Ted Kennedy

The news about Ted Kennedy's brain tumor hit all of us hard yesterday. I learned the news during the lunch of the Republican caucus, and we paused and said a prayer for Ted and his family.

I have worked closely with Ted on increasing funding for Pell Grants, which help low-income students afford college, but it is Ted's warmth and sense of humor that I appreciate most. After vigorous debates over policy, he inevitably would walk over to the Republican side and make a joke with whomever he was debating just moments before.