Pete McCloskey was a Republican congressman who became the first member of the House to call for Richard Nixon’s resignation, co-wrote the Endangered Species Act, and co-founded Earth Day.
- Died: May 8, 2024 (Who else died on May 8?)
- Details of death: Died in Winters, California of kidney and congestive heart failure at the age of 96.
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Pete McCloskey’s legacy
Born in Loma Linda, California, Pete McCloskey was a longtime member of the U.S. military, serving from 1945 to 1974 in the Navy, Marines, Marine Corps Reserves, and Ready Reserves. He retired as a colonel from the Marine Corps Reserves. He served in action in the Korean War, earning a Navy Cross, Silver Star, and two Purple Hearts. He was also a graduate of Stanford University and Stanford University Law School.
McCloskey practiced law in the 1950s and ‘60s, founding McCloskey, Wilson & Mosher, which eventually became the multi-national law firm Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. McCloskey stepped into Congress in a special election in the late 1960s, defeating Shirley Temple (1928– 2014) in the primary. He ended up serving from 1967 to 1983.
Though McCloskey was a Republican, he was the first member of congress to call for President Richard Nixon’s (1913– 1994) resignation following the so-called “Saturday Night Massacre.” Despite himself being a combat veteran, McCloskey also became a staunch anti-war representative, traveling to Cambodia to see the devastation caused by American bombing and denouncing the U.S.’ role in the war. Calling himself a Teddy Roosevelt Republican with strong environmental values, he co-chaired the first Earth Day in 1970 and co-wrote the Endangered Species Act. By 2007, he had turned his back on the GOP and renounced the party.
McCloskey wrote or co-wrote several books, including “Truth and Untruth; Political Deceit in America,” “The Taking of Hill 610: And Other Essays on Friendship,” and “The Story of the First Earth Day 1970: How Grassroots Activism Can Change Our World.”
On congressional reluctance to pass meaningful environmental laws:
“The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 got some impetus from the oil spill, but I’m afraid if the majority of the members of Congress had foreseen its impact, it never would have been passed.” — Interview with Pacific Standard magazine, 2017
Tributes to Pete McCloskey
Full obituary: The Washington Post
