The House of Representatives is set to Honour Tony Blair when it considers, under the 'suspensions' procedure, H.Res. 416
RESOLUTION
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the public service of Tony Blair, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
Whereas Tony Blair has served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom for more than a decade, winning three general elections as leader of the Labour Party;
Whereas Mr. Blair played an instrumental role in achieving peace in Northern Ireland and negotiating the Good Friday Agreement which brought all communities into the political and governmental process and ended centuries of division, conflict, and strife;
Whereas Mr. Blair committed himself to bringing devolved government to Northern Ireland which was achieved with the recent decision of the Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn Fein agreeing to form a power-sharing government;
Whereas the United Kingdom and the United States have had a long-standing alliance which was further strengthened during Tony Blair's tenure as he and the United Kingdom stood side-by-side with the United States during conflicts in Bosnia, Kosovo, Afghanistan, and Iraq;
Whereas Mr. Blair showed British solidarity with the United States after the 9/11 terrorist attacks by being the first foreign leader to visit Ground Zero and attending President Bush's speech before a joint session of Congress on September 20, 2001;
Whereas Mr. Blair displayed exemplary leadership as Prime Minister when the United Kingdom suffered its own terrorist attacks on July 7, 2005, when suicide bombers killed 52 people traveling on London's public transportation system;
Whereas the United Kingdom has been a steadfast ally to the United States in the Global War on Terror as it is the second largest contributor of coalition forces in Iraq and Afghanistan; and
Whereas on July 17, 2003, Mr. Blair was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal that declared `Congress finds that Prime Minister Tony Blair of the United Kingdom has clearly demonstrated, during a very trying and historic time for our two countries, that he is a staunch and steadfast ally of the United States of America.': Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) recognizes the remarkable public service of Tony Blair during his tenure as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom; and
(2) expresses appreciation to Mr. Blair for his steadfast support for the United States and Britain's invaluable alliance to our Nation.
Mr Blair will visit Buckingham Palace to tender his resignation to the Queen as her Prime Minister on Wednesday after his final Prime Question's Question Time.
This blog, which will be written in the Palace of Westminster on Tuesday and Wednesday, will follow events as they occur.
