Former Tennessee Senator Dead at 87

Another longtime politician has passed away.

Former U.S. Senator and Ambassador to China Jim Sasser died on Tuesday at the age of 87.

His son has confirmed his death.

He’s Gone

Sasser served in Congress for 18 years, from 1977 to 1995.

Sasser found himself in the graces of President Bill Clinton, who then appointed him as the ambassador to China, a post he held until 2001.

When Sasser was first elected to office, he beat Bill Crock, then started to work his way up the food chain in Democrat leadership.

At the height of his Senate tenure, he was chairman of the Senate Budget Committee from 1989 to 1992.

He was at the top of the list to be the Democrat Senate Leader until he was defeated in the 1994 election cycle by Republican Bill Frist.

Frist, at the time, was an unknown, pulling off a massive upset.

Once he was out of office and retired as the ambassador, Sasser set up shop as a consultant.

As noted above, his son confirmed his death, stating that the former Senator died from an apparent heart attack.

His son, Gray, and his daughter, Elizabeth, stated,  “He believed in the nobility of public service and the transformational power of government.”

Rest in peace, sir.