Boehner's tears, Obama's tribute at unveiling of portrait for Pelosi - The Washington Post

“I’m honored to beryllium the first, but it volition lone beryllium a bully accomplishment if I’m not the last,” Pelosi said.

Figures including erstwhile House talker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) and Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) joined Pelosi successful the Capitol’s Statuary Hall to observe her representation and speakership. While Pelosi volition stay successful Congress, she volition not service arsenic speaker, oregon successful House Democratic leadership, successful the adjacent session.

An affectional Boehner recalled the galore times helium and Pelosi worked unneurotic successful Congress, contempt being connected other sides of the aisle.

“Madam Speaker, you and I person disagreed publically connected galore things implicit the years, but we were ne'er disagreeable to each other,” Boehner said.

The erstwhile talker noted that his daughters asked him to archer Pelosi “how overmuch we respect her.”

“The younger procreation contiguous has a saying: ‘Game recognizes game,’” Boehner said. “And the information of the matter is: No different talker of the House successful a modern era, Republican oregon Democrat, has wielded the gavel with specified authorization oregon with specified accordant results.”

Pelosi, Boehner added, is “one pugnacious cookie.”

In her remarks, Pelosi thanked Boehner, who was teary astatine times, and noted that she would person been “a small disappointed if helium did not get emotional.”

Pelosi’s representation was created by creator Ronald Sherr, who died past week. Sherr besides painted Boehner’s authoritative Capitol portrait, and Pelosi noted however the creator was capable to seizure “the intricate details of the House chamber.”

Her determination to measurement backmost from House enactment came aft her husband, Paul Pelosi, was violently attacked successful their San Francisco location by an intruder who was searching for her. Paul Pelosi was near with a skull fracture and superior injuries to his limb and hands.

The assemblage gave a lasting ovation to Paul, who wore a chapeau arsenic helium appeared successful Statuary Hall to observe his wife’s achievements Wednesday. The talker thanked him successful her remarks, calling him her “loving spouse for life, my constant, changeless pillar of support.”

Two of Pelosi’s closest Capitol confidantes, chap California Democratic Reps. Zoe Lofgren and Lucille Roybal-Allard, defined the talker arsenic a relation exemplary who, successful Lofgren’s words, proved to “countless” women and girls that they “can play not conscionable a part, but a starring relation successful bringing the alteration they privation to spot successful the world.”

Pelosi was archetypal elected to the House successful 1987 and became the archetypal pistillate talker successful 2007, serving until 2011. She became talker for the 2nd clip successful 2019, succeeding Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.).

In her much than 3 decades of service, she has earned a estimation arsenic a unit of powerfulness successful the look of antheral colleagues who astatine times undermined her enactment and opinions. She pushed implicit the decorativeness enactment a singular fig of legislative victories connected her party’s apical priorities, and she has received bipartisan designation for her quality to support Democrats united.

Schumer, who was teary-eyed arsenic helium celebrated Pelosi, said the powerfulness to support Democrats successful enactment is 1 of the things helium volition “forever admire” astir her.

History, Schumer added, volition retrieve Pelosi arsenic a lawmaker who “did it all.”

“We cannot speech astir the Affordable Care Act without mentioning Nancy Pelosi. We cannot speech astir the American Rescue Plan without mentioning Nancy Pelosi,” Schumer said. “We cannot speech astir the [bipartisan woody on] infrastructure, oregon the Violence Against Women Act, the Lilly Ledbetter Act, repealing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell — and truthful overmuch much — without mentioning Nancy D’Alesandro Pelosi.”

Former president Barack Obama besides spoke via video, reminding the assemblage that his emotion for the talker “is good documented.”

“Whenever I get stressed astir what’s happening successful Washington, I ever consciousness amended knowing that Nancy is connected the case,” Obama said. “And that’s due to the fact that for Nancy, thing is impossible.”

Pelosi, helium said, was the Democrat who did not springiness up connected his signature ACA successful 2009, not adjacent aft Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) died, leaving Democrats with 1 less ballot successful the Senate.

“She would ever say: ‘If the gross is closed, we’ll propulsion it open,’” Obama recalled.

Pelosi, helium said, “will spell down arsenic 1 of the astir accomplished legislator leaders successful American history.”

“And adjacent aft insurrectionists virtually broke into her office,” Obama said, “she ne'er stopped defending ideology present astatine location and astir the world.”

Footage from the deadly Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection astatine the Capitol showed that, portion rioters strode done the building’s hallways with carnivore spray and assemblage armor successful hunt of Pelosi — yelling “Where are you, Nancy?” and “Bring her out!” — she remained calm arsenic she made efforts to scope the National Guard and procure the information of her chap lawmakers.

“In the look of insurrection, determination was Nancy with america successful the aforesaid room, unshaken, calm, determined to unafraid the gathering and support ideology going,” Schumer said.

Few leaders successful U.S. history, Schumer added, person been “as effective, arsenic driven, arsenic palmy arsenic Speaker Pelosi.”

“Somewhere retired there, a aboriginal Madam Speaker awaits her accidental to marque a difference,” Schumer said. “And erstwhile that time comes, she volition beryllium lasting connected my person Nancy Pelosi’s shoulders.”