"Senate Majority Leader" Mike Mansfield Signed FDC Dated 1950 Todd Mueller COA

Description

Up for auction
"Senate Majority Leader" Mike Mansfield Signed First Day Cover Dated 1950.
This item is certified authentic by Todd Mueller Autographs and comes with their Certificate of Authenticity.
ES-1842
Michael Joseph Mansfield
(March 16, 1903 – October 5, 2001) was an
American
politician and diplomat. A member of the
Democratic Party
, he served as a
U.S. Representative
(1943–1953) and a
U.S. Senator
(1953–1977) from
Montana
. He was the longest-serving
Senate Majority Leader
, serving from 1961–1977. During his tenure, he shepherded
Great Society
programs through the Senate and strongly opposed the
Vietnam War
. Born in
Brooklyn
, Mansfield grew up in
Great Falls, Montana
. He lied about his age to serve in the
United States Navy
during
World War I
. After the war, he became a professor of history and political science at the
University of Montana
. He won election to the House of Representatives and served on the
House Committee on Foreign Affairs
during
World War II
. In 1952, he defeated incumbent Republican Senator
Zales Ecton
to take a seat in the Senate. Mansfield served as Senate Majority Whip from 1957 to 1961. Mansfield ascended to Senate Majority Leader after
Lyndon B. Johnson
resigned from the Senate to become vice president. He opposed escalation of the Vietnam War and supported President
Richard Nixon
's plans to withdraw U.S. soldiers from
Southeast Asia
. After retiring from the Senate, Mansfield served as
U.S. Ambassador to Japan
from 1977 to 1988. Upon retiring as ambassador, he was awarded the nation's highest civilian honor, the
Presidential Medal of Freedom
, in part for his role in the resignation of President Nixon. Mansfield is the longest-serving American ambassador to
Japan
in history.
[2]
After his ambassadorship, Mansfield served for a time as a senior adviser on East Asian affairs to
Goldman Sachs
, the Wall Street investment banking firm.