Lois Capps: “I thank my colleague for yielding. It is such an honor, in paying my tribute, to follow one of Mr. Dingell's best…”

“I thank my colleague for yielding. It is such an honor, in paying my tribute, to follow one of Mr. Dingell's best friends, Sandy Levin, his colleague from Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I rise with great pride as well as deep humility to honor the longest-serving Member of Congress, the dean of the United States House of Representatives, the Congressman for the 12th District of Michigan and my personal friend, Mr. John Dingell. John has served his country with such honor and such distinction, first as a second lieutenant in the United States Army during World War II and, for the past 59 years, right here in Congress over the terms of 11--that is 11--United States Presidents. But it is not just his longevity that has made John such a force in the United States Congress. Yes, we are losing this man's incredible institutional memory, but hopefully neither he nor we will ever lose our love for this institution. John Dingell's hand has helped construct nearly every major advancement in social policy that this country has known over the past six decades, policies that support working families, that strengthen our middle class, and support the United States economy. Many of us here speak of significant events in United States history, but John Dingell can speak of these historic events because he was often right there, standing by the President's side. John knows this institution inside and out.…”