Sen. Carl Levin honored by Biden, Stabenow, and others during Sunday memorial
'I will always miss him'; Friends, family, and more pay tribute to late Congressman Carl Levin
From Joe Biden to Debbie Stabenow, it was a star power-packed ceremony at the Wayne State University Law School's Levin Center for Oversight and Democracy, where leaders retired and current honored America's first Jewish senator.
DETROIT, Mich. (FOX 2) - Michigan's longest serving U.S. Senator Carl Levin died in July 2021 at the age of 87. He was remembered by many and honored during a memorial celebration on Sunday.
"I had the honor of calling Carl Levin my friend for more than 40 years… one of the most honorable and decent people I've ever known in public life. He was brilliant, humble and principle. Carl looked everybody straight in the eye and he listened. He always told you how he saw it with honesty and respect," said President Joe Biden.
Levin was the first Jewish senator and served in the Senate for 36 years; beginning in 1979. The Levin Center for Oversight and Democracy at Wayne State University Law School honored the late senator’s life and legacy with a memorial celebration Sunday.
"As we face the pileup of problems bedeviling our nation; from authoritarianism, to the overheating of our planet, to surging white supremacy, to the epidemic of gun violence and more. It's calming to me at least that we can stand on uncle Carl's shoulders if we deeply respect other people," said Representative Andy Levin.
"At the end of the day Carl Levin proudly bore the wounds and the scars from of fighting for us for all those decades," said Secretary Jennifer Granholm.
Levin was the former chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee and chaired the premiere investigative panel in Congress. He built a reputation as a fair dealer, a watchdog against fraud and waste, and a tough interrogator of some of the nation's largest financial institutions after the Great Recession.
Prior to Levin's retirement, late Senator John McCain acknowledged his integrity and ability to work across the political divide.
"Of course the greatest compliment one senator can pay another is to credit him or her as a person who keeps his or her word. That’s become too rare in Washington, but not so in my experiences with Carl Levin," said McCain.
Levin was also remembered as a devoted husband, brother, father, uncle and friend.
"Most importantly to me is he was a dear friend. We will always miss him. May Carl’s memory forever be a blessing to everyone he touched and everyone who knew him and he certainly has been a blessing to me," said Senator Debbie Stabenow.
"Carl touched so many people in so many positive ways with his love, his commitment to public service, his mentoring and the amazing work he did to make government work for all people," said Jim Townsend, director of the Levin Center.