Robert T. Matsui, 1941-2005

Great happiness also brings great sorrow. As we ring in the new year, we also mourn the loss of a great politican, one of those rare things in Washington. Congressman Robert T. Matsui passed away over the weekend and it's quite a blow to American politics--no matter which side of the political divide you might be on, Matsui was able to bridge it.

From the Sacramento Bee:

U.S. Rep. Robert T. Matsui, a Sacramento native who represented the region in Congress for 26 years and became one of the nation's leading Democratic voices, died Saturday night from pneumonia in a Washington-area hospital.

Matsui, 63, had been in the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., since Christmas Eve, and apparently had been in failing health since being diagnosed several months ago with a rare blood disorder that diminished his immune system.

As the nation reflects on his accomplishments today, it's amazing to hear what he's gone through from growing up in an internment camp to orchestrating reparations for the internees. Equally impressive is the litany of statements about him from such dignatirees as two presidents, a supreme court justice, and countless others.

In a world where there are constant laments about the lack of Asian-American role models, Matsui certainly fitted the bill. If only there were more.

Facts about Robert T. Matsui:

• Born: Sept. 17, 1941, in Sacramento.
• Confined in the Tule Lake internment camp with family, 1942-1945.
• Graduated C.K. McClatchy Senior High School in 1959.
• Attended UC Berkeley 1959-1963, earning degree in political science.
• Attended Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco, 1963-1966, earning law degree.
• Married to Doris K. Okada, Sept. 17, 1966. Son, Brian Robert Matsui, born Feb. 16, 1972.
• Opened private law practice in Sacramento, 1967.
• Elected to the Sacramento City Council District 8, 1971; re-elected, 1975. Served as vice mayor, 1977.
• Elected to U.S. Congress in 1978, and won re-election 13 times.
• Died: Jan. 1, 2005.