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Henry J. Hyde
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois's 6th district
In office 1975–2007
Preceded by	Harold R. Collier
Succeeded by	Peter Roskam
Born	April 18, 1924(1924-04-18) Chicago, Illinois
Died	November 29, 2007 (aged 83) Chicago, Illinois
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Jeanne Simpson Hyde (deceased; 4 children) Judy Wolverton (widowed; no children)
Religion	Roman Catholic

Henry John Hyde (April 18, 1924 – November 29, 2007), an American politician, was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1975 to 2007, representing the 6th District of Illinois, an area of Chicago's northwestern suburbs which included O'Hare International Airport. He chaired the Judiciary Committee from 1995 to 2001, and the House International Relations Committee from 2001 to 2007.

Contents 1 Early life 2 Political career 2.1 Savings and Loan scandal 2.2 Extramarital affair 3 Retirement 3.1 Presidential Medal of Freedom 4 Death 5 See also 6 References 7 External links

Hyde was born in Chicago, attended Duke University where he joined the Sigma Chi Fraternity, graduated from Georgetown University and obtained his law degree from Loyola University. Hyde played basketball for the Georgetown Hoyas where he helped take the team to the 1943 Final Four. He served in the Navy during World War II where he served in combat in the Philippines. He served in the Naval Reserve from 1946 to 1968, where he retired at the rank of Commander, after serving as officer in charge of the U.S. Naval Intelligence Reserve Unit in Chicago. He was married to Jeanne Simpson Hyde from 1947 until her death in 1992; he had four children and four grandchildren.

Hyde grew up as a Democrat in an Irish Catholic family, but by 1952 had switched party affiliation and supported Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Henry Hyde began his political career as a press aide for Richard Nixon's 1968 presidential campaign.^[1][2] In his book, The Great Shark Hunt: Strange Tales from a Strange Time, Hunter S. Thompson wrote:

“

One of the handlers, Henry Hyde, presumably felt that I was a threat to the Nixon camp. He called Pageant [magazine] to check me out. This was after he got into my room somehow -- while I was away, eating breakfast -- and read my typewritten notes. The Nixon people, who wore baggy, dark-colored suits and plenty of greasy kid stuff (they looked like models at an Elks Club style show), seemed to feel I was disrespectful because I was dressed like a ski bum. Pageant reassured Mr. Hyde as to the purity of my mission and intentions in spite of my appearance.

”

^[3]

He went on to become a state legislator and majority leader for the Illinois House of Representatives. A member of the House Judiciary Committee since 1975, Hyde served as its chairman from 1995 until 2001, at which time he served as the lead House manager during the President Clinton impeachment trial. Hyde maintained that the House had a constitutional and civic duty to impeach Clinton for perjury.

Hyde asserted that elected officials needed to be held to a higher standard and that the highest elected official, the President, should be held to the highest standard. The following statement by Henry Hyde, on the Resolution On Impeachment of the President^[4] illustrates this quite well.

“

What we are telling you today are not the ravings of some vast right- wing conspiracy, but a reaffirmation of a set of values that are tarnished and dim these days, but it is given to us to restore them so our Founding Fathers would be proud. It's your country - the President is our flag bearer, out in front of our people. The flag is falling my friends - I ask you to catch the falling flag as we keep our appointment with history.

”

From 1985 until 1991, Hyde was the ranking Republican on the House Select Committee on Intelligence. He was also one of the most vocal and persistent opponents of abortion law liberalization in American politics, and was involved in some of the highest level debates concerning the response to the events of September 11, 2001.

Hyde and the Committee's senior Democrat, U.S. Rep. Tom Lantos (D-CA), authored America's worldwide response to the HIV/AIDS crisis in 2003 and landmark foreign assistance legislation creating the Millennium Challenge Corporation and expanding U.S. funding for successful microenterprise initiatives. During his long career, he was also involved in debates over U.S.-Soviet relations, Central America policy, the War Powers Act, NATO expansion and the investigation of the Iran-Contra affair, and sponsored the United Nations Reform Act of 2005,^[5] a bill that ties payment of U.S. dues for United Nations operations to efforts mandating reform of the institution's management. An original sponsor of the Brady Bill requiring background checks for gun buyers, Hyde broke with his party in 1994 when he supported a ban on the sale of semi-automatic firearms. An original sponsor of family leave legislation, Hyde said the law promoted "capitalism with a human face."

He was in disagreement with his party on the Iraq War:

“

Lashing our interests to the indiscriminate promotion of democracy is a tempting but unwarranted strategy, more a leap of faith than a sober calculation. There are other negative consequences as well. A broad and energetic promotion of democracy in other countries that will not enjoy our long-term and guiding presence may equate not to peace and stability but to revolution.[6]

”

Fellow Republican House member Ron Paul introduced legislation to declare war on Iraq as outlined in the Constitution. He stated that he would not vote for his own bill, but if his fellow members of Congress wished to go to war in Iraq, they should properly declare war. In a hearing on the resolution, Hyde responded:

“

There are things in the Constitution that have been overtaken by events, by time. Declaration of war is one of them. There are things no longer relevant to a modern society. Why declare war if you don't have to? We are saying to the President, use your judgment. So, to demand that we declare war is to strengthen something to death. You have got a hammerlock on this situation, and it is not called for. Inappropriate, anachronistic, it isn't done anymore.[7]

”

He introduced the Hyde Amendment in 1997.

