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American Morning

Death of Joe Moakley: The End Of An Era

Aired May 29, 2001 - 10:25   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: For residents of South Boston, it's the end of an era. Many people are mourning the passing of Congressman Joseph Moakley. He died yesterday after a battle with leukemia. For a lot of folks, the 15-term congressman was not only a legend, but also a friend.

CNN Boston bureau chief Bill Delaney has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BILL DELANEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Since Joe Moakley got into politics at 25 in 1952 as a Massachusetts state legislature on his South Boston home turf, he'd never need a focus group to sort out the seasonings of the place's Irish stew.

DAVID NYHAN, "BOSTON GLOBE" COLUMNIST: He is the last of the old time urban inner city guys who believed in work and wages. He was a jobs guy, a fellow you went to if you needed an apartment, if you needed to get your old auntie into a nursing home, if you had a problem with Social Security. He was a from the ground up congressman who took care of his people and they took care of him big time.

DELANEY: Electing a son of Southie who'd run away to sea at 15, 15 times to the U.S. Congress.

UNIDENTIFIED CONSTITUENT: And you'd see him sometimes. He used to hang out and run around here and he'd run around in the morning and you'd see him sitting there in his car drinking his coffee and he always waves. He always says hello. He's, you know, very personable, a very friendly guy.

DELANEY: Old school front porch politics, though Moakley's influence would reach well beyond Southie, perhaps most notably leading a task force when six Jesuit priests were murdered in El Salvador in 1989. His commission uncovered Salvadoran Army involvement, shaking the then Bush administration and dictatorships throughout Latin America.

Though, high as he rose in Washington, this, the day he acknowledged he was terminally ill.

REP. JOSEPH MOAKLEY, MASSACHUSETTS: The people I represent, they're more than constituents, they're really like family, despite today's headlines, I consider myself a very lucky guy. I've had the privilege of serving in an elective office for close to 50 years and I've had even the greater privilege of knowing and representing some of the finest, most decent people in the world.

UNIDENTIFIED CONSTITUENT: He was Joe, you know? He wasn't Congressman Moakley to most people in Southie anyways. I know that. He was Joe, you know? How you doing? How you feeling? What's up? You know, can you maybe help me with this, you know? Yeah, I loved the guy.

DELANEY: If a life well lived is a life well loved, Joe Moakley lived very well, indeed.

Bill Delaney, CNN, Boston.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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