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This file contains:
From Pat Buchanan to Haldeman, Ehrlichman, and Colson. RE: Suggestions for new "attack" ads, both in television and in print. 2 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 10/26/1972
From Pat Buchanan to Haldeman, Ehrlichman, and Colson. RE: Suggestions for new "attack" ads, both on television and in print ads. 2 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 10/26/1972
From Pat Buchanan to Haldeman. RE: The strategy when dealing with state election results. The first is to "keep quiet as mice while the election is on; and secondly, to start crowing the instant the returns are in." 3 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 9/19/1972
Unknown author to H. RE: message that reads: "Although you had checked the attached and it was in your outbox, I wonder if there aren't a couple of ideas to follow up on, etc." 1 pg. [Subject: White House Staff] [Memo], 9/12/1972
From Patrick Buchanan to The President. RE: McGovern, and the notion that while Nixon is 34 points ahead, it is more important to acknowledge the fact that McGovern is 34 points behind. 3 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 9/6/1972
The Los Angeles Times Syndicate entitled, "The Party of Workingmen and Women." 3 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Newspaper], 9/7/1972
From Patrick J. Buchanan to The President. RE: Thoughts, recommendations, and problems in the presidential campaign, and how to overcome McGovern's recent attempts to move to the center. 3 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 9/6/1972
An article from The Los Angeles Times Syndicate entitled, "The Party of Workingmen and Women." 3 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Newspaper], 9/7/1972
From Larry Higby to Gordon Strachan. RE: Message that reads, "I'd be interested in your reaction to Buchanan's criticism of the Teeter briefing." 1 pg. [Subject: White House Staff] [Memo], 8/7/1972
From Patrick Buchanan to The President. RE: The need to avoid issues such as unemployment and economic management, as they are considered the President's "weakest" points. 2 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 8/6/1972
From Bruce Kehrli to Haldeman. RE: Message that reads, "For discussion at your 10:00 A.M. political meeting." 1 pg. [Subject: White House Staff] [Memo], 8/3/1972
From Pat Buchanan to The President. RE: A grassroots effort to McGovernize the Republican Party with a type of "affirmative action" program that would bring more "fashionable minorities" to future GOP conventions. 1 pg. [Subject: Domestic Policy] [Memo], 8/2/1972
The Human Events Weekly Washington Report entitled, "GOP Liberals Plan to McGovernize Party." 2 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Report], 8/5/1972
From Bruce Kehrli to Haldeman. RE: Message that reads,"For discussion at your 10:00 A.M. political meeting." 1 pg. [Subject: White House Staff] [Memo], 8/3/1972
From Pat Buchanan to The President. RE: A grassroots movement to "McGovernize the Republican Party via affirmative action programs." 1 pg. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 8/2/1972
A weekly Washington Report from Human Events entitled, "GOP Liberals Plan to McGovernize Party." 2 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Report], 8/5/1972
From Patrick Buchanan to The President. RE: The Vice President and the Campaign. 4 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 7/23/1972
A talking paper for Buchanan regarding the Vice President's need to talk with the press, and the overall role the VP should have in the theme of reelection. 1 pg. [Subject: Campaign] [Other Document], 7/13/1972
From Patrick Buchanan to The President. RE: The observations made from a study of McGovern's primary ads, TV, radio and press are all worth noting. 6 pgs. [Subject: Campaig] [Memo], 7/12/1972
From Dwight Chapin to unknown receiver. RE: A messages that reads, "Eyes only to Gordon." 1 pg. [Subject: White House Staff] [Other Document], no date
From Patrick Buchanan to The President. RE: A study of McGovern's ideological liberalism, and the contrast with his attempts at "cleaning up the welfare mess." 6 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 7/12/1972
From Patrick Buchanan to The President. RE: Questions concerning McGovern's ideology when there exists a stark contrast between his purported liberalism, and the rather "conservative" messages he promotes on TV. 6 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 7/12/1972
From Patrick J. Buchanan to The President. RE: Some lessons worth noting from the elections of 1968 and 1960. 8 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 7/5/1972
From Patrick Buchanan and Ken Khachigian to Haldeman and Clark Mac Gregor. RE: Strategy thoughts from the time period between the conventions. 4 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 7/7/1972
From Pat Buchanan to The President. RE: McGovern Problems with Party Regulars. 2 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 6/25/1972
From Charles Colson to The Staff Secretary. RE: The action memorandum #P-2105, and McGovern's position about moving closer to the center as he indicated at the Democratic Convention. 2 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 6/24/1972
From Bruce Kehrli to Mr. Chuck Colson. RE: The Democratic Convention, and McGovern's conundrum of whether to stay true to his liberal base, or make himself more of a moderate. 1 pg. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 6/23/1972
From Pat Buchanan to John Mitchell and Haldeman. RE: The recent news that the former Governor of Virginia, Mills Godwin, rescinded his support for McGovern, and pledged his commitment and support to Nixon. 1 pg. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 6/25/1972
Scholar Source Context
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WHSF: Contested, 21-5
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document
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id
26145846
sourceUrl
contentType
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title
WHSF: Contested, 21-5
description
This file contains:
From Pat Buchanan to Haldeman, Ehrlichman, and Colson. RE: Suggestions for new "attack" ads, both in television and in print. 2 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 10/26/1972
From Pat Buchanan to Haldeman, Ehrlichman, and Colson. RE: Suggestions for new "attack" ads, both on television and in print ads. 2 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 10/26/1972
From Pat Buchanan to Haldeman. RE: The strategy when dealing with state election results. The first is to "keep quiet as mice while the election is on; and secondly, to start crowing the instant the returns are in." 3 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 9/19/1972
Unknown author to H. RE: message that reads: "Although you had checked the attached and it was in your outbox, I wonder if there aren't a couple of ideas to follow up on, etc." 1 pg. [Subject: White House Staff] [Memo], 9/12/1972
From Patrick Buchanan to The President. RE: McGovern, and the notion that while Nixon is 34 points ahead, it is more important to acknowledge the fact that McGovern is 34 points behind. 3 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 9/6/1972
The Los Angeles Times Syndicate entitled, "The Party of Workingmen and Women." 3 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Newspaper], 9/7/1972
From Patrick J. Buchanan to The President. RE: Thoughts, recommendations, and problems in the presidential campaign, and how to overcome McGovern's recent attempts to move to the center. 3 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 9/6/1972
An article from The Los Angeles Times Syndicate entitled, "The Party of Workingmen and Women." 3 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Newspaper], 9/7/1972
From Larry Higby to Gordon Strachan. RE: Message that reads, "I'd be interested in your reaction to Buchanan's criticism of the Teeter briefing." 1 pg. [Subject: White House Staff] [Memo], 8/7/1972
From Patrick Buchanan to The President. RE: The need to avoid issues such as unemployment and economic management, as they are considered the President's "weakest" points. 2 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 8/6/1972
From Bruce Kehrli to Haldeman. RE: Message that reads, "For discussion at your 10:00 A.M. political meeting." 1 pg. [Subject: White House Staff] [Memo], 8/3/1972
From Pat Buchanan to The President. RE: A grassroots effort to McGovernize the Republican Party with a type of "affirmative action" program that would bring more "fashionable minorities" to future GOP conventions. 1 pg. [Subject: Domestic Policy] [Memo], 8/2/1972
The Human Events Weekly Washington Report entitled, "GOP Liberals Plan to McGovernize Party." 2 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Report], 8/5/1972
From Bruce Kehrli to Haldeman. RE: Message that reads,"For discussion at your 10:00 A.M. political meeting." 1 pg. [Subject: White House Staff] [Memo], 8/3/1972
From Pat Buchanan to The President. RE: A grassroots movement to "McGovernize the Republican Party via affirmative action programs." 1 pg. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 8/2/1972
A weekly Washington Report from Human Events entitled, "GOP Liberals Plan to McGovernize Party." 2 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Report], 8/5/1972
From Patrick Buchanan to The President. RE: The Vice President and the Campaign. 4 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 7/23/1972
A talking paper for Buchanan regarding the Vice President's need to talk with the press, and the overall role the VP should have in the theme of reelection. 1 pg. [Subject: Campaign] [Other Document], 7/13/1972
From Patrick Buchanan to The President. RE: The observations made from a study of McGovern's primary ads, TV, radio and press are all worth noting. 6 pgs. [Subject: Campaig] [Memo], 7/12/1972
From Dwight Chapin to unknown receiver. RE: A messages that reads, "Eyes only to Gordon." 1 pg. [Subject: White House Staff] [Other Document], no date
From Patrick Buchanan to The President. RE: A study of McGovern's ideological liberalism, and the contrast with his attempts at "cleaning up the welfare mess." 6 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 7/12/1972
From Patrick Buchanan to The President. RE: Questions concerning McGovern's ideology when there exists a stark contrast between his purported liberalism, and the rather "conservative" messages he promotes on TV. 6 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 7/12/1972
From Patrick J. Buchanan to The President. RE: Some lessons worth noting from the elections of 1968 and 1960. 8 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 7/5/1972
From Patrick Buchanan and Ken Khachigian to Haldeman and Clark Mac Gregor. RE: Strategy thoughts from the time period between the conventions. 4 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 7/7/1972
From Pat Buchanan to The President. RE: McGovern Problems with Party Regulars. 2 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 6/25/1972
From Charles Colson to The Staff Secretary. RE: The action memorandum #P-2105, and McGovern's position about moving closer to the center as he indicated at the Democratic Convention. 2 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 6/24/1972
From Bruce Kehrli to Mr. Chuck Colson. RE: The Democratic Convention, and McGovern's conundrum of whether to stay true to his liberal base, or make himself more of a moderate. 1 pg. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 6/23/1972
From Pat Buchanan to John Mitchell and Haldeman. RE: The recent news that the former Governor of Virginia, Mills Godwin, rescinded his support for McGovern, and pledged his commitment and support to Nixon. 1 pg. [Subject: Campaign] [Memo], 6/25/1972
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Richard M. Nixon's Returned Materials Collection
Contested Materials Files
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Richard Nixon Presidential Library
Contested Materials Collection
Folder List
Box Number
Folder Number
Document Date
No Date
Subject
Document Type
Document Description
21
5
10/26/1972
Campaign
Memo
From Pat Buchanan to Haldeman,
Ehrlichman, and Colson. RE: Suggestions for
new "attack" ads, both in television and in
print. 2 pgs.
