. 

TOM was particularly focused on issues of human rights and 

advocated ceaselessly on behalf of oppressed peoples. TOM’s 

efforts were instrumental in guiding and improving American diplomacy throughout the world. 

TOM was a member of the U.S. congressional delegation to 

the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, cochairman of the U.S. 

congressional delegation for the Transatlantic Legislative 

Dialogue, a member of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council, 

and cochairman of the Congressional Task Force Against 

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[ x ] 

Anti-Semitism. He also founded the Congressional Friends of 

Animals Caucus. 

TOM’s experiences in the Holocaust and afterward were included in the Academy Award winning documentary ‘‘The 

Last Days’’ produced by Steven Spielberg’s Shoah Foundation. The film deals with the Holocaust in Hungary, and 

traces the lives of five survivors. TOM LANTOS is one of the 

five who is highlighted in the film. 

TOM and Annette Lantos were married for over 50 years. 

They are the parents of two daughters—Annette TillemannDick and Katrina Swett. Annette is married to Timber Dick, 

an independent businessman in Denver, CO, and they are 

the parents of 11 children. Katrina is married to Dick Swett, 

a former Member of Congress from New Hampshire and the 

former U.S. Ambassador to Denmark. They are the parents 

of seven children. 

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MEMORIAL ADDRESSES 

AND 

OTHER TRIBUTES 

FOR 

TOM LANTOS 

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Proceedings in the House of 

Representatives 

TUESDAY, February 12, 2008 

Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. . . . My deepest sympathies to Annette Lantos, the Lantos family, staff, and constituents on the death of Chairman TOM LANTOS. He lived 

to see Hungary, his birthplace, become a thriving free market democracy. 

Mr. MEEK of Florida. . . . Mr. Speaker, as we look at H. 

Res. 909 [commemorating Haitian soldiers], I want to give 

my sincere thanks to the Committee on Foreign Affairs for 

bringing this resolution to the floor, and especially shed light 

on Chairman LANTOS for his making sure that this resolution made it through the process. And he will be forever 

missed here in this body. And hopefully his memory will 

continue on, not only on the committee, but here in Congress. . . . 

Mr. STARK. Madam Speaker, as dean of the California 

delegation, it is my sad responsibility to make the formal announcement to the House of Representatives about yesterday’s passing of our good friend and colleague, TOM LANTOS

of California. 

I ask that we observe a moment of silence to honor TOM’s 

legacy of service to his constituents, the House of Representatives, and the people around the world for whom he sought 

human rights. He will be sorely missed. 

The SPEAKER. Members will please rise and observe a 

moment of silence in memory of our esteemed colleague, the 

Honorable TOM LANTOS. 

Mr. STARK. Madam Speaker, I offer a privileged resolution and ask for its immediate consideration. 

The Clerk read the resolution, as follows: 

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H. RES. 975 

Resolved, That the House has heard with profound sorrow of the death 

of the Honorable TOM LANTOS, a Representative from the State of California. 

Resolved, That a committee of such Members of the House as the Speaker 

may designate, together with such Members of the Senate as may be joined, 

be appointed to attend the funeral. 

Resolved, That the Sergeant-at-Arms of the House be authorized and directed to take such steps as may be necessary for carrying out the provisions of these resolutions and that the necessary expenses in connection 

therewith be paid out of applicable accounts of the House. 

Resolved, That the Clerk communicate these resolutions to the Senate and 

transmit a copy thereof to the family of the deceased. 

Resolved, That when the House adjourns today, it adjourn as a further 

mark of respect to the memory of the deceased. 

The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from California is recognized for 1 hour. 

Mr. STARK. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent 

that my distinguished colleague from California (Mr. Dreier) 

have half of my time to manage. 

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from California? 

There was no objection. 

Mr. STARK. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the 

Speaker, the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi). 

Ms. PELOSI. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for 

yielding. I thank him for the formal notification of the Congress that he presented earlier to the House of Representatives, and thank him for bringing us this opportunity to express our sadness over the passing of our colleague, TOM

LANTOS. 

Madam Speaker and my colleagues, yesterday morning 

when I received the very sad news of Chairman LANTOS’ 

passing, that call was followed very quickly by a call from 

the President of the United States expressing to me as 

Speaker, but through me to each and every one of you, his 

sadness over TOM’s passing and his words of praise for TOM

LANTOS’ leadership. I told the President how appreciative I 

knew we would all be of his kind words and that I would 

convey them to this House of Representatives. 

Madam Speaker, you know that the House, not only the 

House, the Congress, the country, has lost one of its most 

talented leaders, and the world, indeed the world, has lost 

one of its greatest champions for human rights with the 

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passing of Chairman TOM LANTOS. He was a statesman, he 

was a gentleman, and he will be deeply missed. 

As the only Holocaust survivor ever elected to Congress, 

TOM LANTOS devoted his public life to shining a bright light 

on the dark corners of oppression. From his earliest days in 

the House, when he founded with Congressman John Porter 

the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, to his final days as 

chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, he used his powerful voice to stir the consciousness of world leaders and the 

public alike. 

Because he had lost his mother and so much of his family 

in the Holocaust, his wife, Annette, his two daughters, Annette and Katrina, his grandchildren and great-grandchildren were the center of his universe. 

Madam Speaker, I told some of our colleagues earlier that 

TOM and Annette were a team in every way. Whether it was 

establishing the Human Rights Caucus or working together 

for the benefit of his district and our country, they were a 

team. And all who knew TOM knew how devoted he was to 

his family and to Annette, whom he adored. They worked as 

a team, bringing great intellect, experience, and compassion 

to their outstanding work in public service. 

Annette was alone after the Holocaust as well, and when 

they married, they had two daughters, Annette and Katrina, 

who produced this wonderful family of 18 grandchildren. 

Two daughters, 18 grandchildren. They said to their parents, 

you lost your families in the Holocaust. We are bringing to 

you a new family. And how proud TOM was for all of that. 

Having lived the worst evil known to mankind, TOM LANTOS translated his experience into a lifetime commitment to 

the fight against anti-Semitism, for Holocaust education, and 

commitment to the State of Israel. 

TOM LANTOS was not only a champion of human rights, he 

was an expert on foreign affairs and diplomacy and the security of our country. He had a rare combination of extraordinary knowledge, great wisdom, extraordinary skill and 

judgment, and a great moral compass. 

He rallied us to the cause of defending basic human freedom within the borders of the most powerful countries and 

in the most remote places in the world. He stood tall in the 

sometimes lonely fight for the people of China and Tibet. I 

was proud that we had the opportunity to work together, 

with the President of the United States in a bipartisan way, 

to honor the people of Tibet by presenting the Congressional 

Gold Medal to the Dalai Lama last year. TOM, along with 

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Congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen, were coauthors of that legislation. Thank you, Congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen. 

He fought to end the genocide in Darfur and recently 

helped enact legislation to crack down on the Sudanese regime. He worked to strengthen sanctions against the military junta in Burma and worked for the release of Aung San 

Suu Kyi. In just his first year as chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Congressman LANTOS also helped enact the 

9/11 Commission recommendations to better protect the 

American people. 

Throughout his nearly three decades in the House, TOM

LANTOS always used his experience and intellect to empower 

the powerless and give voice to the voiceless throughout the 

world. 

Here at home, TOM LANTOS championed working families. 

Working families had no better friend in the Congress of the 

United States than TOM LANTOS, and he was a strong leader 

in protecting our family for the future. 

He also authored key provisions of our landmark energy 

bill, which the President signed into law. Thanks to TOM

LANTOS, that law includes provisions that will help the 

United States assume a greater leadership role in the world 

to fight climate change. 

He will long be remembered for his efforts to expand and 

protect the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, which is 

one of the Nation’s most visited national parks and a treasure for Bay Area residents. I had the privilege of serving 

with TOM as we shared representation of the city of San 

Francisco, and it was one of the privileges of my service in 

Congress to work with him on behalf of the people of San 

Francisco. 

Congressman LANTOS was also well known for his strong 

support of infrastructure improvements, including the expansion of BART service and other mass transit solutions. 

Though his leadership was felt around the world, he always 

remained a fierce advocate for his constituents in the 12th 

Congressional District. 

TOM LANTOS called himself an American by choice. America is a stronger Nation, a more caring Nation, a Nation 

more true to its founding ideals, because TOM LANTOS chose 

to call this land his home. 

My thoughts and prayers are with Annette, dear Annette, 

their daughters Katrina and Annette, his 18 grandchildren, 

and his great-grandchildren. I hope it is a comfort to them 

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that so many people throughout the entire world mourn 

their loss and are praying for them at this sad time. 

Goodbye, TOM, my friend. It was an honor to call you colleague, a privilege to serve with you, and a joy to be your 

friend. 

Mr. STARK. Madam Speaker, TOM will be remembered as 

a passionate advocate for human rights around the world 

and a strong voice for better schools and a cleaner environment. The obituaries and my colleagues tonight will fill in 

many details and have much praise for the wonderful job 

that TOM did in his period here. I just tried to pick out a few 

things that he will be remembered for. 

As the Speaker mentioned, he worked to give a voice to the 

voiceless in Burma, Tibet, wherever oppression raised its 

ugly head. In Congress, as in life, he was a doer, a leader, 

a fighter. Two years ago, TOM was arrested in front of the 

Sudanese Embassy for protesting the genocide in Darfur. 

He swam every morning at 5:30 until recently. He was a 

man who enjoyed and lived life to its fullest. 

As has been mentioned, he is survived by a large and wonderful family he loved, and they loved him. Without saying, 

our sympathy goes to TOM’s wife and childhood sweetheart, 

Annette, their two daughters, Annette and Katrina, and 

their many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. 

To appreciate all that TOM accomplished, we ought to 

think a little bit about his life before joining us here in Congress. He grew up in Hungary and survived Nazi labor 

camps. He arrived in the United States in 1947 on an academic scholarship. And at Customs, you think it is a problem 

to take off your shoes now, at Customs he was greeted and 

they immediately confiscated his only possession, a Hungarian salami. So they were as thorough then as they are 

now. 

He married Annette in 1950, and he also received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in economics and then moved on 

to San Francisco. He received those at the University of 

Washington in Seattle. He moved to San Francisco and 

began a 30-year career teaching economics at San Francisco 

State. In 1953, he received a Ph.D. in economics from the 

University of California at Berkeley. 

TOM was elected in 1980. Three years later he cofounded 

the Congressional Human Rights Caucus. 

Last month he announced to us that he had been diagnosed with cancer and would not seek reelection. In that anVerDate Aug 31 2005 11:07 Jul 02, 2008 Jkt 040700 PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 C:\DOCS\LANTOS\LANTOS3.BST CRS1 PsN: SKAYNE
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[ 8 ] 

nouncement he said, ‘‘I will never be able to express fully my 

profoundly felt gratitude to this great country.’’ 

Similarly, this House and our country will never be able 

to fully express our gratitude for TOM’s decades of service. 

He will be missed by his colleagues, constituents, family, and 

the people whose basic human rights he fought for every 

day. 

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the balance of my time be controlled by the gentleman from California (Mr. Berman). 

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from California? 

There was no objection. 

Mr. DREIER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as 

I may consume. 

Madam Speaker, as is very evident, this is a sad day and 

evening for the House of Representatives, and, of course, the 

Lantos family, and for all of the American people and all 

who are lovers of freedom. 

‘‘TOM LANTOS devoted his life to shining a bright light on 

the dark corners of oppression.’’ That was a quote from 

Speaker Pelosi in her official statement in responding to the 

tragic news of TOM’s passing. 

I am going to quote Speaker Pelosi once again, Madam 

Speaker. ‘‘TOM LANTOS devoted his life to shining a bright 

light on the dark corners of oppression.’’ 

We have heard that TOM LANTOS is the lone survivor of 

the Holocaust to ever serve in the Congress of the United 

States. We know of his tremendous accomplishments. We 

know the fact that 58 years ago this coming June he and Annette were married. And we know that he had an absolutely 

wonderful family. 

His two daughters did provide those 18 grandchildren and 

2 great-grandchildren, and I have to say that I personally 

have had the opportunity to spend time with all of them. The 

reason is that I am one of Annette and TOM’s neighbors here 

on Capitol Hill, and we always knew when the Lantos household was filled over at Justice Court, because kids were running around all over that area, and it was such a wonderful 

thing. 

When I heard the Speaker say today what TOM’s daughters said to him, the fact that he lost his family in the Holocaust would lead them to provide him with a family that he 

no longer had, obviously they did. I have known of no parent 

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[ 9 ] 

or grandparent to be prouder of their children and grandchildren than Annette and TOM LANTOS have been of their 

wonderful family, and having heard Speaker Pelosi’s words, 

I now have an even greater understanding of the importance 

of the role that Annette and Katrina played in providing 

them with that family. 

I read this morning in the paper that just last week the 

Prime Minister of Hungary was scheduled to present TOM

with the highest honor that Hungary bestows on anyone; 

and, sadly, he was too ill to receive that honor. But we know 

that TOM regularly described himself as one who was born 

Hungarian, but was American by choice; and I think that 

underscores the extraordinary importance of immigration 

and the great importance of what it is that has made the 

United States of America as great as it is. 

I am the first Republican to stand up but I am going to 

be turning this over to the distinguished ranking member on 

the Committee on Foreign Affairs in just a few minutes, but 

as the first Republican to stand up, I have to say that one 

of the greatest things about TOM LANTOS is that he regularly 

transcended political party. He was known for the wonderful 

working relationship that he had with the former chairman 

of his committee who, as we all know, passed away sadly last 

year, our colleague Henry Hyde. 

And I regularly, as a member of the Rules Committee, had 

the opportunity to see Henry Hyde and TOM LANTOS come 

together, arm in arm, working together on behalf of a very 

positive foreign policy for the United States. Now don’t get 

me wrong, there were more than a few occasions, especially 

in the last couple of years, where there was disagreement between Henry Hyde and TOM LANTOS. But time and time 

again, both men demonstrated their extraordinary patriotism 

and their commitment to the greatness of the United States 

of America. 

On January 2, just last month, our friend TOM announced 

that he would not be running for reelection. Of course, he 

had gotten the news of his illness. And in that statement announcing his retirement, Madam Speaker, he said: 

It is only in the United States that a penniless survivor of the Holocaust 

and fighter in the anti-Nazi underground could have received an education, 

raised a family, and had the privilege of serving the last three decades of 

his life as a Member of the United States Congress. I will never be able to 

express fully my profoundly felt gratitude to this great country. 

Madam Speaker, I think like most of the people who are 

here in this Chamber at this moment, we were born here; 

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[ 10 ] 

and people who were born here can have a tendency to take 

the greatness of the United States of America for granted. 

But I will say that TOM LANTOS demonstrated fully, through 

every single aspect of his life, the profound appreciation that 

an immigrant has for something that many of us who are native born have a tendency to take for granted. I regularly 

fight against that, and seeing someone like TOM LANTOS has 

played a big role in inspiring me. I know there are other 

great immigrants who serve in this Congress and obviously 

in this country as well. I think that his life underscores that. 

As I look over and see our distinguished majority leader, 

Mr. Hoyer, I am reminded of the great work that he did on 

the Helsinki Commission and, as has been stated on the 

issues that Mr. Stark raised, environment and other issues. 

But when it came to fighting on behalf of human rights, in 

1983 Annette Lantos became the volunteer director of the 

Human Rights Caucus because of her extraordinary commitment to that cause. And, obviously, it was led by TOM

through these so many years. 

And I will just say that for me, personally, I was elected 

with TOM in November 1980, 28 years ago this coming November; and this is a professional loss, but obviously for so 

many of us, a very profound personal loss. I want to say to 

all of the family members how much I have appreciated the 

friendship. Our thoughts and prayers are with them. The 

world is a better place, the world clearly is a better place for 

the life of TOM LANTOS. 

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time, and ask 

unanimous consent that my colleague from Florida (Ms. RosLehtinen) be able to manage the balance of our time. 

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from California? 

There was no objection. 

Mr. BERMAN. Madam Speaker, I am pleased and honored 

to yield to our majority leader 1 minute. 

Mr. HOYER. I thank my friend for yielding. This is a sad 

day not only for this institution, for those of us who were 

TOM’s friends, clearly for his family, but it is a sad day for 

our country. TOM LANTOS had a backbone of steel and a 

heart of commitment, compassion, and courage. 

David Dreier just mentioned my service on the Helsinki 

Commission. As chairman of that body for the House, with 

my friend Chris Smith, we shared responsibility for focusing 

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pean theater and particularly in the Soviet Union, and we 

worked very hard at that. But no Member of this body has 

been a stronger voice, a more compelling voice for the rights 

of individuals, whatever their background, wherever they 

lived, and whatever the excuse was for acting against them 

or undermining their rights. When TOM spoke, especially on 

matters dealing with human rights, America’s role in the 

world, the importance of confronting and defeating dictatorial regimes, both the left and right, his words contained a 

moral clarity and intellectual gravity that was seldom 

matched. 

Those of us who had an opportunity to be with TOM when 

we met with people from around the world knew that TOM

LANTOS would be candid, diplomatic, but certain in his message. TOM, quite simply, was a man of great substance, an 

immigrant to America, like so many immigrants before him 

and after, but few matching his contribution to our great 

country. 

Speaker Pelosi indicated that TOM referred to himself as 

an American by choice. He was a great humanitarian. His 

remarkable life serves as an inspiration to all of us, to his 

family, and to his country. He was an indomitable spirit. His 

life story of course is well known, and I will not repeat it 

here. Others will talk more specifically. 

Last month, TOM was unable to attend the United Nations 

Annual Commemoration of the Holocaust. However, his 

daughter Katrina, married to one of our colleagues, Dick 

Swett, delivered his remarks, which called on the international community to ‘‘dedicate ourselves to stopping current tragedies such as the genocide in Darfur, and to preventing such inhuman cruelty in the future.’’ 

Tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions around 

this globe have lost an extraordinary voice for them, individually and collectively. 

TOM went on to note that the ‘‘veneer of civilization is 

paper thin.’’ That is a lesson for all of us. We know that the 

mob can be uncaring of human rights, of individuals. TOM

LANTOS focused on that issue when he said that veneer is 

very thin. John Lewis, another great humanitarian and 

champion of individual rights and civil liberties said, ‘‘We 

are its guardians, and we can never rest.’’ Not only did he 

say that, but he lived his life without rest for those he saw 

beleaguered. 

Until his last day on this Earth, TOM LANTOS never rested 

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defatigable advocate for human rights and human decency. 

And now with his passing it falls to us to honor his enduring 

legacy, not just by speaking on this floor of what he did, but 

committing ourselves to continue his advocacy for liberty and 

human rights. 

There is no more fitting tribute to this wonderful man who 

lived a wonderful life marked by hardship, tragedy, and also 

triumph, and who now is at rest in God’s hands. 

Madam Speaker, I especially want to speak of Annette. 

You cannot speak of TOM LANTOS without speaking of Annette. I don’t know of any couple that I have ever met that 

was in fact, as well as in marriage-ceremony verbiage, two 

people who became one, kindred spirits born of equal experience, equally committed with a passion and a courage and 

an untiring commitment on behalf of those who needed a 

voice. Annette is with us still and, therefore, TOM is with us 

still. May we honor him, remember him, and hold high the 

torch that he held so high, so successfully for so long. 

God bless you, TOM LANTOS. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such 

time as I may consume. 

As we gather in this hallowed place to honor the life and 

work of our beloved colleague, TOM LANTOS, our sorrow at 

the news of his death is tempered by our admiration for his 

extraordinary contributions to our great country. An unfailingly gracious and courageous man, TOM was recognized 

by colleagues as a leader who left an enviable legacy of service to our country. We were fortunate indeed to have known 

him. Annette and the entire Lantos family have our heartfelt 

condolences. 

TOM and Annette’s heroic journey to America through extraordinary adversity is well known to us all and is the topic 

perhaps for a future biographer who can adequately capture 

the tenor of life under the oppressive yolk of fascism during 

those terrible times more than half a century ago. 

TOM’s unsurpassed work as a champion of human rights 

and for human dignity cannot be separated from his fiery 

trials through which he passed as a young man. 

His life bears witness to the endurance of the human spirit. As a colleague, TOM enjoyed the respect of his peers 

across the political spectrum, because all of us admired him 

as an ardent American patriot. 

During our many meetings together, when we met with 

foreign leaders here and abroad, his love of country was always evident. He understood an old truth that all of us 

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would do well to relearn: united we stand, and divided we 

fall. 

To be sure, TOM could be a vehement critic of an administration policy during House debate. But he would not hesitate to remind a visiting group of European parliamentarians to temper their criticism of U.S. policy or risk being labeled as hypocrites for their feeble resistance to genocide at 

Auschwitz or at modern-day death camps in Sudan. 

His defense of the national security policies would surprise 

and perhaps rankle some, but not those of us who knew TOM

as an unbeatable foe of Communist tyranny. 

All of us here tonight have so many stories to share about 

TOM, about his life with Annette, and his vital work; and we 

will surely honor him in the months ahead in other appropriate ways. It is fitting, though, that we honor the life of 

this great patriot, for it was his work and his life that enriched us. So tonight, rather than merely mourn his passing, 

let us thank God that TOM lived among us and left such a 

strong legacy for us to follow. 

I often said to TOM before our committee hearings that it 

was a great testament to a wonderful Nation that two naturalized citizens, witnesses to the evils of communism and oppression, would serve as chairman and ranking member of 

the committee charged with developing and overseeing our 

foreign policy efforts. And I cannot fully explain to TOM and 

his family my deep gratitude to TOM for his service and for 

his dedication. 

And, Annette, our prayers are with you and your family. 

And how odd to say, as Mr. Hoyer pointed out, how odd to 

say ‘‘Annette’’ without saying ‘‘TOM and Annette,’’ for they 

were a unit. Thank you, TOM. Godspeed, my friend. 

I reserve the balance of my time. 

Mr. BERMAN. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to recognize 

for 2 minutes the gentleman from New York (Mr. Nadler). 

Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for 

yielding. 

Madam Speaker, it is with a heavy heart that I rise today 

in support of this resolution. Like all of my colleagues, I was 

deeply saddened to learn that our good friend, the distinguished gentleman from California, TOM LANTOS, had passed 

away. And he was our good friend, unfailingly courteous and 

kind and helpful to all. 

TOM has left an inspiring legacy, and his passing is a great 

loss to our country and to the entire world. Throughout his 

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[ 14 ] 

life, TOM devoted himself to human rights and to the cause 

of persecuted racial, religious, and ethnic minorities. As a 

survivor of the Holocaust, and the only survivor ever to serve 

in Congress, he had seen first hand real evil, and he became 

a tireless advocate for human rights. 

As a youth, he was a member of the anti-Nazi underground, and his life’s work was built on opposing anti-Semitism and all forms of racism and oppression and attempted 

genocide, and on supporting Israel, the country that emerged 

as the haven for the survivors and refugees from the Holocaust. 

Congressman LANTOS once said, ‘‘I will never be able to express fully my profoundly felt gratitude to this great country.’’ But it is this Nation that will never be able to express 

adequately its gratitude to this great man. His life and devotion to human rights should serve as an inspiration to us all. 

My thoughts and prayers, our thoughts and prayers, and 

those of a grateful Nation, are with Annette and with the 

rest of TOM’s family and friends during this sad time. And 

in this hour of bereavement, as we mourn the loss of this 

great man, what can we finally say other than to thank God 

for TOM’s life and work, and to repeat that ancient refrain, 

‘‘The Lord giveth, the Lord taketh away, blessed be the name 

of the Lord.’’ 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Madam Speaker, I yield such time 

as he may consume to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. 

Smith), a member of our Foreign Affairs Committee, and 

someone who worked so closely with Chairman LANTOS on 

human rights issues worldwide. 

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Madam Speaker, I want to 

thank my good friend and colleague from Florida for her 

yielding and for her very eloquent remarks, and for all of the 

fine statements that have been made on behalf of Chairman 

TOM LANTOS. 

Madam Speaker, as I think we all know, Chairman LANTOS was one of the most gifted, articulate, smart, persuasive, 

and compassionate, and, I would add, courageous Members 

of Congress ever to serve. Over the years, I, like so many 

other colleagues here in this Chamber, got to know and 

deeply respect and honor this great man. We traded places 

as chairman and ranking member of the International 

Human Rights Subcommittee and worked seamlessly on 

North Korea, Sudan, human trafficking, child labor, Jewish 

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[ 15 ] 

refuseniks, and China, just to name a few of the very difficult issues that were confronted. 

In the 1980s, Mr. LANTOS played a significant role in dismantling communism in Eastern Europe, including his native Hungary, as well as in the Soviet Union. 

A Holocaust survivor, TOM LANTOS had a special, wellfocused empathy for those who suffered torture, degrading, 

or inhumane treatment. He was especially vocal and determined when it came to liberating political prisoners, and was 

a champion on behalf of the Dalai Lama and Burma’s Aung 

San Suu Kyi. 

TOM LANTOS was bold and he was incisive with both friend 

and foe alike, more often I am happy to say with the latter. 

In confronting dictatorship, he refused to allow the banalities 

and excessive niceties of modern-day diplomacy to obscure 

his clear and compelling message concerning freedom, democracy, and human rights. 

