Bob Wise: “today in Salem, West Virginia, in a quiet funeral service, former United States Senator Jennings Randolph comes home to…”

“today in Salem, West Virginia, in a quiet funeral service, former United States Senator Jennings Randolph comes home to his final rest, to where he grew up and lived. And indeed perhaps it is a fitting memorial to Senator Randolph that this week the Congress of the United States is working on another highway bill for another six years, because Senator Randolph, of course, was Chair of the Senate Public Works Committee. In 1937, as a Member of this body, the House of Representatives, he held hearings on creating a national highway system 20 years ahead of the interstate highway system. With Senator Randolph's death, an era has truly passed. He was the last surviving Member of Congress of the original New Deal Congress that came in in 1933. And every West Virginian who heard him speak treasures the memory of hearing him recount being called to the White House in the first 100 days with the banks closing, businesses closing, pensions being dissolved. I can still hear Senator Randolph's tones as he talked about how Franklin Roosevelt rallied the country. And of course, Senator Randolph was there for the creation of Social Security, for the WPA, for economic recovery, and to create many of the institutions that we take for granted today. Yes, he was a builder, a builder of highways and infrastructure, a creator and preserver of the Appalachian Regional Commission, as well as creating educational opportunities, too.”