His obituary opened like this: “Richard Thornburgh, an effective and respected two-term governor of Pennsylvania who later served a tumultuous three-year stint as U.S. attorney general under Presidents Reagan and Bush, has died at age 88.”
In fact, Dick Thornburgh was so respected and admired that even outside of political life, he was called on to lead investigations into ethics violations and widespread corruption—a kind of Elliot Ness, Jimmy Stewart, and Walter Cronkite in one man—the ultimate straight shooter.
Despite all of his accomplishments, one phrase might be the most fitting epitaph to his storied life—one that welcomed every visitor to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and greeted motorists whenever a car from PA was passing by: “You’ve got a friend in Pennsylvania!”
But underneath the friendly state slogan and the winning smile, there was steel. Convictions about God and our responsibility to care for the most vulnerable.
To help tell that story is his son, professor and good government advocate, David Thornburgh.
Up Next in Season 2 (2021)
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Praising the Good- Stutterers, Mocker...
Dr. Gerald R. McDermott has lived an extraordinary professional life as a school principal, college professor, author, pastor and prolific author. Each of these assignments comes with the challenge to speak—often before large audiences. But not everyone who hears Dr. McDermott is aware that much ...
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Finding Grace on Allison Hill : State...
What does the word “missionary” mean to you? Maybe you have romantic images from the early 20th Century of a husband and wife abandoning western comforts to move to the jungles of South America, China, or the interiors of Africa—perhaps on a steam ship. Right here in Philadelphia, the heritage of...
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Mending the Conversation : State of I...
Today’s guest is Gary Sutton, longtime radio talk show host and someone who has been trying to mend the fences of the conversation during the time he’s been give on the airwaves.
Gary Sutton isn’t a provocateur. Far from it. He’s a former social studies teacher, who uses his airtime on WSBA in Y...