On the issue of anti-Semitism, he had no equal. In the 

days immediately prior to the infamous 9/11 attacks on 

America, TOM LANTOS brilliantly defended both the United 

States and Israel at the U.N. racism conference held in Durban, South Africa, a world conference that deteriorated into 

an anti-Semitic hatefest. His insights and recommendations 

are of particular importance and relevance as the United Nations gears up for what is likely to be Durban II. 

He wrote at the time: 

For me, having experienced the horrors of the Holocaust first hand, this 

was the most sickening and unabashed display of hate for Jews I have seen 

since the Nazi period. 

He went on, however, in a positive vein to say: 

The United States must urge friendly Middle Eastern countries to recognize the link between hate-mongering and violence. Arab states, meanwhile, 

need to look deeply within themselves, analyze their missteps, cease the inflammatory lies, and embrace the path of openness and political reform, realizing their citizens’ positive energy. 

He went on to say: 

We cannot defeat terrorism if our coalition partners continue to peddle the 

hate that breeds it. 

The cold war ended with the collapse of international communism, but in 

the resulting vacuum, radical forces bent on spreading fundamentalist 

ideologies have arisen, propelled by the very globalization developments 

they often sustain. The U.N. World Conference on Racism provided the 

world with a glimpse into the abyss of international hate, discrimination, 

and indeed, racism. The terrorist attacks on September 11 demonstrated the 

evil such hate can spawn. If we are to prevail in our war against terrorism, 

we must take to heart the lessons of Durban. 

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Vintage TOM LANTOS, and as always, a man who was almost like a prophet, speaking boldly, incisively, and with 

great clarity. Finally, I want to say, Madam Speaker, that 

my wife Marie and I will deeply miss our dear friend TOM

LANTOS, and our prayers are with and for Annette and his 

family at this most difficult period of time. 

Mr. BERMAN. Madam Speaker, I recognize for 21⁄2 minutes TOM’s colleague, the gentlewoman from California (Ms. 

Eshoo). 

Ms. ESHOO. Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for 

yielding. 

Madam Speaker, and to all of the Members of the House, 

I rise this evening with a sad heart. The first thing I want 

to say is to offer my special condolences to Annette Lantos, 

the love of TOM’s life, actually as has been said earlier this 

morning, childhood sweethearts, to his 2 exceptional daughters, to his sons-in-law, 18 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren. 

I have known TOM LANTOS for many decades, long before 

I came to the House of Representatives. And I remember November 1980 where I think he was the only Democrat who 

won in challenging a Republican. It was a real upset in the 

12th Congressional District. And so tonight I am thinking 

about the people of the 12th Congressional District because 

they not only handed him a victory, he never forgot it, and 

he used his public service to fulfill the great responsibility 

and the charge that they gave to him. 

Our congressional districts are next door to one another. 

TOM always said that he stood between the Speaker and myself because his congressional district was between ours. 

TOM LANTOS was truly a gentleman. He was a gentleman 

with old world manners. He was a scholar. He taught economics. When he spoke, everyone knew he was scholarly, 

and so the old term ‘‘a scholar and a gentleman’’ really belonged to TOM. 

He was an immigrant, and I think, during these times 

when immigrants are not fully appreciated, that TOM LANTOS should remind us of what comes to this country in terms 

of immigrants. He came here, as he said, penniless, but he 

came here and brought his hopes and aspirations. Who 

would have thought when TOM LANTOS came through Customs and the Immigration Service that he would one day 

come to the House of Representatives and, in the day after 

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[ 17 ] 

he died, that all of these accolades that he so is deserving 

of would be said about him. 

A poet wrote, ‘‘And so he passed on, and then all the trumpets sounded on the other side.’’ God rest your soul, TOM. 

Thank you for what you have given to America and thank 

you for what you did in the House of Representatives. Thank 

you for what you did for the people of the 12th Congressional 

District. We are forever grateful. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Madam Speaker, I am proud to 

yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman 

from Illinois (Mrs. Biggert) to share her thoughts about our 

beloved friend, TOM LANTOS. 

Mrs. BIGGERT. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlelady 

for yielding to me. 

Madam Speaker, I rise today to say goodbye to a good man 

and a cherished colleague. Chairman LANTOS was one of 

those most respected and distinguished Members of the U.S. 

House of Representatives, and he will be missed. 

During his 14 terms in this body he championed the 

causes of people everywhere who face oppression and cruelty. 

Through his leadership of both the Foreign Affairs Committee and the Human Rights Caucus, he guided U.S. policy 

with morality and integrity. 

As I listened to Ms. Eshoo, she used the same words as I 

would say of him. He was truly a gentleman, one of those 

rare breeds of old world statesmen who brings clarity and respect to our national debate. And while he was indeed an accomplished speaker, Chairman LANTOS inspired not only by 

his words but by his own personal story. I think we will all 

remember him standing here in this Chamber, straight rail 

posture, and saying ‘‘after you, my dear,’’ always the gentleman. 

From his tragic experiences in the Nazi camps to his rise 

in Congress, he showed how one truly remarkable individual 

can overcome the worst sort of tyranny and achieve great 

things. 

So to Chairman LANTOS’ wife and daughters and grandchildren and great-grandchildren, I send my thoughts and 

prayers. We can all take comfort in the fact that he had a 

full life with a legacy that will never be forgotten. 

Mr. BERMAN. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the 

gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Lewis), the distinguished chief 

deputy whip. 

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[ 18 ] 

Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I rise with a 

heavy heart to pay tribute to our friend and colleague, TOM

LANTOS, this good and decent man, an American by choice, 

but a citizen of the world. He was a warrior for human 

rights, a warrior for justice and fairness. He spoke up and 

he spoke out for people around the world. 

Madam Speaker, the world community has lost a powerful 

voice for human rights and for human dignity. 

How do you honor a man? How do you pay tribute to a 

man like TOM LANTOS? We could name buildings, streets, 

schools, post offices, but the best way for us to honor TOM

LANTOS is to pick up where he left off, continue to fight for 

human rights, continue to fight for peace, continue to build 

a world community at peace with itself. 

TOM, thank you for all you did to make us all free. We will 

miss you my friend, my colleague, my brother. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Madam Speaker, I yield as much 

time as he may consume to the ranking member of the 

Armed Services Committee, Mr. Hunter, a member of the 

California delegation who worked so closely with Chairman 

LANTOS on a range of issues. 

Mr. HUNTER. Madam Speaker, I can’t match the eloquent 

statements about TOM that have been made by my colleagues; but I thought I might share just a few thoughts that 

came to my mind, not only today, but every day that I saw 

TOM LANTOS. 

First, he was a guy of extreme competence. And if you 

wanted to get to the heart of a matter quickly, and you 

wanted to probe a situation in foreign affairs quickly, or a 

matter of national policy, and you had a national leader, 

international leader in front of you, and TOM LANTOS was 

asking questions, he did a great cross-examination. He 

brought the facts out very quickly. But, you know, lots of 

people can do that. 

There were some special qualities that TOM LANTOS had 

that reflected and illuminated his life and always impressed 

me every time I saw him. One was his great dignity. He 

walked in dignity. And it wasn’t a pride; it wasn’t an egotistical thing. It was a respect for his fellow man that emanated from him and seemed to illuminate the room when he 

walked in, when he took his place, when he asked questions, 

and when he worked on these important issues of the day. 

He was a man of great principle. And, Madam Speaker, I 

think that it must surprise many folks who watch this, 

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[ 19 ] 

watch the leadership in this Nation, and look at this Capitol, 

look at this body, in this city, where so much talent is focused on powerful national interests, that we have leaders 

like TOM LANTOS, perhaps the finest leaders, the ones with 

the greatest talents, who focus those talents not on powerful 

interests or the protection of those interests, but, in fact, on 

the interests of those who have no station, who have no 

money, and in many cases have no hope. 

I think that’s a great trademark of this Nation and certain 

special leaders, like TOM LANTOS, that gives this country respect from those around the world, not just people who live 

in places of power or who occupy places of power in foreign 

governments, but all those around the world. The world 

looks at this American forum of leadership and governance 

in Washington, DC, and sees people like TOM LANTOS, perhaps tough to figure out in many ways, but when it got right 

down to it, people throughout the world understood that in 

this country, the dignity, the value of human beings is still 

very central to this wonderful country that we call America. 

So it’s with a lot of sadness that I see TOM LANTOS, a guy 

who came in the same year I came in, 1980, along with Mr. 

Dreier, leave us. And I just hope that we all look at that 

model now and again when we have tough and difficult 

times, because the last great quality that TOM LANTOS had 

was conciliation. You could have fierce fights on issues, and 

yet he had that wonderful quality of being able to reconcile 

with his adversaries and find common ground in the next 

great issue that was before you. 

Mr. BERMAN. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Slaughter). 

Ms. SLAUGHTER. Madam Speaker, I want to say a word 

about my friend, TOM LANTOS. I had the opportunity to travel with TOM, and I served with him some 20 years here. Believe me, a giant of a man has fallen. As grief stricken as we 

are here, we need to know that throughout the world tonight 

there are people who were touched by TOM LANTOS in many 

ways whose hearts are broken. 

And to his beloved Annette, and to his daughters and family that he loved so much, we give our great condolences and 

our love forever. 

Mr. BERMAN. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to yield 2 

minutes to TOM’s colleague from California, and the subcommittee chair on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, 

Congressman Brad Sherman. 

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Mr. SHERMAN. Madam Speaker, we’re all deeply saddened by the passing of TOM LANTOS. He not only made history here in Washington; he embodied history, having survived the Holocaust. And he didn’t just survive the Nazis; he 

fought them in the anti-Nazi underground during World War 

II. His personal history added to the gravitas of everything 

he said and everything he did here in Washington. TOM was 

our Nation’s most passionate, eloquent, and respected advocate for human rights, for democracy, and for freedom. TOM

never bowed to political pressure in the face of any humanitarian atrocity. 

As our friend Gary Ackerman pointed out, in a town with 

too many sheep, TOM LANTOS was a lion, for Darfur, for 

Tibet, wherever human rights were trampled. And of course 

TOM LANTOS led the walkout in 2001 from the Durban, 

South Africa U.N. conference when that conference degenerated into an anti-Semitic hatefest. 

Madam Speaker, I came here as a tax professional expecting to serve on the Ways and Means Committee someday. 

And when that day arrived, TOM LANTOS convinced me to 

stay involved instead on the Foreign Affairs Committee. He 

convinced me with his words, but more than that he convinced me with his example. He was courteous, gracious, beyond what you expect; but more than that, he was passionate and he was eloquent. He was an example of what it 

is to be a great advocate for human rights here in Congress. 

He will indeed be missed, not only by Annette and the entire 

Lantos family, but also by people around the world. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Madam Speaker, we will continue 

to reserve for two more speakers, and then we’ll recognize 

Mr. Shays. 

Mr. BERMAN. I am very pleased to yield 2 minutes, 

Madam Speaker, to the gentlelady from California, TOM’s 

colleague from California, Lois Capps. 

Mrs. CAPPS. Madam Speaker, what a privilege it is to join 

my colleagues today in paying tribute to our fellow Californian, the Honorable TOM LANTOS, who so wonderfully represented his constituents during his nearly three decades in 

Congress. 

As we know now, TOM LANTOS’ journey from Hungary to 

the Halls of Congress was an extremely remarkable one. His 

life told the story of the fulfillment of the American dream. 

He embodied that dream and, equally important, he knew 

not to take what America offered him for granted. 

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Even as he rose to leadership, he continued to champion 

the cause of human rights for oppressed people around the 

world, his signature issue. He was fiercely loyal to those attributes of this Nation, which had attracted him here to the 

country where he chose to become a citizen. 

Who among us will forget TOM LANTOS’ first action, becoming chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, holding 

some of his first hearings as chairman to address the human 

rights violations occurring today in Darfur? 

By never forgetting his own roots, he became an advocate 

for all the lessons of humanity that we needed to learn from 

the experiences of the Holocaust, never forgetting that he 

served here as one who had survived that terrible tragedy 

and dedicated, as he was, to seeing that it would never reoccur. 

He made sure that we all knew, and such a lesson I have, 

that those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. 

I learned so much from my colleague, TOM LANTOS. I can 

just see him sitting in his regular spot there. So our heartfelt 

condolences are extended to Annette, to the children, to the 

18 grandchildren, one of whom I had the privilege of hearing 

as she testified to our Health Subcommittee, a beautiful 

opera singer. TOM was so proud of her. She was courageous 

enough to talk about her rare health condition. 

We celebrate his life tonight dedicated to our commitment 

to not letting his many achievements go unforgotten. 

Mr. BERMAN. Madam Speaker, I yield 21⁄2 minutes to another colleague of TOM’s from California, the gentlelady from 

California, Barbara Lee. 

Ms. LEE. Madam Speaker, I rise this evening to honor the 

courageous life of our dear friend and colleague, Chairman 

TOM LANTOS. 

I am deeply saddened by the loss of Chairman LANTOS, 

and I would like to first offer my deepest condolences to Annette, his family, friends, and staff, and of course California’s 

12th Congressional District. 

And I have to thank Mrs. Lantos and TOM’s entire family 

for sharing this great human being with the entire world. 

Chairman LANTOS was an exceptional human being, and 

we’re hearing much of this tonight. But I’ve always said to 

know him was to love him. 

His life embodied the true meaning of courage and the 

power of the human spirit. As the sole member of his family 

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to survive the Holocaust, Chairman LANTOS made it his life’s 

mission, and we all know it was his life’s mission, to fight 

for the oppressed. 

Throughout his years in Congress he fought tirelessly to 

ensure human rights issues always had an important and 

visible place within these Halls. And as the founder of the 

Congressional Human Rights Caucus, he continually reminded us that combating injustice anywhere and everywhere in the world was not only the right thing to do, but 

it was our duty as elected representatives of the people. 

I had the privilege to work alongside this giant of a human 

being on so many issues. As a former member of the Foreign 

Affairs Committee for 8 years, we worked together on a 

number of issues that we both cared passionately about, including legislation to combat the global HIV/AIDS pandemic, 

to end the genocide in Darfur, to address the needs of orphans and vulnerable children, and, of course, to end the occupation of Iraq. 

And I will always remember the respect, and his wisdom 

and his insight and his guidance, as he helped me navigate 

the legislative process with the late Chairman Henry Hyde 

on the HIV/AIDS legislation. I imagine that they are, at this 

moment, renewing their wonderful friendship. 

I will also miss our personal conversations, especially 

about his grandchildren, my grandchildren, his great-grandchildren. He knew all of their names, and he knew all of 

their birth dates. 

Also, we have to remember TOM loved animals; his deceased Gigi and of course now Mack. I mean, it was amazing 

that this giant of a human being was such a gentle man. 

I know that we must rededicate ourselves to TOM’s life. 

His spirit is in us, and I will miss him. I will miss his love. 

May he rest in peace. 

What a gentleman. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to 

yield such time as he may consume to Mr. Shays from Connecticut, a former member of our Peace Corps, who served, 

along with his wife, a good team, just like TOM and Annette, 

and who shared TOM’s faith in the human spirit, and a fighter for human rights as well. 

Mr. SHAYS. Madam Speaker, as a new Member of Congress, TOM LANTOS took me under his wings. He was my 

chairman of the Labor and Health Subcommittee of the Government Reform Committee, and I was one of its most active 

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members. I got to know this man up close, and I know no 

one like him. 

TOM LANTOS adored his wife, Annette, his two magnificent 

daughters, Annette and Katrina, and all of his glorious 

grandchildren and now great-grandchildren. He simply 

adored them all. 

A Holocaust survivor, TOM LANTOS could not be intimidated by anyone. He was brilliant, passionate, courageous, 

tough almost to the point, let’s face it, of being brutal, but 

he was also kind, gentle, loving, and lots of fun. He had a 

great sense of humor. 

TOM was the most eloquent person I have ever known. It 

was hard sometimes not to feel inadequate in his presence, 

but the fact is, he would never have wanted you to feel that 

way. He would always make me feel like the best was always 

ahead of me and that I should think big thoughts. 

He was a natural teacher. He taught by example and by 

the questions he asked, and he expected you to grow and to 

be a better person. That was your duty. And your duty, also, 

was to be of service to others. 

It is no secret that TOM and Annette were both, are both, 

very strong-willed people. I marvel at how they were able to 

be such a powerful team and raise such a truly unbelievable, 

fantastic, magnificent family. They were, and are, an awesome couple. 

TOM LANTOS loved America. And yes, TOM LANTOS adored 

his wife Annette. He adored his two daughters, Annette and 

Katrina, adored his grandchildren, adored his great-grandchildren. And you could be his friend if you were willing to 

listen to him talk about all of his loved ones. 

But woe be to any man that sought to marry his daughters 

or his granddaughters. They were mere mortals. He expected 

more for his daughters and granddaughters. 

I would say his sons-in-law, his grandsons-in-law, are very 

brave souls. Can you imagine going up to TOM and saying, 

‘‘I would like to marry your daughter’’? That would take true 

courage. 

Now, granddaughters-in-law were another story. They 

were deemed worthy. He embraced them immediately. 

I hope, I truly hope and pray Congress finds a way to immortalize this great man in important legislation that will 

forever bear his name. We have Pell grants, and Fulbright 

scholars. Those are names that I have heard almost all of my 

life. TOM LANTOS deserves to have this kind of recognition. 

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TOM LANTOS believed in smart power for this country. He 

advocated a strong military, wise diplomacy, and strategic 

use of economic power. But TOM wasn’t just a great man of 

this Nation. He was a great man in this world. 

Let me say it slightly differently. He is a great man of this 

Nation. He is a great man of this world. His light will be forever and we cannot forget him. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Madam Speaker, this side has no 

further requests for time, and I would like to offer our remaining time to the gentleman from California (Mr. Berman). 

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Without objection, the gentleman from California will control the balance of the time. 

There was no objection. 

Mr. BERMAN. I thank the gentlewoman very much for 

doing that and appreciate her and all the comments of our 

colleagues from that side of the aisle. I think they were a fitting tribute to TOM and his bipartisan approach to foreign 

affairs and to issues that go far beyond party divisions. 

I am pleased to yield 21⁄2 minutes to another of TOM’s colleagues from California and the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Ambassador Diane Watson. 

Ms. WATSON. Madam Speaker, I want to add my remarks 

to those of my colleagues, but I have got some personal 

things to tell you. 

Yes, he had that compassionate spirit. His unwavering 

concern for individual human rights and his deep knowledge 

of the world were an inspiration to us all. I remember when 

my predecessor passed away, I got a call at my Embassy saying that if you should come to Congress, there is a place on 

Foreign Affairs for you. I hadn’t even said I was going to 

come. Well, the results were I did. 

I sit with honor among my colleagues on Foreign Affairs. 

I had the privilege to be trained at the State Department 

twice with his son-in-law, one of those rare specimens of humanity that he allowed to marry Katrina, his daughter. And 

I said to TOM after Katrina in Louisiana, ‘‘I’m so sorry that 

Katrina has to go around through life after this terrible, terrible hurricane and present herself as ‘Katrina.’ ’’ 

He said, ‘‘She’s strong like I am. She can survive.’’ 

But I knew that when he called on me to lead the delegation to Italy, something that he looked forward to every year 

to continue our dialog with Great Britain, I knew something 

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was not right, but that proud, distinguished, tall-standing 

human being never uttered a word. And so I kind of knew 

something was up. 

When I got back, I said to him, ‘‘Thank you for the honor 

of going to Portofino and leading the group in your place.’’ 

He said, ‘‘Ambassador, you deserve that,’’ and never said another word. 

Then he called us together and he said, ‘‘Travel, learn 

what is happening around this globe.’’ And that is what we 

are doing. We are carrying on his legacy by learning the 

world, knowing it the way he did. 

We will certainly miss this giant of a human being. 

Mr. BERMAN. Madam Speaker, I now yield 2 minutes to 

the gentlelady from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz). 

Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Speaker, with the 

death of Congressman TOM LANTOS, the world lost an inspiring leader who dedicated his life to religious freedom and 

human rights. 

Now, it has been noted that TOM was the only Holocaust 

survivor to serve in Congress, and I think it’s important to 

note that with the sun setting on this generation of Americans, he will very likely remain the only Holocaust survivor 

to have served here. 

His leadership and guidance served as the moral conscience of America’s commitment to protecting human rights. 

He lived the concept of ‘‘never again,’’ and he stood against 

persecution all over the globe. 

For me, I would like to get a little bit personal myself. As 

a newer Member of Congress, I can tell you that since I got 

here, TOM LANTOS always made me feel like my grandfather 

was looking out for me. He always had a word of encouragement, always made me feel good about myself. If I felt a little shaky, I could turn to TOM, and he would tell me, ‘‘Honey, 

it’s OK. Go out and just do your best. You are going to do 

great.’’ He would always offer those words of encouragement. 

So that was really an incredible feeling to have that kind of 

support. 

As a young Jewish American, I can tell you that we all believed that Representative LANTOS served as a role model for 

what we want public service to be. His dedication to lifting 

up oppressed people throughout the world serves as our personal inspiration. And I know that his service was a tremendous source of pride for the Jewish community across this 

country and for his constituents. 

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I, and countless others, feel a deep sense of loss in his 

passing, but we take solace in the knowledge that the world 

is a better place because of this great individual. 

Mr. BERMAN. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to yield 21⁄2

minutes to the gentleman representing the State that TOM

had such close connections to, the gentleman from New 

Hampshire (Mr. Hodes). 

Mr. HODES. Madam Speaker, it was with great sadness 

that I learned of TOM LANTOS’ passing yesterday. As our colleague and our friend, we knew him to be a man of incredible courage and strength, a man who had overcome unimaginable adversity to serve as a voice for justice against 

the dark forces of human evil. 

TOM was born to Jewish parents in Hungary. He was 16 

when Hitler’s army marched in to occupy his birth country 

in 1944, and he tragically lost much of his family in the Holocaust. TOM courageously escaped from forced labor camps 

not once, but twice. 

Here in Congress, he rose to the chairmanship of the Foreign Relations Committee with the unique perspective and 

the power of real moral authority. Promoting human rights 

for all is a part of his lasting legacy. Those who follow TOM

LANTOS in that cause have a high bar to match. 

TOM and his beloved wife, Annette, were blessed with a 

wonderful and extraordinarily talented family, including my 

dear friend, his daughter, Dr. Katrina Swett, TOM’s son-inlaw, Ambassador Dick Swett, our former colleague who held 

the seat I now hold. They and their family are my neighbors 

in my home State of New Hampshire. TOM was a frequent 

visitor to the Granite State, a remarkably devoted father, 

mentor, grandfather, and great-grandfather. He was a patriarch in the best sense of the word, and on behalf of all of 

New Hampshire’s citizens, we mourn TOM’s passing as one 

of our own. 

I am honored to have served with such a remarkable and 

accomplished individual. He was the first Member of Congress to welcome me when I arrived. He was an inspiration 

to me. 

My thoughts and prayers are with his family during this 

time. I know they will take solace in the lasting legacy that 

their beloved husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather left us. 

He showed us that even in the darkest corners of the 

human experience, one strong, clear voice, one irrepressible 

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[ 27 ] 

beacon of light can stand as an unwavering candle whose 

flame will never go out. 

Thank you, TOM. 

Mr. BERMAN. Madam Speaker, I yield 21⁄2 minutes to the 

gentlelady from Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee). 

Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Madam Speaker, so many of 

us have risen and expressed how heavy our heart is tonight. 

Those of us who served on the Foreign Affairs Committee 

with the late Chairman TOM LANTOS see every day, as we 

come into that room, his regalness, his royalty, but yet his 

humbleness. We also get to see the family, his wonderful 

staff, and his lovely and solid friend, bride, wife, and enormously important person, his wife, Annette. 

I got to see them working together. I saw TOM’s passion 

in the committee room. He was not afraid of hard issues, and 

I am so proud to have been able to join him as a member 

of his Human Rights Caucus and to serve in his absence on 

a number of occasions when we talked about the abuse of 

children around the world or the abuse and the violence 

against women around the world. 

TOM was a fighter. We know that as the only Holocaust 

victim and survivor to have come to this place. He talked unwavering about human rights and the standing up against 

despots, and he never feared in doing so. The Human Rights 

Caucus became part of him. When you saw TOM walking, 

you knew he exuded a fight for human rights. 

He also was concerned that we continue to fight in this 

Congress against oppressive regimes. So even though there 

are advocates for China and Russia, Burma, and certainly 

there is constant opposition from the Sudanese Government, 

he never wavered on Darfur. You heard someone say he was 

even arrested. 

I’ve been proud to stand with him on these fights. 

He led the fight to end wartime sex slavery by the military; another resolution recognizing the massacre of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire as genocide; and, yes, he held 

hearings condemning Internet giant Yahoo!’s complicity with 

Chinese oppression of dissidents. And I tell you, he didn’t 

worry about whether that was a constituent; he only worried 

about human rights. 

Thank you, TOM, for letting us know your family. I met his 

daughter, Katrina, and Dick in New Hampshire. What a 

wonderful spirit they had. I am certainly saddened by his 

loss, but the fighter he was should live in us. 

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TOM, rest in peace. May God bless you. We fight on with 

you. 

Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise 

today in support of H. Res. 975, ‘‘expressing the condolences 

of the House of Representatives on the death of the Honorable TOM LANTOS,’’ and to express my profound sadness upon 

the passing of my extremely distinguished colleague. 

