Henry J. Hyde
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois's 6th district
In office January 3, 1975–January 3, 2007
Preceded by	Harold R. Collier
Succeeded by	Peter Roskam
Chairman of the House Committee on International Relations
In office 107th Congress – 109th Congress
Preceded by	Benjamin Gilman
Succeeded by	Tom Lantos
Personal details
Born	April 18, 1924 Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Died	November 29, 2007 (aged 83) Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Jeanne Simpson Hyde (deceased; 4 children) Judy Wolverton (widowed; no children)
Alma mater	Georgetown University,Loyola University Chicago
Occupation	attorney, political assistant
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 Representativesfrom 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. He gained national attention for his leadership role in managing the impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton.

Early life
Hyde was born in Chicago to an English father and an Irish Catholic mother, in a family that supported the Democratic Party. He attended Duke Universitywhere he joined the Sigma Chi Fraternity, graduated from Georgetown University and obtained his law degree from Loyola University. Hyde played basketballfor the Georgetown Hoyas where he helped take the team to the 1943 championship game. He served in the Navy during World War II. He remained in the Naval Reserve from 1946 to 1968, as an officer in charge of the U.S. Naval Intelligence Reserve Unit in Chicago. He retired at the rank of Commander.

He was married to Jeanne Simpson Hyde from 1947 until her death in 1992; he had four children and four grandchildren.[1]

Political career
Hyde's political views began drifting rightward after his collegiate years. By 1952, he had become a Republican and supported Dwight Eisenhower for president.[1] He made his first run for Congress in 1962, losing to Democratic incumbent Roman Pucinski in the 11th District.

Hyde moved to DuPage County later in the decade, and was elected to the Illinois House of Representatives in 1967. He was a press aide for Richard Nixon's 1968 presidential campaign.[2] He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1974 as one of the few bright spots in what was a disastrous year for Republicans in the wake of the Watergate scandal. He faced a bruising contest against former Cook County state's attorney Edward Hanrahan, but was elected by 8,000 votes.

Political positions and legislation
Hyde was one of the most vocal and persistent opponents of abortion and liberalization of abortion law in American politics and was the chief sponsor of the Hyde Amendment to the House Appropriations bill that prohibited use of federal funds to pay for elective abortions. 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 introduced the Hyde Amendment in 1997.

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,[3] a bill that ties payment of U.S. dues for United Nations operations to reform of the institution's management.

House committees
Hyde was a member of the House Judiciary Committee for his entire tenure in the House. He was its chairman from 1995 until 2001, during which time he served as the lead House "manager" during the President Clinton impeachment trial.

From 1985 until 1991, Hyde was the ranking Republican on the House Select Committee on Intelligence. 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.

Savings and Loan scandal
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 chairman was one of Hyde's political contributors. According toSalon.com, from 1982 until he left the board in 1984, Hyde used his position on the board of directors to promote the savings and loan's investment in risky financial options. In 1990, the federal government put Clyde in receivership, and paid $67 million to cover insured 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 an arrangement exempting Hyde from paying anything. According to Salon.com, Hyde was the only member of the congress sued for "gross negligence" in an S&L failure.[4]

Iran-Contra investigation
Main article: Iran-Contra affair
As a member of the congressional panel investigating the Iran-Contra affair, Hyde vigorously defended the Ronald Reagan administration, and a number of the participants who had been accused of various crimes, particularly Oliver North.[5][6] Quoting Thomas Jefferson, Hyde argued that although various individuals had lied in testimony before Congress, their actions were excusable because they were in support of the goal of fighting communism.[7]

Clinton impeachment
Hyde argued that the House had a constitutional and civic duty to impeach Bill Clinton for perjury. In the Resolution on Impeachment of the President, Hyde wrote:[8]

“ 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. ”

Clinton was impeached by the House on two charges: perjury and obstruction of justice. Hyde, who served as chief prosecutor at the President's trial, stated in his closing argument:

“ A failure to convict will make the statement that lying under oath, while unpleasant and to be avoided, is not all that serious...We have reduced lying under oath to a breach of etiquette, but only if you are the President...And now let us all take our place in history on the side of honor, and, oh, yes, let right be done. ”

Despite Hyde's pleas, President Clinton was acquitted of both perjury and obstruction of justice. With a two-thirds majority required for conviction, only 45 senators voted for conviction on of the perjury charge and only 50 on the obstruction of justice charge.