There were so many great diaries yesterday paying tribute to Senator Frank Lautenberg (D. NJ). I didn't get a chance to release a diary yesterday so I would first like to start with a tribute to Senator Lautenberg:
Frank Raleigh Lautenberg was born Jan. 23, 1924, in Paterson, N.J., to Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe. His father, a failed small-businessman who worked in local silk mills, died of cancer in his early 40s. Sen. Lautenberg blamed his father’s death on bad air in the mills and later said that the loss motivated his interest in labor rights and environmental safety.
He joined the Army Signal Corps and served in Europe during World War II before going to Columbia University on the GI Bill. He graduated in 1949 with a degree in economics and sold insurance for several years before joining forces with Henry Taub, whose father also had worked in the Paterson mills and who was launching a payroll firm.
Taub hired the future senator as the first salesman for what became Automatic Data Processing. Sen. Lautenberg ultimately became chief executive officer of the company, which went public in 1961. He amassed millions of dollars that he used to endow a professorship at Columbia and establish a cancer research center in Israel.
In 1978, he became a commissioner of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Four years later, Sen. Harrison Williams Jr. (D-N.J.) resigned after being convicted of corruption in the Abscam sting operation, in which FBI agents posed as Arabs seeking political favors.
Sen. Lautenberg seized the political opportunity, spending millions of his own dollars to win the seat. He was sworn in early, in order to complete his predecessor’s unexpired term, at his vacation home in Vail, Colo.
“There’s an emotional thing about being senator,” he said, according to the New York Times, looking at the slopes and the skiers atop them. “They don’t know I’m a senator, but I know and my family knows.”
His marriage of more than 30 years to Lois Levenson ended in divorce. He married Bonnie Englebardt in 2004. Besides his wife, survivors include four children from his first marriage, Ellen Lautenberg, Nan Morgart, Josh Lautenberg and Lisa Birer; two stepchildren, Danielle Englebardt and Lara Englebardt Metz; and 13 grandchildren.
Democrats did not restore his seniority or committee assignments upon his return to the Senate in 2002. Unburdened by leadership roles, he became a partisan warrior who repeatedly attacked Bush administration policies, including tax cuts and no-bid Iraq War contracts. In 2004, accompanied on the Senate floor by a giant cartoon image of a chicken, he branded Vice President Dick Cheney as a “chicken hawk” who had never fought in combat but was willing to send others to war. - Washington Post, 6/3/13
According to the National Journal, here are the five things that you need to know about Lautenberg:
http://www.nationaljournal.com/...
1. He was the last World War II veteran in the Senate. Lautenberg served in the Army Signal Corps for four years as an enlisted soldier and attained the rank of technician five, according to the Library of Congress. He served in the United Kingdom, Belgium, and France and left the Army in 1946. Lautenberg credited the GI Bill for allowing him to get a college education. In a 2007 interview, he described the camaraderie of serving in the Army. "It was an assimilation of different cultures, environments: country boys, city boys, tough guys, not-so-tough guys; but we all got along and we had to fend for one another," he told the Library of Congress for their project on World War II veterans.
In 2004, Lautenberg toured the newly opened World War II memorial with fellow veterans including former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole and Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, who died last year.
2. Lautenberg had frosty relationships with other Garden State Democrats. Earlier this year he publicly rebuked Booker for signaling that he would run for the Senate before Lautenberg had decided whether to retire. "He's got a lot of work to do—a lot of work that should have been done and hasn't been done," Lautenberg told National Journal earlier this year. Lautenberg later announced he would retire.
A clash between Lautenberg and Torricelli at a Democratic caucus meeting spilled into the headlines in 1999 over Torricelli's indirect support for a possible campaign by Republican Christine Todd Whitman. Democrats who witnessed the exchange were "stunned," reported the Philadelphia Inquirer. Torricelli directed profanity toward Lautenberg, and their relationship never recovered, according to reports. So in 2002, when Torricelli became the subject of an ethics investigation and state Democrats sought a candidate to replace him on the ballot, Lautenberg put his name forward, and went on to defeat Republican Doug Forrester.
Lautenberg also campaigned aggressively against Rep. Rob Andrews in the Democratic primary in 2008, dismissing claims that he was too old to serve and hitting Andrews for supporting the Iraq war. Lautenberg won handily, 59 percent to 35 percent.
