Ask the Scholar

Document scope · 1 page
doc
Scholar
Ask about this object, its catalog metadata, its source description, or the page inventory. For page-specific OCR and visual context, open one of the page chats.

Source Description

This file contains: Summary of Nixon in the News. 7 pgs. [Report], 8/25/1960 Summary of Nixon in the News. 6 pgs. [Report], 8/27/1960 Summary of Nixon in the News. 12 pgs. [Report], 8/29/1960

Scholar Source Context

Document identity
localId
26127372
label
WHSF: Returned, 48-6
core
doc
dtoType
document
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
26127372
contentType
document
title
WHSF: Returned, 48-6
description
This file contains: Summary of Nixon in the News. 7 pgs. [Report], 8/25/1960 Summary of Nixon in the News. 6 pgs. [Report], 8/27/1960 Summary of Nixon in the News. 12 pgs. [Report], 8/29/1960
collections
Richard M. Nixon's Returned Materials Collection
Returned White House Special Files
imageCount
1
hasImages
yes
source
import
hasTranscription
no
Source extras
naId
26127372
levelOfDescription
fileUnit
recordType
description
ocrSource
nara-archive
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
document
mediaId
4df0dbd16c9f3e13
ocrText
Richard Nixon Presidential Library White House Special Files Collection Folder List Box Number Folder Number Document Date Document Type Document Description 48 6 08/25/1960 Report Summary of Nixon in the News. 7 pgs. 48 6 08/27/1960 Report Summary of Nixon in the News. 6 pgs. 48 6 08/29/1960 Report Summary of Nixon in the News. 12 pgs. Wednesday, June 06, 2007 Page 1 of 1 NIXON FOR PRESIDENT HEADOUARTERS R.Haldeman SUMMARY OF OPINIONS IN THE NEWS THURSDAY, AUGUST 25, 1960 RN (1) For the most part, RN dominated the morning headlines, both negatively and positively. The Balt. Sun and Wash. Post both gave prominent play to the President's press conference remarks concerning RN's role in decisions. The Fost headlined its story by Folliard "Ike Denies Nixon Role In Making 'Decisions'.' Balt. Sun: "President Says Nixon Acts as Advisor Only." The Herald Tribune treated the matter as a joke in a box on page two, The headline was "A Slip by Eisenhower. Coverage of RN's VFW appearance was moderately good. The Balt. Sun gave its spread a banner headline reading "Nixon Slaps at Democratic Setback on Aged Plan. 11 The Wash. Post gave its banner headline to Kennedy: "Kennedy Assails Rival on Experience Claim, Raps Foreign Policy" but underneath this head- line there was a smaller one reading "Nixon Charges Democrats Can't Pass Own Bills. 11 NYHT: "Nixon Hails All Help for Student Aid." Phila. Inquirer: "Nixon Pledges U.S. Will Stay First in World. :1 Chicago Sun-Times carried the story on page 24 with the headline "Nixon In Warning To Castro Regime. 11 New York Daily News, page 5: "Nixon: Firm But Not Warlike. 11 Chicago Tribune, page 2: "Nixon Calls for Freedom as a Goal for World." The Wash. Post commented editorially on the President's press conference remarks. In addition there was a cartoon by Herblock and also a piece on the editorial page by Chalmers Roberts. Editorially the Post said Why, it's enough to make the Republicans want to revise their cam- paign strategy. Technically (the President's statement) is altogether logical, The responsibility of the Presidency cannot be delegated In respect of the ques- tion that precipitated the discussion at Mr. Eisenhower's news conference--farm policy--Mr. Nixon may be just as glad at this point not to be associated formally with the decisions themselves. Still, it was a bit unkind for Mr. Eisenhower to promise merely that he would 'try to think' of an idea suggested by Mr. Nixon and adopted as policy. We have no doubt that in the White House Mr. Nixon could and would make decisions. We have no doubt, either, that he has helped considerably to influence many of the decisions taken by Mr. Eisenhower Although so loyal and disciplined a man as Mr. Nixon would never voice the notion, Mr. Nixon could be pardoned for thinking with Marechal Villars: 'Defend me from my friends. 111 -2- Chalmers Roberts points out "Nixon has himself avoided any claim to have been an acting President during the Eisenhower illnesses or otherwise to have made foreign policy But there is no record that Nixon has put any clamps on claims in his behalf on that score What Mr. Eisenhower did yesterday, whether because of injured pride or for other reasons, was to put in perspective the Nixon role these last years. The truth is that Nixon has been influential, that he has made recommendations that he has expressed his opinion and done so forcefully. He has, however, often been overruled by the President on the advice of others. But the reason Nixon was given this opportunity was not to give him a decision-making role It was to prepare him for the Presidency not as a possible candidate but for the very sensible reason that Nixon is next in line in the succession." Endorsement The Nashville Banner has endorsed RN for President. "In all the terms of measurement, for the heaviest task within the power of the American people to assign, Dick Nixon is supremely fitted. With his running mate, Henry Cabot Lodge, this nation has a team equipped with both knowledge and courage for those respon- sibilities whose capable discharge can decide its destiny." Kennedy (2) Kennedy's Alexandria appearance received front page play in the Post. The Balt. Sun used an AP story. The Sun also headlined (see folder 1) "Use of Hate Material is Seen Rising." This is the story released by the Fair Campaign Prac- tices Committee. Rowland Evans in the NYHT (see folder 1) has a story on Kennedy's strategy in which he says that Kennedy is switching his emphasis to the North because he sees losses on the religious issue. Evans has just returned from a survey of Washington Township in Jasper County, Iowa, a farm area which went for Adlai Stevenson in 1956. He found that RN is at this moment running well ahead of President Eisenhower four years ago. "The significant political clue uncovered was the discovery that this switch from Stevenson Democrats to Nixon Republicans (is because of Kennedy's Catholicism). " Evans concludes "It is partly as a result of these attitudes in many of the Southern, border and farm states that the Kennedy - -3- camp is planning to put a heavier accent on the campaign in the North. The empha- sis, according to the new plan, will be diminished in states such as Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas and the Dakotas, although the Kennedy forces are far from conceding a single one of these. 11 Charles Bailey in the Des Moines Register also comments on the anti-Catholic sentiment and its effect on Kennedy's strategy. According to Bailey, the Kennedy camp hopes that Harry Truman will quell anti-Catholic feeling in his own state and other Midwestern states, and they hope that Speaker Rayburn will be able to help in Oklahoma and Texas. The Post has a story on the second page this morning quoting Pierre Salinger to the effect that Kennedy plans to set up a campaign section to deal broadly with the religious problem. Kennedy & The Congress Chicago Sun-Times: "The Democratic party platform promised to enact the Kennedy medical plan. Seldom does a party have the opportunity to make good on a pledge so soon after writing it. And seldom does a party prove so quickly it can't deliver on the pledge because its own members can't agree. It is no wonder that Kennedy now wants to pick up his marbles and go home He must now face the fact that his welfare scheme has been blocked by his own fellow Democrats and his wage scheme is being held up in the Democratic-controlled House Kennedy may have made a better impression if he had been more anxious to finish unfinished business than to make political hay But Kennedy believes there is no political hay to be harvested in giving Mr. Eisenhower what the country needs. That's what Kennedy thinks. He doesn't seem to be as politically astute as Ike, who doesn't give the impression of playing politics with the peoples' needs. 