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Friday, July 04, 2008

An Elder Statesman Passes


Jesse Helms,former conservative Senator from North Carolina, passed away this morning. He was 86 years old.
Jesse Helms, the firebrand U.S. senator whose outspoken, conservative views polarized North Carolina and U.S. voters for decades, died at 1:15 a.m. Friday in Raleigh, according to John Dodd, president of the Jesse Helms Center.


He was 86. His cause of death was not released. Funeral arrangements will be forthcoming, Dodd said.


Helms served five terms in the U.S. Senate, retiring in 2003 because of his faltering health. During his 30 years in Capitol Hill, the North Carolina Republican became a powerful voice for a conservative movement that was growing both in Congress and across the country, and he used his position to speak out against issues like gay rights, federal funding for the arts and U.S. foreign aid.
He was loved or hated. Not many were lukewarm in their opinions of Senator Helms.

I had to smile, for just a moment, when I heard the news. You see, Senator Helms is in good company. Presidents John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and James Monroe all passed away on the 4th of July.



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