Madam Speaker, it is with deep sadness that I mourn the 

passing of my colleague Congressman TOM LANTOS. Chairman LANTOS was an extraordinary leader, a man who demonstrated, by his life, that one individual truly can make a 

difference. As the only Holocaust survivor ever to serve in 

Congress, Congressman LANTOS brought a moral voice to 

Washington, and he relentlessly drew U.S. attention to those 

suffering throughout the world. It has been my extreme 

honor and privilege to serve on the Committee on Foreign 

Affairs, under Chairman LANTOS’ leadership. 

Since he was elected to Congress in 1980, Congressman 

LANTOS has used his position in Congress to combat violations of fundamental human rights. Almost immediately following his election, Congressman LANTOS established the 

Congressional Human Rights Caucus, which, for over two 

decades, has focused congressional attention on struggles 

against oppressive regimes and human suffering across the 

globe, including in China, Russia, Burma, and Darfur. I have 

been proud to stand beside him, as a member of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, and I know my colleagues 

share my commitment to ensuring that his work here in 

Washington continues. 

As a fierce advocate of human rights, he continually 

pressed the Bush administration to take steps to prevent the 

state-sanctioned massacre and rape of hundreds of thousands of people in Sudan’s Darfur region. On April 28, 2006, 

I was honored to stand side by side with Congressman LANTOS and protest the role of the Sudanese Government in carrying out genocide in the Darfur conflict. 

As chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Congressman LANTOS did not shy away from controversial 

issues. Under his leadership, the committee passed a resolution calling on the Japanese Government to apologize for 

wartime sex slavery by its military, and another resolution 

recognizing the massacre of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire as genocide. He has brought landmark anti-trafficking 

legislation before the committee, held hearings condemning 

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sion of dissidents, and, tomorrow, the committee is scheduled 

to consider a groundbreaking reauthorization of the PEPFAR 

global AIDS relief program. 

Congressman LANTOS was a truly courageous man, and a 

true leader for our Nation. His legacy is best expressed in 

his own words: 

It is only in the United States that a penniless survivor of the Holocaust 

. . . could have received an education, raised a family and had the privilege 

of serving the last three decades of his life as a Member of Congress. I will 

never be able to express fully my profoundly felt gratitude to this great 

country. 

I offer my condolences to the family of Congressman LANTOS: his wife Annette; his 2 daughters, Annette and Katrina, 

and 18 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren. I also join 

with other Members of Congress in mourning the passing of 

an extraordinary person, leader and colleague. 

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I urge my colleagues to join 

me in supporting this resolution, and in recognizing our distinguished colleague. 

REP. TOM LANTOS (D–CA) DIES

Rep. TOM LANTOS (D–CA), an important voice for Tibetan freedom, died 

today at the age of 80. He had served 14 terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. 

Born into a Jewish family in Budapest, Hungary, he twice escaped from 

a forced labor camp in Szob during the Nazi occupation of his country. The 

second time, he was sheltered by Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg. After 

the Soviet army liberated Hungary, he discovered that his parents and most 

of his family had been killed during the occupation. 

The only Holocaust survivor ever to serve in Congress, Rep. LANTOS was 

chairman of the United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs. He was 

also co-chairman and founder of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, 

a group dedicated to raising awareness about human rights violations 

around the world. 

Rep. LANTOS was a tireless supporter of the Tibetan independence movement and His Holiness the Dalai Lama. His contributions are too numerous 

to count, so I’ll point you to one of the most recent: his speech in San Francisco for the 2007 Tibetan Uprising Day. He also joined Richard Gere and 

Robert A.F. Thurman in talking about his friendship with and admiration 

for His Holiness as part of A&E Biography’s 1997 documentary Dalai Lama: 

Soul of Tibet. In addition, Rep. LANTOS was the driving force behind the 

awarding of the Congressional Gold Medal to His Holiness last year. When 

the House of Representatives ultimately voted to give His Holiness the 

honor, he said: 

‘‘In his quiet but persistent way, His Holiness the Dalai Lama has devoted 

his life to asserting the Tibetan people’s rights, lifting their spirits and upholding their dignity. By his humble personal example, through his prolific 

writings and in his addresses to audiences in every corner of the earth, the 

Dalai Lama has provided exceptional service to humankind. Such a vast 

contribution to the betterment of our world deserves special recognition and 

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[ 30 ] 

support. After nearly three decades of friendship with His Holiness, I am 

deeply honored and proud to have rallied my colleagues to award him the 

Congressional Gold Medal. We can now look forward to the day when he 

once again meets with members of Congress—this time to stand before us 

all to receive this unique and well-earned honor.’’ 

Mr. BERMAN. I am pleased to recognize my friend and 

colleague from Tennessee, Mr. Steve Cohen, for 2 minutes. 

Mr. COHEN. ‘‘TOM,’’ as he would insist on being called, 

was a special person. I’m a freshman, and he befriended me 

in my first year. 

Back, I think it was last January, there was an article in 

The Hill, and it described my apartment. My apartment was 

described as spartan, and that’s probably effusive. We had a 

Judiciary Committee meeting with Justice Pryor and Justice 

Alito, I think there were just six or seven or eight of us 

there, and I chose to go to that meeting rather than the Yom 

HaShoah Program at Statuary Hall. I felt bad about that because I had attended all those programs in Tennessee and 

felt strong about the Holocaust. I rushed up here at the end 

and I saw Mr. LANTOS and I went up and I said, ‘‘Mr. LANTOS, I’m sorry, I missed the meeting.’’ He said, ‘‘First of all, 

it is TOM.’’ I said, ‘‘Well, OK, TOM.’’ And I said, ‘‘I went to 

this Judiciary meeting and I made a mistake; I should have 

come here, I know.’’ He said, ‘‘No, you didn’t; you did the 

right thing going where you belonged. You belonged in committee. You can go again next year.’’ And then I walked 

away and he stopped me and said, ‘‘By the way, I read about 

you in The Hill. If you need some help with interior decorating, you give me a call.’’ 

He was a special person. He had a wonderful sense of 

humor. And when I had problems with bills and votes that 

I didn’t feel comfortable with, I would go to him; and he was 

grounded and helped me with them, just as he did with Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz. 

America has lost a great leader, and I feel like I have lost 

a member of my family. I am fortunate to have known him. 

John Lewis and TOM LANTOS are the two saints of Congress; 

we’ve lost one, we have another. 

Mr. BERMAN. I am pleased to recognize the gentleman 

from Missouri, Mr. Russ Carnahan, for 2 minutes. 

Mr. CARNAHAN. Madam Chairman, my deepest condolences to the Lantos family. Thank you for sharing him to 

perform his remarkable public service here. 

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It is, indeed, an honor and a privilege to have known TOM

and Annette Lantos, a remarkable American success story, a 

remarkable American love story. 

I first met Mr. LANTOS as a new Member after the 2004 

elections and was awed by him. His life story and internationally renowned fierce voice for human rights everywhere will continue to lead and inspire us for years to come. 

I am truly indebted to TOM LANTOS for his gentlemanly demeanor and generous time and advice for me as a new Member of this House and on his Foreign Affairs Committee. His 

giving nature, keen intellect, and passionate advocacy were 

part of the decency in what is right about this House of Representatives. 

Mr. Chairman, TOM, we will miss you, but not soon forget 

you. 

Mr. BERMAN. Madam Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 

to TOM’s good friend, the chairman of the Asia Subcommittee 

of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Eni Faleomavaega 

from American Samoa, 2 minutes. 

Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Madam Speaker, I thank my good 

friend, the gentleman from California, our chairman-to-be of 

the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and also my good 

friend and distinguished ranking member of our committee, 

the gentlelady from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen). 

Madam Speaker, I, too, would like to express my most profound sorrow and to extend my sympathies to Chairman 

LANTOS’ dear wife, Annette, and their 2 daughters and 18 

grandchildren. 

It is my privilege to participate in this special order and 

pay special tribute to our colleague and chairman of the 

House Foreign Affairs Committee, the gentleman from California, Congressman TOM LANTOS. 

Without equal, Madam Speaker, Chairman LANTOS was a 

champion and advocate throughout the world for the basic 

rights and dignity and decency of all human beings, regardless of race, color, gender, or religious affiliations. TOM LANTOS truly believed that in this troubled world of ours there 

is only one race, and that is the human race. 

I am without words in how I can best describe the life of 

this giant among men. And in this Chamber of Congress, 

there is no word or phrase more dear to TOM’s heart than 

that of ‘‘human rights.’’ And forever I will remember him as 

a teacher and a mentor whenever the subject of human 

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[ 32 ] 

rights is being debated or under discussion in this institution. 

As others have said earlier, Chairman LANTOS would not 

have had it any other way other than for us to continue the 

fight and to advocate for human rights whenever necessary, 

and for that matter, also to defend freedom and democracy 

throughout the world. We have a saying in the islands, 

Madam Speaker, to my friend TOM LANTOS, Ia manuia lau 

faiga malaga; may you have a great voyage in the afterlife, 

my friend, Chairman TOM LANTOS. 

Mr. BERMAN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself 3 minutes. 

The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman is recognized 

for the balance of the time. 

Mr. BERMAN. I thank the Speaker. 

A great deal has been said about TOM LANTOS this 

evening, wonderful, eloquent words that captured just the 

profound effect that he had on this institution. Many serve 

in this institution. Some leave a mark on their districts of 

their presence here; some leave a lasting mark on the institution. It’s hard for me to think of anyone who left such a 

mark around the world as Chairman LANTOS did in so many 

different areas. 

You read that statement that David Dreier read earlier, 

and I’m going to read it again because it captures his love 

of this country. He and Annette were the greatest Americans 

because they knew what the alternative had been, and they 

paid back with their work and with their gratitude what 

America offered them. 

These are TOM LANTOS’ words after he was diagnosed with 

a very advanced stage of esophageal cancer: 

It is only in the United States that a penniless survivor of the Holocaust 

and a fighter in the anti-Nazi underground could have received an education, raised a family, and had the privilege of serving the last three decades of his life as a Member of Congress. I will never be able to express 

fully my profoundly felt gratitude to this great country. 

He not only loved America; he hated tyranny and oppression. And I served with TOM on the committee for 26 of his 

27 years in the Congress, and that anger and hostility and 

willingness to fight against dictatorship and tyranny covered 

the dictatorships of the Communist regimes, and it covered 

the dictatorships and the oppression of the rightwing authoritarian regimes. He wasn’t one side or the other; he was 

against tyranny and for human rights. He stood firm. 

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[ 33 ] 

It’s very easy for us to attack forces that have no direct 

impacts on our district; it doesn’t take that much courage to 

do that. TOM LANTOS, notwithstanding what some company 

in his district might be making in terms of sales to a particularly oppressive country, stood firm and constantly dealt 

with the pressures coming back from his own constituents 

about our livelihood, our jobs, because he couldn’t tolerate 

the notion that, in effect, American companies, American individual interests, American corporate interests were giving 

governments around the world the tools of that repression. 

In closing, I just want to tell one story. It was a profound 

experience for me, I’ll never forget. I had the opportunity to 

see TOM a few weeks ago at his home here in Washington 

with Annette, with Katrina, with their granddaughter and 

with a baby great-grandson, which, by the way, was one part 

of what gave him his strength was this unbelievable family 

structure. And he looked much better than he had looked in 

his last few weeks here, and he talked about being at peace. 

Yes, he would have loved to have been able to be here a few 

years longer, but for him, he felt what a wonderful life he 

had had, what a wonderful family, what a country, the colleagues. He was at peace with what awaited him. And there 

was a serenity and a strength there that just was stunning 

to me. I’ll never forget it. 

To the family, to Annette, our prayers are with you. And 

you know that the work he did, the lives he affected around 

the world, his presence will be maintained long after his 

passing. 

Mrs. DAVIS of California. Madam Speaker, we have lost 

a dear friend and colleague in the House of Representatives. 

The world has also lost a great humanitarian. 

As the only Member of Congress to survive the Holocaust, 

Congressman LANTOS had a deep understanding of the value 

of freedom and the need to pursue human rights around the 

globe. He brought life experiences to his work that nobody 

else could. 

On a personal note, I was extremely saddened when I 

heard the news of his passing. After arriving back in Washington today and seeing the flags at half mast, it set in that 

he won’t be with us any longer. 

I will miss him. 

He was always very gracious during my conversations and 

dealings with him. I would listen closely when he spoke because what he had to say was always important. I urge my 

colleagues to honor Chairman LANTOS’ memory and fight for 

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[ 34 ] 

human rights and justice around the world with the same 

passion that he did. 

Mrs. MALONEY of New York. Madam Speaker, yesterday, 

the U.S. Congress lost a dear friend, a true humanitarian, 

and a real statesman, Chairman TOM LANTOS of California. 

I extend my deepest sympathies to TOM’s dedicated wife 

Annette, his daughters Annette and Katrina, and to his 

many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. We are thinking of them during this difficult time and hope they will find 

solace in knowing that their husband, father, and grandfather was a true hero and role model for so many of the 

people he touched. 

Chairman LANTOS was unrelenting in his lifelong commitment to defending the oppressed. He decisively chose to 

serve his fellow human beings, often at great personal risk 

to himself. After escaping from Nazi labor camps in World 

War II, young TOM fought in the underground Nazi resistance and continued to fight for justice. His ability to triumph 

through tragedy is truly inspirational. 

TOM embodied the American dream. In summer 1947, TOM

was awarded a scholarship to study in the United States. He 

arrived in New York City with no money and only a Hungarian salami which was quickly seized by U.S. Customs officials. With his incredible persistence and deep intellect, he 

soon earned his Ph.D. in economics from the University of 

California, Berkeley. TOM was always thankful for the opportunities given to him by the United States and America is 

blessed to have had such a loyal citizen and distinguished 

leader. 

Continuing his dedication to others, TOM served the American public and people of the world as an exemplary Member 

of Congress. He founded the Congressional Human Rights 

Caucus and most recently served as chairman of the House 

Foreign Affairs Committee. Standing by his convictions, TOM

was arrested at the Embassy of Sudan for protesting human 

rights violations in Darfur. As a result of this brave action, 

the President renewed his call for a stronger international 

presence in Darfur. TOM continually defended those too often 

ignored by the international community. People of the world 

are indebted to him for his strong leadership in promoting 

human rights. 

I am honored to have served in Congress with Congressman LANTOS and to have worked together on significant legislation defending the international human rights of women. 

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His support was paramount to the achievement of many 

gains for women’s human rights. 

Together, we were able to provide direct assistance to advance the status of women in Afghanistan. We also collaborated on landmark legislation to stop human trafficking. I 

am deeply grateful for his commitment to the women of the 

world. 

Chairman TOM LANTOS will always be remembered with 

respect and gratitude. He consistently gave voice to the 

voiceless and was their champion. His legacy of upholding 

human dignity will continue to inspire future generations of 

Americans. 

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, it is with great 

sadness that I mourn the passing, and commemorate the 

courageous life, of my dear friend and colleague, Congressman TOM LANTOS of California. 

Congressman LANTOS began a lifetime of passionate work 

for human rights as a young man when he escaped a forced 

labor brigade to join an underground resistance movement 

against the Nazis in his home country of Hungary. A Jewish 

survivor of the Holocaust, he was just a teenager when he 

undertook this important work, which began over 60 years 

of efforts to fight for human rights across the world. 

Congressman LANTOS’ life of work on behalf of human 

rights culminated with over two decades of service in Congress, where he never failed to champion causes that he felt 

were just. In 1983, Congressman LANTOS became a founding 

cochair of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, a caucus 

on which he served for the remainder of his life. Under Congressman LANTOS’ leadership, this caucus was on the forefront of efforts to protect women’s and children’s rights, to 

free political prisoners, to preserve religious freedom, and to 

halt ethnic cleansing. 

In recent years, Congressman LANTOS directed his focus to 

ending the ongoing genocide in the Darfur region of Sudan, 

which has already claimed the lives of over 400,000 people. 

In 2006, he was among a group of 11 individuals who were 

arrested for committing civil disobedience outside the Sudanese Embassy in protest of the genocide. I can only say that 

it was an honor to follow in this wonderful man’s footsteps 

by doing the same thing myself a few short weeks later. 

Beginning last year, when Congressman LANTOS became 

chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, he 

brought the crisis in Darfur and the recent violent crackdown on democracy activists in Burma to the forefront. It 

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also must be noted that, under Chairman LANTOS’ leadership, the Foreign Affairs Committee finally began longoverdue oversight of the war in Iraq. 

Congressman LANTOS’ inspiring leadership will be sorely 

missed, not only in this Congress, but by people around the 

world. I wish to send my deepest condolences to Congressman LANTOS’ friends, family, and constituents for the loss of 

this irreplaceable man of good will. 

Ms. LINDA T. SANCHEZ of California. Madam Speaker, 

I come to say goodbye to a beloved colleague and friend. 

The sudden news of Chairman TOM LANTOS’ passing has 

left those who had the privilege to know him without adequate words to express our grief. 

My thoughts and prayers go out to his caring wife Annette 

and to his family. I wish them strength and clarity during 

this difficult time. 

TOM’s life and accomplishments reached far beyond his 

contributions as a legislator. 

Many words have been written about TOM’s experiences as 

a youth in Nazi-occupied Europe. But none of us will ever be 

able to speak here with the same level of experience and understanding that he had when referring to genocide, suffering, the suppression of human rights, and the denial of 

human dignity. 

TOM carried a personal sense of responsibility to fight for 

those who cannot always speak for themselves: the underprivileged, the subjugated, the oppressed. It was evident in 

his words and actions, in every piece of legislation he crafted, 

and in every hand he warmly shook. 

His convictions were never more evident than in his work 

to establish the Congressional Human Rights Caucus. He 

founded the caucus to focus attention on human rights 

abuses around the world. Not only did he work to raise 

awareness and increase the scrutiny of abusive practices 

around the globe, he worked to stop heinous acts against our 

fellow women and men and to bring peaceful solutions to the 

conflicts that led to such atrocities. 

His unwavering optimism and prudent leadership will be 

missed. 

My words cannot satisfactorily articulate the loss that his 

death brings to me, the House of Representatives, and to the 

Nation he loved and served. 

Mrs. TAUSCHER. Madam Speaker, TOM LANTOS was one 

of the kindest, most sincere people I have ever met. It was 

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both an honor and a pleasure to serve the people of the Bay 

Area with a man of his integrity. His belief in universal 

human rights for every man, woman and child defined his 

career in Congress as well as how he lived his life. America 

is honored that TOM LANTOS chose to be a citizen of our 

great democracy, and the world is a better place because he 

fought to make it so. His passing is a loss to the Congress, 

the Bay Area, and the United States, and everyone who believes in fairness and equality. My thoughts are with his 

wife Annette and his entire family at this very sad time. 

Mr. HONDA. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the 

memory of Congressman TOM LANTOS. 

It was with great sorrow that I learned of the passing of 

my esteemed colleague. 

When I asked TOM LANTOS for his support in defending a 

group of women who the Japanese Army forced into prostitution during World War II, I knew that if anyone would understand the pain of war, it would be him. For Congressman 

LANTOS, human rights violations were not just an abstraction. He saw his family decimated by the Nazis during the 

same war. He himself had suffered through the horrors of a 

labor camp. 

After surviving the horrors of the Holocaust, Congressman 

LANTOS dedicated his life to advocating for the rights of others. He spoke for those who had no voice through his tireless 

advocacy as the founder of the Congressional Human Rights 

Caucus and the chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs. 

A fellow member of the Bay Area delegation, Congressman 

LANTOS has been a mentor to me. His thirst for justice and 

advocacy of progressive ideals will live on in all those he inspired during his fruitful life. 

Congressman LANTOS will be missed by everyone who had 

the privilege of working with him. I send my deepest condolences to his family, and echo his wife Annette’s comments 

that her husband’s life was ‘‘defined by courage, optimism, 

and unwavering dedication to his principles and his family.’’ 

TOM LANTOS will forever remain a role model and inspiration 

to me. 

I will miss him dearly. 

Ms. MCCOLLUM of Minnesota. Madam Speaker, it is with 

tremendous sadness that we mourn the passing of Chairman 

TOM LANTOS—an inspiring colleague and an outspoken 

champion for human rights around the world. His passing 

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will leave an enormous void in the U.S. House of Representatives, where he has served for 27 years and was admired and 

respected for his strength, leadership, and unwavering commitment to democracy and freedom. 

It was my honor to serve for 4 years as a member of the 

House International Relations Committee in which Representative LANTOS was my ranking member. He was a mentor and strong leader as a Democrat and as an American. I 

will miss TOM as a colleague and a friend. 

I extend my heartfelt prayers and condolences to TOM’s 

wife, Annette, who was his constant companion and an inspiration in her own right, along with their 2 children, 18 

grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren. 

The U.S. House of Representatives and the United States 

of America have lost a hero, and he will be sorrowfully 

missed. 

Mr. LAHOOD. Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute 

to our friend and colleague, the gentleman from California, 

TOM LANTOS. 

Our Nation has lost a true leader, and the world has lost 

its foremost champion of human rights. While involved in 

many different issues throughout his illustrious career, it is 

TOM LANTOS’ work on behalf of suffering people throughout 

the world that best exemplifies the type of man he was. 

Born on February 1, 1928, in Budapest to Jewish parents, 

TOM LANTOS faced unspeakable horror early in his life. He 

escaped a Nazi forced labor camp twice, the second time 

thankfully finding himself under the protection of Raoul 

Wallenberg, likely saving his life. He later learned that his 

parents and much of his family perished at the hands of the 

Nazis. 

As the only survivor of the Holocaust serving in the House, 

he understood, in a way no one else could, the type of suffering man can inflict upon others. He was the founder and 

cochairman of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, and 

truly was a leader in standing up for the smallest and weakest in our global community. No injustice escaped his attention, no matter what corner of the world was involved, and 

he would fight doggedly to right any wrongs. 

He earned an academic scholarship that brought him to 

the United States where he earned his bachelor’s, master’s 

and eventually doctorate degrees and entered the world of 

academia, before he decided to enter the political arena, 

serving 14 terms here in the House. He rose through the 

ranks to become the distinguished chairman of the House 

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Foreign Affairs Committee, a position that allowed him to 

continue his battle for the common man who might otherwise not have a voice. 

I was fortunate to have the opportunity to travel with him 

and his wife Annette on a trip to South Korea, Cambodia, 

and Vietnam in January 2001, hosted by then-Minority 

Leader Gephardt. I am proud to call him not only my colleague, but also my friend. 

I join with all of my colleagues in extending our thoughts 

and prayers to TOM’s bride of almost 58 years, Annette, his 

2 daughters, his 18 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren. 

He will truly be missed. 

Mr. CARDOZA. Madam Speaker, it is with great sadness 

that I rise today to speak on the passing of an esteemed colleague and a true friend, former Congressman TOM LANTOS. 

TOM’s dedication, passion, and fervent commitment to 

human rights will be deeply missed by our Nation and, indeed, around the world. As the only Holocaust survivor ever 

elected to Congress, TOM fought every day to give voice to 

the voiceless and make true our commitment to the words 

‘‘never again.’’ Only 16 when he was rounded up in his native Hungary by the Nazis where he saw most of his family 

perish, TOM was a living embodiment to the ideals of courage 

and human rights. 

First elected to Congress in 1980 after a distinguished career in academia, TOM was a tireless advocate on behalf of 

his constituents and a fine public servant. Representing 

parts of San Francisco as well as his hometown, San Mateo, 

TOM zealously represented the interests of his District and, 

speaking as a Member of the California delegation, I was 

proud to serve with him and call him friend. 

While TOM had a remarkable career of over a quarter of 

a century in Congress, it was his last year as chairman of 

his beloved House Foreign Affairs Committee that he seemed 

to relish the most. From that perch, he was able to advance 

the cause of human rights and to shine a light on longignored parts of the globe. 

TOM is survived by his loving wife Annette, his 2 daughters, Annette and Katrina; 18 grandchildren and 2 greatgrandchildren. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family. 

Ms. HARMAN. Madam Speaker, maybe because I, too, lost 

many family members in the Holocaust, I felt a special affinity for TOM LANTOS. His story was an integral part of him. 

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I was moved every time he described himself as the only 

Holocaust survivor in Congress. And so were many others. 

TOM was eloquent, passionate, insightful, elegant—and 

fierce in his advocacy. His questions of witnesses before his 

committee could be withering. He had a point of view and 

was unblinking in his efforts to communicate it. 

In personal terms, TOM was a lovely human being—devoted to Annette, his daughters and that enormous crowd of 

grandchildren and great-grandchildren. But he was also devoted to his colleagues, this institution, to our country, and 

to achieving peace in the Middle East. 

At a time of such entrenched partisanship—which he deplored—we desperately need more, not fewer, Toms. Sadly, 

that is not likely to happen. 

I shall miss him terribly. 

Shalom, haver. 

Mr. BACA. Madam Speaker, I ask for unanimous consent 

to address the House for 1 minute. 

I rise today to remember a respected colleague, and to celebrate a life filled with courage, love, and service. 

With the passing of Representative TOM LANTOS yesterday, this body and this country lost a champion for human 

rights and life everywhere. 

A quick look at Representative LANTOS’ life shows us what 

a remarkable man he really was. 

Born in Hungary, he fought in the underground struggle 

against the Nazis in Europe and twice escaped from labor 

camps as a teenager. 

