Byrd, Kennedy Cause a Scare
WASHINGTON (AP) - Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, ill with a brain tumor, was hospitalized Tuesday but quickly reported feeling well after suffering a seizure at a post-inauguration luncheon for President Barack Obama.
West Virginia Sen. Robert C. Byrd, 91, also left the luncheon early - shortly after Kennedy's incident - but his office and others said his health was not the reason.
Byrd "is doing fine, though he remains very concerned about his close friend, Ted Kennedy," said Mark Ferrell, a spokesman for the Democrat.
"After testing, we believe the incident was brought on by simple fatigue," Dr. Edward Aulisi, chairman of neurosurgery at Washington Hospital Center said in a statement released by Kennedy's office.
"He will remain ... overnight for observation, and will be released in the morning."
The statement said the 76-year-old senator "is awake, talking with family and friends, and feeling well."
The statement did not disclose the tests that were performed on Kennedy, whose seizure was witnessed by several fellow senators seated with him at lunch.
Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., told reporters he and Kennedy's wife, Vicki, grabbed the senator as he became ill.
Added Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., "It took a lot out of him. Seizures are exhausting."
Even so, Dodd quoted Kennedy as saying, "I'll be OK, I'll see you later" as he was put into an ambulance.
"The good news is he's gonna be fine," Dodd added.
Kennedy had appeared in good health and spirits a few hours earlier when he stepped out of the Capitol and onto the inauguration platform where Obama took the oath of office. His endorsement of the former Illinois senator had come at a pivotal point in the Democratic presidential race, and the older man campaigned energetically for the younger one.
Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., told reporters that Obama noticed when Kennedy became ill, and rushed over to his table.
"There was a call for silence throughout the room," he said. "The president went over immediately. The lights went down, just to reduce the heat, I think."
In his remarks, Obama said his prayers were with the stricken senator, his family and wife.
"He was there when the Voting Rights Act passed, along with John Lewis, who was a warrior for justice," the newly inaugurated president said.
"And so I would be lying to you if I did not say that right now a part of me is with him. And I think that's true for all of us," Obama said.
Kennedy was diagnosed last May with a particularly aggressive type of brain tumor, called a malignant glioma, after suffering a seizure at his Massachusetts home. He had what his doctor described as successful surgery to remove as much as possible of the tumor in his left parietal lobe. Kennedy then underwent radiation and chemotherapy, necessary because doctors know that even if they remove all of the visible tumor, stray cells almost certainly remain.
One doctor not connected with the senator's care said it's not unusual for patients recovering from brain tumors to suffer seizures.
If so, "it does not necessarily mean the tumor's growing back," said Dr. Matthew Ewend, neurosurgery chief at the University of North Carolina, noting that Kennedy already would have been receiving MRI scans of his brain every few months to check for that possibility.
Patients recovering from a brain tumor almost always are prescribed anti-seizure drugs, and something as common as a change in schedule could cause a dip in blood levels of that medication and produce a seizure, he said. Fatigue could also cause illness.
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popeye
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01-22-09 9:29 AM
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I guess it will be Cuomo now. Another flunkie.
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wonderwhy
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01-22-09 9:25 AM
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Popeye- in your attempt to keep up with the news, Caroline Kennedy, the daughter of JFK, pulled out her bid for the senate seat last night.
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popeye
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01-22-09 9:23 AM
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The fat********should have done jail time. Now we will get to see another buck tooth Kennedy in the Senate soon. What the heck are her qualifications?
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larryk
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01-22-09 9:17 AM
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"Mary Jo Kopechne could not be reached for comment." is not a dig at Senator Byrd or Senator Kennedy, it is a statement of fact and not hate speech. It is only hate speech in the minds of those that cover their ears to the truth, and the truth is that John Farrar, the diver who recovered Mary Jo Kopechne's body, in a statement, revealed that her body was found in a pocket of air and that the cause of death was probably due to suffocation. No autopsy was performed. We can never know for certain the cause of death for Mary Jo Kopechne, but we can know for sure that "The Lion of the Senate" decided to save his pudgy white a** and worry about his "career" instead of getting help to try to save Mary Jo Kopechne's life. Talk about a "Profile in Courage".
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wonderwhy
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01-22-09 8:33 AM
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popeye- no, i believe in freedom of speech. the fairness doctrine is nothing but a rush talking point. no one cares about it, and even Obama said it wasn't an issue. But look at your post. you are doing nothing but making assumptions about me and calling me names. to me, that is not debating an issue
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popeye
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01-22-09 8:23 AM
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So wonderwhy, you would like to see the Americans that do not agree with you silenced. I already know you want those that do not agree with you to relocate to another country-right. You would make a top notch brownshirt. Are you going to apply to Obama's civilian security force? I suppose you support the fairness doctrine as well.
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wonderwhy
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01-22-09 6:35 AM
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a senator that gave his entire career to the state is being insulted by a bunch of haters. good job of allowing us to see your true colors. i just wish that this site would make people identify themeselves. i know that sending hate mail is against the law. hmmmmm, maybe while Obama is cleaning up all th eillegal wiretapping Bush did, he can clean some of this up too. hope so
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popeye
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01-21-09 7:11 PM
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Instead of Weekend at Bernie's, we could always go see Weekend at Bobby's.
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Highland
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01-21-09 3:40 PM
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Who would know if Byrd were unconscious? He really needs to retire.
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popeye
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01-21-09 3:39 PM
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Maybe Sheets gave Uncle Ted some CPR and had a blackout from the booze.
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wonderwhy
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01-21-09 2:18 PM
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I wish both Ted Kennedy and Robert Byrd best wishes adn hope they will be well and safe.
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richardwhee
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01-21-09 1:40 PM
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A Kennedy is a Kennedy is a Kennedy. Now we have another crying to get into gov.
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wacvet
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01-21-09 11:12 AM
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Sick mentality...
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popeye
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01-21-09 11:05 AM
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Somebody must have watered down Ted's vodka.
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larryk
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01-21-09 11:03 AM
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Mary Jo Kopechne could not be reached for comment.
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