3. He battled against smoking in public places throughout his nearly three-decade-long career. He wrote the measure that set the legal age for purchasing alcohol at 21. In 1987, he worked with then-Rep. Dick Durbin of Illinois to ban smoking on airline flights of less than 2 hours. Lautenberg, a former smoker, supported a bill banning smoking in all buildings that run federally funded children's programs that became law in 1994. Earlier this year, he cosponsored legislation aimed at cutting back on the illegal trafficking of tobacco products.
4. Lautenberg was a longtime supporter of gun control. He authored a gun law in 1996 that barred people convicted of domestic-violence crimes from possessing firearms. After he won reelection in 2008, he proposed legislation that would require background checks for firearm purchases at gun shows. After the lethal shooting in Tucson, Ariz., in which Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was severely injured, Lautenberg proposed banning high-capacity magazines. On the day of the school shooting in Newtown, Conn., Lautenberg called for an immediate legislative response. "If we do not take action to address gun violence, shooting tragedies like this will continue," he said in a statement.
5. Lautenberg supported liberal causes through his Senate career. Despite his personal wealth, Lautenberg routinely supported higher taxes to fund government spending. In 2010 he was among 19 senators who voted against a deal to extend the Bush-era tax cuts. "Because of a good business career, I made some money and the last thing I need is a tax cut. I'd rather have a strong country than a tax cut," he said, according to the Star-Ledger. Lautenberg was also an avid earmarker before the moratorium on the practice in 2010. In 2007, he won $14.7 million for a rail project that aimed to connect New Jersey to Manhattan. In 2010, he sought to bring home $206 million for the rail project, and criticized Republican Gov. Chris Christie for opposing the project. "The governor has put politics before performance, and it is the people of New Jersey who will pay the high price," Lautenberg said. - National Journal, 6/3/13
Here's the New York Times recap of Lautenberg's legislative success in the Senate:
Mr. Lautenberg had never held elected office before running for senator, but he immediately took to the sharp style of New Jersey politics. His entry to the Senate and his return were preceded by scandals involving another Democrat. In 1982, Senator Harrison A. Williams Jr. resigned after being convicted of bribery in the federal corruption investigation known as Abscam. In 2002, the Senate Ethics Committee declared that Mr. Torricelli was “severely admonished” for failing to report gifts from a contributor while helping the contributor’s business through official acts. Mr. Torricelli quit the race six weeks before the election.
Campaigning was rough in Mr. Lautenberg’s first two races. In 1982 he implied that this opponent, Millicent Fenwick, a 72-year-old moderate Republican who had clashed with President Richard M. Nixon, was too old. He called her “eccentric” and offered doubts about her “fitness.” He won an upset victory with 51 percent of the vote.
In 1988, he and Pete Dawkins, a former West Point football star and Vietnam War hero, slugged it out with blunt and sometimes provably false campaign television advertisements. “Gladiator sports are in,” Mr. Lautenberg observed. He won with 54 percent.
Mr. Lautenberg contributed heavily to his own campaigns, using the wealth he had gained after joining with two boyhood friends to develop a payroll services company, Automatic Data Processing, now better known as ADP.
Mr. Lautenberg was a strong backer of motorcycle-helmet laws. Mark V. Rosenker, a former chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, recalled on Monday that the senator had kept a broken helmet in his office and showed it to visitors.
“He was skiing and he hit a tree or a rock or something, and that thing broke open like an egg, and it saved his life,” Mr. Rosenker said. - New York Times, 6/3/13
Lautenberg truly was a strong voice for liberal causes and he was very ardent about gun control:
And a great ally to the LGBT community:
http://www.advocate.com/...
Lautenberg had a long history of supporting LGBT equality and was the author and key sponsor of federal antibullying legislation prompted by the high-profile death of Rutgers University freshman Tyler Clementi, who committed suicide after his roommate spied on an encounter Clementi had with another man. Lautenberg reintroduced the Tyler Clementi Higher Education Anti-Harassment Act in the U.S. Senate in February, confirms the late senator's website.
