INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Words of praise and respect have been pouring in from dignitaries and politicians from all over the Hoosier state and nationwide for former U.S. Senator from Indiana, Richard Lugar, who died Sunday morning from complications of a rare neurological disorder. He was 87.
Lugar was a Rhodes Scholar who served six terms (36 years) as a U.S. Senator and before that was a two-term mayor of Indianapolis. In the senate, the soft-spoken Republican was known as a foreign policy expert. He was also famous for “working across the aisle” to get things done. Ironically, it was that reputation for working with Democrats that probably led to his defeat in his final senate campaign in 2012, as politics had become much more partisan.
Vice President Mike Pence said, “Lugar was a leader not only in the Senate but also on the world stage, where he worked tirelessly to end apartheid in South Africa.”