George McGovern once joked that he had wanted to run for president in the worst way — and that he had done so.
It
was a campaign in 1972 dishonored by Watergate, a scandal that fully
unfurled too late to knock Republican President Richard M. Nixon from
his place as a commanding favorite for re-election. The South Dakota
senator tried to make an issue out of the bungled attempt to wiretap the
offices of the Democratic National Committee, calling Nixon the most
corrupt president in history.
A
proud liberal who had argued fervently against the Vietnam War as a
Democratic senator from South Dakota and three-time candidate for
president, McGovern died at 5:15 a.m. local time Sunday at a Sioux Falls
hospice, surrounded by family and lifelong friends, family spokesman
Steve Hildebrand told The Associated Press. McGovern was 90.
The family had said late last week that McGovern had become unresponsive while in hospice care.
"We
are blessed to know that our father lived a long, successful and
productive life advocating for the hungry, being a progressive voice for
millions and fighting for peace. He continued giving speeches, writing
and advising all the way up to and past his 90th birthday, which he
celebrated this summer," the family said in the statement.
Hildebrand said funeral services were to be held in Sioux Falls and details would be announced shortly.
Read more: http://www.cnbc.com/id/49493606
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