Lautenberg was also a lead sponsor of the bill that repealed the military's "don't ask, don't tell" ban on open service by gay and lesbian soldiers.
In 2012, Lautenberg joined his fellow Democrats in the state's congressional delegation unanimously supporting a marriage equality bill that was passed by both the state House and Senate, before Republican governor Chris Christie vetoed the legislation, saying the issue should go to a vote of the people.
Lautenberg was also a lead sponsor of the Student Nondiscrimination Act introduced by Minnesota senator Al Franken, which would expressly prohibit public elementary and secondary schools from discriminating against students based on sexual orientation and gender identity or ignoring harassment based on those characteristics. That bill is still before Congress.
Lautenberg was among a bipartisan coalition of nearly 40 U.S. senators who introduced the Employment Non-Discrimination Act in 2009, a federal proposal to prohibit workplace discrimination against citizens for their perceived or actual sexual orientation or gender identity. That same year, Lautenberg also introduced legislation to federally fund comprehensive, medically accurate sex education in public schools. - The Advocate, 6/3/13
Friends, foes and colleagues all had nothing but wonderful things to say about Lautenberg:
Michelle and I were deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Senator Frank Lautenberg, a proud New Jerseyan who lived America’s promise as a citizen, and fought to keep that promise alive as a senator.
The son of working-class immigrants, Frank joined the Army during World War II, went to college on the GI Bill, and co-founded one of America’s most successful companies. First elected to the Senate in 1982, he improved the lives of countless Americans with his commitment to our nation’s health and safety, from improving our public transportation to protecting citizens from gun violence to ensuring that members of our military and their families get the care they deserve. Michelle and I extend our deepest condolences to Bonnie, the Lautenberg family, and the people of New Jersey, whom Frank served so well. - President Barack Obama
Frank Lautenberg’s work created immediate benefits for tens of thousands of Americans and he was one of my closest friends in the Senate. The son of working class immigrants, Frank served honorably in World War II, went to college on the G.I. bill and came back to build one of the most successful companies in America. He’s the reason why people can’t smoke on airplanes, why domestic abusers can’t possess guns. He worked tirelessly against drunk driving, and co-wrote the new G.I. Bill because he knew first-hand what it could do. I consider it a privilege to have known him, to have worked with him, and to have called him my friend. Jill and I will truly miss Frank. Our hearts go out to his children and his wife Bonnie. - Vice President Joe Biden
I think the best way to describe Frank Lautenberg in the way he would probably want to be described to all of you today is as a fighter. Senator Lautenberg fought for the things he believed in and sometimes he just fought because he liked to. He always reminded me that he was a kid from Paterson whose father died at a very young age, who served in the military and served his country, and then built a business which he was extraordinarily proud of, just as proud of his time at ADP as he was of his many years, nearly thirty years, in the United States Senate, and so today is a sad day for the people of New Jersey.
Whenever we lose someone who’s committed to public service and has been an honest and dedicated public servant as Senator Lautenberg was it’s a loss for everyone. Most particularly it’s a loss for his wife Bonnie and his family, and so our thoughts and prayers are with them today because whatever loss we feel as New Jerseyans and whatever loss his colleagues feel in the United States Senate is minuscule compared to the loss that his family feels, his loved ones, and so I think it would be inappropriate for me to give any other speech today except to ask all of you to pray for the Lautenberg family today, to pray for the soul of Senator Lautenberg, and to give a prayer of thanks for his service to individual New Jerseyans and to our country.
And in the end, all of you who decide to get involved in public service, should aspire to have the same things said about you in whatever role that you play. That you were honest, that you were a fighter for the things that you believe in, and that you gave as good as you got. All those things can be said about Frank Lautenberg. And so I’m sure we’re going to have a number of times over the course of the next few days to reflect upon his life and to pay him tribute in even a more public way. But for this morning, as the leader of this state and our people, I extend to the Lautenberg family and to his staff and friends, our deepest condolences. - Governor Chris Christie (R. NJ)
I am deeply saddened at the loss of my friend, Frank Lautenberg. I can think of no better example of an American success story than Frank’s life. The son of Russian and Polish immigrants, a World War II veteran, and a successful businessman turned United States Senator, Frank’s parents arrived in the U.S. when they were young and Frank spent much of his childhood moving frequently around New Jersey with his working class family. He enlisted in the Army at age 18 to defend his country, and with his death there is no longer a World War II veteran serving in the United States Senate. After attending college on the G.I. Bill, Frank went on to co-found ADP, becoming one of the most successful businessmen in the country.
