Kenneth Barnard Keating (May 18, 1900 – May 5, 1975) was an American politician, diplomat, and judge who served as a United States senator representing New York from 1959 until 1965. A member of the Republican Party, he also served in the United States House of Representatives, representing New York's 40th and 38th congressional districts from 1947 until 1959. Additionally, he served as a judge of the New York State Court of Appeals from 1966 until 1969 and was U.S. ambassador to India from 1969 until 1972 and Israel from 1973 until 1975.

A native of Lima, New York, Keating graduated from Genesee Wesleyan Seminary in 1915, before continuing to the University of Rochester where he graduated in 1919. He briefly became a teacher at East High School, before beginning attendance at Harvard Law School. After graduating in 1923, Keating practiced law in Rochester and became active in Republican Party politics. During World War I, Keating served with the Student Army Training Corps (SATC) at the University of Rochester. He joined the United States Army for World War II, and was commissioned as a major. He served in India as head of the U.S. office that managed the Lend-Lease Program for the China Burma India Theater and was promoted to colonel before the end of the war. Following the end of his wartime service, he continued to serve in the Organized Reserve Corps. He was promoted to brigadier general in 1948, and continued to serve until he retired in 1963.

In 1946, Keating successfully ran for a seat in the U.S. House, representing the Rochester-based 40th district. He defeated the incumbent Democrat who had won an upset victory over the incumbent Republican in 1944. After narrowly winning again over the Democrat in 1948, Keating was not seriously challenged for the House seat again. In 1952, he was redistricted to the 38th district. During his time in the House, Keating was very active in debate, floor amendment, and sponsorship of successful legislation. In his last congress in the House he was the ranking Republican on the Judiciary Committee. He was re-elected five times and developed a reputation as a moderate on many issues, though he adopted conservative positions on the Cold War and anti-communism, as well as the fight against organized crime.

In 1958, he successfully ran for a U.S. Senate seat from New York, and he served from 1959 to 1965. In the senate, Keating was an advocate of desegregation, and played a key role in breaking the filibuster that enabled passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. During the 1964 United States presidential election, he refused to endorse the conservative Republican nominee Barry Goldwater. Keating ran for re-election later that year but was defeated by Democrat Robert F. Kennedy. After leaving the senate, Keating briefly practiced law before becoming a judge of the New York Court of Appeals. He served until 1969, when he resigned to become U.S. Ambassador to India. He served as ambassador until 1972, when he resigned to campaign for the re-election of President Richard Nixon. In 1973, Nixon appointed Keating U.S. Ambassador to Israel, and Keating remained in this position until his death in 1975.

Early life

Keating was born in Lima, New York on May 18, 1900, the son of Louise (Barnard) Keating, a schoolteacher, and Thomas Mosgrove Keating, a grocer. He was tutored by his mother until age seven, when he began attending the Lima public schools as a sixth grader. He graduated from high school at age 13 He graduated from the University of Rochester in 1919, and was a member of the Delta Upsilon fraternity and Phi Beta Kappa. He taught Latin and Greek for a year at Rochester's East High School, then began attendance at Harvard Law School. In April, 1942 Keating joined the Army for World War II and was commissioned as a major. He served initially as chief of the assignments branch in the international division of the Army Service Forces headquarters, and was promoted to lieutenant colonel in October, 1942.

In 1943, Keating was assigned to India as head of the Army Service Forces international office that administered the Lend-Lease Program for the China Burma India Theater, part of the South East Asia Command commanded by Lord Louis Mountbatten. He was promoted to colonel in February 1944 Keating later served as executive assistant to Mountbatten's U.S. deputy, Lieutenant General Raymond Albert Wheeler, and was the senior American officer at the South East Asia Command's rear headquarters in India.

Keating remained in the Organized Reserve Corps after the war, and was promoted to brigadier general in 1948. He continued to serve until retiring from the military in 1963.

U.S. House of Representatives

A Republican, Keating was a member of the New York delegation to every Republican National Convention from 1940 to 1964 with the exception of 1944, when he was overseas with the U.S. Army during World War II. Keating also enhanced his public profile by creating a semi-monthly Rochester-area television show in which he discussed current events with government officials including fellow members of Congress, which increased his personal popularity among his House colleagues, who appreciated the opportunity to publicize their activities. He defeated Democrat Frank Hogan, the New York County District Attorney for the seat. During his Senate term, Keating served on the Judiciary and Rules committees.

In 1960, Keating introduced the Twenty-Third Amendment to the United States Constitution, which allowed residents of the District of Columbia to vote in presidential elections. In April 1962, he joined Senator Hugh Scott of Pennsylvania in denouncing a UN resolution condemning Israeli retaliation against Syrian gun positions firing on Israeli fishermen on Lake Tiberias. They criticized the action as a form of evenhandedness that "looks like the palm of the hand for the Arabs and the back of the hand for the Israelis." He also worked with the bipartisan coalition that achieved passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 after it broke the filibuster organized by segregationist Democrats. Keating outperformed Goldwater on election day, but was defeated for reelection by the Democratic nominee, Robert F. Kennedy, who had established residency in New York shortly before becoming a candidate. He died in the hospital on May 5.

Personal life

Family

In 1928, Keating was married to Louise DePuy, who died in 1968. She was the widow of attorney Wendell Davis, who had been a law school classmate of Keating. He belonged to the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Association of the United States Army, and Reserve Officers Association. In 1961, Keating was awarded the Grand Cross of Merit of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, an award presented by the order to recognize non-Catholics who whose personal and professional lives espouse goodwill towards the Catholic Church.

The federal building in Rochester is named for Keating. Brooklyn Law School awards the annual Judge Kenneth B. Keating Memorial Prize to a member of each graduating class who demonstrates exceptional achievement in the field of conflict of laws. Senator Keating Boulevard in the town of Brighton, a road which was constructed in the late 1990s, is named for Keating.

Honorary degrees

Keating received several honorary degrees, to include:

  • University of Rochester, LL.D., 1954
  • Hobart and William Smith Colleges, LL.D., 1959
  • Hamilton College, LL.D., 1959
  • Le Moyne College, LL.D., 1959
  • Albany Law School of Union University, LL.D., 1959
  • Alfred University, DHL, 1960.
  • Long Island University, LL.D., 1960
  • Yeshiva University, DHL, 1962,
  • Adelphi University, LL.D., 1962
  • Iona University, LL.D., 1962
  • Clarkson University, DHL, 1964
  • Elmira College, D.Litt., 1964
  • Pace University, DCL, 1965
  • New York Medical College, DHL, 1965.
  • Rhode Island College, LL.D., 1965.

References

  • Kenneth Keating at U.S. State Department Archives (People)
  • Kenneth Keating at Arlington National Cemetery

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