Martha Coakley, Democrat and Massachusetts Attorney General, has officially announced her candidacy to fill the Senate vacancy left by Ted Kennedy’s passing.

She gets the headstart, but with the long holiday weekend I wonder how many people will be paying attention.
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Allahpundit is in a bit of a quandary as he reports on the seeming incongruity of columns by liberals such as Henry Rollins and EJ Dionne bringing up Mary Jo Kopechne and Chappaquiddick:

I’m not sure how the politics work here. My sense is as follows: The media’s allowed to mention Chappaquiddick in its obits of Teddy in the interest of completeness, but references should ideally be buried near the end of the piece under plenty of “health care was the cause of his life” pap. Kennedy is not, however, to be “attacked” by conservatives intent on reminding people that progressives’ newest secular saint left a woman to drown in his car, as this would be disrespectful to the dead (Teddy, that is, not Mary Jo).

Most of the time this is true, but maybe some liberals do have a moral compass.

Of course the post’s comments are all about Chappaquiddick, and some ask why Kennedy was continually re-elected. I was in my mid-teens and lived in Massachusetts when it happened. Sitting here 40 years later I don’t recall every detail of what people said, but there was a sense of shock. Lip services was paid to the idea of an inquest, but in the aftermath of his brothers’ assassinations Ted probably could have gotten away with almost anything. Things started to calm down and people’s attention spans were consumed elsewhere. When it came time to vote, typical reactions I remember include “shame about what happened to that girl” and “it’s between him and his maker” – and then the lever for Kennedy was pulled. After a few years it devolved into something humorous. A typical joke was “Hey did you hear the QE2 ran aground off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard? The divers found one of Ted Kennedy’s cars.” When the William Kennedy Smith/Palm Beach scandal broke, a famous joke was that Smith supposedly told the young woman in question “Better make love to me tonight or I’ll have my Uncle drive you home.”

And so a man who was probably guilty of manslaughter got away with it, at least in this world. Ted delivered, and we looked the other way in some sort of Faustian bargain, all the while telling jokes to relieve our troubled consciences.

*Update: Ed Morrissey at Hot Air reports that Ted himself used to make jokes about Chappaquiddick, and adds this sobering point:

If nothing else, it puts to rest the notion that Kennedy’s remorse balances out the undeniable cowardice of his actions at Chappaquiddick. Even allowing for the best possible spin on his actions that day, what kind of person jokes about an incident that left a young woman dead in the back of his own car?

Ted Kennedy’s passing saddens me. Alright, you ask “How could a libertarian /conservative/ republican (take your pick) be saddened by the passing of this left-wing socialist /nationalized health care shill /whatever (take your pick) ?”

Simple. Growing up in Massachusetts I benefited from Ted’s efforts, met him a few times, and saw what seemed like true concern for his constituents. It would be hypociritical of me to demonize him, like so many do.

Many people ask “How could the people of Massachusetts elect this guy and John Kerry, time after time?” Having lived there for many years I can offer an explanation. Part of it is clearly the state’s Democratic machine; another is the miserable failure of the Mass Republican Party to create a credible, statewide alternative. Part of it was his raw power – if something was going to happen that affected the state, he was going to be there looking out for his constituents. There’s public affection for the family, but I think this is based more on the nostalgia of the glory days and simpler times of Camelot than the current generation of Kennedys. And finally part of it is because he touched the lives of almost all of us.

(An aside – John Kerry will never fill Ted’s shoes. He knows it. The people of Massachusetts know it. I suspect the other 98 members of the Senate know it. With the right Republican candidate, he could be very vulnerable.)

Three personal remembrances of Ted – I’ll start with the unflattering one first. For several years I was employed by a company that was developing a system for laser-based enrichment of nuclear materials. It was announced that Ted was planning a visit, and when the day came, we all greeted him enthusiastically. We gathered in our cafeteria, listened to a few opening remarks, and then Ted opened up the floor to some questions. Most were softballs, but one scientist asked “Senator, what do you think about private companies controlling nuclear materials?” Predictably Ted answered he wasn’t in favor of it, and when he heard the guffaws on the floor and realized he had been set up he momentarily froze like a deer in headlights. He was clearly never briefed on our activities. The meeting ended with a few polite remarks shortly thereafter.

Some years earlier, when I was senior in High School, Ted spoke to a class assembly. I don’t remember the substance of his remarks, but I remember thinking that he truly believed in the potential of each of us to make a difference. I think Ted was an optimist till the end.

One final memory – in the 1990’s my former father-in-law retired as Superintendent of Schools for a large suburban Boston community. His most treasured retirement gift? Not the gold watch, the special chair from his alma mater, or the proclamation from the Governor – it was the personal letter from Ted Kennedy congratulating him on his years of service.

I have read that Ted was known for doing small, personal things like that. This is the Ted Kennedy I will remember, and it’s why I am saddened this morning.

* Updates and further reading:

• Hot Air points out that Ted’s role as patriarch of the Kennedy clan was thrust upon him by two assassin’s bullets, and makes the point that both JFK and RFK’s deaths “were deeply personal tragedies for all of the Kennedys”. One has to ask if any family has sacrificed so much in pursuit of what they believed.
• Michelle Malkin’s post Sen. Edward Kennedy has died says what I unintentionally omitted: “Put aside your ideological differences for an appropriate moment and mark this passing with solemnity.”
• GayPatriot points out some additional qualities that made Ted so effective as a Senator
• As usual Patterico has an interesting take. I know he said don’t ask, but why Andy Granatelli?
• The Moderate Voice has some balanced reflections on the Senator’s personality and offers up some opinions on a possible replacement.
• Former Boston Herald editor Jules Crittenden offers up some possible replacements and asks “who gets to be the next iconic liberal lion?” Nobody respectable seems to be on the horizon.

Ed Morrissey is right to point out Ted Kennedy’s hypocrisy about once again changing the law regarding his succession.

Even though I’m no longer a resident of the state, having grown up in Massachusetts I benefited from the Senator’s efforts. Like many I have disagreed with him on numerous matters, and like some I have seen him stick his foot in his mouth when he was ill-prepared. For better or worse, on this matter I suspect most Mass residents will lower and shake their heads indifferently and mutter something like “whatever.”