WASHINGTON, Nov. 29 (UPI) -- President George W. Bush Thursday recalled former Rep. Henry Hyde, R-Ill., who died Thursday at 83, as a man of character and wisdom.
Hyde "always stood for a strong and purposeful America," Bush said in a statement.
"During more than 30 years as a congressman, he represented the people of Illinois with character and dignity," said Bush.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., called Hyde's death "a great loss to his constituents in Illinois and to the House of Representatives -- an institution he loved."
Hyde, who represented the western Chicago suburbs in Congress for 32 years, often was viewed as a throwback to a more genteel, courtly time in Washington politics.
During his tenure, "no one in this House matched his clarity of wisdom, his sharpness of mind or his gentleness of spirit," said House Republican Whip Roy Blunt, R-Mo.
Robert M. "Mike" Duncan, Republican National Committee chairman, said in a statement, "We will remember his eloquence on the House floor, his principles and his bipartisanship."
Bush this month awarded Hyde the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor.
