Emanuel Cleaver: “This is not one of the highlights of stepping into the well of the House. This is a moment that does not yield great…”

“This is not one of the highlights of stepping into the well of the House. This is a moment that does not yield great joy, at least not for what just happened in terms of the death of my friend and my colleague, Donald Payne. There is, however, some joy, and the joy is related to the fact that I had the opportunity to know Donald Payne, and I believe that my life was enriched because of it. During his final days here in Washington, I had a number of conversations with him at Georgetown Hospital where I tried to, and was successful at least on a couple of occasions, in getting him to laugh, even as he experienced excruciating pain in his hospital bed. Donald Payne can be observed by all Members of the House, and from that observation, we can extract something that can make this place better. Donald Payne was about as good and decent a human being as has ever walked the Halls of this stately House. At a time when many elected officials believe that acidic language, acrimony, and red meat discussions are the order of the day, Donald Payne was firm, soft-spoken, and respectful. No matter what happened, you could count on Donald Payne being calm through it, except on one occasion, which I will not talk about on the floor. We'll talk about it later, but not here. But Donald Payne was a man who was as peaceful in private as he was in committee or even on the floor. He had a passion for the diaspora.…”