11 New York Daily News: "Messrs. Kennedy and Johnson finagled this shirt-tail session of Congress for the express purpose of passing a lot of vote-getting Demo- cratic bills. So little along this line has been accomplished or promises to be accomplished that Kennedy himself is now talking about calling the whole thing off. If Kennedy's fellow Democrats in Congress won't unite behind him isn't it logical to expect a President Kennedy to be in constant conflict with Congress no matter how strongly Democratic the new Congress might be?" -4- Walter Lippmann, on the other hand, fully supports Kennedy's position and in reference to. the medical care bill says, "The result proved that Kennedy will be quite justified in arguing that there is no prospect of a comprehensive medical care bill unless he is elected While the Nixon-Javits proposal has some merit, it would be enormously complicated to administer and almost certainly more costly to the general taxpayer Nixon, if elected, would face the opposition of a large part of the powerful Democratic majority. On Tuesday they voted unanimously against him. The net result is that while Kennedy cannot say that he has a united Demo- cratic party behind him, he can say that, if elected, he can, and that Nixon cannot, establish a comprehensive system of medical care for the aged Nixon if elected would have a very hard time dealing with Congress. The evils of divided govern- ment, which have been assuaged by Eisenhower's personal popularity and prestige, would almost surely be blatant under Nixon. 11 The WSJ, in its lead story today by Robert Novak, says "Senator John F. Kennedy, tacitly conceding defeat on Capitol Hill, plans a strategic retreat from the hostile halls of Congress to adoring crowds on the campaign circuit Unless Sen. Kennedy or Senator Johnson uncorks some unimaginable legislative magic during those last few days, this will be the scorecard for the session. Total failure of the program pushed by Messrs. Kennedy and Johnson. Not one point of their four- point program will be enacted. Moreover, Sen. Kennedy's pre-nomination prom- ises to take action on emergency farm legislation and more money for defense will go unfulfilled The extent to which all this will bring loss or gain of votes is another matter The impact on the electorate of the Democratic debacle in Con- gress probably will not be automatic but rather what the politicians can make out of it Democrats are banking on the hope that the intricacies of legislative war- fare are too fuzzy for the general public to grasp and will fade from the mind once Sen. Kennedy returns to the campaign circuit But many Democrats are privately far less optimistic than Sen. Kennedy's inner circle. Some believe the nominee's image as a vigorous leader, an image carefully built up by 'A Time for Greatness' posters, may have been badly deflated by the post-convention session Some con- noisseurs of Senate manipulation consider the Kennedy-Johnson handling of the med- ical care issue particularly inept. 11 - -5- NYHT: "When his ambitious medical-care plan was defeated, Senator Kennedy bitterly suggested that if Congress were not in a mood to pass 'decent' bills in this and the minimum-wage field, its members 'might as well go home. I Trans- lated, this means that if the Senator is not going to get his way. he'd better hot- foot it out of Washington. Which isn't a bad idea, though for quite the opposite reasons from those Mr. Kennedy probably had in mind. Legislative defeat in a Congress controlled two-to-one by his own party is bad for the Kennedy image (The Congress's) actions so far--notably on medical care and minimum wage--have been shot through with politicking on both sides of the aisles; votes have been hailed as 'Kennedy victories' or 'Kennedy defeats. ! This is no atmosphere in which to pass laws. It's high time Congress wrapped up the business that has to be done this year, packed its bags, and moved the Presidential campaign to the hustings. 11 David Lawrence sees the Kennedy defeat on the medical care plan as a brake on unnecessary spending. He points out that "Most of the conservative Demo- crats are from the South and are either assured of victory in their states this autumn or do not come up this year for re-election. So it is difficult to see how the election of a Presidential candidate on the Democratic ticket can change the situation The conservative coalition seems here to stay and to vote against inflation whatever the outcome of the Presidential contest." Balt. Sun: "Hopes in the Kennedy-Johnson camp for a dramatic session to excite and lure large blocs of voters have faded fast. The picture rather is one of limited action on all controversial matters, leaving for later the full facing-up and the real decisions On medical care Mr. Kennedy has suffered defeat He hopes to make a campaign issue of (this) but his difficulty is that it was done by a predominantly Democratic Congress which the party's candidate senators could not control The Republicans for their part are unlikely to get much political mileage out of the short session. They have not been winners, either. They failed to put through the medical care plan Mr. Nixon and the White House wanted The Repub- lican effort to pin a 'do-nothing' label on the Congress has not electrified the electorate. 11 Chicago Tribune: "Mr. Kennedy's 'leadership' extravagantly acclaimed by his admirers when he was maneuvering the convention. now looks less than shining, -6- and Mr. Johnson's reputation as a supreme manipulator has been lost in a fog of ineptitude. These are not impressive credentials in 'going to the people, ' for the people have had ample opportunity to size up the kind of leadership the Democrats offer them, and fumbling hypocrisy are not the best arguments for inviting a man- date of any kind. 11 Reaction to Farm Statement Des Moines Register: "The Democratic farm conference did not produce a very sharp picture of what action on farm policy the Democrats would take Presidential candidate John Kennedy said, we believe realistically, that the job of correcting the imbalance in agriculture will not be easy. The Democrats created an impression of flexibility and willingness to try different approaches to helping farming adjust itself to the advance in technology We applaud the Democrats on their undogmatic approach At the same time, we believe their promises of accomplishment are extravagant. The Democratic platform, as well as the speeches here last weekend, seems to promise that all farmers now in farming can enjoy 'parity' income. But if anything is certain in the farming outlook it is that fewer people will be needed in the industry in the years ahead It is going too far in our opinion to promise 90 or 100 per cent of parity It is not reasonable to expect prices that high After all their needling of the Republicans for their failure to make good on price promises, you'd think the Democrats would be more careful The Democrats, though they talk about supply control, imply that providing food for all the hungry people at home and abroad would end the surplus problem Let's not kid ourselves that this is a solution to the problem of supply increasing faster than commercial demand. 