— President Reagan has endorsed a resolution in the House of Representatives to bestow honorary American citizenship on Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg who is credited with saving 100,000 Hungarian Jews from Nazi death camps. This was made known by Rep. Tom Lantos (D. Cal.) who introduced the resolution in the House last Thursday with 263 cosponsors representing 50 States, four territories and the District of Columbia.
On Thursday night at the State Department, while attending a reception, Secretary of State Alexander Haig approached Lantos and informed him, “I’ve got good news for you. The President watched (CBS-TV) 60 Minutes (news magazine program) last Sunday evening and got hold of me and said, ‘This is a very important matter and I want to back it all the way’.”
Referring to this, Lantos said “We have the President’s mandate” and added that “Haig is very supportive.”
Sen. Claiborne Pell (D. R.I.) is to introduce a companion measure in the Senate this week. Rep. Peter Rodino (D. NJ), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, has promised early hearings on the Lantos resolution. Lantos said he has not discerned any opposition to the resolution. Wallenberg, who went to Budapest on a request by the United States to help rescue Jews, was arrested when Soviet troops entered that city in 1945. He is believed to be still in a Soviet prison or labor camp.
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