(Archived Content)
With the passing of Senator Frank R. Lautenberg, America has lost a tough, energetic legislator who was forever proud of his roots in Paterson, NJ, and profoundly dedicated to the institution he came to love and admire, the Senate. He was a millworker’s son who served in World War II, went to college on the GI Bill, and built, with two childhood friends, one of America’s great businesses. Yet he never took his success or wealth for granted. He was a champion of working Americans who fought to provide opportunity to those who were less fortunate. Soon after his arrival in Washington, he mastered the ways of the Senate in order to help those he served. His accomplishments were extensive, from assisting victims of international terrorism and protecting the environment to keeping drunk drivers off our roads and ending smoking on airplanes. Ultimately, he possessed all the signature qualities of the members of the Greatest Generation that our nation continues to honor—humility, perseverance, dedication to service, love of country. Having worked with him for two decades, I send my thoughts and prayers to his friends, family and those he served as we carry on the work to which he committed his life and career.
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