Lloyd Millard Bentsen Jr., (February 11, 1921 – May 23, 2006) was a four-term United States senator (1971 until 1993) from Texas and the Democratic Party nominee for Vice President in 1988. He also served in the House of Representatives from 1949 to 1955 and as Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee and as U.S. Treasury

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Early life
Bentsen was born in Mission, Texas, to the grandchildren of Danish immigrants and to the children of first generation Americans, and was an Eagle Scout and recipient of the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award from the Boy Scouts of America. He graduated from the University of Texas School of Law in 1942, where he was a respected Brother of the Upsilon Chapter (0484) of The Sigma Nu International fraternity, and upon graduation served in the United States Army Air Forces from 1942 to 1945. After brief service as a private in intelligence work in Brazil, he became a pilot and in early 1944 began flying World War II combat missions in B-24s from southern Italy with the 449th Bomb Group. At age 23 he was promoted to the rank of Major and given command of a squadron of 600 men.

In 18 months of combat, Bentsen flew 35 dangerous missions against many difficult, remote and highly defended targets such as the Ploiesti oil fields in Romania, which were critical to the Nazi war strategy. The 15th Air Force, to which the 449th was attached, is credited with destroying all of the petroleum production within its range, which equated to about half of Germany's sources of fuel on the continent.

Major Bentsen's unit also flew against communications centers, aircraft factories and industrial targets in Germany, Italy, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria. Bentsen participated in bombing raids in support of the Anzio campaign and flew bombers against hard targets in preparation for the landing in southern France. Overall, while in the Army Air Corps, he flew over 200 bombing missions over Europe.

Bentsen was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, one of the Army Air Corps' and now the Air Force's highest commendations for valor in combat. In addition to the Distinguished Flying Cross, Bentsen was awarded the Air Medal with three Oak Leaf Clusters. The Air Medal and each individual cluster represent specific campaigns for which he was decorated. Before completing his military service, he was promoted to the rank of Colonel in the Air Force Reserve.

Political career
After the war, Bentsen returned to his native Rio Grande Valley. He served the people of his home area from 1946 to 1955, first as Hidalgo County Judge (a largely administrative post as opposed to judicial duties) before serving three successive terms in the United States House. In 1954, he declined to seek reelection and entered what was to become a prosperous career in business.

For 16 years, Bentsen worked in the financial sector in Houston. By 1970, he had become president of Lincoln Consolidated, a financial holding institution. Following his successful campaign which upset liberal incumbent Ralph Yarborough for the Democratic nomination for the Senate that year, he resigned all management positions and directorships. Later that year, Bentsen went on to win the general election when he was pitted against Congressman and future President George H. W. Bush. On the campaign trail, there was a stark contrast between Bush and Bentsen. Bentsen was seen to be far more dignified, reliable, and a heavyweight in contrast to the fuzzy, ineffective communication skills of Bush. On election night, Bentsen beat Bush convincingly.

Firmly ensconced in Washington, Bentsen was overwhelmingly re-elected to the Senate in 1976, 1982, and 1988. He defeated sitting Republican congressmen from "safe" House seats in all four of his Senate elections, including Bush in 1970. In 1976, he ended the career of Alan Steelman of Dallas. In 1982, he defeated James M. Collins of Dallas. In 1988, he defeated Beau Boulter of Amarillo. Bentsen was also on the ballot as the Democratic vice presidential nominee that year; he could seek both offices under the 1960 "Johnson law."

Bentsen was known as a generally moderate-to-conservative Democrat. His support for abortion rights, the Equal Rights Amendment, and civil rights was balanced by his endorsement of public school prayer, capital punishment, tax cuts, and deregulation of industry. He generally supported business interests in the arena of economic policy and swiftly rose to become a power to be reckoned with on the Senate Finance Committee.

Bentsen's reputation as an illiberal Democrat served to alienate him not only from supporters of Ralph Yarborough, but from prominent national liberals, as well. Indeed, during the 1970 Senate race, the Keynesian economist John Kenneth Galbraith endorsed George Bush, arguing that if Bentsen were elected to the Senate, he would invariably become the face of a new, more conservative Texas Democratic Party, and that the long-term interests of Texas liberalism demanded Bentsen's defeat.

