Ted Kennedy during his 1980 campaign for president (Wally McNamee/Corbis)
Joe Klein has written a terrific sketch of Ted during the 1970s, reminding us of how long and how painful was his progress to political and personal maturity. Petrified by his brothers' legacy, ashamed of his screw-ups, Kennedy was dreadfully ill-at-ease when meeting voters, perpetually unsure whether he was going to be scorned or shot.
Sad, and funny too:
I watched him work a supermarket in New Bedford when he ran for re-election in 1976. He accompanied a woman who was shopping for her family. It was total agony. He simply had no idea what to say or do. "So, uh, your family, ah, likes ... meat?" he asked. "Oh, yes, Senator," the woman replied, and that was that. No question about the high price of chuck. He stared at her, unable to figure out what came next.
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