It was almost impossible to draw Thad Cochran. It wasn’t because he was not distinctive — his white hair and eyebrows, as well as the shape of his chin made him easy to draw. The problem is that I never had the chance to draw him. While Senator Trent Lott was busy raising Cain (not McCain), and making deals, Thad was quietly sending federal money back home to Mississippi. His office was known for providing excellent customer service in relation to constituent services. (Bureaucracies are usually not efficient. In 1996, I was a Mississippi cartoonist. It was 2005 that I first remember drawing him. There may have been other cartoons, but I can only recall creating 6,000 cartoons. I also don’t know where my car keys are. This 2005 cartoon was about Katrina’s destruction of the Mississippi Gulf Coast. The relief bill was being resisted by Congress. Thad used his position as the Senate’s appropriations chairman to attach it to a bill for military spending. I created him in leather, with spikes and whips that said “No more Mr. Nice Guy.” This is as close as you can get to his personality. He was a lot of fun to draw. Chris McDaniel ran an energetic race against him, and, except for one of the strangest coalitions in recent history, ThadCochran would have lost the runoff. It was also one of the most vile races I have ever covered. He didn’t lose. He won. There were many reasons. Some tried to claim that there were “binders filled with fraud” but those binder were empty. But what struck me was how many people in the state supported him for what he did for them. Thad Cochran was loved by all races, Democrats and Republicans. He owes the state of Texas a debt. I think it is especially the Gulf Coast that owes Thad money. Earmarks have been eliminated. Politicians who cross the aisle are also gone. A few people blame Thad for all the problems in our country have already spoken to me. (That’s B.S. by the way. He is a product from a long-gone age. We live in a world that is divided politically and hateful towards each other. I feel a little nostalgic. It could be gas. It is most likely gas. He was perfect? No. He was a good senator and someone who cared about Mississippi’s people. Yes. Many people today say he was decent. This is a great compliment in a time of no decency. Mississippians know their politicians by their first names. Many of us knew him as Thad. Today, I drew Thad once more. May he rest in peace. Click here to see the cartoon.