11 Dayton Daily News: "Senator Kennedy broke away from his prepared text in Des Moines to say an unusual thing to the nation's farmers. He told them they must sacrifice in the national interest, that he expected to ask sacrifice of all He threw away his text and spoke his heart. He would do well to do the same with his campaign. This country will respond to truth, however tough, if someone will summon the courage and leadership to speak it." Miscellany Greenville (S.C.) News reports that two of: the names on Senator Kennedy's business and professional group have denied that they were ever asked to serve on -7- such a committee and have asked that their names be removed forthwith. The Cincinnati Enquirer comments on Senator Kennedy, "The New African Scholar. 11 The Enquirer points out "It is singularly striking that Senator Kennedy's concern about Africa should come so suddenly. The fact is that he is chairman of the African subcommittee of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee; yet he has never quite managed to get around to calling a meeting of the committee At any rate, Senator Kennedy is to be commended for joining the ranks of African scholar- ship." Mrs. Nixon (3) Ruth Montgomery in the Philadelphia Inquirer "For the first time in Amer- ican history, one woman could conceivably swing a Presidential election. This is the considered judgment of the Nixon high command. The woman in question is Pat Nixon She is a potent weapon indeed To women on four continents, Pat Nixon has come to be the symbol of the American housewife and mother." Miscellany (4) The WSJ comments editorially on the Democratic approach to urban blight. The Journal uses New York City as an example and points out that "Most, if not all, of New York City's money problems are of Mayor Wagner's own making. Scandals come and go in his bailiwick with the frequency of rush-hour expresses at Grand Central Every disclosure of costly cronyism at City Hall, perhaps a dozen other bits of chicanery go undetected. And all of it is eventually charged to the taxpayer. Yet Mayor Wagner, and the leaders of similarly inefficient and some- times corrupt city administrations across the country, lament that their cities cannot afford to pay their own way No government can hope to eliminate com- pletely the 'blight' and 'sprawl' of the cities unless it first repeals the laws of human nature. Indeed, the shift of responsibility for the cities farther away from the cities themselves provides new opportunities for waste and inefficiency. Urban sprawl is bad enough without still more Federal sprawl." The Journal also prints a second excerpt from RN's position paper on Communism. - 0 - R. Haldeman NIXON FOR PRESIDENT HEADOUARTERS SUMMARY OF OPINIONS IN THE NEWS SATURDAY, AUGUST 27, 1960 RN (1) Birmingham, Atlanta Appearances The Balt Sun, Phila. Inquirer and New York Times gave front page coverage. The Sun used a banner headline and a picture of the crowd at Birmingham on its front page also. The NYHT carried the story on page 2 as did the Wash. Post; the Chicago Tribune carried it on page 3, the New York Mirror on page 4 and the New York Daily News on page 5. Headlines were as follows: Balt. Sun - "Over 150, 000 Turn Out to See Nixon in Atlanta, State, Civil Rights Are Discussed;" Phila. Inquirer - "Nixon Gets Huge Welcome in South;" Wash. Post - "Nixon Cheered by Record Throngs," NYHT - "Nixon Cheered Wildly in Two Southern Cities, Birmingham and Atlanta Crowds Are Said to Surpass Eisenhower's;" Chicago Tribune - "Nixon Advises The South to Cast Off Yoke;" New York Mirror - "Nixon Urges South To Break One-Party Habit:" New York Daily News - "Nixon Bids Both Parties Battle for South's Votes. " The New York Times and the Balt. Sun carried the most detailed accounts of the trip. Reaction to Appearance on Jack Paar Show Lawrence Laurent in the Wash. Post: "It is obvious to the professional review- er that if Nixon had chosen a career in broadcasting, he would have been successful. By network standards of performance, he is the most professionally skilled TV per- former in national politics. His greatest asset is what the advertising man calls 'awareness This awareness, in turn, communicates to the listener a quality of sincerity which is invaluable to the salesman or candidate. The Vice President is also a skilled counter puncher in an interview." Nick Kenny in the New York Mirror: "(RN) visited the Jack Paar Show and won our vote for a most engaging guest. Charming and cordial, Mr. Nixon extem- porized with ease and persuasion." John Shanley in the New York Times: "Vice President Nixon's appearance on the Jack Paar show. was a striking example of a new style of television appeal in the current campaign for the Presidency It was, above all else, an informal occasion. The informality was probably quite effective at times as a means of appealing to voters. At other times it was startling. Mr. Nixon had demonstrated poise and astuteness. when he was interviewed by David Susskind. Guided by Mr. -2- Paar (RN) willingly entered areas of levity. The studio audience, representative perhaps of many who were watching at home, seemed to enjoy this tremendously." The Chicago Daily Tribune comments negatively on the appointment of Charles Rhyne as Chairman of the Nixon-Lodge Volunteers. The Tribune's principal complaint is that Mr. Rhyne is a long-time supporter of the repeal of the Connally amendment. "It is not particularly surprising that Mr. Nixon should go out of his way to associate himself with Mr. Rhyne, for the Vice President has also advocated repeal of the Connally reservation But Mr. Nixon's tactics are not good in emphasizing that the idea is congenial to him. If he had to find an 'independent,' he might have looked for one who was a less vocal internationalist. 11 The Chicago Tribune has a full page story on the Secret Service, most of which is based on an interview with Jack Sherwood. Senator Kennedy (2) Labor Endorsement Victor Riesel comments on the AFL-CIO endorsement as follows: "Behind the scenes there is a split which goes back to the ancient feuds between the old CIO and many of the leaders of the old AFL. skilled trades 'craft' unions. There isn't the slightest doubt that Meany is solidly behind Jack Kennedy But it will take more than the national AFL-CIO headquarters to swing the entire labor coalition into activity Building and Construction Trades Dept. (covers) some 3,000,000 members. In it are 19 major unions. They'll indorse the Kennedy-Johnson ticket, all right. But they are not all enthusiastic. In the past the Building Trades Unions have made their own politics. They want to make them again. They want allies in their fight against Reuther and. McDonald over jobs in the construction field, especially in the Govern- ment-sponsored missile base and rocket areas. Labor is there for Kennedy all right. But this hasn't kept the Bricklayers and the Structural Iron Workers from inviting Jim Mitchell to speak at their conventions in mid-September. This race is so tight that even a small bloc of unions, publicly dedicated to statements in behalf of the Democrats but locally working with the Republicans in some States, could damage Jack Kennedy's cause. " Riesel also comments in this particular column that among French political leaders whom