Former senator and Florida governor Bob Graham dies at 87: NPR
Sen. Bob Graham (D-Fla.), former chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, gestures while answering questions at the Capitol in Washington, June 18, 2002.
Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP
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Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP
Sen. Bob Graham (D-Fla.), former chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, gestures while answering questions at the Capitol in Washington, June 18, 2002.
Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Bob, a former senator and two-term Florida governor who rose to national prominence as chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee in the aftermath of the 2001 terrorist attacks and as an early critic of the Iraq War.・Mr. Graham passed away. He was 87 years old.
Graham's family announced his death Tuesday in a statement posted to X by his daughter Gwen Graham.
“We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of a visionary leader, dedicated public servant, and more importantly, a beloved husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather,” the family said in a statement.
Graham, who served as a senator for three terms, emphasized his opposition to the invasion of Iraq and ran unsuccessfully as the Democratic presidential candidate in 2004.
However, his candidacy was delayed due to heart surgery in January 2003, and he was unable to gain enough support from voters, so he resigned in October of the same year. He did not seek re-election in 2004, and Republican Mel Martinez replaced him.
Graham was a man of many quirks. He perfected the political gimmick of a “work day,” in which he spent a day doing a variety of jobs, from cleaning horse stalls to being an FBI agent, and he talked to almost everyone he talked to, everything he ate, and the TV shows he watched. He kept a detailed diary that even recorded his golf scores.
Graham said the notebook was a work tool for him and he didn't feel comfortable writing about his feelings and personal feelings in it.
“I review them for calls to be made, notes to be dictated, meetings to be followed up on, appointments people are to make,” he said.
Mr. Graham was one of the earliest opponents of the Iraq war, arguing that it would divert the United States' focus from the fight against terrorism, particularly in Afghanistan. He also criticized President George W. Bush for not making plans to occupy Iraq after the U.S. military ousted Saddam Hussein in 2003.
Graham said President Bush dragged the United States into the war by exaggerating the dangers posed by Iraq's undiscovered weapons of destruction. He argued that President Bush had distorted intelligence data that was worse than the sexual misconduct scandal that led the House to impeach President Bill Clinton in the late 1990s. That led him to a short-lived and unsuccessful presidential bid.
Graham said in 2003, “The quagmire in Iraq is a mess created by the Bush administration, and the Bush administration alone.''
During his 18 years in Washington, Graham worked well with colleagues in both parties, especially Florida Republican Connie Mack, with whom he spent more than a dozen years in the Senate.
There were few better politicians. Florida voters had little idea that he was a wealthy, Harvard-educated lawyer.
Graham's political career spanned 50 years, beginning with his election to the Florida House of Representatives in 1966.
He won a state Senate seat in 1970 and was elected governor in 1978. He was re-elected in 1982. Four years later, he ousted incumbent Republican Paula Hawkins and won his first of three terms in the U.S. Senate.
Mr. Graham remains widely popular among Florida voters, winning reelection by wide margins in 1992 and 1998, representing 63 of Florida's 67 counties. In the latter election, he defeated Charlie Crist, who later served as Republican governor from 2007 to 2011.
“He blew me out of the water, and as the campaign ended, I learned even more why,” Crist said Tuesday night. “I respected him more than ever and learned to love him because he was a good and decent person.”
Crist, who has since switched political parties and is most recently serving as a U.S. representative, said Graham influenced him.
Former Sen. Bob Graham (right) speaks at a meeting of the BP National Committee on Deep Horizon Spills and Offshore Drilling in Washington on September 27, 2010.
Manuel Balse Senator/AP
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Manuel Balse Senator/AP
Former Sen. Bob Graham (right) speaks at a meeting of the BP National Committee on Deep Horizon Spills and Offshore Drilling in Washington on September 27, 2010.
Manuel Balse Senator/AP
“When he was governor, I always felt that he was trying to govern for the people of Florida without being political or partisan. And I kept that in mind, and in a small way… I tried to emulate that,” Crist said. He said.
Even while in Washington, Graham kept an eye on state and Tallahassee leaders.
