Arthur A. Link
Encyclopedia
- Not to be confused with American historian Arthur S. LinkArthur S. LinkArthur S. Link was a leading American historian and a scholarly authority on Woodrow Wilson.-Biography:Born in New Market, Virginia, to a German Lutheran family, he graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he received a B.A. in 1941 and a Ph.D. in 1945...
Arthur Albert Link (May 24, 1914 – June 1, 2010) was an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
politician for the North Dakota Democratic Party
North Dakota Democratic Party
The North Dakota Democratic Party was a political party in North Dakota that existed from the state's formation in 1889 until 1956, when the party merged with the Non Partisan League to form the modern North Dakota Democratic NPL Party....
, and later the Democratic-NPL. He was elected as a one-term congressman in 1970 and as the 27th Governor of North Dakota in 1972, and served two terms until 1981.
Life and career
Link was born in AlexanderAlexander, North Dakota
As of the census of 2000, there were 217 people, 87 households, and 60 families residing in the city. The population density was 150.6 people per square mile . There were 106 housing units at an average density of 73.6 per square mile . The racial makeup of the city was 93.55% White, 5.99% Native...
, North Dakota
North Dakota
North Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....
. He attended the McKenzie County schools, and North Dakota Agricultural College
North Dakota State University
North Dakota State University of Agriculture and Applied Sciences, more commonly known as North Dakota State University , is a public university in Fargo, North Dakota. NDSU has about 14,000 students and it is the largest university in North Dakota based on full time students and land size...
. He was elected to the North Dakota House of Representatives in 1946 as a Democrat
North Dakota Democratic Party
The North Dakota Democratic Party was a political party in North Dakota that existed from the state's formation in 1889 until 1956, when the party merged with the Non Partisan League to form the modern North Dakota Democratic NPL Party....
, serving fourteen years as minority floor leader and speaker of the house, 1965. He was also a member of the Randolph Township Board, 1942–1972; McKenzie County Welfare Board, 1948–1969; Randolph School Board, 1945–1963; county and State Farm Security Administration committee, 1941–1946; and delegate, North Dakota State conventions, 1964-1968.
In 1970, Link was persuaded to run for U.S. Congress from the western district of North Dakota, a job with little security as it appeared certain the state would be consolidated into a single congressional district after the census. He was elected as a Dem-NPLer to the Ninety-second Congress (January 3, 1971 – January 3, 1973); was not a candidate for reelection in 1972 but was a successful candidate for Governor of North Dakota; reelected in 1976 and served from January 2, 1973, until January 7, 1981.
Link was well liked and well respected as a governor. Those of all political persuasions found common ground with him. Some considered him a social conservative who was staunchly pro-life
Pro-life
Opposition to the legalization of abortion is centered around the pro-life, or anti-abortion, movement, a social and political movement opposing elective abortion on moral grounds and supporting its legal prohibition or restriction...
, deeply religious and willing to stand for principle even when political wisdom dictated otherwise, vetoing a bill to lower the state drinking age to 19 years and providing leadership against legalizing gambling in the state. Others viewed him as a moderate as he was also astute fiscally, managing to avoid raising taxes of one of the poorer states in the nation. Still others saw him as a progressive, since he was still able to maintain and grow an excellent education system with affordable universities and students who consistently achieve some of the top test scores in the United States.
He was also a leader among governors from neighboring states. When the western United States suffered a severe drought in the mid-1970s, and other western governors called for Federal Aid, Link called for a day of fasting and prayer instead. Some believe that in answer to the many prayers, rain followed. With the rain, Federal Aid in North Dakota became a non-issue.
Even his political opponents could find little to criticize about his governing style. Some in his own party considered him too religious, too ethical, too colorless and too unwilling to compromise for the sake of political expediency. Nevertheless, he was nominated to run for a third term. He narrowly lost re-election in 1980 only due to a perfect storm of circumstances working against him, namely (1) a tradition of turnover in the governor's office (only Link's immediate predecessor in the office had served more than six years), (2) continuous occupation of the governor's mansion since 1961 by Dem-NPLers in a solidly Republican state, (3) a highly unpopular President Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
running for re-election at the top of the ticket, (4) a highly popular opponent Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
running on the Republican side, (5) a national feeling of pessimism brought about by the Iran hostage crisis
Iran hostage crisis
The Iran hostage crisis was a diplomatic crisis between Iran and the United States where 52 Americans were held hostage for 444 days from November 4, 1979 to January 20, 1981, after a group of Islamist students and militants took over the American Embassy in Tehran in support of the Iranian...
and an unprecedented combination of double-digit unemployment, inflation and gas lines, even though North Dakota fared far better than most other places in the United States.
Later life
After his defeat for re-election, Link remained active in public life, leading a successful fight against a state lotteryNorth Dakota Lottery
The North Dakota Lottery is run by the government of North Dakota. The Lottery began in 2004. It is unique among US lotteries in that it is allowed only to offer multi-jurisdictional games, i.e., North Dakota-only games cannot be sold. As a result, all of its games are part of the Multi-State...
in 1984. He also remained a strong force for historical preservation and writing of local histories. He and his wife Grace, lived in Bismarck, North Dakota.
He is fondly remembered by North Dakotans and former North Dakotans, Dem-NPLers and Republicans alike as one of the best governors the state ever enjoyed. Ironically, the Democratic-NPL, able to elect only one governor since Link vacated the office in 1981, has managed to occupy all the seats in the state's federal congressional delegation in Washington from 1987 until January 2011, with every member therein having served during the Link Administration.
A movie was made of the Links' lives in 2008, entitled: "When the Landscape is Quiet Again".
Link died on June 1, 2010 in Bismarck, just eight days after his 96th birthday.