[media-credit name=’RAY PFEIFFER/Herald Photo’ align=’alignright’ width=’336′][/media-credit]Expressing various qualms with the country's current political sphere, former United States Senator and former presidential candidate George McGovern spoke to a packed crowd at the Memorial Union Monday.

Introduced by friend and fellow Democrat, former Wisconsin Senator Robert Kastenmeier — who described his old colleague as a "personal hero" — McGovern, 83, was one of the first congressmen to oppose American involvement in Vietnam. He parlayed his experiences with the past conflict into a similar perspective on the war in Iraq.

During his speech, McGovern said the Republican Party has created a rift between moderate political stances and the current center perceived by the public, making it difficult to adequately represent conflicting viewpoints on the war and other federal policies.

"The present rulers of the country, these neo-conservatives, they've moved the center so far to the right, if you try to get to the center of that rug, you're going to be way off there in right field," he said. "Nobody's playing center field or left field."

To fight this perception, McGovern said democrats and liberals must achieve a "reasonable consensus" on the war and other major issues affecting the country.
"We need to come out clearly, us liberals, us democrats and us intelligent republicans, to demanding an end to this senseless war in Iraq," he said.

Comparing the Iraqi insurgency to American revolutionaries of the late-18th century, McGovern continued to hammer George W. Bush's administration and it's likeness to that of Richard Nixon — whom he ran against for president in 1972 — in the '60s and '70s.

"This war in [Iraq] is less popular with every passing day and I think initially they bought the president's line that we were going there to fight terrorism," McGovern said. "They have now come to see every day that we've been there, we're recruiting terrorists rather than putting them down."

McGovern also presented a relative grocery list of policy changes during his speech in further opposition to the current Republican agenda. Among other changes, McGovern said the country should open the G.I. Bill to all qualified schools, focus on alternative energy sources, build the "best, swiftest and cleanest" rail system in the world and gradually extend Medicare coverage to citizens of all ages.

One of many supporters at the event, UW freshman Scott Resnick said he thought McGovern offered a unique viewpoint that only a true political veteran could deliver and enjoyed his practical approach to government and finance reform.

"I think it was an interesting perspective from someone who has already seen it and experienced so much in politics and his reflections on the War in Iraq after seeing all that he's seen in all his years in politics," he said.

As a relatively experienced politician himself, Mayor Dave Cieslewiecz attended the event and said personalities and viewpoints such as McGovern's are needed within the Democratic Party. Cieslewicz added he enjoyed the recognition the former presidential candidate attributed to Wisconsin as a historically reformative state.

"It's always good to hear a Democrat sound like a Democrat," Cieslewiecz said. "It's always good to hear someone from outside the state remind us of our progressive roots."