US Sen. Brooke remembered as a gentleman

Former Lynn Mayor Thomas Costin?s affection for the late U.S. Sen. Edward W. Brooke was both professional and personal. And, says Costin, Brooke, who died Saturday at the age of 95, was a throwback to a time when the United States Congress wasn?t as contentious and divided as it is today.?He was a fine gentleman,” said Costin of Brooke, who was the nation?s first elected African-American senator since the Reconstruction era after the Civil War. “I always thought he was a fine gentleman. Every time I came away from him, that?s all I could think: He was a fine gentleman.”Costin, who lives in Nahant, had plenty of opportunities to rub elbows with Brooke because while he was the president of the National Association of Postmasters in 1968, his group was asked by then-national Democratic chairman Larry O?Brien to work to help advance the National Postal Reorganization Act. The committee extended into the Nixon administration, and the project earned the support of Brooke, who was two years into a 12-year run in the Senate.?(Brooke) was a good listener,” said Costin, “and that impressed me, because a lot of guys in that position usually had a lot of things on their mind and it was hard for them to concentrate on the subject at hand.?The senator,” Costin said, “was always prepared. If you were going into his office to speak to him on an issue, you could tell he always boned up on whatever the topic was ahead of time.”Tributes to Brooke, who was well-known for both his moderate and temperate voice on many issues, came in from all walks of politics upon news of his death.?I am deeply saddened by the loss of Senator Edward W. Brooke as we lost a truly remarkable public servant,” said Gov.-elect Charlie Baker of Swampscott. “A war hero, a champion of equal rights for all, and an example that barriers can be broken, Senator Brooke accomplished more than most aspire to.?Our party, commonwealth and nation are better for his service,” Baker said. “My thoughts and prayers are with the friends and family of the senator as we pause to remember an exceptional man.”Said Massachusetts House Speaker Robert DeLeo of Winthrop: “Sen. Brooke was a pioneer in American political life as well as an important symbol for our state during a troubled time. He was a patriot, and he fought for a better nation in the years that followed.”Costin said Brooke was a practitioner of a more accommodating style of politics while he was in office.?Back in those days, we talked to one another,” said Costin. “They would try to compromise, which they don?t do today. It?s either my way or the highway – that?s the attitude today, and that?s why the attitude of the U.S. public toward Congress is as low as it is now. They?re not getting anything accomplished. I?d say Mr. Brooke was a moderate who was more interested in getting things done.”Brooke?s career in politics took off in 1962 when he defeated Francis X. Bellotti for the state?s attorney general?s office. Four years later, he defeated former Gov. Endicott Peabody to win his first Senate seat. He ruffled feathers during that term when he vowed not to simply be a “leader for Negroes only, but for all Americans.”In 1972 he easily defeated John J. Droney for re-election. But when details of his divorce from his first wife, as well as some of his financial dealings came to light, he was not elected to a third term, as the late Paul E. Tsongas defeated him in 1978.?Being a Democrat,” said Costin, “I was happy to get the seat back. But I have to say, I felt bad about what happened to him. I always thought that was too bad.”