Later, as the only Holocaust survivor to ever serve in Congress, he used this experience to work against oppression, intolerance, and genocide. 

Representative LANTOS was also known as a dedicated 

family man. He and his dear wife Annette were usually inseparable—and all of my colleagues in the House knew of his 

dedication to his 18 grandchildren. 

So let us take this time to recognize and mourn our dear 

friend, Representative TOM LANTOS, a fierce defender of 

human rights, and a true leader who worked to improve the 

world for both the free and oppressed alike. 

The thoughts and prayers of Barbara and I are with his 

family, friends, and constituents at this difficult time. 

Ms. HIRONO. Madam Speaker, I rise today to join my colleagues in honoring the legacy of human rights champion 

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LANTOS TAMA ́S PE ́TER and expressing great sympathy on the 

passing of this great American. 

As a member of the freshman class of the 110th Congress, 

TOM LANTOS was certainly a colleague that I admired and 

looked toward for guidance. I am especially glad that under 

our new majority he was able to serve as chairman of the 

Foreign Affairs Committee, a post that he held with distinction. There was an air about him of European old-worldliness and charm that I will never forget. It was a great honor 

to have served with a man of such character and integrity. 

TOM is famously quoted as saying that he was an American by choice. And how only in this country, could 

a penniless survivor of the Holocaust and a fighter in the anti-Nazi underground . . . have received an education, raised a family and had the privilege 

of serving the last three decades of his life as a member of Congress. 

As a naturalized U.S. citizen myself, I hope to give back 

to this Nation as much as TOM did in his many years of public service. 

I would like to extend my deepest condolences to TOM’s beloved wife, Annette Tillemann Lantos, his daughters Annette 

Tillemann-Dick and Katrina Swett, his 18 grandchildren, 

and his 2 great-grandchildren. Thank you for sharing TOM

with us and with the world. His example of courage and integrity will continue to inspire us. 

Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Madam Speaker, yesterday morning a friend and colleague, Representative TOM

LANTOS, passed away. 

Throughout his life, Congressman LANTOS fought for liberty. As a young man in Hungary during World War II, he 

opposed the spread of Nazi fascism and survived the Holocaust. During his 27 years in Congress, Congressman LANTOS earned a reputation as a leader for human rights and 

democracy around the world—in particular as the ranking 

member and the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs 

Committee. 

I had the privilege of working with Chairman LANTOS as 

a fellow member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. 

Together, we were able to strengthen the partnerships between the United States and nations throughout the world. 

Chairman LANTOS brought an unmoving optimism to both 

his life and his career that served himself and his adopted 

Nation of America well. 

TOM LANTOS was a beloved and respected Member of the 

House of Representatives, and he will be dearly missed. DurVerDate Aug 31 2005 11:07 Jul 02, 2008 Jkt 040700 PO 00000 Frm 00053 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 C:\DOCS\LANTOS\LANTOS3.BST CRS1 PsN: SKAYNE
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ing this difficult time, our thoughts and prayers are with his 

wife Annette, their two daughters, and his entire family and 

friends. 

Mr. HOLT. Madam Speaker, today I rise to honor the life 

and legacy of TOM LANTOS. The passing of Chairman LANTOS

is a great loss to the Congress, our Nation, and to oppressed 

people worldwide. 

Born in Budapest, Congressman LANTOS was 16 in 1944 

when Nazis captured and occupied the city. He twice escaped 

Nazi labor camps and was one of the thousands of Jews 

saved from the Holocaust by the humanity of the Swedish 

diplomat Raoul Wallenberg. Yet most of his family members 

did not survive the Holocaust. 

At the end of the Second World War, Representative LANTOS came to the United States with his childhood sweetheart 

and soon-to-be wife, Annette Tillemann. Over the past 58 

years, TOM and Annette were rarely far apart and worked 

tirelessly together to champion human rights around the 

globe. Today my thoughts and prayers are with her and the 

Lantos children. 

When TOM LANTOS came to Congress in 1980, the first 

major piece of legislation he introduced was to award honorary American citizenship to Raoul Wallenberg, whom he 

called ‘‘the central figure in my life.’’ Wallenberg was a central figure in the lives of many European Jews. 

A few years later TOM founded the Human Rights Caucus. 

As cochairman of the caucus, LANTOS was the leading critic 

of abusive and despotic regimes abroad. He was unafraid to 

confront the Chinese Government for its human rights 

record and he was undeterred in his efforts to end the ongoing genocide in Darfur. Most recently he helped move 

through Congress tough sanctions on the Burmese junta to 

help restore that country’s democracy. 

As chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs 

for the past year, Congressman LANTOS continued to be a 

moral leader on human rights and an advocate for those who 

had none. 

TOM LANTOS was a friend to me and to all people who believed in the basic rights of all people. I am honored to have 

served with him and I will do my best to work for continued 

fulfillment of his ideals. 

Mr. RANGEL. Madam Speaker, I rise today in mourning 

of a most distinguished colleague, a champion for America, 

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a lifelong survivor, and a kind friend, Representative TOM

LANTOS. 

He stood at the near-perilous brink of history. Born to 

Jewish parents in Budapest, Hungary, he joined the Hungarian underground—at not yet 17—after the Nazi occupation and twice escaped from forced labor camps. He was 

beaten. His mother, much of his family, and the family of his 

childhood sweetheart-turned-wife were killed. 

He transformed tragedy into triumph. After earning an 

American education and raising a family, in 1980 he became 

the only Holocaust survivor ever elected to the U.S. Congress. Three years later, he had founded the Congressional 

Human Rights Caucus. And last year he became the chair of 

the House Foreign Affairs Committee. 

He was a man of steadfast principle. He was one of five 

members of Congress—at not yet 80—arrested in a protest 

outside the Sudanese Embassy, in opposition to the genocide 

in Darfur. He trumpeted the causes of civil liberties and 

human rights with a consistent, measured voice, having survived such great evil and wanting to spare the world that 

suffering. 

His soul, his convictions, his grit, and determination—as 

genuine at age 17 as 80—remained uncompromising, unimpeachable. 

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Madam Speaker, I rise today to 

honor a great man, Congressman TOM LANTOS. 

I would like to send my deepest sympathies to Annette 

and the whole Lantos family. Congressman TOM LANTOS’ 

partnership with his wife, Annette, was one of respect and 

true adoration. I hope that the whole family will be comforted by the knowledge that TOM’s work has enhanced the 

lives of millions around the world. 

I was proud to serve on the Foreign Affairs Committee 

under the chairmanship of TOM LANTOS. Within the Congress, he was viewed as the strongest and most vocal defender of human rights. When he spoke, people listened, and 

when he led, people followed. His moral clarity serves as an 

example that generations to come will strive to follow. 

His achievements in world affairs will live on as his legacy. His impassioned protection of human rights, his crusade 

for democracy, his defense of Israel and Jews worldwide, 

show that one individual truly can make a difference in this 

world. 

Last fall, he and Annette asked me to lead the Congressional Taskforce on Anti-Semitism, which is a project that 

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they started together as Holocaust survivors. Now, as we 

continue our fight against anti-Semitism throughout the 

world, his memory will carry on in everything that we do. 

Congress and the Nation have lost an important voice. But 

that voice will continue to inspire America and people 

throughout the world. 

Ms. DEGETTE. Madam Speaker, Representative TOM LANTOS (D–CA) was the personification of America at her best. 

During his nearly 28 years in office, TOM was a champion for 

human rights and social justice around the world. As chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and cofounder 

of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, TOM was dedicated to securing the freedom and liberty he treasured for all 

people. 

Born in Budapest, Hungary, TOM was a member of the 

anti-Nazi resistance movement and escaped Nazi labor 

camps twice. The war took most of his family and with the 

help of a brave Hungarian diplomat, he and his wife, Annette, arrived in America penniless with little aside from 

painful memories of the war, and an unparalleled determination to prevent the repetition of the atrocities he had seen. 

After winning election to the House in 1980, TOM quickly 

showed himself to he an undisputed authority on foreign policy. His eloquence and passion made him a natural leader as 

he forged alliances where no one else could. In accord with 

his commitment to human rights, he was one of the first to 

sound the alarm on the ethnic killings in Darfur. And he was 

one of five Members of Congress arrested for protesting outside the Sudanese Embassy. 

Representative TOM LANTOS is survived by his wife of 

nearly 58 years, their 2 daughters and 18 grandchildren. His 

daughter Annette and her beautiful family are constituents 

of mine as well as personal friends. My condolences go out 

to her, TOM’s other daughter, Katrina, and his beautiful wife, 

Annette. TOM LANTOS will he remembered for his courage, 

inspiration, and compassion. TOM, we all loved and respected 

you. We will continue your ceaseless fight to keep America 

true to her conscience. 

Mr. WOLF. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the 

memory of Congressman TOM LANTOS, our beloved friend 

and colleague, who passed away on Monday morning from 

esophageal cancer. 

Believers in human rights and oppressed peoples around 

the world have suffered a terrible blow with the loss of TOM

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LANTOS. He was a tireless champion for those suffering oppression, violence, and discrimination, and the world is quite 

simply a more painful place with his passing. Every time a 

human rights issue came up on the House floor, TOM was always there, speaking out for the voiceless. 

TOM’s experiences escaping Nazi concentration camps 

twice as a teenager and losing most of his immediate family 

in the carnage of the Holocaust cultivated in him a unique 

sensitivity to suffering. His compassion and willingness to 

stand up for what is right was a constant inspiration to me, 

both in our work in the House of Representatives and in our 

cochairmanship of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus. 

He was a hero in the eyes of so many, and his loss will be 

felt acutely by all of us. 

I extend my most sincere condolences to TOM’s family, and 

I encourage my colleagues to take up the torch with which 

TOM illuminated the world’s darkest corners. 

Ms. ESHOO. Madam Speaker, I rise today with great sadness to pay tribute to my colleague, my neighbor, and my 

friend, Congressman TOM LANTOS. 

For nearly three decades TOM LANTOS has been an eloquent voice for the voiceless here and around the world. 

With his passing, our country has lost a great champion for 

human rights. His dedication to his fellow human beings was 

rooted in having survived the Holocaust. His story of survival and escape from Nazi forced labor camps in Hungary 

during the Second World War is inspirational, but it was the 

memory of those, including his mother, whom he lost, that 

motivated him in his extraordinary career of public service. 

TOM LANTOS’ story was also the story of an immigrant. He 

said he was an American by choice. Coming to the United 

States through an academic scholarship, he worked hard and 

made the most of the opportunities that only America can 

offer. He earned degrees from the University of Washington 

and the University of California, Berkeley, and taught economics for 30 years before running for Congress in 1980, 

winning against a Republican incumbent in a Republican 

year. 

As a Member of Congress, TOM LANTOS raised the profile 

of human rights in every corner of the world from China to 

Tibet and from Sudan to Burma. One of the first things he 

did when he came to Congress was to found the Congressional Human Rights Caucus in 1983. As the only ArmenianAmerican serving in the House, I’m especially grateful for 

TOM’s leadership as chairman of the House Foreign Affairs 

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Committee last year when he worked to secure the passage 

of legislation recognizing, at long last, the Armenian genocide of 1915. His voice in the face of strong opposition from 

many fronts helped secure the passage of this resolution 

through the committee. 

Although Congressman LANTOS’ expertise was in world affairs, he took care of his constituents in California’s 12th 

Congressional District. For 15 years I’ve had the privilege to 

serve with him, representing one of the most remarkable 

areas of our country. We worked together on efforts to preserve our local environment and improve transportation. 

Congressman LANTOS’ efforts are clearly visible throughout his congressional district. He worked to expand BART 

service at San Francisco International Airport and to create 

a water ferry service from San Mateo County to San Francisco. He led the effort to acquire Rancho Corral de Tierra 

for the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, and we 

worked together to fund a visitor’s center for the Gulf of the 

Farallones National Marine Sanctuary at the Fitzgerald Marine Center. 

More important than the legacy of his work is the legacy 

of his family, especially the love of his life, his wife Annette; 

his daughters Annette and Katrina; and his 18 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren. They always represented 

the greatest achievements of his great life. 

America was blessed by the life of Congressman TOM LANTOS. May he rest in the peace that he worked so hard to 

bring to others during his entire life. 

Mr. BAIRD. Madam Speaker, I wish to share the perspectives of former Congressman Don Bonker on his distinguished colleague during his service in the House, the Honorable TOM LANTOS. 

TOM LANTOS was an extraordinary person in so many respects. The only 

Member of Congress to survive the Holocaust, his passionate commitment 

to human rights, a widely respected authority on foreign policy, and one 

who worked closely with every administration, regardless of party, and 

world leaders to insure that democracy, not tyranny, reign in our lifetime. 

There was also the extraordinary personal side of TOM LANTOS. His confinement and courageous escape from a Nazi-operated forced labor camp in 

Szob, Hungary, led to his receiving help from the Swedish diplomat Raoul 

Wallenberg, who gave him safety in his Budapest apartment and eventual 

freedom and relocation to the United States. 

Mysteriously, Raoul Wallenberg disappeared behind the Soviet Union, 

never to be heard from again. But TOM and his wife, Annette, never forgot 

the man who saved their lives, and the 40,000 others whose lives were 

spared because Raoul Wallenberg, at high personal risk, issued fake passports that enabled them to leave the country. 

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I first met TOM LANTOS before he came to Congress in 1978. As chairman 

of the Subcommittee on Human Rights, it was suggested I talk to Annette 

Lantos about the fate of Raoul Wallenberg. Both Annette and TOM gave eloquent testimony before my subcommittee. Later, TOM LANTOS wrote and 

passed resolutions and had a statue placed in the U.S. Capitol honoring 

Raoul Wallenberg. The teenagers from Budapest have spent a lifetime honoring the man who saved their lives. 

For many years, I traveled with the LANTOS’ all over Europe, including, 

to Russia, Romania and Hungary. They were committed first and foremost 

to the cause of human rights and strengthening democracies, especially in 

the countries of the former Soviet Union. There was no more eloquent voice 

or effective champion on these issues than TOM and Annette Lantos, a true 

legacy that will endure for generations to come. 

There is another LANTOS legacy. As a parent of 2 daughters, he took great 

pride in their 18 incredible grandchildren, all of whom are fulfilling the 

highest expectations of their grandfather. Every year the Lantos Christmas 

card displayed a growing family of beautiful and gifted children who obviously gave them considerable pride and joy. 

In the Congress, TOM LANTOS had no peers. He was respected by leaders 

of both political parties and the undisputed authority on foreign policy. Most 

newly elected Congressmen avoid the Foreign Affairs Committee because 

there is little that can help in their constituencies, but for TOM LANTOS it 

was always about foreign relations. Indeed he ranks, alongside Lee Hamilton, as one of the two finest chairmen who ever presided over the House 

Foreign Affairs Committee. 

For those who had the privilege of knowing TOM LANTOS, there is even 

more legacy. His eloquence and charm, personal loyalty to family and 

friends, his diplomatic grace in meeting world leaders, left one with the impression of being near a truly great leader and genuine statesman of the 

world. It was a privilege to have known TOM LANTOS. 

Ms. WOOLSEY. Madam Speaker, for almost three decades 

TOM LANTOS was been a passionate voice in the U.S. Congress, and a tireless advocate for human rights around the 

world. Chairman LANTOS’ commitment to human rights was 

forged by his own life’s experience, by the violence and tragedy that he saw as a young man in Hungary. His commitment to issues such as ending the genocide in Darfur will be 

remembered by all those who have served with him throughout his long career in public service. 

The Bay Area, and the Foreign Affairs Committee, will 

sincerely miss his passion and dedication, and his unrelenting commitment to not only helping those in need, but making sure that respect for human rights is at the forefront of 

our Nation’s foreign policy. My heart goes out to Annette, his 

partner for almost 60 years, as well as his 2 daughters, his 

grandchildren, and his great-grandchildren. 

Mr. RAHALL. Madam Speaker, I rise today to offer my 

deepest condolences on the passing of Congressman TOM

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[ 48 ] 

LANTOS, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee 

and my respected colleague from California. 

As news spread on Monday of Chairman LANTOS’ passing 

at age 80 due to complications from cancer, a great sadness 

resonated throughout the House of Representatives and all 

of Washington. This House, the Nation, and especially the 

people of California have lost a great champion for human 

rights, a very personal cause of Representative LANTOS. He 

was the only Holocaust survivor to ever be elected to Congress and his own experiences enlightened his service and 

enriched his service in this body. 

Throughout his 14 terms in the House of Representatives, 

Representative LANTOS conducted himself with dignity, 

grace, and a passion for human rights. As cochairman and 

founder of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, a group 

that highlights human rights violations worldwide, he was 

able to provide a platform and a voice for persecuted peoples 

around the globe. 

My thoughts and prayers go out to Representative LANTOS’ 

wife Annette, their 2 daughters, their 18 grandchildren, and 

2 great-grandchildren in their time of mourning. It was an 

honor and a privilege to serve with TOM LANTOS these last 

27 years in the House of Representatives. I know that he 

will be remembered in the hearts of his family and friends 

for all the love and support he has given to them and so 

many others throughout the years. 

Mr. SHULER. Madam Speaker, I rise today to celebrate 

the life of a great friend and statesman, Congressman TOM

LANTOS. My prayers are with his family and friends during 

this time of mourning. 

Upon my arrival to Congress, Representative LANTOS personally invited me to his office to welcome me to this body. 

I appreciated his kind words and encouragement as I started 

my work here. Since that time Congressman LANTOS has 

been a wonderful friend of mine and will forever be a source 

of great inspiration in my professional and personal life. 

Congressman LANTOS’ early life experiences as a Holocaust 

survivor and as part of the resistance movement against the 

Nazis shaped his future work as a husband, father, academic, and public servant. At the young age of 16, Mr. LANTOS and his family were taken to fascist forced labor camps. 

After escaping twice, Mr. LANTOS sought refuge in a Jewish 

safehouse in Budapest run by humanitarian Raoul 

Wallenberg. After the war ended, he returned to the capital 

of Budapest in search of his family, only to discover that 

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[ 49 ] 

they had all perished at Auschwitz and other death camps. 

He reconnected with a childhood friend, Annette, to whom he 

was married for almost 58 years. 

Congressman LANTOS has been a champion for human 

rights, social justice, and civil liberties during his 27 years 

in Congress. Congressman LANTOS’ dedication to serving his 

constituents and this Nation will not be forgotten. His life 

will be remembered as one of courage, selflessness, and tireless dedication to his principles. 

My thoughts and prayers go out to Congressman LANTOS’ 

wife Annette, his 2 children, 18 grandchildren, and 2 greatgrandchildren. I ask my colleagues to join me in solemn remembrance of this great public servant. 

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I rise to join my colleagues in expressing profound sorrow at the passing of our 

good friend, TOM LANTOS. 

TOM was neither an ordinary American nor an ordinary 

Member of Congress. His personal experience as a Holocaust 

survivor—and the only survivor ever to be elected to Congress—defined his work in the House of Representatives. He 

bestowed on all of us a unique perspective that we both 

needed and relied on. 

As the founding cochair of the Congressional Human 

Rights Caucus, TOM was known to all of us here and 

throughout the country as the conscience of the Congress. 

From the genocide in Darfur, to the human rights crisis in 

Burma, to the global AIDS epidemic, to modern-day slavery 

and human trafficking, TOM persevered on behalf of the 

world’s most forsaken and most forgotten. 

It was an honor to serve with TOM on the Oversight and 

Government Reform Committee and Human Rights Caucus. 

His contributions to Congress, to our democracy, and to the 

disenfranchised and dispossessed around the world will remain with us always. 

On a personal note, Janet and I will never forget TOM and 

Annette’s love for one another and their complete devotion to 

their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. We 

are certain the love of the Lantos family and the reflections 

in the days ahead on TOM’s extraordinary life will carry 

them through this very sad time. 

Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Madam Speaker, I rise today to 

mourn the loss of my friend and colleague TOM LANTOS. 

Chairman LANTOS’ passing is a devastating loss both for the 

U.S. Congress and for the Nation. 

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Chairman LANTOS was a man of unwavering principle and 

commitment who worked tirelessly to improve the lives of 

people here at home and around the world. He combined an 

intense knowledge of the world with an equally intense passion for the rights and security of individuals. TOM LANTOS’ 

elegance and eloquence were examples to all of us of how to 

conduct ourselves as Members of Congress. In my years serving in the House, I often looked to him as an example of how 

to treat our colleagues with courtesy. His respect for this institution was profound. 

As the only Holocaust survivor ever to have served in Congress, he had an unfaltering commitment to the promotion of 

human rights. Having survived one of the darkest chapters 

in the history of the world, he became a champion for oppressed people everywhere, in every corner of the globe. And 

as a fellow Jewish Member of Congress, I have been proud 

to work with Chairman LANTOS to defend Israel’s right to 

exist and to join him in his lifelong fight against antiSemitism. 

One of my fondest memories of TOM was working with him 

to help Congregation Hakafa in Glencoe, IL, transport their 

Torah to its original home in the Czech Republic in 2005. 

The citizens of Los ̆tice, the small town that was the home of 

the Torah, gathered to celebrate the Torah’s return when it 

was placed in the ark for the first time since the late 1930s. 

It was a beautiful moment that connected Jews and nonJews across continents and it would not have been possible 

without Chairman LANTOS’ devoted work. 

Chairman LANTOS was a proud public servant who selflessly served his constituents in California’s 12th District for 

nearly 30 years, and I know his loss will be felt deeply in his 

district, in California, and throughout the world. 

I would like to offer my deep condolences to TOM’s wife of 

58 years, Annette; to his 2 daughters, Annette and Katrina; 

and to his 18 grandchildren and his great-grandchildren, 

who were by his bedside when he passed. The Lantos family, 

I know, was to TOM his greatest accomplishment. While I 

know no words can take away the pain of his loss, I hope 

that the tributes that are pouring in from around the world 

provide some consolation at this difficult time. 

Mr. BERMAN. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance 

of my time and thank my colleagues. 

The SPEAKER pro tempore. All time for debate has expired. 

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Without objection, the previous question is ordered. 

There was no objection. 

The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the resolution. 

The resolution was agreed to. 

A motion to reconsider was laid on the table. 

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. Mr. Speaker, I 

move that the House do now adjourn. 

The motion was agreed to; accordingly (at 9 o’clock and 36 

minutes p.m.), pursuant to House Resolution 975, the House 

adjourned until tomorrow, Wednesday, February 13, 2008, at 

10 a.m., as a further mark of respect to the memory of the 

late Honorable TOM LANTOS. 

WEDNESDAY, February 13, 2008 

Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, this Nation lost a great American this week. U.S. Congressman TOM LANTOS passed at the 

age of 80. Last night on this floor, there was an hour of bipartisan agreement of what this man meant to this country 

and how much we’ve lost. There will be a memorial service 

tomorrow under the Capitol rotunda. 

TOM LANTOS was a Holocaust survivor who escaped from 

the Nazis twice and survived. He helped Jewish people survive the Holocaust through the good deeds of Raoul 

Wallenberg, and he remembered that. He was a leader in 

this Congress and this Nation on human rights and civil 

rights, animal welfare rights, all living creatures. 

Mr. Speaker, as a freshman Member of Congress, I was befriended by TOM LANTOS, who told me to call him ‘‘TOM,’’ 

which was difficult to do. He was such a giant of a man. 

There are great opportunities to speak out on policy in this 

body and to serve in the greatest deliberative body in the 

world, but there are human stories, too. 

In my opinion, there are two saints that are Members or 

have been Members during this term that I have served. One 

is Congressman LANTOS, and one is Congressman Lewis. 

They have overcome great adversity to go to great heights. 

I think this country owes a debt of gratitude to the Lantos 

family for his work. He will be sorely missed. I was fortunate 

to serve with him and to be able to call him a friend. 

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THURSDAY, February 14, 2008 

Mr. BLUNT. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for 

yielding. . . . I was at the memorial service, as many of you 

were. I was privileged to be there. Frankly, there are very 

few Members of Congress, in the history of the Congress, 

that could have, on the very short notice that we would have 

this sad service today, would have the Foreign Minister of 

Israel, the Secretary of State, the head of the United Nations, the Speaker of the House present. It was an impressive service . . . 

Mr. HOYER. . . . All of us, however, share what has been 

said about TOM LANTOS, for whom we had the greatest respect, and we all share a sadness at his loss. . . . 

Mr. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART of Florida. . . . I simply end 

remembering a friend who everyone in this room can agree 

enriched our lives. My son mentioned the other day this 

week when we were talking about the sad news, ‘‘Dad, do 

you remember when I was a little kid and you wanted me 

to get my posture up, what you would tell me? I will never 

forget,’’ he told me. ‘‘LANTOS.’’ Your posture. That is one of 

the first things that impressed me about TOM LANTOS, even 

before I learned about his zealous extraordinary commitment 

to the oppressed everywhere where people are still longing to 

be free. 

So let us all then end this recollection . . . remembering 

someone who we can all agree was extraordinary, enriched 

our lives, and was a great Member of Congress and a great 

American. Thank you all very much. 

FRIDAY, February 15, 2008 

PRAYER 

The Chaplain, the Reverend Daniel P. Coughlin, offered 

the following prayer: 

Lord God, creator of the universe, we bless You and we 

praise You for all the blessings showered upon this Nation. 

