Ted Kennedy’s death was announced this morning and it got me to thinking, did anyone really think he would be the Kennedy that had the greatest impact on American politics? Here’s a guy who watched his two brothers rise to political (and pop-cultural) stardom, only to subsequently reach their untimely and tragic ends.
Ted Kennedy witnessed major moments in American history first hand starting with his election in 1962, but the most impressive element of his political life is the scope of legislation he supported and opposed (successfully and not so successfully) during his time in office ranging from the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Immigration Act of 1965 to the 1980s
when he fought for equal rights for children with disabilities and the elderly and the Voting Rights Act, to his recent work on the Higher Education Opportunity Act, which provided more grant opportunities and financial assistance to students.
Ted Kennedy’s political exploits are universally impressive. But maybe even more notable is his (and his family’s) influence on American culture. As you no doubt have heard many people say, the Kennedy family was as close to American royalty as we will ever see. I think this is accurate. Not only that, I believe that we will never even come close to the mystery and allure that the Kennedy family held. The notion of mystery has long since disappeared and in its place we now have twittering politicians with facebook pages and flickr accounts. I would not call it alluring to know what my local legislators ate for breakfast this morning.
With Sen. Kennedy’s passing will no doubt come the blog trolls and critics who will bring up everything from Kennedy being a murderer, a drunk, or even worse …. a liberal. To them I would say this: American politics (whether you like it or not) is about compromise. We require multiple perspectives to come to a middle-ground decision. My hope is that even the most conservative of 24-hour news network pundits will pay Sen. Kennedy the respect he deserves for 46 years of service to his country.
Many of you out there know what it is like to have respect for your enemies. As much as I hate to admit it, I will miss T.O. playing for the Cowboys not because I like T.O., but because I loved to root against him. Sometimes the Cowboys win, sometimes the Eagles do (unless it’s the playoffs, then only the Eagles win), but I have to respect that man’s talent, even if I don’t like his verbage. After all, what good is a hero without a villain?