In 1975-76, he ran for the Democratic Party nomination for the presidency which undercut the campaign of Henry M. 'Scoop' Jackson in the powerful business and financial communities, but he withdrew from his national candidacy to become a 'favorite son' of Texas well before the Democratic National Convention that nominated his friendly and respected rival, Jimmy Carter.

1988 Vice Presidential candidate
In 1988 Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis chose him to be his running mate in that year's presidential election. Bentsen was selected in large part to secure the state of Texas, and its large electoral vote, for the Democrats. Because of Bentsen's status of something of an elder statesman who was more experienced in elected politics, many believed Dukakis' selection of Bentsen as his running mate was a mistake in that Bentsen, number two on the ticket, appeared more "presidential" than did Dukakis. One elector in West Virginia even cast a ballot for him rather than Dukakis in voting, giving him one electoral vote for President.

He was responsible for one of the most memorable moments of the campaign, when during a televised debate with Republican Vice Presidential nominee Dan Quayle, he attempted to counter Quayle's comment that he had as much political experience as John F. Kennedy when Kennedy ran for office with the famous retort, "Senator, I served with Jack Kennedy. I knew Jack Kennedy. Jack Kennedy was a friend of mine. Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy." The Dukakis-Bentsen ticket lost the election in an Electoral College landslide. Bentsen was unable to swing his home state of Texas while the Bush/Quayle ticket won Quayle's home state of Indiana by a wide margin.

Later political career

Bentsen's signature, as used on American currencyHe resigned from the Senate in January 1993 in order to serve as the 69th Secretary of the Treasury under Bill Clinton from 1993 to 1994. While Secretary, Bentsen successfully urged Clinton to pursue relatively pro-business and deficit reducing economic policies. Clinton's selection of Bentsen for his cabinet was criticised as resulting in a loss of a Democratic Senate seat when Republican Kay Bailey Hutchison won the special election in Texas for Bentsen's vacated seat. As Secretary of the Treasury, Bentsen helped to shepherd Clinton's first budget through Congress. President Clinton awarded Bentsen the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1999.

In 1998, Bentsen suffered two strokes, which left him needing a wheelchair for mobility. He appeared in the summer of 2004 at the portrait unveilings at the White House of Bill and Hillary Clinton.

Two hundred seventy miles of U.S. Highway 59, from I-35 to I-45 in Texas (between Laredo and Houston, respectively), is officially named the "Senator Lloyd Bentsen Highway".

Bentsen's family continues to be active in politics. His nephew, Ken Bentsen Jr., was a U.S. Representative (D) from 1995-2003 in Texas's 25th District, and a U.S. Senate candidate in 2002. His grandson, Lloyd Bentsen IV, served on John Kerry's advance staff during Kerry's 2004 campaign for the Presidency of the United States.

Bentsen died on May 23, 2006 at his home in Houston at age 85, survived by his wife, the former Beryl Ann Longino, three children, and several grandchildren. His funeral was on May 30 at the First Presbyterian Church of Houston. Former President Bill Clinton, who was a close friend of Bentsen, delivered a eulogy, emphasizing the former senator’s humor, energy, merit, joy, faith in God, and obsessive dedication to his country. Clinton added that Bentsen was "one of the very few candidates for vice president in the history of the Republic who lost and came out better than when he went in."

Electoral history
1988 Race for U.S. President/Vice President
Bush/Quayle (R), 53% (426 Electoral Votes)
Dukakis/Bentsen (D), 46% (111 Electoral Votes)
Lloyd Bentsen, Jr./Michael Dukakis (D), N/A% (1 Electoral Vote)
1988 Race for U.S. Senate
Lloyd Bentsen (D) (inc.), 59%
Beau Boulter (R), 40%
1982 Race for U.S. Senate
Lloyd Bentsen (D) (inc.), 59%
James Collins (R), 41%
1976 Race for U.S. Senate
Lloyd Bentsen (D) (inc.), 57%
Alan Steelman (R), 42%
1970 Race for U.S. Senate
Lloyd Bentsen (D), 53%
George H.W. Bush (R), 47%