21
5
10/26/1972
Campaign
Memo
From Pat Buchanan to Haldeman,
Ehrlichman, and Colson. RE: Suggestions for
new "attack" ads, both on television and in
print ads. 2 pgs.
21
5
9/19/1972
Campaign
Memo
From Pat Buchanan to Haldeman. RE: The
strategy when dealing with state election
results. The first is to "keep quiet as mice
while the election is on; and secondly, to
start crowing the instant the returns are in." 3
pgs.
21
5
9/12/1972
White House Staff
Memo
Unknown author to H. RE: message that
reads: "Although you had checked the
attached and it was in your outbox, I wonder
if there aren't a couple of ideas to follow up
on, etc." 1 pg.
Wednesday, April 06, 2011
Page 1 of 6
Box Number
Folder Number
Document Date
No Date
Subject
Document Type
Document Description
21
5
9/6/1972
Campaign
Memo
From Patrick Buchanan to The President.
RE: McGovern, and the notion that while
Nixon is 34 points ahead, it is more
important to acknowledge the fact that
McGovern is 34 points behind. 3 pgs.
21
5
9/7/1972
Campaign
Newspaper
The Los Angeles Times Syndicate entitled,
"The Party of Workingmen and Women." 3
pgs.
21
5
9/6/1972
Campaign
Memo
From Patrick J. Buchanan to The President.
RE: Thoughts, recommendations, and
problems in the presidential campaign, and
how to overcome McGovern's recent
attempts to move to the center. 3 pgs.
21
5
9/7/1972
Campaign
Newspaper
An article from The Los Angeles Times
Syndicate entitled, "The Party of
Workingmen and Women." 3 pgs.
21
5
8/7/1972
White House Staff
Memo
From Larry Higby to Gordon Strachan. RE:
Message that reads, "I'd be interested in your
reaction to Buchanan's criticism of the Teeter
briefing." 1 pg.
Wednesday, April 06, 2011
Page 2 of 6
Box Number
Folder Number
Document Date
No Date
Subject
Document Type
Document Description
21
5
8/6/1972
Campaign
Memo
From Patrick Buchanan to The President.
RE: The need to avoid issues such as
unemployment and economic management,
as they are considered the President's
"weakest" points. 2 pgs.
21
5
8/3/1972
White House Staff
Memo
From Bruce Kehrli to Haldeman. RE:
Message that reads, "For discussion at your
10:00 A.M. political meeting." 1 pg.
21
5
8/2/1972
Domestic Policy
Memo
From Pat Buchanan to The President. RE: A
grassroots effort to McGovernize the
Republican Party with a type of "affirmative
action" program that would bring more
"fashionable minorities" to future GOP
conventions. 1 pg.
21
5
8/5/1972
Campaign
Report
The Human Events Weekly Washington
Report entitled, "GOP Liberals Plan to
McGovernize Party." 2 pgs.
21
5
8/3/1972
White House Staff
Memo
From Bruce Kehrli to Haldeman. RE:
Message that reads, "For discussion at your
10:00 A.M. political meeting." 1 pg.
Wednesday, April 06, 2011
Page 3 of 6
Box Number
Folder Number
Document Date
No Date
Subject
Document Type
Document Description
21
5
8/2/1972
Campaign
Memo
From Pat Buchanan to The President. RE: A
grassroots movement to "McGovernize the
Republican Party via affirmative action
programs." 1 pg.
21
5
8/5/1972
Campaign
Report
A weekly Washington Report from Human
Events entitled, "GOP Liberals Plan to
McGovernize Party." 2 pgs.
21
5
7/23/1972
Campaign
Memo
From Patrick Buchanan to The President.
RE: The Vice President and the Campaign. 4
pgs.
21
5
7/13/1972
Campaign
Other Document
A talking paper for Buchanan regarding the
Vice President's need to talk with the press,
and the overall role the VP should have in
the theme of reelection. 1 pg.
21
5
7/12/1972
Campaign
Memo
From Patrick Buchanan to The President.
RE: The observations made from a study of
McGovern's primary ads, TV, radio and
press are all worth noting. 6 pgs.
Wednesday, April 06, 2011
Page 4 of 6
Box Number
Folder Number
Document Date
No Date
Subject
Document Type
Document Description
21
5
White House Staff
Other Document
From Dwight Chapin to unknown receiver.
RE: A messages that reads, "Eyes only to
Gordon." 1 pg.
21
5
7/12/1972
Campaign
Memo
From Patrick Buchanan to The President.
RE: A study of McGovern's ideological
liberalism, and the contrast with his attempts
at "cleaning up the welfare mess." 6 pgs.
21
5
7/12/1972
Campaign
Memo
From Patrick Buchanan to The President.
RE: Questions concerning McGovern's
ideology when there exists a stark contrast
between his purported liberalism, and the
rather "conservative" messages he promotes
on TV. 6 pgs.
21
5
7/5/1972
Campaign
Memo
From Patrick J. Buchanan to The President.
RE: Some lessons worth noting from the
elections of 1968 and 1960. 8 pgs.
21
5
7/7/1972
Campaign
Memo
From Patrick Buchanan and Ken Khachigian
to Haldeman and Clark Mac Gregor. RE:
Strategy thoughts from the time period
between the conventions. 4 pgs.
Wednesday, April 06, 2011
Page 5 of 6
Box Number
Folder Number
Document Date
No Date
Subject
Document Type
Document Description
21
5
6/25/1972
Campaign
Memo
From Pat Buchanan to The President. RE:
McGovern Problems with Party Regulars. 2
pgs.
21
5
6/24/1972
Campaign
Memo
From Charles Colson to The Staff Secretary.
RE: The action memorandum #P-2105, and
McGovern's position about moving closer to
the center as he indicated at the Democratic
Convention. 2 pgs.
21
5
6/23/1972
Campaign
Memo
From Bruce Kehrli to Mr. Chuck Colson.
RE: The Democratic Convention, and
McGovern's conundrum of whether to stay
true to his liberal base, or make himself more
of a moderate. 1 pg.
21
5
6/25/1972
Campaign
Memo
From Pat Buchanan to John Mitchell and
Haldeman. RE: The recent news that the
former Governor of Virginia, Mills Godwin,
rescinded his support for McGovern, and
pledged his commitment and support to
Nixon. 1 pg.
Wednesday, April 06, 2011
Page 6 of 6
Presidential Materials Review Board
Review on Contested Documents
Collection: H. R. Haldeman
Box Number:
299
Folder:
[Campaign Strategy Memos from Buchanan 2 of 2]
Document
Disposition
96
Return
Private/Political Memo Buchanan to HRH 10/26/72
97
Retain
Open
98
Return
Private/Political memo Buchaman to HRH 10/26/72
99
Retain
Open
100
Retain
Open
101
Retain
Open
102
Retain
Open
103
Retain
Open
104
Retain
Open
105
Return
Private/Political Memo Buchanan to HRH 9/19/72
106
Retain
Open
107
Return
Private/Political notes L to H 9/12/78
108
Return
Private/Political memo Buchanan to the President 9/6/70
109
Return
Private/Political memo Highy to Strachan 8/7/78
110
Return
Private/Politicalm Kehrli 10 HRH 8/3/78
111
Retain
Open
112
Retain
Open
113
Return
Private/Political memo Buchanan 10 the President 7/23/72
114
Return
Private/Politicalomp Buchanan 10 the President 7/12/72
115
Retain
Open
116
Return
Private/Politicalmemo Buchanan to the President 7/12/70
117
Retain
Open
118
Return
Private/Political memo Buchanan to the President 7/12/72
119
Return
Private/Political memo Buchanan to the President 7/5/72
Presidential Materials Review Board
Review on Contested Documents
Collection: H. R. Haldeman
Box Number: 299
120
Return
Private/Political mems Bucharan to HRH 7/7/72
121
Return
Private/Political memo Buchaman to the President 7/25/20
122
Retain
Open
123
Return
Private/Political memo Buchanan to Mitchell 7/25/72
124
Retain Open
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
October 26, 1972
MEMORANDUM TO:
H. R. HALDEMAN
JOHN EHRLICHMAN
CHARLES COLSON
FROM:
PAT BUCHANAN
With a dozen days to go, suggest the following -- even in light of
the Vietnam events today:
A)
Creation of new "attack" television ads, along the lines of
McGovern's, using straight copy, if we can't get visuals though
I think we should get visuals. Purpose of the attack ads is to
"re-cycle" on national television all of the worst McGovern positions
of the campaign. PJB willing to draft several of these this weekend
to be run, as one-minute spots, simply as test -- we could go with
amnesty, abortion, pot, surrender, etc., the same way McGovern is
doing with us.
