Lawmakers Travel to Louisiana to Pay Respects to Former Senator Russell B. Long

Monroe (LA) News-Star ^ | 05-13-03 | Gannett

[Theodore R.]

BATON ROUGE - Some 30 Washingtonians today are traveling by military transport to Louisiana to say goodbye to former U.S. Sen. Russell B. Long, a Shreveport native who once was one of America's most powerful leaders.

U.S. Sen. John Breaux, one of Long's political successors in the role of bipartisan compromiser, will lead a contingent of luminaries paying their final respects during Long's funeral at noon at First United Methodist Church in Baton Rouge.

[Theodore R.]

I find it hard to believe that Governor Foster has a meeting so important on Tuesday afternoon that he cannot attend the Long funeral.

[billorites]

"Some 30 Washingtonians today are traveling by military transport to Louisiana..."

Will Senator Byrd denounce this as a wasteful, shameful extravagance on the floor of the Senate?

[Theodore R.]

Traveling with Breaux, Johnston and their wives will be U.S. Sens. Mary Landrieu of New Orleans, Joseph Biden of Delaware, Max Baucus of Montana, Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico, Chris Dodd of Connecticut and former U.S. Rep. Cathy Long, widow of a Long cousin, the late U.S. Rep. Gillis Long of Alexandria.

Where is the bipartisanship? I cannot imagine Bob and Elizabeth Dole being absent from this funeral considering how close Bob was for all those years to his former colleague.

[KellyAdmirer]

I want a congressional investigation of this wasteful use of taxpayer funds for political junkets!!!!!!!!!!

[Thermalseeker]

Traveling with Breaux, Johnston and their wives will be U.S. Sens. Mary Landrieu of New Orleans, Joseph Biden of Delaware, Max Baucus of Montana, Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico, Chris Dodd of Connecticut and former U.S. Rep. Cathy Long, widow of a Long cousin, the late U.S. Rep. Gillis Long of Alexandria.

I wonder if they'll turn it into a campaign rally like Wellstone's funeral?

[Theodore R.]

No, you don't understand how popular Russell B. Long was in LA. He represented to LA all the promise that they had previously held for his father, who was gunned down at the age of 42, when Russell was only 16. It's much like the popularity of EMK today in MA. MA people see the aging, arrogant EMK as the fulfillment of their lost youthful, humble JFK. It doesn't have to be true to explain human behavior, just plausible.

[Mind-numbed Robot]

No, you don't understand how popular Russell B. Long was in LA. He represented to LA all the promise that they had previously held for his father, who was gunned down at the age of 42, when Russell was only 16. It's much like the popularity of EMK today in MA. MA people see the aging, arrogant EMK as the fulfillment of their lost youthful, humble JFK. It doesn't have to be true to explain human behavior, just plausible.

Although I agree with your comparison, it is also about the well-entrenched political machines behind each. Long had much more class than Kennedy, as I know you agree, and thankfully the political machines are fading in both locales.

[Theodore R.]

Long ran a "greaseless" machine -- by the time he was dominant, the pro-Long and anti-Long factions had disappeared into a rejuvenated Democrat party that defeated most Republican gubernatorial nominees and all GOP Senate candidate.

Many LA voters have forgotten the Long legacy, but they still vote the way Russell Long would want, except perhaps in the 1996 presidential election. It is very possible that Long voted for his old friend Dole out of personal affection, rather than partisanship.

[Thermalseeker]

No, you don't understand how popular Russell B. Long was in LA.

Yes, I do understand how popular Long was in LA. I spent six years working in LA. I also know the popularity of O.K. Allen and Huey Long. It was a joke. Get it?

[Theodore R.]

The Long popularity may be a joke to students of human nature and public opinion. But the Long forces in LA were serious: they were (are) the true believers!

[Thermalseeker]

Long forces in LA were serious

And they were also some of the most corrupt forces ever seen on the American politcal scene.

[Theodore R.]

But the people "loved" them and cheered for them far more often than not. Maybe the problem is with the PEOPLE of LOUISIANA, as much as it is their politicians.

[Theodore R.]

J. Bennett Johnston, Jr., Democrat senator from LA from 1972-97 gave one of his finest speeches at the Long funeral. It was really moving. Johnston is one of those lucky senators who got to choose his successor: Mary Landrieu.