Farewell to the Lion of the Senate

The renowned Kennedy family, fellow senators and former presidents Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, attended the funeral service for Senator Edward “Teddy” M. Kennedy in Boston today, with President Barack Obama delivering the eulogy today. Friends, family and colleagues had paid tribute to Senator Kennedy on Friday evening with a three-hour wake and celebration of his life.
Ted Kennedy, the patriarch of America's leading political family for more than 40 years, died at the age of 77 on Tuesday, 15 months after being diagnosed with brain cancer. He had represented Massachusetts in the Senate since 1962, leaving his stamp on nearly every important law passed in the last half-century. Some people born with a famous name live off of it. Others enrich theirs. Ted enriched his; as well as enriched the lives of countless others.

When I look at Senator Ted Kennedy, I see a great redemption story. His political career began as the little brother of his more famous older brothers former Senator and President John F. Kennedy and former Senator, Attorney General and presidential candidate Robert Kennedy. His own presidential aspirations were hobbled by the controversy around a 1969 auto accident that left a young woman dead and a 1980 primary challenge to then-President Jimmy Carter that ended in defeat. But while the White House eluded his grasp, he played major roles in passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act and the 1993 Family and Medical Leave Act. He went on to become one of the great legislators of our time, authoring or co-authoring over 1000 U.S. Laws. And he never gave up despite all the family and personal tradegy.

Senator Ted Kennedy was an outspoken liberal standard-bearer during a conservative-dominated era from the 1980s to the early 2000s. His endorsement and support of then presidential candidate Barack Obama played a major role in the election of President Obama. He died as President Obama is pushing for a wide-ranging overhaul of the U.S. health insurance system, a fight the dying senator called "the cause of my life".

Senator Kennedy was famous for his close friendships with colleagues across the Senate aisle even as his name was hissed in Republican campaign materials. Long-time Republican senators Orrin Hatch and John McCain were both adversaries and friends.

Senator Edward M. Kennedy will be buried Saturday evening at Arlington National Cemetery, 95 feet south of the grave of Senator Robert Kennedy, which is in turn just steps away from President John F. Kennedy's burial site.