Eugene McCarthy (1916–2005)

Eugene McCarthy died December 10. He was 89. (His death ends an political odyssey from obscurity to national conscience and back to obscurity. After 1968, McCarthy became largely irrelevant to politics. His last years were erratic, with quixotic campaigns for president and a litany of grievances against those who did not meet his standards for political courage and policy. But however diminished in later years, Eugene McCarthy will always be the man who demonstrated that the Emperor (Lyndon Johnson) had no clothes.

As a member of the draft age pool in 1968 with two years left on my student deferment, McCarthy kindled the hope that the war in Vietnam would end before it swallowed me. And for that hope, I was profoundly grateful. Up to that point Vietnam was about me, about whether I would be swept into the war. I was only beginning to realize the death and destruction that my country was bringing to Vietnam so my motives were mostly self-interest. Eugene McCarthy (and, belatedly, Robert Kennedy) helped me understand the full tragedy of America’s war in Vietnam. He also taught me the value of political courage. His anti-war stance and presidential campaign showed me that one individual can make a difference. That the war continued for another five years (and did, in fact, sweep me into its maw) does not diminish McCarthy’s contribution. Eugene McCarthy gave me hope and understanding. I will remember him fondly for those gifts.

McCarthy’s death comes at a critical juncture for the United States in Iraq. One post at Daily Kos links to an interesting article at Foreign Policy in Focus that describes how McCarthy was a harbinger of the growing discontent with the war in Vietnam, just as Edward R. Murrow was during the Joseph McCarthy era. The article goes on to discuss Representative John Murtha plalying the same role in the debate about the Iraq war. Rep. Murtha would be well honored to wear this mantle. I only hope that his call to rethink our Iraq policy has more immediate results and that the United Stats and Iraq are not fated to suffer another five years (or more?) of combat.

This year has seen the passing of several others who were prominent in the debate about the Vietnam war, George Kennan and William Westmoreland. I remember Kennan and McCarthy with considerably more fondness than Westmoreland.