After succeeding in the business world, Frank decided to run for public office and won election to the Senate. As a Senator, Frank never compromised his principles and was a fierce advocate for the citizens of New Jersey. Millions of Americans are healthier and safer because of legislation he championed. Among his many accomplishments, he authored legislation that banned smoking on airplanes and raised the drinking age to twenty-one. Shaped by his own experience, Frank co-wrote the new GI Bill for 21st century veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. And he has fought for years to reduce gun violence in our neighborhoods, authoring the law that prevents domestic abusers from owning firearms. Last month, Frank returned to the Senate to vote on gun violence legislation, a cause he has worked on his entire career.
History will show that Frank is one of the most productive Senators in the history of America. My thoughts are with his family and his wife Bonnie during this difficult time. - Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D. NV))
The entire Senate is saddened today by the loss of our colleague, Senator Frank Lautenberg. The Senate’s last remaining World War II veteran, Frank was a patriot whose success in business and politics made him a great American success story and a standout even within the fabled Greatest Generation. Elaine and I send our condolences to Bonnie, the Lautenberg children, and the entire Lautenberg family. - Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R. KY)
I am deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Frank Lautenberg. Senator Lautenberg exemplified the American spirit and his commitment and devotion to the country he loved was unmatched. He always answered the call to serve – first as a soldier in the United States Army during World War II and later as Senator in the United States Senate representing the people of New Jersey. Senator Lautenberg always stood up for the principles he believed in and fought everyday to improve the lives of everyday New Jerseyans. Frank Lautenberg was an American hero and an icon in New Jersey, and he will be sorely missed. My thoughts and prayers are with the Lautenberg family during this difficult time. - State Senator Barbara Buono (D. NJ)
Today, the American people lost a true champion. For three decades, Senator Frank Lautenberg worked to make America a stronger, healthier and safer place to live. His legacy will endure for generations.
Senator Lautenberg was a model of leadership and service to me since before I even considered entering elected office. He was a passionate advocate for New Jersey and a crucial and tireless partner who always delivered for the people of Newark. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Lautenberg family. - Newark Mayor Cory Booker (D. NJ)
I am deeply saddened by the news of Senator Lautenberg’s passing. I have known Senator Lautenberg for decades, and I have been honored to call him a colleague and friend. My heart and thoughts go out to his wife Bonnie, his children and grandchildren.
Frank Lautenberg was a moral guidepost on so many critical issues. As a leader in the U.S. Senate, his impact was felt on some of the most important issues facing New Jersey and our nation. His work on issues like gun violence prevention, improving our nation’s transit systems and transportation infrastructure, making Americans healthier through anti-smoking initiatives, and rebuilding our state after the devastation of Superstorm Sandy will be recognized for generations. Senator Lautenberg’s dedication to public service was evident in everything he did from his military service, to his philanthropic work, to his time in the U.S. Senate. Frank Lautenberg’s life defined public service and what it means to live the American dream.
Senator Lautenberg has been at the forefront of some of the most important movements to protect our environment, an issue critical to New Jersey and the nation. I witnessed his commitment to environmental stewardship firsthand when we worked together on legislation to address inequities in the Superfund system so we can better clean up toxic sites throughout the state. Senator Lautenberg and I also worked together to champion the issue of keeping our waterways clean and safe when we introduced the BEACH Act.
Like all New Jerseyans, I am grateful for Senator Lautenberg’s service to our state and our nation. I will miss him deeply, and I will do my best to continue working on the issues that were so important to both of us. - Rep. Frank Pallone (D. NJ-06)
Rest in peace, Senator. You will be missed.
With Senator Lautenberg's death, Governor Chris Christie (R. NJ) is calling for a special election:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...
Christie announced that a special primary election will be held on Aug. 13 with an Oct. 16 general election to fill the seat, ending a debate over conflicting state laws and the possibility that the Senate election would be the same day as the November 2013 election. A nonpartisan analysis puts the cost of the special primary and general election at almost $24 million.
