Frank Pallone: “I would like to begin, as I do every year, by thanking the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Maloney) and the gentleman…”

“I would like to begin, as I do every year, by thanking the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Maloney) and the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis) for organizing this hour to honor the anniversary of Greek Independence Day. My colleagues, my two colleagues, are both tireless champions of Greek-American relations, and I thank them both for their leadership of the congressional Hellenic Caucus, and their tireless efforts to strengthen the ties between our two countries. Today, March 25, it has been noted, Greece celebrates its 177th year of independence. And despite the late hour, many of us are pleased to be able to take this time to praise a society that represents, in a historical sense, the origins of what we call Western culture, and in a contemporary sense, one of the staunchest defenders of Western society and values. There are many of us in the Congress on both sides of the aisle who are staunchly committed to preserving and strengthening the ties between the Greek and the American people.”