B)
Strongly recommend that we not fall back on our attack ads in
any event McGovern's stuff is now late - - but it is straight anti-RN
his best approach.
C)
The Democrats for Nixon star calling for civil war in their
party to win our party back November 8 from the Extremists
after we all repudiate McGovern. (This seems on the track as of
Thursday afternoon.)
D)
Consideration be given to asking the Vice President to deliver
a Connally-like speech only this one defending the integrity of
the President for five minutes and taking the hide off of McGovern
for his horrible smears and radical positions for the next twenty-five.
Given enough advance notice, I would be happy to work with Carruthers,
who could get the visuals on this; and we could put it together I would
think in fairly short order. President would have to approve such an
approach.
-2-
In short, the essential thing now is to 1) not let ourselves be
driven on the defensive the last two weeks; 2) get back in front
of the public every crazy or radical or incompetent thing McGovern
did or stands for -- so all those undecided Democrats and RN
Democrats realize why it is that they just can't go for George McGovern.
Buchanan
:
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
October 26, 1972
MEMORANDUM TO:
H. R. HALDEMAN
JOHN EHRLICHMAN
CHARLES COLSON
FROM:
PAT BUCHANAN
With a dozen days to go, suggest the following -- even in light of
the Vietnam events today:
A)
Creation of new "attack" television ads, along the lines of
McGovern's, using straight copy, if we can't get visuals though
I think we should get visuals. Purpose of the attack ads is to
"re-cycle" on national television all of the worst McGovern positions
of the campaign. PJB willing to draft several of these this weekend --
to be run, as one-minute spots, simply as test -- we could go with
amnesty, abortion, pot, surrender, etc., the same way McGovern is
doing with US.
B)
Strongly recommend that we not fall back on our attack ads in
any event McGovern's stuff is now late - - but it is straight anti-RN
his best approach.
C)
The Democrats for Nixon start calling for civil war in their
party -- to win our party back November 8 from the Extremists --
after we all repudiate McGovern. (This seems on the track as of
Thursday afternoon.)
D)
Consideration be given to asking the Vice President to deliver
a Connally-like speech only this one defending the integrity of
the President for five minutes and taking the hide off of McGovern
for his horrible smears and radical positions for the next twenty-five.
Given enough advance notice, I would be happy to work with Carruthers,
who could get the visuals on this; and we could put it together I would
think in fairly short order. President would have to approve such an
approach.
-2-
In short, the essential thing now is to 1) not let ourselves be
driven on the defensive the last two weeks; 2) get back in front
of the public every crazy or radical or incompetent thing McGovern
did or stands for -- so all those undecided Democrats and RN
Democrats realize why it is that they just can't go for George McGovern.
Buchanan
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
September 19, 1972
MEMORANDUM FOR:
H. R. HALDEMAN
FROM:
PAT BUCHANAN
In my judgment, it would be a serious mistake to start setting any
"targets" for what we expect to do -- other than win. Predictions
never help when you are right; and they are murder when you are
wrong.
What we should do is what we did in New Hampshire and the other
primary states. a) Keep quiet as mice while the election is on; and
b) Start crowing the instant the returns are in.
Note from below that the "landslide" (a victory of 10% or more) is damn
near the "rule" in the twentieth century, rather than the exception.
Also, while Eisenhower won by 15 points in 1956 - - Harding won by
26 in 1920, Coolidge by more than 25, Hoover by 18 and TR in 1904 by
19 points -- all greater margins than Ike (Coolidge of course had
LaFollette drawing liberal votes).
For the Democrats, LBJ won by 22 points, FDR by 17 in 1932, by
23 points in 1936 and by 13 points in 1940.
Also, Harding won by damn near two-to-one, and Coolidge actually did
(although Coolidge had a third-party candidate in the race, lending a
hand).
Buchanan's Suggestion:
Let's wait until the election is over; and then if RN meets Eisenhower's
margin, this is what we say:
1)
Richard Nixon got the largest percentage of votes of any minority
party candidate in American presidential history. (Note: TR, Harding,
Coolidge, Hoover were majority party candidates.)
-2-
2)
Despite the fact that Republicans are a smaller minority than
1956, and RN is not the beloved war hero, like Ike -- he swept a
higher percentage of votes than Dwight David Eisenhower.
3)
Conceivably we could say RN swept more states than any other
Presidential candidate since the incredible Roosevelt landslide of 1936 --
or more states than any Republican candidate in the history of this nation.
(All RN needs is 42 States to accomplish this.)
4)
Not since the Civil War has a Republican won more states, or
won a higher percentage of Southern votes than Richard Nixon -- who
has achieved the historic feat of, at one stroke, changing the solid
Democratic South into the solid Republican South -- and thereby building
the framework of a new majority in American politics.
5)
We should have in hand, by election night, also the Catholic
vote totals from previous years, so we can show that vote; and the
Jewish vote totals.
Finally, what we should do is as in New Hampshire -- that night and
the next morning have all our spokesmen and interpretors putting out
these lines so that they go into all the interpretive pieces and into
the history books. But, for God's sake, let's not be setting any "targets"
at this point in time.
Buchanan
POLITICAL STATISTICS
1900 1968
Year
GOP
DEM
3rd Party
GOP States
Dem States
3rd Party
South is
Carried
Carried
States Carried
Dems
1900
MCKINLEY
51.7%
Bryan
45.5%
28
17
1904
ROOSEVELT
56.4%
Parker
37.6%
32
13
1908
TAFT
51.6%
Bryan
43.1%
29
17
1912
Taft
23.2%
WILSON
41.9%
27.5%
2
40
6
(T. Roosevelt)
1916
Hughes
46.1%
WILSON
49.3%
18
30
1920
HARDING
60.4%
Cox
34.1%
37
11
1924
COOLIDGE
54.0%
Davis
28.8%
16.6%
35
12
1
(LaFollette)
1928
HOOVER
58.1%
Smith
40.8%
40
8
52.1%
1932
Hoover
39.7%
ROOSEVELT
57.4%
6
42
80.7%
1936
Landon
36.5%
ROOSEVELT
60.8%
2
46
80.6%
1940
Wilkie
44.8%
ROOSEVELT
54.7%
10
38
78.1%
1944
Dewey
45.9%
ROOSEVELT
53.4%
12
36
71.4%
1948
Dewey
45.1%
TRUMAN
49.6%
2.4% (Thurmond)
15
29
4
50.4%
2.4% (Wallace)
1952
EISENHOWER
55.1%
Stevenson
44.4%
39
9
51.8%
1956
EISENHOWER
57.4%
Stevenson
42.0%
41
7
47.8%
1960
Nixon
49.5%
KENNEDY
49.7%
.8% (Byrd)
26
23
1
50.5%
1964
Goldwater
38.5%
JOHNSON
61.1%
6
45
49.5%
1968
NIXON
43.4%
Humphrey
42.7%
13.5% (Wallace)
31
14
5
30.9%
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
Sept. 12, 1972
H
Although you had checked the attached
and it was in your outbox, I wonder if
there aren't a couple of ideas to follow
up on. If you will put your comments
in the margin, I can put them in the
works.
L.
3
Attachment
(
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
September 6, 1972
POLITICAL MEMORANDUM
MEMORANDUM TO THE PRESIDENT
L
Commente ROM:
PATRICK J. BUCHANAN
I.B should
McGovern, as anticipated and predicted, has moved off the left,
raise there
and is making for the center with all deliberate speed. No more do
points in
we hear of pot, amnesty, abortion, etc. -- as the attached column
by McGovern indicates, the name of the game is the white working
9:15
class. Thus, we hear now of jobs, of welfare rolls and crime rising
under RN, of unemployment, of inflation -- all primary concerns of
working men and women. O'Brien and others are talking of which
G
party, Democrats or Republicans -- not which man - - can best handle
the economy and the needs of working people. McGovern's campaign
has become a traditional HHH-style bread-and-butter attack on the
"Republicans" with the Big Business-Watergate-$6 Million issue
thrown in to demonstrate our coziness with corporate power, etc.
THOUGHTS:
We should recognize that the operative political reality is not that
President Nixon is 34 points ahead but that George McGovern is
34 points behind.
