One of the country’s longest-serving Republican leaders, Bob Dole, died Sunday, December 5, at the age of ninety-eight. The New York Times reported the Elizabeth Dole Foundation announced Bob Dole’s death on Sunday.
In February, Dole stated that he was undergoing treatment for Stage IV lung cancer.
Flags were lowered throughout Texas on Sunday in honor of the former presidential candidate and Republican Senate Leader, according to a statement from the Governor’s office. Governor Greg Abbott described the native Kansan as ” a WWII hero, a stalwart of the Republican Party, and above all a great man.”
Senator Ted Cruz said that Dole “embodied the heart and fighting spirit of his generation” and that he was “an extraordinary soldier, a relentless legislator, and a faithful statesman.”
Dole’s military career started when he attended boot camp in Texas on June 1, 1943. He fought in World War II and was severely injured in battle while serving in Italy.
The NY Times reported that he came home in a body cast, mostly paralyzed, and spent the next 39 months recuperating. He never fully recovered the use of his right hand and arm, so he abandoned his hopes of becoming a surgeon. Instead, he became a lawyer and politician.
Dole served 25 years in the Senate and ran for the office of President three times. He won the Republican presidential nomination in 1996 but lost the election to Democrat Bill Clinton.
According to The Dallas Morning News, former President George W. Bush said in a written statement that Dole represented “the finest of American values.” Bush also expressed, “I will always remember Bob’s salute to my late dad at the Capitol, and now we Bushes salute Bob and give thanks for his life of principled service.”
President Joe Biden said that Dole was “an American statesman like few in our history… To me, he was also a friend whom I could look to for trusted guidance, or a humorous line at just the right moment to settle frayed nerves.”