Former Sen. George McGovern 'no longer responsive'

Ed Widdis / ASSOCIATED PRESS The former Democratic Sen. George McGovern, who lost the 1972 presidential election to Richard Nixon and gained fame throughout his career for his devotion to fighting hunger and opposing war. By NBC News wire services The family of ex-U.S. Sen. George McGovern says the 90-year-old is "no longer responsive" in hospice care. McGovern's family issued a statement Wednesday afternoon through Avera McKennan Hospital. His daughter, Ann McGovern, earlier told The Associated Press that her father is "nearing the end" and appears restful and peaceful. She says it's a blessing that she and other family members are able to be with him. McGovern was the Democratic presidential candidate who lost to President Richard Nixon in 1972 in a historic landslide. He unsuccessfully challenged Nixon in 1972 on a platform opposing the Vietnam War. He won only 37.5 percent of the popular vote and carried only Massachusetts and the District of Columbia in one of the worst defeats in U.S. history. He was a member of the U.S. House from 1957 to 1961 and a U.S. senator for South Dakota from 1963 to 1981 and led the leader his party's liberal wing during that time. The son of a Methodist minister, McGovern flew combat missions over Europe as a B-24 bomber pilot during World War Two, earning the Distinguished Flying Cross. A historian and prolific author, McGovern had been hospitalized several times in the past year after complaining of fatigue and dizziness and after a fall before a scheduled television appearance at the McGovern Library at Dakota Wesleyan University in Mitchell, South Dakota. In recent years, he turned his focus to world hunger. On Wednesday, McGovern's family encouraged people to donate to Feeding South Dakota in honor of the senator. Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.