Mike Mansfield

Mike Mansfield
Mansfield in 1985
United States Ambassador to Japan
In office
June 10, 1977 – December 22, 1988
President
Preceded byJames Day Hodgson
Succeeded byMichael Armacost
Senate Majority Leader
In office
January 3, 1961 – January 3, 1977
Whip
Preceded byLyndon B. Johnson
Succeeded byRobert Byrd
Chair of the Senate Democratic Caucus
In office
January 3, 1961 – January 3, 1977
Preceded byLyndon Johnson
Succeeded byRobert Byrd
Senate Majority Whip
In office
January 3, 1957 – January 3, 1961
LeaderLyndon Johnson
Preceded byEarle Clements
Succeeded byHubert Humphrey
United States Senator
from Montana
In office
January 3, 1953 – January 3, 1977
Preceded byZales Ecton
Succeeded byJohn Melcher
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Montana's 1st district
In office
January 3, 1943 – January 3, 1953
Preceded byJeannette Rankin
Succeeded byLee Metcalf
Personal details
Born
Michael Joseph Mansfield

(1903-03-16)March 16, 1903
New York City, New York, U.S.
DiedOctober 5, 2001(2001-10-05) (aged 98)
Washington, D.C., U.S.
Resting placeArlington National Cemetery
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse
Maureen Hayes
(m. 1932; died 2000)
Children1
EducationUniversity of Montana (BA, MA)
University of California, Los Angeles
Signature
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service
Years of service
  • 1918–1919 (Navy)
  • 1919–1920 (Army)
  • 1920–1922 (Marine Corps)
Rank
Battles/warsWorld War I

Michael Joseph Mansfield (March 16, 1903 – October 5, 2001) was an American Democratic Party politician and diplomat who represented Montana in the United States House of Representatives from 1943 to 1953 and United States Senate from 1953 to 1977. As the leader of the Senate Democratic Caucus from 1961 to 1977, Mansfield shepherded Great Society programs through the Senate; his tenure of exactly sixteen years was the longest of any party leader in Senate history, until the record was broken by Mitch McConnell in 2023.

Born in Brooklyn, New York, Mansfield grew up in Great Falls, Montana. He lied about his age to serve in the United States Navy during World War I. After the war, he became a professor of history and political science at the University of Montana. He won election to the House of Representatives and served on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs during World War II.

In 1952, he defeated incumbent Republican Senator Zales Ecton to take a seat in the Senate. Mansfield served as Senate Majority Whip from 1957 to 1961. Mansfield ascended to Senate Majority Leader after Lyndon B. Johnson resigned from the Senate to become vice president. In the later years of the Vietnam War, he opposed escalation of American involvement and supported President Richard Nixon's plans for Vietnamization.

After retiring from the Senate, Mansfield served as United States Ambassador to Japan from 1977 to 1988. Mansfield is the longest-serving American ambassador to Japan in history.[1] Upon his retirement, he was awarded the nation's highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Mansfield also worked as a senior adviser on East Asian affairs to Goldman Sachs.

  1. ^ Warnock, Eleanor (April 16, 2012). "End of an Era: Yamamoto, Top 'America Hand' Dies at 76". Wall Street Journal Japan Real Time. Retrieved April 18, 2012.