The senator of Massachusetts, Edward Kennedy, died late Tuesday at his home in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts, after a long struggle with brain cancer. The senator was 77 years old and was called the "Lion of the Senate". Kennedy will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery near the graves of his brothers, who preceeded him in death. Since he served in the army from 1951 to 1953 and because of his congressional service, he is eligible for burial at Arlington (CNN).The family of Kennedy gave this statement to the press: "We've lost the irreplaceable center of our family and joyous light in our lives, but the inspiration of his faith, optimism and perseverance will live on in our hearts forever. We thank everyone who gave him care and support over this last year, and everyone who stood with him for so many years in his tireless march for progress toward justice."
Obviously everyone knows who the Kennedy's are. They've been well known ever since JFK (Edward's brother) took the White House. Most of the Kennedy's were or are involved in politics in some way, and Edward Kennedy was no exception. The liberal Democratic senator served 9 terms, 47 years total. He and his staff wrote more than 300 bills that were enacted into law. Most recently, Kennedy was seen backing Barack Obama as the future president was running for office, until his cancer took over.
But now that Kennedy is gone, who will take his place? A successor must be chosen between 145 to 160 day of a vacancy, according to Massachusetts law. However, Kennedy was pushing this to change just before he died, according to YahooNews. "In a recent letter to lawmakers, Kennedy, who died Tuesday night, said the law should be changed to allow the governor to appoint someone to serve in the Senate during the course of the election — provided that person pledge not to run for the seat" (YahooNews). Unlike most states, a successor to a vacant U.S. Senate seat in Massachusetts is chosen by special election, not appointed by the governor.
The actual election must be held either the last two weeks of January or the first week of February. According to MSNBC, one of Kennedy's nephews, former Rep. Joseph P. Kennedy II, and state Attorney General Martha Coakley. If Coakley were elected, she would be the first woman elected to the Senate from Massachusetts. Gov. Deval Patrick is in line to be interim senator for Kennedy.
I can honestly say that I don't follow politics very much, although I wish I could say I did. However, whenever a Kennedy dies, everyone in the country hears about it.
Kayley,
ReplyDeleteI'm in the same boat as you when it comes to not keeping up with politics, but it's hard not to be when stories of politicians such as Edward Kennedy arise in our news. Kennedy's death is a terrible tragedy, but it also brings up how events will proceed afterwards. You brought up the point of if a woman becomes the next senator, she will be the first woman senator from Massachusetts. What new controversaries or news stories could a new senator bring up? Will family history play a part in who is elected? Joseph P. Kennedy II, Kennedy's nephew also has a chance at becoming senator. I find these stories especially interesting, and I should keep up with politics more than I do.
I was going to blog about this, but I decided not to because I had a big feeling somebody else was going to. Just like Eden, I have trouble keeping up with the politics until something like this happens. The Kennedys are an icon to our country and a lot of people are in mourning. Did you know that there is one Kennedy sibling left?...Or so I read this somewhere. When something big happens like this, I slowly start to feel a spark coming on. Thanks Kayley for helping out with that.
ReplyDeleteI didn't know a lot about Senator Kennedy before he died, just the basic stuff--he was a Kennedy and a senator from Massachusetts and SNL always made fun of his drinking and womanizing.
ReplyDeleteBut since he died and I've been listening to the biographies given on the news, I think he was a pretty incredible guy. I was impressed that he turned his life around later in life and had a happy family life, finally. And something that impresses me about the Kennedys in general is that even with all the tragedy and scandal and public imperfections, they always seem to champion the cause of the little guy. I think that is so admirable since they have so much and could easily just think of what would serve them and others like them best. I hope they find a replacement that will continue that effort.
Kayley,
ReplyDeleteI was saddened to hear of Edward Kennedy’s passing. I think that the Kennedy family contributed a great deal too American politics and like when they are recognized for it. Cancer is a terrible disease that many in my family have been affected by. I know firsthand how horrible it can be and how terribly most patients suffer before they recover, or more often than not, pass on.
On a side note, I think that my generation, myself included, need to be more aware of politics and start taking an active role in whatever country it is that we belong to.
Yeah, as many of these people, I do not follow politics at all. I don't really mind that I don't either. I leave that for grown ups. What I do agree with is that if it is a Kennedy and something happens to them it is automatically on all the news websites. When I was researching on a couple newsworthy websites for my blog this story was on all of them. I feel for the family, however, I never heard of this guy.
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