Former Arizona Sen. Jon Kyl has been diagnosed with dementia and will withdraw from public life, he announced Tuesday.
“I was blessed to represent the people of Arizona in Congress and to have numerous other opportunities to contribute to the political and civic life of our nation and state,” Kyl, 83, said in a statement.
The announcement brings to a close a career that included eight years in the House and nearly 20 years in the Senate, where he became a prominent member of Republican leadership. As chairman of the Republican Policy Committee, and later as GOP whip, Kyl’s stances on foreign policy, taxes and legal matters often became the de facto positions of his GOP colleagues.
