November 18, 2009 10:50AM 

# ‘Big Daddy’ Bob Byrd 

By [Michael F. Cannon](https://www.cato.org/people/michael-f-cannon) 

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As of today, U.S. Senator Robert C. Byrd (D‑WV) becomes the longest-serving member in the history of the U.S. Senate.

To celebrate this milestone, we offer the following [video](http://bit.ly/49U1TJ), which pretty well summarizes Byrd’s extremely long tenure in the Senate. If you ever wanted to know what corruption looks like, here’s your chance. Be sure to catch what Byrd says at the very end.

That video brings to mind an [old folk song](http://sniff.numachi.com/pages/tiWAGNYARD.html) that, ironically enough, Byrd himself recorded in 1978:

> I went out on a party, I led the pace that kills 
> When I woke up, that gang had gone and left me all the bills
> 
> 
> I found them over on the corner, near Soul Salvation Hall 
> That drunken bunch was out there singing Jesus Paid It All
> 
> 
> They put me out in a dry goods box, Lord, my pillow was hard 
> I wish I’d bought me a half a pint and stayed in the wagon yard

The moral of the story? Don’t monkey with them Washington ducks — you’ll find them [slick as lard](http://sniff.numachi.com/pages/tiWAGNYARD.html).

##### Related Tags 

[General](https://www.cato.org/general), [Government and Politics](https://www.cato.org/government-politics) 

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