In the eyes of France, K&L Gates lobbyist Bart Gordon has joined the ranks of telephone inventor Alexander Graham Bell, four-star general George Patton and Hollywood icon Barbra Streisand. Gordon, who served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1985 to 2011 as a Democrat from Tennessee, last week received the Insignia of Officier de la Légion d’Honneur, the second degree of France’s highest honor.
Bell, Patton and Streisand also are recipients of the decoration, which the French president bestows at his discretion. Napoleon Bonaparte created the honor in 1802. “It’s a much-appreciated award,” Gordon said.
