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Whenever Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-5th) walks into a room, he鈥檚 usually greeted with hugs, handshakes, kisses on the cheek and gratitude for his more than 40 years in Congress.
But one longtime colleague stood out when she offered those same accolades Friday during the congressman鈥檚 23rd annual Women鈥檚 Equality Day Luncheon in College Park attended by a few hundred people.
鈥淭hank all of you for being here and supporting Steny Hoyer over the years,鈥� said former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, (D-Calif.), who served as聽聽at the event. 鈥淲hen I talk about things that relate to women in the world 鈥� [and] having fairness in our society, we can be sure that Steny will be on the forefront.鈥�
Without mentioning President Donald Trump (R) and other Republican leaders by name, Pelosi said there鈥檚 been efforts to restrict the women鈥檚 right to choose and to appoint women to leadership positions.
鈥淜now that there鈥檚 nothing more wholesome for our country, whether it鈥檚 in politics and government, whether it鈥檚 in the academic world, whether it鈥檚 in the military, nothing is more enhanced than by the increased leadership and participation of women,鈥� Pelosi said. 鈥淲hen women succeed, America succeeds.鈥�
Women鈥檚 Equality Day is celebrated Aug. 26, to commemorate the 19th Amendment that granted women the right to vote and was ratified in 1920.
Hoyer has three daughters and two of his three grandchildren and three of his four great grandchildren are females. After the death of his first wife, Judy Pickett Hoyer, he remarried two years ago to Elaine Kamarck.
鈥淚 have been blessed with a lot of women in my life,鈥� Hoyer said to some laughs and applause in the audience.
贬辞测别谤,听聽on June 14, and Pelosi, 85, have served in Congress together since the 1980s, but have known each other even longer, briefly working together in the early 1960s for U.S. Sen. Daniel Brewster (D-Md.). So when Hoyer makes an appearance these days, he is inevitably asked whether he plans to seek a to 24th term in Congress next year.
鈥淲e鈥檙e thinking about it,鈥� Hoyer said in a brief interview after the luncheon. 鈥淚鈥檓 in this fight. This is a fight that is worth having. What is being done in Washington is making America less fair, [there鈥檚] less investment in our future. I鈥檓 very concerned about it.鈥�
But those concerns stop at violence, said Hoyer, reflecting on Wednesday鈥檚 shooting death of 31-year-old conservative activist,聽聽during an event at Utah Valley State University.
鈥淲e know that there are people who think violence is an alternative 鈥� violence is an alternative that will cause chaos and death and diminish our democracy,鈥� Hoyer said. 鈥淲e need every one of us [to] reject the use of violence, particularly when it comes to political speech. Our democracy believes that debate resolves our differences, not violence.鈥�
In the wake of Kirk鈥檚 death,聽聽were made Thursday to Maryland Senate President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore City), House Speaker Adrienne Jones (D-Baltimore County) and several historically Black colleges and universities. On the same day, the U.S. Naval Academy was locked down after false reports of a gunman on campus led to the accidental shooting of a midshipman. Morgan State University said Friday that it received a bomb threat, that it determined was not credible, but still informed the FBI 鈥渙ut of abundant caution.鈥�
Rep. Sarah Elfreth (D-3rd) 鈥� who once. interned for Hoyer 鈥� attended Friday鈥檚 luncheon and also reflected on the recent events, including a school shooting Wednesday in Colorado.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 want to keep going down this course, and I just ask everybody to reflect on this moment and the choice that we have here,鈥� said Elfreth, who plans to go forward with an open telephone town hall Monday that was scheduled before the Kirk shooting. 鈥淭he only way to get through this is to recognize that we all have a part to play in fixing this.
