Mike Levin: “the United States Senate is about to lose one of the great orators of its long history. I never had the opportunity, of…”

“the United States Senate is about to lose one of the great orators of its long history. I never had the opportunity, of course, to hear Webster or Clay or Calhoun. But, I have heard Dale Bumpers of Arkansas on the Senate floor and it's hard to imagine anyone could have been a more forceful, eloquent, or effective speaker. I was reminded recently by a former staff member of one debate in particular. The issue was the proposed real estate development in Northern Virginia at the site of the Second Battle of Manassas. The debate had stretched into a Friday evening and a larger than usual number of Senators were on the floor. The manager had made an effective presentation when Dale Bumpers, the author of a more restrictive version of the bill rose to speak. Knowing that many of his colleagues love history, Dale Bumpers using detailed maps laid out the story of the Second Battle of Manassas more than a hundred years ago. Every Senator on the floor that night listened with rapt attention. As he reached the climax of his performance, Dale Bumpers said: "Well, I could go on and on, but I want to just simply say . . . I believe strongly in our heritage, and I think our children ought to know where these battlefields are and what was involved in them. And, I don't want to go out there ten years from now with my grandson and tell him about the Second Battle of Manassas . . .”