Godspeed, Senator

Bob Dole, who overcame grievous World War Two combat wounds to become a pre-eminent figure in U.S. politics as a longtime Republican senator from Kansas and his party's unsuccessful 1996 presidential nominee, died on Sunday. He was 98.

Dole, known for a wit that ranged from self-deprecating to caustic, died in his sleep, the Elizabeth Dole Foundation said. Dole announced in February that he had been diagnosed with advanced lung cancer and would begin treatment.

Bob Dole had more grit, determination and bravery than most men. He could have given up and died in the 1940s, but he kept fighting.

He was a good soldier for his party. Jerry Ford asked him to be his attack dog in 1976 and he fulfilled the role. He said some things he later regretted (saying that he went for the jugular and it was his own). He also had a great sense of humor.

One of his better quips:

"There they are - See No Evil, Hear No Evil and Evil." - upon seeing, respectively, former presidents Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford and Richard Nixon together at the White House.

He wrote two books about political humor and appeared on Letterman the day after he lost the 1996 election, a defeat he accepted with grace and wit (unline some other schmuch of recent renown).

Dole was a master of the possible, he wasn't a visionary. That's what it can take to get bills into law, but was he a great senator? Probably not. But he was effective, and that's no small thing. He came from a day when politicians would compromise and work together to better the country.

He tried to make this country a better place. That's a worthy epitah for any polician.