Lawmakers pay tribute to late NY Gov. Mario Cuomo

Members of the New York congressional delegation led a series of speeches on the House floor Monday night to honor late Gov. Mario Cuomo.

Cuomo died on Jan. 1 in his home in Manhattan due to heart failure.

{mosads}House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Cuomo’s famous “Shining City on a Hill” speech at the 1984 Democratic convention in San Francisco would be recognized as one of the most powerful speeches in American history.

“We know Mario Cuomo’s language and leadership will echo through the ages, just as energizing as his words were that day,” Pelosi said.

Rep. Jose Serrano (D-N.Y.) recalled how Cuomo never forgot his upbringing in a family of Italian immigrants.

“Above all, this man never forgot and understood how important it was for him to be the son of an immigrant family,” Serrano said. “He was an eloquent man who also remembered his humble beginnings.”

Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) recalled attending the 1984 Democratic convention, where she said Cuomo’s speech shook up the 1984 convention.

“I will never forget it. When Mario Cuomo spoke, it electrified the whole convention,” Maloney said. 

“I shall miss this singular man until the end of time. To know him was to love him,” Maloney concluded.