March 2, 1998

Winston Churchill once said that Franklin Roosevelt was the greatest man he had ever known. President Roosevelt's life, he said, "must be regarded as one of the commanding events of human destiny."

Let us reflect for a moment on who he was and what he did.

Franklin Roosevelt was the voice of the people of the United States during the most difficult crises of the century. He led America out of the despair of the Great Depression. He led us to victory in the Great War. Four times he was elected President of the United States. By temperament and talent, by energy and instinct, Franklin Roosevelt came to the presidency, ready for the challenges that confronted him. He was a breath of fresh air in our political life--so vital, so confident and optimistic, so warm and good humored. He was a man of incomparable personal courage. At the age of 39, he was stricken with infantile paralysis. He would never walk or stand again unassisted. The pain of his struggle is almost unimaginable--learning to move again, to stand, to rely upon the physical support of others--never giving into despair, to self-pity, to discouragement. Just twelve years after he was stricken, he was elected President of the United States and took command of a paralyzed nation. He lifted America from its knees and led us to our fateful rendezvous with history. He embraced a desperately troubled world and gave it hope.

He transformed our government into an active instrument of social justice. He made America the arsenal of democracy. He was Commander-in-Chief of the greatest military force in history. He crafted the victorious alliance that won the war. He was the father of the nuclear age. He inspired and guided the blueprint for the world that was to follow. The vision of the United Nations, the commitment to collective security, the determination to end colonialism, the economic plan for a prosperous world with access to resources and trade assured to all nations--such was the legacy of Franklin Roosevelt.

On this second day of March, 1998, as we honor in his name a country for which he had such great affection and respect, let us remember the triumph of his life.