Main article: Savings and Loan crisis

In 1981, after leaving the House Banking Committee, Hyde went on the board of directors of Clyde Federal Savings and Loan, whose President was one of many of Hyde's banker contributors. The United States Congress deregulated the S&L industry in 1982, and Clyde began taking part in loans for luxury residences in Texas. Since 1984, when Hyde left the board, it was clear to the directors from the reports that the establishment had failed, but the board continued to give inappropriate financial loans to cronies and insiders and make it possible for the establishment to overcharge the government on student loans. In 1990, the federal government put Clyde in receivership, and finally paid $67 million to cover deposits. In 1993, the Resolution Trust Corporation sued Hyde and other directors for $17.2 million. Four years later, before pretrial investigation and depositions, the government settled with the defendants for $850,000 and made a special arrangement exempting Hyde from paying anything. Hyde was the only member of the congress sued for "gross negligence" in an S&L failure. Hyde utilized his political clout and refusal to settle as a way to escape payment and give the impression that he was discharged.[1]

In 1998, the Internet magazine Salon.com published "This Hypocrite Broke Up My Family" which stated that from 1965 to 1969, Hyde conducted an extramarital sexual affair with Cherie Snodgrass. At the time, Snodgrass was married to another man with whom she had had three children. The Snodgrasses divorced in 1967. Hyde said the affair ended when Snodgrass' husband confronted Mrs. Hyde, but Snodgrass said the affair continued another 2 1/2 years.^{[citation needed]} The Hydes reconciled and remained married until Mrs. Hyde's death in 1992. Hyde, who was 41 years old and married when the affair occurred, admitted to the affair in 1998, describing the relationship as a "youthful indiscretion".^[8] The revelation of this affair took place as Hyde was spearheading the impeachment hearings of President Bill Clinton over the Monica Lewinsky scandal.

Over the years, the demographics of Hyde's DuPage County shifted, leading his 2004 Democratic challenger Christine Cegelis to garner over 44% of the vote, the highest total of any of Hyde's opponents. Hyde had announced he would retire after his term expired in 2006. In 2005, Hyde endorsed State Senator Peter Roskam as his successor, and Roskam defeated his Democratic challenger, 51-49%.

On October 3, 2006, the Washington Times suggested that Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert immediately resign his speakership for the final months of the 109th Congress due to his possible involvement in the Mark Foley scandal. The Washington Times then suggested and supported that Rep. Hyde be elected his replacement.^[9]

Henry Hyde received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, on November 5, 2007. The press release stated: "A veteran, a lawyer, and a public servant, Henry Hyde has served his country with honor and dedication. During his 32-year career in the House of Representatives, he was a powerful defender of life, a leading advocate for a strong national defense, and an unwavering voice for liberty, democracy, and free enterprise around the world. A true gentleman of the House, he advanced his principles without rancor and earned the respect of friends and adversaries alike. The United States honors Henry Hyde for his distinguished record of service to America."^[10] Hyde was hospitalized recovering from open-heart surgery and could not attend the ceremony in person.

Hyde died on November 29, 2007 at 3 a.m. CST at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago ^[11] after suffering complications following an open heart surgery operation at that hospital, months earlier.^[12] Hyde is survived by his second wife Judy Wolverton, whom he married a year before he died, and by his four children from his first marriage to Jeanne Simpson Hyde which lasted from 1947 until her death in 1992.

• Hyde Amendment (1997)

• Henry Hyde's biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Henry Hyde's voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Henry Hyde's campaign contributions at OpenSecrets.org
• USC Center on Public Diplomacy Profile
• "This hypocrite broke up my family", David Talbot, Salon.com, 1998
• Letter to the FDIC concerning Hyde and the failed Clyde Federal Savings and Loan

Political offices
Preceded by Harold R. Collier	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois's 6th congressional district 1975 - 2007	Succeeded by Peter Roskam
Preceded by Jack Brooks	Chairman of House Judiciary Committee 1995 – 2001	Succeeded by Jim Sensenbrenner
Preceded by Benjamin Gilman	Chairman of House International Relations Committee 2001 - 2007	Succeeded by Tom Lantos

Persondata
NAME	Hyde, Henry John
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION	American member of the United States House of Representatives
DATE OF BIRTH	April 18, 1924
PLACE OF BIRTH	Chicago, Illinois, United States
DATE OF DEATH	November 29, 2007
PLACE OF DEATH	Chicago, Illinois, United States