This year’s Kenner Lecturer at Lehigh University was Rhodes Scholar, Olympic and professional basketball player, United States Senator, bestselling author and national radio host Bill Bradley. The lecture series was established in 1997 by Jeffrey L. Kenner, class of ’65, and was hosted by the College of Arts and Sciences.

A gifted basketball player, Bradley was a member of the Princeton University basketball team while earning his bachelor’s degree. After completing a master’s degree at Oxford University, Bradley spent the next ten years playing with the New York Knicks. In 1964, he was a member of the Olympic basketball team. While playing against the team from the Soviet Union, Bradley noticed that one of the Soviet players was quite tall and tough looking, so he asked how to say “hey, big fella, watch out” in Russian. Hearing him say this, the Soviets concluded that he understood Russian and stopped calling out their plays.

After retiring from the New York Knicks in 1977, Bradley ran for a seat in the United States Senate where he served for 18 years.

On the subject of politics, Bradley drew heavily on his recent book, “We Can All Do Better,” in which he assesses the state of the nation. On the subject of the deep divisions between the two parties, his comments reflected the theme of the Kenner Lectures; to promote cultural understanding and tolerance. While Democrats emphasize caring, he said, Republicans emphasize responsibility.

Consistent with their emphasis on caring, Democrats want to ensure that Social Security is rock solid; Republicans argue that if you save, you’ll be taken care of. “Both sides are right,” said Bradley. Congressmen need to end the partisan divide.

“People want politicians to tell them the truth,” he observed. The truth about the American economy, he said, is that “the American Dream has been on hold for the middle class since the 1990s.” Bradley blamed globalization, which has resulted in the closing of 40,000 factories in this country and the movement of jobs overseas.

Moreover, technology has replaced humans with machines. He argued that we should use the tax system to create jobs; “tax things we don’t like, such as oil, coal, and pollution.” In addition, “the American infrastructure is crumbling.” For example, air traffic control is the same as it was in the 1960s. Fixing our infrastructure would create thousands of jobs.

Another problem Bradley cited is the outsize role money plays an in our politics, eroding our democracy. He deplored Citizens United, the Supreme Court ruling that treats corporations as individuals and allows individuals to spend as much as they want on political candidates. Noting that in 2009-10 the financial, healthcare and energy industries donated millions of dollars to political campaigns, he argued that we need a Supreme Court ruling mandating public financing of electoral candidates.

On the issue of diversity, Bradley asserted that “pluralism is key.” We should lead by example and not close our borders. We have a multi-racial, multi-ethnic population. “When we bring in more people, we bring in more talent.” We need to understand that pluralism is advantageous, but we also need to end political divisions.

During the question and answer session following his talk, Bradley was asked how his experience in sports helped him when he got into politics. He responded that when he ran for the Senate he had been with the Knicks for 10 years, and, as a result, he was well known to many people. In addition, being a basketball player taught him to be considerate, so when he served in the Senate he had had the experience of talking to the press, and therefore he stepped aside and let colleagues do it.

An audience member asked about protests at Princeton University against the racism of Woodrow Wilson, a former president of the University for whom the Woodrow Wilson School on campus is named. Bradley conceded that Wilson was racist and that students have the right to protest. However, he said Wilson “converted Princeton into a real university.” Moreover, as president of the U.S., Wilson granted women the right to vote, paved the way for the New Deal and ended the death penalty.

Another question had to do with the gridlock in our government. Bradley stressed the importance of listening to those with whom you disagree and being willing to compromise. By way of illustration, he referenced the dispute between Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson over financing the Revolutionary War.

Treasury Secretary Hamilton argued that the states had to pay the debt incurred by the war, but Jefferson did not think that states that had paid a good deal of their debt should have to help pay other states’ debts. Hamilton proposed a compromise. Some states would help pay off the debt of other states, and in return the nation’s capital would be moved from New York to Washington. Jefferson agreed.

“We have to compromise,” said Bradley.