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This file contains material relating to Lyndon Johnson.

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4525952
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Ohio Republican Finance Committee Dinner, Columbus, OH, June 14, 1966
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4525952
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document
title
Ohio Republican Finance Committee Dinner, Columbus, OH, June 14, 1966
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This file contains material relating to Lyndon Johnson.
collections
Gerald R. Ford Congressional Papers
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Congressional elections
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1966-06-30
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6
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1966
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1966-06-01
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6
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1966
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The original documents are located in Box D20, folder "Ohio Republican Finance Committee Dinner, Columbus, OH, June 14, 1966" of the Ford Congressional Papers: Press Secretary and Speech File at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library. Copyright Notice The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. The Council donated to the United States of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections. Works prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in the public domain. The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are presumed to remain with them. If you think any of the information displayed in the PDF is subject to a valid copyright claim, please contact the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library. Digitized from Box D20 of The Ford Congressional Papers: Press Secretary and Speech File at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library CONGRESSMAN NEWS GERALD R. FORD HOUSE REPUBLICAN LEADER RELEASE FOR RELEASE AT 6:30 P.M. TUESDAY, JUNE 14, 1966 SPEECH EXCERPTS--OHIO REPUBLICAN FINANCE COMMITTEE DINNER, COLUMBUS, OHIO. I have discovered my good friend, House Majority Leader Carl Albert of Oklahoma, in the act of whistling in the dark. Mr. Albert last week said Republican leaders are engaging in wishful thinking in talking about sizable gains in the House this fall. After hearing about Mr. Albert's remarks, I took a fresh look at the overall situation and what I saw tempted me to take the bottom off my earlier prediction of "40 to 50 more seats" and just call it 50. What I saw in my reassessment was the tremendous vote rolled up by Ronald Reagan and the unimpressive showing by Gov. Pat Brown in the governorship primary in California and the drop in President Johnson's popularity rating to 46 per cent. These two developments indicate to me that Republicans will recapture most of the 51 seats lost to Democratic newcomers in 1964--seats we never should have lost in the first place--and maybe some others. Many of the Democratic freshmen rode into the House on the coattails of Lyndon Johnson and by paper-thin margins. What has happened to the vaunted popularity of the President? It has plummeted to its lowest point in the 2½ years he has been in office, as shown by the latest Gallup Poll. Small wonder Mr. Johnson has become the No. 1 Nervous Nellie in the country! The June Gallup Poll reveals that less than half of the American people have confidence in the way Mr. Johnson is handling his job. This is not at all surprising. For one thing, the American people cannot understand why the mightiest nation on earth cannot win the struggle in South Vietnam while combining forces with the South Vietnamese to thwart Communist aggression. For another, the American people are hurting over the cost of living, which has registered its sharpest increase in 15 years for the four-month period, January through April. * * (MORE) -2- SPEECH EXCERPTS If this country had a parliamentary form of government, the Democrats would be afraid to call an election at this time. They are afraid of all of the no- confidence votes that would be cast against the Johnson-Humphrey Administration. The Democrats are hoping to blunder through the six months between now and November 8, but I predict that this summer of our discontent will see a continued drop in Mr. Johnson's popularity, a growing vote of no-confidence in his administration. Why is this? It is because the Johnson-Humphrey Administration is failing the people in four major areas. 1. The Johnson-Humphrey Administration has failed to tell the people the truth. 2. The Johnson-Humphrey Administration has failed to maintain price stability. 3. The Johnson-Humphrey Administration has failed to properly manage our military and foreign affairs. 