Former Senator Carl Levine dies at 87: NPR

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The then-chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Carl Levine, Democrat of Michigan, questions a witness at a 2013 hearing about sexual assaults in the military. Levine’s family says he died Thursday. Susan Walsh / AP Hide Caption

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The then-chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Carl Levine, Democrat of Michigan, questions a witness at a 2013 hearing about sexual assaults in the military. Levine’s family says he died Thursday.

Susan Walsh/AFP

DETROIT — Notorious for staring at the glasses he wears at the end of his nose, Carl Levine looked relaxed wherever he went, whether attending a college football game in his home country of Michigan or dealing with a multibillion-dollar business in front of the cameras on Capitol Hill.

The longest-serving US senator in Michigan had a slightly wrinkled, down-to-earth demeanor that helped him win over voters throughout his 36-year career, as did his strong support for the auto industry in his hometown. But the Harvard-educated attorney has also been a respected voice on military issues, spending years leading the powerful Senate Armed Services Committee.

Despite his record and prestige, he has kept his role in proper perspective. At his direction, portraits of all 38 Senators who had served by or with him since the State of Michigan in 1837 were hung in his office conference room. Two empty spaces were reserved for future senators.

“I’m part of a long line of people who have represented Michigan,” Levine said in 2008. “I’m just a part of that history. The people who come after me … can move on from where I leave, whatever that may be.”

Former U.S. Senator Carl Levine (L) poses with his brother, former Representative Sander Levine, before the unveiling of the USS Carl Levine in Detroit. Levine, who was a powerful voice for the military during his career as Michigan’s longest-serving US senator, has passed away. Carlos Osorio / AP Hide caption

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Former U.S. Senator Carl Levine (L) poses with his brother, former Representative Sander Levine, before the unveiling of the USS Carl Levine in Detroit. Levine, who was a powerful voice for the military during his career as Michigan’s longest-serving US senator, has passed away.

Carlos Osorio/AFP

The former taxi driver and auto line worker, who for decades kept his faded 1953 union card in his wallet, died Thursday at the age of 87. His family and the Levine Center at Wayne State University Law School did not announce the cause of death one evening. He had been living with lung cancer since the age of 83.

“We are all devastated by his loss. But we are grateful for all the support Carl has received throughout his life and extraordinary career, enabling him to touch so many people and do so much good,” the statement said.

Levine was first elected to the Senate in 1978, and has represented Michigan for longer than any senator, targeting tax shelters, supporting manufacturing jobs and lobbying for military funding. His tenure was a testament to voter approval of the slightly wrinkled Detroit native, who was named by Time magazine among the top 10 best senators in the country in 2006.

“He’s just a very respectable person,” Democratic Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in 2008. of the persons he represents.

Levine, a Washington insider and former attorney general known for his academic influence, took a civic but direct approach that allowed him to work effectively with Republicans and fellow Democrats. He was especially skilled at defensive matters thanks to his years as the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee.

He was not afraid to speak his mind.

He was in the minority – even among his fellow Senate Democrats – when he voted against sending US troops to Iraq in 2002, and two years later said the administration of President George W. Bush “written a book about how the war was mismanaged.” He gave cautious support for President Barack Obama’s 2009 troop boost in Afghanistan, but later warned of “the beginnings of dwindling” Democratic support.

He also criticized President Ronald Reagan’s stockpiling of nuclear weapons, saying that it came at the expense of conventional weapons needed to maintain military readiness.

But his colleagues said he always generated a sense of respect.

“We have always had a very trusting and respectful relationship,” said the late Republican Senator John Warner, who worked closely for years with Levine on the Armed Services Committee. “We don’t try to surprise each other. The security of the nation and the welfare of the armed forces come first.”

Notorious for wearing glasses on his nose, Levine appears to be the same outspoken, hardworking guy wherever he goes, whether he’s in front of the cameras on Capitol Hill, on a fact-finding mission outside or lost in a crowd at the college football field on game day.

In its 2006 article on the senator’s rating, Time magazine said, “No one would accuse Carl Levine of looking like the Hollywood version of a US senator. He is fat, bald and sometimes wrinkled, and he constantly wears his glasses at the tip of his nose.” Among the best in the country. “However, the Michigan Democrat has earned respect from both parties for his attention to detail and deep knowledge of politics, particularly in his role as a vigilant watchdog for corporations and federal agencies.”

An enemy of fraud and profligacy, Levine led an investigation in 2002 into Enron, which had declared bankruptcy the previous year amid financial scandals. The investigation contributed to a new federal law requiring executives to sign off on financial statements so that they could be criminally responsible for publishing false numbers.

Levin has pushed for legislation aimed at cracking down on offshore tax havens, which he said costs the US government at least $100 billion a year in lost taxes. He has also been an advocate of stem cell research and arms control.

Closer to home, Levine promoted policies that benefit the auto industry and supported the granting of $25 billion in loan guarantees to General Motors and Chrysler. He argued that the vibrant domestic auto industry was crucial to rebuilding the economy after the Great Recession. He was also a member of a task force supporting efforts to combat pollution and other environmental problems affecting the Great Lakes region.

“If you’ve ever worn a uniform, worked shifting an assembly line, or sacrificed to make ends meet, then you have a voice and a voice in Senator Carl Levine,” Obama said in 2013. “Nobody has worked harder to bring manufacturing jobs back to our shores, close unfair tax loopholes and make sure everyone adheres to the same set of rules.”

Born in Detroit on June 28, 1934, Carl Milton Levine stayed in Motor City for most of his life. After high school, he spent some time as a taxi driver and worked on the lines of an automobile assembly plant to help position himself at school.

Always proud to have helped build DeSoto and Ford trucks at a plant in Highland Park, he held his United Auto Workers union membership card for decades. That ended when his wallet was stolen.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Swarthmore College in 1956, and a law degree from Harvard University in 1959. He married his wife, Barbara, two years later, and together they raised three daughters.

Levin aligned with his family’s strong sense of civic duty in 1964, when he was named assistant state attorney general and the Michigan Civil Rights Commission’s first general counsel. His older brother, longtime former United States Representative Sander “Sandy” Levine, had a liberal voting record on many social issues, while their father worked on the Michigan Reforms Committee, a citizen group that oversaw prison operations, and their mother volunteered for a Jewish organization.

Carl Levine once said that public service is part of his DNA, and politics was often discussed at the dinner table as a boy.

He took public office when Detroit voters elected him to city council in 1969, and served as its president before he ousted a Republican to win the 1978 Senate race. He won the seat five more times but decided not to run for a seventh term in 2014.

After his retirement, the Levine Center in Wayne Law was established to promote fact-based and partisan oversight by Congress and state legislatures and to encourage civic dialogue on issues of public policy. He headed the center and participated in teaching law subjects. He was also a Distinguished Partner and Consultant at the Honigman Law Firm in Detroit.

His memoir, “Getting to the Heart of the Matter: 36 Years in the Senate,” was published in March. The Navy named him a destroyer in honor of his years of public service.

His nephew, Andy Levine, was re-elected in 2020 to his father’s ninth congressional district seat which represents parts of suburban Detroit.

“Carl Levine embodied integrity and the idea of ​​putting the common good above self-interest,” said Andy Levine, describing it as “the image of sober purpose and uprightness. In truth, he was never restless. In fact, he often broke through tense situations with his self-critical sense of humor. In particular, he has shared insightful observations about others with staff and colleagues.”

Carl Levine is survived by his wife, their three adult daughters, Kate, Laura, and Erica, and several grandchildren. There will be a private funeral. Information about the public memorial will be released soon.

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