Saturday morning, I had the great pleasure of having breakfast with
former Congressman Pete McCloskey. He is an incredible "80 years
young." Pete comes from an "old money" California family that built a
castle in Pacifica,California after the 2006 earthquake.
Pete went to high school at South Pasadena High School in Pasadena, California. He graduated from college in 1950. He was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Marine Corps. The Korean War broke out. He found himself on a ship going from San Diego to Japan and finally to Pusan, South Korea. One of his fellow Second Lieutenants was Pat Robertson, who went on to fame as a tele evangelist. Pat was the son of a US Senator. He was taken off the boat in Japan and made a liquor officer.
Pete went on to Korea. He rose to the rank of Captain and became a company commander. In various battles, he had 58 men wounded or killed. One man was captured. Pete earned a Purple Heart for his wounds in battle. As a matter of interest, when Pete "shipped out" for Korea, he left his wife and baby daughter in the care of none other than John Ehrlichman who would go on to be one of Richard Nixon's "right hand men" in the White House.
After his military service finished, Pete enrolled at Stanford Law School. He classmates included William Rehnquist (later Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court), Sandra day O'Connor (Later US Supreme Court Justice) and other luminaries. After graduation from Stanford Law School, Pete became an assistant district attorney in Alameda County, California. He went on to form his own law firm. It is now the largest private law firm in California.
In 1967, the Republican Party approached Pete. They asked him to do what most would consider a suicide mission. They asked him to challenge former child movie star Shirley Temple Black in a district that had been Democratic for decades. Pete accepted the challenge. He organized a grass roots political organization. When the dust had settled and the votes were counted, Pete had won.
He quickly realized that he had to carry out the wishes of his constituents when he went to congress. He established himself as a liberal Republican opposed to the Vietnam War and Richard Nixon. In 1972 Pete even ran for President in opposition to Richard Nixon. He had a distinguished 16 year career in Congress before he went back to private life.
One year ago, he became so disillusioned with the Bush presidency that he abandoned the Republican Party and became a registered Democrat. He is now fighting to unseat Bush supporters from the US Congress. He has been married for many years to a French citizen.
He was an incredible man and a great speaker. I liked him so much. It was an incredible moment in my life. He described Richard Nixon as a man of incredible intelligence that no one could know. He warned that the current President Bush will most likely attack Iran before his term ends.
Labels:
Pete McCl
Pete went to high school at South Pasadena High School in Pasadena, California. He graduated from college in 1950. He was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Marine Corps. The Korean War broke out. He found himself on a ship going from San Diego to Japan and finally to Pusan, South Korea. One of his fellow Second Lieutenants was Pat Robertson, who went on to fame as a tele evangelist. Pat was the son of a US Senator. He was taken off the boat in Japan and made a liquor officer.
Pete went on to Korea. He rose to the rank of Captain and became a company commander. In various battles, he had 58 men wounded or killed. One man was captured. Pete earned a Purple Heart for his wounds in battle. As a matter of interest, when Pete "shipped out" for Korea, he left his wife and baby daughter in the care of none other than John Ehrlichman who would go on to be one of Richard Nixon's "right hand men" in the White House.
After his military service finished, Pete enrolled at Stanford Law School. He classmates included William Rehnquist (later Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court), Sandra day O'Connor (Later US Supreme Court Justice) and other luminaries. After graduation from Stanford Law School, Pete became an assistant district attorney in Alameda County, California. He went on to form his own law firm. It is now the largest private law firm in California.
In 1967, the Republican Party approached Pete. They asked him to do what most would consider a suicide mission. They asked him to challenge former child movie star Shirley Temple Black in a district that had been Democratic for decades. Pete accepted the challenge. He organized a grass roots political organization. When the dust had settled and the votes were counted, Pete had won.
He quickly realized that he had to carry out the wishes of his constituents when he went to congress. He established himself as a liberal Republican opposed to the Vietnam War and Richard Nixon. In 1972 Pete even ran for President in opposition to Richard Nixon. He had a distinguished 16 year career in Congress before he went back to private life.
One year ago, he became so disillusioned with the Bush presidency that he abandoned the Republican Party and became a registered Democrat. He is now fighting to unseat Bush supporters from the US Congress. He has been married for many years to a French citizen.
He was an incredible man and a great speaker. I liked him so much. It was an incredible moment in my life. He described Richard Nixon as a man of incredible intelligence that no one could know. He warned that the current President Bush will most likely attack Iran before his term ends.
No comments:
Post a Comment