SAN JOSE, California — Paul N. “Pete” McCloskey, a decorated Korean War combat marine who beat celebrity Shirley Temple to win a seat in Congress representing California in the late 1960s, then became the first Republican in the House to call for Richard Nixon’s resignation and a co-chair of the first Earth Day, died Wednesday. He was 96.

McCloskey, a colorful, contrarian figure for generations, died at his house in Winters, in rural Yolo County, of congestive heart failure.

Throughout his life, McCloskey was known as someone who put principle over politics, even when it ruffled feathers. A square-jawed iconoclast, he was a prominent member of what today is nearly an extinct breed in Congress — a liberal Republican.

McCloskey also was a champion of environmental issues, who saw his work as a continuum of the conservation efforts of former President Teddy Roosevelt.

He was co-chairman of the first Earth Day in 1970 with Sen. Gaylord Nelson, a Wisconsin Democrat, a strong supporter of passing the Endangered Species Act in 1973, and in later life an advocate for opening Martins Beach in San Mateo County to the public after it was closed by billionaire Vinod Khosla in 2008.

“He stood for everyone without a voice, and was especially passionate about our environment — he was afraid of nothing or anyone who sought to take advantage of another,” said Joe Cotchett, his law partner since 2004. “He was the epitome of a leader, as demonstrated throughout his entire life.”

McCloskey was born on September 29, 1927, in Loma Linda, California, the son of Mary Vera (McNabb) and Paul Norton McCloskey.

His great-grandfather, orphaned during the Irish potato famine, came to San Francisco in 1853. One grandfather was a U.S. attorney and captain of the National Guard unit that helped control rioting in San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake. His maternal grandfather was mayor of San Bernardino in the early 1900s.

After graduating as valedictorian from South Pasadena High School in 1945, McCloskey attended Occidental College and California Institute of Technology. He served in the Navy from 1945 to 1947, then graduated from Stanford University in 1950 and Stanford University Law School in 1953.

His time at Stanford was interrupted by the Korean War. A Marine Corps rifle platoon commander, he saw some of the most difficult combat of the war, earning the Navy Cross and the Silver Star, along with two Purple Hearts. During his 10 months in North Korea, 58 of the 61 members of his platoon were either killed or wounded.

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