Posted on 07/04/2011 10:31:40 AM PDT by Hojczyk
Former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher paid tribute to Ronald Reagan on Monday as a statue of the late US president was unveiled in London, even though frailty prevented her from attending.
In a statement read on her behalf during the ceremony outside the US embassy, timed to coincide with US Independence Day celebrations, Thatcher said Reagan was a “true leader for our times” as well as a personal friend.
Former US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice and British Foreign Secretary William Hague were among the dignitaries attending the unveiling of a 10-foot (three-metre) statue of Reagan to mark 100 years since his birth.
He died in 2004 at the age of 93, having served as president from 1981 to 1989.
Thatcher, who was prime minister from 1979 to 1990, had been invited to the ceremony but was unable to attend. She has suffered a series of minor strokes and has dementia, and has not been seen in public for months.
But in a statement read out by Hague on her behalf at the embassy in Grosvenor Square, she said of her Cold War ally: “Ronald Reagan was a great president and a great man — a true leader for our times.
“He held clear principles and acted upon them with purpose. Through his strength and his conviction he brought millions of people to freedom as the Iron Curtain finally came down.
“It was a pleasure to be his colleague and his friend and I hope that this statue will be a reminder to future generations of the debt we owe him.”
Reagan oversaw the end of the nuclear stand-off between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War, and a piece of the Berlin Wall will be installed in front of the statue as a reminder.
(Excerpt) Read more at thegatewaypundit.com ...
It was a beautiful tribute by Thatcher. I hope she recovers from her strokes.
Wonderful statement by Lady Thatcher, and wonderful tribute by Condi Rice.
Bookmark for later
Our current resident:
- Hates Britain for what it allegedly did to his father.
- Sent back the bust of Winston Churchill that had been on display in the White House for some 50 years.
- Sent the queen a copy of his speeches on an Ipod as a state gift.
- Has done innumerable small things to slight the UK during his presidency.
Guess who won't be honored with a statue in London in the future?
Thank you for that. Dear God, how I miss that man.
I count myself as so fortunate to have been alive during his time. Thank you Ronald Reagan for your unwavering optimism. I’m trying, really trying, to hold on to mine. And if I think it, it will be so.
Sorry, I don't mean to nit pick but wasn't the Bust of Churchill given to Bush after 9/11?
That was my understanding anyway...
I think we all loved that man..and miss him so very much..
Loved it! Leave it to my all-time favorite president to properly define a “democratic platform.”
I proudly cast my very first vote for him in 1980, that was the last time I really voted for a POTUS....well except for his reelection.
Sometimes, my eyes well up with tears when I think how blessed we were to have Reagan as President. Thank Mr. President. Thank you.
You need to get out and vote this communist out of office we need everyone..I don’t think we will ever see another one like this great man like Ronald Reagan,but we need to keep our country free from trash like we have in now..
I think you may have misunderstood when I post for
I have voted in every election since I was 18 but Reagan was the only time I casted an enthusiastic vote for POTUS rather then voting against the demoncrat...like McCain for example.
I hope in this next election we have someone we can vote for and really rally behind rather then just vote to get the bamster out....like a Romney, for example.
You’re probably right. A legitimate nit...
What a mark Lady Thatcher has left on Britain and our World. Pope John-Paul II, Reagan, Thatcher and Lech Walesa changed the World by demonstrating moral courage and firm resolve against foreign opponents. Somehow I am not see the same from our current CiC.
ping
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