MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
Former Congressman Charles Rangel has died. A Democrat, he represented a New York City district, including the historically Black neighborhood of Harlem, for nearly 50 years. Rangel once joked with voters...
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
CHARLES RANGEL: You know, modesty is not really my best trait.
KELLY: Charlie Rangel was born in Harlem. He served in the U.S. Army in the Korean War. He returned to New York and was elected to the House of Representatives in 1970. For decades, he served on the House Ways and Means Committee, which shapes tax law. In 2007, he became the first Black member to chair that committee.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR BROADCAST)
RANGEL: We have an obligation, whether people are in Mississippi or whether they're in Las Vegas, to help people. I think that if you're old and crippled and poor, we should say not in our country.
KELLY: That was Rangel speaking with NPR's Steve Inskeep as he prepared to take on the position. Rangel often worked to shape tax law for his causes, like affordable housing. He was also a founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus. In 2008, then-Senator Barack Obama, accepted the Democratic Party's nomination for president. Here's what Rangel had to say about that to NPR.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR BROADCAST)
RANGEL: To me, it is the most exciting thing that's happened since the possible exception of the Voting Rights Act. And I've been telling everybody that I marched with Dr. King in the '60s, 54 miles from Selma to Montgomery, and I cussed every step of the way. I said, what a big mistake. What am I doing here? Because I had no idea of the history-making value of that sacrifice and that Lyndon Johnson would be persuaded to sign the Voting Rights Act. So I tell everyone, don't let that happen to you.
KELLY: Rangel was also the subject of a 2010 House ethics investigation for his own financial transactions. That year, he was reelected by an overwhelming margin, but he was found guilty of ethics violations and censured by his House colleagues. It cost him his committee chairmanship. Still, he told NPR's Michel Martin the following year...
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR BROADCAST)
RANGEL: This has been a fascinating experience. It's like an unending postgraduate course. And to be able to see the changes in your community, the nation and the world, and to be a part of it and to be able to change things, it is something that you really can't describe.
KELLY: Charles Rangel died today - his family confirmed. He was 94 years old.
(SOUNDBITE OF DARLINGSIDE SONG, "OLD FRIEND") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
