Contact: Dave Mohel, 703-347-9454, dave@blueskinsolutions.com
WASHINGTON, Sept. 15, 2011 /Christian Newswire/ -- Malcolm Wallop, a former U.S. Senator who served 18 years from Wyoming and the founder and chairman of Frontiers of Freedom Institute, passed away on September 14, 2011.
"Wallop became an effective and leading conservative voice in the 1970s and continues to influence American politics and policy even today. Malcolm Wallop was a great man and a great leader who changed the world and made it a better, safer place. His far-reaching vision led America to develop missile defense," said George Landrith, president of Frontiers of Freedom, the public policy organization that Wallop founded.
"Rather than simply promising to retaliate if we were attacked with nuclear missiles, Malcolm Wallop argued we should defend ourselves and render missiles powerless to threaten future generations. Malcolm Wallop is the father of missile defense and was the first elected official to propose a space based missile defense system, a program that later became part of President Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative. There are people all across the globe that are safer and freer because of Malcolm Wallop. Malcolm Wallop changed the world for the better.
"I remember being in elementary school and participating in regular nuclear attack drills where a monstrously loud siren sounded and all the school children huddled on the floor under our desks with our heads tucked between our knees. When I told my children about this memory, they looked confused and asked if it was some sort of weird fire drill. I just smiled and thought, today's children don't fear a nuclear attack in large part because of Malcolm Wallop's leadership.
"Malcolm Wallop convinced Ronald Reagan in the late 1970s to make missile defense a key part of his national security plan. Today, the world is a different and safer place thanks to Malcolm Wallops' vision and leadership. But his leadership was not limited to national security. Malcolm Wallop also became nationally known as a principled conservative leader on tax reform, federal deregulation, energy policy, private property rights, legal reform, and the importance of using reliable science in policy making. Additionally, he was the first non-lawyer to serve on the Senate Judiciary Committee.
"One experienced Washington insider described Malcolm Wallop 'as a rare commodity who could on a moments notice and without talking points go to the floor of the Senate and speak knowledgeably and powerfully about almost any topic.'
"Senator Wallop has always been driven by the power of principle, rather than the convenience of political expediency. Simply stated, he was never a politician, but rather a statesman. And on a personal level, he was thoroughly decent and kind. It is said that the true measure of a man is in how he treats those who can do nothing for him. By that measure, few men are better men than Malcolm Wallop. More times than I can count, I witnessed Malcolm Wallop treat regular people that others viewed as unimportant and almost invisible with great kindness and consideration and as an equal -- that is how Malcolm saw people regardless of their position, income or power.
"I know his dear wife, Isabel, and his children feel a great sense of loss. I know his friends feel that loss too. I hope Americans who may not have ever had the pleasure to know Malcolm personally will also recognize what a great man we have lost and take a moment to thank God that such men as Malcolm Wallop lived and that he lived as he did."
