This year commemorates the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, and the Wall Street Journal has reported on the similar careers of two of America’s most celebrated veterans of that war. George Herbert Walker Bush fought in the Pacific Arena and was shot down, and Bob Dole was wounded in Italy and left for dead on the battlefield. Former President Bush remembered the war, saying “thanks to the courage and selfless sacrifices of too many people—too many sons, and brothers and fathers who never came home—freedom prevailed over tyranny.”
Both men were elected to the House of Representatives in the 1960s, but say their war experiences in large part defined them. The men became competitors—most notably during the bitter 1988 presidential primaries—but more importantly, they became friends. Mr. Bush turned 91 on June 12, and Mr. Dole will turn 92 in July. Mr. Bush quipped that he doesn’t feel a day over 90.
