Sentence:  You remember the words of President Kennedy a week or so ago , when someone asked him when he was in Canada , and Dean Rusk was in Europe , and Vice President Johnson <WSD>was</WSD> in Asia , `` Who is running the store '' ? and he said `` The Same fellow who has been running it , Sam Rayburn '' . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  happen, occur, take place; this was during the visit to my parents' house"