I met Ted Kennedy in 1979 when he was campaigning for president at a
rally in Hyannis Port. I was very impressed by him even at the age of
16 and I worked on his campaign, my first taste of presidential
politics and in his primary defeat, my first lesson on the long slow
battle for progressive change. Because popular progressive causes can
always be ignored to focus on the "character" of the individual
campaigner. A wealthy man that runs on a platform of greed raises no
expectation beyond avarice but a man who champions justice and human
rights for all, champions the poor, is held up to the standard of
sainthood. And Ted Kennedy was no saint. But he was a Senator like no
other. He was my age now at the time I met him in 79 and he had
already contributed more as a senator than most do in their lifetimes.
In his next 30 years in the senate (48 years!) he became the liberal
lion, a unflinching beacon for the left even as his own party, defined
by the selfless liberalism of his assassinated brothers, lurched to
reactionary conservatism. But not Teddy. He knew what was good and
right and dedicated his life to fighting for the rights of our lowest
classes.
When he lost the nomination (running against Carter - from the LEFT)
he gave at the convention what is considered his greatest speech
(aside from famous eulogies for his slain brothers). This one passage
stands out in its aptness to our debate today:
"We must not surrender to the relentless medical inflation that can
bankrupt almost anyone and that may soon break the budgets of
government at every level. Let us insist on real control over what
doctors and hospitals can charge, and let us resolve that the state of
a family's health shall never depend on the size of a family's wealth.
The President, the Vice President, the members of Congress have a
medical plan that meets their needs in full, and whenever senators and
representatives catch a little cold, the Capitol physician will see
them immediately, treat them promptly, fill a prescription on the
spot. We do not get a bill even if we ask for it, and when do you
think was the last time a member of Congress asked for a bill from the
Federal Government?
I say again, as I have before, if health insurance is good enough for
the President, the Vice President and the Congress of the United
States, then it is good enough for you and every family in America."
I encourage everyone to listen to the original:
http://www.historyplace.com/...
He is already greatly missed. Let's make his dream of national
healthcare a realty.
"And may it be said of us, both in dark passages and in bright days,
in the words of Tennyson that my brothers quoted and loved, and that
have special meaning for me now:
"I am a part of all that I have met....
Tho much is taken, much abides....
That which we are, we are--
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
...strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield."
For me, a few hours ago, this campaign came to an end. For all those
whose cares have been our concern, the work goes on, the cause
endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die.