Dammit.

My political nerd heart is just…broken.

Amo Houghton is the reason I registered as a Republican at 18 back in 1992. Elizabeth Warren is the reason I registered as a Democrat at 46 in 2020. It’s been a day.

This hit me right in the gut. I met Amo when he came to my middle school class. He had a significant influence on my political education growing up. My kind of Republican. I wrote a paper on him in High School and in College (Family Medical Leave Act).

Amory Houghton Jr., Who Went From Corning to Congress, Dies at 93

“But Mr. Houghton remained optimistic. “The pendulum swings back and forth in life, and it sure does in politics,” he told The Leader, a newspaper in Corning, in 2017. “I really believe in my heart that we’ve got a terrific future ahead of us.”

Amo Houghton, GOP moderate and nine-term N.Y. congressman, dies at 93

“Mr. Houghton, who backed abortion rights and more federal funding for the arts, helped found the Republican Main Street Partnership as a forum for moderate GOP members of Congress. In 2002, he voted against giving President George W. Bush the broad authority to invade Iraq.”

Amo Houghton, Corning Glass heir who served 18 years in Congress, dies at 93

“A classic “Northeast moderate Republican” whose political breed has become largely extinct, Mr. Houghton elevated building bridges between partisan factions into a rare Washington art form.”

“Though he hailed from a conservative district, Mr. Houghton’s special brand of Republicanism seemed to endear him to his constituency. He championed abortion rights, voted against impeaching President Bill Clinton and against permanently repealing the estate tax.”

“He also often voted with Democrats on the environment, civil rights, and funding for arts and education. In 2002, he emerged as one of the few Republicans in the House to vote against authorizing the invasion of Iraq.”

Remembering”Amo” Houghton 1926 – 2020

“Anybody in business realizes that relationships are more important than transactions,” he said.”

“He truly believed that what you did for people was the most important thing, and that has shaped Corning’s mission – not just to be an industry leader, but also to make a real difference in the world.”