Before Senator Kennedy was diagnosed with a cancerous brain tumor this week, he was working on a bill to renew the "war on cancer" that was first begun in 1971 under the Nixon administration.
A little more than a week before Ted Kennedy was rushed to the hospital with a seizure and ultimately diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor, the Massachusetts senator was chairing a Senate Health Committee hearing on how to fight a war on cancer in the 21st century.
Kennedy's passion and pragmatism shows how things get done
Elizabeth Edwards, who testified before Senator Kennedy's committee in support of this bill, tells us why he was doing this:
But Senator Kennedy was doing this before he knew that this was going to be his disease as well. He's doing it because it was the right thing to do.
Edwards: We shouldn't be writing anybody's obituary
Much more, after the fold.
Elizabeth Edwards appeared on CNN's "Larry King Live" Wednesday night. Among other things, she discussed Senator Kennedy's cancer diagnosis and his work on a renewed war on cancer.
Here she talks about Senator Kennedy's motivation to work on a bill to renew a war on cancer:
But Senator Kennedy was doing this before he knew that this was going to be his disease as well. He's doing it because it was the right thing to do. I hope that the coalition he's built will grow even stronger as people see around them someone who -- among them who is facing precisely this disease.
But he didn't do it for selfish reasons. His cancer bill was based on what the rest of us, my brothers and sisters, have been suffering with.
Edwards: We shouldn't be writing anybody's obituary
He did not do it for selfish reasons. Isn't that the story of Senator Kennedy's political life? Born to wealth, he has fought always for the working man and woman. And he did this because it was the right thing to do:
Our cause has been, since the days of Thomas Jefferson, the cause of the common man and the common woman.
Our commitment has been, since the days of Andrew Jackson, to all those he called "the humble members of society -- the farmers, mechanics, and laborers." On this foundation we have defined our values, refined our policies, and refreshed our faith.
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These are not simplistic pledges. Simply put, they are the heart of our tradition, and they have been the soul of our Party across the generations.
It is the glory and the greatness of our tradition to speak for those who have no voice, to remember those who are forgotten, to respond to the frustrations and fulfill the aspirations of all Americans seeking a better life in a better land.
We dare not forsake that tradition.
Ted Kennedy August 1980 Democratic National Convention Address, quoted in John Edwards, Teddy Kennedy and the Fight for the Soul of our Party
From a diary by NC Dem Amy, who wrote about this hearing and Senator Kennedy's bill on May 8 on MyDD:
Elizabeth Edwards and Lance Armstrong are backing legislation "sponsored by Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., and Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson, R-Texas, to create a more comprehensive approach to fighting cancer."
The measure seeks to improve the coordination of cancer research, prevention and treatment while giving more money to the National Cancer Institute and other public research agencies.
"We think the American people want action - and they deserve action," said Kennedy. "It's a complex disease and it requires comprehensive strategies to fight it."
Lance Armstrong, a survivor of metastasized testicular cancer, told the panel that "for us to win, we also have to be ruthless and renlentless."
"This is a major fight." This is a major war. And this is something, as I said, it doesn't care if you're Republican or you're Democrat, if you're young or you're old, if you're black or you're white, Native American, you're rich or you're poor. It comes and it comes hard. And it is ruthless and it is relentless. And for us to win, we also have to be ruthless and relentless. And so I encourage all of us to do that. Renew the war on cancer, renew a comprehensive war on cancer, and ultimately make sure that our kids and our grandkids don't have to face this."
NC Dem Amy: Elizabeth Edwards: "Reform Health Care Responsibly, Morally, and Aggressively."
Senator Kennedy described his bill:
I’m proud to be working with Senator Hutchison on a bill that will really tackle the entire spectrum of cancer – starting with research, prevention, access and survivorship.
We’ve come a long way in fighting cancer since we passed the National Cancer Act thirty-seven years ago. At the time, cancer was the second leading cause of death in the nation. Americans lived in fear that they or someone they loved would be lost to this dread disease.
Today, we still have that fear, but we’re better equipped for the fight. It’s a complex disease and it requires comprehensive strategies to fight it – strategies the integrate research, prevention and treatment.
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Senator Hutchison and I will be introducing legislation in the coming days to make it clear that we must approach cancer comprehensively and not place emphasis on one type of cancer over another. This bill will renew our efforts to make progress in the battle against cancer, and to give patients and their families a renewed sense of hope.
Senator Edward Kennedy, May 8, 2008
Here's some video of Senator Kennedy at the hearing before the Senate Health Committee, the Committee he chairs.
Elizabeth Edwards testified in favor of a renewed war on cancer before Senator Kennedy's committee that day:
On the 30th anniversary of the "War on Cancer," Elizabeth Edwards, one of the nation's most outspoken and effective advocates for universal healthcare coverage, tells a US Senate Committee Panel led by Senator Ted Kennedy, "...we've chosen as a nation to turn our backs on some of us who have the disease [cancer]. I urge you to reform health care responsibly, morally, and aggressively."
Senator Hutchison, a Republican from Texas, is working closely with Teddy Kennedy on this bill:
In 2008, it is projected that 1.43 million Americans will be diagnosed with cancer. Nearly 96,000 Texans will receive this sobering news. And 35,000 Texas patients will lose their battle against cancer this year.
Since the War on Cancer was declared in 1971, we have amassed a wealth of knowledge on the disease.
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But increases in information and prevention measures haven’t always translated into meaningful progress for those with cancer.
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Senator Edward Kennedy and I are heading a bipartisan effort to reinvigorate this fight. We will introduce legislation to begin removing barriers to research and treatment. Joining us in this effort are the Lance Armstrong Foundation, the Susan G. Komen for the Cure, and many others from across the cancer community. Most importantly, we must support those on the front lines of the War on Cancer – the men, women, and children bravely waging their own personal battles against this ruthless and relentless disease.
Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison
We should support the Renewed War on Cancer when the bill is introduced and let our Senators and Representatives know that we want it passed for the same reason Senators Kennedy and Hutchison do: because it is the right thing to do.
I want to end this diary with more from Elizabeth Edwards on Teddy Kennedy, and you finally get to see the title quote and hear why she said it:
I want to caution people. As they listen in these days to sort of grim diagnoses about what Senator Kennedy is facing.
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And you heard exactly the same things from me. I am in no worse shape, if I had five years to live, and I hope I have lots more than that, a year ago, I still have five years to live, because I'm not in any different shape than I was then. Medicine has come a long way, and I don't think that we ought to be writing anybody's obituary. We ought to be thinking about how it is he's going to live with cancer as opposed to how someone dies with cancer.
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Until we hear otherwise, he is still the same strong vibrant man that he was.
Edwards: We shouldn't be writing anybody's obituary
Edward Kennedy is a fighter and he's going to keep fighting for what is right. He will be with us, fighting to elect a Democratic President, Barack Obama, this fall, because, like so much else he does, it's the right thing to do.