Family Life

06.28.10 |

Democrat Robert Byrd passed away this morning at the age of 92. He was born in November of 1917 and served West Virginia in the U.S. Senate for nine terms. He was the longest-serving member in Senate history. He also served for several years in the U.S. House. Byrd's long Senate resume includes time as Majority Leader and chairman of the powerful Appropriations Committee. At the end of his life, Byrd was the Senate's president pro tem. It's a largely ceremonial post that is third in line of presidential succession behind the Vice President and Speaker of the House. Senator Byrd was widely respected as a constitutional scholar and always carried a small copy of the Constitution. Byrd was also an expert on the Senate's complex and arcane parliamentary procedures.

 Senator Robert Byrd was an early and vocal critic of the Iraq war. His legislative accomplishments included expanding federal education scholarships and steering multiple millions of federal dollars to West Virginia, one of the nation's poorest states. Critics dubbed Byrd the "King of Pork," a reference to lawmakers who succeed at "bringing home the bacon." Numerous public works projects in the state of West Virginia are named for Byrd. Senator Byrd authored five books, including a four-volume series tracing the history of the U.S. Senate.

 As a young man, Robert Byrd joined the Ku Klux Klan, but he lived to regret it. He apologized numerous times and insisted that intolerance has no place in America. Byrd also expressed regrets about taking part in a filibuster against the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964. Byrd lived long enough to applaud the inauguration of the nation's first African-American President, Barack Obama. Byrd fathered two children with his wife Emma, who died in 2006 after nearly 70 years of marriage.