He is there because the American people perceive him to be an
ultra-liberal, incompetent and somewhat radical character, surrounded
by the types whom they dislike and even despise. As argued some
months ago, given the Republican minority in the nation, the only way
for us to get in the neighborhood of 64-30 is not only an excellent
performance on our side but a di sasterous performance on the
other side which we have been given.
McGovern's present efforts to play the centrist is probably the best
way to guarantee at least a partial "Return of the Natives. 11
That'pat's
RECOMMENDATIONS:
A)
There is nothing we can do about McGovern's emphasis on
issues, on the offensive. However, we can:
1.
Make him pay a price with blacks and the left and the True
Believers, and even voters generally, by portraying him as a cynical,
opportunistic politician willing to sell out his principles for a
precinct. In short, some Republican attacks should focus on the
the
waffly, shifty character of McGovern, while we do our best to stir
git
up trouble for him on the left, on the campuses, etc., by portraying
him as a sell-out artist.
While this will not likely lose him too many votes, it can destroy the
McGovern enthusiasm which has been one of his long suits.
2.
At the identical time, McGovern is portrayed as a waffler,
Already
who abandons principles at the drop of a hat -- he should also be hung
and re-hung with all his radical positions. This is the Big Winner
underway.
for us -- it is the reason, in my judgment, that we are, or were,
34 points ahead. While some are writing in the back pages and for
the children and blacks that McGovern is selling them out for the hard
hats the hard hats, if you will, should be reminded of McGovern's
ultra-leftism, his general incompetence, the radical character of his
supporters, etc. Again, there is no inconsistency in hitting McGovern
both as a Far Leftist and an Opportunist.
3.
The attack operation should continue, using the surrogates
and others, to keep attempting to get McGovern to answer, and explain
and defend so that he does not build up the momentum, he is now
working on so far as the "workingman" pitch goes. This does not
argue that the President should be the one to jam the stick in McGovern's
spokes -- but that it should be done, continually between now and
election day. We are managing currently both an answering and
tactical attack operation and a regular offensive strategy at
lower levels, that should continue despite complaints about negativism
at the level.
4.
Just as McGovern had hoped and predicted that "Richard Nixon
is the issue this fall" so we have succeeded in making "George
McGovern the issue, 11 and if McGoyern ceases to be "the" issue this
fall then we will do less well than we are now, Thus, again, the
attack on McGovern positions rather than discussing economics and
unemployment and statistics, etc., appears to me the stronger strategy.
OUR PROBLEMS
we've dropped already TL2 it
Note to
5.
Value-Added Tax. I don't know whether we are locked in
yet to this proposal but politically, I think it is a mistake. Any
Ehrlichmen
new tax, in my view, is a mistake -- even if it is one tax to relieve
another, for all the folks will see or understand or hear about from
McGovern is "Nixon's new tax" while we spend several weeks explaining
the concept, and several weeks after that explaining that,yes, it is a
new tax, but it is a trade-off.
Our strongest suit, or one of them has been the charge that McGovern
will increase taxes, while we are interested in less taxes, and less
government. Now McGovern is starting to focus on our new tax.
6.
Watergate. This cannot help but be hurting somewhat right
No
now, in light of the truly incredible publicity being accorded the
matter. Though this has been passed along verbally, suggest that
Answerforment
the moment the indictments come down, the Presiden make a strong
statement, condemning the operation, etc. , putting this into perspective,
Press
Carf.
demanding fair and just trial and punishment, and then moving it into
background by stating it is not the issue the great issues. Something
public and forthright on this. Then when McGovern continues to carp
that is the precise and ideal time to unload on him for his role in a far
V.P.hist
more serious crime, the leaking of top secret documents. wherein he
personally encouraged Ellsburg. now on trial. to take them to the
now.
Times
The Vice President would be the one, at that point to make
the charge and I could put together three pages on short notice.
been
But, if possible, we should wait for the Grand Jury to hand down its
indictments.
Augh
7.
Media Analysis. For the first time, our own media analysis
is showing some McGovern consistency, and pickup. Their political
When
lines a) Labor Day is the beginning of the campaign (i. e. we have a
clean slate); b) the bread-and-butter issues are our big issues; and
and
c) McGovern's appeara nce at Wall Street must be compared to
JFK at the Houston Ministers have all been picked up and moved
along in varying degrees by the national media.
8.
McGovern has bottomed out. This is beginning to become
the theme of some political writers; and if McGovern moves up in the
Gallup Polls or Harris Polls in several weeks, it will likely be
picked up by the media, and moved.
Buchanan
>S
THE NICK THIMMESCH COLUMN
(Note to Editor: Nick Thimmesch
is on vacation. This is the
RELEASE DATE: Thursday, September 7, 1972
first of four guest columns.)
THE PARTY OF WORKINGMEN AND WOMEN
by Senator George McGovern
Two messages from the people came clear to me as I campaigned from New
Hampshire to California this year. First, the American workingman and woman are
far more intelligent than President Nixon thinks. Second, the enormous political
shifting, imponderable, fluid--of the workingman and woman has scarcely
begun to be felt in American politics.
For the last decade or so, it has been fashionable to imagine that the
sources of creative political energy in America are the black, the pcor and the
young. Such groups have manifested great political energy. They are now far more
organized than before. And they know how to define what they want and enter the
political fight to get it.
But what I discovered in the textile mills of New Hampshire, and found
confirmed on assembly lines from Ohio to California, is that the grievances of the
workingman and woman create just as much political energy for America as the
grievances of the poor, the black and the young did in the 1960s and continue to do
today.
Pensions are not transferable, or sometimes entirely disappear. Insurance
rates are too high, or the fine print disqualifies what the large print grants.
Taxes cost the average citizen too much and deliver too little to him.
How has a worker's life improved in recent years? In his or her eyes,
neighborhoods are more violent, dirtier, in greater disrepair, and you have to run
harder just to stay in place.
(MORE)
Los Angeles Times Syndicate
Los Angeles, California
Page Two
NICK THIRESCH
September 7, 1972
to stay in place.
It is not pleasant to eat cheaper meats because steaks are now priced out
of the family range. How can you feel successful when the costs of education for
your children make you feel poor--and yet your hard-earned salary disqualifies you
for a hardship scholarship?
Iet Mr. Nixon say that inflation has slowed, that prices are down and
wages are up. The workingmen and women don't listen to political rhetoric or even
to political theories. They listen to experience. They listen to what their eyes
and ears can see and hear.
They see the prices of meat and bread and eggs. They have to pay those
prices. They feel the reality of wage controls, while seeing no evidence of price
controls. They don't believe Republicans ever have been or ever will be, on the
side of the workingmen and women.
What they get from Richard Nixon on economics is rhetoric.
And that's also what they get on crime. They have eyes and ears. They
see policemen in every school, locks on every locker, the broken vending machines,
the bars on downstairs windows, the double locks. They read the daily papers. They
exchange experiences with relatives and friends. Crime is not a political myth in
American cities, suburbs, public or private buildings. It is a matter of everyday
experience, a leaden presence, a disgrace for a civilized country.
The Democratic Party gains its chief numerical strength from working
people in New York and Philadelphia, Cleveland and Toledo and Detroit, Chicago and
St. Louis and Buffalo--in the great cities of America. But it gains not only
numbers; it also gains its political energy there.
Workingmen and women have been in the front lines of political progress,
in all the great reforms sponsored by the Democratic Party since 1932, including
civil rights reforms in the middle 1960s. The party works for the people, and the
people support their party. That has been the key to a better life for millions
(MORE)
Los Angeles Times Syndicate
Los Angeles, California
Page Three
NICK THIMESCH
September 7, 1972
the key in 1972.
Mr. Nixon cannot help working people even if he wants to, for his basic
constituency is corporate power and corporate interests. What can he do about
insurance rates when he is beholden to huge insurance magnates like Clement Stone
who has given his campaign $1 million? What can he do about tax relief for workers
when his first obligation is to subsidize ITT, Lockheed and Penn Central? What can
he do for union wages. when his big money contributors depend on disproportionate
and often untaxed corporate profits?
The Democratic Party is not tied to these corporate interests, as our
campaign chest clearly shows. Democrats have no secret $10-million campaign kitty.
I have made public every penny received and spent in my campaign. But exactly
because the Democratic Party is not tied to these interests, Democratic leadership
will once again bring down prices. Democratic leadership will once again invest
money to generate jobs, and we will generate 2.4 million new jobs by 1975.
Democratic leadership will apply intelligent and concentrated action
to end the waves of crime in threatened neighborhoods. Democratic leadership will
see to it that workingmen and women obtain a higher share of profits--and that
corporations pay a fairer share of taxes. We have done these things before. We
will do them again. They are natural to Democrats.
Democrats check huge corporate interests. We trust working people and
their progressive instincts, and we believe that in the end they will trust us.
The Democratic Party has never betrayed them. It has been loyal to them and still
is.
And we will surprise Mr. Nixon in November because the people are more
intelligent and more angry than the Republicans can ever imagine.
Copyright 1972, Newsday. Distributed by Los Angeles Times Syndicate.