Yesterday, with sacred words from the Hebrew Scriptures, 

memorable songs, and beautiful expressions of memory and 

thanksgiving, this Congress celebrated the life, love, and illustrious service of the Honorable TOM LANTOS. May You 

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who create harmony in the heavens bring peace to all who 

mourn now. 

His passing is a great loss to this body and the Nation because of his strong leadership and his ability to create faithful and lasting friendships both as a statesman and a champion for human rights. Lord, may Your people from all across 

this Nation and from around the world continue to console 

his wife, Annette, and his family, staff, and friends, with 

their prayers, affection, and sympathy. 

Lord, because the Honorable TOM LANTOS lived a great 

American story, he will inspire many. May You, our provident God, empower many more to draw upon his great legacy and work for securing human rights and human dignity 

for every person everywhere here on Earth both now and forever. Amen. 

MONDAY, February 25, 2008 

Mr. MCGOVERN. Madam Speaker, this House lost one of 

its finest Members with the passing of TOM LANTOS. He was 

a dear friend, who taught me a great deal about human 

rights and a life dedicated to service, and I will miss him. 

One of my favorite memories of our service together is the 

day I was arrested alongside TOM in front of the Sudanese 

Embassy in Washington, DC, protesting the continuing genocide in Darfur. 

I would like to bring to the attention of my colleagues an 

article from the February 22, 2008 edition of the Boston Herald that urges everyone to emulate TOM’s legacy of service 

and devotion to human rights. Written by Anthony 

Barsamian with the Armenian Assembly of America and Michael Ross, the son of a Holocaust survivor, it expresses 

what we all feel about TOM’s commitment to ending man’s 

inhumanity to man. 

[From the Boston Herald, February 22, 2008] 

TOM LANTOS PASSES HUMANITY’S TORCH

(By Anthony Barsamian and Michael Ross) 

Humanity lost one of its greatest voices this month. No one lived up to 

the promise of the words ‘‘never again’’ better than Rep. TOM LANTOS. As 

the only Holocaust survivor to have served in Congress, he dedicated his career to working on behalf of others. 

Those who survive genocide live with complexities that few can understand—post-traumatic stress, feelings of guilt for having survived, a victim 

of man’s most diabolical incarnation, a witness to history—to name a few. 

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On the one hand, a survivor must rectify his tragic past while on another, 

he must make sense of a stunted future. With great strength and determination, survivors and their families move forward and rebuild their lives, 

for a second time. 

To start a life anew is difficult enough. To do so as a U.S. congressman 

is nothing short of miraculous. Only in America—as LANTOS would say. 

For Holocaust survivors and their families, LANTOS was a source of pride. 

For those who searched for a voice of justice, in him they found their greatest friend. 

TOM LANTOS spoke out against genocide in Darfur, at one point being arrested for protesting outside the Sudanese Embassy along with four other 

Democratic lawmakers, including Bay State Reps. Jim McGovern and John 

Olver. 

One of his final acts was a resolution that would recognize the slaughter 

of innocent Armenians for what it was—genocide. As chairman of the House 

Foreign Affairs Committee, LANTOS refused to be part of a campaign of denial and looked beyond the politics of convenience by passing the resolution. 

During a PBS interview last October, LANTOS said, ‘‘This is one of those 

events which has to be settled once and for all: 1.5 million utterly innocent 

Armenian men, women and children were slaughtered. And the Turkish 

government, until now, has intimidated the Congress of the United States 

from taking this measure. I think it’s important, at a time when genocides 

are going on in Darfur and elsewhere, not to be an accomplice in sweeping 

an important genocide under the rug.’’ 

The resolution has yet to be acted upon by the entire House—something, 

no doubt, LANTOS, would want. 

LANTOS understood what it meant to stand up for his fellow man, much 

in the same way someone helped him when he needed it. An otherwise ordinary bureaucrat, Raoul Wallenberg, chose to become an extraordinary person when, over the course of his diplomatic career, he found a way to save 

100,000 Hungarian Jews. LANTOS was among them. 

As people who have inherited a legacy from our families, we have an obligation to recognize man’s inhumanity to man regardless of whether it is 

convenient to do so. We have an obligation to properly recognize an injustice 

by its name, regardless of the political discomfort or cost. And, like LANTOS, 

we have an obligation to live by the words ‘‘never again’’ and to remind the 

world when those ominous words are back in play. 

In TOM LANTOS’s passing we lost the sentinel on humanity’s gate. We owe 

it to those he protected to speak the truth, no matter the cost. 

TUESDAY, February 26, 2008 

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS, ETC. 

Under clause 8 of rule XII, executive communications were 

taken from the Speaker’s table and referred as follows: . . . 

5484. A letter from the Assistant Secretary for Legislative Affairs, Department of State, transmitting the enclosed correspondence from the Prime 

Minister of Kosovo Hashim Thaci and the Speaker of the Parliament of AlVerDate Aug 31 2005 11:07 Jul 02, 2008 Jkt 040700 PO 00000 Frm 00066 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 C:\DOCS\LANTOS\LANTOS3.BST CRS1 PsN: SKAYNE
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bania Jozefina Topalli expressing their condolences on the passing of Chairman TOM LANTOS; to the Committee on Foreign Affairs. 

WEDNESDAY, February 27, 2008 

Mr. THOMPSON of California. Madam Speaker, I extend 

my deepest regrets for the passing of Congressman TOM

LANTOS. His death is an enormous loss to Congress and our 

Nation. I always deeply admired his unwavering commitment to human rights. In this area, he believed our Nation 

could reach a higher standard, and we are all better off because of it. 

Madam Speaker, I first met Congressman LANTOS when I 

was an aide in California’s 19th Assembly District. I had a 

high regard for him then and am honored that I was able to 

serve with him in Congress. My sincerest condolences go to 

his wife Annette, his 2 daughters, Annette and Katrina, his 

18 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren. 

Mr. ENGEL. Madam Speaker, I insert in the Congressional Record a statement by former Deputy Secretary of the 

Treasury Stuart Eizenstat in honor of our late Chairman 

TOM LANTOS. 

STATEMENT OF STUART EIZENSTAT

I first met TOM LANTOS during the 1976 Jimmy Carter Presidential campaign for which I served as policy director, when TOM took a leave of absence from his teaching position in California to volunteer with the campaign. He was a great asset in helping develop our foreign policy, particularly on the Middle East. His brilliance, his intellectual integrity, and honesty made an immediate impression on me. 

His Holocaust experience, as a Holocaust survivor, created an indelible 

link between us. From our first meeting in 1976 throughout his public career, he was a passionate and unwavering supporter of Israel and the need 

for peace between Israel and its Arab neighbors. He saw Israel as a Jewish 

state created out of the ashes of the Holocaust and the best guarantor 

against threats to the Jewish people. During the Clinton administration, in 

which I held a number of senior positions including Special Representative 

of the President and Secretary of State on Holocaust-Era Issues, no Member 

of Congress was a stronger supporter of my efforts on behalf of the administration to bring justice to survivors of the Holocaust and to the families of 

its victims. 

TOM was also one of the earliest and strongest supporters in Congress for 

freedom for Jews in the then-Soviet Union. 

His Holocaust experience was reflected in a number of additional activities. He was one of the strongest supporters of the United States Holocaust 

Memorial Museum, which we created with bipartisan support at the end of 

the Carter administration. He was personally responsible for naming the 

street on which the museum sits as Raoul Wallenberg Place, named after 

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the person who saved his life and his wife Annette’s, following the Nazi occupation of their native Hungary in 1944. He never forgot what Raoul 

Wallenberg had done for them and for thousands of other Jews, and was 

an indefatigable champion of trying to get the Soviet Union and later Russia 

to provide an honest accounting of the circumstances around Wallenberg’s 

death. 

His Holocaust experience also taught him the importance of human rights 

around the world. He was the founder and cochairman of the Congressional 

Human Rights Caucus, shining a spotlight on human rights violations 

around the world, most recently in Darfur. 

TOM’s legacy of support for human rights, his strong opposition to regimes 

which threaten western values, the numerous actions he took to strengthen 

U.S.-Israel relations mark TOM LANTOS as one of the most influential and 

important Members of Congress in our generation. He was a dear friend and 

a great and good man. 

TUESDAY, March 11, 2008 

Mr. HASTINGS of Florida. . . . Madam Speaker, this resolution on the floor is the culmination of longstanding efforts 

I have made with Representative Wexler, who is chairman 

of the Subcommittee on Europe; Representative Ileana RosLehtinen, the ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs 

Committee; Representative Mark Kirk; and many others to 

open the largest closed Holocaust-era archive in the world 

and release critical Holocaust records. 

As I stand today in support of a resolution making this 

significant event in Holocaust history, I cannot help but reflect on the longstanding life and career of a true champion 

of human rights and Holocaust issues, the former chairman 

of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the first and 

only Holocaust survivor Member of Congress, Representative 

TOM LANTOS. 

These archives will forever contribute to the world’s collective memory of the Holocaust atrocities experienced and the 

immense bravery exhibited by Representative LANTOS and 

his wife and other survivors who are no longer with us 

today. . . . 

FRIDAY, March 14, 2008 

Mr. BONNER. Madam Speaker, it is with great sadness 

that I rise today to honor the memory of the late Congressman TOM LANTOS and his devotion to battling genocide and 

aiding its victims. We have not only lost a wonderful friend 

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but an individual who, during his lifetime, made countless 

contributions toward the betterment of our Nation, and indeed, the world. 

At the age of 16, TOM was taken by the Nazis as they 

stormed through Budapest in 1944. After two escapes from 

the Nazi work camps, he found refuge in a safehouse and 

began working to help other Jews in hiding by gathering 

food and supplies. 

Upon moving to the United States in 1947, TOM LANTOS

served in various capacities as an educator, consultant, and 

political advisor to several Senators. In 1983, only 3 years 

after being elected to Congress, Congressman LANTOS helped 

to found the Congressional Human Rights Caucus. During 

his final year of service to the House of Representatives, he 

served as the distinguished chairman of the Foreign Affairs 

Committee. 

Chairman LANTOS represented California’s 12th Congressional District for 27 years in the House of Representatives 

and will be remembered as a champion of human rights. 

We are privileged to have known and worked with such a 

passionate and loyal individual. Chairman LANTOS will be 

greatly missed and always remembered. Madam Speaker, I 

ask my colleagues to join me in remembering a dedicated 

public servant. 

He will be deeply missed by his family—his wife, Annette, 

their 2 daughters, Annette and Katrina, 18 grandchildren 

and 2 great-grandchildren—as well as the countless friends 

he leaves behind. Our thoughts and prayers are with them 

all at this difficult time. 

TUESDAY, April 1, 2008 

Mr. NADLER. I thank the gentleman for yielding. 

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution 

which I introduced, along with Representatives RosLehtinen, Crowley and Ferguson. I am proud to stand alongside of them, as well as Chairman Berman and Representative Ackerman, who have been strong leaders on the issue of 

Jewish refugees from Arab lands, in this historic moment of 

recognition of these refugees. 

I would also like to take a moment to commend the leadership of our late chairman, TOM LANTOS, whose leadership on 

this issue and on all human rights issues has been critical 

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to opening this debate and to recognizing the rights of refugees throughout the world. . . . 

WEDNESDAY, April 2, 2008 

H.R. 5501, TOM LANTOS AND HENRY J. HYDE UNITED STATES 

GLOBAL LEADERSHIP AGAINST HIV/AIDS, TUBERCULOSIS, AND 

MALARIA REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2008 

Mr. MCGOVERN. . . . Mr. Speaker, all Members of this 

House should be very proud of the bipartisan collaboration 

and careful compromises that have resulted in the underlying bill before us today, H.R. 5501, the Tom Lantos and 

Henry J. Hyde United States Global Leadership Against 

HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Reauthorization Act. I 

wish to express my appreciation to the work of the gentleman from New Jersey, Congressman Donald Payne, the 

chairman of the Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health, 

and Subcommittee Ranking Member Chris Smith, as well as 

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman and Ranking Member Ileana Ros-Lehtinen. And, like all 

of my House colleagues on both sides of the aisle, I am grateful that the committee named this bill after the great leaders 

of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Chairmen TOM LANTOS

and Henry Hyde, who guided the original 2003 act into law. 

May the collegial spirit of these two great champions for 

global health guide us all during today’s debate. . . . 

Mr. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART of Florida. . . . I would like 

to thank Chairman Berman and Ranking Member RosLehtinen and Chairman Payne and Ranking Member Smith 

for their marvelous bipartisan, very hard work on this important issue. I also wish to thank them for naming this 

landmark program for two ultimately respected colleagues of 

ours who have recently left us, Henry Hyde and TOM LANTOS. This is truly a fitting tribute for two remarkable human 

beings and public servants. . . . 

Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. . . . I urge all of my colleagues to support the rule and to support H.R. 5501, rightly 

named to honor the service of Chairman Hyde and Chairman 

LANTOS. . . . 

Mr. BERMAN. . . . The negotiations that brought forth this 

compromise bill were conducted in the same bipartisan spirit 

that guided the 2003 act into law, a spirit made possible by 

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close cooperation between two former chairmen of the Foreign Affairs Committee, our late colleagues TOM LANTOS and 

Henry Hyde, and I am pleased to note that this important 

reauthorization bill is named for these two foreign policy titans in recognition of their contributions to battling HIV/ 

AIDS overseas. . . . 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. . . . Madam Chairman, I thank my 

good friend, the new chairman of our Foreign Affairs Committee, Howard Berman. He has got a tough act to follow, 

because we all loved TOM LANTOS. . . . 

The foundation of this bill, as Chairman Berman has 

pointed out, is the 2003 Leadership Act, which was the first 

comprehensive U.S. emergency response to the HIV/AIDS 

pandemic and which stands as a noble legacy of our two 

former chairmen, Henry Hyde and TOM LANTOS. They understood, as do all of us, that millions of lives around the world 

depend on our country’s willingness to battle this pandemic 

together. . . . 

Mr. PAYNE. . . . This bill is appropriately named because 

it was under the leadership of the late Henry Hyde, then 

chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, that the 

PEPFAR legislation was originally authorized. And under 

the leadership of the late TOM LANTOS, reauthorization 

began. Both of these tireless giants who have left us should 

be remembered by this legislation. . . . 

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Madam Chairman, I rise in 

strong support of the Tom Lantos and Henry J. Hyde United 

States Global Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, 

and Malaria Reauthorization Act of 2008, an admittedly 

long, but appropriate title for a bill that is long on substance, 

meaningful intervention, tangible compassion, and relief. 

Aptly named for two of the giants of this institution who 

helped shepherd President George W. Bush’s PEPFAR initiative through the Congress in 2003, H.R. 5501 will literally 

mean the difference between life and death to millions, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. . . . 

Mr. ENGEL. . . . Madam Chairman, I’m proud to be an 

original cosponsor of H.R. 5501, the Tom Lantos and Henry 

J. Hyde United States Global Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, 

Tuberculosis, and Malaria Reauthorization Act of 2008, 

named after our dearly departed two great House Foreign 

Affairs Committee chairmen that I had the pleasure of serving under, TOM LANTOS and Henry Hyde. . . . 

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Mr. WELLER of Illinois. Madam Chairman, I rise in 

strong support for the Tom Lantos and Henry J. Hyde 

United States Global Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Reauthorization Act. I want to commend the current leadership of the committee, the bipartisan 

leadership, Mr. Berman and Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, for their 

leadership in moving this legislation to the floor in a bipartisan way. And it’s most appropriate that it be named after 

TOM LANTOS and Henry Hyde, two distinguished chairmen of 

the International and Foreign Relations Committees that 

changed names, but one thing that was in common between 

TOM LANTOS and Henry Hyde was they always worked to ensure that foreign policy should be a bipartisan product and 

a team effort. So, it is so appropriate that they be recognized 

by naming this legislation after them, which reauthorizes 

President Bush’s emergency plans for AIDS relief. . . . 

Ms. LEE. Madam Chairman, I rise in strong support of 

H.R. 5501. 

And let me begin by thanking Chairman Berman, our 

ranking member, Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, our subcommittee chair, 

Mr. Payne, also Chairman Waxman, Mr. Smith, ranking 

member of the subcommittee, and all who have helped to 

make this legislation an amazing piece of legislation. And I 

know that Chairman LANTOS and Chairman Hyde want to 

thank us and are here with us honoring their legacy because 

they would want to see this move forward as it is today. . . . 

So, Madam Chairman, I lay out some of the history of our 

work on this important issue because it speaks volumes 

about what is possible when we come together in the spirit 

of bipartisan compromise as we honor the great legacy of 

both Chairman LANTOS and Chairman Hyde through this 

legislation. Chairman LANTOS, I know, very much wanted to 

reach a bipartisan compromise on this bill, as did Chairman 

Hyde. I’m saddened that both of them are not with us to witness this moment. But I know that they are very pleased 

with what we have put together today. . . . 

Mr. CARNAHAN. Madam Chairman, I am proud to rise in 

support of H.R. 5501, properly named after our former 

Chairmen LANTOS and Hyde, both of whom I had the honor 

to serve under on the Foreign Affairs Committee. . . . 

Mr. CROWLEY. Madam Chairman, I rise in support of the 

bipartisan agreement that will reauthorize PEPFAR for an 

additional 5 years. I want to thank the chair, the new and 

very capable chair of the committee, Howard Berman, as 

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well as my longtime friend, the ranking member, Ms. RosLehtinen, for their crafting of the legislation and in naming 

it the Tom Lantos and Henry Hyde United States Global 

Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria 

Reauthorization Act of 2008. And in so doing, I think it enhances the legacy of both of these fine gentlemen. . . . 

Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Madam Chairman, there’s a 

terminology that we use to describe joyous occasions. Sometimes it describes freedom. The Fisk Singers in Tennessee 

were called the Jubilee Singers, and it was because they organized around slavery and after slavery and the ability to 

be free with jubilation, and, therefore, they were called the 

Jubilee Singers. 

I think today is a day of jubilation, and it certainly is a 

time to express the jubilation that we feel with the passage, 

or the intended passage, of this legislation. 

Let me thank the chairman of the subcommittee, Mr. 

Payne, for persistence and determination and wisdom. Let 

me also acknowledge his ranking member, Mr. Smith; and, 

of course, our chairman, Mr. Berman; and the ranking member of the full committee, Ms. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen for working with us. 

But I do want to spend some time acknowledging that we 

have named this bill after the late former chairmen TOM

LANTOS and Henry J. Hyde. That is a jubilation. It is something to express great excitement about because these two 

distinct figures, in many instances with common views but 

many instances different views, came together around this 

lifesaving legislation, Global Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, 

Tuberculosis, and Malaria. And it is particularly important 

because we have added malaria and tuberculosis as an element that is not a partner but results thereof and/or stands 

alone, but all of them kill. . . . 

Ms. PELOSI. . . . I am so pleased that the bill is named for 

Congressman Chairman LANTOS, our friend who left us earlier this year, and Congressman Hyde before that, because 

they were the original authors of the first historic President’s 

emergency plan for AIDS relief legislation in 2003. . . . 

Mr. SIRES. . . . I believe H.R. 5501 provides needed funding and support to transition the very successful PEPFAR 

program, and I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this 

bill. Finally, I can think of no better way to honor our late 

chairman, TOM LANTOS, and his predecessor, Henry Hyde, by 

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ration to so many and spent his entire life fighting for those 

around the world that were less fortunate. His memory will 

live on through his wife, family, and the lives of those who 

are saved with this vital legislation. 

Mrs. TAUSCHER. . . . I also want to recognize and commemorate the leadership of our dear friend, Congressman 

TOM LANTOS, whose commitment to the most vulnerable people worldwide continues to be felt through our work on HIV/ 

AIDS. I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 5501. 

Mr. VAN HOLLEN. . . . Madam Chairman, let us honor the 

spirit of the two men—Chairmen LANTOS and Hyde—who 

guided the 2003 law through this body in bipartisan manner 

by passing this much-needed legislation to combat these 

deadly diseases. 

Mr. BLUMENAUER. . . . This direct amendment [amendment no. 1] would add safe drinking water to nutrition and 

income security on the list of programs for which direct linkages are encouraged. This is an important tribute to our late 

colleagues, Chairman LANTOS and Chairman Hyde, who 

were so instrumental in the enactment of our Water for the 

Poor Act. Their insights to provide safe drinking is an important component of developmental sectors from health to the 

environment. To include safe drinking water in legislation 

through which we honor their memories is a small testament 

to their lasting legacies. . . . 

As I say, I can think of no more fitting tribute to our predecessors as chairs of the committee, Congressman Hyde and 

Congressman LANTOS, who worked so hard to advance this 

cause. I urge adoption of this amendment. . . . 

Mr. FORTENBERRY. . . . Madam Chairman, as a member 

of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health, I have been involved 

extensively in the issues before us today. I really do appreciate the bipartisan cooperation that has guided this process, 

particularly by Chairman Berman and our ranking member, 

Ms. Ros-Lehtinen. Thank you. This bill is appropriately 

named for two giants of this institution, TOM LANTOS and 

Henry Hyde. . . . 

Ms. MCCOLLUM of Minnesota. . . . I also had the honor of 

serving on the International Relations Committee under the 

leadership of Mr. Hyde and Mr. LANTOS when we passed the 

original PEPFAR legislation. They were both extraordinary 

men and wonderful mentors to me. They were compassionate 

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leaders in this House, and it is fitting that we pay tribute 

to their lives and their contributions to this country by passing a bill that will save lives and improve life all around the 

world. I urge my colleagues to support this amendment to be 

included in the bill, and also to support passage of this important bill. . . . 

Mr. CARSON of Indiana. . . . Madam Chairman, before I 

close, I want to acknowledge and salute the two men this 

piece of legislation is named after, Congressmen TOM LANTOS and Henry Hyde. I didn’t get a chance to work with 

them in this body, but I cannot think of a better way to 

honor their service in this great institution. . . . 

Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Chairman, I rise today to urge my 

colleagues to vote in favor of H.R. 5501, the Tom Lantos and 

Henry J. Hyde U.S. Global Leadership against HIV/AIDS, 

Tuberculosis, and Malaria Reauthorization Act. . . . I commend Congressman Berman and Congresswoman RosLehtinen for crafting a bipartisan bill that will save millions 

of lives. It truly honors the legacy of our great colleagues, 

Congressman LANTOS and Congressman Hyde. 

I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this critical legislation. 

TUESDAY, April 8, 2008 

CALLING ON THE GOVERNMENT OF CHINA TO END ITS 

CRACKDOWN IN TIBET 

Mr. MCCOTTER. . . . But at this moment, I am also reminded of someone who is no longer with us, someone from 

whom I learned very much. That man is the late Chairman 

TOM LANTOS, a man who embodied the human spirit in its 

ability to triumph over evil. How many people in this Congress understood the moment when the tanks rolled into Budapest and the Soviets went into Hungary, that that was a 

seminal moment in the cold war, that the Hungarian people’s desire to breathe free could not be quelled by tanks and 

could only be quenched by freedom? Throughout the history 

of the cold war, their example was emulated by others, including the Czechs in 1968, and of course the Poles, and that 

eventually brought down the Soviet Union. . . . 

Ms. PELOSI. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman [Mr. 

Berman] for yielding. I thank him for his leadership on the 

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Foreign Affairs Committee, and Congresswoman Ileana RosLehtinen, the ranking Republican on the committee, for their 

leadership in bringing this resolution to the floor [H. Res. 

1077, calling on the Government of the People’s Republic of 

China to end its crackdown in Tibet]. It isn’t without a tear 

in the eye that we bring this to the floor and remember our 

colleague, Congressman TOM LANTOS, and how important 

this resolution would have been to him. 

Twenty years ago when I was a new Member of Congress, 

TOM invited some of us to a meeting that I will never forget. 

It was with His Holiness the Dalai Lama. At that time the 

Dalai Lama presented to us his proposal for autonomy for 

Tibet. That is over 20 years ago that the Dalai Lama has 

been preaching autonomy, and it is on that basis that we 

wanted him to have the opportunity to have full negotiations 

with the Chinese Government. The leadership of the Chinese 

Government had said if he doesn’t reject the idea of independence, that cannot happen. Well, the Dalai Lama rejected 

independence 20 years ago, much to the dismay of those who 

want independence. 

But, in any event, TOM LANTOS opened the door for many 

of us to meet with His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Twenty 

years later, in the Capitol of the United States, under TOM’s 

leadership and that of Congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen, we 

were able to present to His Holiness the Congressional Gold 

Medal, the highest honor that this body can bestow. I am 

proud to say that President Bush stood there side by side 

with His Holiness presenting our Congressional Gold Medal 

to him. No President before had been so courageous, and I 

appreciate and am proud that President Bush did that. . . . 

I am very proud of this resolution. I couldn’t be prouder 

of all the statements that were made this evening with all 

the passion and interest and history that went with it. I 

think it is a tribute to His Holiness, and I hope the vote tomorrow will be unequivocal about that. I am certain it will. 

I also think that it is a tribute to our friend, TOM LANTOS, 

who had been so faithful to this cause. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Mr. Smith. 

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THURSDAY, April 10, 2008 

Mr. DREIER. . . . I would like to, on behalf of the California GOP delegation, extend hearty congratulations to our 

new colleague [Ms. Speier]. Of course, it is with mixed emotions that we’re here because we are very still thinking 

about the life and the contribution of our colleague TOM LANTOS but very pleased that you are going to be able to work 

in the spirit of bipartisanship that the California delegation 

has pursued for years. . . . 

