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From George Mair, on behalf of KNX, to Ehrlichman RE: turning the Republican Party into a more relatable entity. 2 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Letter], 11/13/1970
From Paul W. Keyes to Robert Finch RE: campaign strategies. 4 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Letter], 11/4/1970
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WHSF: Contested, 6-65
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WHSF: Contested, 6-65
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This file contains:
From George Mair, on behalf of KNX, to Ehrlichman RE: turning the Republican Party into a more relatable entity. 2 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Letter], 11/13/1970
From Paul W. Keyes to Robert Finch RE: campaign strategies. 4 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Letter], 11/4/1970
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Richard M. Nixon's Returned Materials Collection
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Richard Nixon Presidential Library
Contested Materials Collection
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6
65
11/13/1970
Campaign
Letter
From George Mair, on behalf of KNX, to
Ehrlichman RE: turning the Republican Party
into a more relatable entity. 2 pgs.
6
65
11/4/1970
Campaign
Letter
From Paul W. Keyes to Robert Finch RE:
campaign strategies. 4 pgs.
Friday, June 11, 2010
Page 1 of 1
KNX
NOV 13 1970
CBS Radio
A Division of Columbia Broadcasting System, Inc.
6121 Sunset Boulevard
Los Angeles, California 90028
(213) 469-1212
Dear John:
Thanks for taking time from your busy schedule to answer my
letter. I hope you don't mind an occasional observation or
two--none of which need a reply.
I am constrained to increase your stack of in-coming mail
today with some observations on the Murphy-Tunney race.
Murphy's campaign was very badly run and he was a terrible
candidate.
His press relations for the last four years have been bad.
Of course, I notice that with many Republican office-holders.
It distresses me--as a life-long Republican--to see SO many
Republican officials regard all newsmen as the enemy. Instead
of trying to establish rapport with journalists, too many
Republicans seek to hide from them or regard them with hosti-
lity when forced to treat with them.
The Republican party has an important and good story to tell
America. Sadly, it rarely tries to tell it and, when it does,
it does SO badly.
It was only with great effort that I sold the KNX/CBS NEWSRADIO
Editorial Board on endorsing Murphy, and I did that with secret
misgivings. Murphy's age, his failure to do his homework on
important issues, and his old-time musings about ancient movie
types such as Pat O'Brien revealed that he was out-of-touch.
The party should have run Finch.
It seems to me that the President is now going to face a tougher
situation in 1972. Tunney is almost a certain and serious con-
tender for Vice Presidential nomination. He is trying to assume
the fallen mantle of JFK and RFK and is getting lots of media
help. Muskie-Tunney could be a helluva tough ticket to beat
in '72 because a Nixon-Agnew ticket pales by comparison in public
appeal.
Mr. John Ehrlichman
Page 2
The President is starting to come across warmer, but he hasn't
come far enough to really sell. Unfortunately, the majority
of his team gives the impression of cold-turkey, corporation
lawyers. They seem to be working on a conglomerate merger
instead of governing 200+ million people.
I wish that you would get more exposure in the public eye be-
cause as I said, you connect very well. Gene Klein is doing
a very good job around the country, too. I wish you had more
of him.
I wish I didn't babble on like this, but dammit I am a Republi-
can who is tired of seeing the party goof up. I think that
Nixon is doing a good job and ought to be re-elected in '72.
Yet, I am depressed about that possibility today.
Again, John, I am sorry. I promise not to ruminate at your
expense again for a long time.
June George Mair
Sincerely,
Director, Community Services
Mr. John Ehrlichman
The White House
Washington, D.C.
November 11, 1970
Finch
PAUL W. KEYES PRODUCTIONS
ncorporated
10000 RIVERSIDE DRIVE, TOLUCA LAKE, CALIFORNIA 91602 766-9505
November 4, 1970
Dear Bob:
Earlier today I chatted very briefly with Don Hughes
on the phone. He asked my opinion of the campaign and
when I gave him a few of my thoughts, Don asked me to
expand these thoughts and put them into a letter to you.
Please understand, Bob, I make no attempt to sit here on
the fringe and Monday morning quarterback.
However, since I do have some feelings on the recent
political months, I will set them down as briefly and
lucidly as I can.
In general I felt it was wrong to mount a Massive Attack
against the Democrats on the issue of Law and Order. There
is, as you know, a Point of No Return built into any attack,
and unfortunately I believe the Administration's attack
peaked far enough ahead of election day so that it was
rendered useless as a vote motivator.
