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WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney hailed Ronald Reagan's vision and determination, saying he gave "hope to the oppressed, shamed the oppressor and ended the evil empire" of the Soviet Union.
Cheney traced the life of Reagan from his simple beginnings in Illinois through the achievements of his presidency and his struggle with Alzheimer's disease.
"Who else but Ronald Reagan could face his own decline in death with the message of hope?" Cheney said Wednesday evening during a ceremony at the Capitol that began a 34-hour period of lying in state.
Looking over to Reagan's widow, Nancy, Cheney said: "We honor your grace. . . . I hope it's a comfort to know how much he means to us."
Cheney called Reagan "more than a historical figure. He was a providential man who came to our nation when the world most needed him.""It was the vision and the will of Ronald Reagan that gave hope to the oppressed, shamed the oppressors and ended an evil empire," he said.
Cheney was the main speaker at the ceremony. President Bush, in Georgia for the G-8 economic summit, will deliver one of the eulogies at Friday's funeral.
In his speech, Senate President Pro Tem Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, noted a tradition dating to 1824 of paying final tribute to public servants in the Rotunda.
"President Abraham Lincoln was the first president to lie in state under this Capitol dome," he said. "In the coming days, thousands will come to these hallowed halls to say goodbye to another son of Illinois who, like Lincoln, appealed to our best hopes, not our worst fears.
"As we say farewell, his last words as president echo across this great nation. If we listen, we will hear him whisper the humble words he used to sum up his revolution: "All in all, not bad, not bad at all.' "