Kathy Castor: “I thank my good friend from Florida for yielding. It is with great sadness that I rise on behalf of the Florida…”

“I thank my good friend from Florida for yielding. It is with great sadness that I rise on behalf of the Florida delegation, and you can see we have many new Floridians in our delegation today because we had such great love, respect, and admiration for our colleague Congressman Hastings. Congressman Hastings was a towering figure who always stood up for the little guy. He fought for civil rights. He fought for voting rights. He fought for affordable healthcare. He was tireless. Now, Alcee did not suffer fools or malarky, and he was unafraid to point it out. And he did so with relish. And let that be a great example to all of us who have this tremendous responsibility to stand up every day for the people who send us here, especially the voiceless and the vulnerable. But Alcee served with great intellect, with passion, with flare. He loved the House of Representatives. He loved the State of Florida. He wanted it to be better, and he worked on that every single day. But I think we are all better for his service and his example. Madam Speaker, I think Alcee would have appreciated the fact that you are in bright orange today, the color of his beloved Florida A&M University. Go Rattlers.…”