Ms. SPEIER. . . . Madam Speaker, I didn’t think it was 

possible for a person to be filled with both pride and humility at the same time. But that is exactly how I feel today. 

I am proud to have been chosen by a substantial majority of 

San Francisco and San Mateo County voters. I’m humbled by 

the faith they have placed in me and by the awesome legacy 

this particular seat holds. 

Recently, I was introduced as having been elected to replace TOM LANTOS. I had to laugh. I was elected to succeed 

Congressman LANTOS. No one will ever replace him. . . . 

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Proceedings in the Senate 

MONDAY, February 11, 2008 

Mr. REID. Mr. President, when I was elected to Congress 

in 1982, I had the opportunity to visit over the telephone on 

many occasions with a new Congressman named TOM LANTOS. He was new from California. He was very interested in 

my election. He helped me raise some money for that election, made many phone calls, and reached out to me as a 

friend. So when I came to Washington, I had the opportunity 

to meet him personally. That was the beginning of the development of a real friendship. 

I have traveled with TOM LANTOS overseas. He led delegations. When I was a new Senator, I traveled with him. Senator Daschle led a trip. One of the places we went was to 

Hungary, and we had the opportunity to have TOM LANTOS

show us around Budapest. Why was that important? It was 

important because the Nazis waited until toward the end of 

the war before they moved in to disperse the Jews out of Budapest and Hungary generally. 

He was one of the Jews in Budapest they captured on 

many occasions. He escaped the Nazis on two different occasions. They would capture him; he would get away. He said 

one reason he was able to escape as much as he did was that 

he had long blond hair, and the Nazis didn’t figure he was 

Hungarian. He actually took us to places where he had been 

captured, arrested by the Nazis in Budapest. It was a wonderful time we spent with him for 2 days in Budapest. 

This morning, our country grieves the loss of truly an 

American hero, Congressman TOM LANTOS, chairman of the 

Foreign Affairs Committee in the House of Representatives. 

He was born in Budapest, Hungary. When he was 16 years 

of age, Hitler and the Nazis occupied his country. He and his 

family, like so many other Hungarian Jews, were captured, 

rounded up, beaten, and taken away, sent to labor camps. As 

I have indicated, he was a hard one to stay captured; he got 

away. 

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It was through him I first learned about the struggles that 

people have on a personal, individual basis. He was a man 

who protected his childhood sweetheart Annette at the time. 

They were both saved by the great Swedish diplomat Raoul 

Wallenberg, after whom we have streets named in Washington, DC. He was able to escape many times but not his 

family. All of them were killed. 

All alone, a teenager, with little cause for hope, after the 

war, he moved through displaced persons camps. TOM LANTOS remained optimistic. He refused to give up. He spent a 

couple years wandering around Europe after the war. 

He wrote an essay on President Franklin Roosevelt, and 

because of this essay, he earned an academic scholarship to 

study in the United States. He came on a converted World 

War II troop ship in 1947. He brought with him only one 

possession. It was a large Hungarian salami, but when he 

arrived, it was confiscated by Customs officials. So it is neither a cliche ́ nor an exaggeration to say that TOM LANTOS

came to America with nothing. 

This ‘‘American by choice,’’ as he was fond of calling himself, earned a B.A. and an M.A. degree from the University 

of Washington, Seattle, and a Ph.D. from the University of 

California. Soon after he arrived here, he married his childhood sweetheart, Annette Tillemann. 

For the next three decades, he and Annette lived in the 

San Francisco area. TOM worked as a professor in economics, 

an international affairs analyst, and an economist in many 

different areas, testifying in cases, consulting generally. In 

less than three decades after becoming a U.S. citizen, TOM

LANTOS became a Congressman. He brought to Washington 

remarkable depth of knowledge and intellect and stood out 

as a powerhouse from the day he arrived in Washington. 

As I indicated, I had the honor of serving with him in Congress, but I also served with him on the House Foreign Affairs Committee as it was then called, and, as everyone else, 

I found him blessed with the mind of a scholar and grace of 

a gentleman. TOM LANTOS could deliver a speech. He still 

had the Hungarian accent, but he could bring an audience 

to its feet. He was a great speaker. 

I can recall no one in Congress who did not admire this 

fine man. He and Annette were always there to talk about 

their lives together as kids, teenagers. They had been together 60, 70 years. Raoul Wallenberg was the Swedish diplomat. Because of TOM LANTOS, there is a street named after 

him in Washington, DC, right by the Holocaust Memorial. 

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I can recall no one, Democrat or Republican, who didn’t 

relish the opportunity to work with him. Once TOM LANTOS

said: 

I like to work hard to make this a better country, to provide a just government for our people and make sure we have learned from the past. 

TOM LANTOS did just that—leaving an indelible mark on 

issue after issue from health care, Social Security, to the environment, the budget, foreign affairs, of course, but also his 

love of animals. He had a caucus in the Congress he worked 

on dealing only with animals. He loved animals and wanted 

to make sure they were treated appropriately. 

He cochaired the Congressional Human Rights Caucus 

where he fiercely advocated the spread of liberty throughout 

the world. His convictions were so deeply rooted that he and 

four other Members of Congress were arrested in 2006 for 

protesting the genocide in Darfur at the Sudanese Embassy. 

After years in the minority, Congressman LANTOS finally 

achieved his dream of chairing the House Foreign Affairs 

Committee, but it lasted only 1 year. He was diagnosed 

being sick right before Christmas, the first knowledge he had 

esophageal cancer, and he passed away within the last 24 

hours. 

We were all deeply saddened to hear he was sick. I was 

stunned when I learned he was so sick he would retire to 

fight cancer. The fight did not last long. 

I talked today with Howard Berman, who will replace him 

as chair of that committee. He told me he visited TOM in 

Washington at his house. He said he handled his oncoming 

death the way he handled so many things: with great dignity 

and understanding. 

TOM leaves behind a great family. He has two daughters, 

Annette, the same name as his wife, and Katrina. These are 

two beautiful women, as beautiful on the inside as they are 

on the outside. These 2 daughters gave TOM and Annette 18 

grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren. He doted on those 

grandchildren. A number of us here had him contact us for 

things dealing with his grandchildren, making sure they got 

in the school they were supposed to, jobs he wanted them to 

get. He cared about every one of those 18 grandchildren. 

Landra and I have 16 grandchildren, but we have 5 children. He had 2 daughters with 18 grandchildren. 

The Lantos family is truly in our hearts today. TOM once 

said: 

It is only in the United States that a penniless survivor of the Holocaust 

and a fighter in the anti-Nazi underground could have received an eduVerDate Aug 31 2005 11:07 Jul 02, 2008 Jkt 040700 PO 00000 Frm 00081 Fmt 6688 Sfmt 6688 C:\DOCS\LANTOS\LANTOS3.BST CRS1 PsN: SKAYNE
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cation, raised a family, and had the privilege of serving the last three decades of his life as a Member of Congress. I will never be able to express 

fully my profoundly felt gratitude to this country. 

That is what TOM LANTOS said and he meant every word 

of it. He benefited from the limitless opportunity America affords, but America benefited far more from the service of 

Congressman TOM LANTOS. 

So today we pause to express our profound affection and 

appreciation and gratitude for this wonderful man. Congressman TOM LANTOS was a great American. His spirit will be 

sorely missed and his legacy never forgotten. 

Mr. MCCONNELL. Mr. President, on another subject, I, 

too, want to talk about the passing of our good friend, TOM

LANTOS. It would have been easy to excuse TOM LANTOS for 

turning against the world after the sufferings he endured as 

a young man. But the reason we admire certain people is 

they do not do what we would expect them to do in the face 

of extraordinary trials. They transcend them. And that is 

why a cold wind swept through the Capitol this morning 

when we heard that TOM had passed away. 

America’s history is a history of unlikely success stories, 

but even by American standards, TOM’s was stunning. When 

the Nazis invaded Hungary in the frenzied last months of 

the war, he threw on a cadet’s uniform and secretly funneled 

food and medical supplies to those in hiding. He later said 

he assumed he wouldn’t make it out alive, but he ‘‘wanted 

to be of some use.’’ 

He would add many more years to be of use—not only to 

his beloved wife Annette and their large extended family or 

to the people of California’s 12th District but to suffering and 

oppressed people. His own bitter experiences led him to 

make no distinction at all among those who were denied 

their basic human rights. He would always be grateful for 

the honor of being able to help them. Well into his seventies, 

he said he still got goosebumps looking up at the flag on the 

Capitol on his morning walk to work. 

TOM and I had our differences on domestic issues, but it 

was a great mark of his commitment to human rights that 

he frequently joined Republicans when these rights were at 

stake. He worked with the Republicans to introduce a resolution expressing solidarity with Israel in its fight against terrorism. He worked with the Republicans to get funds to fight 

AIDS around the world. Every year since 2003, he and I 

were the House and Senate sponsors of the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act. 

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We were also united in our strong support for Israel. We 

took leading roles in the House and Senate on the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act. And we were united in our concerns about Iran. TOM introduced the Iran Counterproliferation Act in the House. I cosponsored it in the Senate. 

When TOM was diagnosed with a life-threatening illness 

last December, he responded again in an extraordinary way. 

He responded with gratitude. He said: 

It is only in the United States that a penniless survivor of the Holocaust 

and a fighter in the anti-Nazi underground could have received an education, raised a family, and had the privilege of serving the last three decades of his life as a Member of Congress. 

We know TOM’s decision to retire was especially painful, 

since he had just last year been named chairman of the 

House Committee on Foreign Affairs, a committee he had 

served on for 26 years. It was a position he said he had been 

preparing for his whole life. 

With his distinctive accent, his grace, and his deep learning—he spoke five languages and devoted 6 hours a day to 

reading books and magazines—TOM always gave the impression of being a true gentleman of the House, and he was. But 

he was just as tough. TOM LANTOS accomplished something 

few people do in life: he committed himself to an ideal and 

followed through on it until the end. He gave it everything 

he had, and America admires him for it. 

I want to express Elaine’s and my deepest sympathies to 

Annette. We got to know TOM and Annette on several trips 

abroad, which is a way you make friendships around here, 

both across the aisle and in the other body. Annette and TOM

lived near us here on Capitol Hill. I recall frequently seeing 

Annette out walking the dog. So we grieve for her and their 

daughters and the entire extended Lantos family on their 

loss. 

Mr. President, I yield the floor. 

Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I want to spend a few moments to eulogize our old friend, the chairman of the House 

Foreign Affairs Committee, TOM LANTOS. He has been one of 

my dear friends all these years. I have been here 31 years, 

and he was here 27 years. He and Annette have really been 

wonderful people in Elaine’s and my life. 

Mr. President, this morning began sadly, as the two leaders have said, with the news of the death of Congressman 

TOM LANTOS, one of the giants among the Democrats in the 

House, and, frankly, among all Members of Congress during 

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the last 27 years. Congressman LANTOS had been diagnosed 

with cancer a few months ago, and had recently announced 

he would not run for a 15th term for the 12th District of 

California, which he so ably served since 1981. 

TOM LANTOS led a remarkable life. A Hungarian Jew, he 

lived what he said was a happy childhood until the Hungarian fascist allies of Hitler brought the Holocaust to Hungary. Through most of the war, he was interned in various 

forced labor camps, some from which he escaped, and was at 

least once recaptured, following a beating that he later said, 

‘‘I was pleasantly surprised to survive.’’ 

After a final escape, he spent the remainder of the war in 

hiding, protected, as so many Hungarian Jews were, by 

Raoul Wallenberg, the man who risked his life to protect as 

many of Hungary’s Jews as he could and who vanished into 

the Soviet camps at the end of the war. One of the great 

days of my life was to pay homage to Raoul Wallenberg at 

the monument in Europe. 

Six hundred thousand Hungarian Jews perished in the 

Holocaust, including TOM LANTOS’ family. One of the first 

initiatives of Congressman LANTOS upon coming to the 

House of Representatives in 1981 was to pass legislation 

granting Raoul Wallenberg U.S. citizenship. 

TOM LANTOS was, in his words, ‘‘an American by choice,’’ 

and to know him was to see that every day of his life he embraced the opportunities an immigrant can find in this great 

country. He arrived penniless to this country, as my two colleagues have said. According to his biography, his only possession was a precious Hungarian salami, which was confiscated upon arrival, as my colleagues mentioned. But with 

a scholarship and hard work, he earned a Ph.D. in economics 

and taught at San Francisco’s State University for almost 

three decades, developing, during that time, his credentials 

as a commentator on world affairs. 

TOM LANTOS brought to the House his passionate patriotism and the drive of a survivor. When people would comment 

on the demands of his work, which included regular travel 

to his constituency 3,000 miles away, his global travels as a 

Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, which he 

recently chaired, and the hectic pace of his other congressional assignments, he would be quick to remind us that this 

was nothing in comparison to what he had faced as a young 

man. 

He founded the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, a 

platform which he used to highlight the human rights abuses 

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around the world, and with which he became inextricably associated. For many of us in Congress and for many oppressed 

through the world, Congressman LANTOS was the chairman 

for human rights. 

He was a Democrat who believed in the use of American 

power for good and who understood the nuances of subtle, as 

well as confrontational, diplomacy. 

For example, he kept trying to get a visa to visit Tehran 

because he believed there was always room to talk with enemies as well as friends. But when asked what he would say 

to the dictators in Tehran, he was less than subtle: 

I will tell the Iranians the truth—that it’s a great country and they need 

to be reintegrated into the family of civilized nations and that they must 

give up their lunatic notions. 

Less than subtle, to be sure, but truthful. It is hard to disagree with this view, Mr. President. 

TOM LANTOS also recognized that diplomacy could fail and 

the use of the U.S. military could achieve noble ends. He was 

a strong supporter of the military during the cold war, supported military assistance to Israel, urged President Clinton 

to lead NATO forces against Milosevic’s genocide, and supported our interventions in Iraq, although, to be fair to him, 

he was critical, as many of us have been, about the implementation of our invasion of Iraq. 

The point is, TOM LANTOS represented the wing of the 

Democratic Party that kept central our national security concerns, that recognized our duty in the world, and accepted 

that the use of force is sometimes required. This is the wing 

of the Democratic Party that needs to survive if that party 

is to remain relevant to the events in the world that will continually shape us. 

I am honored to have been a friend of TOM LANTOS for decades. We loved each other. We showed that love repeatedly 

over the years. He was a dear friend, and I want everybody 

to know just how deeply I felt about him. Our staffs worked 

together well, and he always had my admiration and respect. 

I will never forget a tour he gave me and Senators Reid 

and Daschle of the old Jewish ghetto in Budapest when our 

separate codels happened to be in that city at the same time 

in 1996. Later, he gave us a personal tour of the magnificent 

Hungarian Parliament Building. One of the first postCommunist governments was in power, and they so highly 

regarded TOM LANTOS for his heritage, as well as his antiCommunist stance throughout his life, that he was granted 

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free access throughout the building. He even knew where to 

turn the lights on. 

The prayers and thoughts of Elaine and I go out to Annette, his beautiful wife of 58 years, whom he married in 

California, but who, like himself, was a survivor of the Holocaust in Hungary and was actually a childhood sweetheart. 

The fact that they loved each other as long as they have, 

that they came from similar backgrounds, and worked together daily throughout their lives only makes her loss that 

much sadder. 

Our condolences go out to her and their two wonderful 

children. And I believe there are 18 grandchildren. But the 

death of TOM LANTOS is a great loss, as well, to his constituents, to his colleagues in the House, to his party, and to all 

of us in Congress. It is a loss to our great Nation and to all 

those who strive in solidarity for the cause of human rights. 

TOM LANTOS was slight of build, but he was a giant. He 

was a moral force who used the authority of a survivor from 

the Holocaust, of an American immigrant, and of a scholar 

and leader to show the great institution of Congress how it 

can lead in a dangerous and often immoral world. 

Elaine and I loved TOM, we love Annette, and we hope we 

can be of some assistance to Annette and her family as we 

move into the future. But we will miss TOM very badly. 

What a great and noble man who suffered so much for freedom. 

I thank the Chair. 

The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from 

Arizona. 

Mr. KYL. Mr. President, that was a very fine tribute from 

the Senator from Utah to a very fine man. I had the honor 

of serving with TOM LANTOS in the House of Representatives, and I certainly join all others who mourn his death 

today. 

The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from 

California is recognized. 

Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, I had the great pleasure 

of knowing TOM LANTOS as a friend and as a mentor. I have 

known him for many years. I last spoke with him about 3 

weeks ago, maybe 4, and he said he was going to forgo treatment, that he was ready for whatever would come, that he 

and Annette were going to remain in Washington, that he 

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was very content with his medical treatment at Bethesda, 

and he did not believe he would try anything heroic. 

Those of us who know, know cancer of the esophagus is 

devastating and unrelenting. From that point on, I began to 

think quite a bit about TOM LANTOS. I thought back when 

Yahoo! had the confrontation with China and did not stand 

up but gave in to China, and TOM stood on his feet, with 

amazing blue eyes and his gray hair, and said: ‘‘Morally you 

are pygmies.’’ 

He called it as it was. He stood for human rights. After 26 

years in the House, he became chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee. Regretfully, his life ended before he had 

much more time than a year in that position. 

TOM LANTOS represented the district directly to the south 

of my city, San Francisco. He was a wonderful Representative. I watched him over the past 30 years as time went on. 

I watched his 18 grandchildren grow. I remember meeting 

them in the airport in Denver. I do not know whether Members know this; some of them were home schooled, and they 

went to college at the age of 14. That is pretty amazing; all 

high achievers, all very close, a tight family; a wife who was 

his childhood sweetheart. 

This does not often happen. But then if you think back to 

Hungary in those days, and you think back to a young, blueeyed man in the camps, escaping at night, being caught, 

coming back, leaving again, becoming part of Raoul 

Wallenberg’s group, coming to this country, becoming educated and all the greatness of the country opening before 

him. 

He truly measured up to the greatness of America. I was 

very proud to call TOM LANTOS a friend and a mentor. He 

will be missed. He will be missed in his district, he will be 

missed in California, and he will be missed in the United 

States. 

I yield the floor. 

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent 

that the Senate now proceed to the immediate consideration 

of S. Res. 446 submitted earlier today by Senators Reid and 

McConnell. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the resolution by title. 

The legislative clerk read as follows: 

A resolution (S. Res. 446) relative to the death of Representative TOM

LANTOS of California. 

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There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider 

the resolution. 

Mr. DURBIN. I ask unanimous consent to have my name 

added as a cosponsor of the resolution. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. 

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, it was a great honor to serve 

in the U.S. House of Representatives before coming to the 

Senate and, during that time, to serve with TOM LANTOS of 

California. His was an extraordinary story of a man who survived the Holocaust and came to the U.S. Congress representing a district in the State of California, rising to the 

rank of chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee. 

He was as inspiring a speaker as one could ever hear on 

many topics but especially on the Holocaust and the impact 

it had on so many innocent people. He was, more than any 

other person, a leader in acknowledging the bravery and 

courage of Raoul Wallenberg and so many others who resisted the Holocaust and fought to save the poor victims, including many Jewish people. 

TOM LANTOS and his wife Annette traveled across the 

world, speaking on behalf of the United States and developing strong personal relationships with many leaders overseas. He was truly a great representative of the U.S. House 

of Representatives and of the U.S. Government. 

A few weeks ago, we were surprised to learn that he was 

suffering from cancer and announced he would not be running for reelection. I didn’t realize at the time how grave his 

condition was. His passing over the weekend brings a reminder of his service to our country, his service to the State 

of California, and the loss which those of us who counted 

him as a friend will endure in these days of mourning. 

I am happy to join as a cosponsor of this resolution in tribute to Congressman LANTOS. 

I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, 

the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate, and that any statements relating to 

the measure be printed in the Record. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. 

The resolution (S. Res. 446) was agreed to, as follows: 

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S. RES. 446 

Resolved, That the Senate has heard with profound sorrow and deep regret the announcement of the death of the Honorable TOM LANTOS, late a 

Representative from the State of California. 

Resolved, That the Secretary communicate these resolutions to the House 

of Representatives and transmit an enrolled copy thereof to the family of the 

deceased. 

Resolved, That when the Senate adjourns or recesses today, it stand adjourned or recessed as a further mark of respect to the memory of the deceased Representative. 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senate stands in adjournment until 10 a.m. tomorrow, February 12, pursuant to 

S. Res. 446, and does so as a mark of further respect to the 

memory of TOM LANTOS, late a Representative from the 

State of California. 

Thereupon, the Senate, at 10:09 p.m., adjourned until 

Tuesday, February 12, 2008, at 10 a.m. 

TUESDAY, February 12, 2008 

Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, California and the entire Nation lost a remarkable leader yesterday with the passing of 

my friend, Congressman TOM LANTOS. 

From his leadership as chairman of the House Committee 

on Foreign Affairs to his founding of the Congressional 

Human Rights Caucus, Congressman LANTOS went about his 

work with a dignity and a seriousness that transcended politics. In a time of bitter divisions, he earned the respect of 

colleagues from both sides of the aisle. 

As a survivor of the Holocaust, Congressman LANTOS

brought to Congress a profound personal commitment to 

human rights. We will remember not only his courage and 

his optimism, but also his deep affection for his adopted 

country. He leaves behind a legacy of hope and inspiration. 

On a personal level, it was an honor to call TOM a colleague and a friend. I was proud to work with him on so 

many important issues. 

I remember working with him to secure funding to build 

a tunnel to bypass a section of Route 1 that was so frequently closed by landslides that it was known as Devil’s 

Slide. It took years, but they broke ground on the tunnel in 

November. And it is a fitting tribute to the passion with 

which he served his constituents that there is a bill before 

the State Senate to name that tunnel in his honor. 

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Congressman LANTOS was a true statesman, and we will 

miss him. My heart goes out to his family during this time 

of grief. They are in our thoughts and in our prayers. 

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The Honorable 

Tom Lantos 

FEBRUARY 1, 1928–FEBRUARY 11, 2008 

Immediately following today’s memorial service, 

Mrs. Annette Lantos and family will 

receive guests in the Rayburn Room. 

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[ 81 ] 

UNUM

E PLURIBUS

The Honorable 

Tom Lantos 

February 1, 1928–February 11, 2008 

After today’s memorial service, Congressman Tom Lantos 

will be posthumously awarded the Grand 

Cross Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary by 

Hungarian Ambassador to the United States 

Ferenc Somogyi and the wife of Hungarian Prime 

Minister Ferenc Gyurcsa ́ny, Mrs. Kla ́ ra Dobrev. 

This is the highest civilian decoration awarded by the 

Hungarian government. Mrs. Annette Lantos will accept 

this decoration on her husband’s behalf in the Rayburn Room 

immediately following today’s memorial service. 


congress.#15
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[ 83 ] 

UNUM

E PLURIBUS

A CELEBRATION OF THE LIFE OF

The Honorable 

Tom Lantos 

California’s 12th District 

CHAIRMAN, COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS

FEBRUARY 1, 1928–FEBRUARY 11, 2008 

Statuary Hall 

United States Capitol 

Thursday, February 14, 2008 

10:00 a.m. 


congress.#15 40700.004
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‘‘It is only in the United States that a penniless survivor of 

the Holocaust and a fighter in the anti-Nazi underground 

could have received an education, raised a family and had 

the privilege of serving the last three decades of his life as a 

member of Congress. I will never be able to express fully my 

profoundly felt gratitude to this great country.’’ 

—TOM LANTOS

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[ 85 ] 

P R O G R A M 

Prelude 

The United States Army Band String Quartet 

Welcome 

Mr. Tomicah Tillemann, Grandson 

Reading 

Rabbi Arthur Schneier, Psalms 15, 23 and 121 

Tributes 

Mrs. Annette Lantos 

The Honorable Nancy Pelosi, The Speaker of the 

United States House of Representatives 

Mrs. Annette Tillemann-Dick, Daughter 

Musical Selection 

Ms. Charity Sunshine Tillemann-Dick, Granddaughter 

Tributes 

The Honorable Condoleezza Rice, 

The Secretary of State of the United States 

Her Excellency Tzipi Livni, 

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Israel 

Dr. Katrina Swett, Daughter 

The Honorable Steny Hoyer, Majority Leader of the 

United States House of Representatives 

His Excellency Ban Ki-moon, 

Secretary-General of the United Nations 

The Honorable Joseph Biden, United States Senate 

The Honorable Christopher Shays, 

United States House of Representatives 

Bono, Musician and Human Rights Activist 

Mrs. Chelsea Hedquist, Granddaughter 

Mr. Tomicah Tillemann, Grandson 

Mr. Elie Wiesel, Mellon Professor in the Humanities at 

Boston University, Nobel Peace Laureate 

Benediction 

Rabbi Arthur Schneier 

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Annette and Tom as children in Hungary. 

Tom, Annette, and Gigi in front of a Raoul Wallenberg portrait. 


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[ 87 ] 

Tomicah Tillemann. Ladies and gentlemen, throughout my 

grandfather’s life, he had an affectionate disdain for protocol. 

And in that spirit, instead of recognizing our many honored 

guests this morning by name, I want to welcome you all as 

I expect he would have if he were here—as cherished friends. 

All of us in the Lantos family—my grandmother, his daughters, the sons-in-law, all of the grandchildren and the greatgrandchildren—are so grateful to have you with us as we remember an extraordinary man and memorialize a life so improbable that at times its trajectory seemed to defy the very 

laws of physics. 

