Former Senator Lauch Faircloth, who died last week at age 95, was a Democrat before he got mad at Terry Sanford. Faircloth got his revenge and got elected to the U.S. Senate. Then he got beat by John Edwards.

I was there for the whole Shakespearean saga of vengeance, ambition and – sometimes – comedy.

I met Faircloth when Governor Jim Hunt appointed him Secretary of Commerce in 1977. A wealthy farm owner and businessman, Faircloth was always more conservative than most of the Hunt crowd, but he raised money and helped elect four Democratic governors: Kerr Scott in 1948, Sanford in 1960, Bob Scott in 1968 and Hunt in 1976 and 1980.

Faircloth had ambitions himself. He ran for governor in 1984, but finished third in the Democratic primary behind Rufus Edmisten and Eddie Knox. Edmisten won the primary, then lost the general election to Jim Martin.

In 1986, Faircloth wanted to run for Senate. So did his old friend Sanford. They did a poll, splitting the cost, to see who had a better chance. The poll said Sanford would be stronger, and Sanford filed to run

That made Faircloth mad. He claimed Sanford broke his promise to give Faircloth a heads-up first. “I didn’t know it would be a race to the filing place,” he complained.

Sanford won the Senate race, and Faircloth plotted his revenge. He became a Republican, and in 1992 he ran against Sanford.

Faircloth hired ultra-conservative Senator Jesse Helms’ political team, led by Tom Ellis and Carter Wrenn, to run his campaign. To make sure Faircloth was truly a conservative, Ellis started quizzing him about issues.

Faircloth cut him off: “Tom, you and Carter write the music, and I’ll sing the song.”

He sang their song. About the only words he said in his TV ads were, “I’m for workfare, not welfare.”

Sanford was hospitalized with heart problems late in the campaign. When he got out, he didn’t have his old zest and vigor. Faircloth won.

In his election-night speech, he turned to Helms and said, “Jesse, how does it feel to be the liberal Senator from North Carolina?”

(The photo is of the two that night.)

Faircloth lived up to his promise. He loved to bash the District of Columbia, which was predominantly Black. He pushed hard to impeach President Bill Clinton, which not only failed, but ended up helping Democrats in 1998, when Faircloth was up for election.

His Democratic opponent was John Edwards, a political newcomer. I was Edwards’ chief in-state consultant that year. Edwards won.

A big part of my motivation was to avenge Sanford, who died in 1998 and was one of my political heroes.

Faircloth’s top Senate aide and a key political adviser then was Peter Hans, now president of the UNC system.

I took great satisfaction in helping defeat Faircloth, though I don’t exactly brag now about helping elect Edwards.

Through it all, Faircloth had a wicked wit.

He said of a Senator known for her facelifts, “she’s had so much plastic surgery she sneezes out her ears.”

He once introduced a federal official who insisted that Faircloth recite his long list of government positions. Faircloth obliged, then said, “Ladies and gentlemen, I give you a man who has flat been at the public trough.”

He was on a panel with a long-winded speaker who went on and on, then rushed off to another event. Faircloth told the crowd, “Joe’s sorry he had to leave, but there was an emergency at the hospital.”

The audience gasped.

“Yes,” Faircloth said, “they ran out of anesthesia and asked Joe to come give his speech.”

Wherever he is now, Faircloth will have them laughing.