In the final desperate hours I believe the Administration
lost a considerable number of votes by the total polarization
of the Republicansversus Bad Guys. Blanket endorsements
like blanket accusations are usually fallible, particularly
in an election year when the voters have been pre-saturated
with political prose. This was particularly true this year
when Ticket Splitting was forwarned. A perfect example was
represented here in California when a Conservative was
elected Governor, a Liberal Democrat was elected Senator
and a Negro Liberal was elected Superintendent of Schools.
Perhaps it is because I live here and "felt" the political
climate in the State that these three elections came as
no surprise to me.
Feeling all along that they were inevitable, I found the
"all Republicans are good guys and all Democrats are
bad guys" theology misdirected.
Another example of the same situation occurred in New York
where certainly Rockefeller was no surprise nor was Buckley.
I felt that the Democrats came into the campaign as a
debt-ridden, unorganized, scattered and shattered party.
However, due to some of the reasons I have cited above and
others, the Democratic Party emerged from the elections as
a unified party obviously now with the taste of victory and
in a much easier position to raise financing for the
Presidential race in 1972 which no longer looms as a
Republican certainty.
In short, the Administration solidified the Democrats by
making them "the Enemy".
If either party viewed 1970 as a Dress Rehearsal for 1972,
I believe Momentum is on the side of Mr. O'Brien.
I have always been a believer in Humanity and preferred it
over Hullabaloo. The difference between the two was greatly
evidenced on the eve of the election when we went for the
Hullabaloo by running on all three Networks a poor quality,
black and white, and very bad audio re-play of an occasion
that had already been reported to the Press.
The Democrats, on the other hand, chose to become the
Voice of Reason by framing Mr. Muskie in calmness and logic
with a low key approach much appreciated by voters who had
simply had it by now of slogans and cliches. Certainly many
of the key races decided the next day served to prove that
our man did not get through as a man.
I believe the voters are a little more sophisticated than
they are sometimes given credit for. I do not believe you
can say to them "bring us together" out of one side of your
mouth; tell them to "watch what we do and not what we say"
out the other side of your mouth; and accuse all Democrats
of being Anarchists out of the middle of your mouth.
To reinforce the above I have spent all of my life helping
a few individual men reach the greatest number of people.
In each case - the case of Jack Paar, the case of Dean Martin,
the case of Rowan and Martin and more recently John Wayne -
I have always found Humanity works better than Hullabaloo.
-3-
I have never preferred the Gut Fighter image, and I feel
the people basically resent a partisan campaigning
President, particularly when he Blankets the Republicans
as the good guys and the Democrats as the bad guys.
I long feared that we would overplay our hand nationally
and it was in that regard that I violently opposed the
national televising of the Anaheim Rally and was, for a
brief period of time, responsible for the cancellation
of that network coverage.
I am sure that the last ditch, all-stops-pulled Crusade on
behalf of George Murphy was ill advised. No matter how
personal the friendship, no matter how high the political
esteem, the year was never a year in which George Murphy
could have been elected once the campaign started.
John Tunney was - from the very beginning - an idea whose
time had come in California. A more careful reading out
here would have shown that earlier.
Believe me, Bob, this is not Monday morning quarterbacking.
Whatever intelligence to the contrary that went back to
Washington from California was wrong. The danger, of course,
is that too often during the heat of political battles
the reports that are sent back are colored by the Hopes
of those doing the reporting.
As for the San Jose incident which we used far too
opportunistically. I find Reagan's quote on the news that
same night unforgivable. I refer specifically to Reagan's
on-the-air quote that "we kept giving them the Peace
sign and that makes them madder than anything".
In other words, Reagan was boasting on the news that while
inside the President's threatened car, he was heaping fuel
on an already inflamatory situation by taunting those
outside the car.
We know we have a better candidate than the Democrats
can produce in 1972.
We have two years during which the President, in the
conduct of his office, can prove to the people that he
is the better man.
Whatever he does, he must not be tagged with using the
Oval Room as Campaign Headquarters for 1972.
While I am deeply aware how the loss of so many Governors
hurts the party machinery, I am not concerned with the
technical aspects. I am mainly concerned with the public
image of the President as President and campaigner.
I hope I have been clear in these few thoughts in pointing
out some of the things that seemed wrong in 1970. Certainly
I don't glory in pointing out past wrongs. My only
intention is to put the spot light on a few of them hoping
similar situations will be avoided in the future.
You know me well enough, Bob, to know that I would never
have volunteered the above unless I had been specifically
asked to do SO. And would never have burdened you with
such a long letter unless I have been specifically asked
to do SO.
Warmest regards,
Paul
The Honorable Robert Finch
Counsel to the President
The White House
Washington, D. C.