( CNN ) -- George McGovern rode the swirling social and political currents of America in the late 1960s and early 1970s to lead a political movement that permanently changed the nation in ways that we still do not fully understand . A mild-mannered Midwestern intellectual , World War II combat hero and son of a Methodist minister , he became the leading edge of a storm promising ( or threatening , depending on your point of view ) transformative change on a wide range of issues including foreign policy , the electoral process and the rights of women . It was a storm that gathered intense support and equally intense opposition in the senator 's run for president against incumbent Richard Nixon in 1972 . While the nation 's younger and more highly educated rallied to McGovern 's standard , the `` silent majority '' were deeply troubled by much of what they believed to be the McGovern agenda . George McGovern , an unabashed liberal voice , dies . Ultimately , much of what George McGovern campaigned for in 1972 came to pass . Both major political parties have a system of nominating a president that is far more transparent , accountable and democratic than the systems that existed prior to 1972 . McGovern was instrumental in rewriting the rules for selecting Democratic convention delegates to include women , minorities and young people . ( Women , minorities and gays now have far more rights and protections than they did in 1972 . ) But the cutting edge of the 1972 campaign was about how America dealt with the rest of the world , how it chose and challenged its adversaries , and in particular , how it would resolve the Vietnam War . By gaining the Democratic nomination , McGovern became the leading opponent of the war ; he challenged the usefulness of the 25-year strategy of containing the Soviet Union , the People 's Republic of China and any other nation committed to or influenced by Communism . McGovern and many other political leaders in both parties argued that in opposing Communism or other types of totalitarianism , the U.S. had to be far more strategic -- that fighting in places like Vietnam , where the outcome would have little real consequence on our nation 's global struggle against a failed ideology , squandered American lives and treasure . Greene : McGovern a strong man who overcame defeat . While the Nixon administration and conservative Republicans lambasted McGovern for those views , Nixon eventually signed a peace agreement that ended the war on terms no more favorable than would have been granted had the McGovern-Hatfield Amendment been adopted in 1970 -- an amendment that proposed a complete withdrawal of troops from Vietnam and would have saved thousands of American combat casualties . Here is part of the passionate speech -- bracingly relevant today -- that McGovern delivered on the Senate floor before the vote defeating the amendment : . `` Every senator in this chamber is partly responsible for sending 50,000 young Americans to an early grave . This chamber reeks of blood . Every senator here is partly responsible for that human wreckage at Walter Reed and Bethesda Naval and all across our land â€ ” young men without legs , or arms , or genitals , or faces or hopes . `` There are not very many of these blasted and broken boys who think this war is a glorious adventure . Do not talk to them about bugging out , or national honor or courage . It does not take any courage at all for a congressman , or a senator , or a president to wrap himself in the flag and say we are staying in Vietnam , because it is not our blood that is being shed . But we are responsible for those young men and their lives and their hopes . And if we do not end this damnable war , those young men will some day curse us for our pitiful willingness to let the executive carry the burden that the Constitution places on us . `` So before we vote , let us ponder the admonition of Edmund Burke , the great parliamentarian of an earlier day : ' A contentious man would be cautious how he dealt in blood . ' '' Highlights of George McGovern 's life . Today , American businesses are seeking to broaden our commercial relationships with Vietnam , and American military advisers meet with the Vietnamese to suggest strategies that will help that country protect the territory it claims in the South China Sea from possible Chinese aggression . George McGovern never fully recovered from the drubbing he received at the polls in November of 1972 . But the path that he pointed to was ultimately the path the country took , and the movement he founded drew thousands of men and women , who committed their lives to public service and who continue to contribute to their communities and their country 40 years later . George McGovern was never the extremist his opponents tried to characterize him as being . His subsequent electoral success in South Dakota was evidence enough of that fact . But he was a man of great vision and grace . He helped to educate a generation about the failures of a rigid and untextured accounting of our allies and our enemies , and about the importance of making smart choices when dealing with dangerous adversaries . Those are lessons as important today as they were in 1970 . Politicians pay tribute . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Scott Lilly .
Scott Lilly : McGovern presciently rode swirling political , social currents of late '60s , early '70s . His views on foreign policy , women 's rights and more drew support of young , Lilly says . Score: 7 Lilly : McGovern not the extremist his opponents claimed ; he was a man of strength , grace .