LEADER JEFFRIES STATEMENT ON THE PASSING OF ELIOT ENGEL

Today, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries issued the following statement upon the news of the death of the late Chairman Eliot Engel:

For more than three decades in the House of Representatives, Congressman Eliot Engel was a champion for the people he was privileged to represent in the Bronx and Westchester County. The grandson of Jews fleeing czarist Russia and a proud son of New York City, Eliot's career in public service was inspired by his deep roots. Before embarking on his iconic political tenure, he was a teacher and guidance counselor in NYC public schools. Eliot was an astute and prolific legislator who fought for human rights, civil rights and against antisemitism here at home and abroad. As the Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Congressman Engel consistently championed humanitarian development and diplomacy alongside a strong defense that made America and the world safer.

He was a gentle giant of a legislator, a trusted friend and a dear colleague to so many of us in the New York delegation and House Democratic Caucus family. We miss him deeply and mourn with his loved ones during this incredibly difficult time. May his memory be a blessing.

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