Sen. Edward Kennedy dies at 77

— -- Sen. Edward Kennedy, who began his public life as the prodigal son of a political dynasty and ended as its respected patriarch, died late Tuesday at his home in Hyannis Port, Mass. He was 77 and had been battling brain cancer.

Kennedy's family announced the senator's death early this morning in a statement.

"We've lost the irreplaceable center of our family and joyous light in our lives, but the inspiration of his faith, optimism, and perseverance will live on in our hearts forever," the statement said. "He loved this country and devoted his life to serving it. He always believed that our best days were still ahead, but it's hard to imagine any of them without him."

President Obama, who spoke to Kennedy's widow, Victoria Reggie Kennedy, at about 2:30 a.m., described himself as "heartbroken" over the loss of a mentor and political ally who provided "momentous support in my race for the presidency."

"An important chapter in our history has come to an end," Obama said in a statement. "Our country has lost a great leader, who picked up the torch of his fallen brothers and became the greatest United States senator of all time."

Kennedy's political career spanned five decades and continued even after his diagnosis with terminal brain cancer. After surgery to reduce the size of the tumor in June, 2008, the senator returned to Congress, determined to help President Obama overhaul the health care system — a longtime Kennedy goal.

Kennedy called the goal of expanding access to health care "the cause of my life," in an emotional and unexpected appearance before the Democratic National Convention just three months after his cancer surgery.

Congress will make Kennedy's unfulfilled goal his legacy, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., predicted in a statement early today.

"Ted Kennedy's dream of quality health care for all Americans will be made real this year because of his leadership and his inspiration," she said.

Although Kennedy never realized his dream of following his brother, President John F. Kennedy, into the White House, the Massachusetts Democrat became a towering figure in Washington who left his mark on every branch of government.

His early endorsement of Obama helped vault a relatively untested junior senator to the White House. As much as any president, Kennedy helped shape the Supreme Court from his seat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, where he served longer than any other senator in history.