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
September 6, 1972
POLITICAL MEMORANDUM
MEMORANDUM TO THE PRESIDENT
FROM:
PATRICK J. BUCHANAN
McGovern, as anticipated and predicted, has moved off the left,
and is making for the center with all deliberate speed. No more do
we hear of pot, amnesty, abortion, etc. as the attached column
by McGovern indicates, the name of the game is the white working
class. Thus, we hear now of jobs, of welfare rolls and crime rising
under RN, of unemployment, of inflation -- all primary concerns of
working men and women. O'Brien and others are talking of which
party, Democrats or Republicans not which man can best handle
the economy and the needs of working people. McGovern's campaign
has become a traditional HHH-style bread-and-butter attack on the
"Republicans" with the Big Business-Watergate-$10 Million issue
thrown in to demonstrate our coziness with corporate power, etc.
THOUGHTS:
We should recognize that the operative political reality is not that
President Nixon is 34 points ahead - but that George McGovern is
34 points behind.
He is there because the American people perceive him to be an
ultra-liberal, incompetent and somewhat radical character, surrounded
by the types whom they dislike and even despise. As argued some
months ago, given the Republican minority in the nation, the only way
for us to get in the neighborhood of 64-30 is not only an excellent
performance on our side -- but a di sasterous performance on the
other side which we have been given.
McGovern's present efforts to play the centrist is probably the best
way to guarantee at least a partial "Return of the Natives. 11
-2-
RECOMMENDATIONS:
A)
There is nothing we can do about McGovern's emphasis on
issues, on the offensive. However, we can:
1.
Make him pay a price with blacks and the left and the True
Believers, and even voters generally, by portraying him as a cynical,
opportunistic politician -- willing to sell out his principles for a
precinct. In short, some Republican attacks should focus on the
waffly, shifty character of McGovern, while we do our best to stir
up trouble for him on the left, on the campuses, etc., by portraying
him as a sell-out artist.
While this will not likely lose him too many votes, it can destroy the
McGovern enthusiasm which has been one of his long suits.
2.
At the identical time, McGovern is portrayed as a waffler,
who abandons principles at the drop of a hat -- he should also be hung
and re-hung with all his radical positions. This is the Big Winner
for us -- it is the reason, in my judgment, that we are, or were,
34 points ahead. While some are writing in the back pages and for
the children and blacks that McGovern is selling them out for the hard
hats -- the hard hats, if you will, should be reminded of McGovern's
ultra-leftism, his general incompetence, the radical character of his
supporters, etc. Again, there is no inconsistency in hitting McGovern
both as a Far Leftist and an Opportunist.
3.
The attack operation should continue, using the surrogates
and others, to keep attempting to get McGovern to answer, and explain
and defend so that he does not build up the momentum, he is now
working on so far as the "workingman" pitch goes. This does not
argue that the President should be the one to jam the stick in McGovern's
spokes but that it should be done, continually between now and
election day. We are managing currently both an answering and
tactical attack operation and a regular offensive strategy at
lower levels, that should continue despite complaints about negativism
at the level.
4.
Just as McGovern had hoped and predicted that "Richard Nixon
is the issue this fall" so we have succeeded in making "George
McGovern the issue, " and if McGovern ceases to be "the" issue this
fall then we will do less well than we are now. Thus, again, the
attack on McGovern positions rather than discussing economics and
unemployment and statistics, etc., appears to me the stronger strategy.
-3-
OUR PROBLEMS:
5.
Value-Added Tax. I don't know whether we are locked in
yet to this proposal but politically, I think it is a mistake. Any
new tax, in my view, is a mistake -- even if it is one tax to relieve
another, for all the folks will see or understand or hear about from
McGovern is "Nixon's new tax" while we spend several weeks explaining
the concept, and several weeks after that explaining that yes, it is a
new tax, but it is a trade-off.
Our strongest suit, or one of them has been the charge that McGovern
will increase taxes, while we are interested in less taxes, and less
government. Now McGovern is starting to focus on our new tax.
6.
Watergate. This cannot help but be hurting somewhat right
now, in light of the truly incredible publicity being accorded the
matter. Though this has been passed along verbally, suggest that
the moment the indictments come down, the Presiden make a strong
statement, condemning the operation, etc., putting this into perspective,
demanding fair and just trial and punishment, and then moving it into
background by stating it is not the issue -- the great issues. Something
public and forthright on this. Then when McGovern continues to carp
that is the precise and ideal time to unload on him for his role in a far
more serious crime, the leaking of top secret documents, wherein he
personally encouraged Ellsburg, now on trial, to take them to the
Times. The Vice President would be the one, at that point, to make
the charge -- and I could put together three pages on short notice.
But, if possible, we should wait for the Grand Jury to hand down its
indictments.
7.
Media Analysis. For the first time, our own media analysis
is showing some McGovern consistency, and pickup. Their political
lines a) Labor Day is the beginning of the campaign (i. e. we have a
clean slate); b) the bread-and-butter issues are our big issues; and
c) McGovern's appeara nce at Wall Street must be compared to
JFK at the Houston Ministers -- have all been picked up and moved
along in varying degrees by the national media.
8.
McGovern has bottomed out. This is beginning to become
the theme of some political writers; and if McGovern moves up in the
Gallup Polls or Harris Polls in several weeks, it will likely be
picked up by the media, and moved.
Buchanan
LOS ANGELES TIMES SYNDICATE in association with
Newsday
THE NICK THIMMESCH COLUMN
(Note to Editor: Nick Thimmesch
is on vacation. This is the
RELEASE DATE: Thursday, September 7, 1972
first of four guest columns.)
THE PARTY OF WORKINGMEN AND WOMEN
by Senator George McGovern
Two messages from the people came clear to me as I campaigned from New
Hampshire to California this year. First, the American workingman and woman are
far more intelligent than President Nixon thinks. Second, the enormous political
energy-shifting, imponderable, fluid--of the workingman and woman has scarcely
begun to be felt in American politics.
For the last decade or so, it has been fashionable to imagine that the
sources of creative political energy in America are the black, the poor and the
young. Such groups have manifested great political energy. They are now far more
organized than before. And they know how to define what they want and enter the
political fight to get it.
But what I discovered in the textile mills of New Hampshire, and found
confirmed on assembly lines from Ohio to California, is that the grievances of the
workingman and woman create just as much political energy for America as the
grievances of the poor, the black and the young did in the 1960s and continue to do
today.
Pensions are not transferable, or sometimes entirely disappear. Insurance
rates are too high, or the fine print disqualifies what the large print grants.
Taxes cost the average citizen too much and deliver too little to him.
How has a worker's life improved in recent years? In his or her eyes,
neighborhoods are more violent, dirtier, in greater disrepair, and you have to run
harder just to stay in place.
(MORE)
Los Angeles Times Syndicate
Los Angeles, California
Page Two
NICK THIMMESCH
September 7, 1972
to stay in place.
It is not pleasant to eat cheaper meats because steaks are now priced out
of the family range. How can you feel successful when the costs of education for
your children make you feel poor--and yet your hard-earned salary disqualifies you
for a hardship scholarship?
Let Mr. Nixon say that inflation has slowed, that prices are down and
wages are up. The workingmen and women don't listen to political rhetoric or even
to political theories. They listen to experience. They listen to what their eyes
and ears can see and hear.
They see the prices of meat and bread and eggs. They have to pay those
prices. They feel the reality of wage controls, while seeing no evidence of price
controls. They don't believe Republicans ever have been or ever will be, on the
side of the workingmen and women.
What they get from Richard Nixon on economics is rhetoric.
And that's also what they get on crime. They have eyes and ears. They
see policemen in every school, locks on every locker, the broken vending machines,
the bars on downstairs windows, the double locks. They read the daily papers. They
exchange experiences with relatives and friends. Crime is not a political myth in
American cities, suburbs, public or private buildings. It is a matter of everyday
experience, a leaden presence, a disgrace for a civilized country.
The Democratic Party gains its chief numerical strength from working
people in New York and Philadelphia, Cleveland and Toledo and Detroit, Chicago and
St. Louis and Buffalo--in the great cities of America. But it gains not only
numbers; it also gains its political energy there.
Workingmen and women have been in the front lines of political progress,
in all the great reforms sponsored by the Democratic Party since 1932, including
civil rights reforms in the middle 1960s. The party works for the people, and the
people support their party. That has been the key to a better life for millions
since 1932, and it is the key in 1972.
(MORE)
Los Angeles Times Syndicate
Los Angeles, California
Page Three
NICK THIMMESCH
September 7, 1972
the key in 1972.
Mr. Nixon cannot help working people even if he wants to, for his basic
constituency is corporate power and corporate interests. What can he do about
insurance rates when he is beholden to huge insurance magnates like Clement Stone
who has given his campaign $1 million? What can he do about tax relief for workers
when his first obligation is to subsidize ITT, Lockheed and Penn Central? What can
he do for union wages. when his big money contributors depend on disproportionate
and often untaxed corporate profits?
The Democratic Party is not tied to these corporate interests, as our
campaign chest clearly shows. Democrats have no secret $10-million campaign kitty.
I have made public every penny received and spent in my campaign. But exactly
because the Democratic Party is not tied to these interests, Democratic leadership
will once again bring down prices. Democratic leadership will once again invest
money to generate jobs, and we will generate 2.4 million new jobs by 1975.
