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Everett McKinley Dirksen (January 4, 1896 – September 7, 1969) was a Republican United States Congressman and Senator from Illinois. As Republican Senate leader he played a highly visible and key role in the politics of the 1960s, including helping to write and pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Open Housing Act of 1968, both landmarks of Civil Rights legislation. He was one of the Senate's strongest supporters of the Vietnam War.
Everett Dirksen in The Man With the Iron Heart[]
Everett Dirksen was a critic of the Truman Administration's policy in post-war Germany. On July 4, 1947, Dirksen announced to a crowd of protesters in Lafayette Park, Washington, DC, that just a short time before, Indianapolis City Councilman Gus van Slyke had been assassinated while giving a speech. Dirksen then quickly whipped his audience into a frenzy, blaming the assassination indirectly on the Truman Administration. He then led the crowd in singing "The Star-Spangled Banner".[1]
References[]
- ↑ The Man With the Iron Heart, pgs. 396-99
Political offices (OTL) | ||
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Preceded by William E. Hull |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Illinois's 16th congressional district |
Succeeded by Leo E. Allen |
Preceded by Scott W. Lucas |
United States Senator from Illinois 1951–1969 |
Succeeded by Ralph Tyler Smith |
Party political offices (OTL) | ||
Preceded by William F. Knowland California |
Senate Republican Leader 1959–1969 |
Succeeded by Hugh Scott Pennsylvania |
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