ROBERT C. BYRD - TYPED LETTER SIGNED 12/18/1987 - HFSID 266082

ROBERT BYRD
Signed, typed letter thanking a Senate colleague for a tasty holiday gift
Typed Letter signed: "Robert" as Senate Majority Leader, 1p, 8½x11. On personal Senate letterhead. Washington, D.C., 1987 December 18. To Senator and Mrs. Daniel Patrick Moynihan. In full: "Thank you for sending to me the wildflower honey for the holidays. You are thoughtful to have remembered me during this special time of year, and I appreciate receiving your tasty gift. With best wishes for a pleasant Holiday Season, I am Sincerely yours," Handwritten postscript by Byrd: "Thanks! I can sing now - 'Sweet and Low'." Robert C. Byrd (1917-2010) represented West Virginia in the U.S. Senate from 1959 until his death in 2010 - he was the longest serving member of the United States Congress in history. He has served as Majority Leader (1977-1980, 1987-1988), Minority Leader (1981-1986) and President Pro Tempore of the Senate (third in line for the Presidency, 1989-1995). Between 1989 and 2009, whenever the Democratic Party held a majority, Byrd chaired the power Appropriations Committee. He had clout on other important committees too: Armed Services, Rules and Budget. A master of parliamentary procedures, Byrd knew just how to exploit arcane Senate rules to achieve his goals and stymie opponents. A conservative when first elected, Byrd moved gradually to the left during his Senate tenure. The Americans for Democratic Action, whose scores on Senate voting records are a good measure of liberalism, had rated Byrd at 16% in 1964 (when he filibustered civil rights legislation), rising to 95% in 2005. Byrd was the last surviving Senator to have voted to admit a new State to the Union. Fourteen of his colleagues had not even been born when Robert Byrd entered the Senate. DIRECTLY FROM THE SALE OF THE ESTATE OF DANIEL PATRICK MOYNIHAN. Moynihan (1927-2003) represented New York in the U.S. Senate as a Democrat for four terms (1977-2001). A prolific author, he served in the administrations of four Presidents: Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon and Ford". Estate inventory numbers in upper right (ink) and left margin (stamp). Pencil note in upper right. Staple holes in upper left. Otherwise, fine condition.