Democratic leadership will apply intelligent and concentrated action.
to end the waves of crime in threatened neighborhoods. Democratic leadership will
see to it that workingmen and women obtain a higher share of profits--and that
corporations pay a fairer share of taxes. We have done these things before. We
will do them again. They are natural to Democrats.
Democrats check huge corporate interests. We trust working people and
their progressive instincts, and we believe that in the end they will trust us.
The Democratic Party has never betrayed them. It has been loyal to them and still
is.
And we will surprise Mr. Nixon in November because the people are more
intelligent and more angry than the Republicans can ever imagine.
Copyright 1972, Newsday. Distributed by Los Angeles Times Syndicate.
THE WHITE HOUSE
OBE
WASHINGTON
August 7, 1972
ADMINISTRATIVELY CONFIDENTIAL
MEMORANDUM FOR:
GORDON STRACHAN
FROM:
L. HIGBY
L
I'd be interested in your reaction to Buchanan's criticism
of the Teeter briefing. Is it valid or is Buchanan only
looking at part of the facts?
Attachment
Teeter aware of luck of strategy+
doing memo
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
August 6, 1972
MEMORANDUM TO THE PRESIDENT (Per HRH As Requested)
FROM:
PATRICK J. BUCHANAN
Have received the poll briefing and while the findings on the issue
are unexceptional, the conclusions that are drawn are wrong, I
think -- if I do not mistake them. Our surrogates and the Vice
President should not spend a disproportionate amount of their
time defending our record on unemployment, and economic
management. By most everyone's judgment, our record is not
considered as that good; this is our "weakest" point -- and a
national debate over whether we managed the economy well is
perhaps the one debate with McGovern we can lose.
Agreed that Vietnam, inflation, etc. are the crucial issues. We
can win on these issues by not so much verbally defending our reocrd,
attack
but by portraying McGovern as disasterous to the stock market,
disasterous to the job market with his budget cuts in defense and
space, disasterous to the security of the U.S., disasterous to the
price situation, because of his $1000 program, or his $6500 welfare
giveaway. In short, let's not so much defend our record, which is
subject to criticism, as to attack McGovern with being a clear and
present danger to the prosperity we now have.
The point is this: If the Democrats had nominated Harpo Marx, the
Teeter poll would have said Vietnam, economy, inflation are the
major issues. Would we, in a race with Harpo, talk about those
issues -- or would the winning issues rather be the manifest lack
of qualification of their candidate -- despite our record.
The decision in November and our rhetoric must not focus upon
their issues -- i.e., "unemployment" and the unequal economic
record of the last four years -- it must focus upon our issues --
i.e., the extremism, elitism, radicalism, kookism, of McGovern's
person, campaign, and programs, against the solid, strong,
effective leadership of the President. The first campaign described
above is the only way we can lose in 1972 -- and if I am not mistaken,
-2-
this is something close to what the Teeter folks recommend, when
they say we ought to talk up the economy, and spend an inordinate
amount of time defending our record on unemployment.
Nor should we forget the capacity of a candidate (i. e., Kennedy
and the "missile gap, 11 Goldwater and "extremism") to create
issues, on which elections turn, sometimes legitimate issues,
sometimes illegitimate. When we portray McGovern's ideas as
preposterous, foolish, and even dangerous to U.S. security and
the nation's economy, we are right now pushing against an open door --
with the media at large, as well as the country.
The campaign should turn, we should make it turn, upon the manifest
unqualification of this character and his ilk to even be in the
Presidential contest -- not whether a damn referendum in our spotty
economic performance, which talking, talking, talking about the
economy and jobs, and unemployment would make it. So, I disagree
strongly with what I view as the central thrust of recommendations
of the Teeter polls.
Buchanan
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
Date August 3, 1972
TO:
H. R. HALDEMAN
FROM:
BRUCE KEHRLI BAC
For discussion at your 10:00 a.m.
political meeting.
!
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
August 2, 1972
MEMORANDUM TO THE PRESIDENT
(Per HRH)
FROM:
PAT BUCHANAN
There is both a present and future political danger in this program --
already on the tracks -- to McGovernize the Republican Party, via
quotas or some "affirmative action" program to bring more of the
"fashionable minorities" to future GOP conventions, at the expense
of the Catholics and Jews where RN has made in- roads.
First, if we go this route in 1972, we will automatically surrender
a strong suit our opposition to "quota democracy, 11 our opposition
to the fetishism of the "New Politics" which leaves the Warren Hearnes
out in the cold while making room for the Shirley MacLaines.
Our political interest in 1972 dictate that we juxtapose our Party to
the McGovernized quota-ridden Democratic Party - not that we
emulate them as Javits recommends.
Strongly suggest that the President pass the word along to the Rules
Committee, that we are an open party, welcoming all groups, granting
quotas to "none.' " If we call for "quotas" or "affirmative action" for
blacks and Chicanos, we will be asking to forfeit four years of gains
among Catholics and Jews. These "reforms" represent, in my view,
a serious present political problem because of what the media might
do at Miami and future ones as well -- because this is a prescription
to forfeit the Nixon Majority, which RN has half put together already
adding to the GOP minority, the Solid South and the Northern ethnics,
Catholics and Jews. To go the route of Javits is to go backwards
to throw away two birds in the hand for one in the bush. We should
send strong signals to the Rules Committee that we want nothing to
do with McGovern-type reforms.
done
Buchanan
YOUR WEEKLY WASHINGTON REPORT
© 1972 by Human Events Inc
Vol. XXXII, No. 32
AUGUST 5. 1972
50 cents
Battle Over Rules?
this
GOP Liberals Plan
issue
To McGovernize Party
Page
The Bizarre Candidacy of
Thomas Eagleton
3
Those wonderful folks who us
George McGovern. Fom Eagleton an
Did Knight Newspapers
extrement platterm. and it
Give McGovern a Break?
3
based on race see and are estable
lished Benito Mussolini's "corporate"
Nebraska's
state for the American.not
ties are in a manner of speaking IL 11
Sen. Carl T. Curtis
8
again Their target this time the Re-
publican party
Is Advertising An
True. the names have been changed to
Economic Villain?
protect the origins. Instead of McGov-
By Prof. Yale Brozen
18
ern. Hughes. Fraser and Abrug. the
names this time are Railsback Ander-
son. Gude Frev Rosemary Ginn and
Administration Should
the Ripon Society But the goal is trans-
Reveal Extent of
parently the same: the radicalization of
Red Chinese Drug Trade
American government.
at
the ballot box, by in
Sen. Jacob Javits and Rep Tom Railsback are leaders in the fight to "reform" the Re-
By John Chamberlain
22
takeover from within of for
publican party along liberal lines.
parties.
Steiger (Wis.) and Louis Frev (Fla.).
groes. Spanish-speaking Americans. and
This little-noticed threat to the Re-
a conservative-voting freshman whose
American Indians.
Also
publican future got started at the 1968
ties with party liberals are becoming
Jrish Italians Poles. Greeks. Chi-
convention. which mandated formation
increasingly cory.
nese. etc., in the opinion of Cramer and
George McGovern and
of a committee to study party proce-
other authorities we talked to. are not
The NWRO
Meanwhile, early looks at conven-
dures and to make recommendations to
tion literature strongly suggest a
(for the purpose of the proposed re-
By Alice Widener
7
the Convention Rules Committee for ac-
concerted move by liberals to infil-
form) "minority ethnic groups.
tion at the 1972 gathering. Somehow.
trate the Rules Committee itself.
A visitor from Mars could be forgiven
Nixon's Panama Policy
liberals gained control of the study group
Among those already assured of
for failing to see what it is that renders
Invites Trouble
(called, oddly. the DO Committee).
Rules membership are Senators
to Negroes. Spanish-speakers. and In-
By Thomas A. Lane
10
Led by Missouri National Committee-
Mathias, Charles Percy (111.), and
dians this honor. and what excludes the
woman Rosemary Ginn. a party activist
Robert Packwood Ore.).
other groups.
Races of the Week:
with close liberal Republican ties. the
DO Committee completed its work in
Is it race? But one of the three groups
Now consider the DO Committee "re-
Lott vs. Stone
mid-1971. In recent months both the
forms which the Rules Committee of
is predominantly Negroid. one predomi-
Scott VS. Spong
Ripon Society and a group of congres-
nanth Caucasord. and predominantly
the Republican National Convention will
Domenici VS. Daniels
11
sional Renublicans have gotten
be considering in Miami on August 14 to
Mongoloid in origin.
most of the DO Committee
16. and which. if adopted. will take effect
Language? But one of the three groups
Politics '72
14
dations.
in time for the 1976 convention:
has as its native language English. one
The prime movers include Ripon Na-
Spanish. and one any number of tongues
Owen Lattimore
tional Director Daniel Swillinger. Sena-
50 per cent quotas in every delega-
depending on the tribe.