he met and also in Italy and Switzerland, "I found that the governmental people and most party leaders were for Dick Nixon." -3- Comment on Zionist Speech (see folder 1) The Chicago Tribune analyzes Kennedy's speech to the Zionist Organization of America. "Mr. Kennedy's appearance before the (Zionist) convention in an undisguised appeal for votes on issue of little or no relevance was at once discreditable to him and inconsistent with his repeated pleas against prejudiced voting It should be added that the speech did not reflect any great respect for the intelligence of the audience. Anybody who can be persuaded that Mr. Kennedy can or will do more to bring peace to the Middle East than his predecessors have done is naive, indeed. All of Mr. Kennedy's prescriptions have been tried without achieving much of any- thing All this Mr. Kennedy knows. As he had no new ideas to offer that might lead to a reconciliation, it must be concluded that he has nothing new to offer. It follows that the purpose of his speech was not to promote. peace in the Middle East but to promote votes for himself Mr. Kennedy's idea is that emotional, prejudiced voting is all right if the emotions can be channeled to his advantage. 11 Comment on Farm Speech Dubuque, Iowa, Telegraph-Herald: 11 Senator John Kennedy said. that the elec- tion of a Democratic President and a Democratic Congress will mean a 25 per cent higher income for farmers. Just how that miracle will be wrought he didn't explain exactly. He will work out the formula between now and next January. Prior to (this grandiose declaration) the assemblage heard a score or more 'cure-alls' for agriculture, including all the standbys and bromides of the last quarter century. The spectacular had nothing to do, of course, with genuinei agricultural reform. It was strictly a political rally." The editorial goes on to raise the question of why the Democratic Congress has not been able to correct the evils that it sees in the Eisen- hower program and comments "It all goes to show--particularly the hodge-podge of irrelevant and contradictory plans offered at this political extravaganza that the farm problem is beyond the capacity of politicians, of either. party. If and when they finally come to realize that it can't be solved in the heat of a political campaign. the temptation to kick it around in a campaign, as witness this hocus pocus at Des Moines, is so overpowering that any sensible solution seems far away at this time. The only way to discourage the politicians would be for the voters themselves, to make it clear that they won't make bigger suckers out of themselves than necessary. This meeting was to have been the great Mid-West farm laboratory as the time and -4- place for agricultural geniuses to formulate something or other. But can any Iowa farmer, in the soberness of the morning after, say that it illuminated the farm prob- lem?" Comment on Kennedy's Virginia Appearance Both the Evening Star and the Wash. Post comment on the conspicuous absence of Senator Harry F. Byrd from the Kennedy rally at Alexandria. The Wash. Post said: "(Byrd's) absence may be the tipoff on what he plans to do in the presidential campaign. Mr. Byrd is an accomplished sitter, and it may well be that the faithful who repair to his annual picnic at Berryville today will find him firmly ensconced in a political rocking chair What makes the situation novel this year is that Governor Almond is enthusiastically and vigorously supporting the Kennedy-Johnson ticket Mr. Almond is a skilled political leader, much more moderate in his views than Mr. Byrd, and his ability to split the machine might be considerable.' The Star says that the Senator's absence "is a bad omen for Mr. Kennedy It is not necessarily true that as Byrd goes, so goes Virginia. Still, if he does not publicly indorse the party ticket Senator Kennedy is going to have mighty rough sledding in the Old Dominion. The principal reason for the Senator's aloofness will be found in the things that Senator Kennedy left unsaid in his talk: One of these has to do with civil rights. Mr. Nixon more or less came to grips with that issue when he went into North Caro- lina. Senator Kennedy gave it such a heavy dose of the silent treatment that one might think there is no such issue in this election." Miscellany The New York Daily News comments on Senators Kennedy and Symington's statements concerning the state of our national defense. "Kennedy and Symington conducted themselves honorably during World War II, but did not have experiences that would qualify them as experts on the whole complex defense picture. We have a hunch that most voters are as bored as we are by these gentlemen's pretensions to knowledge which they do not have, and which Gen. Eisenhower does have. Cleveland Plain Dealer comments on the medical care bill and Senator Kennedy's statements concerning the failure of the Senate to pass his bill. "Senator Kennedy complains that he needed the help of a few Republicans to put over the Anderson amendment and therefore blames the opposition party for its defeat. He ignores the fact that if his own party ranks had held solid on this 'must' measure, it would have -5- won easily When they cannot pass 'must' legislation it is plain demonstration of contrary views within their qwn ranks. Sen. Kennedy can't in honesty blame the Republicans. " Jackie Robinson in his Friday column takes off after Bobby Kennedy. "Sen. Kennedy's kid brother, Bobby, was in town Wednesday, and by the time he left, he had made it. quite plain that as campaign manager for the Democratic nominee he will not hesitate to use lies, innuendos and personal attacks on those who disagree with him to get his candidate into the White House He was obviously unable to offer any convincing explanation of his brother's huddle with such avowed Negro-haters (as Gov. Patterson and Sam Englehardt). The younger Kennedy shifted his attack to this reporter and his position with Chock Full O'Nuts Not content with gutter tactics against me, he then turned to my employer, William Black, who he stated categor- ically 'is and always has been a Republican' If Kennedy ever took the trouble to investigate he would find that Black is a registered Liberal and has been for years I might point out that it would be pretty strange behavior for a 'lifetime Republican' to make a $5,000 contribution to Sen. Humphrey's primary campaign, as did Mr. Black. As for his anti-union charge against the company. There have been two recent elections and both times our employes elected to stay with the company's own advanced policies rather than accept the unions which offered themselves. One such vote was by a margin of 19 to 1. To me, the most revealing part of the whole attack was Robert Kennedy's reference to 18,000,000 Negro Americans as 'his Negroes meaning Jackie Robinson's. Apparently young Bobby hasn't heard that the Emancipation Proclamation was signed 97 years ago. I don't run any plantation, and I suggest to Kennedy that he stop acting as if he did Obviously, the Senator's campaign manager has resorted to this kind of smut because of fear--fear that though September is just around the corner, his brother's actions since his nomination have done exactly the opposite of proving his sincerity to anybody on civil rights. And this latest episode convinces me all the more that this bunch has no business at the helm of the U. S.A." Ambassador Lodge (3) Kansas City Star: "Few men in public life recently have earned such general respect and confidence. Mr. Lodge brought to his post unusual advantages both of -6- background and previous experience. He came already equipped with a broad know- ledge of men and affairs He had that ability to distinguish underlying principles from irrelevant detail which marks the true professional The real secret of Mr. Lodge's success, however, appears to have sprung from his concept of international organization. Other delegates have tended to regard the United Nations as an instru- ment for intrigue and a forum for promoting specific national policies. Mr. Lodge perceived that our basic interest in the long run would be best served by helping to make it function properly in accordance with the assumptions of its charter. His influence, therefore, was consistently thrown behind those forces which sought to pro- mote increasing use of United Nations machinery for the settlement of international disputes The results speak for themselves and for the benefits which Mr. Lodge's own country has legitimately reaped from the growing stature of the United Nations. 