New Senator from Hawaii
December 27, 2012
Hawaii’s former lieutenant governor, Brian Schatz, was sworn in today as a United States senator at a ceremony at the capitol in Washington, D.C. Schatz was appointed to that position by the governor of Hawaii, Neil Abercrombie.
Daniel K. Inouye, who died on December 17, had been a member of the United States Senate since 1963. Inouye, a Democrat, represented Hawaii. Inouye was the first Asian American to serve in both houses of the U.S. Congress. (U.S. Senate)
A rising political star in Hawaii, Schatz assumes the seat of Senator Daniel K. Inouye, who died on December 17. A towering figure in Hawaii who helped forge the state’s identity since statehood in 1959, Inouye first served in the Senate in 1963 and was the most senior member of that body at the time of his death. Inouye had also served in the Senate longer than any other member except Robert Byrd, who died in 2010.
During World War II (1939-1945), Inouye served in France and Italy and lost his right arm in the fighting. In 2000, 55 years after the end of the war, Inouye received the Medal of Honor, the highest military award given by the United States government, along with 19 other Nisei servicemen who served in the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. (Nisei were U.S.-born children of Japanese immigrants.) The men were believed to have been denied proper recognition of their bravery during the war due to their race.
Additional World Book articles:
- Japanese American internment
- Medals, decorations, and orders
- Congress of the United States 1959 (a Back in Time article)