Returns to Testify
tors Jacob Javits (N.Y.) and Charles
tion for men and women:
Is it past persecution on the part of
By Willard Edwards
15
Mathias (Md.). and Representatives
Representation for 25-and-under
American society? These groups have
Thomas Railsback (III.). John Ander-
young people in exact proportion to vot
suffered grievously. but Americans of
A Republican Senate in '73'
son (III.). Gilbert Gude (Md.). William
King strength within each state:
Spanish origin. at least, have by any
By Kevin P Phillips
16
25 per cent representation for 25
delivition suffered less severe repression
and-under voters on all convention com
mathing mut than the Lipanese. who are
President's Education
mittees. including Platform and Cre
not considered members of "minority
Panel Makes Valid Points
dentials where many close convention
ethnic groups.
ure decided:
From the Arizona Republic
17
In fact, the only thing that unites
25 per cent representation on
these three promos name The
these committees for members of "mi
The Dangers of the Abuse of
others, 15 that 100 few of them are
pority ethnic groups.
Republicans
"Executive Privilege"
By Clark Mollenhoff
21
Of these four proposed require-
In the states in which their votes are
ments, it is the latter three that pose
important. these ethnic groups. for one
the most direct path to a radical take-
reason and another. are rock -solid base
About That
Newspaper
over of the party.
for every liberal Democ he runs
Oemocratic Telethon
office It is probable that these three
Take, for example, the requirement
groups make up less than
By Gary 0 Ballard
22
for "minority ethnic group" represento-
Republic presidential strength
tion on the Plattorm. Credentials and
nationw
in
other committees
towelf over 20 per ent of pulation).
What is a "minority ethnic group
That natural. Then polities are liberal.
Capital Briefs
2
HUMAN spent much of last much
and the Repairs inconsiderably
trying to discover the answer to that
the more consery line of the TWO major
This Week's News
seemingly simple question We received
parties
From Inside Washington
3
hirts here and there hist " WISHI 1.11
What is ind nived and in fact
we happened on m ( imer. chair-
slightly sinster is the attening by liberal
Spotlight on Congress
23
man of the Rules Committee. that a
Republicans (and J few mindless regu-
Classifieds
22
fairly clear answer began to emerge
bisi to award these predommanth lib-
The former Florida congression said
eral groups have times their justified
that. to the best of his understanding
"minority ethine proups" take in Ne-
it ontinued on page
THIS WEEK'S NEWS FROM
ington
and submarine design technology They will be much
more difficult to detect and attack than our Polaris
submarines for two reasons: the new longer-range
Trident missiles will give the submarines vastly more
more or less to set up quotas based on Democratic
plc than others and considerably lessinterested
ocean area to hude in. and the new submarines will
voting strength thin each state.
n what used to be called democracy.
be much quieter than the Polaris submarines."
The same is true of the requirement for 25. per
How open was the Democratic National Conven-
Rickover charged that the Soviets have been in-
cent represent twon for the voters. the
tion last month? On the face of its method of selee-
vesting heavily in anti-suburine warkire. work-
orth
proup
in
the
popul.
fingly
tion. and on the evidence of its conduct. it WAS the
ing industriously to neutralize our Polaris force
Prest
most closed convention in American history
ever since the first one went to sea 12 years
dert Nixon and the Republicans Moreover,
ago. Thus. said Rickover. it is imperative to begin
under voters. even when registration is complete. are
A troupe of young. inexperienced delegates, who
production of the new Trident neht away. a move
likels to number more like 10 per cent of the voters
owed their presence to the McGovern organization
that could not be taken if Bentsen's amendment were
than the 25 per cent they are to be allotted on future
and/or the accident of their race. sex. or age. re-
to have passed.
convention committees.
sponded to a handful of stage managers as though
their futures depended on it.
Contrary to what Bentsen was claiming. the num-
What is the justification for such a provision,
ber of missiles carried by the Trident has not heen
other than to push the next convention
For McGovern's tactical convenience. they
firmly set at 24. Furthermore, the production money
degrees to the left of the party rank and Tile?
"threw" the South Carolina challenge even though
authorized in the procurement bill will go for con-
Meanwhile on the floor of the full convention,
they supported it: voted against abortion even though
young voters would he represented exactly as if
they believed in it; and accepted. almost without
they were about as Republican as the rest of the
protest. a ruling on a voice vote that was contrary to
population, instead of by far the most sparsely
what nearly every reporter heard from the floor.
Republican of any age group.
All things considered, it is impossible to argue
Before we move to discussion of quotas in gen-
with liberal political reporter Richard Recves. who
eral even those that do make an attempt to repre-
wrote in New York magazine that what was billed
sent fairly the party's voting strength in the general
by the networks and press as the must open con-
population let us pause briefly in the state of Ne-
vention in Americ political history way reality
braska.
"Oghtly controlled and run by an efficient, ruthless
led by Gan and Rick
In the 1976 convention, Nebraska is likely to have
Stearny the precise OUDE
16 delegates. Each state sends four representatives
out of the govern headquarters trailer behind the
to each of the Tour committees. but in dates that
The U.S. submarine force will be boistered by the
hall.
introduction of the Trident type boats
have enough delegates to go around no delegate can
serve more than one committee. But the new rules.
That the convention was both leftist and tightly
struction of the aft section. containing the reactor
require that each state send one 'mi-
controlled is no accident A quota system lends itself
and the propulsion plant. not the mid-section. which
mority ethnic member to each committee.
superbly to an elite of disciplined extremists as
contains the missile tubes and associated launching
Italy found in the 1920s In the name of bronder
equipment. The design for the mid-section will not be
Therefore. to fill its committee quotas. Nebraska's
finalized until the fall of 1973.
16 delegates would have to include at least four per-
representation for the masses. Mussolini segregated
sons who were either Negro. Spanish-speaking, or
the process of election. not by geographical districts
Briefly. then. the more hawkish forces won the day
Indian. or a mix of the three. There are virtually no
as has been done by every real democracy, but by
classes.
in the Scn de last week. despite the best efforts of
Negroes in h-spenkers. or Indians. not only in
Sen. Bentsen.
the Nebrask Resublican cbraska.
In this way. argued II Duce poor people workers
period. This is the "more representative" party the
and farmers would win the representation ther had
Following is the 47-to-39 rollcall vote by which
been denied by well-financed politicians. Abolishing
the Senate on July 27 defeated the Bentsen amend-
reformers want for Nebraska and for many states
like it
the role of the "middle man. or politician, would
ment. thus approving the acceleration of the Trident
enable the poor and uneducated to represent them-
submarine program.
The reformers. including Mrs. Ginn and Rails-
selves.
FOR THE TRIDENT:
back. pay constant lip service to the goal of an "open
DEMOCRATS(15): ANDERSON FASHAND ERVIN. HOL-
party But in reality there is no system that could
Mussolini was not as naive as the people ho he-
LINGS, JACKSON. LONG, MAGNEAON MCCLELLAN. MCINTYRE,
PASTORE. RIBICOFF. SPARKMAN STENNIS and TAIMADGE
he less open than a quota system. even one that ac-
lieved him. Like Gary Hart. he knew that inexperi-
REPUBLICANS(32) AIKEN, ALLOTT. BAKER. BEACH. BELLMON.
curately reflects the party slocal and group strengths.
enced people (however well-intentioned) who owed
BENNETT. BROCK. BROOKE. BECKERY. Cook. COTTON, CURTIS.
their selection to their status in life and to the domi-
If you are a 40-year-old man. seeking a delegate
DOLE. FANNIN. FONG. GRIFFIN. GURNEY HANSEN. HRUSHA. MIL.
post. the party is not "open" to you if the seat you
nant party elite would be not only willing but anxious
LER. PACKWOOD. PEARSON SCHWEINER Scort. SMITH STAF-
FORD. STEVENS. TANT. THURMOND. TOWER. WHICKER and YOUNG
to please their benefactor.
are seeking must be won by a woman.
If you are a 60-year-old woman who has labored
Mussolini promised the people "direct" and
AGAINST THE TRIDENT:39
for the Republic duzen or more na-
"open" representation. without the evil politicians.
DEMOCRATS (29): BAYN. BENTSEN. BIBLF. RDICK. BYRD
tional or Total elections. the parts is not "open" if
but what they got was one-man rule and no represen-
(Va.). BYRD (W. Va.), CANNON CHILFS, CRANSTON, FULBRIGHT.
GRAVEL HARRIS HART. HARTKE. HUGHES. HUMPHREY. NAN
the seat you seek must. for reasons of thalance go
tation at all.
NFDY, Mercare. MUNDALL MONTOYA, Moss. NELSON,
10 8 young woman Any. never before
Thoughtful Democrats. including many liberals.
PROXMIRE. SPONG. STEVENSON, SYMINGTON. TUNNEY and WIL-
voted HI J national electron.
LIAMS
are coming to these conclusions too late for 1972.
Nothing could be worse for party morale than for
but perhaps not too late to reverse this course of
REPUBLICANS (10): Boous, CASE. COOPER. GOLDWATER,
highly motivated. los al Republicans to be shunted
folly in future years.
