US Longest-Serving Senator Byrd Dies at 92

[Jet Gorgon]

Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia, a fiery orator versed in the classics and a hard-charging power broker who steered billions of federal dollars to the state of his Depression-era upbringing, has died. He was 92.

...
Byrd, who served longer than any member of Congress in U.S. history and cast more congressional votes than anyone since taking office in January 1959, died peacefully at about 3 a.m. at Inova Hospital in Fairfax, Va, a spokesman for the family said.
...
In recent years, the wheelchair-bound Byrd was not as strong a presence in the Senate as he once was, making rare speaking appearances. Byrd showed up at a Senate hearing in May and read a statement cautioning colleagues against severely limiting use of the filibuster, a device he used to hold the Senate floor for 14 hours and 13 minutes in an unsuccessful filibuster of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

...
Byrd was not always a champion of liberal causes. He had come of age as a member of the Ku Klux Klan and cast a "no" vote on the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964 that prohibited discrimination against African Americans and others.


Robert Byrd, longtime Democratic senator, dies at 92 - latimes.com

Robert Byrd, the longest-serving US senator, dies, aged 92 - Telegraph

[aging one]

RIP peace old timer. Mellowed over the years. Was never beaten in any political race he ran in. He served several terms in Congress before going on to the senate.

An institution. Wonder which way his seat will go?

[slackula]

They should probably name a road or something after him...

[UpTooYou]

^ Maybe his own range of clothing, specializing in white robes and hoods!

[buriramboy]

What the hell was he still doing in office at the age of 92???

[UpTooYou]

^ same age as the voters!

[Norton]

What the hell was he still doing in office at the age of 92

steered billions of federal dollars to the state

Nuff said.

Given the chance, the good folks of West Virginia would reelect him again in the next election.

[harrybarracuda]

Damn it, now all those lobbyists have to find someone else to bribe!

[aging one]

Love the comments from those that dont have a clue.

[slackula]

RIP peace

Is that like an ATM machine or a PIN number?

Tuna fish?

[Muadib]

They should probably name a road or something after him...

Too late... Half of the federal spending projects initiated in West Virginia are already named after the old Byrd...

[Norton]

Love the comments from those that dont have a clue.

Knowing the totally unbiased OP would never intentionally only paste the negative bits about a Democratic Senator, I will add more from the OP.

He may have been old but he was a staunch protector of the constitution and took no crap from Presidents or the Senate for it. All of which I am in agreement with:

"When politicians were scrambling to create a Department of Homeland Security after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, he asked his colleagues, "Have we all completely taken leave of our senses? If ever there was a time for the Senate to throw a bucket of cold water on an overheated legislative process that is spinning out of control, it is now. Now!"

"And as the Senate prepared to debate authorization for war in Iraq in early 2003, Byrd thrilled antiwar activists with his lament — "Today, I weep for my country" — and gave a speech that would be reprinted in several languages and posted on many websites — no small achievement for a man who did not use a computer. "We stand passively mute in the United States Senate, paralyzed by our own uncertainty, seemingly stunned by the sheer turmoil of events," he admonished. "We are truly sleepwalking through history."

"he said his proudest legislative achievement was the defeat of the balanced budget amendment in the mid-1990s, which he likened to "putting an ugly tattoo on the head of a beautiful child." The "beautiful child" was the Constitution, and he was convinced that amending it by stripping Congress of its constitutional power of the purse would mar it forever. So when Congress passed the line-item veto in 1996, giving presidents blue-pencil authority over congressional appropriation, Byrd called it "one of the darkest moments in the history of the republic." Two years later, the courts agreed that the law crossed a line, ruling it unconstitutional."

"He was not afraid of standing up against presidents, even if they were fellow Democrats. Just days after the 1968 Tet offensive, the surprise assault against South Vietnamese and American forces that tipped U.S. public opinion against the Vietnam War, he told President Lyndon B. Johnson that American intelligence had failed, that "we should have known, we should have foreseen what happened." Johnson exploded. Byrd held his ground. "Mr. President, I didn't come here to be lectured," he recounted. "I'm no 'yes man.'

"Decades later, Byrd rose up to protect Congress' prerogatives against incursions of another Democratic president. Shortly after Barack Obama was sworn in, Byrd objected to the proliferation of White House staff czars that Obama chose to oversee policy areas such as healthcare. "The rapid and easy accumulation of power by White House staff can threaten the constitutional system of checks and balances,"

[Jet Gorgon]

^ Aww, I would never unintentionally do that.

They should probably name a road or something after him...

Too late... Half of the federal spending projects initiated in West Virginia are already named after the old Byrd...

555 Too true.

Mr Byrd was a master of the Senate's bewildering rules and longtime chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, which controls a third of the $3 trillion federal budget. He was willing to use both to reward friends and punish those he viewed as having slighted him.
...
Byrd stepped aside as majority leader in 1989 when Democrats sought a more contemporary spokesman. His consolation price was the chairmanship of the Appropriations Committee, with control over almost limitless federal spending. Within two years, he surpassed his five-year goal of making sure more than $1 billion in federal funds was sent back to West Virginia, money used to build highways, bridges, buildings and other facilities, some named after him.

Robert Byrd, the longest-serving US senator, dies, aged 92 - Telegraph

[Jet Gorgon]

OK, any wagers on how fast obama gets the WV guv to appoint a replacement that will vote in favor of the financial reform bill? *sob* Sen Byrd not even cold in his grave yet...

[pet coon]

He was considered an institution himself, by many, including his opponents. His record of longevity in both houses, will probably never be matched, (probably for the best). He is a argument for limited government service for elected officials.

[slackula]

Half of the federal spending projects initiated in West Virginia are already named after the old Byrd...

Come Maudib, I thought you would have picked up on that one..

[Jet Gorgon]

He was considered an institution himself, by many, including his opponents. His record of longevity in both houses, will probably never be matched, (probably for the best). He is a argument for limited government service for elected officials.

Yep. I think he also holds the record for filibustering, which he later railed against. Lemme check...ah! Here we are:

Mr. Byrd frankly acknowledged his love of the Senate's intricate guidelines.
"Nobody has ever used the rules of the Senate more than I have," he once said. In 1960 he set a record for the longest filibuster with a speech that stretched 21 hours and eight minutes and dwelled at length on one of his favorite foods, the raisin.

Robert Byrd, Longest-Serving U.S. Senator, Dies at 92 - WSJ.com

What a guy. Beggar. Don't we have a dancing raisin?

[sabang]

Ninety two years is a good innings- and in that time he changed, as did America.
From a Klansman to an elder statesman. Maybe theres hope for Sarah Palin yet.

[Muadib]

Half of the federal spending projects initiated in West Virginia are already named after the old Byrd...

Come Maudib, I thought you would have picked up on that one..

I didn't figure a limey would be abreast of Sen Byrd's legacy to WV... I consider myself suitably chastised...

[dotcom]

Byrd spent his entire life, just like Ted Kennedy getting people onto the public dole.
Not paying taxes but being a burden on the state.
Government can solve all your problems. Need a handout - Ted & I will give it to you.

Unmarried mother with 15 kids. No problem. What color Cadillac would you like?

Work to welfare. Soviet style workers state. Tax those filrty rich folks who clearly stole their money. Damn the rich & praise the poor.

Senile didn't even begin to describe this guy. They wheeled him in on a gurney for votes these last few years. He had lost his facilities.

[phomsanuk]

The classic incumbent, I bet the rest of them hope to emulate him.

Good argumernt for term limits.

[Jet Gorgon]

^ True, but like Helen in the press room, he was a laughable fixture, like the dotty old aunt at family reunions.