Commentary: A fine example

Lee Williams showed what public service can be

It is hard to believe that it was 48 years ago that I had lunch with Sen. J. William Fulbright and Lee Williams, his administrative assistant, in the senators' dining room in Washington.

We mostly discussed the hearings on the Vietnam War Fulbright was conducting and it soon became time for him to return to that duty. After he left, Williams stood and posed a question to me: "Well, Purvis, are you going to go to work for us or not?"

To me that sounded like a job offer, something I had long been seeking. Lee later told me the purpose of the lunch was to make sure Fulbright approved the hiring.

For a young man from Arkansas with a strong interest in government, politics, international relations and media, working on Fulbright's staff was pluperfect ideal. And soon after Lee Williams posed that question to me, I was at work as Fulbright's first and only press secretary.

That also marked the beginning of an abiding friendship with Lee, one that continued up to his death last week at age 89.

Of course, Lee had many friends, an amazing network of contacts among the well-known and not-so-well-known.

Lee Williams devoted his career to upholding the fundamental principles of the American system of representative government and to improving international understanding. He spent 25 years as a key figure on Capitol Hill, assisting and advising three of the most influential figures in the history of the U.S. Senate: J. William Fulbright, Mike Mansfield and Robert Byrd.

He was also responsible for giving Bill Clinton his first job in Washington and subsequently remained close to Clinton. In an oft-recounted story, Clinton, a student at Georgetown University, needed a job to help pay his tuition. Impressed by the young man, Williams told him there were two possible part-time jobs available. Clinton didn't skip a beat. "I'll take both of them," he said. Just as quickly, Williams responded, "You're the guy I'm looking for. Be here Monday."

For 20 of the years Lee worked in the Senate he was a close associate of and valued advisor to Sen. Fulbright at a time when Fulbright was chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and one of the most prominent figures in world affairs.

He was legislative assistant to Fulbright (1955-59) and then administrative assistant (chief of staff), 1959-74. He was also involved in working with Arkansas citizens and community leaders on many projects of importance to the state.

Later he served as general counsel to the Senate Democratic Policy Committee from 1974-78, and was an advisor to Senate Majority Leaders Mansfield and Byrd. He worked on many significant issues and built friendship and respect on both sides of the aisle.

Not only was Lee Williams a friend and adviser to major national leaders, he was a mentor and guide for countless others, especially those from Arkansas, many of whom went on to distinguished careers in public service and public affairs. Among these was Clinton, hired by Williams to work as a messenger and clerk on Sen. Fulbright's Foreign Relations Committee staff.

In 1968, working on Sen. Fulbright's re-election campaign, Lee and I had a "suite" at the old and now extinct Marion Hotel in downtown Little Rock. Campaign headquarters were also located in the hotel and in the weeks before he departed for Oxford on a Rhodes Scholarship, Clinton was an eager participant in campaign activities and strategy discussions.

When Clinton became president he appointed both of us to the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board, which oversees the international educational exchange programs conceived by Sen. Fulbright. It was a nice closing of the circle. Lee served 10 years on the board and when I became chairman, I knew there would no more vigilant and dedicated guardian of the program's principles than Lee, always providing insightful wisdom in promoting mutual understanding. He maintained an active interest in the program following his board service. Like Fulbright, he was committed to building a more civilized and humane nation and world.

He was a graduate of the University of Arkansas Law School and a strong supporter of the university. In 2006, the Lee Williams Fellowship in Public Service was established at the Clinton School of Public Service in Little Rock, awarded annually to a graduate of the university's Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences.

In his retirement years, he remained as a connecting point for the network of former Fulbright staff members and others with whom he had been associated. He also was a regular on the golf course.

He sometimes despaired about the state of the nation and, in particular, the deterioration of the U.S. Senate into gridlock and polarization. But he cared deeply about people and the nation. Seldom in the spotlight, Lee Williams exemplified the very best in public service.

Commentary on 06/10/2015

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