• Born July 22, 1923.
• Married, Elizabeth Hanford; one child (from first marriage).
• World War II veteran; seriously wounded in Italy, 1945.
• U.S. Representative, 1960-1968.
• Elected to U.S. Senate in 1968.
• U.S. Senate Majority Leader, 1984-1986.
• U.S. Senate Minority Leader, 1986-1994.
• Republican Vice Presidential candidate, 1976.
• Republican Presidential candidate, 1980 and 1988.

Includes key votes and relevant special interest group ratings. Ratings indicate the percentage of votes in which the candidate voted for the position promoted by the group. For a description of these and several other interest groups that give ratings, check out Vote Smart's interest group ratings.

• Opposes any government support for or funding of abortions.
• Supports right to an abortion in cases of rape, incest or when a mother's life is in danger.
• Opposes constitutional amendment to ban all abortions.

Legislative Record

• Voted to prohibit use of federal funds to pay for abortions, except in cases of rape, incest or when it will save the life of the mother (Hyde Amendment, 1993).
• Voted for the clinic access bill (1993).

Interest Group Ratings

• National Right to Life Committee -- 1993 rating: 80
• National Abortion Reproductive Rights Action League -- 1994 rating: 0

• Opposes quotas, set-asides and other race-based preferences.

Interest Group Ratings

• National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) -- 1994 rating: 10

Bosnia Intervention

• Supports President Clinton's authority to send troops to participate in the NATO peacekeeping mission in Bosnia. But while he supports the troops, he opposes the mission.
• Supported lifting arms embargo against Bosnian Muslims so they could defend themselves against attacks by Bosnian Serbs.

• Supports flat tax that would not increase the deficit or raise taxes on the middle class. Has not endorsed specific flat tax plan.
• Supports constitutional balanced budget amendment.
• Supports presidential line item veto.
• Supports requiring three-fifths vote in Congress for any tax increase.
• Opposes unfunded mandates, under which the federal government imposes rules on state and local governments without providing funding to carry them out.
• Supports tax reform plan allowing a family of four earning below $25,000 to pay little or no federal income tax.

Legislative Record

• Voted for 1996 budget resolution, which would balance the budget by 2002 (1995).
• Voted for 1994 constitutional balanced budget amendment and against 1995 balanced budget amendment. (Dole said his vote against the 1995 bill was a legislative maneuver intended to preserve the bill for future consideration.)
• Voted to ban unfunded mandates (1995).
• Voted to require that new tax and spending items all be listed as separate bills (1993 and 1995).

Interest Group Ratings

• Concord Coalition -- 1994 rating: 82
• National Taxpayers Union -- 1993 rating: 74
• Citizens Against Government Waste -- 1993 rating: 75

• Supports 12-year term limit for senators. Supports term limits for House members also, but believes they should come up with their own number.

Legislative Record

• Voted against continuing the Presidential Election Campaign Fund, which provides public funding of presidential campaigns using an income tax check box (1995).
• Voted against campaign finance reform bill, which included providing vouchers to candidates who accept voluntary campaign spending limits and banning political action committee (PAC) contributions to campaigns (1993).
• Voted against an amendment restricting the use of campaign funds for personal purposes (1995).
• Voted against an amendment prohibiting members of the Senate from accepting gifts from registered lobbyists (1995).
• Voted for an amendment prohibiting the acceptance of gifts, including campaign contributions, from PACs or lobbyists (1994).

• Supports death penalty.
• Supports minimal federal involvement in criminal justice issues.
• Supports giving federal block grants to states to spend on whatever anticrime measures they decide they need.

Legislative Record

• Voted against 1994 Omnibus Crime Control Act (Clinton crime bill).

Interest Group Ratings

• American Civil Liberties Union -- 1994 rating: 26

• Supports elimination of the Department of Education; would divide its budget into block grants to the states.
• Supports voucher programs for parents to use at the school of their choice.
• Supports school curricula that emphasize Western traditions and American values; critical of multiculturalism.
• Supports making English America's official language and requiring all citizens to be fluent in English.
• Supports voluntary, student-led prayer in schools.

