If you’re going to bash people, Aggie, get your facts straight. Schmitz was considered such a thorn from the right that Nixon (whose O.C. district he resided in) personally involved himself in aggressively getting behind a primary challenger to narrowly beat Schmitz (that party establishment challenger, btw, Andrew Hinshaw, turned out to be a crook). Schmitz only ran for President because of Nixon’s actions, otherwise he’d have been cruising to another term in Congress.
His career did not end in 1972. He returned to the California State Senate in 1979 (after having previously served almost 6 years there before his election to Congress) and served a 4-year term. Despite his unfortunate actions in his personal life, he was still buried with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery.
Maybe. Then again, maybe not.
He was such a biiiiig "thorn" in Nixon's side that he chose to actually take it to the big guy with a candidacy backed largely by the John Birch Society that unsurprisingly amounted to little more than a political booger flick -- like most third party challengers' candidacies usually are.
His career did not end in 1972. He returned to the California State Senate in 1979
I stand corrected. I should have been clearer to say "Congressional," specifcially, rather than "political," generally.
CA Senate one must admit is a political backbench compared to serving in the US Congress, and if he could have run for Congress again with the expectation of winning, one suspects he would have tried.
Despite his unfortunate actions in his personal life, he was still buried with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery.
Unfortunate is quite an understatement.
Someone else who suffered from what some might characterize his "unfortunate actions," namely, Ted Kennedy, was also buried in Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors too.
So what's your point?