Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, the liberal lion of

the Senate and haunted bearer of the Camelot torch after two of his
brothers fell to assassins' bullets, has died at his home in Hyannis
Port after battling a brain tumor. He was 77.

In
nearly 50 years in the Senate, Kennedy served alongside 10 presidents —
his brother John Fitzgerald Kennedy among them — compiling an
impressive list of legislative achievements on health care, civil
rights, education, immigration and more.
His only run
for the White House ended in defeat in 1980. More than a
quarter-century later, he handed then-Sen. Barack Obama an endorsement
at a critical point in the campaign for the Democratic presidential
nomination, explicitly likening the young contender to President
Kennedy.
To the American
public, Kennedy — known to friends and foes alike simply as Ted — was
best known as the last surviving son of America's most glamorous
political family, father figure and, memorably, eulogist of an
Irish-American clan plagued again and again by tragedy.
His family announced his death in a brief statement released early Wednesday.
"We've
lost the irreplaceable center of our family and joyous light in our
lives, but the inspiration of his faith, optimism, and perseverance
will live on in our hearts forever," the statement said. "We thank
everyone who gave him care and support over this last year, and
everyone who stood with him for so many years in his tireless march for
progress toward justice, fairness and opportunity for all."
A
few hours later, two vans left the family compound at Hyannis Port in
pre-dawn darkness. Both bore hearse license plates — with the word
"hearse" blacked out.
Kennedy will
lie in repose Thursday and Friday at the John F. Kennedy Presidential
Library and Museum in Boston before his funeral at a city church, the
senator's office said.



Kennedy is to be buried at Arlington National Cemetery near his slain brothers, said Kennedy spokesman Keith Maley.


Kennedy's funeral
Mass will take place Saturday at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Basilica —
commonly known as the Mission Church — in the Mission Hill neighborhood
of Boston.


Obama, on vacation in Martha's Vineyard, Mass., said he and the first lady were “heartbroken” to hear of Kennedy's passing.


“An important chapter
in our history has come to an end. Our country has lost a great leader,
who picked up the torch of his fallen brothers and became the greatest
United States Senator of our time,” Obama said.
Young senator
Kennedy
was elected to the Senate in 1962, taking the seat that his brother
John had occupied before winning the White House, and served longer
than all but two senators in history.
His
own hopes of reaching the White House were damaged — perhaps doomed —
in 1969 by the scandal that came to be known as ( No Swearing ), an auto
accident that left a young woman dead.
He
sought the White House more than a decade later, lost the Democratic
nomination to President Jimmy Carter, and bowed out with a stirring
valedictory that echoed across the decades: "For all those whose cares
have been our concern, the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope
still lives and the dream shall never die."
Kennedy
was diagnosed with a cancerous brain tumor in May 2008 and underwent
surgery and a grueling regimen of radiation and chemotherapy.
Former First Lady Nancy Reagan said in a
statement that her husband and Kennedy "could always find common
ground, and they had great respect for one another."

She added that she considered Kennedy "an ally and a dear friend. I will miss him."

Republican
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, whose wife, Maria Shriver, was
Kennedy's niece, praised “the rock of our family: a loving husband,
father, brother and uncle.”
Senate
Democratic Leader Harry Reid said that both the Kennedy family and the
Senate have "lost our patriarch" and vowed Congress would renew the
push for the cause of Kennedy's life, health care reform.
Building a legacy

In
a recent interview with The Associated Press, Kennedy's son Rep.
Patrick Kennedy, D-R.I., said his father had defied the predictions of
doctors by surviving more than a year with his fight against brain
cancer.

The younger Kennedy also said his father's legacy was built largely in the Senate.

"He has authored more pieces of major
legislation than any other United States senator," Patrick Kennedy
said. "He is the penultimate senator. I don't need to exaggerate when I
talk about my father. That's the amazing thing. He breaks all the
records himself."

Ted
Kennedy made a surprise return to the Capitol last summer to cast the
decisive vote for the Democrats on Medicare. He made sure he was there
again last January to see his former Senate colleague Barack Obama
sworn in as the nation's first black president, but suffered a seizure
at a celebratory luncheon afterward.
He also made a
surprise and forceful appearance at last summer's Democratic National
Convention, where he spoke of his own illness and said health care was
the cause of his life. His death occurred precisely one year later,
almost to the hour.
Kennedy was
away from the Senate for much of this year, leaving Republicans and
Democrats to speculate about the impact what his absence meant for the
fate of Obama's health care proposals.
Under state law,
Kennedy's successor will be chosen by special election.
In his last known public act, the senator urged state officials to give
Democratic Gov. Deval Patrick the power to name an interim replacement.
But that appears unlikely, leaving Democrats in Washington with one
less vote for the next several months as they struggle to pass Obama's
health care legislation.
His death came
less than two weeks after that of his sister Eunice Kennedy Shriver on
Aug. 11. Kennedy was not present for the funeral, an indication of the
precariousness of his own health.