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Walter Mondale, a Liberal Democrat who served as U.S. Vice President with Jimmy Carter before losing his candidacy for the White House to Ronald Reagan in 1984, has died at the age of 93.
Mondale, a native of southern Minnesota, began his political career in 1960 as attorney general of his home state and then four years later as a U.S. senator, before becoming one of the leading figures in the democratic party from the middle of the century until the end of the twentieth century. .
Throughout his career, Mondale was credited with an invigorating and added prominence to the role of vice president in U.S. politics and for taking advantage of Geraldine Ferraro as a career partner in 1984: the first time a woman had been nominated for the role of a major party. Mondale, known as “Fritz,” also had a stint in U.S. diplomacy, as ambassador to Japan during Bill Clinton’s presidency in the 1990s.
“During our administration, Fritz used his political skill and personal integrity to transform the vice presidency into a dynamic, policy-driven force that had never been seen before and still exists today,” Carter said in a communicated Monday night. “He was an invaluable partner and a capable servant to the people of Minnesota, the United States and the world,” the former president added.
From the beginning of his political career, Mondale was an advocate for causes that included the need for a stronger social safety net, fair housing laws, and civil rights.
“There are many negative consequences that come from segregation. Kids don’t do that well. We live separately. We don’t learn about each other. We are all Americans. And yet we separate based basically on race. And I think it has to stop, ”he told National Public Radio in 2018.
But Mondale was also known for the frankness with which he was prepared to debate the challenges facing the United States. Memorably, during his acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention in 1984, he warned that he was willing to raise taxes to improve the country’s fiscal position.
“Let’s tell the truth,” he said. “Mr. Reagan will raise taxes, and so will I. He won’t tell you. I just did.” Mondale lost the 1984 election in stages, winning only Minnesota and the District of Columbia. He later remarked that during that race, Reagan “sold” Morning in America “and I sold a root canal.”
Mondale played a crucial role in some of the Carter administration’s most important achievements, including the 1978 Camp David Accords between Israel and Egypt. But the energy crisis that hit the U.S. economy and the Iran hostage conflict undermined the administration’s foreign policy credentials and Mondale and Carter were unable to secure a second term in the face of growing conservative sentiment. the strong Reagan challenge.
Later in life, Mondale returned to office in 2002, when he sought a seat in the Senate following a plane crash that killed Paul Wellstone, the Democratic senator from Minnesota. But the former vice president was defeated by Republican Norm Coleman, who ended his dreams of returning to politics.
In recent days, Mondale wrote a brief farewell message to his staff, noting his impending reunion with his late wife and daughter, who had died before him.
“It simply came to our notice then. I look forward to meeting Joan and Eleanor, “Mondale wrote.” We’ve achieved so much together and I know you’ll keep up the good fight. Joe [Biden] in the White House it certainly helps. “
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