As we get ready to induct the 111th congress tomorrow, including fresh new faces like Eric Massa, Jeane Shaheen, Mark Warner, and Tom + Mark Udall, I got to wondering something. Its one of those eccentric projects only I would think up. What would the All-Time Greatest Senate look like? Who are the best two people who have served from each state in the upper body of the American legislature? 1. In keeping with the senate's historic priviledging of rotten
boroughs like Delaware and Montana with equal representation as
California and New York, there's two for each state. This was tough
because some states (Mass., Minnesota, South Carolina, Arizona) have had
a multiplicity of great senators, while it was tough getting two decent ones for
some states, including a couple that have been around from the beginning
(New Jersey, Maryland). For this reason, I gave the states producing more talented senators honorable mentions.
2. A number of criteria were used and sometimes they are deeply
contradictory. But doing something- anything- of distinction was key
for me. Service to their state, advocating a given issue particularly well, participating in the major debates of the day, getting their name attached to key
legislation, understanding cloakroom intrigue- all this helped.
Mere longevity doesn't guarantee inclusion in this list (as Ted Stevens found
out), but it doesn't hurt- each senator must have been in there for a
minimum of 8 years.
3. Accordingly, a number of senators made the list whom I utterly hate
(Strom Thurmond, James Eastland, Jesse Helms), as did others whom I dislike in a more
chipper fashion (Barry Goldwater). But I drew the line at Joe McCarthy.
4. You may notice that this list heavily favors the 20th century, and
in particular, the late 20th century. This is partly because I study the
1970's, and partly because the roster of senators royally sucked until
they were popularly elected (which didn't take place until around 1920). Seriously- state legislatures seemed to
routinely appoint bottom-feeders and yes-men in 4 out of 5 cases, resulting in
serial one-term senators of limited accomplishment.
I'll be happy to answer any questions about the inclusions and
exclusions from my limited fan base. Keep in mind, I am in no way qualified to do this list, and
am engaging in an unspeakable act of intellectual hubris by posting this. Edit: (1/6/09): As my good friend Sam pointed out, I neglected the great Senate Minority Leader, Ev Dirksen when I first posted my list. I've since corrected this. Alabama: -William Rufus King (1819-1844) -Oscar Underwood (1915-1927) -(Dis)Honorable Mentions: Richard Shelby, J. Lister Hill, John Sparkman Alaska: -Ernest Gruening (1959-1969) -Mike Gravel (1969-1981) Arizona: -Barry Goldwater (1953-1964, 1969-1987) -Carl Hayden (1927-1969) -Honorable Mentions: John McCain, Ernest McFarland Arkansas: -Joseph Robinson (1913-1937) -J. William Fulbright (1945-1974) -Honorable Mention: Dale Bumpers California: -Hiram Johnson (1917-1945) -William Knowland (1945-1959) Connecticut: -Orville Platt (1879-1905) -Christopher Dodd (1981-Present) Colorado: -Henry Moore Teller (1876-1882, 1885-1909) -Ben Nighthorse Campbell (1993-2005) Delaware: -Joseph R. Biden Jr. (1973-2009) -Thomas Bayard Sr. (1869-1885) Florida: -Duncan Fletcher (1909-1936) -Claude Pepper (1936-1951) Georgia: -M. Hoke Smith (1911-1921) -Richard Russell (1933-1971) Hawaii: -Hiram Fong (1959-1977) -Daniel Inouye (1963-Present) Idaho: -William Borah (1907-1940) -Frank Church (1957-1981) Illinois: -Stephen Douglas (1847-1861) -Everett Dirksen (1951-1969) -Honorable Mentions: Shelby Collum, Paul Douglas, Lyman Trumbull, Charles