After Democratic presidential candidate and former Sen. George McGovern died Sunday, most of obits unsurprisingly focused on the fights that made his name synonymous with liberalism: his opposition to the Vietnam war, his support for civil rights and his work to eradicate hunger.

Few mentioned McGovern’s final crusade: opposing the Big Labor-backed Employee Free Choice Act, more commonly known as the “card check” bill. Card-check opponents credit McGovern’s advocacy for winning over enough wavering Senate Democrats to prevent it from coming up for a vote.