Editorial: Bob Dole set a standard for doing things 'the hard way' that today's politicians should remember

With the death of Bob Dole on Sunday at the age of 98, we find ourselves reflecting on how to approach the things we want to accomplish - whether by the easy way or the hard.

Dole, forced to recuperate at age 21 from near-paralyzing war injuries and the product of a hardscrabble upbringing in a small Kansas town, once said that it was "the hard way" that appealed to him.

"I trust in the hard way," he said in 1996 as he left the Senate to mount a quixotic presidential campaign against a popular incumbent, "for little has come to me except in the hard way" - then he added a phrase that may be particularly meaningful for our time - "which is good, because we have a hard task ahead of us."

Twenty-five years later, the task ahead of America's leaders remains hard. Perhaps, we should press them to summon a bit more of what often defined Dole's strategy for success in government.

For, the driving force in government today does not seem to be a commitment to the long, difficult work of persuading political opponents and finding common ground. It seems more inclined toward simply getting more like-minded people from your team into place than the other guys have on their team so you can manipulate the rules.

Don't like the way the Supreme Court leans? Tilt the levels of power to keep your opponent from elevating someone to the court who might not support the direction you want, then, after your team is back in power, tilt them again the other way to ensure that someone who agrees with you gets in place. Frustrated by that approach? Get your team back in power and suggest altering the structure of the court to allow your team to put in place more judges, and therefore more who think as you do.

Don't like the country's health care system? Get just enough people in place to create the one you want. Don't like that? Round up just enough others to disrupt the whole thing. Then, maybe start over, maybe not. Depends on how hard it would be.

Don't like the country's immigration policy? Build a wall to keep others out. Don't like that approach? Tear down the wall without producing any other strategy. All it seems leaders now think they need to govern is like-minded devotees fitted into the machinery of government.

It has not always been that way. And it was not the way Dole, a Kansas Republican who led his party on the floor of the Senate and ran three times for president, operated. When Dole addressed the Senate as he departed to make his 1996 presidential bid, "almost every Democratic senator was on the floor" and when he finished speaking, "we all stood and applauded and applauded," recalled Sen. Patrick J. Leahy, a Vermont Democrat.

They applauded because Dole did the hard work in the Senate to move them in his direction when his party was in power and to influence their thinking when theirs was. He was not non-partisan; to the contrary, he was respected for standing on tough, principled positions. But he was bi-partisan, and used his wry humor and unfailing sincerity to contribute to achievements ranging from strengthening the Social Security system to uplifting veterans and paving the way to help people with disabilities.

Since his death on Sunday, tributes for Dole have poured in from nearly all political quarters, many if not most of them praising his approach to public service and the accomplishments it produced.

"His example should inspire people today and for generations to come," said former President Bill Clinton.

There was much about Dole that went into creating that example. Let's not overlook that "trust in the hard way" was a fundamental theme, and remains one we need more of today.