Ted Stevens

Ted Stevens

Theodore Fulton "Ted" Stevens (born November 18, 1923 in Indianapolis , Indiana , † August 9, 2010 near Dillingham , Alaska ) was an American politician and US Senator for Alaska. As chairman of the grant committee for many years, he was one of the most powerful senators.

Family, education and work

Stevens was born in Indianapolis and served in the United States Army Air Forces with the rank of lieutenant 1st class during the Second World War and flew a C-47 in the China-Burma-India area. After the war, he studied at UCLA and Harvard Law School . Stevens moved to Alaska in the early 1950s. He worked as a lawyer in Fairbanks and was appointed prosecutor there in 1953. In 1956 he went to Washington , where he worked in the Home Office. Among other things, he campaigned for Alaska and Hawaii to become US states , which also happened in 1959.

After returning to Alaska, he worked as a lawyer again, this time in Anchorage.

On the afternoon of December 4, 1978, Stevens and his wife Ann were traveling as passengers on a chartered private jet of the type Learjet 25 C ( aircraft registration number: N77RS) from Juneau to Anchorage when the aircraft stalled and crashed while approaching Anchorage Airport . In the accident, the two crew members and three passengers, including Stevens' then 49-year-old wife Ann, were killed. Stevens himself and one other passenger survived with serious injuries.

Political career

In 1964 he was elected to the Alaska House of Representatives and rose to the position of leader of the Republican majority in his second term. When the US Senator for Alaska, Edward Lewis Bartlett , died, then Governor Walter Hickel appointed him his successor in December 1968. He was elected in every election through 2008, making him the longest-serving Senator in the Republican Party .

For his 40 years in Senate membership, Stevens served as chairman of the Senate Rules Committee , Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation , Senate Governmental Affairs Committee , Senate Select Committee on Ethics , Joint Committee on the Library of Congress , Gun Control Observatory, and especially the Committee on Budgets. He also held the office of President pro tempore of the US Senate.

At the end of 2005, he threatened to resign if the Senate diverted funds originally earmarked for two bridges in Alaska to the area hit by Hurricane Katrina . The Senate initially changed the plans due to high public pressure. Despite the criticism of the bridge project, which many regarded as pointless, the money was later redeclared for the general infrastructure of Alaska in an additional vote.

Stevens narrowly lost the Senate election on November 4, 2008 to Democrat Mark Begich and resigned from the Senate in January 2009 after 40 years.

Corruption charges

In July 2008, Stevens was charged with withholding about $ 250,000 in donations. Stevens pleaded not guilty and urged a speedy trial to be acquitted in the November 4, 2008 election. However, on October 27, 2008, a jury found him guilty of all seven charges and convicted him of corruption. His lawyers appealed against the guilty verdict. The then Republican presidential candidate and Senate colleague John McCain suggested that he resign. However, Stevens decided to continue campaigning against Mark Begich and lost. In April 2009, a court overturned the conviction because the defense had withheld exculpatory evidence. Justice Secretary Eric Holder announced in 2009 that, in the interests of justice, he was dropping the charges and not starting a new trial.

death

The crashed DHC-3

Ted Stevens died on August 9, 2010 in a plane crash ten miles northeast of the city of Aleknagik , Alaska, when the single-engine propeller plane de Havilland Canada DHC-3 crashed on its way to a fishing trip with a total of nine people. There were four survivors in the accident, including former head of the US space agency, Sean O'Keefe . Stevens was buried in Arlington National Cemetery (Section 30, Site 281 LH).

Positions and Awards

As a member of the moderate Republican Main Street Partnership , Stevens supported stem cell research on human embryonic cells and a restricted right to abortion.

According to him, which is Anchorage airport named.

Web links

Commons : Ted Stevens  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Ted Stevens in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)
• Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport (English)
• Ted Stevens on the issues (English)
• Ted Stevens at SourceWatch

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} Former US senator killed in Alaska plane crash . CNN, Aug 10, 2010.
2. ↑ cbsnews.com
3. ↑ NTSB ID: DCA79AA002
4. ↑ Local and National Election Results 2008. In: CNN.com , November 4, 2008.
5. ↑ Carrie Johnson, Paul Kane: Sen. Stevens Indicted On 7 Corruption Counts. In: The Washington Post , July 30, 2008.
6. ↑ Republican US Senator convicted of corruption. In: Spiegel Online , October 27, 2008.
7. ^ McCain calls on Sen. Stevens to step down. In: MSNBC on October 28, 2008 ( Associated Press announcement).
8. ^ Tables Turned on Prosecution in Stevens Case. In: The New York Times , April 7, 2009.
9. ^ Statement of Attorney General Eric Holder Regarding United States V. Theodore F. Stevens . U.S. Department of Justice dated April 1, 2009.
10. ↑ NTSB-ID: ANC10MA068 Official accident report (PDF; 2.1 MB)
11. ↑ Aircraft accident data and report in the Aviation Safety Network (English)