When Gov. Jeb Bush and the Republican-controlled Legislature abolished the board in 2001, Mr. Graham saw it as a move to politicize the state university system. The following year, he led a successful petition to amend the state constitution to create a board of governors with the role of regent.
Daniel Robert Graham was born on November 9, 1936 in Coral Gables. There, his father, Ernest “Cap” Graham, had immigrated from South Dakota and established a large dairy operation. As a teenager, young Bob milked cows, built fences, and scooped manure. One of his half-brothers, Philip Graham, served as publisher of the Washington Post and Newsweek until he took his own life in 1963, just a year after Bob Graham graduated from Harvard Law School. .
Graham served as student body president at Miami High School and attended the University of Florida, graduating in 1959.
He was elected to the Florida Legislature in 1966 and focused primarily on education and health care issues.
Mr. Graham got off to a shaky start as Florida's chief executive, earning him the nickname “Governor Jell-O” for his early indecisiveness. He broke that label by dealing with some serious crises.
As governor, he also signed numerous death warrants, founded the Save the Manatee Club with entertainer Jimmy Buffett, and led efforts to establish several environmental programs.
Graham is pushing for a bond program to buy beaches and barrier islands threatened by development, and the Save Our Everglades initiative to protect the state's water supplies, wetlands and endangered species. Started the program.
Graham is also credited with 408 days of “work”, including stints as a housewife, boxing ring announcer, flight attendant, and arson investigator. They grew out of his teaching career as a member of the Florida Senate Education Committee and then turned into a campaign gimmick that helped him engage with average voters.
“This has been a very important part of my growth as a public servant, learning on a very human level what the people of Florida expect, what they want, what their aspirations are. , we're trying to interpret that and turn it into policy that will improve their lives,'' Graham said in 2004, finishing his last job as a Christmas gift wrapper.
After leaving public service in 2005, Graham spent much of his time at his eponymous public policy center at the University of Florida, lobbying Congress to require expanded civics classes in the state's public schools. .
Mr. Graham was one of five members chosen by President Barack Obama in June 2010 to serve on the independent commission investigating the massive BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. threatened marine life and beaches along several states.
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Sen. Bob Graham (D-Fla.), former chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, gestures while answering questions at the Capitol in Washington, June 18, 2002.
Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP
hide caption
toggle caption
Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP
Sen. Bob Graham (D-Fla.), former chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, gestures while answering questions at the Capitol in Washington, June 18, 2002.
Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Bob, a former senator and two-term Florida governor who rose to national prominence as chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee in the aftermath of the 2001 terrorist attacks and as an early critic of the Iraq War.・Mr. Graham passed away. He was 87 years old. Graham's family announced his death Tuesday in a statement posted to X by his daughter Gwen Graham. “We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of a visionary leader, dedicated public servant, and more importantly, a beloved husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather,” the family said in a statement. Graham, who served as a senator for three terms, emphasized his opposition to the invasion of Iraq and ran unsuccessfully as the Democratic presidential candidate in 2004.
However, his candidacy was delayed due to heart surgery in January 2003, and he was unable to gain enough support from voters, so he resigned in October of the same year. He did not seek re-election in 2004, and Republican Mel Martinez replaced him. Graham was a man of many quirks. He perfected the political gimmick of a “work day,” in which he spent a day doing a variety of jobs, from cleaning horse stalls to being an FBI agent, and he talked to almost everyone he talked to, everything he ate, and the TV shows he watched. He kept a detailed diary that even recorded his golf scores. Graham said the notebook was a work tool for him and he didn't feel comfortable writing about his feelings and personal feelings in it. “I review them for calls to be made, notes to be dictated, meetings to be followed up on, appointments people are to make,” he said. Mr. Graham was one of the earliest opponents of the Iraq war, arguing that it would divert the United States' focus from the fight against terrorism, particularly in Afghanistan. He also criticized President George W. Bush for not making plans to occupy Iraq after the U.S. military ousted Saddam Hussein in 2003. Graham said President Bush dragged the United States into the war by exaggerating the dangers posed by Iraq's undiscovered weapons of destruction. He argued that President Bush had distorted intelligence data that was worse than the sexual misconduct scandal that led the House to impeach President Bill Clinton in the late 1990s. That led him to a short-lived and unsuccessful presidential bid.
