September 19, 2002

New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, left, on September 6 greets a Congressional delegation before a special session of Congress in New York City. The session was held to honor the victims and survivors of the September 11 terrorist attacks. The visit was first proposed in an editorial in the New York Daily News. Congress last convened in New York in 1789-1790 when the city was the first U.S. capitol under the current constitution.

In addition, a resolution was introduced in Congress by New York Congressman Charles Rangel, ranking member of the House Ways and Means Committee and a staunch supporter of both Conference priorities and the New York recovery effort. The resolution was instrumental in supporting the historic Congressional visit.

New York Governor George Pataki also endorsed the visit.