Speaker Emerita Pelosi Floor Speech on World AIDS Day

Washington, D.C. – Today, Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi delivered remarks on the Floor of the House of Representatives to mark World AIDS Day. 

Speaker Emerita Pelosi honored those lost to the virus, paid tribute to President George W. Bush for his leadership in the fight against HIV/AIDS and called on Congressional leaders to make reauthorizing PEPFAR a top priority.

Watch Speaker Emerita Pelosi's remarks here.

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Read Speaker Emerita Pelosi's remarks below:

Speaker Emerita Pelosi.  Mr. Speaker, I rise today on World AIDS Day, as we remember tens of millions of beautiful souls we have lost around the world to HIV and AIDS and pray for their families. 

Over the last two decades, our fight against HIV/AIDS in the world has been transformed by PEPFAR, made possible by the leadership of President Bush and bipartisan support in Congress. 

It was my privilege to be a leader in this fight on the Foreign Operations Subcommittee where we secured more than $100 billion for PEPFAR to support its life-giving work.  I want to salute President Bush and Mrs. Bush for their ongoing attention and commitment to this issue.

I have traveled to visit the clinics in Africa, and have been told by people there PEPFAR gave them hope.  They would never have been tested, if they didn't think there was an opportunity for something to improve their lives.  So they lost the stigma of being tested positively, by having hope given to them. 

Thank you, President Bush and Mrs. Bush, for helping address the issue with your [red] ribbon campaign.

As we go forward, let us hope that this body will soon reauthorize PEPFAR for what it means.  During the COVID crisis, I spoke to the Chairman – the head of the World Health Organization.  I asked him 'Did PEPFAR help?'  He said, 'Yes, the science, the distribution of drugs, the network that was created was all very helpful to us in the fight against COVID, especially in Africa.' 

So again, thanks to President Bush for his leadership at the time.  I said at the time, 'I'm with you, as long as it's big.'  He made it big and he's made it constant.  And we salute him and are grateful to him for that. 

With that I yield back the balance of my time.