Jack Kemp, RIP

Here's the Jack Kemp obit in the New York Times. Note the prominent mention of the Kemp-Roth tax cuts, which were probably Kemp's most important legacy. Less widely known, Kemp was a friend of Lithuania.

Vaiva and I traveled to a demonstration for Lithuania and the Baltic States in Washington DC in the late 1970s. If I can find a photo I'll post it. The point of the demonstration was to raise the visibility of the Baltic States in U.S. foreign policy. Remember, Carter was President, so the U.S. was in a global retreat at the time. I think it was held near the Lincoln Memorial, and was attended by a few hundred people. It seems to me we got t-shirts of the occasion, but I can't quite remember.

Here's the important point. Four Washington politicians addressed us. Two offered generic platitudes, one spent most of his time worrying about Soviet Jews. Only one politician came prepared for the audience he was speaking to. This singular politician gave a "stem-winder" of a speech that hit every hot button the crowd had, hit every nail right on the head. Only one politician had done the homework.

That man was Jack Kemp.

Kemp put a remarkable effort into understanding and synthesizing the hopes and dreams of the Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian diaspora. This was not a big voting block, but Kemp took it very seriously, and gave it a full measure of respect.

The only other politician who ever did that, in my experience, was Ronald Reagan.

So, Jack Kemp, thank you, and rest in peace.