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Commentary...Sen. Ted Kennedy’s profile in courage
(NNPA)—Four years before he was elected president, John F. Kennedy wrote a best-selling book titled, “Profiles in Courage,” describing eight U.S. senators who displayed unusual political courage by going against public opinion or crossing political lines for a greater good.
If Kennedy were still alive and updating the Pulitzer Prize-winning biography, he could legitimately add the name of his youngest brother, Edward M. Kennedy, to the list.
When it counted most for Barack Obama, Ted Kennedy displayed courage.
Both Obama and Hillary Clinton had been seeking his endorsement and Kennedy, who had so many friends in the Democratic primary, declined to line up behind a candidate. But as the contest became a two-person race between Obama and Hillary Clinton, the Clintons urged Kennedy to either endorse Hillary or remain neutral.
Kennedy, who had worked closely with President Clinton on health care and other key legislation, decided to do neither. A week before the 22-state Feb. 5 “Super Tuesday,” Kennedy and his niece Caroline—the daughter of John F. Kennedy—formally endorsed Obama at a rally at American University in Washington, D.C.
“What counts in our leadership is not the length of years in Washington,” the senior senator from Massachusetts declared. “...With Barack Obama, we will turn the page on the old politics of misrepresentation and distortion. With Barack Obama, we will close the book on the old politics of race against race, gender against gender, ethnic group against ethnic group and straight against gay.”
His dismissed suggestions that Obama is too inexperienced to serve as president, noting that a similar charge had been leveled against his older brother when he ran for president in 1960.
The Clintons were quick to point out that Obama had not won over all of the Kennedy clan. Former Maryland Lt. Gov. Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, the daughter of Robert K. Kennedy; her brother Bobby and her sister Kerry were Hillary supporters. But their mother, Ethel Kennedy, said Obama was like her late husband and referred to him as “our next president.”
In an interview, she said, “I think he feels it,” she said, referring to Obama’s interest in social justice. “He feels it just like Bobby did. He has the passion in his heart. He’s not selling you. It’s just him.”
Introducing Ted Kennedy, Caroline Kennedy said, “I’d never had someone inspire me the way people tell me my father inspired them, but I do now: Barack Obama.”
Ted Kennedy, who is suffering from one of the most serious forms of brain cancer, ignored his doctor’s advice and flew to Denver to voice his support for Obama.
“It’s so wonderful to be here,” he told a wildly enthusiastic audience. “Nothing, nothing was going to keep me away from this special gathering tonight.”
And nothing was going to keep from connecting Obama to the Kennedys.
“We are told that Barack Obama believes too much in an America of high purpose and bold endeavor,” Kennedy said. “But when John Kennedy thought of going to the moon, he didn’t say, it’s too far, we can’t get there, we shouldn’t even try. Our people answered his call and rose to the challenge—and today an American flag still marks the surface of the moon.”
John F. Kennedy said in his inaugural address on Jan. 20, 1961: “Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans, born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage, and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of these human rights to which this nation has always been committed, and to which we are committed today at home and around the world.”
In Denver, Ted Kennedy passed the torch to Obama, saying: “And this November, the torch will be passed again to a new generation of Americans.”
It’s remarkable that Kennedy appeared at the convention at all. After undergoing an operation for one of the most serious forms of brain cancer, he flew to Denver by chartered plane, checked into the University of Colorado Hospital on Sunday, the day before his scheduled speech. There, he had a painful encounter with kidney stones.
Still in pain, he was determined to address delegates Monday night. He left his hospital bed, was driven to the Pepsi Center, and then traveled backstage on a golf cart. Kennedy walked unassisted to the stage, gave a rousing 10-minute speech, and returned to his hospital bed. It was the most courageous performances I have ever witnessed. I can’t think of a more deserving profile in courage.
(George E. Curry, former editor-in-chief of Emerge magazine and the NNPA News Service, is a keynote speaker, moderator, and media coach. He can be reached through his website, www.georgecurry.com.)
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