Photo: Bill Clark / Getty
LANSING, August 16, 2021 ~ Sunday, Former Congressman Paul Mitchell died following a battle with Stage IV Renal Cancer. He was 64 years old.
“He took some very unpopular, but very decisive and principled stands in the past few months,” said Guy Gordon this morning to 760 WJR’s Kevin Dietz. “[He] was looking forward to retirement, looking forward to spending more time with his family, and his 12 year old son Declan.\”
In December of 2020, Mitchell resigned from the Republican Party following “destructive words and actions by then-President Donald Trump” when he could “no longer tolerate Trump’s efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election,” according to an obituary by Guy Gordon.
“He certainly showed that he was willing to be unpopular, in order to be principled,” continued Guy. “And that’s the legacy that he leaves that is going to stick with me.”
Mitchell announced his cancer diagnosis in an exclusive interview with 760 WJR’s Guy Gordon at the beginning of June.
August 16, 2021 ~ Guy Gordon remembers Congressman Paul Mitchell with Kevin Dietz.
“Paul was an American. He was the embodiment of what we can be if we choose to love and fight for what matters,” said his wife Sherry, in a statement.
“His biggest regret was that he never served in the military, he felt that he didn’t fulfill that responsibility for the gift of our freedom. He achieved the American Dream and defended his success unapologetically. He also shared from our table at every opportunity, giving of himself every chance that he got. Paul was the first to champion that his success was completely dependent on those who helped him along the way. The counselor who noticed he was only eating once a day and gave him a tutoring job. He believed that he alone could change the world if he just worked hard enough.”
“Our family asks that you please respect our privacy at this time to celebrate his life. There will be no public funeral. We ask that you grant us that peace.”
“If you want to honor Paul, please give someone your time in a meaningful way. He cared deeply that all children were loved; financial donations should be made to your local foster care charities.\”
MORE ARTICLES: