U.S. Senator Kent Conrad (D-ND) would have aced PWR 2, as he is now known as the chartmeister of the Senate. When people talk about “Chart Man,” as Republican Majority Whip Mitch McConnell calls him, the first thing to come to mind is his fiscal astuteness and his prolific use of charts. In a recent 37-minute presentation, he used 37 of them.

Conrad, the ranking Democrat on the Budget Committee, was labeled this year as one of the 10 best U.S. Senators.

Conrad, who graduated with a B.A. in 1970, is a senior senator who embodies prototypical Stanford qualities. For example, he is fiercely true to his word in a way that would make the authors of the Fundamental Standard proud. This virtue makes for a good bit of Senate trivia: Conrad is the only person to hold two Senate seats in one day.

How is that possible? In his 1986 campaign, Conrad vowed to voters that he would not rerun for his Senate seat in 1992 should the federal deficit not fall by that time. The deficit stayed put and true to his word — but much to the chagrin of North Dakota residents — Conrad did not run for reelection.

In Sept. 1992, the state’s senior senator unexpectedly passed away. Because he was not running for re-election, Conrad ran for and won the seat. He was sworn in Dec. 5, 1992 and resigned his other seat later the same day, making him the only person to hold two Senate seats on the same day.

In his role on the Budget Committee, Conrad and fellow Democrats unsuccessfully fought to prevent the Bush administration from raising the U.S. debt limit to $9 trillion and from passing a $2.8 trillion budget that has been projected to increase the deficit to at least $350 billion this year.

Conrad stays closest to his alma mater’s roots in his amiability and ability to appeal to voters. Despite representing a traditionally Republican state, his approval rating in August was 74 percent, the highest in the U.S. Senate. He faces no serious challenge in his quest for reelection next Tuesday.

He graduated from Philips Exeter Academy in 1966 and earned his masters in business from George Washington University after leaving The Farm. Conrad is the only Unitarian in the U.S. Senate.