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So Long to the Dean of Twitter

Rebecca D'Angelo/The Washington Post

I can’t say I knew Congressman John Dingell. We were in the same room several times – at the Michigan Democratic Party’s annual Jefferson-Jackson dinners, at meetings and state conventions, at a Michigan League of Conservation Voters tribute at the Ark in Ann Arbor – and I’m Facebook friends with Debbie Dingell, who was married to John for 37 years and who’s represented the 12th District, John’s old district, in Congress since 2015, but I don’t recall being lucky enough to even shake hands with the complex, imposing, charming guy who served in Congress for decades and was known as the Dean of the U.S. House of Representative, the Dean of Michigan’s congressional delegation and the Dean of Twitter.

Too bad. He died two days ago of prostate cancer. Now I’ll never get the chance.

Click here to read “John Dingell kept his Twitter followers entertained until the end.”

I used to hear his name a lot. I worked for an environmental organization that supported raising mandatory automobile fuel efficiency standards and the congressman, who had strong ties to the auto industry, was opposed to the idea. He wasn’t referenced angrily or with invectives; he was an opponent on this one issue who deserved respect. He actually voted pro-environment most of the time and was known and lauded for his commitment to public and environmental health.

The many tributes and obituaries that will come out now that he’s gone will provide an in-depth look into Mr. Dingell’s life but even a cursory on-line search turns up interesting tidbits. The Congressman was anti-gun control and pro-NRA. He chaired the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee from 1981 to 1995 and from 2007 to 2009. He promoted national health insurance and health care reform long before others. He introduced legislation that created a Civil Rights Division in the Justice Department. He presided over the House when Medicare was passed in 1965. He went after corporate and government fraud. His nicknames were “Big John” and “The Truck” for his forceful nature and his hulking 6-foot, 3-inch frame. He was the longest-serving congressman in American history. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom back in 2014 when it still meant something to get a medal from the president.

Click here to read his obituary in the Washington Post.

Speaking of the Washington Post, one of the most read pieces at its website right now is entitled, “John Dingell, My Last Words for America.” Here it is:


John D. Dingell, a Michigan Democrat who served in the U.S. House from 1955 to 2015, was the longest-serving member of Congress in American history. He dictated these reflections to his wife, Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.), at their home in Dearborn, on Feb. 7, the day he died.


One of the advantages to knowing that your demise is imminent, and that reports of it will not be greatly exaggerated, is that you have a few moments to compose some parting thoughts.

In our modern political age, the presidential bully pulpit seems dedicated to sowing division and denigrating, often in the most irrelevant and infantile personal terms, the political opposition.

And much as I have found Twitter to be a useful means of expression, some occasions merit more than 280 characters.

My personal and political character was formed in a different era that was kinder, if not necessarily gentler. We observed modicums of respect even as we fought, often bitterly and savagely, over issues that were literally life and death to a degree that — fortunately – we see much less of today.

Think about it:

Impoverishment of the elderly because of medical expenses was a common and often accepted occurrence. Opponents of the Medicare program that saved the elderly from that cruel fate called it “socialized medicine.” Remember that slander if there’s a sustained revival of silly red-baiting today.

Not five decades ago, much of the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth — our own Great Lakes — were closed to swimming and fishing and other recreational pursuits because of chemical and bacteriological contamination from untreated industrial and wastewater disposal. Today, the Great Lakes are so hospitable to marine life that one of our biggest challenges is controlling the invasive species that have made them their new home.

We regularly used and consumed foods, drugs, chemicals and other things (cigarettes) that were legal, promoted and actively harmful. Hazardous wastes were dumped on empty plots in the dead of night. There were few if any restrictions on industrial emissions. We had only the barest scientific knowledge of the long-term consequences of any of this.

And there was a great stain on America, in the form of our legacy of racial discrimination. There were good people of all colors who banded together, risking and even losing their lives to erase the legal and other barriers that held Americans down. In their time, they were often demonized and targeted, much like other vulnerable men and women today.

Please note: All of these challenges were addressed by Congress. Maybe not as fast as we wanted, or as perfectly as hoped. The work is certainly not finished. But we’ve made progress — and in every case, from the passage of Medicare through the passage of civil rights, we did it with the support of Democrats and Republicans who considered themselves first and foremost to be Americans.

I’m immensely proud, and eternally grateful, for having had the opportunity to play a part in all of these efforts during my service in Congress. And it’s simply not possible for me to adequately repay the love that my friends, neighbors and family have given me and shown me during my public service and retirement.

John and Debbie Dingell
Courtesy Max Ortiz/AP

But I would be remiss in not acknowledging the forgiveness and sweetness of the woman who has essentially supported me for almost 40 years: my wife, Deborah. And it is a source of great satisfaction to know that she is among the largest group of women to have ever served in the Congress (as she busily recruits more).

In my life and career, I have often heard it said that so-and-so has real power — as in, “the powerful Wile E. Coyote, chairman of the Capture the Road Runner Committee.”

It’s an expression that has always grated on me. In democratic government, elected officials do not have power. They hold power — in trust for the people who elected them. If they misuse or abuse that public trust, it is quite properly revoked (the quicker the better).

I never forgot the people who gave me the privilege of representing them. It was a lesson learned at home from my father and mother, and one I have tried to impart to the people I’ve served with and employed over the years.

As I prepare to leave this all behind, I now leave you in control of the greatest nation of mankind and pray God gives you the wisdom to understand the responsibility you hold in your hands.

May God bless you all, and may God bless America.


Come to think of it, I’m starting to remember one time when Congressman Dingell did smile and wave directly in my direction. Rest in peace and thank you, sir.



Sources: CNN, The Washington Post, Twitter, Wikipedia.