"Lugar's Legacy"

This past Saturday I attended a briefing of some religious leaders and other community leaders with Senator Richard Lugar. There were only a handful of us present, so it was a wonderful opportunity to sit with this amazing leader who is also a life-long United Methodist. Lugar is now 78 years old, very fit, and extremely sharp and articulate. His mental acuity is amazing.

The briefing dealt with Lugar’s hopes of getting the U.S. Senate to pass the NewSTART Treaty dealing with the reduction of nuclear armaments by Russia and the U.S. The old START Treaty which Lugar had a large hand in getting approved has expired (in December of 2009). Now the U.S. has a new opportunity to expand and continue that effort, which has already resulted in the reduction of hundreds of nuclear weapons and missiles.

The Senator spent the first 45 minutes of the briefing tracing the history of his own involvement in this issue since he and Senator Sam Nunn were first asked by President Reagan to work on this issue. Senator Lugar recounted his many trips back and forth to the Soviet Union and later to the Russia and its former states, complete with wonderful examples of how hard it is to create trust. While he talked, he pointed to some photos in the conference room of him standing next to Soviet missiles and nuclear subs – along with a large “scorecard” showing the progress in reducing nuclear weapons by both the U.S. and Russia.

It is an amazing legacy! Lugar can be proud (and we can be proud of him) that his leadership with the cooperation of many others has resulted in this world having fewer and fewer weapons of mass destruction. He is not certain that the current political climate in Washington, D.C., will allow the NewSTART Treaty or any other bipartisan effort to succeed. In this time of rancor, polarization, and vitriol, one is left wondering if any good idea has a chance of success. We can all pray and hope so, for this on-going process of reducing nuclear weapons, safeguarding those which are left behind in various places in the former Soviet Union, and keeping nuclear weapons out of the hands of terrorists, is an immensely important task.

As I listened to Senator Lugar, I was reminded of another legacy that he is leaving for us here in Indiana – and that is leadership development. Everywhere I go around Indiana, I meet leaders who once worked on Lugar's staff – persons who are political leaders, but also pastors, community organizers, attorneys, educators, health-care leaders, and a whole host of other professions. Many persons trace their own leadership and their commitment to public service back to their days as a college student, or intern, or staff member for Richard Lugar. What a legacy!

I am grateful for community leaders like Richard Lugar who desire to “do good” (as John Wesley put it) and to share their leadership with others.

We all can learn from his example, and we can follow his lead in providing a legacy for the future.