Frank Moss: Difference between revisions

|image = Senator Frank Moss.jpg

'''Frank Edward "Ted" Moss''' (September 23, 1911 – January 29, 2003) was an [[United States|American]] lawyer and politician. A member of the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic PartyDemocrat]], from 1959 to 1977 he served as a [[United States Senate|United States Senator]] from [[Utah]], fromand 1959is currently the last Democrat to 1977do so.

Frank Moss was born in [[Holladay, Utah|Holladay]], a suburb of [[Salt Lake City]], [[Utah]], as the youngest of seven children of James Edward and Maude (née Nixon) Moss.<ref name=utah>{{cite news|work=Utah History Encyclopedia|title=FRANK E. "TED" MOSS|url=http://www.media.utah.edu/UHE/m/MOSS%2CFRANK.html|last=McCormick|first=John S.|url-status=dead|archiveurlarchive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070610040300/http://www.media.utah.edu/UHE/m/MOSS%2CFRANK.html|archivedatearchive-date=2007-06-10}}</ref> His father, a well-known secondary school educator, was known as the "father of high school athletics" in Utah.<ref name=hart>{{cite book|last1=Hart|first1=Richard R.|title=A Sense of Joy: A Tribute to Ted Moss|year=2003|publisher=Bonneville Books}}</ref> In 1929, he graduated from [[Granite High School (Utah)|Granite High School]], where he had been freshman class president, editor of the school newspaper, two-time state debate champion, and [[Center (American football)|center]] on the football team.<ref name=hart/>

Moss studied at the [[George Washington University Law School]] in [[Washington, D.C.]], where he was an editor of ''[[The George Washington Law Review]]'' (1936–1937).<ref name=bernstein>{{cite news|date=2003-02-01|worknewspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|title=Frank Moss, U.S. Senator From Utah|url=http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2003-02-01/news/0302010194_1_frank-moss-brian-moss-utah-democrat|last=Bernstein|first=Adam|access-date=2012-01-04|archive-date=2016-03-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303225455/http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2003-02-01/news/0302010194_1_frank-moss-brian-moss-utah-democrat|url-status=dead}}</ref> While studying in Washington, he worked at the [[National Recovery Administration]], the [[Resettlement Administration]], and the [[Farm Credit Administration]].<ref name=hart/> He received his [[Juris Doctor]] degree ''cum laude'' in 1937.<ref name=yearbook/>

In [[1958 United States Senate election in Utah|1958]], Moss ran for the [[United States Senate|U.S. Senate]] against two-term [[incumbent]] [[Arthur Vivian Watkins|Arthur V. Watkins]], a close ally of both the Eisenhower administration and [[Thethe Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]] (see also [[Mormon]]), and also against [[J. Bracken Lee]], a non-Mormon and former two-term Utah [[governor]] (1949–571949–1957), who was running as an [[independent (politics)|independent]] after losing to Watkins in the Republican [[Partisan primary election|primary]]. The Republican vote was [[split vote|split]] in the general election, largely over local dissatisfaction with Watkins's having chaired the committee that censured Senator [[Joseph McCarthy]], and Moss won election with less than 40 percent of the vote.

Moss was an original sponsor of laws to create [[Medicaid]], a program to cover health care for low income people.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/01/31/us/frank-moss-91-democratic-utah-senator.html|title = Frank Moss, 91, Democratic Utah Senator|newspaper = The New York Times|date = 31 January 2003}}</ref>

Moss was elected to a second term in 1964, defeating [[Brigham Young University]] [[University president|President]] [[Ernest L. Wilkinson]]. He was elected to a third term in 1970 defeating four-term [[United States House of Representatives|Congressman]] [[Laurence J. Burton]]. He gained national prominence with regard to [[environmentalism|environmental]], consumer, and [[health care]] issues. Moss became an expert on water issues and wrote ''[[The Water Crisis]]'' in 1967. He worked to secure additional [[national park]]s for Utah and started important investigations into the care of the elderly in nursing and retirement homes, and into physicians' abuses of the [[federalism|federal]] [[Medicaid]] program. In 19741976, Mosshis joinedcapacity as chairman of the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Long-Term Care, Senator [[FrankMoss Church]]made (Da first-Idaho)hand toinvestigation sponsorof waste, fraud and mismanagement in the firstMedicaid legislationprogram toby provideposing federalas fundinga forpatient [[hospiceand care]]visiting the East Harlem Medical Center in New York programsCity. The billDespite didhaving notno havecomplaints widespreadof supportsymptoms and washaving nothad broughthis tohealth checked by his own physician a vote.month Congressbefore, finallySenator Moss "was includedgiven a Hospicecostly benefitseries inof [[Medicaretests" (Unitedand States)|Medicare]]then intold to come back the next day for more unnecessary tests that were billed to the federal 1982government.<ref>[httphttps://www.nhpconytimes.orgcom/i4a1976/pages08/index30/archives/senator-moss-posing-as-ragged-patient-sees-medicaid-abuse-in-new.cfm?pageid=3285html National"Senator HospiceMoss, andPosing Palliativeas CareRagged Organization:Patient, HistorySees ofMedicaid HospiceAbuse in New York City"], ''The New York Times'', August 30, 1976, p. 1</ref>

Moss ran for a fourth term in [[1976 United States Senate election in Utah|1976]] against Republican [[Orrin Hatch]]. Among other issues, Hatch criticized Moss's 18-year tenure in the Senate, saying "What do you call a Senator who’s served in office for 18 years? You call him home."<ref>{{cite web|author=|url=http://www.richardcyoung.com/politics/election-2012-politics/tired-timid-troubling-dump-orrin-hatch/ |title=Time to Vote Dan Liljenquist, and Dump Orrin Hatch |publisher=RichardCYoung.com |date=2012-02-24 |accessdateaccess-date=2013-02-11}}</ref> Hatch argued that many Senatorssenators, including Moss, had lost touch with their constituents.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700018524/On-Orrin-Hatchs-76th-birthday-his-career-in-photos.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100325011231/http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700018524/On-Orrin-Hatchs-76th-birthday-his-career-in-photos.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=March 25, 2010|title=On Orrin Hatch's 76th birthday: his career in photos|date=22 March 2010|first=Marc|last=Haddock|accessdateaccess-date=28 July 2011|publisher=Deseret News|work=deseretnews.com[[Deseret News]]}}</ref> Hatch won the election by an unexpectedly wide nine-point margin and proceeded to hold that seat for the next 42 years.

* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070610040300/http://www.media.utah.edu/UHE/m/MOSS,FRANK.html Frank Moss at the Utah History Encyclopedia]

{{s-ttl|title=[[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] nominee for [[United States Senator|U.S. Senator]] from [[Utah]]<br>([[Classes of United States Senators|Class 1]])|years=[[1958 United States Senate elections,election 1958in and 1959Utah|1958]], [[1964 United States Senate elections,election 1964in Utah|1964]], [[1970 United States Senate elections,election 1970in Utah|1970]], [[1976 United States Senate election in Utah, 1976|1976]]}}

[[Category:American Latter Day Saints from Utah]]

[[Category:Democratic Party United States senators from Utah]]