A great man just died, and with him went a tremendous positive force in the U.S. Senate. Ted Kennedy was the kind of liberal politician who could bring out the worst in the conservative elements in this country, the attack mode. He was not perfect. A lot of things about his personal life left something to be desired. Yet he qualifies as a truly great man.
In spite of being a part of a very wealthy family, he devoted a life to bringing equality to all Americans, regardless of income. And perhaps more importantly, he was never ashamed of who he was. He was never afraid to stand up and proudly announce to the world that he was a liberal, a man who cared about all Americans, not just those of a certain income status, not just those of a certain ethnicity, not just those who have the same religious beliefs as you do, not just those who have the same sexual orientation as you.
Just caring about Americans, just holding a certain belief system, however, does not in and of itself make one a great man. Ted Kennedy knew how to act on those beliefs and make something happen. He knew that in order to make positive things happen in our society one must actively engage the opposition. One must persuade. One must cajole. One must compromise. He was stellar at all of the above. He made things happen.
When the Civil Rights Act of 1963 was being debated in the Senate, it was Ted Kennedy who championed the cause and saw that it happened. When the Voting Rights Act was being pushed through Congress it was Ted Kennedy who saw that it got through the Senate and in the process added the amendment that lowered the voting age to 18 so our soldiers in Vietnam could vote for the people who decide whether or not to go to war. It was Ted Kennedy who championed the Americans With Disabilities Act. As late as 2007 it was Ted Kennedy who tried to re-introduce the Equal Rights Amendment, guaranteeing equal rights for women.
Let us not forget, though, that it was Ted Kennedy who for the last 40 years has been fighting for healthcare for all Americans. It was he who was responsible for expanding Medicare and Medicaid benefits. It was Ted Kennedy who saw that free clinics for the poorest of Americans continued to be funded despite efforts by the Reagan administration to cut that funding, in their "Government is the problem," binge.
Further, in our last election, it was Ted Kennedy who endorsed Barack Obama and gave it the boost that helped it reach The Promised Land. It was Ted Kennedy who endorsed and helped shape the legislative agenda the Obama Presidency brings to the table. John Kennedy shaped a legislative agenda of the 1960's that he was unable to complete because of his own untimely death. Lyndon B. Johnson, with legislative aid from Ted Kennedy made that agenda reality. Now the man behind the "liberal agenda," Ted Kennedy will be unable to make his agenda reality. Let us hope that the man he helped become President can follow through on this agenda as LBJ did when JFK died.
Ted Kennedy never became President, but as a 40 year veteran of the U.S. Senate and a man who has had a hand in shaping every piece of liberal legislation in the last 40 years, he is undoubtedly one of the greatest of all Americans, certainly one of the greatest 4 or 5 legislators in U.S. history. It was he who was the true believer. It was he who was the person who always pressed forward. It is not for him, but perhaps in honor of him, that we need to see his agenda to fruition, for the good of all Americans. Who will now step forward and fill those shoes? Who will become a champion for us all?
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