Honorable Strom Thurmond
United States Senator, South Carolina, Republican
Senator Thurmond served in the U.S. Senate from 1954 to 2003, first as a Democrat, and, after 1964, as a Republican. He was a member of the South Carolina State Senate from 1933 to 1938, a circuit judge from 1938 to 1946, and Governor of South Carolina from 1947 to 1951. He chaired the Judiciary Committee from 1981 to 1987 and the Armed Services Committee from 1995 to 1999. The following is from the May 3, 1965, Senate floor debate on S. 1564, the Voting Rights Act. Initially, let me acknowledge that I am aware that for the most part,…
