Madeleine Albright dies of cancer at 84
FILE - Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, on Oct. 22, 2009 before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on NATO. Albright has died of cancer, her family said Wednesday, March 23, 2022. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari, File)
Madeleine Albright, the first female U.S. secretary of state, has died of cancer, her family said Wednesday.
She was 84.
President Bill Clinton chose Albright as America’s top diplomat in 1996, and she served in that capacity for the last four years of the Clinton administration.
At the time, she was the highest-ranking woman in the history of U.S. government.
She was not in the line of succession for the presidency, however, because she was a native of Czechoslovakia.
Albright’s family tweeted a statement on her verified Twitter account.
Thoughts and tributes from people around the world poured in following the news of Albright’s death.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar said Albright’s loss “is immeasurable.”
Sen. Tina Smith called Albright “a great public servant and a funny, incisive observer of people both famous and infamous.”
Rep. Dean Phillips said, in losing Albright, “America has lost one of its great stateswomen.”
Rep. Betty McCollum tweeted, “Madeleine Albright’s historic service as our nation’s 1st female Secretary of State has & will continue to inspire many women to step up & lend their voices to the political process. I’m sad to hear of her passing, & send my condolences to her loved ones.”
Rep. Angie Craig tweeted, “Today, the world lost a trailblazer who dedicated her life & career to diplomacy, peace and democracy. The world is a better place thanks to her leadership. Rest in Peace, Secretary Albright.”
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