Ted Kennedy - 'One of the greatest men in our history ' says his former press secretary

The last time Morrison-resident Tom Southwick saw his old boss Teddy Kennedy, it was a few years ago when they ran into each other at a Washington, D.C., reception.

“I said, ‘Senator, I’m going to test your memory,’” Southwick said. The Democratic icon flashed a trademark big smile and replied, “You used to work for me, didn’t you?”

That warmth sums up a major part of Kennedy’s appeal for Southwick, now senior vice-president with Starz Entertainment, but who as a young Harvard grad was Kennedy’s press secretary from 1977-1980. That period included Kennedy’s unsuccessful run for the presidential nomination, a relentless experience which drove the exhausted Southwick to leave his post – though on excellent terms with Kennedy.

While perceived as an Easterner, Edward Kennedy had an intense love of the Rocky Mountains, a fondness developed while working in the region for his brother, John’s, 1960 presidential campaign. Skiing in Aspen became part of his active family lifestyle.

“He has incredible energy, is extremely hard-working, and has that big smile. He jokes a lot, and that keeps people from getting too tense in stressful situations,” Southwick said. Many characterize Kennedy as a “liberal lion” a mantle he has come to wear since his election in 1962 to the seat once held by JFK. Southwick said there's much more to Kennedy than that simple snapshot: “I don’t think there’s ever been a legislator in the House or Senate who worked harder, or has a longer list of accomplishments.”

The key to his reach is the senator’s ability to find common ground. “He’s the guy who sits down and says, ‘We disagree on 99 percent of this. What’s the one percent we have in common?’” Southwick recalled. A prime example is his landmark bill he co-authored with Sen. Orrin Hatch, a conservative Republican from Utah. Together, the pair oversaw a massive overhaul of federal sentencing guidelines, a task which hadn’t been tackled for more than a century. Kennedy viewed it as a chance to ensure that the poor and minorities weren’t given unfair punishments in different parts of the country; Hatch, his ideological opposite, used it as a way to be certain that judges wouldn’t be too lenient on offenders.

“That was huge, and it has an impact today,” Southwick said. It was typical of many partnerships with other lawmakers, including the one Kennedy forged with Sen. John McCain on immigration.

Southwick also had an inside view of the most troubling part of Kennedy’s life: The incident at Chappaquiddick, Ma., in 1969 -- a year after Bobby's assassination -- when Kennedy drove off a bridge near Martha’s Vineyard and fled, leaving a female passenger to drown. As press secretary on the tenth anniversary of the tragedy, Southwick advised him to be open with the press, answering any questions. Kennedy agreed, and did so, even as he was harshly grilled. That blunder, however, will not be what should be recalled, Southwick said.

“I don’t think that will be his legacy. I don’t know if Daniel Webster had some problem, but that’s not how’s he’s remembered,” Southwick said, adding that Kennedy – recently diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor – will go down “as one of the greatest men in our history,” having shaped critical events ranging from Civil Rights to immigration.

“I sat in with him on many occasions, where there were tough decisions. And he wanted to do the right thing, what was best for the country, regardless of the political gain,” Southwick said. Because of that, he believes Kennedy will be viewed for his own contributions, easily an equal to his older brothers Jack and Bobby. “It always came down to the right thing to do. And that’s very tough.”