Our program this morning will begin with a reading by 

Rabbi Arthur Schneier. This will be followed by tributes from 

the love of my grandfather’s life, the incomparable Annette 

Lantos; his dear friend and longtime neighbor, Speaker 

Nancy Pelosi; and his similarly indefatigable first daughter, 

my mother, Annette Tillemann-Dick. Charity Sunshine 

Tillemann-Dick, whose voice was a source of constant joy to 

her grandfather, will then perform a musical selection. After 

Charity, there will be additional tributes from Dr. 

Condoleezza Rice, whose close friendship with my grandfather began in California and survived Washington; Her Excellency Tzipi Livni, the foreign minister of Israel; Dr. 

Katrina Swett, my grandfather’s second daughter and political doppelganger; his colleague and friend, Majority Leader 

Steny Hoyer; Secretary-General Ban ki-Moon, a man who, 

my grandfather liked to remark, had the whole world in his 

hands; Senator Joseph Biden, whose policy acumen was evident early on when, as a young Senator, he hired my grandfather to advise him on foreign affairs; my grandfather’s dear 

friend and fellow gym rat, the Honorable Christopher Shays; 

Bono, who needs no introduction; Chelsea Hedquist, the eldest of the Swett grandchildren and the woman who has the 

unenviable task of coming after Bono on the program; myself; and finally Elie Wiesel, a man whose life and mission 

has so closely paralleled my grandfather’s. Rabbi Schneier 

will then conclude our program with a benediction. 

Rabbi Schneier. 

Rabbi Arthur Schneier. Lord, who shall sojourn in your 

tabernacle? And who shall dwell upon your holy mountain? 

The 15th Psalm tells us one who walks uprightly does what 

is right and speaks the truth from his heart. Elizabeth, my 

wife, visited with our dear friends TOM and Annette at their 

home near the Capitol. TOM, weakened by his illness, joined 

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us in the recital of this 15th Psalm, as well as the 23d and 

the 121st Psalms. Indeed, he was the gentleman—or, as we 

say it in Hungarian, the u ́ riember. The u ́ riember, endowed 

with wisdom and heart, grace, humor, and of course the 

Hungarian accent. 

I pay tribute to a longtime friend: TOM, a fellow Holocaust 

survivor, from Budapest. He was in love with his chosen 

country, America; proud of his Jewish heritage and the rebirth of the state of Israel; and proud of his Hungarian roots. 

We shared the suffering of the Holocaust, and bonded with 

gratitude in the land of freedom and opportunity. 

I can still hear him say, ‘‘I am so grateful, I am so grateful.’’ He said it many, many times. His heart was full of gratitude for the blessings of family, and the privilege of serving 

our Nation and all of humanity. He believed in paying back. 

A passionate defender of human rights and freedom became 

the voice of conscience committed to tikkun olam, helping to 

perfect an imperfect world. He was scarred by the Holocaust, 

but he was not paralyzed. He believed in man and he believed in a better world. 

Annette, childhood sweetheart, lifelong partner, he loved 

you dearly. You strengthened one another. Katrina and Annette, Richard and Timber, children, grandchildren, he was 

your rock and anchor, your rock and anchor. Our sages tell 

us, when a righteous man dies, he is not only mourned by 

his family but by an entire community, and in this case a 

world community is mourning TOM LANTOS. We are all 

mourners. It is fitting that in his memory we join together 

in the recital of the 23d Psalm. Please join me. 

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; 

He leadeth me beside the still waters. 

He restoreth my soul; 

He guideth me in straight paths for His name’s sake. 

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of 

death, 

I will fear no evil, 

For Thou art with me; 

Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me. 

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days 

of my life; 

And I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for ever. 

And let us all say, Amen. 

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Annette Lantos. TOM and I have been married for 58 years, 

but we have been companions since our childhood. For the 

past 28 years, since our children have grown up, we have 

been literally inseparable. 

Despite some very rough patches at the beginning of our 

journeys through life, at the end, TOM said that since we 

came to America in 1947, our life has been like a wonderful 

vacation on Lake Balaton in Hungary. But like all vacations, 

he said, there must be an end to it. We have to move on. And 

so he did. 

I do not believe in death. I do believe in different forms of 

life. And therefore I feel with great certainty that TOM is 

alive—and that he is here right now, listening to our farewell before he will depart into the light for a joyous reunion 

with his friends and with his family. 

I believe nothing real can be threatened or die. The love 

TOM and I shared for 70 years is alive and continues to sustain me. 

I believe that passing away from this world is not a tragedy, but merely a way of letting go of a physical body which 

does not function any longer. But his mind, his feelings, his 

beliefs, and even his personality remain unchanged. 

TOM didn’t believe in God in the way that most of us do, 

but he taught us in our family so much of what we believe 

God is like, in the way he was so good to everybody, in the 

way he took care of us, in the way he protected us, in the 

way he gave us all the good experiences that enriched our 

lives, and in the way he always taught us about loving each 

other, sharing and giving to each other all that we have, just 

as he did. 

TOM didn’t speak about his beliefs, but he lived according 

to the highest and noblest values our human mind is capable 

of conceiving. From the human point of view, death seems 

like a defeat. But from the spiritual vantage point, dying is 

not a failure; it is merely a ticket we have to buy to get 

home, a gentle leave-taking that ends in a joyous homecoming. 

TOM’s passing was a quiet choice, made with a sense of 

great peace, because his life had been so fully used in tremendous service to mankind and to his family. He has now 

left the world and gone beyond it into eternity. 

Speaker Nancy Pelosi. When we received the sad news 

earlier this week of TOM’s passing, the word spread not only 

through our district in San Francisco, which TOM proudly 

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represented not only through the Congress of the United 

States, in which he proudly served and led; but throughout 

the world. 

I could imagine prisoners in China and Tibet, people sadly 

expelled from their homes in Darfur, people all over the 

world for whom TOM fought, knowing that a great champion 

had passed on. 

But as Annette said, ‘‘TOM lives.’’ He lives in the struggles 

and the legacy that he has left us. 

All of us who served with TOM LANTOS know that he did 

everything with great enthusiasm. As a Representative of 

San Francisco in the Congress, which I had the honor of 

sharing with him and Senator Feinstein—being very close to 

him there too—he was a working man’s champion, a protector of the environment, and a leader for economic and social justice. We have suffered a tremendous loss in losing 

him as our Representative. 

One of the joys, though, of this year, was that before TOM

left us, he got to serve, rightfully so, as chair of the Foreign 

Affairs Committee, a job he was born to serve in. He was 

perfect. When we took the majority and the first trips we 

made—TOM came on each of the trips that I made, TOM and 

Annette—we went to visit the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, and to some of the countries that are platforms to our 

troops. I saw him received by our troops with great appreciation. I saw him speak truth to power to presidents, prime 

ministers, and kings throughout the Middle East. I saw him 

received with the greatest respect and dignity. 

He and Annette were like a royal couple themselves, because of their reputation for values-based foreign policy for 

America, for a commitment to respect the dignity and worth 

of every person and founding the Human Rights Caucus. 

Their unwavering values heralded them as true leaders in 

the world. So it was heartbreaking personally to get the 

news, and also a major setback, except that TOM’s legacy is 

so strong. 

After I received the first call, I received a call from the 

President of the United States saying that he had just spoken to Annette, and speaking with very high praise about 

the leadership of TOM LANTOS, and I told him that I would 

convey to our colleagues and TOM’s many friends his warm 

words of sympathy. 

I am so pleased that so many of TOM’s friends from the 

Senate, led by Leader Reid, are here too, because so many 

of them started in the House, or he has collaborated over 

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[ 91 ] 

time for the security of our country, the spread of our ideals, 

for which he was very well known. 

But for all of his professional, political and official duties, 

we all knew that nothing meant more to him than his family. More than anyone I know, TOM LANTOS’ strength sprang 

from his family, and listening to Annette’s remarks, we know 

why. We’ve known why for a long time: her strength, demonstrated here, and how many times in his last phone calls 

he said, ‘‘Annette and I loved each other since we were 

young, but we’ve never loved each other more than now.’’ 

What a tribute to him that so many leaders from around 

the world—the Secretary-General, the Secretary of State, the 

Foreign Minister of Israel, Nobel Prize winner Elie Wiesel, 

rock star Bono—I mean this is the breadth of the reach of 

TOM LANTOS. 

Elie, I told you earlier that TOM took me over to the Holocaust Museum one day, we were there and he showed me 

your picture on the train. It was such a moving thing, it 

meant so much to him, I could just imagine what it means 

to him that you are speaking here today. 

We’ll all be talking about the fact that he was the first 

Holocaust survivor to serve in Congress, and he took that responsibility very seriously to shed the bright light on tyranny wherever it existed in the world. He taught us that the 

fight and struggle for human rights was a long one, but we 

must always be faithful to it. I know I speak for all of my 

colleagues when I say it was a privilege to serve in the Congress, to call TOM LANTOS colleague, and for many of us to 

cherish him as a friend. 

When I think of him, I think of the words of Ecclesiasticus 

in the chapter known as the Eulogy of Heroes: ‘‘Now let us 

praise great men: the heroes of our nation’s history whom 

the Lord established His renown and revealed His majesty. 

Some were sage counselors, who led the people by their 

counsel and by their knowledge of the law; out of their fund 

of wisdom they gave instruction. They were men of loyalty, 

whose good deeds have not been forgotten.’’ As the Eulogy of 

Heroes proclaims, ‘‘He will be buried in peace, but his name 

lives forever, as people recount his wisdom.’’ 

Such is TOM LANTOS. He died as he had lived: surrounded 

by the people he loved the most, his family. Annette, 

Katrina, Annette, children, grandchildren, Timber and Dick, 

his sons-in-law and just so many people who benefited from 

knowing him. 

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Of all the things that are said of TOM, his love of our country is one thing that everyone has something to say about, 

and so do I now. If I may present to Annette the flag on behalf of all of my colleagues in the Congress, the flag that was 

flown over the Capitol on the day that TOM passed away. I 

present this to you, Annette, in a tribute to TOM’s patriotism. 

He loved America. Others will speak to that as well. He 

loved its people, he loved its freedoms and its Constitution. 

He loved its natural resources; he was a champion for the 

environment. He loved its industry. He was a champion for 

America’s working families. And he was committed to the 

pledge that we take every day as we open the Houses of Congress, the pledge to the flag. He was committed to liberty 

and justice for all. 

[Presentation of the flag]. 

Annette Tillemann-Dick. My father was a man of profound faith. He had faith in the fundamental principles upon 

which America was built. He reveled in the gifts of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. He loved America intensely, and he taught us to cherish the privilege of being a 

part of this great Nation. 

He believed the gifts of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness were part of the human family’s endowment, and he 

wanted to extend them to all, to all his brothers and sisters 

on this planet. 

He had faith in the power of education. He believed that 

education could lift us all to a better place together. I remember my dad driving me to Taylor Junior High School in 

Millbrae, California, one morning as I fretted over an upcoming chemistry exam. ‘‘Don’t worry about it,’’ he said, ‘‘you’ll 

forget everything you learn.’’ I looked at him in shock, and 

he continued, ‘‘but the education will remain.’’ He believed a 

mind is like a parachute: It works only when it is open. 

He had faith in the power that is within each individual 

to make a difference. He believed that we can be decent, 

courteous, and caring—and he expected it of us. He also 

knew that we each could make the world a better place, and 

he showed us how in innumerable ways every single day. He 

had, and shared with my mother, a faith in the healing 

power of canine companionship. He was not surprised when 

my mother noticed what ‘‘dog’’ spelled backward. He had 

faith in his friends. He loved them. He relied on them. And 

he was so, so grateful for them. 

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He had faith in my mother. He had faith in the sustaining 

power of her faith and spirituality. And by his faith my father taught me to have faith, to hope and to believe in something beyond the visible, to trust in courage, in kindness, 

and love. He was a man who had faith in the bond of family 

and the transcendent love that binds us all together. 

And I have faith that we shall meet again, and anticipate 

that reunion with joy. Thank you. 

Charity Sunshine Tillemann-Dick. Back to doing away 

with protocol; I will announce my own selection. 

My grandfather was always very concerned that none of us 

were ever alone, and I know that during this phase he similarly won’t leave us alone, that he’ll be there with us through 

his legacy and through his spirit. And so I thought it was appropriate to sing my grandmother’s favorite song, which is 

‘‘You’ll Never Walk Alone.’’ 

When you walk through a storm 

Keep your head up high 

And don’t be afraid of the dark 

At the end of the road is a golden sky 

And the sweet silver song of a lark 

Walk on through the rain, 

Walk on through the storm, 

Though your dreams be tossed and blown. 

Walk on, walk on, with hope in your heart 

And you’ll never walk alone, 

You’ll never walk alone. 

The Honorable Condoleezza Rice. Dear friends, I am certain that God chooses special people to touch the lives of 

many and to truly make a difference. Surely then, God is 

well pleased that TOM LANTOS, who suffered from such tragic beginnings in Hungary, went on to leave an indelible mark 

on people’s lives and on nations. And that his legacy is so far 

reaching, from his native Hungary, to his beloved northern 

California—a love that I share—to the many places across 

the globe where he traveled and where he fought for human 

rights and for human dignity. 

For people who met him, TOM LANTOS was the epitome of 

a true American hero. For those fortunate to serve with him, 

he was the quintessential and inspirational statesman. And 

for those of us blessed to really know him, TOM was a kind 

and loyal and compassionate friend. I personally feel that I 

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have lost an irreplaceable mentor and a dear, dear friend, 

who embodied the best of America—not only what America 

is, but what America strives, and dreams, and hopes to be. 

TOM was a Holocaust survivor, and he had a seat in Congress; and for TOM, freedom was not just an abstract idea. 

His advocacy for freedom was a moral calling. He truly embodied what it meant to have one’s freedom denied, to strive 

for it, and then, upon gaining it, not just to love America for 

oneself, but to insist that America would stand up for those 

who still denied and were denied the blessings of freedom. 

I was blessed to befriend TOM and his family long before 

coming to Washington. Annette, you were his center, you 

were his anchor, and he was yours. You were his childhood 

sweetheart, and you still are childhood sweethearts, and 

you’re always going to be together because the chasm of 

death is not big enough to break a bond as strong as yours. 

To TOM’s daughters, Annette and Katrina, and to all of his 

grandchildren and great-grandchildren: You meant the world 

to him—you were his pride and his joy. 

And in that regard, I want to tell you a story. One day 

TOM came to see me, and through that encounter I got to 

know the TOM LANTOS that I thought I knew, in a much 

deeper way. I thought he was coming to see me to discuss, 

as we often did, American foreign policy, but I noticed that 

he wasn’t quite himself. Something was weighing very heavily on his heart. And so, with tears in his eyes, he told me 

about his granddaughter Charity’s battle with pulmonary 

hypertension. 

He said, ‘‘You’ve just got to meet her. She has the voice of 

an angel, and she has the heart to match. I want the two of 

you,’’ he said, ‘‘to perform at an event at the Kennedy Center 

so that we can raise awareness of this terrible disease.’’ 

I said, ‘‘TOM, I’m not much into the business of performing 

these days.’’ (Laughter.) ‘‘I need to practice.’’ But TOM wasn’t 

going to be denied. And so we performed our little concert, 

Charity, and we raised awareness of that disease, but it also 

brought great music to your grandfather’s heart. 

The course of TOM’s life, intertwined as it was with the 

great human tragedies of the twentieth century—nazism and 

communism—allowed him to feel deeply and passionately in 

a way that few can. We’re all so grateful today for a life well 

lived. I’m going to miss TOM. I’ll miss his humor, I’ll miss his 

compassion, I’ll miss his courage and his strength. But you 

know, standing here, I can see him looking at us with those 

piercing yet compassionate eyes and saying, ‘‘All right, you 

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can pause for a moment to remember me, but then you must 

resume the struggle for rights and liberties for oppressed 

peoples. Do not forget the downtrodden, and fight every day 

until every man and woman on the Earth enjoys the dignity 

of liberty.’’ 

Our great friend, Elie Wiesel, has written about those who 

fought inside the Warsaw ghetto in April 1943. ‘‘Those people,’’ Elie said, ‘‘lit a flame that continues to burn in our 

memory.’’ Well, that’s how I think of TOM LANTOS. We are 

grateful that he was pulled from history’s fires so that he 

could go on to engrave our hearts with the pressing call of 

conscience. His life has lit a flame that will forever burn in 

our memory and that will call us forever to action. And his 

spirit will live on. 

Her Excellency Tzipi Livni. Dear Annette, Katrina, Annette, the entire Lantos family, dear friends: 

The free world has lost a great leader, and Israel has lost 

a great friend. I’ve come here today to bow my head to join 

with the entire United States in paying respects, and to join 

with the Lantos family in mourning a great loss. 

I am grateful for the privilege to say a few words from the 

heart for a man who had a special place in his heart for the 

state of Israel. TOM LANTOS represents in our eyes, as a 

man, what we aspire to represent as a nation. 

In the Holocaust, TOM lost his family and all that was due 

to him, but he never abandoned his values or lost his selfrespect. From the ashes of the Shoah arose a warrior who 

stood up tall. He fought from this great institution and in 

the name of this great country for a better world, a world 

that would represent the values that he so believed in. 

For TOM, standing up for the right causes transcended borders and crossed oceans. It was about the values defined by 

your person’s inner compass. And TOM’s inner compass always pointed in the same direction, whether in English, or 

in Hebrew, because Congressman TOM LANTOS was a proud 

American and a sworn friend of Israel and these two things 

were, for him, two parts of the same complete whole. 

Those who knew him knew that his commitment to the 

United States, its flag, and its values were complete and absolute, just as his love and concern for Israel was complete 

and absolute. In his eyes, and rightly so, his love for both the 

United States and for Israel was driven by the same values—two flags, but the same inner compass. 

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Since his passing I’ve been thinking a great deal of TOM’s 

last visit to Israel. We started with the tour of the southern 

city of Sderot, a city that is targeted daily by terror from 

Gaza. There, TOM touched the hearts of Sderot’s strong citizens, asking each one with the love and sensitivity of a family member about their family, their life, and their daily 

struggle with the threat of terror. We ended the visit in the 

northern part of Israel, looking out over Lebanon. There, he 

asked the military commanders, with the vision of a leader, 

and the concern of a father, about the situation on the 

ground, and Israel’s ability to cope with the future threat. 

And we promised him that we would protect the security of 

Israel and the lives of its citizens. 

And in between, TOM and I watched a film together, and 

we cried together. Sitting at an Israeli Air Force base, in 

Ramat Aviv, we saw a film documenting Israeli pilots flying 

American-made F–16 planes over the trucks, the gates, and 

the death camp of Auschwitz. We saw the planes cut through 

the skies of Auschwitz. Those same skies that absorbed the 

smoke of the crematoria, those same skies that did not hear 

the roar of the fighter planes in time, were hearing them 

now. And in my eyes, the Star of David—that was transformed from a yellow Star of David on the torn clothing of 

a victim into a shining blue Star of David emblazoned on an 

American Air Force jet and flown by an Israeli fighter pilot. 

That shining star is TOM LANTOS. Yehi zichro baruch. 

Dr. Katrina Swett. My dear friends, I really struggled to 

try and find the right words to share with you about my father today. I truly feel I have so much to say, and so little 

time to say it. From the bravery and brilliance of his youth, 

to the extraordinary dignity, wisdom, and unfeigned love of 

his final days, my father has been an incredible source of inspiration and strength to me and so many others. But interestingly enough, in preparing my remarks, I kept coming 

back to music. 

Now, my dad was more of an admirer than a practitioner 

of the musical arts. He loved classical music, and almost all 

Hungarian folk songs, and he particularly enjoyed the marvelous Broadway musicals from the golden age of the theater. So much so, that in recent years, his grandchildren 

took to rewriting various Broadway shows to tell the story of 

their grandparents’ life in song. From Joseph, to Hello Dolly, 

to the Sound of Music, and of course, Fiddler on the Roof— 

all were staged with brand-new lyrics to tell the tale of their 

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remarkable Didi. I think Dad’s personal favorite was the 

song they performed for his 75th birthday in his native Hungary: ‘‘If I Were the Chairman . . .’’ (Laughter) to the tune of 

‘‘If I Were a Rich Man.’’ It was hilarious, and as it turned 

out, thanks to Speaker Pelosi, prophetic as well. 

Looking back, I think the reason Dad loved these shows so 

much was that they captured something very important 

about the way he viewed life and lived life. To him, life was 

not just an interesting but random series of sequential, 

unconnected events in pursuit of pleasure, power, or experience. With apologies to our friend Bono, you might say Dad 

was not a fan of the modern rock video as a metaphor for 

life. Rather, he believed that each life was meant to be a 

purposeful narrative, a story, sometimes glorious, sometimes 

sad, but always imbued with meaning, and always, always 

moving forward toward a noble end. His own story, particularly in the early years, had some heartbreaking scenes, almost too painful to watch, and plenty of unexpected twists 

and turns. But the underlying musical score was always one 

of optimism, love, and above all, family. 

The words and music of my father’s life have now been 

safely delivered to the printer. I deeply wish there could 

have been a few more acts in the play, a few more songs, a 

few more chapters in the manuscript. But that was not to be. 

But I want to share with you my deep and confident belief 

that his story, and all of ours, goes on. The final words of 

the beloved ‘‘Chronicles of Narnia’’ series express it so beautifully: ‘‘And for us, this was the end of all the stories. And 

we can most truly say that they all lived happily ever after. 

But for them’’—and for Dad—‘‘it was only the beginning of 

the real story. All their life in this world, and all their adventures in Narnia, had only been the cover and the title 

page. Now at last, they were beginning Chapter One of the 

Great Story, which no one on earth has read, which goes on 

forever, in which every chapter is better than the one before.’’ 

The Honorable Steny Hoyer. Annette, extraordinary children, grandchildren, and absolutely spectacular, wonderful, 

extraordinary great-grandchildren: 

There are so many distinguished guests here, but the people he served most are those whose names we do not know. 

Today we mourn the loss of a wonderful, extraordinary man, 

a giant in this institution and around the world. 

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But we also celebrate an inspirational life marked by unimaginable hardship and tragedy, but as well, soaring love 

and triumph. 

I was honored, like so many of you, to know TOM LANTOS

for nearly three decades. And this I can attest: TOM had a 

backbone of steel and a heart of compassion, commitment, 

and courage. 

No member of this body has been a more compelling voice 

for the rights of individuals—individuals, as I said, unknown 

to all of us, but who were not unremembered by him. Whatever their background, wherever they lived, whatever the excuse used to oppress them—Charity, they would know that 

they did not walk alone, for your grandfather walked with 

them. 

When TOM spoke, especially on matters of human rights, 

America’s role in the world, and the imperative of confronting and defeating tyranny, his words contained a moral 

clarity, an intellectual gravity that were seldom matched in 

this body or anywhere in the world. As he spoke for individuals, he spoke as well, compellingly, for a small country surrounded by those who would destroy it. Israel, as the foreign 

minister has said, had no more supportive or compelling 

voice in this country or around the world than TOM LANTOS. 

Those of us who had the opportunity to be with TOM when 

we met with people from around the world knew that he 

would be diplomatic, but he would not be misunderstood. 

There was no uncertainty, there was no silent or uncertain 

trumpet that our friend TOM sounded. Quite simply, TOM

was a great man, a great American, a great humanitarian 

whose remarkable life is an inspiration to all of us and a reminder of the indomitable human spirit. 

Although he was unable to attend the U.N. annual commemoration of the Holocaust last month—as you know, Secretary-General—Katrina, Katrina who has just spoken to us 

so compellingly, delivered his remarks which called on the 

international community to ‘‘dedicate ourselves to stopping 

current tragedies such as the genocide in Darfur . . . and to 

preventing such inhuman cruelty in the future.’’ He went on 

to say, and no one perhaps on this dais other than Elie 

Wiesel has spoken more compellingly, and he said this, ‘‘The 

veneer of civilization is paper thin. We are its guardians, and 

we can never rest.’’ 

And TOM LANTOS never rested from that commission. 

Until his last day on this Earth, TOM LANTOS was a strong 

and compelling and principled voice for assuring that that 

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thin veneer was maintained and respected and would not be 

breached to the detriment of millions. Until his last day—his 

last day. 

Katrina, you talked about the song of TOM’s life. And while 

the song may be over, the melody is compellingly present 

with us to this day. He was an indefatigable advocate for 

human rights and basic decency. 

And he was joined in this journey by his beloved Annette, 

a kindred spirit born of equal experience, with an unswerving commitment to those who needed a voice. TOM does not 

sit with us this day, but in a very real sense he does, for his 

beloved Annette sits with us. I know of no couple that I have 

ever met that were more united—truly as one—that we talk 

about in the marriage ceremony than TOM and Annette Lantos. 

May we honor him, remember him, hold high the torch of 

human liberty that he held so high, so successfully, and for 

so long. God blessed America when he gave us TOM LANTOS. 

His Excellency Ban Ki-Moon. Mrs. Lantos, dear family 

members, Madam Speaker, distinguished guests: 

TOM LANTOS was a dear and irreplaceable friend of the 

United Nations and of mine. 

