I’m going to be very quick, and then I’m going to turn it over to the Honorable Greg Meeks here, I’m a Republican, he’s a Democrat, so you’re going to get both sides, but we both agree on freedom! Right? That’s right.
We also agree that you’ve made wonderful picks for the honorees this evening, we’re just thrilled with the choices that have been made, and these people clearly stand for freedom and democracy around the world.
I happen to be the chair of the Middle East and South Asia Committee, I just got back from the region. I’ve been in Egypt and Israel and Jordan, and a few other countries I don’t have time to mention in the last month. And to have walked on Tahrir Square a few weeks after we saw the transformation and met with a lot of the young leaders that were there, this is a time, which is just unbelievable to live in. And we certainly want to see what happened so far in Egypt and Tunisia also happen in Libya and in Syria, and one day in Iran, so thank you very much for what everyone in this room has done to work towards democracy and freedom in one of the critical areas of the world.
God bless you all, God bless the honorees this evening, and now we will hear from Greg Meeks.