In February of 1963, my wife and I moved from Indiana to Washington, D.C.  Through a combination of fortunate circumstances, I was hired by newly elected Indiana Senator Birch Bayh.  I was his first intern and I spent 10 years on his staff during which I had a front row seat to some of the more interesting events of the tumultuous 1960’s and early 1970’s. 

One such event was a truly historic one in which I played a personally memorable, although historically insignificant, role. 

Senator Bayh was a political shooting star with three-decade staying power.  He was elected Speaker of the Indiana House of Representatives at age 30, while still attending law school at Indiana University.  He was elected to the United States Senate at the age of 37 and he spent 3 terms in the Senate.  One historian characterized him as, “One of the most consequential lawmakers of the 20^th century…responsible for Constitutional Amendments and a long list of legislative accomplishments that changed and improved America.”

One of the first of these accomplishments was the 25^th Amendment to the United States Constitution regarding Presidential inability, disability and succession—an Amendment that has received considerable attention recently as an alternative to President Trump’s impeachment.

My story focuses on a piece of memorabilia from my political items collection—a tie that I am wearing today which can only be described as moderately ugly.  The genesis of this tie dates back to 1967. 

As the time neared for the Senate vote on the 25^th Amendment, I asked if I could sit in on the Senator’s final Senate floor debate preparation meeting.  The Senator approved my request. 

The morning of the scheduled Senate debate, the Senator’s legislative staff arrived at the office unusually early and began peppering the Senator with every tough question with which the Senator might possibly be confronted.  As time went by and the questions began to trail off, one of the more senior staff members said, “Senator, I think you’re ready. But the tie you have on is really ugly.  Jerry is wearing a beautiful red, white and blue tie that would be perfect for this occasion.” 

The Senator and I agreed and we exchanged ties.  He headed to the Senate floor to lead the debate on an exercise that had been successful only 24 times in American history—amending the United States Constitution. The Amendment passed and in due time was ratified by the States.  The Senator and I never again discussed the exchange of ties.

I’ve saved his tie all these years.  Why did I save the Senator’s tie?  Maybe the next time my grandchildren visit, I’ll show them the tie that binds the Udell family to the United States Constitution.