The leadership of Chairman LANTOS on challenges confronting humankind from AIDS to Darfur resonated far and 

wide because his voice had unique authority and reach. His 

was a voice that stemmed from witnessing the worst in man 

and confronted by the best in man. He knew what was possible because he had lived through the unimaginable. 

So when Chairman LANTOS used his voice to build a better 

understanding in this country of the United Nations, or to 

build a better understanding in the United Nations of this 

country, people listened. We took account of what he said 

and we took action. 

As for me personally, I will always remember all I learned 

from TOM LANTOS on my first visit to Washington to this 

Congress as Secretary-General. He reached out to his colleagues to remind them of the importance of the United Nations. He introduced me to people, all the people who could 

support me in my work. When I visited him again in his office a few months ago, I had no time for lunch, so he and 

Annette gave me sandwiches as we walked together and he 

told me to consider his office my sanctuary on the Hill. 

Today my profound condolences go to Annette, to their 

daughters, and grandchildren; they go to countless friends of 

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Chairman LANTOS; the United States Congress and Government; the Jewish community and international community. 

He leaves a profound legacy of ideals, of boundless love of his 

chosen country and the world, and a family that will carry 

this forward. 

All of us here have this in common. We knew TOM LANTOS

as a champion of our common humanity. We benefited from 

his tireless efforts to train our consciousness and conscience 

to the dangers that come with inaction, intolerance, and injustice. We have lost a voice that binds us to the very reasons the United Nations was founded. 

Today I am proud to stand among you and give thanks for 

the varied and incomparable leadership and life of TOM LANTOS. He left his legacy. Whatever he has left unfinished, we 

will carry on. May his soul rest in peace and in eternity. 

Thank you very much. 

Senator Joseph Biden. As we say in the other body, excuse a point of personal privilege. I am delighted that so 

many, present company excluded, important people are here 

speaking of TOM’s incredible contributions to the Nation and 

the world. But I can’t talk about TOM in anything other than 

personal terms. 

His death was not unlike his life. He overcame pain with 

pride, dignity, and grace, but always grace. TOM LANTOS was 

the most graceful man I have ever known in my life. He was 

larger than life to me and larger than life to my family. 

When you were with TOM LANTOS, you knew you could 

win. His optimism and his confidence, as you grandchildren 

know, is absolutely contagious. And he never, ever, ever, 

ever gave up on life. Never. Up until the very moment of his 

death. 

My God, this man had courage. As my dad would say to 

all the children, ‘‘You’ve got good blood, kid. You’ve got really 

good blood.’’ 

You know, he faced his diagnosis like he faced everything 

else: without remorse, without excuses, and without fear. He 

was quintessentially TOM. He was heroic. 

I believe R.G. Ingersoll could have been thinking about 

TOM and your grandpop when he wrote, ‘‘When the will defies fear, when duty throws the gauntlet down to fate, when 

honor scorns to compromise with death—that is heroism.’’ 

Your grandfather, your father, and your husband, was truly 

a heroic figure. 

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I want you children to understand that there are very few 

women or men who have ever served in this body that could 

bring together this assembly of people—again, present company excluded. I was just his friend and nothing more. I 

mean that sincerely. 

So you have to know that he left you a legacy that is unparalleled. And he left you one another. My God, what a remarkable family. TOM LANTOS, as my brother would say. 

By the way, we are intertwined for three generations. Your 

grandpop—well, I worked for your grandpop. He was in my 

office, but I worked for him. Your aunt and your mom, 

Katrina, worked with me as a very, very underachieving 19- 

year-old Yale Law School graduate. And now his grandson, 

Tomicah, Dr. Tomicah, who handles all of Europe for me, 

and my God, is he like his grandpop. 

Annette, and as your dad would always say, little Annette—excuse me for saying that, but that is the only way 

we Bidens know you, as little Annette—and your grandchildren, you were the light of TOM’s life. As a consequence 

of it, he was able to light up everybody else’s life. When he’d 

start talking about you, literally, there was sort of a radiation of joy you felt. You felt this sense. 

I’ll never forget when he came in and he said, ‘‘I’ve got two 

sons-in-law now.’’ He sat in front of my desk and he said, 

‘‘Dick Swett and Timber Dick,’’ he said, ‘‘very Aryan sounding names.’’ 

I want to tell you, I was kidding the ambassador when I 

told him the stories that TOM would talk about, and he said, 

‘‘He was a great athlete at Yale.’’ And I looked at your 

grandpop and said, ‘‘Well, how would you have felt about 

him had he gone to Delaware?’’ And he said, ‘‘Oh, I would 

like him very much as much.’’ 

You were really the reason for TOM’s being. You were the 

explanation, I believe, for his survival. You were literally the 

explanation to him for why he survived and why your mom 

survived. 

I can say with absolute certainty the 32 years that TOM

was my mentor, my teacher, and my friend—and you say 

that we use those words so glibly around this place—but he 

really was my mentor. He sat down with me. He educated 

me. He was older and wiser and I sought him out and I 

never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever felt a moment of resentment as he would instruct me about my strengths and 

my weaknesses. He was one incredible man. 

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There was never a day, though, in the 32 years that I 

knew TOM, and spoke often with him, well beyond the time 

he left the office—never a single time I spoke with TOM, he 

didn’t start by talking about you, Annette, and the family. 

I know more, as many of us do, about you grandchildren— 

granted, it’s getting hard, when you get up at 17, 18—now, 

you know really—it gets difficult. But we know, and we all 

who loved TOM, know about those he loved. 

TOM entered my life with a clarity as bright as those blue 

eyes, at a time when things were not so clear in my life. He 

embraced my young sons who had just lost their mother and 

their sister. He embraced them as if they were his own. 

I used to say to him, Madam Speaker, ‘‘TOM, you can’t buy 

them gifts. You’re on the staff, you’re not allowed to do this. 

People will think that there is something unethical about 

this.’’ And he would have none of it. He would have none of 

it. 

When my son ran for Attorney General, all of a sudden 

money started pouring in from contributions that I never 

asked TOM a thing about. When my Jill, my wife of 30 years, 

then my fiance ́e, met TOM, at the time TOM came to work 

with me, he reminded us by example, at that moment in my 

life, that the antidote to tragedy was only one thing—love. 

There is no other antidote to tragedy than love. 

He was living proof of the saying that love is never defeated, and family is freedom. I believe that’s what he 

thought. At least, that is what he conveyed to me, Annette. 

He was a remarkable friend. 

I may be the only Member of the U.S. Senate who ever 

went on his honeymoon with a staffer. You all think I’m kidding. I’m not. 

I did not want to get married in Delaware because so 

many yentas had adopted me as a young bachelor for 4 

years, unfortunately. 

And so TOM came up with the idea. TOM said, ‘‘Get married at the U.N.’’ I said, ‘‘The U.N.! Where in the heck am 

I going to be married at the U.N.?’’ He said, ‘‘There’s a beautiful chapel there.’’ And he arranged for the chapel at the 

United Nations. My sister found a Jesuit street priest, who 

worked in the street with people, to marry us. And TOM arranged it all. 

But it didn’t stop there! It didn’t stop there! What happened after that was my two sons were with my new wife 

and me that weekend in New York and we came back to the 

Senate. Business as usual. 

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We were married in June but in August there was an 

opening—the end of July—and TOM said, ‘‘We are going on 

a honeymoon.’’ And I said, ‘‘What in the hell are you talking 

about?’’ It’s a true story. And he said, ‘‘We’re going to Hungary.’’ And I said, ‘‘OK, TOM.’’ 

So Annette and little Annette were there, and my wife Jill 

and I packed up and we went to Hungary. And we went to 

the Balaton. I did not realize until that moment that the 

only fish worth eating in the whole world come out of the 

Balaton. I did not realize that everything, everything of 

value and consequence originated in Budapest. I was unaware of that. 

But ladies and gentlemen, the most remarkable thing to 

me about TOM LANTOS was how, like Elie Wiesel, he could 

come out of his experience with anything other than a feeling of hatred and resentment. He loved the country that cost 

the lives of his family. I found it remarkable in that, how a 

man could return to a country that was the scene of the 

elimination of the bulk of his family, and love it so much. I 

could never understand it, but I admired the hell out of it. 

Annette, I will always think of TOM and you when I hear 

those words of Christopher Marlowe, those famous lines, 

‘‘Come live with me and be my love; and we will all the 

pleasures prove.’’ 

He taught us a lot. He taught us a lot in my professional 

life, he taught us a lot in my personal life. 

TOM is going to be missed by an entire generation of Americans who will never fully understand the sacrifices made to 

remind our world, every day, that there is still a core of humanity that beats in its heart. 

As Shakespeare wrote, ‘‘He was a man; take him for all in 

all. We shall not look upon his like again.’’ 

The Honorable Christopher Shays. Annette, you are 

TOM’s love. You are his sweetheart, his valentine, but most 

of all, his equal, and we know he had few equals. 

This Holocaust survivor was not intimidated by anyone. 

He was brilliant, passionate, courageous, tough—almost to 

the point, frankly, of being brutal. But he was also kind, 

gentle, loving, and fun to be with. He had a great sense of 

humor. TOM was the most eloquent person I have ever 

known. It was hard sometimes not to feel inadequate in his 

presence. But he never wanted you to feel that way. He 

would always make me feel like the best was ahead of me 

and that I should think big thoughts. 

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TOM was a natural teacher. He taught by example and by 

the questions he asked, and he expected you to grow and to 

be a better person. That was your duty, and your duty was 

also to be of service to others. It is no secret TOM adored his 

family—his two brilliant daughters Annette and Katrina and 

his 18 truly talented grandchildren—but you, Annette, always came first. Annette, I smile to think of the dinner conversations that must have taken place as your daughters 

were growing up. There’s TOM, confidently expressing opinions few others could contest, except in the presence of a wife 

and two daughters who begged to differ. It was probably nice 

for him to go back to work, where he could actually win an 

argument. 

To the staff, you need to know how proud he was of you 

and grateful for your service. You worked with a great man 

who loved you, cared about you, and was not reluctant to 

give you a bit of his advice. And if you were like any of his 

grandchildren, you didn’t always take his advice, which we 

know is hard for him to accept. 

You see, when it came to his grandchildren, he was a bit 

of a micromanager and liked to take a disproportionate share 

of the credit. I would occasionally remind him that I thought 

his daughters and sons-in-law deserved a little bit of the 

credit for such great kids. He would just smile at me. It was 

not always easy to be a son-in-law or a grandson-in-law in 

the Lantos family. Woe be to any man that sought to marry 

his daughters or granddaughters. They were mere mortals. 

He expected more for his daughters and granddaughters. 

Now, granddaughters-in law were another story. They were 

deemed worthy, he embraced them immediately even when 

one turned out to be a Republican. 

Madam Speaker, I hope and pray Congress finds a way to 

immortalize this great man with legislation that will forever 

bear his name. We have Pell grants and Fulbright scholars. 

These are names I have heard for almost all my life. TOM

LANTOS deserves to have this same kind of recognition. 

TOM LANTOS, I refuse to think of you in the past. I refuse 

to think your life can be snuffed out. I refuse to think your 

light will no longer shine. You are too great a man for me 

to think anything but of your enduring indomitable presence. 

Bono. Wow. I’m not going to talk about the things that TOM

fought for, things like debt cancellation or access to antiretroviral drugs for HIV/AIDS patients a long way from here, 

or human rights. I actually want to think about the love 

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story a little bit because I went visiting with TOM and Annette in their apartment there on Capitol Hill and he said 

some very poetic and beautiful things about his relationship 

there, lying on the sofa in the company of his granddaughters Chelsea and little Kipling. 

He said, ‘‘This struggle that I’m having is not important at 

all.’’ He said, ‘‘Whether I win in this fight for my life or not 

is not important. This love we have cannot be defeated.’’ He 

said, ‘‘Did you know that?’’ He said, ‘‘Whether I win or lose 

this fight, this love that we have cannot be defeated.’’ And 

he said, ‘‘Can you feel it?’’ I said, ‘‘Yeah, I can.’’ And he said, 

‘‘Really, can you feel it?’’ It was like a warmth in the room. 

Like an open fire on a winter’s day. I could feel it all right. 

And, you know, there are many explanations for this prizefighter’s stamina. He would go any amount of rounds with 

anyone, anywhere, to protect human rights and common decency. There are many explanations, but the only real explanation for this relentless life in the pursuit of peace and justice is sitting right there. And TOM, it’s Valentine’s Day, and 

so I want to sing for you to her. 

Thank you for watching my back. In the words of the famous Hungarian folk singer, Jan Van Lennon (laughter): 

There’s nothing you can do that can’t be done 

Nothing you can sing that can’t be sung 

Nothing you can say but you can learn how to play the 

game 

It’s easy 

All you need is love 

All you need is love 

All you need is love, love 

Love is all you need 

Nothing you can make that can’t be made 

No one you can save that can’t be saved 

Nothing you can do but you can learn how to be you in 

time 

It’s easy 

All you need is love 

All you need is love 

All you need is love, love 

Love is all you need 

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Nothing you can know that isn’t known 

Nothing you can see that isn’t shown 

Nowhere you can be that isn’t where you’re meant to be 

It’s easy 

All you need is love 

All you need is love 

All you need is love, love 

Love is all you need 

Chelsea Hedquist. To most of the people gathered in this 

great hall, our grandfather was a champion of human rights, 

a fighter for freedom and justice, a voice for the voiceless and 

a truly great American. He was all those things to us as 

well, but he was first, and foremost, just our grandpa. 

He used to tell us often, ‘‘You don’t know how much I love 

you.’’ In this case, as in most instances, he was probably 

right. We probably couldn’t fully grasp or comprehend the 

depths and totality of his love for us. 

But if we couldn’t know it, we could always feel it. We 

could feel it in the time he took to sit with each one of us. 

To know us as individuals, to talk with us about our plans 

and our dreams. To give us advice that was almost always 

spot on. 

We could feel it in the way he went above and beyond to 

help us achieve those dreams. Taking us on college tours, attending our athletic competitions, picking out our courses 

each semester, discussing our career paths and job opportunities. 

We could feel it in the way he placed us at the center of 

his busy universe, bringing us along on his adventures to 

far-flung corners of the globe, introducing us to his fascinating friends and colleagues, making time for us in the 

midst of a schedule that would have brought most 20-yearolds, let alone 75-year-olds, to their knees. 

We could feel it and hear it in the tone of his voice when 

he spoke about us and to us. We could feel it in the very way 

he hugged and kissed us, always holding on just a beat 

longer than we liked as small children. We would give anything for one of those infamous hugs and kisses right now. 

There is nothing we can ever do, no way we can ever hope 

to repay our grandfather for the love and the tireless devotion he showed each one of us. All we can hope to do, I believe the only way we can truly show our gratitude for his 

hand in our lives, is to grow to become good, compassionate, 

unwavering advocates for the causes he held so dear. 

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Moreover, I think our best gift to him will be to love each 

other as deeply and completely as he loved each of us. If we 

succeed in this endeavor in even some small way, it will certainly be owing to his great example and to his great love 

which we feel even now and we know, somehow, that we will 

feel it forever. 

Tomicah Tillemann. I was with my grandfather when he 

passed away. And in the hours before he left us, members 

of our family gathered at his hospital bedside, and as he surveyed the tear-stained faces in front of him he began to 

speak. 

‘‘If you knew how happy I am,’’ he said, ‘‘you would not be 

sad.’’ 

‘‘I am completely at peace with what I have accomplished 

for my country and for my family,’’ he told us. 

He summoned his doctors close. He motioned for them to 

lean down toward his face as though he was going to whisper 

instructions. But instead of giving directions, he kissed 

them. He told them that he wished everyone could feel similarly satisfied at the end of their lives. 

Having spent time with my grandfather almost every day 

in the weeks since he was diagnosed with cancer, I know 

that this serenity was not a temporary side effect of medication. The peace of mind my grandfather demonstrated in his 

final days and the spectacular courage with which he faced 

his final struggle arose from careful assessments of his past 

and our future. He knew that his was a life well lived, as 

Secretary Rice indicated. 

As you’ve heard from others, this was a man who did not 

squander his mortality. He made mistakes along the way, 

but he wore himself out in pursuit of his principles. 

He was under no illusions that the battles he’d fought his 

whole life were over, but he knew that there would be others 

to carry on after him. He knew that he was leaving a wife 

who was, himself included, Washington’s most formidable 

advocate for human rights and human decency. She was his 

everything. And the fact that she is with us means that my 

grandfather has departed in only the most superficial sense 

of the word. 

He knew that he was leaving a family comprised of individuals who, though we may lack his eloquence and experience, are fiercely committed to carrying on the efforts that 

defined him. 

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He knew that he was leaving all of you. He mentioned 

many of you by name. Colleagues, friends, staff, throughout 

the country and around the world, who would pick up his 

work where he left off. 

As I held my grandfather’s hands in the hours before he 

passed, I had faith that he was going to join the family that 

had been taken from him many years ago. I also had faith 

that someday I and each of us would join them. And when 

we do so, I hope we can do so in the same spirit he left life. 

He has left us a mighty legacy. But looking out on you this 

morning, I can’t help but share his optimism that each of us 

will carry it forward. 

Elie Wiesel. When I got the news soon after he passed 

away, I sat down and wrote in my diary the last part of the 

dialog with TOM. In a way, if you would close your eyes for 

a second, you should imagine him here, for what I wrote 

down is what you could hear now. 

TOM, my dear friend, how does one say farewell to a cherished companion with whom one has fought so many battles, 

at times alone, hoping to improve the world around us? 

The last time we were together was here, in this edifice, 

honoring our mutual friend the Dalai Lama, and speaking 

up for his kinsmen in Tibet whose spiritual sovereignty is 

sadly still curtailed. It wouldn’t have been the same without 

you. 

Whenever we met it was always to somehow intervene on 

behalf of people beyond mountains and oceans enduring 

hardship and persecution. We never met socially just to 

break bread and drink a glass of wine, enjoying the peacefulness of the hour and the glorious yet discrete beauty and elegance of friendship. No small talk, no frivolous exchanges. 

Other people’s needs of freedom were your obsession. Political oppression in Eastern Europe. Official brutality in 

Burma. Tragedy in Darfur, Sudan. Disrespect of citizens in 

various countries. Massive violations of human rights in 

communist China. The entire plant Earth has become your 

battlefield. 

When victims of society or prisoners of destiny felt defenseless, abandoned, neglected, humiliated, and desperate, 

they had in you a defender, here in the uniquely special, august Halls of the Congress of the United States. It wouldn’t 

have been the same without you. 

TOM, my friend, where did you take the strength to confront powerful structures and walls of human indifference on 

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behalf of known or unknown orphans and widows and beggars? In faraway lands where injustice had the attributes of 

divinity, what motivated you? Is it the traditional humanism 

you have found in this new home of ours, the United States, 

which we both love? Is it our passion for the state of Israel, 

the Jewish state? Or is it the horror-filled experience that 

marked your adolescence in wartime Budapest? 

You and I, sons of the ancient Jewish people, separately 

lived through times when victims died more than once, and 

never a moment without fear. Oft, you and I spoke about 

their solitude; then, they were so alone. Is this what drove 

you in so many ways to fight, with remarkable eloquence 

and vigor, for the honor of humankind, inspired by the eternal principle that wherever and whenever a person or a 

group’s ethnic or indigenous identity is shamed, our own is 

blemished? Is this what remains in both of us—you in Budapest and I in my little Jewish town, Sighet? 

We sang together once ‘‘Sol HaKatoshma,’’ this beautiful 

song, the Chassidic song which expresses our love for God 

and his creation. Conventional wisdom teaches us that our 

personality is often shaped by more than one force, more 

than one element. But some are more pronounced than others. In your life, the memory of what we so poorly in desperation, if anything would say of course, would recall the 

Holocaust has impacted your moral universe, for like everything else, memory must be part of whatever we do. And just 

as hope can become someone else’s nightmare, memory, too 

could become a curse to some and a blessing for others; it all 

depends what we do with it. 

Occasionally people ask, ‘‘Why remember? Why cling to repressive memories of dark, torment and terror? Terrifying 

mass imprisonment and murder?’’ In other words, what does 

one do with memory? We used to ask this question when we 

met. 

Oh, I know that you grandchildren, you children, and of 

course, Annette, share this pursuit of truth in memory, but 

we responded simply, ‘‘If we remember suffering, our own 

and that of others, only to bring more suffering into the 

world, we would betray it.’’ The only response to the tragedy 

is simply to remember it for the sake of our children, children everywhere. In other words, because it happened already it must never happen again anywhere to anyone. And 

that was, of course, the meaning of your endeavors, the goal 

of your battles. 

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So, my dear friend, farewell. Go in peace, and rest in 

peace. You deserve it, for you have done so much for so 

many. And yet, there is still a lot to be done. It will be difficult without you, but your example will be followed—not 

only by your colleagues, by your friends, by your allies, and 

there are so many, but by men and women who never met 

you. Oh yes, we will continue. But it won’t be the same. 

Rabbi Arthur Schneier. Katrina, you brought back memories. Budapest, 75th birthday. All of us together. Annette, 

children, grandchildren. 

As you said, Senator Biden, remarkable. The love he had 

for a country where a massacre took place, including my own 

family. And there we were in the magnificent Doha ́ny temple, the largest synagogue in Europe. The place where TOM

was bar mitzvahed. And I presided over that wonderful, 

memorable celebration. And we sang ‘‘Simen tov u mazel 

tov.’’ And now it is painful for me to say yitgadol v’yitkadosh, 

glorified and sanctified be your name, almighty God, for the 

gift of our friend TOM in our midst. 

God said to Abraham, vayahei bracha, ye shall be a blessing to your family, to your people, to humanity. God said to 

TOM, you shall be a blessing, vayahei bracha, and indeed he 

was a blessing. To you, Annette—the perennial honeymooners. To every member of his family. 

Just as Abraham traveled, left his country, his birthplace, 

TOM was the wandering Jew, came penniless, like myself, to 

this land of opportunity and freedom, and what an American 

dream fulfilled. What a journey it has been. As has been 

said, he taught us a lot because he experienced a lot. 

We often spoke about having lost our youths. You know, 

we became adults overnight. We were children. We became 

adults. You remember that, Annette, being a step ahead of 

our persecutors. Forgetting about our music lessons, forgetting about our ballgames. Survival. How do you survive? 

What a journey it has been from the valley of dry bones 

to the heights of human achievement. And Tomicah, you are 

right. Grandpa was at peace. 

Annette, being with you, Elizabeth and I, and reciting the 

psalms together and singing the Shema Yisrael. 

As a man of faith and seeing his life fulfilled, he felt, mission accomplished. Mission accomplished. It has been said he 

had compassion. He heard the cry of the oppressed, the cry 

of the poor, and the sick, and challenged the oppressors: Let 

my people go. TOM, I can still hear him say it: ‘‘I’m very 

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hopeful about the world. Tyrants and oppressors end up in 

the dustbin of history.’’ That is classic TOM LANTOS, ‘‘Tyrants 

and oppressors end up in the dustbin of history.’’ 

And I still remember in Budapest, TOM LANTOS speaking 

in the parliament. A parliament where anti-Jewish legislation was enacted in 1939 and 1944, and what did he speak 

about? Democracy, freedom. The very same parliament, we 

were all there. 

I would like to conclude, we lift our eyes up to the mountains, Lord, from whence shall our help come. Our help 

comes from the Lord who made heaven and earth. 

Psalm 1—He will be like a tree planted by streams of 

water that yield its fruit in season. 

He planted so many seeds, so many seeds: Love, champion 

of human rights. Hero of this august body. Sword of peace 

and justice. 

And what does he say to us? And what did he say to me? 

‘‘I am the happiest man. Grateful, so grateful, so grateful for 

my family, for Annette.’’ 

He showed that beautiful portrait of yours in your modest 

home near the Capitol. And then, to the right, his mother’s 

picture, mother who was burnt in Auschwitz just like my 

grandparents. 

He had a message for all of us. What’s the message? We 

all go through that one-way street that leads to the grave. 

There is no immunity from the grave. We all have to meet 

our Maker sooner or later. And the message of TOM: Maximize your stay on Earth. Maximize your stay on Earth. And 

be a blessing vayahei bracha and above all, what we can do 

for him. 

He inspired his family in public service. He inspired so 

many of us young people with the honor and integrity of 

public service. We have to pledge in his memory to continue 

to make sure that the seeds he planted will bear fruit for a 

better world of peace and justice for all. 

To my beloved friend, our lives have intersected a long, 

long time. We shared our milestones. We shared yours. 

I say, the Lord is your keeper, the Lord is your shade upon 

your right hand. The Lord will guard your going and coming 

in for now and forever. 

Adonai shomrecha Adonai tsilecha al yad yeminecha. 

Yomam hashemesh lo yachecha veyareyach b’laila. 

The sun shall not smite you by day nor the moon by night. 

Adonai yishmorecha mikol rah. 

God shall guard your soul from all evil. 

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Adonai yishmor tseytcha u’voecha meyatah ve’ad olam. 

May He guard your going and coming for now and forever. 

TOM, kedves bera ́tom csokolak. I love you. And I will never 

forget that kiss you bestowed upon me. Or to come closer, I 

want to kiss you. And upon Elizabeth. Stay forever. Came 

from a man, friend who was a chaver tov. Endowed with a 

lev tov with a generous heart. Lech v’shalom. 

Go in peace, until we meet again in heaven. Let us all say, 

Amen. 

Æ