Porter Goss: “I would characterize Charlie as the true north on the compass of this institution and the man who had the good judgment…”

“I would characterize Charlie as the true north on the compass of this institution and the man who had the good judgment to understand when magnetic declinations were in order. He has had seasoned patience with seasoned Members, and he has had extraordinary patience with new Members, to try to explain how things happen here. I think many of us feel that his personal judgment is as much a hallmark as the knowledge of the institution, which is matched by none. The reason I asked for time to speak is that Charlie will always be in my memory on a fateful day in this country, September 11, 2001. The Speaker of the House desired that the House be opened for a prayer on that fateful day even as events were transpiring around us. It was not the right time, there was concern about precedent. Charlie found a way for us to get the House opened, the prayer said, and the House evacuated. And I have, to this day, that official Record hanging on my wall in my office and it will always be a memory of my life.”