Thursday, February 8, 2007

U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson (R-GA)
Floor Statement on U.S. Representative Charlie Norwood
Remarks as Delivered on the Senate Floor

I do rise for just a moment to ask all the members of the Senate to join me in expressing their concern, their hopes and their prayers for Congressman Charlie Norwood.

Congressman Norwood of Georgia yesterday notified the United States House and the Senate that he would be returning to his home in Augusta.

A little over two years ago, Charlie had a lung transplant to try and correct a degenerative disease, which he had had with him throughout his life. That transplant was successful and he returned to the United States House of Representatives and, as he always did, he represented the state of Georgia with courage, with dignity, and with tenacity.

Unfortunately, last year, cancer occurred in the lung and successfully was removed by surgery. But it has reappeared now in his liver and Charlie is fighting for his life.

His lovely wife Gloria is in Augusta with him and his countless thousands of friends are there. But in this business that we go through in this body, there's always a time that all of us should reflect on the blessings that we have and that's the blessing of life and pray now that the good Lord will look after Charlie and give him as much of that life as he possibly can.

I think it's also appropriate that we reflect just a minute on how important his service in the United States Congress has been. We all know that domestically, health care, affordability of health insurance, doctor-patient relationship is probably the singular thing the American people look to us to help solve. And Charlie Norwood and his co-sponsorship of Norwood-Dingell laid a platform for which one day many of those problems will be solved.

He has fought tenaciously for better health care, for better patient-doctor relationships and a better relationship between the federal government and the providers of lifesaving healthcare around the country. So at this moment, while a champion of health care is in dire straits himself, I hope all members will join me and pray that his recovery will be fast and swift and that God will put his blessing hand on his shoulder.