The Last Great Senator: Robert C. Byrd's Encounters with Eleven U.S. Presidents

by David Corbin

Overview

No person involved in so much history received so little attention as the late Robert C. Byrd, the longest-serving U.S. senator. In The Last Great Senator, David A. Corbin examines Byrd’s complex and fascinating relationships with eleven presidents of the United States, from Eisenhower to Obama. Furthermore, Byrd had an impact on nearly every significant event of the last half century, including the Cold War, the civil rights movement, the Vietnam War, Kennedy’s New Frontier, the Watergate scandal, the Reagan Revolution, the impeachment of President Clinton, and the Iraq War. Holding several Senate records, Byrd also cast more votes than any other U.S. senator. 

In his sweeping portrait of this eloquent and persuasive man’s epic life and career, Corbin describes Senator Byrd’s humble background in the coalfields of southern West Virginia (including his brief membership in the Ku Klux Klan). He covers Byrd’s encounters and personal relationship with each president and his effect on events during their administrations. Additionally, the book discusses Byrd’s interactions with other notable senators, including Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Russell, Mike Mansfield, and especially Robert and Edward Kennedy. Going beyond the boundaries of West Virginia and Capitol Hill, The Last Great Senator presents Byrd in a larger historical context, where he rose to the height of power in America.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781940425610
Publisher:	West Virginia University Press
Publication date:	10/01/2015
Series:	WEST VIRGINIA & APPALACHIA , #18
Edition description:	1st Edition
Pages:	384
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.80(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

David A. Corbin served as a Senate staffer for twenty-six years—six years on the leadership staff of Senate majority leader Byrd and ten years on the leadership staffs of Senate majority leaders George Mitchell and Tom Daschle. He also served as Senator Byrd’s speechwriter for the last ten years of his career. Corbin is the editor of The West Virginia Mine Wars: An Anthology and the author of Life, Work, and Rebellion in the Coal Fields: The Southern West Virginia Miners, 1880-1920. He received his PhD in history from the University of Maryland and lives in Annapolis.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments xi

Introduction-Fifty Years of History xiii

1 Southern West Virginia Roots 1

2 The Making of the Senator, 1958 "The Rising Star" 15

3 Eisenhower Administration He Did Not "Like Ike' 41

4 Kennedy Administration Ask What You Can Do far West Virginia 63

5 Johnson Administration "I Owe Byrda Lot" 83

6 Nixon Administration "The Unsung Hero of Watergate" 115

7 Ford Administration "Watergate Is Now Back on the Front Page" 145

8 Carter Administration Rehabilitating Jimmy Carter 165

9 Reagan Administration Making Reagan Great 191

10 Bush I Administration New Breezes, Old Breezes 219

11 Clinton Administration The "Guardian of the Senate" 239

12 Bush II Administration Eighty-Five-Year-Old Cult Figure 263

13 Obama Administration A Twilight of Ironies 283

Notes 295

Bibliographic Essay 349

Index 351

About the Author 365

Editorial Reviews

Sen. Robert C. Byrd was my predecessor as the majority leader of the U.S. Senate. When he cast his twelve thousandth vote in the Senate, I stated, ‘There are few honors greater than to be able to say that we served in the U.S. Senate with Robert Byrd.’ Now David Corbin has produced this much-needed account of Byrd’s life and career: how he embodied the Senate as an institution, how he was a powerful reminder to presidents and senators of the need to abide by the Constitution, and how he was a crucial part of American history for more than a half century. And he always remained so proud of his southern West Virginia roots. This is an important story that needed to be told, and David tells it so well.”
Sen. George Mitchell (D-ME), former Senate Majority Leader
 



“In my Senate leadership lecture on July 14, 1998, I discussed how Sen. Robert Byrd and I made an agreement to work together to make the Senate operate smoothly and productively. ‘It was an agreement,’ I said, that ‘we never broke, not once in the eight years we served together as Republican and Democratic leaders of the Senate.’ Determined to document Byrd’s place in American history, David Corbin has detailed Senator Byrd’s incredible career and accomplishments by focusing on his encounters with the last eleven presidents. I hope this book will become a must read for people interested not only in Senator Byrd, but the U.S. Senate and the presidency. I thank David for putting this book together about my good friend and former colleague.”
Sen. Howard Baker (R-TN), former Senate majority leader



From his beginning as a self-described "rustic boob from West Virginia," Senator Robert C. Byrd rose to become the mighty "conscience of the Senate" — one of the few brave enough to oppose George W. Bush's unnecessary Iraq invasion. I was Byrd's first press secretary when he entered the Senate in 1959 and am the current editor of the largest newspaper in West Virginia.  From these unique perspectives,  I have closely observed Byrd’s career, his six decades in Congress and his rise in political statute. David Corbin does a superb job of telling this important American story.
James A. Haught, Editor, The Charleston Gazette



"Superbly written, enhanced with extensive notes, a bibliographic essay, and a comprehensive index, The Last Great Senator: Robert C. Byrd's Encounters with Eleven U.S. Presidents is a unique and highly recommended contribution..."—Review, The Midwest Book Review, January 2013
Midwest Book Review

From the Publisher

“Robert C. Byrd grew in stature remarkably over his six decades of political power. From his beginning as a self-described ‘rustic boob from West Virginia,’ he slowly rose to become the mighty ‘conscience of the Senate’—one of the few brave enough to oppose George W. Bush’s unnecessary Iraq invasion. I was Byrd’s first press secretary when he entered the Senate in 1959, and I watched him evolve. David Corbin does a superb job of telling this important American story.”—James A. Haught, editor, Charleston (WV) Gazette

James A. Haught

“Sen. Robert C. Byrd was my predecessor as the majority leader of the U.S. Senate. When he cast his twelve thousandth vote in the Senate, I stated, ‘There are few honors greater than to be able to say that we served in the U.S. Senate with Robert Byrd.’ Now David Corbin has produced this much-needed account of Byrd’s life and career: how he embodied the Senate as an institution, how he was a powerful reminder to presidents and senators of the need to abide by the Constitution, and how he was a crucial part of American history for more than a half century. And he always remained so proud of his southern West Virginia roots. This is an important story that needed to be told, and David tells it so well.”—Sen. George Mitchell (D-ME), former Senate majority leader

Sen. George Mitchell

“In my Senate leadership lecture on July 14, 1998, I discussed how Sen. Robert Byrd and I made an agreement to work together to make the Senate operate smoothly and productively. ‘It was an agreement,’ I said, that ‘we never broke, not once in the eight years we served together as Republican and Democratic leaders of the Senate.’ Determined to document Byrd’s place in American history, David Corbin has detailed the incredible career and accomplishments of the distinguished Senator from West Virginia by focusing on his encounters with the last eleven presidents. I hope this book will become a must read for people interested not only in Senator Byrd, but the U.S. Senate and the presidency. I thank David for putting this book together about my good friend and former colleague.”—Sen. Howard Baker (R-TN), former Senate majority leader

Sen. Howard Baker

"Superbly written, enhanced with extensive notes, a bibliographic essay, and a comprehensive index, The Last Great Senator: Robert C. Byrd's Encounters with Eleven U.S. Presidents is a unique and highly recommended contribution..."—Review, The Midwest Book Review, January 2013

Midwest Book Review