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Edward Brooke, the Massachusetts Republican who was the first African-American to be popularly elected to the US Senate, died on Saturday at the age of 95, the state Republican Party said. Brooke was Massachusetts attorney-general when he was elected to the US Senate in 1966, at a time when the country was gripped by racial unrest. Before his election, there were two other African-American senators shortly after the Civil War. But until early in the 20th century, senators were picked by state legislatures and not by popular vote. In the Senate, Brooke joined a small band of liberal Republicans who...

Former Senator Edward Brooke received the Congressional Gold Medal today from President Obama. I looked at the rules for recipients, and one of them is they shall not receive it if they have receive it if they have received another for essentially the same thing. He did. He was the recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2004. NOTES: "Gold Medalist: President Barack Obama will speak today at a ceremony at the U.S. Capitol awarding former Massachusetts Republican Sen. Edward Brooke the Congressional Gold Medal, one of the nation’s highest honors. Brooke, 90 years old, will be in attendance....

One of today's Yahoo News headlines informs us that 'Black conservatives [are] conflicted on Obama campaign.' Armstrong Williams, Rep. J.C. Watts, General Colin Powell, Senator Edward Brooke and, sadly, my friend Joseph C. Phillips may be falling into the trap which I have repeatedly described--one lined with pride and with fear: pride of race and fear that Obama is the last chance for a black president to be elected. (GOPAC chairman Michael Steele isn't going for the okey doke, however; but that may be only due to his position.) People say that women have problems thinking objectively and strategically. Well,...

Black conservatives conflicted on Obama campaign By FREDERIC J. FROMMER, Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON - Black conservative talk show host Armstrong Williams has never voted for a Democrat for president. That could change this year with Barack Obama as the Democratic Party's nominee. "I don't necessarily like his policies; I don't like much that he advocates, but for the first time in my life, history thrusts me to really seriously think about it," Williams said. "I can honestly say I have no idea who I'm going to pull that lever for in November. And to me, that's incredible." Just as...

Don’t call me a racist because I point out inconvenient facts about Senator Obama. Almost before Obama was born, I was the Campaign Coordinator in Bristol County, Massachusetts for Senator Edward Brooke, the first elected African-American senator in the United States after Reconstruction. Don’t call me a racist when 91% of the black vote is going for Senator Obama. Now that is racist!

NEW YORK (AP) -- After three decades of keeping mum, Barbara Walters is disclosing a past affair with married U.S. Senator Edward Brooke, whom she remembers as "exciting" and "brilliant." Appearing on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" scheduled to air Tuesday, Walters shares details of her relationship with Brooke that lasted several years in the 1970s, according to a transcript of the show provided to The Associated Press. A moderate Republican from Massachusetts who took office in 1967, Brooke was the first African-American to be popularly elected to the Senate. Both he and Walters knew that public knowledge of their affair...

NEW YORK (AP) - entertainmentminute After three decades of keeping mum, Barbara Walters is disclosing a past affair with married U.S. Senator Edward Brooke, whom she remembers as "exciting" and "brilliant." Appearing on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" scheduled to air Tuesday, Walters shares details of her relationship with Brooke that lasted several years in the 1970s, according to a transcript of the show provided to The Associated Press. A moderate Republican from Massachusetts who took office in 1967, Brooke was the first African-American to be popularly elected to the Senate. Both he and Walters knew that public knowledge of their...

NEW YORK (AP) -- After three decades of keeping mum, Barbara Walters is disclosing a past affair with married U.S. Senator Edward Brooke, whom she remembers as "exciting" and "brilliant." Appearing on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" scheduled to air Tuesday, Walters shares details of her relationship with Brooke that lasted several years in the 1970s, according to a transcript of the show provided to The Associated Press. A moderate Republican from Massachusetts who took office in 1967, Brooke was the first African-American to be popularly elected to the Senate. Both he and Walters knew that public knowledge of their affair...

U.S. Election HistoryDate: Aug 01, 2004 - 06:01 PM History of Blacks in the U.S. Senate C L Steplock Throughout the history of the United States, there have been only two blacks elected to the U.S. Senate. Prior to 1914, senators were not elected, but selected by the legislators of the states that they represented. Legal citizens voted for members of the U.S. House of Representatives. The first African American popularly elected to the Senate was Republican Senator Edward Brooke. Hiram Revels of Mississippi was the first African American to serve in the United States Senate. Sworn into office...

I just called the KRON-TV news department in San Francisco because at the top of the hour, the news babe (Wendy Tokuda) said that Barack Obama (D-IL), almost guaranteed election by Jack Ryan dropping out, could be "the first African-American male elected to the Senate." In fact, the first black man to serve in the Senate did so in the 19th century, Hiram Revels of Mississippi. He served one year (1870). Blanche Bruce, a former slave, served in 1875, also in Mississippi. But the first black man ELECTED to the Senate was a REPUBLICAN from, of all places, Massachusetts! Edward...

Doris Day, Estee Lauder, Arnold Palmer Among Medal of Freedom Honorees Elizabeth Wolfe/Associated Press Jun 18, 2004 WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush has selected a dozen people, including an actress, a golf champion and a former senator, to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the White House announced Friday. Two of the recipients will be honored posthumously, while the others are invited to receive the nation's highest civilian honor at a White House ceremony with Bush next Wednesday. The Medal of Freedom, established by President Truman in 1945 to recognize civilians for their World War II service, was reinstated by...