In 1957, the (Sen. John) Kennedy Commission reported to the Senate its choices for our nation’s greatest Senators: Clay, Calhoun, Webster, LaFollette, and Taft. Surely if the commission could have looked ahead, it would have included another Kennedy among its choices: the youngest brother, Teddy.
Senator Kennedy wrote over 300 pieces of legislation that affect the lives of ordinary Americans. We can thank him for the Federal Election Campaign Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, and the Mental Health Parity Act. Widely respected by his peers, its a shame he won’t see the accomplishment of a goal he started working on in 1966: health care for all Americans.
