Today, “the progressive movement lost a hero.” President Obama hailed Sen. Ted Kennedy as the “greatest United States Senator of our time.” Kennedy’s closest friends and colleagues are remembering him as “the best advocate you could ever hope for” and “a hero for those Americans in the shadow of life who so desperately needed one.”

To honor his lifelong fight for progressive causes, ThinkProgress’ Victor Zapanta has produced this video tribute to Sen. Kennedy. Watch it:

Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV) issued a statement today, saying that his “heart and soul weeps at the lost [sic] of my best friend in the Senate, my beloved friend, Ted Kennedy.” Byrd also encouraged Congress to carry on Kennedy’s fight by passing health care reform and naming the legislation after the late senator:

In his honor and as a tribute to his commitment to his ideals, let us stop the shouting and name calling and have a civilized debate on health care reform which I hope, when legislation has been signed into law, will bear his name for his commitment to insuring the health of every American.

In May 2008, Byrd gave some touching remarks about Kennedy, who had just been diagnosed with brain cancer:

Other lawmakers are now invoking Kennedy’s “spirit” to continue the push for health care reform. Today on CNN, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) said that Kennedy’s absence is already being felt. “I think we may have made progress on this health care issue if he had been there. He had this unique capability to sit people down at a table together — and I’ve been there on numerous occasions — and really negotiate, which means concessions. And so, he not only will be missed, but he has been missed.”

Earlier this month, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), whose dedication to finding a health care reform compromise is increasingly being doubted by progressives, fearmongered about supposed rationing that could result from reform by invoking Sen. Ted Kennedy’s (D-MA) battle with brain cancer. “In countries that have government-run health care, just to give you an example,” said Grassley. “He would not get the care he gets here because of his age.” In an interview with NPR today, Grassley said he regretted using Kennedy’s name:

But in recent days, Grassley’s comments suggest that he’s doing some of the pushing. During town hall meetings in Iowa, he alluded to government programs that would “pull the plug on Grandma.” He recently engaged in a tit-for-tat Twitter argument over health care “death boards” with Sen. Arlen Specter, a Pennsylvania Democrat. And he invoked gravely ill Sen. Edward Kennedy when inaccurately suggesting that under a British-style, state-run health plan, the Massachusetts Democrat would have been denied treatment for cancer because of his advanced age.

“I regret using Sen. Kennedy’s name,” Grassley told NPR. But he said he has no regrets about comments he made about British-style health systems, or addressing concerns — real or imagined — about end-of-life issues under a government plan.

In the same interview, Grassley also appeared to shift his “make-or-break issues” for a compromise. Yesterday, he told National Review that he needed “no public option, no rationing, no government bureaucrats getting between doctors and patients, and tort reform.” Today, he added one more item to the list, making it “No public option, no pay-or-play, no things that are going to lead to any rationing of health care, no interference with doctor-patient relationships, and tort reform.” Pay-or-play refers to a mandate requiring employers to either provide employee health coverage or pay a tax.

The Wonk Room has launched “GrassleyWatch” — an effort to track Grassley’s health care misrepresentations and obstructions. Check it out HERE.

During an interview with Fox News this morning, Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) criticized the draft version of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee (HELP) health care bill as a “one-size fits all government mandated health care plan.”

Hatch repeated the Frank Luntz-inspired charge that a government plan would place a bureaucrat between “you and your doctor” at least four times during the segment. And he wildly misrepresented the HELP bill while pressing Democrats in Congress to track a bipartisan path towards passing health reform. Watch it:

Hatch joins a long line of conservative lawmakers who rely on poll-tested Republican talking points that are intended to stall reform rather than fix the system.

For instance, contrary to Hatch’s insistence that the bill would put a bureaucrat “between you and your doctor,” Section 2 of the draft legislation explicitly states that “a strong doctor-patient relationship is essential to the practice of medicine, and patients have a right to an effective doctor patient relationship”:

This suggests that Hatch is overstating his willingness to work with Democrats in a “bipartisan” fashion. After all, the first step towards compromise is truthfully characterizing legislation.

Cross-posted from The Wonk Room.

Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) was taken away from a celebratory congressional luncheon this afternoon after experiencing convulsions. Sen. John Kerry said Kennedy “had a seizure and he’s gone to the hospital.” President Obama told the gathering that Kennedy “was there when the voting rights act passed, along with John Lewis, was a warrior for justice. And so I would be lying to you if I did not say that right now a part of me is with him,” he added. “And I think that’s true for all of us. This is a joyous time. But it’s also a sobering time. And my prayers are with him and his family and (Kennedy’s wife) Vicki.”

Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA), who has been “undergoing treatment for a malignant brain tumor, after he was hospitalized for a seizure in May” has been taken to a Cape Cod Hospital. Kennedy was “alert and responsive” during the trip to the hospital.

“Doctors believe the incident was triggered by a change in medication,” Kennedy’s office said. “Senator Kennedy will return home tonight and looks forward to watching the debate.”

The AP is now reporting that Kennedy is back home.