Percy, Paul Simon Indiana: -Albert Beveridge (1899-1911) -Birch Bayh (1963-1981) -Honorable Mentions: Oliver Morton, Richard Lugar Iowa: -Albert B. Cummins (1908-1926) -Jonathan Dolliver (1900-1910) Kansas: -Charles Curtis (1915-1929) -Robert J. Dole (1969-1996) Kentucky: -Henry Clay (1806-1807, 1831-1842, 1849-1852) -John Crittenden (1817-9, 1835-41, 1842-8, 1855-61) -Honorable Mentions: Alben Barkley, John Sherman Cooper Louisiana: -Judah Benjamin (1853-1861) -Allen Ellender (1937-1972) -Honorable Mention: Russell Long Maryland: -James Pearce (1843-1862) -Millard Tydings (1927-1951) Massachusetts: -Daniel Webster (1827-1841, 1845-1850) -Charles Sumner (1851-1874) -Honorable Mentions: Ted Kennedy, Henry Cabot Lodge, John Quincy Adams Maine: -Margaret Chase Smith (1949-1973) -Eugene Hale (1881-1911) -Honorable Mentions: Edmund Muskie. Hannibal Hamlin Michigan: -Zachariah Chandler (1857-1875, 1879) -Arthur Vandenburg (1928-1951) Honorable Mentions: Phil Hart, Lewis Cass Minnesota: -Hubert H. Humphrey (1949-64, 1971-8) -Walter F. Mondale (1964-1976) -Honorable Mentions: Eugene McCarthy, William Windom Mississippi: -John Stennis (1947-1989) -James O. Eastland (1941, 1943-1978) -(Dis)honorable Mentions: Theodore Bilbo, Thad Cochran Missouri: -Thomas Hart Benton (1821-1851) -David Atchison (1844-1855) -Honorable Mentions: Harry Truman, Stuart Symington Montana: -Burton Wheeler (1923-1947) -Mike Mansfield (1953-1977) Nebraska: -George Norris (1913-1943) -Roman Hruska (1954-1976) Nevada: -William Stewart (1864-1875, 1887-1905) -Paul Laxalt (1974-1987) New Hampshire: -John Langdon (1789-1801) -John Hale (1847-1853, 1855-1865) -Honorable Mention: Styles Bridges New Jersey: -Samuel L. Southard (1821-1823, 1833-1842) -Clifford Case (1955-1979) New York: -Robert Wagner (1927-1949) -Roscoe Conkling (1867-1881) -Honrable Mention: Daniel Moynihan, Jacob Javits, Martin Van Buren New Mexico: -Clinton Anderson (1949-1973) -Pete Domenici (1973-2009) North Carolina: -Nathaniel Macon (1815-1828) -Jesse Helms (1973-2003) -Honorable Mentions: Willie Magnum, Sam Ervin North Dakota: -Gerald Nye (1925-1945) -Quentin Burdick (1960-1992) Ohio: -Robert A. Taft (1939-1953) -John Sherman (1861-77, 1881-97) -Honorable Mentions: Benjamin Wade Oklahoma: -Thomas Gore (1907-21, 1931-7) -Robert Kerr (1949-1963) -Honorable Mention: Don Nickles, Robert Owen Oregon: -Charles McNary (1917-1944) -Mark O. Hatfield (1967-1997) Pennsylvania: -Simon Cameron (1845-9, 1857-61, 1867-77) -Philander Knox (1904-9, 1917-21) -Honorable Mentions: James Buchanan, Arlen Specter Rhode Island: -Nelson W. Aldrich (1881-1911) -Claiborne Pell (1961-1997) South Carolina: -John C. Calhoun (1832-43, 1845-50) -Strom Thurmond (1954-2003) -(Dishonorable) Mentions: Ben Tillman, James Byrnes, Ellison Smith, Andrew Butler South Dakota: -Peter Norbeck (1921-1936) -George McGovern (1963-1981) -Honorable Mentions: Tom Daschle, Karl Mundt Texas: -Sam Houston (1846-1859) -Lyndon B. Johnson (1949-1961) -Honorable Mentions: Lloyd Bentsen, John Tower, Charles Culberson, Tom Connally Tennessee: -John Bell (1847-1859) -Howard Baker (1967-1985) -Honorable Mention: Kenneth McKellar Utah: -Reed Smoot (1903-1933) -Orrin Hatch (1977-Present) Vermont: -George F. Edmunds (1866-1891) -George Aiken (1941-1975) Virginia: -Carter Glass (1920-1946) -Harry Byrd, Sr. (1933-1965) -Honorable Mentions: John Tyler, William Giles Washington: -Henry ‘Scoop’ Jackson (1953-1983) -Warren Magnuson (194-1981) West Virginia: -Harley Kilgore (1941-1956) -Robert C. Byrd (1959-Present) Wisconsin: -Robert La Follete (1905-1925) -Russ Feingold (1993-Present) Wyoming: -Gale McGee (1959-1977) -Clifford Hansen (1967-1978) | 
