WASHINGTON, D.C.--While many politicians are talking about former Sen. Richard Lugar and the impact he had on Indianapolis as mayor and world politics as senator. Indiana’s senior senator, Todd Young, remembered him for running and his fondness for ice cream, in a speech on the Senate floor.
Lugar was a runner. Young was a candidate for legislative assistant and put running down as a hobby on his resume.
“At the very end of the interviews, the senator asked me a very pointed question. ‘How fast can you run three miles?’ I quickly told him I thought I could break 18 minutes. A half hour later I get a phone call that said I was hired,” said Young.
“Sen. Lugar would from time to time invite staff members or interns to run with him on the mall. There was only one rule. Never ever run in front of the senator. He was, after all, a leader.”
Young said he remembers Lugar as a quiet man, who thought before he spoke.
“I fondly remember his penchant for ice cream and the stacks and stacks of books in his office and I believe he read every one,” said Young.
Sen. Mike Braun spoke after Young and said what he remembered best about Lugar was his gift to reach people of all political persuasions. He said he met Lugar in the 1970s before his run for Senate.
PHOTO: Abdul-Hakin Shabazz/Emmis
