The death of Senator Howard Baker (R-Tn) brought back fond memories of an earlier era when politics mattered and it was equally important to get things done that benefited the American people and the United States. That held true for controversial domestic and international policies.
Howard Baker was a courageous politician who served his country when called upon.
His qualities, and those of his successor Bob Dole, are nowhere to be found today in the
Senate Republican leadership
The obituaries properly recall Baker and his famous Watergate hearing question, what did President Nixon know and when did he know it. That question deserves to be part of the public memory.
As one who admires politicians, tough minded and partisan, who have a penchant for putting the American people and the United States first, I want to emphasize that part of the Baker story that is less well known.
I had the good fortune to work closely with Baker and Senator Kennedy (D-Ma) protecting one person-one vote (known in 1965 and 1966 as one man-one vote. Language does change !) Baker and Kennedy, two first term Senators, took on the powerful Minority Leader Everett Dirksen. Dirksen had reached statesmanship status by his support for the 1964 Civil Rights Act and 1965 Voting Rights Act and his earlier support for the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. President Johnson wasn’t going to fight Dirksen on what appeared to be the abstraction of one person-one-vote.
The democracy of one person-one vote, votes that are equal in effect, was less than fully appreciated by those who came from rural areas whose political power was far greater than the number of people they represented in state and federal legislative bodies. That was only part of the story. Dirksen was Baker’s father-in-law. Taking your father-in-law on took guts.
Baker had ambitions. When Dirksen died suddenly Baker wanted to be Minority Leader. He lost to the more liberal Hugh Scott (R-Pa) although by then Baker had supported the controversial Fair Housing legislation. Here was a border state Republican supporting civil rights. That is a long ago memory.
Baker ultimately became Minority Leader after Hugh Scott retired from the Senate. He defeated Robert Griffin (R-Mi) by one vote. (That so depressed the conservative Griffin that he couldn’t decide whether to run for re-election. The voters sensed his doubts and elected Carl Levin (D-Mi) who has given the American people 36 years of dedicated.
service and who served as the liberal Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee for many years.)
The 1976 election substantially increased conservative influence among Senate Republicans. Baker’s statesmanship continued though he faced right wing xenophobic pressures within his caucus. Baker stood down those pressures twice. Baker provided critical support for the ratification of the Panama Canal Treaty. He supported ratification of the SALT treaty. That meant supporting President Carter twice in two years!
In both instances I watched Baker work his way through the issue so that he increased the chances of bringing his Republican colleagues along. He brought enough to secure the Panama Canal Treaty. Support vanished for SALT in the late 70s but not for lack of Baker trying.
We must restore the Baker brand of statesmanship!
David Cohen
Washington, DC
June 30, 2014
