Elijah ‘honored’
Bam, Bubba, Hil, but not Don, pay last tribute
Two past presidents, one almost-president and throngs of regular folks paid a final tribute to Rep. Elijah Cummings Friday as the nation mourned him as a principled leader who bridged the partisan divide — and never forgot where he came from.
Former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, along with Hillary Clinton, eulogized the iconic Baltimore congressman with soaring praise. The most notable absentee at the emotional ceremony was President Trump, who frequently sparred with Cummings and infamously derided his beloved hometown as a rat-infested dump.
Obama told a rapt audience of 4,000 at Cummings’ church that the lawmaker earned the title of “honorable” by being much more than an elected official.
“You’re supposed to introduce them as honorable,” said
Obama, his voice rising with emotion. “But Elijah Cummings was honorable before he was elected to office.
“There’s a difference if you were honorable and treated others honorably — outside the limelight, on the side of the road, in a quiet moment counseling somebody you work with.”
Hillary Clinton compared Cummings to the biblical prophet whom she described as a force of nature.
“He also prayed and worked for healing. He weathered storms and earthquakes but never lost his faith.”
Clinton, who took the stage to rousing applause, added: “Our Elijah was a fierce champion of truth, justice and kindness in every part of his life.”
Gospel and R&B singer BeBe Winans, a favorite of Cummings, performed “Stand” as mourners sang along, stood and raised their hands. Many wiped away tears.
Obama and Bill Clinton and
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi were also among the scheduled speakers at the 4,000-seat New Psalmist Baptist Church. Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren was set to deliver a reading of scripture and Joe Biden joined the mourners.
At dawn, several hundred people were lined up outside, waiting for the doors to open so they could pay their final respects to the Baltimore Democrat who died last week at age 68 of longstanding health problems.
There was a controversial moment when a video emerged of one of Cummings’ pallbearers appeared to refuse to shake the hand of Republican Majority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell at a ceremony on Capitol Hill Thursday.
Among those waiting to get into the church was LaGreta Williams, 68, of New York, who met Cummings when they were college students in Baltimore in 1969. She said the teenage Cummings was a natural leader who aspired to become Maryland’s first black governor.
William, who recalled his deep roar of a laugh, said they remained friends for 50 years and often had lunch when she visited Baltimore.
“I think his legacy is that he was an honest person,” she said. “He wanted everyone to have an equal opportunity so that people could make better decisions for themselves, better choices.”
Bobby Trotter, a 67-year-old Baltimore resident who lives just outside Cummings’ district, recalled how the congressman helped quell tensions in the city after the rioting that erupted in 2015 over the death of Freddie Gray, a black man who suffered a fatal spinal injury during a jolting ride in a police van.
Cummings “believed in helping people, particularly people that were downtrodden. He stood up. He spoke for them,” Trotter said.