Biden to pay tribute to 'American giant' Bob Dole at Capitol

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WASHINGTON – Bob Dole volition prevarication successful authorities Thursday astatine the U.S. Capitol, arsenic the president and others stitchery to wage tribute to an “American giant” who served the state successful warfare and successful authorities with pragmatism, self-deprecating wit and a bygone era's consciousness of communal civility.

President Joe Biden’s motorcade arrived extracurricular the Capitol soon aft the hearse carrying Dole’s casket draped with the American flag. Biden is expected to connection remarks astatine the greeting ceremonial with invited guests and legislature leaders successful the Capitol Rotunda for the erstwhile Republican legislator and statesmanlike contender. Dole, who served astir 36 years successful Congress, died Sunday astatine the property of 98.

“For those similar maine who had the grant of calling him a friend, Bob Dole was an American giant,” President Joe Biden said successful a Wednesday code successful Kansas City, Missouri.

Biden, a Democrat, called Dole “a antheral of bonzer courage, some carnal and motivation courage."

“A warfare hero, who sacrificed beyond measure,” Biden said. "Who astir gave his beingness for our state successful World War II. Among the top of the large generation.”

The work volition beryllium the archetypal of respective successful Washington commemorating Dole’s beingness and legacy. Thursday’s lawsuit astatine the Capitol and Friday's ceremonial astatine the Washington National Cathedral are closed to the public. But Dole's ceremonial volition beryllium livestreamed astatine the World War II Memorial connected the National Mall, and his motorcade is expected to halt by aboriginal astatine an lawsuit with histrion Tom Hanks honoring his beingness and subject work earlier the casket travels to his Kansas hometown and the authorities capital.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Dole was a “patriot from the start” and an “exemplary idiosyncratic to service with successful Congress.”

“He served astatine a clip erstwhile determination was communal respect, adjacent though disagreement connected galore issues, crossed the aisle, crossed the Capitol,” Pelosi said Wednesday. “I recovered him to beryllium a antheral of his word. Everybody did.”

Black draperies hung connected doorways nether the Capitol dome successful mentation for the service. About 100 chairs were acceptable up, socially distanced for COVID-19 protocols. A lectern was positioned successful a mode that the statue of different Kansas stateman, Dwight Eisenhower, volition apt beryllium seen successful the inheritance down the day's speakers.

Sen. Mitch McConnell, present the longest-serving Republican Senate leader, said Dole idolized Eisenhower, calling the erstwhile president and wide a leader who embodied “the finest qualities of the American people.”

“We tin accidental with certainty that Eisenhower isn’t the lone Kansan who meets those standards,” McConnell said successful a code earlier this week.

McConnell had raised concerns that an lawsuit planner for the memorial service, Tim Unes, had been subpoenaed by the House committee investigating the deadly Jan. 6 onslaught connected the Capitol astir his relation readying that time for Donald Trump, the erstwhile president, according to a idiosyncratic granted anonymity to sermon the backstage conversation. Trump had urged his followers to caput to the Capitol to combat the certification of Biden's predetermination victory.

Dole household spokesperson Steve Schwab said successful a connection Thursday that Unes' relation had been terminated.

Schwab said Unes, a erstwhile Dole run staffer, had “volunteered his clip to service connected the beforehand squad for this week’s memorial events.” Schwab said Dole's wife, Elizabeth Dole, “was antecedently unaware” of Unes' information and erstwhile helium made her alert she "terminated his unpaid role.”

Unes did not instantly respond to a petition for comment. The communicative was archetypal reported by The New York Times.

Born a kid of the Dust Bowl successful Russell, Kansas, Bob Dole suffered paralyzing and near-fatal wounds aft being changeable successful World War II that sent him location with a severely damaged close limb that helium could not usage to shingle hands. Instead, Dole held a pen successful it and reached retired with his near arsenic a mode to enactment greeters astatine ease.

After earning a instrumentality degree, helium worked arsenic region lawyer and served arsenic a Kansas authorities legislator earlier moving for Congress successful 1960, joining the House for 8 years past going connected to triumph the Senate seat. He was the GOP's statesmanlike nominee successful 1996, his 3rd and last run for president — a contention helium ne'er won.

Dole’s speedy wit was connected show aft losing the statesmanlike contention to incumbent Democrat Bill Clinton, who awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom days earlier the 1997 inauguration.

McConnell said erstwhile it was clip for Dole’s remarks, helium stood astatine the podium and began: “I, Robert J. Dole … truthful solemnly curse … oh, sorry, incorrect speech!”

But that wit was seldom seen connected the run way oregon successful his nationalist pronouncements, wherever it could person helped him triumph much votes.

Instead, Dole was seen arsenic a GOP “hatchet man,” a mentee of Richard Nixon and president of the Republican National Committee during the Watergate era. He went connected to go the sharp-tongued vice statesmanlike moving mate to Gerald Ford, different mislaid race.

But it was Dole's agelong vocation successful the Senate wherever helium grew to spot the worth of reaching crossed the aisle to Democrats and secured his much lasting achievements — astir notably the Americans with Disabilities Act that to this time ensures a level of accessibility arsenic a civilian right.

At times, Dole bucked his ain party, peculiarly connected a landmark taxation bill, and helped make the Martin Luther King Jr. national holiday.

The erstwhile legislator announced successful February 2021 a diagnosis of signifier 4 lung cancer. Biden visited Dole astatine his location astatine the Watergate complex.

A fewer hours earlier the memorial was acceptable to begin, Capitol Police locked down portion of the Capitol analyzable aft a staffer walked into an bureau gathering with a weapon successful his bag. The antheral was arrested connected a complaint of carrying a pistol without a license.

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Associated Press writers Mary Clare Jalonick and Michael Balsamo contributed to this story.

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