Here are some stray quotes from Sen. Chris Dodd’s news conference in East Haddam this afternoon on the death of Sen. Ted Kennedy.
“He fought like a lion this last year. He got the mental-health parity bill done, we got the tobacco bill done, we got the national service bill done, we marked up the health committee bill on July 15.Sorry we didn’t get the bill done, yet, but we will, in time. So his presence over the last year has had great value. His spirit has been there during all of these debates and while he wasn’t there to cast votes, believe me his presence was felt during the discussions, as they will be in the coming days. So, for me it’s the great loss of a great friend and a great, great advocate for the people….
Life is not a dress rehearsal. You take every day and live it to the fullest and maximize your time here on earth.”
Asked by a reporter when he first met Kennedy, Dodd said “I don’t remember not knowing him.” Kennedy served with Dodd’s father, U.S. Sen. Tom Dodd from 1962 until 1971. The Dodd scion said he met Kennedy when he was first elected to Congress in 1974. He said that Kennedy sat next to him on the health committee for years and would call him after many important personal milestones, such as the birth of daughter Grace and when Dodd’s sister recently died. He also called two weeks ago, after Dodd awoke from prostate surgery.
“He said welcome to the club, with cancer, and made some choice comments which I can’t refer to in public about having prostate surgery and what catheters mean to people. He could make you laugh at the moment you thought you could least tolerate it and would be there at the moment you needed him the most. He’ll wear well historically….
“I remember once driving with him from Old Lyme up here and we came up Joshua Town Road in the fall. I’ll never forget, he said this is the prettiest road in America.” He described “endless” sailing trips with Kennedy. “We’d be out in the middle of the ocean. I’d be his only audience. He’d be banging his fist on the side of that boat about healthcare, about mental health about what was happening to people unemployed. I’d say I’m the only audienece you don’t have to scream at me about this. But his passion about these issues was so deeply felt that it wasn’t for show. Never once did I ever see a false or phoney bone in his body when it came to caring people.”
Dodd said Kennedy’s wife told him Kennedy fought until the end. “Mrs. Kennedy said to me that the only day he spent all day in bed was yesterday. He was up everyday, from the day of his diagnosis until yesterday.”