After 23 years in Congress, Pastor savors victories litte and large
Laurie Liles
Cronkite News
WASHINGTON – Jack Lunsford says Rep. Ed Pastor, D-Phoenix, will be remembered for countless legislative contributions to Arizona, but the memory that best sums up the long-term congressman for Lunsford has nothing to do with politics.
It was the mid-1980s and the two had just finished lunch at Oaxaca Restaurant when Pastor was approached by a man asking for money to buy food.
“Are you really hungry?” Lunsford remembers Pastor asking. “Because if you are, I’ll take you inside and put you on my tab.
“And they went back inside and Ed bought him something to eat,” said Lunsford, who calls it a life lesson he tried to teach his children.
It is typical of the recollections shared as Pastor prepares to give up the seat in Congress that he has held for 23 years. In conversations with politicians and political observers, Pastor is described as a friend as often as he is lauded for his achievements during 40 years in public service.