11 Charles Lucey in the New York World Telegram-Sun: 'The sleeper in this year's election could be Henry Cabot Lodge From all over the country come reports that, in measure scarcely anticipated when Mr. Lodge was chosen at Chicago (he) is developing standout status in voter acceptance The chief reason may be the 'high visibility' Mr. Lodge has had as the one merican in almost daily confrontation of the Russians. Millions have the United Nations image of Mr. Lodge (saying) 'Speaking for the United States. 111 - 0 R.Hnldeman NIXON FOR PRESIDENT HEADOUARTERS SUMMARY OF OPINIONS IN THE NEWS SUNDAY, AUG. 28, MONDAY, AUG. 29,1960 RN (1) Visit to Atlanta The Atlanta Constitution, the Journal and the Daily World (Negro) gave extremely complete coverage to RN's Atlanta trip both prior to, during, and after the visit. All of the papers carried welcoming editorials. The Daily World entitled its editorial, "Thrice Welcome, Vice President Nixon. " "Vice President Nixon has always shown a friendly attitude toward the South and to his credit will be listed many of the social and political gains that have come to the South and the Negro group in particular. Not many times in our history has a Vice President so conducted himself in office in bringing about the prestige and high honor of having been nominated for President in his own right and without opposition. It is well that forward-looking citizens have taken advantage of this novelty in inviting the candidate for the highest office in the land to our section. " The Atlanta Constitution, in an editorial entitled "Mr. Nixon, You're Welcome to Atlanta" says "This is, to be sure, a somewhat Democratic state, having never yet voted Republican. But Mr. Nixon is welcome to show his wares He is welcome because he pays Georgians the compliment of assuming their minds are not closed. He is welcome because his visit strikes a blow for the two-party system He is welcome because his presence indicates the Republican Party recognizes that the South is a reputable part of the American Union. And he is welcome always as the vice president of the United States. 11 The Augusta Chronicle also welcomes RN editorially. "The people of Georgia and the people of the South have hurt no one but themselves by their repeated robuke of a strong two-party system The Republican Party has not, and does not now, deserve the unswerving support of the South, but neither does the Democratic Party deserve it. It is only through being truly 'up for grabs! that the potentially decisive South may gain its rightful place in national politics and have its voice heard in the councils of both parties. Vice President Nixon's speeches. and the others he will make throughout the South this fall, indicate the South is making progress toward this goal Regardless of how the state votes in November, we are glad to be considered enough of a question mark now to invite a visit from the Republican Presidential candidate. 11 -3- strated is a burning desire to get there and a calculated, ruthless use of men and money to achieve his ambition. It is a matter of record that Mr. Kennedy has surrounded himself with a legion of radical, self-designated intellectuals. With a Democratic Congress dominated by ultra-liberals, Mr. Kennedy in the White House could lead this country down socialistic, welfare-state paths Freedom for the individual would be drastically lessened in the process We cannot ignore the pre- sent makeup of the national Democratic Party. It is a party obviously controlled by Chester Bowles Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. and Kenneth Galbraith, and obviously influ- enced by the NAACP and by Paul Butler's handpicked Democratic Advisory Council. It is not the party of our Southern fathers. We do not, on the other hand, seek to advance the cause of the Republican Party as such. Our interest is in the nation, not the party We do not herald Richard Nixon as a man on a white horse, a 'hero. 1 But with admitted recognition of his apparent shortcomings, and with a fully-annotated political record of both candidates before us, we come to the conclusion that, given this choice--and it is the only choice we have--we could not in good conscience advise the Deep South to support John F. Kennedy We sincerely advocate the selection of Richard Nixon as the next President, as the better choice. Let us have in the White House a man whose resolute opposition to communism has been thoroughly tested, even in Russia itself, and whose advisers are men of reasonable conservatism. 11 Houston Post: "As vice president, Richard M. Nixon has had the most remark- able training of any man in history for the presidency of the United States. He has demonstrated at home and around the world his strength, his courage, his ability to find a way to understanding even in seemingly impossible situations. He has not dodged or evaded any issue Because of the proven fact of Richard M. Nixon's statesmanship, The Post recommends him to you as the wisest choice for President of the United States In January of 1961 America will need a man prepared in every way for immediate decisions of a global nature. Richard M. Nixon is such a man The Presidential race is between Kennedy and Nixon, and it is between them that the voters must choose. 11 New Castle, Pa. News: "The times call for men of unusual stature, men of courage, men of vision, men who will do the best job for America in the next four years. Without detracting from the abilities of John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson, we are of the opinion tha best interests of America call for the election -2- Post-Visit Comment Atlanta Constitution: "Vice President Nixon's visit to Atlanta was a personal triumph. He was received by one of the largest and most cordial crowds ever to turn out for any personage or event in the city's history. We're glad of it (His visit) was indeed an honor. It was also a rarity, as Mr. Nixon reminded us We're glad along with Mayor Hartsfield a true Democrat--that the one-party system is being challenged. Mr. Nixon's pitch essentially was conservative. He upheld states' rights, opposed big government, big spending and reminded his audience that the Democratic Party no longer is essentially the one party of the South. He stood firm on civil rights but tried to place the issue in perspective The great outpour- ing of people yesterday showed there is fertile ground for political changes, for contest and political development. Let