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Heard on the Hill

Kissinger and the Capitol

Former secretary of State was a constant figure on the Hill for many decades

Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, center, talks with then-Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Joe Biden, D-Del., right, and ranking member Richard G. Lugar, R-Ind., before a hearing on Jan. 31, 2007. Kissinger died on Wednesday.
Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, center, talks with then-Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Joe Biden, D-Del., right, and ranking member Richard G. Lugar, R-Ind., before a hearing on Jan. 31, 2007. Kissinger died on Wednesday. (Scott J. Ferrell/CQ Roll Call)
By Jason Dick
Posted November 30, 2023 at 7:54pm

When President Joe Biden commented Thursday on the death of former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, it underscored just how long Kissinger had been a presence on Capitol Hill. “I’ll never forget the first time I met Dr. Kissinger. I was a young senator, and he was secretary of State—giving a briefing on the state of the world,” Biden said.

From his time as the nation’s top diplomat for Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, to his many testimonies regarding foreign affairs to somber funerals for longtime colleagues, Kissinger had been a photogenic presence for decades. Kissinger died on Wednesday at the age of 100.

Here are some photos of Kissinger from our archives.

Kissinger is escorted to the Rayburn House Office Building in 1970 by Officer Patril Reece. (CQ Roll Call)
Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina left, and John McCain of Arizona, center, greet Kissinger after a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building in 2015. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)
From left, Democratic Rep. John McFall of California and Republican House Minority Leader John Jacob Rhodes greet Kissinger in 1975. (Dev O’Neill/CQ Roll Call)
Kissinger pays respects to the late McCain as the Arizona senator lies in state in the Capitol Rotunda on Aug. 31, 2018. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)
Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright chats with Kissinger during a Senate Foreign Relations hearing on Sept. 26, 2002. (CQ Roll Call)
Kissinger is seen at an event in 1970. (Dev O’Neill/CQ Roll Call)

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