Former Kansas Sen. Bob Dole, a World War II veteran, House member, and senator who rose to the rank of Senate majority leader, lay in state at the U.S. Capitol Thursday as Congress, including some of his former colleagues, honored his lifetime of public service. Dole died Sunday at age 98.
BOB DOLE, FORMER REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE AND LONGTIME SENATOR, DIES AT 98
Dole's wife, Elizabeth, and his daughter, Robin, as well as President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and congressional leaders attended a tribute ceremony honoring his legacy.
Biden was a Democratic senator from Delaware for 36 years, and his time in the Senate overlapped with Dole's by more than two decades.
“Robert Joseph Dole belongs here in this place, in this temple of liberty, this temple to possibilities,” Biden said of the 1996 Republican presidential nominee and 1976 GOP vice presidential candidate.
“Bob Dole loved this Capitol. It’s where he served the nation, shaped by the figures that surround us,” Biden said, noting among them Dole’s hero, President Dwight Eisenhower.
“He, too, was a giant of our history,” Biden said.
Biden said he and Dole were great friends who respected one another despite their differences of opinion and urged lawmakers to follow Dole’s example of reaching consensus with one another.
“My fellow Americans, America has lost one of our greatest patriots,” Biden said.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell paid tribute to Dole’s service in the Senate, both sharing memories of Dole’s sense of humor.
"I swear, Bob could have made it as a stand-up comic,” McConnell said.
Schumer said although he never served with Dole, he was not spared his “acerbic wit.”
“Don’t worry, Bob, it’s safe to be between me and the cameras today,” Schumer said, a reference to Dole’s famous quip that the most dangerous place in Washington is between Schumer and a camera.
Biden also directed flags to fly at half-staff through Saturday in honor of Dole.
Dole served as the Republican leader in the Senate and was the party’s presidential nominee in 1996. He was the last veteran of World War II to win his party's nomination for president.
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During his service in the war, Dole was severely injured in a battle in Italy, and his war wounds left him with disabilities. Helping those with disabilities became one of the legacies of his Senate career, including his work to pass the Americans With Disabilities Act.