[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 20 (Tuesday, February 7, 2012)]
[House]
[Page H515]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          CELEBRATING THE LIFE OF FORMER CONGRESSMAN JIM LLOYD

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Dreier) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, it was very sad to get the news last Friday 
of the passing of our former colleague, Congressman Jim Lloyd. Jim 
Lloyd and I began as political adversaries in the late 1970s and early 
1980s, and we ended up as great friends and allies on a wide range of 
issues.
  Jim was a dedicated patriot. He was a public servant and had a very 
distinguished military record as well. Politically, he began as the 
mayor of West Covina, California, and many have said that he indicated 
right then that he wanted to have an opportunity to serve in the United 
States House of Representatives. He also had served as a Navy fighter 
pilot.
  Mr. Speaker, I had a conversation with his son, Brian, last night and 
his grandson, Seth, and Jim was able to spend his last moments on this 
Earth with his grandson, who was following in his footsteps. His 
grandson, Seth, is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, 
and is now training at Pensacola, Florida. Jim had driven across the 
country and was visiting Seth, and had just been with him before he 
suffered a massive stroke and drove off the road, ending his life as a 
hero. His son, Brian, told me last night that there was a woman who was 
in the way of the car, and even though his foot had gone to the 
accelerator and he suffered a stroke, he was still a hero in that he 
was able to steer the car away from hitting this woman before it went 
into a ravine.
  Last summer, his wife of 63 years, Jackie, his great ally, passed 
away. Jim told me during a lengthy conversation following her passing 
that it was as if half of him was gone.
  So, Mr. Speaker, I have to say that Jim lived a very full 89 years. 
He was a very distinguished Member of this institution, serving on the 
Armed Services Committee and as a member of the Science and Technology 
Committee, where he chaired a subcommittee. He made a great mark on 
many very, very important questions that we faced.
  I have to say, it was a privilege for me, again, having begun as an 
adversary of his, to have ended as a very close and dear friend and 
political ally. I have to say also that there are many people here in 
this Capitol who knew him and worked with him even though he left more 
than three decades ago. I have to say to Mary Klappa, who now works for 
our colleague John Mica, who was the one who informed me of this sad 
news, and the many others who worked with Jim Lloyd, who was so 
dedicated to constituent service and provided an example and model for 
me, that our thoughts and prayers are with all of you.

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