Ted Kennedy: The Legacy

Feb. 6, 1975: Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass, and his sister, Eunice Shriver, jogged and walked a mile on the Ellipse in Washington to kick off a 3,182-mile fund-raising jaunt for the benefit of the Special Olympics sports program for mentally challenged youngsters. In a statement released after Eunice's death, Kennedy said his sister learned the lessons of their parents -- that much is expected of those who have been given much. Sen. Kennedy says Eunice's movement helped many mentally disabled people lead productive and fulfilling lives. (AP)

Oct. 7, 1972: Sen.Edward M. Kennedy levels charges at the Nixon administration in Indianapolis during an outdoors rally. Kennedy echoed charges of corruption made by George McGovern and cited a campaign slush fund, the Soviet Grain deal, the Watergate affair, and others in his "corruption" charge. In 1973, at the height of Nixon's Watergate scandal, Kennedy famously said on the Senate floor, "Do we operate under a system of equal justice under law? Or is there one system for the average citizen and another for the high and mighty?" (AP)

Aug. 12, 2009: President Obama holds the 2009 Medal of freedom to be presented to Kara Kennedy, for her father Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass, during ceremonies in the East Room of the White House in Washington. During the Aug. 15 Presidential Medal of Freedom award ceremony, Obama recalled a story the senator frequently told of an old man who throws starfish back into the sea even though each toss made only a small difference in the big picture. Obama said for 50 years Ted Kennedy has been "making a difference for that soldier fighting for freedom, that refugee looking for a way home, that senior searching for dignity, that worker striving for opportunity, that student aspiring to college, that family reaching for the American Dream. The life of Senator Edward M. Kennedy has made a difference for us all." (AP)

Feb. 5, 1993: Pres. Clinton signs the Family Leave Bill as Sen. Edward M. Kennedy looks on. Kennedy proposed increases in minimum wage, championed the Family and Medical Leave Act, shepherded the No Child Left Behind Act, led the fight for passage of hate crimes legislation and sought protections against discrimination for gays and women. (AP)

Nov. 9, 1989: Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., left, gets a round of applause by a group of lobbyists as he leaves the Senate floor of the Capitol in Washington after the Senate passed the minimum wage bill. In 2007, Kennedy's efforts culminated in the first increase in the federal minimum wage in a decade. 13 million American workers, including the parents of more than 6 million children, benefited from the raise, which increased the minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25 an hour. (AP)

May 18, 2009: A video from Senator Ted Kennedy's birthday party is played in his absence at the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award ceremony in Boston, Massachusetts. (Reuters)

April 6, 2006: Sen. Kennedy gestures during a Capitol Hill news conference, where it was announced that they are close a compromise on immigration legislation. Kennedy was the lead sponsor of the Immigration Act of 1990, which increased the quotas for family immigration, established a diversity visa program, and created a temporary safe haven program for persons fleeing oppressive governments.

July 27, 2004: Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., the convention honorary chairman, addresses the delegates at the Democratic National Convention in Boston.

January 28, 2008: Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy endorses presidential candidate Obama following his victory in the South Carolina primary.

Jan. 23, 2007: Sen. Obama, D-Ill. and Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass. watch President Bush's State of the Union address on Capitol Hill in Washington. Kennedy later endorsed Obama for president. (AP2007)

June 9, 2008: Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., waves as he returns to his Hyannis Port, Mass. home, Monday, after undergoing brain surgery. (AP2008)

June 2, 2006: Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., waves to a crowd of supporters with his grandson Teddy Kennedy after he accepted his party's nomination for the Senate, during the state Democratic convention in Worcester, Mass. (AP)