Monday, June 3, 2013

NJ SEN. LAUTENBURG DIES-89





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 PHOTO: Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., smiles after the final votes before the Senate leaves for a five-week recess on Capitol Hill in Washington, Aug. 2, 2012.










"The next time a flight attendant reminds you there's no smoking on the plane or you witness a teenager getting carded at a liquor store, think of Frank Lautenberg.

The Democratic senator from New Jersey left his mark on the everyday lives of millions of Americans, whether they know it or not. In the 1980s, he was a driving force behind the laws that banned smoking on most U.S. flights and made 21 the drinking age in all 50 states.

Lautenberg, a multimillionaire businessman who became an accomplished — if often underestimated — politician, died after 4 a.m. EDT on Monday at a New York hospital after suffering complications from viral pneumonia.

At 89, he had been the oldest person in the Senate and the last remaining World War II veteran.

 Republican Gov. Chris Christie, whom the Democrat Lautenberg frequently criticized, will appoint a successor and a special election will determine a replacement. Newark Mayor Cory Booker had announced his intention to run and had raised some $2 million..."


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