the GOP nurture its opportunities. Endorsements The Birmingham News, in a front page editorial Sunday, endorsed the Nixon- Lodge ticket as The only choice for America. "The Birmingham News recommends the election of Vice President Richard Nixon to the Presidency We do so. because we are convinced that his experience in dealing with matters of defense, the national security, foreign policy and in combatting the nakedly brutal force of communism is much greater than is that of John F, Kennedy. We do so in part, too, because we are convinced that Mr. Nixon, his advisers and much of the leadership of his party have a political philosophy in domestic affairs that is much safer for the future of this nation, and for the South in particular We do not believe; and we think that Alabamians will not believe, that there is any real hope that the forces which engin- eered the Kennedy nomination, and would be very evident in the Kennedy administra- tion, would permit Lyndon Johnson to have any great influence should the Democratic ticket be elected. The approaches and convictions of Sen. Johnson and Sen. Kennedy are sharply different. They simply cannot be reconciled. On the other hand Henry Cabot Lodge represents with emphasis the principal strength of Mri. Nixon in the field of foreign affairs and would lend to the Nixon administration a proved capa- city in facing up squarely to the dangers of international communism. Mr Lodge is there to provide knowledge and experience after the election. Sen. Johnson is there to pacify the South up to the Nov. 8 election--and for no other reason, we suspect Mr. Kennedy's principal qualific for the job so far as he has demon- -4- of Richard M. Nixon and Henry Cabot Loage Richard M. Nixon has been the most outstanding Vice President this nation has ever had. To his native ability, President Eisenhower added a wide variety of important tasks all of which he has discharged with dignity, fidelity and efficiency The next four years will be a period when a knowledge of international affairs will be invaluable. Lodge as our Ambassador to the United Nations has compiled a brilliant record. He knows what is going on. He has represented the United States at the UN with courage and fidelity. 11 Council Bluffs Nonpareil: "The Nonpareil will support Richard Nixon and Henry Cabot Lodge this fall. We believe they are much better qualified than their oppon- ents for the two high offices in our land. 11 Comment on Life Magazine Article WSJ: From all the talk about our loss of national purpose you might get the idea that this worry never bothered Americans in days gone by. So it is useful to have Vice President Nixon remind us how frequently and sometimes bitterly Ameri- cans have bewailed the shortcomings of their society and its purposes throughout our history In times past the voices raised in denunciation sought reformation of indi- vidual man, or a religious or cultural revival. Today many of the critics have formed a cult of despair of our future unless a 'purpose' is imposed on us collectively, through the agency of the Federal Government. This is not only a denial of the Amer- ican heritage. It is, as Mr. Nixon makes clear, totally unwarranted by our actual situation. We are not in such poor shape that our only salvation is Government In Mr. Nixon's view, our national purpose has not declined but grown and broadened as the country has matured The truth is that the American people have always met every demand that requires a truly national expression of purpose. But short of that there should never be a national purpose in the sense of decrees from above Amer- ica needs critics, and if the past and present are indications, we will not lack them in the future. But when criticism degenerates into a despair of individual liberty, then something else is also needed. What is needed, as Mr. Nixon suggests, is not a new sense of national purpose but a new affirmation of America's oldest purposes. 11 Robert Jordan in his weekly review of magazines in the Sunday Wash. Post: "It must seem to many that what Vice President Nixon is saying in Life has merit beyond what has been said heretofore in that magazine's several essays on our national purpose Nixon's essay adds up to an affirmation of faith. It is a positive statement -5- of America's innumerable worthwhile attributes. As such, plain and simple, it is welcome change from the criers of gloom and doom, necessary though they be." Position Paper on Communism Wash. Post: "Vice President Nixon has presented as one of his campaign materials an interesting discussion of the nature of communism. If the treatise is often superficial, it is nevertheless a pointed and sometimes perceptive critique of the internal contradictions of Commist society as found in the Soviet Union. It does a good job of explaining the idyllic promises and appeals to brotherhood that combine with monstrous frauds, economic absurdities and the denial of transcendant moral principle, all under the banner of Marxism. At the same time, some caveats are in order respecting this or any other simplified assessment of communism. The cruelties and contradictions have not prevented the Soviet Union from amassing formid- able military capability, nor have the inefficiencies and millstones of dogma prevented it from building substantial economic strength. The combination of political oligarchy, material power and faith held out to the unsuspecting makes an awesome package. In the case of the Soviet Union, moreover, the philosophy has been used to cloak national and imperial ambitions The abundant contradictions, the contortions of history and the abjuration of moral law do not in themselves constitute evidence that a collapse of the Soviet system is in the making. The late Secretary Dulles voiced such a conviction and it proved to be a sad miscalculation. 11 Miscellany John Grimes, on the editorial page of the WSJ, says that neither candidate will be likely to get his own legislative way as President. "The weakness of Mr. Kennedy's legislative leadership has been bathed in a spotlight SO glaring that every flaw has been revealed and perhaps exaggerated The Kennedy plea for party loyalty was resisted even by border-state Democrats. His plea for loyalty to liberalism was resisted even by ultra-liberal Northern Republicans. And the man who decided to hold this post-convention session, Mr. Johnson, now finds his fame as a legislative magi- cian dimmed The lesson of this summer is that the refusal of Congress to enact big bold bills was not simply a personal failure of the nominees. It had deeper roots. Essentially these are to be found in the committees of Congress The key congres- sional committees will still be around next year, and barring an unlikely election upset most will have the same chairmen. With Democrats in charge, the problem faced by resident Nixon might be greater than that faced by a President Kennedy The otence of legislative leadership this summer does not prove the next President be powerless. It does foreshadow an era of struggle; it previews the problems t either candidate would face on Capitol Hill. 11 e South (2) RN's evaluation of political conditions in the South received fairly good play in e Sunday papers. The WSJ lead story today is on Republican possibilities in the South and the neeting that was held in Jackson, Mississippi. This is a fairly good rundown on nany of the issues which have been mentioned in recent weeks in editorials in Southern papers. Charleston News & Courier: "This year for the first time in 28 years, the News and Courier is not supporting independent electors This time the News & Courier, as many others in South Carolina, sees an opportunity for our state to rejoin the main stream of American political action. To be effective, we believe that voters should make their choice between two candidates, Nixon and Kennedy. There is no other choice. Hopes of throwing the election into the House of Repre- sentatives and gaining either a covert deal, or by some fluke electing a minority presidential candidate are in our judgment a delusion in 1960. They have no more substance than a mirage in the desert Voters will have greater influence this year if they listen hard, look straight, and choose between Nixon and Kennedy. They will be wasting their ballots on a third electoral slate By sticking together and climb- ing out of the bag in 1960, South Carolinians have a chance to win--and to help their country win the battle against socialism and ruin. 11 Joe Alsop turns his attention today to the anti-Catholic movement in the Sout and he reviews statements made by Dr. W. A. Criswell, pastor of the First Baptis Church of Dallas, Dr. Ramsey Pollard, pastor of the Bellevue Baptist Church of Memphis, and Rev. Carey Moser of Danville, Virginia. Among other things Alsop says "A fairly sleazy, wholly unauthorized Republican lame-duck is circulating thr Texas, trying to stir up more preachers, and somewhat naively explaining that he eventually get a State Department job Nixon has just issued a general directive forbidding all his called religious issue. -7- He has nothing whatever to do with the anti-Catholic agitation that is now growing stronger by the day. But since he is the intended although wholly involuntary bene- ficiary of this agitation, it still constitutes a problem for Nixon, which will be exam- ined in another report. 11 Kennedy (3) The Congressional Session New Orleans Times-Picayune: "If there is a clear gainer, it probably is President Eisenhower Southern Democrats, of course, provided the minority Republicans with what was needed to spike the plans of Senator Kennedy and Senator Johnson. Glamor of the Los Angeles victory of the two Democratic leaders moved the Congress scarcely at all. Not one item of the main four-point Kennedy-Johnson program succeeded The Republicans managed well enough to keep Mr. Nixon iso- lated from the congressional battles, leaving him carefree and unscarred to take to the hustings. 11 Chalmers Roberts in the Wash. Post: "At most what has come out of this session is a realization by Kennedy of how much trouble he is going to have in the South and by Nixon of how much better his prospects are than they seemed to be after the Johnson nomination It should be noted that Kennedy was a very stubborn man in this session On more than one occasion Johnson tried to argue Kennedy into taking half a loaf but the presidential candidate would have none of it Kennedy gives the impression of a nervous man in a hurry to get out of Washington." Charlotte Observer: "(It was Lyndon Johnson's idea to) adjourn Congress, over- take Kennedy on the road to Los Angeles, then come back to Congress and demon- strate those high legislative skills for all the people to behold. It was neat strategy, and the only thing wrong with it is that Johnson lost and his strategy is now back firing on Senator Kennedy. The candidate is detained in Washington while Richard Nixon roams the country, getting in the licks Booby traps are all about the Capi- tol, and some of the most dangerous are manned not by Republicans but by Demo- Southern Democrats Kennedy must feel sometimes that he could take care of Republicans if only he could be delivered from Democrats. " James McCartney in the Charlotte Observer commenting on this situation, says, "If you could read Sen. John Kennedy's mind today you might find him asking himself: -8- 'How in the world did I get into this mess?' Or, even better: How do I get out of it?' For it is now becoming clear that the special session of Congress has been less than a glowing triumph for the Democrats. In fact, it has served to advertise the Democrats' problems and weaknesses. 11 Indianapolis Star: "The rest of Congress won't play the way he wants, so Senator John F. Kennedy has decided to take his mitt and million bucks and go home. The effort of the Kennedy-Johnson ticket to use Congress as a political platform has fizzled Congress should adjourn. It should do SO as rapidly as possible. Yet the country must have its doubts regarding a presidential nominee who has met real adversity by deciding that he will go home and pout awinle. Vice President Nixon, by contrast, has been ready to stay and fight for proposals wh. h he thinks are in the best interest of the country. Senator Kennedy appears more petulant than mature in this first real test of his leadership abilities. 11 Greensboro Daily News: "The quicker Congress finishes up its business in Washington and goes home, the better This session proved even on the foreign aid issue-that the Democratic Party remains badly split along ideological lines. " Comment on Kennedy Family Charleston News & Courier: "Politicians are wondering what will happen if Sen. John F. Kennedy is elected and serves two terms Will he be content to step aside at the ago of 51? Of course he will. for then it will be Bobby Kennedy's turn to be president. And when Bobby Kennedy retires, Teddy Kennedy will have I spell of being boss man in the White House. Joe Kennedy's boys stress togethe. 11 Ruth Montgomery reports: "President Bobby Kennedy thinks things have come to a pretty pass, if a man can't give away money without having his politics examined. (Bobby) succeeded Jack as president of the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation President Bobby is frankly seething at Republican Sen. Hugh Sectt's charges that the Kennedys deliberately invaded the international charity field to embarrass the State Department. 1: Comment on Kennedy's Farm Speech Dayton (Ohio) Journal Herald: "Jack Kennedy will have to do better than he did in his farm speech at Des Moines if he expects to convince the nation that the Demo- cratic party offers a satisfactory alternative to the Republican program or that he intends to conduct a sensible discussion of the great issues of this campaign. He -9- contributed little to the farm debate except a glib attempt to transfer to Vice Presi dent Nixon all the odium that has been heaped unfairly on Secretary Benson and a foolish suggestion that there are unnamed and sinister profiteers somewhere in the farmer's woodpile This was not the only piece of Kennedy's deviousness. Take his promise of 'a positive policy of supply management to raise farm prices and incomes to parity levels. 