4. The Johnson-Humphrey Administration is losing the war on poverty. To cover up bad news, blunders or even minor missteps, this Administration from the President on down engages in a policy of public misinformation. This ranges from half-truths to a dodging of the facts to diversionary tactics aimed at putting the best possible face on a bad situation. I can only conclude that the Johnson-Humphrey Administration is afraid of the people. One of the best examples of diversionary tactics is that employed by the President himself at a recent news conference. He cited the fact that five foreign countries had suffered a higher rise in the cost of living than the United States in recent years. The implication was clear. The President in effect was saying Americans had no right to gripe because others were in worse shape. This is ridiculous. Another example of such ridiculous attempts to fool the American people is the attitude taken by Vice-President Hubert H. Humphrey and other Administration officials toward the withdrawal of France from NATO. These Pollyannas actually have the gall to claim that NATO will benefit from the French withdrawal because it will force long-needed NATO reforms. This is like saying a house will be stronger if one of the foundation stones is pulled out from under it. # # # CONGRESSMAN NEWS GERALD R. FORD HOUSE REPUBLICAN LEADER RELEASE FOR RELEASE AT 6:30 P.M. TUESDAY, JUNE 14, 1966 SPEECH EXCERPTS--OHIO REPUBLICAN FINANCE COMMITTEE DINNER, COLUMBUS, OHIO. I have discovered my good friend, House Majority Leader Carl Albert of Oklahoma, in the act of whistling in the dark. Mr. Albert last week said Republican leaders are engaging in wishful thinking in talking about sizable gains in the House this fall. After hearing about Mr. Albert's remarks, I took a fresh look at the overall situation and what I saw tempted me to take the bottom off my earlier prediction of "40 to 50 more seats" and just call it 50. What I saw in my reassessment was the tremendous vote rolled up by Ronald Reagan and the unimpressive showing by Gov. Pat Brown in the governorship primary in California and the drop in President Johnson's popularity rating to 46 per cent. These two developments indicate to me that Republicans will recapture most of the 51 seats lost to Democratic newcomers in 1964-seats we never should have lost in the first place--and maybe some others. Many of the Democratic freshmen rode into the House on the coattails of Lyndon Johnson and by paper-thin margins. What has happened to the vaunted popularity of the President? It has plummeted to its lowest point in the 2½ years he has been in office, as shown by the latest Gallup Poll. Small wonder Mr. Johnson has become the No. 1 Nervous Nellie in the country! The June Gallup Poll reveals that less than half of the American people have confidence in the way Mr. Johnson is handling his job. This is not at all surprising. For one thing, the American people cannot understand why the mightiest nation on earth cannot win the struggle in South Vietnam while combining forces with the South Vietnamese to thwart Communist aggression. For another, the American people are hurting over the cost of living, which has registered its sharpest increase in 15 years for the four-month period, January through April. * * * (MORE) -2- SPEECH EXCERPTS If this country had a parliamentary form of government, the Democrats would be afraid to call an election at this time. They are afraid of all of the no- confidence votes that would be cast against the Johnson-Humphrey Administration. The Democrats are hoping to blunder through the six months between now and November 8, but I predict that this summer of our discontent will see a continued drop in Mr. Johnson's popularity, a growing vote of no-confidence in his administration. Why is this? It is because the Johnson-Humphrey Administration is failing the people in four major areas. 1. The Johnson-Humphrey Administration has failed to tell the people the truth. 2. The Johnson-Humphrey Administration has failed to maintain price stability. 3. The Johnson-Humphrey Administration has failed to properly manage our military and foreign affairs. 4. The Johnson-Humphrey Administration is losing the war on poverty. To cover up bad news, blunders or even minor missteps, this Administration from the President on down engages in a policy of public misinformation. This ranges from half-truths to a dodging of the facts to diversionary tactics aimed at putting the best possible face on a bad situation. I can only conclude that the Johnson-Humphrey Administration is afraid of the people. One of the best examples of diversionary tactics is that employed by the President himself at a recent news conference. He cited the fact that five foreign countries had suffered a higher rise in the cost of living than the United States in recent years. The implication was clear. The President in effect was saying Americans had no right to gripe because others were in worse shape. This is ridiculous. Another example of such ridiculous attempts to fool the American people is the attitude taken by Vice-President Hubert H. Humphrey and other Administration officials toward the withdrawal of France from NATO. These Pollyannas actually have the gall to claim that NATO will benefit from the French withdrawal because it will force long-needed NATO reforms. This is like saying a house will be stronger if one of the foundation stones is pulled out from under it. # # #