‘Mr. Conservative’ Senator Barry Goldwater returns to Washington, D.C.

At a time in the history of our nation, when the results of national Congressional elections of 2014 signaled a turn away from Liberalism to Conservatism, it is wholly appropriate that the 1700 pound, eight foot high statue of the “Father of the Conservative Movement” in the United States, Senator Barry M. Goldwater be installed in National Statuary Hall in the Capital of the United States.

The video below shows Senator Goldwater’s statue being moved for shipment from the Capital Building in the State of Arizona, to the U.S. Capital in Washington, D.C. to represent the State of Arizona. Senator Barry Goldwater’s statue will be displayed in National Statuary Hall, one of the most popular rooms of the U.S. Capital, and will be displayed among the statues of the most famous of the Founding Fathers of the Republic and with many U.S. Presidents.

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Senator Barry M. Goldwater

Senator Goldwater was truly a renaissance man, a humanitarian who pushed for desegregation of the U.S. Armed Forces, was very aggressive in maintaining the strength of the U.S. Armed Forces, and in 1960 co-authored “The Conscience of a Conservative.” Barry Goldwater was born in 1909. He served in the U.S. Army Air Corps during WWII  where he became a command pilot and rose to the rank of a Brigadier General in the U.S. Air Force Reserve. He ran his family’s department store chain until deciding to pursue a career in politics. Senator Goldwater served five terms in the U.S. Senate, won the 1964 Republican primary nomination to run for President.

A notable Goldwater quote that rings true today more than ever:

I would remind you that extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice! And let me remind you that moderation in pursuit of justice is no virtue.” (July 16, 1964).

In 1998, when the Senator passed away, he was accorded the highest Military Honors during his funeral service in Phoenix, and was honored in a fly over by the U.S. Air Force in a “Missing Man Formation.” Senator Goldwater’s service was held on the campus of Arizona State, where he was a accorded the position of visiting Professor of Political Science following his retirement from the US Senate. The service was attended by nearly every US Senator in the nation of both parties. Senator Goldwater was an Honorary Chief of the Smoki people of Prescott, and was eulogized in their native tongue, by the Chief of that Indian Nation, by his son, Congressman Barry M. Goldwater, Jr., and others. Congressman Goldwater, Jr. was the first Congressman in history to serve in Congress with his father; he served in Congress with Senator Goldwater for 13 years.

The installation of Senator Goldwater’s Statue in National Statuary Hall will be a memorable day for former Congressman Barry M. Goldwater, Jr., the Goldwater family, Conservatives Americans throughout the Republic and for the 23 million U.S. veterans, who benefited greatly from the Senator’s 30 years of being a staunch advocate for their welfare, especially from 1985 to 1987 when Senator Goldwater was Chairman of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee.

Former Congressman Barry M. Goldwater, Jr. is a co-Founder of the Combat Veterans For Congress PAC. His biography may be read here.

EDITORS NOTE: The featured image of the Goldwater statue is by Mark Henle, The Arizona Republic.