1. If you look close, that looks like 100 per cent of parity. He wisely does not specify how he would accomplish this feat except that he would use an arsenal of tools' This is tommyrot. Kennedy's speech was a real dis- service to the farmer and the country. Cedar Rapids Gazette: "The 'family-size farm' is one of the major shibboleths of the current political campaign At his press conference in Des Mornes Kennedy defined the family farm as 'big enough that a family can live on and make a living on.' That leaves as many questions unanswered as it answers. How big a family? What kind of a living The big reason for (the) trend toward larger farms is im- provement in farm mechanization and the greater productivity of farm labor The big bugaboo which some politicians and farm organizations conjure up is 'corporation farming The implication of those backing 'family-size farms' is that someway they will halt this trend toward larger and more efficient operations. Such a govern- mental policy would mean freezing unneeded people in agriculture, where technical unemployment already is a major problem. It also would mean limiting the oppor- tunities for ambitious and able farm operators to expand their operations to the limit of their abilities. Neither objective is desirable The percentage of family-operated farming units has remained practically the same for the last 40 years. There is no indication that any great change is in the offing." Labor Endorsement David Lawrence: "Some indorsements in a political campaign could mean the 'kiss of death' to a Presidential candidate among groups of voters who are antagonized by the action Sen. Kennedy says he is proud of the indorsement' (from the AFL- CIO) and one wonders if this means that, if elected; he will feel beholden to the AFL-CIO If the National Association of Manufacturers or the United States Cham- ber of Commerce were to announce that they indorsed Vice-President Nixon, the labor press would be the first to jump on them as having made a 'deal' with the Republican candidate." Lawrence also goes on to take the AFL-CIO to task for -10- its statement that Quibbles over precise wording cannot conceal the fact that Nixon impugned the loyalty of a Congressman, a nominee for the Senate, a Secretary of State and a President of the United States in his various electoral adventures. 31 This is all the more surprising because the AFL's own statements were critical of the failure of various officials during the Truman administration to deal more vigorously than they did with the Communists. To say now that criticism of this kind 'impugned the loyalty' of anybody is to indulge in a 'guilt-by-inference" technique which the new AFL-CIO pronouncement itself professes to condemn As for the campaign of 1950, which is so often the pretext for criticizing the kind of speeches Mr. Nixon made about his opponents, Adm. E. M. Zacharias wrote a letter to the New York Herald Tribune pointing out what many people have not known--namely, that the opponent of Mr. Nixon in that campaign had spoken from the same platform with a known Communist. " Miscellany Charleston News & Courier: "Instead of sending Turncoat Johnson to do a man's work, Sen. Kennedy ought to come to South Carolina himself and campaign for 'liberal' democracy. His failure thus far to include South Carolina on his schedule of addresses raises the question whether he is 'chicken. , Mr. Nixon isn't scared of discussing the issues, including the tough ones like civil rights, in the South When he comes to the Palmetto State, his South Carolina supporters won't be reluctant to be seen with Richard Nixon We know of nothing that would be better for South Carolina than an active campaign in the state by BOTH presidential candidates. It would show the voters who's who and what's what. 'Liberals' and conservatives would be clearly identified State leaders go about the country bragging that South Carolina is con- servative, supports free enterprise and believes in the right-to-work principle but the actions of the officeholding industry make plain that conservatism is forgotten in presidential years when visions of political patronage appear before eyes of politi- cians Let Sen. Kennedy come to South Carolina. Let the people see who stands by him. Let truth be known. 11 Illinois Politics (4) Chicago Sun-Times reports that Warren E. Wright has said he will not sup- port Gov. Stratton's bid for reelection. He did say, however, that he would support -11- the national ticket and he predicted a November victory for Otto Kerner. John Dreiske in the Sun-Times points out that the Republican platform is going to be important in the state election in Illinois. "The Republican Senate majority killed equal job opportunities (FEPC) proposals in the 1959 session of the Illinois General Assembly after the Democratic-controlled House had passed the bill It is a practical, political fact of life that Chicago's large Negro population is deeply stirred over the problem. The history of this proposed legislation does not give the Negroes much assurance that the Republican party is nearly as much interested in their welfare as it is in the welfare of employers who find themselves unable to employ Negroes In (Rockefeller's) refusal to budge, he supplied Vice President Nixon with a handy and welcome vehicle for veering away from President Eisenhower in this and other important national matters. Nixon has the advantage over Gov. Stratton in that Nixon is only officially tied to the Eisenhower record and utterances, not unofficially. But the Illinois Republicans are faced with the Republican legislative record. 11 Johnson (5) The Greenville News: "It is impossible to withhold credit from Lyndon Baines Johnson, the political magician from Texas who by some occult means daily manages to convert Democratic Senators and Governors to a cause none of them can embrace with joy. By what program of brainwashing (he) accomplishes this we do not know There can be no accounting for the behavior of Senators Eastland and Stennis except Texas mesmerism. And that must have played some part in the conversion of the others as well. All of these gentlemen must have read the Democratic platform planks on civil rights But must they rush in such unseemly haste to embrace the candi- dates who boast of those planks? Could they not have waited until the candidates themselves spell out in public precisely how they intend to carry out those pledges? The best seats on the bandwagon have already been taken The last thing in the world anyone would accuse Senator Johnson of is the taint of communism. But he must know something of their talents for brainwashing to bring this group into accord. Legislatively, it is simple to swap a harbor or a dam here for a vote somewhere else, but nothing short of political hypnotism could have accomplished what the Texan has accomplished. There are two notable exceptions, to be sure. Senators Byrd -12- and Thurmond This must be frustrating for Senator Johnson. It would all be so much easier if they would succumb to his spell and leave these decisions up to him. " The Chicago Tribune comments on Johnson's Cincinnati speech to postal work- ers in which he accused the Republicans of being the biggest peacetime spenders in history. The Tribune reviews a little history for Sen. Johnson and reminds him of who put the country into debt. Polls (6) Gallup reports today on voter sentiment concerning the House of Representa- tives. Fifty-six per cent prefer the Democrats, 39% prefer Republicans, 5% are: undecided. Sum of the People: (Kraft) like Gallup found that Ambassador Lodge adds more strength to the party ticket than does Lyndon Johnson to the Democratic slate. In a previous poll, Kraft reported that one in five voters shifted their vote into the Repub- lican column following the national conventions. The reasons for the shift are as follows: 10% for religious reason; 11% because they liked the more conservative GOP stand; 19% because the GOP platform was preferred; 22% because Nixon's experience was appreciated; 42% because of Lodge's experience in foreign affairs. Kraft sums up with this statement: "The Kennedy appeal appears to just about offset the Lodge appeal Where the two platforms are concerned, it is a dead heat."