Graham said in 2003, “The quagmire in Iraq is a mess created by the Bush administration, and the Bush administration alone.'' During his 18 years in Washington, Graham worked well with colleagues in both parties, especially Florida Republican Connie Mack, with whom he spent more than a dozen years in the Senate. There were few better politicians. Florida voters had little idea that he was a wealthy, Harvard-educated lawyer. Graham's political career spanned 50 years, beginning with his election to the Florida House of Representatives in 1966. He won a state Senate seat in 1970 and was elected governor in 1978. He was re-elected in 1982. Four years later, he ousted incumbent Republican Paula Hawkins and won his first of three terms in the U.S. Senate. Mr. Graham remains widely popular among Florida voters, winning reelection by wide margins in 1992 and 1998, representing 63 of Florida's 67 counties. In the latter election, he defeated Charlie Crist, who later served as Republican governor from 2007 to 2011. “He blew me out of the water, and as the campaign ended, I learned even more why,” Crist said Tuesday night. “I respected him more than ever and learned to love him because he was a good and decent person.” Crist, who has since switched political parties and is most recently serving as a U.S. representative, said Graham influenced him.
Former Sen. Bob Graham (right) speaks at a meeting of the BP National Committee on Deep Horizon Spills and Offshore Drilling in Washington on September 27, 2010.
Manuel Balse Senator/AP
hide caption
toggle caption
Manuel Balse Senator/AP
Former Sen. Bob Graham (right) speaks at a meeting of the BP National Committee on Deep Horizon Spills and Offshore Drilling in Washington on September 27, 2010.
Manuel Balse Senator/AP
“When he was governor, I always felt that he was trying to govern for the people of Florida without being political or partisan. And I kept that in mind, and in a small way… I tried to emulate that,” Crist said. He said. Even while in Washington, Graham kept an eye on state and Tallahassee leaders. When Gov. Jeb Bush and the Republican-controlled Legislature abolished the board in 2001, Mr. Graham saw it as a move to politicize the state university system. The following year, he led a successful petition to amend the state constitution to create a board of governors with the role of regent.
Daniel Robert Graham was born on November 9, 1936 in Coral Gables. There, his father, Ernest “Cap” Graham, had immigrated from South Dakota and established a large dairy operation. As a teenager, young Bob milked cows, built fences, and scooped manure. One of his half-brothers, Philip Graham, served as publisher of the Washington Post and Newsweek until he took his own life in 1963, just a year after Bob Graham graduated from Harvard Law School. . Graham served as student body president at Miami High School and attended the University of Florida, graduating in 1959. He was elected to the Florida Legislature in 1966 and focused primarily on education and health care issues. Mr. Graham got off to a shaky start as Florida's chief executive, earning him the nickname “Governor Jell-O” for his early indecisiveness. He broke that label by dealing with some serious crises. As governor, he also signed numerous death warrants, founded the Save the Manatee Club with entertainer Jimmy Buffett, and led efforts to establish several environmental programs. Graham is pushing for a bond program to buy beaches and barrier islands threatened by development, and the Save Our Everglades initiative to protect the state's water supplies, wetlands and endangered species. Started the program. Graham is also credited with 408 days of “work”, including stints as a housewife, boxing ring announcer, flight attendant, and arson investigator. They grew out of his teaching career as a member of the Florida Senate Education Committee and then turned into a campaign gimmick that helped him engage with average voters. “This has been a very important part of my growth as a public servant, learning on a very human level what the people of Florida expect, what they want, what their aspirations are. , we're trying to interpret that and turn it into policy that will improve their lives,'' Graham said in 2004, finishing his last job as a Christmas gift wrapper.
After leaving public service in 2005, Graham spent much of his time at his eponymous public policy center at the University of Florida, lobbying Congress to require expanded civics classes in the state's public schools. . Mr. Graham was one of five members chosen by President Barack Obama in June 2010 to serve on the independent commission investigating the massive BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. threatened marine life and beaches along several states.
https://npr.org/2024/04/16/1245223497/bob-graham-former-senator-florida-governor-dies-87 Former senator and Florida governor Bob Graham dies at 87: NPR
