Bob Carr obit

Bob Carr, longtime Michigan congressman, dies at 81

 

He was not on the list.

Longtime Michigan Congressman Bob Carr, who represented the state in the U.S. House of Representatives for 18 years, has died. He was 81 years old.

First elected to Congress in 1974, Carr, a Democrat, held his seat until 1980 when he lost a reelection bid. He regained the seat two years later and held it until 1995.

His constituency changed with redistricting, but his seat typically represented a section of mid-Michigan.

Carr gained a reputation as a critic of the Vietnam War. In his first term in Congress, the 31-year-old sponsored a resolution that called on Democrats in the chamber to be "firmly opposed to the approval of any further military assistance to South Vietnam or to Cambodia in fiscal year 1975."

Carr sponsored more than 2,000 bills during his time in Congress, but he also had some biting criticism of the body. "On Capitol Hill, we don't engage in a lot of critical thinking," Carr said in a 2017 discussion hosted by the National Archives and the U.S. Association of Former Members of Congress. "It's all about ass-covering, can-kicking, and credit-claiming."

Carr said being on the House armed services committee grew his respect for the country's military. "I think (the) military does engage in a reasonable amount of critical thinking. I think they are looking at the threats in a more holistic way. ... Their incentives are not getting reelected next week. Their incentives are really, I think, in the proper place," he said in the 2017 discussion.

Members — and those campaigning to be members — of Michigan's congressional delegation praised Carr on Tuesday.

Curtis Hertel, a Democrat running for Michigan's 7th Congressional District, said Carr served mid-Michigan "with grace and determination."

"A force for peace abroad, Congressman Carr worked to deescalate the war in Vietnam and was a leader in the Cold War SALT II arms control negotiations," Hertel said. "As a longtime member of the Appropriations Committee, Congressman Carr modernized our transportation system. ... He helped connect our country."

Democratic Representative Elissa Slotkin, the current holder of the seat Hertel is seeking, and now a candidate for U.S. Senate, said Carr "leaves a legacy of dedicated service to the people of Michigan."

"He brought principle and passion to his time in Congress, and after his career as an elected official spent countless hours helping new members better serve their constituents," Slotkin said.

Carr was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a blood cancer, in 2006. He was an advocate for advancements in cancer research and care.