Legislative Record

• Voted against Goals 2000: Educate America Act (1993).
• Voted for funding six low-income school choice demonstration programs (1994).
• Voted against national service program (1993).

Interest Group Ratings

• National Education Association -- 1993 rating: 0
• American Federation of Teachers -- 1993-94 rating: 0

• Supports elimination of Department of Energy.
• Supports making Environmental Protection Agency a cabinet-level department.
• Supports requiring the federal government to reimburse citizens when environmental regulations limit use of privately owned lands.
• Supports use of "cost-benefit analysis" to determine economic impact of proposed environmental protection and cleanup rules.

Legislative Record

• Voted for elevation of Environmental Protection Agency to cabinet level (1993).

Interest Group Ratings

• League of Conservation Voters -- 1994 rating: 0
• League of Private Property Voters -- 1993-94 rating: 90

• Supports instant background checks of gun purchasers.
• Supports mandatory sentencing for criminals who use firearms in committing a crime.
• Opposes seven-day waiting period for gun purchases.

Legislative Record

• Voted for mandatory sentences for crimes involving the use of firearms (1994).
• Voted against Brady bill, which imposes waiting period and background checks prior to gun purchases (1993).
• Voted against semiautomatic assault weapons ban (1993).

Interest Group Ratings

• Handgun Control Inc. -- 1993-94 rating: 0
• National Rifle Association -- 1993-94 rating: 100

• Supports President Clinton's authority to send troops to participate in the NATO peacekeeping mission in Bosnia. But while he supports the troops, he opposes the mission.
• Supported lifting arms embargo against Bosnian Muslims so they could defend themselves against attacks by Bosnian Serbs.
• Supports increased defense spending.
• Opposes U.S. troops serving under UN command in combat or during peacekeeping missions.
• Supports withholding U.S. funds from the UN to spur reform of the organization.

Legislative Record

• Voted to limit command of U.S. troops serving under UN command to American officers.
• Voted against reducing funds for the Trident II missile program.

Interest Group Ratings

• American Security Council -- 1993-94 rating: 100
• Council for a Livable World -- 1994 rating: 0

• Opposed Clinton Health Care Plan.
• Supports plans to reduce growth of Medicare and Medicaid spending and would give more control of these programs to the states.

Interest Group Ratings

• American Public Health Association -- 1993 rating: 7

• Supports denying government welfare services to illegal aliens.
• Supports strengthening the Border Patrol.
• Supports more aggressive enforcement of the laws expediting the deportation of criminal aliens.
• Supports streamlining the deportation process for all illegal aliens.

• Supports elimination of Department of Commerce.
• Supports free trade measures such as NAFTA and GATT.

Legislative Record

• Voted for sanctions to open car parts markets in Japan (1995).
• Voted for NAFTA (1993) and GATT (1994).
  
• Voted against linking China's "most favored nation" trade status to its human rights performance (1992).

Interest Group Ratings

• Competitive Enterprise Institute -- 1994 trade rating: 100

• Supports elimination of Department of Housing and Urban Development.
• Supports states' handling welfare issues, such as ending benefits for women who have children while on welfare.
• Supports requiring able-bodied welfare recipients to work.
• Supports five-year welfare limit on welfare benefits.
• Supports federal government's giving block grants to states to run their own welfare programs.

Legislative Record

• Cosponsored and voted for Senate welfare reform bill (1995), which would impose a five-year limit on welfare benefits and replace federal antipoverty programs with lump sum payments to states.

Issue information in this report was obtained from the "On the Issues" section of the Bob Dole for President home page; from Project Vote Smart, a nonprofit, nonpartisan political research organization that maintains an extensive database of issue-related information; and from Thomas, a legislative database maintained by the Library of Congress.