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Kennedy's Senate Class Full of Lions

Giants abound in 88th Senate

By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff

Posted Aug 27, 2009 8:05 AM CDT

(Newser) – It’s no wonder Ted Kennedy became a lion of the Senate, writes Tom Schaller of FiveThirtyEight.com: he learned from the best. Kennedy began his first full term with the 88th Congress in 1963, and the list of senators sworn in alongside him contains “a safari’s worth of talent.” Including:

  • Margaret Chase Smith—the first woman to serve in the House and Senate

  • A whopping six future presidential or vice-presidential nominees—John Sparkman, Barry Goldwater, Hubert Humphrey, George McGovern, Strom Thurmond and Harry Byrd
  • Some notable dads—Al Gore Sr, Thomas Dodd, and Birch Bayh among them
  • J. William Fulbright and Claiborne Pell—whose names became synonymous with landmark education law
  • Some guys with longevity—Current longest-serving senator, Robert Byrd, and the man who served Congress longest, Carl Hayden

In this Jan. 9 1963 file photo, Edward M. Kennedy takes the oath of office as a Democratic Senator from Massachusetts in a re-enactment of the swearing-in ceremony with Vice President Lyndon Johnson.
In this Jan. 9 1963 file photo, Edward M. Kennedy takes the oath of office as a Democratic Senator from Massachusetts in a re-enactment of the swearing-in ceremony with Vice President Lyndon Johnson.   (AP Photo, File)
Barry Goldwater, seen in this 1967 file photo, was in Kennedy's Senate class.
Barry Goldwater, seen in this 1967 file photo, was in Kennedy's Senate class.   (Getty Images)
In this Feb. 22, 1962 file photo, Edward Ted Kennedy is pictured in guesthouse of the Berlin Senate on Feb. 22, 1962.
In this Feb. 22, 1962 file photo, Edward "Ted" Kennedy is pictured in guesthouse of the Berlin Senate on Feb. 22, 1962.   (AP Photo/Reichert)
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COMMENTS
Showing 2 of 2 comments
Fondue
Aug 27, 2009 1:25 AM CDT
So "the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die".
nick
Aug 27, 2009 1:08 AM CDT
So?

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