Ed Markey: “on behalf of the entire Massachusetts congressional delegation, it is my great pleasure and privilege to introduce the…”

“on behalf of the entire Massachusetts congressional delegation, it is my great pleasure and privilege to introduce the newest Member of the 110th Congress, the gentlelady from the Fifth Congressional District of Massachusetts, Niki Tsongas. Niki Tsongas is the eldest of four sisters who grew up in a military family bouncing between air bases all across the United States, Europe, and Japan. In 1967, while her father was stationed at the Pentagon, she met her future husband, our late distinguished House colleague, Paul Tsongas, while he was working just across the street as an intern in the office of then Fifth District Congressman Brad Morse. Niki was Paul's soul mate and his strongest supporter when he ran successfully to join us here in the House of Representatives in January of 1975 and for the Senate in 1978. She was at Paul's side when he ran for the Presidency in 1992 and when he fought so valiantly against the cancer that finally claimed him in 1997. Over the years, Niki Tsongas has been a social worker, a community leader in Lowell, a lawyer, and an educator. As a community leader, she has had a passion for social and environmental justice, which she brings with her as she arrives in Congress. And through it all, she was an amazing mother to three daughters, Ashley, Katina and Molly. Lowell and the Merrimack Valley has a strong industrial past, and nobody will better represent the roll-up-your-sleeves, hard work persona of this area like Niki Tsongas.”