First black woman to serve as representative of Ohio dies

Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones died of an aneurysm Wednesday. She was 58. From CNN:

President Bush said Tubbs Jones "was an effective legislator who was dedicated to helping small businesses, improving local schools, expanding job opportunities for Ohioans and ensuring that more of them have access to health care.

"After making history as the first African-American woman elected to Congress from Ohio, the congresswoman worked to expand the rights of all Americans," Bush said.

Tubbs Jones built a reputation in Congress for speaking out. In 2003, she was the only Ohioan in Congress to vote against a resolution supporting U.S. troops in Iraq.

She said she voted "no" because the resolution connected Iraq to the September 11 terrorist attacks and declared that Iraq poses a continued threat to the United States. She said that neither of those claims had been proved.

"Our veterans deserve better than lip service," she said.

She stepped up her national political role in 2004, assisting the presidential campaign of Sen. John Kerry, especially in battleground states. She also helped shape her party's platform, traveling the country as a co-chair of the Democratic National Committee.

In early January 2005, Tubbs Jones led an unsuccessful fight against certifying Ohio's tally in the 2004 presidential election, citing voting irregularities. Lawmakers voted down the challenge, allowing President Bush to carry the state by about 70,000 votes and sealing his 286-251 victory in the Electoral College.

Tubbs Jones was one of the most ardent supporters of Sen. Hillary Clinton's 2008 run for the White House. After Clinton bowed out of the race in June, she endorsed Sen. Barack Obama, now the presumptive Democratic nominee.

Tubbs Jones, a superdelegate, had been scheduled to attend the Democratic National Convention next week in Denver, Colorado.

"She was not only a professional, but she could reach into your soul and shake it," said Rep. Joe Sestak, D-Pennsylvania, who said he met Tubbs Jones at a Clinton rally. "Hillary Clinton was lucky to have a supporter like her."

Thanks for shaking things up, Ms. Tubbs Jones. You will be missed.

 
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