Former West Virginia governor, five-term U.S. senator, and member of one of America's wealthiest families, John D. "Jay" Rockefeller IV, has died.
Videos by Wide Open Country
The 89-year-old passed away at his home in Washington earlier this morning (Nov. 6), The New York Post reported, citing The Washington Post. The cause of death has not been revealed.
The great-grandson of oil tycoon Rockefeller, Jay Rockefeller established a long-time political career out of West Virginia. He first came to the state as part of an anti-poverty program in 1961. He went on to serve two terms as governor. The New York-born Rockefeller later served as a senator for West Virginia for 30 years.
John D. "Jay" Rockefeller IV Signature Issue Was Healthcare
The liberal democrat's signature issue was healthcare. His focus included expanding healthcare coverage for coal miners in the state, as well as for veterans. A children's health insurance program created in 1997 helped states cover millions of uninsured children. Rockefeller helped shape it. He also helped President Barack Obama pass a healthcare overhaul law, which was signed in 2010.
Rockefeller spoke on his focus on healthcare when he announced he wouldn't seek a sixth term in the US Senate back in 2013.
"Championing those most in need has been my life's calling, and I will never stop fighting to make a difference for the people who mean so much to me," he said at the time.
Rockefeller Later Criticized the Iraq War
Meanwhile, Rockefeller also clashed with then-President George W. Bush over the Iraq War. In 2002, he voted to authorize military action in the region. However, he later served as chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, which took Bush to task over the war, which alleged Iraq had ties to the terrorist attacks of 9/11 and that the country held weapons of mass destruction.
"Representing to the American people that the two had an operational partnership and posed a single, indistinguishable threat was fundamentally misleading and led the nation to war on false premises," Rockefeller said of Iraq's alleged ties to al Qaeda when the committee's report was released in 2008.
Rockefeller was married to public television executive Sharon Percy Rockefeller. The couple had four children.
