Sen. Bob Dole’s passing serves as reminder of bygone era: The Note

Sen. Bob Dole was a decorated WWII veteran and a public servant for most of his life.

The TAKE with Rick Klein

When a significant historical figure passes away, it's tempting to fit him or her into the current moment -- and to sand away harder edges to celebrate a life of importance.

Neither of those impulses would be an appropriate way to remember former Sen. Bob Dole, who died Sunday at the age of 98. A week of remembrances will make clear just how lasting a figure he was, and yet how far he and his career sit removed from the politics of 2021.

Dole was a soldier, a senator, a majority leader and a minority leader, a failed candidate for both vice president and president, and finally, a semi-retired pol with a sense of both duty and humor. His advocacy through it all was in favor of action -- something of a foreign concept in the zero-sum battles that currently tie Washington in knots.