“This is about guaranteeing the people of New Jersey a choice and a voice in Washington," Christie said.
Christie said that politics did not factor into the decision to call the October special election. But scheduling the special election for November would have set up the possibility of popular Newark Mayor Cory Booker (D), a potential Democratic Senate candidate, running statewide at the same time that Christie faces presumptive Democratic gubernatorial nominee Barbara Buono (D) for the governorship. Christie is leading Buono by 30 points in recent polls, but the presence of the popular Booker on the ballot could have helped Buono and helped Democratic state legislative candidates. - Huffington Post, 6/3/13
This pisses the right off so much:
And New Jersey Democrats are also pissed at Christie:
http://theweek.com/...
New Jersey Democrats blasted the decision as political gamesmanship. And Christie's gubernatorial opponent is already making hay over the odd election date.
Democrats and liberal groups also criticized Christie for holding a separate election that, according to the Associated Press, will cost a whopping $24 million total. - The Week, 6/4/13
I have to give it to Christie, it was a smart but sleazy move to hold a special election. We'll see if it'll pays off come election time. But either way, the U.S. Senate seat is ours to win. Of course Booker would be a sure winner but first he has to earn his party's nomination:
http://www.nj.com/...
U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone intends to run for the U.S. Senate seat opened by the death Monday of Frank Lautenberg, three sources with knowledge of the congressman’s thinking told The Star-Ledger.
The sources — who requested anonymity out of respect for Lautenberg — said Pallone (D-6th Dist.) has called Democratic leaders and told them of his plans.
Jeff Carroll, Pallone’s chief of staff, declined to confirm that the congressman had made a decision.
“The congressman lost a dear friend yesterday, and he doesn’t want to talk politics today,” Carroll said. “He doesn’t think it’s appropriate and wants to be respectful of the senator’s memory. We’ll have a decision and announcement after the senator’s funeral.”
Carroll did not give a timeline for Pallone's announcement. - The Star-Ledger, 6/4/13
I'll have more out about Pallone soon but for now you can read a little bit about his tenure in Congress:
http://en.wikipedia.org/...
Pallone is a Progressive Caucus Member. He serves as Vice Chairman of the Native American Caucus, where he has worked on a bipartisan basis to protect the inherent sovereignty of tribal governments and promote the needs of Indian Country. As a senior member of the House Resources Committee — the committee with jurisdiction over all matters regarding the relations of the United States with American Indians and Alaska Natives — he has been a defender of the sovereign status of Indian Tribal governments as independent from the United States.
He also serves as a co-chairman of the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues along with Congressman Ed Royce (previously Joe Knollenberg and Mark Kirk) and was instrumental in garnering the support of 127 members (30%) of the U.S. House of Representatives for the Armenian Caucus. In 2002 he was awarded the Mkhitar Gosh Medal by the President of the Republic of Armenia.
In 2002, he was awarded India's third highest civilian award, the Padma Bhushan for his contributions as member of the India Caucus in the Congress.
He was one of the 31 who voted in the House to not count the electoral votes from Ohio in the 2004 United States presidential election.
Pallone received an A on the Drum Major Institute's 2005 Congressional Scorecard on middle-class issues while the National Taxpayers Union has consistently given Pallone an F ranking on votes that affect taxes, spending, and debt.
Pallone has questioned the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) on its update of flood plain maps in Monmouth County, specifically in the Bayshore area.
Pallone has introduced a bill to modify the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, the U.S.'s most important set of fisheries regulations.
On October 3, 2008 Rep. Pallone voted in favor of the Troubled Asset Relief Program believing that the enumerated powers grant congress the authority to "purchase assets and equity from financial institutions in order to strengthen its financial sector."
And like Senator Lautenberg, Pallone is a strong supporter of gun control:
You can check out more of Pallone's videos and speeches here:
http://www.youtube.com/...
Like I said in brooklynbadboy's diary, I want to like Cory Booker but his Bain remarks still bother me. Pallone comes the closest to matching Lautenberg's views so he has my backing. I'll be writing about him some more soon. If you'd like to learn more about the 2013 New Jersey Special Election, check out bobswern's excellent diary:
http://www.dailykos.com/...