It was the Fourth of July in 1974 when I first met Max Cleland, then a state senator, running for Georgia’s lieutenant governor. Max was speaking to an audience of Jaycees and a crowd of nearly 200 gathered for a later fireworks show. Max had returned from the Vietnam War at the rank of captain, losing both of his legs and his right arm to a grenade explosion. Pre-war he had been 6 feet, 2 inches tall and a stand-out tennis scholar at his alma mater, Stetson College in DeLand.

Cleland’s speech was inspiring, patriotic and, to me, almost mesmerizing. I still recall pieces of the address today, nearing 50 years from hearing it spoken. Cleland would come in third in that race for lieutenant governor and amass campaign debts that took him almost a decade to repay. But that early loss only taught him lessons of politics, it neither broke him nor slowed him down.

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Bill Crane is a syndicated columnist based in Decatur. He has worked in politics for Democrats and Republicans, respects the process and will try and give you some things to think about. Your thoughts and responses to his opinions are also welcome, bill.csicrane@gmail.com.

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