Mathias of Maryland: Remembering a Lincoln Republican in the Senate

Senator Charles "Mac" Mathias was a lifelong Republican who easily won every election in a 26-year career in otherwise heavily Democratic Maryland. Mathias was a courageous risk-taker who led efforts to advance civil rights, voting rights, environmental initiatives to clean up the Chesapeake Bay, and establish the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. On foreign policy, he was an early critic of the Vietnam War and a consistent advocate of bipartisan action on nuclear arms control and Middle East peace.

His story, captured here by senior staff members and leading members of Congress, is an inspiring example of what a principled and courageous political leader can do when he follows his conscience and is willing to take on not just the opposing party, but his own party. His thoughtful leadership and bipartisan spirit led (then) Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield to call him "the conscience of the Senate." His remarkable career is a stark reminder of the days when the Republican Party stood for the rule of law, respect for the Constitution and a balanced foreign policy.