I went off to a private christian college in the 1970's. At the time I'd known nothing but fundamentalist Christianity and conservative politics. At school, it was the politics that I first began to question. And it was in the midst of those questions that I learned about the very unique Senator from Oregon. He was an evangelical Christian and a Republican. But nothing like those two things have come to represent today. From his wikipedia page, here are some highlights.
Hatfield joined the U.S. Navy after graduation, taking part in the World War II battles at Iwo Jima and Okinawa as a landing craft officer where he witnessed the carnage of the war. A lieutenant, he also witnessed the effects of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima as one of the first Americans to see the ruins of the city (later, as Senator, Hatfield opposed arms proliferation and the Vietnam War). After Japan, he served in French Indochina where he witnessed firsthand the wealth divide between the peasant Vietnamese and the colonial French bourgeoisie.
Those experiences were seminal and went on to shape his views on the use of the military, nuclear weapons, and war.
As a member of the Oregon Legislature:
While in college he saw firsthand the discrimination against African Americans in Salem when he was tasked with driving Black artists back to Portland, as they were prohibited from staying in hotels in Salem. In 1953, he introduced and passed legislation in the [Oregon] House that prohibited discrimination based on race in public accommodations before federal legislation and court decisions did so on a national level.
As Governor of Oregon:
Hatfield gave the keynote speech at the 1964 Republican National Convention in San Francisco that nominated Barry Goldwater and served as temporary chairman of the party during the convention. He advocated a moderate approach for the party and opposed the extreme conservatism associated with Goldwater and his supporters. He also was the only governor to vote against a resolution by the National Governors' Conference supporting the Johnson Administration's policy on the Vietnam War, as Hatfield opposed the war, but pledged "unqualified and complete support" for the troops. He preferred the use of economic sanctions to end the war.
As U.S. Senator:
Hatfield was pro-life on the issues of abortion and the death penalty, though as governor he chose not to commute the sentence of a convicted murderer and allowed that execution to go forward. Although a prominent evangelical Christian, he opposed government-sponsored school prayer and supported civil rights for minorities and gays.
In 1970 with Senator George McGovern (D-South Dakota), he co-sponsored the McGovern-Hatfield Amendment, which called for a complete withdrawal of U.S. troops from Vietnam. In the 1980s, Hatfield co-sponsored nuclear freeze legislation with Senator Edward M. Kennedy, as well as co-authoring a book on the topic. He also advocated for the closure of the N-Reactor at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation in the 1980s, though he was a supporter of nuclear fusion programs. The N-Reactor was used for producing weapons grade plutonium while producing electricity.
Hatfield frequently broke with his party on issues of national defense and foreign policy, such as military spending and the ban on travel to Cuba, while often siding with them on environmental and conservation issues... He was the lone Republican to vote against the 1981 fiscal year's appropriations bill for the Department of Defense. He was rated as the sixth most respected senator in a 1987 survey by fellow senators. In 1990, Hatfield voted against authorizing military action against Iraq in the Gulf War, one of only two members of his party to do so in the Senate.
In 1995, Hatfield was the only Republican in the Senate to vote against the proposed balanced budget amendment, and was the deciding vote that prevented the passage of the bill.
One of my fondest memories from my college years was a trip we took to Washington D.C. where we had the privilege of meeting, as a group of students, with Senator Hatfield. He talked to us very personally about his need to cultivate an attitude of humility because of all the "yes men" that surround someone in his position. What a powerful message that was to a group of aspiring college students. I never forgot it!
I'm saddened by his death tonight. But I'm also saddened by the loss of people like him in public life. I'm not saying I agreed with him on everything. But he was a man grounded in a faith that taught him not only humility - but compassion. And it's clear that when it came to politics, integrity to his principles trumped everything else.
Rest in peace Senator Hatfield. Some of us will always remember.
No comments:
Post a Comment