"Henry J. Hyde: One of
the Genuine Heroes of This or Any Era"
-- Part One
Part Two
It would be hard to go
wrong--a pro-life event honoring Cong. Henry Hyde. After all
(as Tim Goeglein special assistant to President George W.
Bush and deputy director of the Office of Public Liaison,
put it), Cong. Hyde is to the pro-life movement what Wilbur
Wilberforce was to the anti-slavery movement in Great
Britain.
But last night when
NRL celebrated the 13th annual Proudly Pro-Life Awards
Dinner by honoring Cong. Hyde, there was a special, almost
indescribable something in the atmosphere as we gathered at
the historic Willard Hotel. (Jacki Ragan, who wears so many
hats for NRL, did her usual magnificent job in arranging the
tribute.)
One after another,
congressmen and senators paid their respects to a man who
has been a towering force in the battle to win back legal
protection for the littlest Americans. Cong. Steve Chabot
told how "We have had many wonderful Members of Congress who
have engaged in the battle but nobody has been more
committed, more effective, more eloquent than Henry Hyde."
Cong. Tom DeLay hailed
the "turning of the tide" on abortion. "Life, ladies and
gentlemen, is ascendant -- a true statement inconceivable
without the brilliance, eloquence, and courage of Henry
Hyde," he said.
An anecdote from Mr.
Goeglein illustrated what the name "Henry Hyde" means and
how widespread he is known. Mr. Goeglein told the audience
about how he had been in Vietnam on Palm Sunday. A woman
came up to him and began to ask about Henry Hyde.
Which illustrates that
when the Pro-Life Movement is mentioned, the first name that
comes to mind, not only to Americans, but to people tens of
thousands of miles away, is the Republican congressman from
Illinois' sixth district.
Cong. Hyde, as someone
said Tuesday, is a "force of nature" on behalf of life.
Be sure to read the
May issue of National Right to Life News. We will have loads
of pictures from the event and excerpts from speeches
delivered honoring Cong, Hyde.
If you are not a
subscriber, please call us at 202-626-8828.
If you have comments
or questions, please send them to Dave Andrusko at
dandrusko@nrlc.org.
Part Two
