On Friday, Senator Edward Kennedy announced his decision to step down from his powerful post on the Senate Judiciary Committee, so that he can focus on achieving a breakthrough on health care reform. The Massachusetts Democrat said he is determined to return to the Senate in January to work for passage of universal healthcare coverage, something he has been advocating for most of his 46-year career in the Senate.

In stepping down from the Judiciary Committee - where he waged legendary battles against Republican judicial nominees – Kennedy, 76, leaves a panel he has served since 1962, the same year he joined the Senate. For decades, he fought fiercely for civil rights and immigration reform; and was instrumental in bringing down the nomination of Judge Robert Bork, whom President Reagan nominated to the Supreme Court in 1987.

Kennedy, a strong Obama backer during the 2008 campaign, is fighting a malignant brain tumor. He chairs the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, and has championed universal health care coverage throughout his political career. Of late, he has been consulting with staffers, other senators and health care advocates for months on a new blueprint for extending coverage.

Kennedy and his team have been holding regular meetings with interest groups and working with other senators to determine the basics of a health reform bill his office has said he hopes to prepare by President-elect Barack Obama’s inauguration.

In a statement, Kennedy said: “I expect to lead a very full agenda in the next Congress, including working with President Obama to guarantee affordable health care, at long last, for every American. This is the opportunity of a lifetime, and I intend to make the most of it.”