JAVITS JORDAN(Idabo). MATHIAS. PERCY. Rothand SANDE
aside in favor of political novices who would never
Paired for Democrate McGee and 1 Pell
have won election on their own record or merits. but
Nothing could be more ironic than for the Re-
who are needed in the mad scramble for exact nu-
publicans--- (11) now have justification in catting
Paired against: Democrate Randolph and Mansfield.
merical quotas. A strong and open parts is one in
themselves the truis epen party in this commery
which men and women who would be elected on their
and who are in graning to receive defectors Irom
merits or their hard work are, in fact. the ones
the closed George Victoriam listation
Continued from Page I
elected.
McGovern's rainous example.
Democrats are discovering these truths in the
Never has the mindless opportunism that is the
GOP Liberals Plan
most dramatic possible fashion. Veteran party regu-
hallmark of liberal Republicanism posed a graver
lars, swept aside by inexperienced newcomers using
threat to the future of the party.
quotas as their No. 1 weapon. are sitting out this
Republicans would do well to reject every form
To McGovernize Party
election in large numbers.
of the quota system. including the most seemingly
In Chicago. a legally elected bloc of 59 delegates
innocuous, and to take their case to the American
weight on the decision-making committees of futur
Will thrown aside by one of the most unrepresenta-
people this fall. After all, there is'something to be
Republican national conventions This is wrong
tive groups ever to "represent" a major CITY at a
said for a party open enough not to attach condi-
because
II
national convention, a group led by radicals who
tions of race. sex. class and age to the free election
embelmends defented in the Blennis primary
of its most imo Hf int d reision-moter every for
M. March " the men and women who were elected
years
claim. "TOUPS that IN the party
from the convention
That is an argument that most Americans as well
the is .. measure whit it 2005 beyond
Apparently the Democratic party under its
is all Italians and enough to remember benue Mus.
even what the McGovern reforms did. which was
new rules is considerably more open to some peo-
solim. will reading understand.
6 / Human Events / AUGUST 5. 1972
558
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
Date August 3, 1972
TO:
H. R. HALDEMAN
FROM:
BRUCE KEHRLI
For discussion at your 10:00 a.m.
political meeting.
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
August 2, 1972
MEMORANDUM TO THE PRESIDENT
(Per HRH)
FROM:
PAT BUCHANAN
There is both a present and future political danger in this program --
already on the tracks -- to McGovernize the Republican Party, via
quotas or some "affirmative action" program to bring more of the
"fashionable minorities" to future GOP conventions, at the expense
of the Catholics and Jews -- where RN has made in-roads.
First, if we go this route in 1972, we will automatically surrender
a strong suit -- our opposition to "quota democracy," our opposition
to the fetishism of the "New Politics" which leaves the Warren Hearnes
out in the cold while making room for the Shirley MacLaines.
Our political interest in 1972 dictate that we juxtapose our Party to
the McGovernized quota-ridden Democratic Party -- not that we
emulate them as Javits recommends.
Strongly suggest that the President pass the word along to the Rules
Committee, that we are an open party, welcoming all groups, granting
quotas to "none. " If we call for "quotas" or "affirmative action" for
blacks and Chicanos, we will be asking to forfeit four years of gains
among Catholics and Jews. These "reforms" represent, in my view,
a serious present political problem because of what the media might
do at Miami and future ones as well -- because this is a prescription
to forfeit the Nixon Majority, which RN has half put together already --
adding to the GOP minority, the Solid South and the Northern ethnics,
Catholics and Jews. To go the route of Javits is to go backwards
to throw away two birds in the hand for one in the bush. We should
send strong signals to the Rules Committee that we want nothing to
do with McGovern-type reforms.
Buchanan
Human Events
YOUR WEEKLY WASHINGTON REPORT
© 1972 by Human Events Inc
Vol. XXXII. No. 32
AUGUST 5. 1972
50 cents
Battle Over Rules?
In this
GOP Liberals Plan
issue
To McGovernize Party
Page
The Bizarre Candidacy of
Thomas Eagleton
3
Those wonderful folks who gave us
George McGovern. Fom Fagleton an
Did Knight Newspapers
extrement platform and quota
Give McGovern a Break?
3
based
on
take
MA
and
lished Benito Mussolint's "corporate"
Nebraska's
state for the litst time 111 American
DCS are in manner of it
Sen. Carl T. Curtis
8
again Their target this time the Re-
publican party.
is Advertising An
True. the names have been changed to
Economic Villain?
protect the origins. Instead of McGov-
By Prof. Yale Brozen
18
ern. Hughes. Fraser and Abzug. the
names this time are Railshack Ander-
son. Gude Frev Rosembers and
Administration Should
the Ripon Society But the goal is trans-
Reveal Extent of
parently the same: the radicaliz thon of
Red Chinese Drug Trade
American government. not at
the ballot Box, and Fix in
Sen. Jacob Javits and Rep. Tom Railsback are leaders in the hght to "reform" the Re-
By John Chamberlain
22
takeover from within of THE or
publican party along liberal lines.
parties.
Steiger (Wis.) and Louis Frey (Fla.).
groes. Spanish-speaking Americans. and
This little-noticed threat to the Re-
a conservative-voting freshman hose
American Indians.
Also
publican future got started. the 1968
ties with party liberals are becoming
Jrish Italians Poles. Greeks. Chi-
convention. which mandated formation
increasingly cory.
nese. etc., in the opinion of Cramer and
George McGovern and
of a committee to study party proce-
Meanwhile. early looks at conven-
other authorities we talked to. are not
The NWRD
dures and to make recommendations to
tion literature strongly suggest a
(for the purpose of the proposed re-
By Alice Widener
7
the Convention Rules Committee for ac-
concerted more by liberals to infil-
form) "minority ethnic groups.
tion at the 1972 gathering. Somehow.
trate the Rules Committee itself.
A visitor from Mars could be forgiven
Nixon's Panama Policy
liberals guined control of the study group
Among those already assured of
for failing to see what it is that renders
Invites Trouble
(called. oddly the DO Committee).
Rules membership are Senators
to Negroes. Spanish-speakers, and In-
By Thomas A. Lane
10
Led by Missouri National Committee-
Mathias, Thirles Percy THI.), and
dians this honor. and what excludes the
woman Rosemary Ginn. a party activist
Robert Packwood Ore.).
other groups.
Races of the Week:
with close liberal Republican ties. the
DO Committee completed its work in
Is it race? But one of the three groups
Lott vs. Stone
Now consider the DO Committee "re-
mid-1971. Ln recent months both the
forms" which the Rules Committee of
is preduminants Negroid. one predomi-
Scott vs. Spong
Ripon Society and ,1 group of contres-
nantly Caucasoid. and predominantly
the Republican National Convention will
Domenici vs. Daniels
11
signal
Renuments
have
be considering in Miami on August It to
Mongoloid in origin.
most of the DO Committee
16. and which if adopted. will take effect
Language? But one of the three groups
Politics '72
14
dations.
in time for the 1976 convention:
has as its native language English. one
The prime movers include Ripon Na-
Spanish. and one any number of tongues
Owen Lattimore
tional Director Daniel Swillinger. Sena-
50 per cent quotas in every delega
depending on the tribe.
Returns to Testify
tors Jacob Javits (N.Y.) and Charles
tion for men and women:
Is it past persecution on the part of
By Willard Edwards
15
Mathias (Md.). and Representatives
Representation for 25-and-under
American society? These groups have
Thomas Railsback (III.). John Ander-
young people in exact proportion to vot-
suffered grevously. but Americans of
A Republican Senate in 73?
son (III.). Gilbert Gude (Md.). William
king strength within each state:
Spanish origin. at least have by any
By Kevin P. Phillips
16
25 per cent representation for 25
definition suffered less severe repression
and-under voters on all convention com-
than the Lananese. who are
President's Education
millees. including Platform and Cre-
not considered members of "minority
Panel Makes Valid Points
dentials where many close convention
ethnic groups.
are decided:
From the Arizona Republic
17
In fact, the only thing that unites
25 per cent representation on
these three REQUIRE and The
these committees for members of "mi-
The Dangers of the Abuse of
others is that ten of them are
hority ethnic groups."
Republicans
"Executive Privilege"
or these four proposed require-
By Clark Mollenhoff
21
In the states in which their votes are
ments, it is the latter three that pose
important. these ethnic groups. for one
the most direct path to a radical take-
reason and another. are rack solid base
About That
Newspaper
over of the party.
for every liberal Democ fail to runs
Democratic Telethon
office It 14 probable that three
Take, for example, the requirement
By Gary D. Ballard
22
groups make un key than
for "minority ethnic group" representa-
Republican presidential strength
tion on the Platform, Credentials and
nationway 111
other committees
user 2.2 per ent 1.1 outation)
What it 3 "minority ethnic group"?
That natural. Their politics are liberal,
Capital Briefs
2
How spent much of last week
and the Repablic in party " considerably
trying to discover the answer to th it
the more conservative of the two major
This Week's News
seemingly simple question. We received
parties.
From Inside Washington
3
hirts here and there hill II WANT nill
What is put outeral and in fact
we happened on William ( ramer. chair
shehtly sinster, " the attempt hs liberal
Spotlight on Congress
23
man of the Rules Committee. that a
Republicans (and a few mindless regu-
Classifieds
22
Lork clear answer beean to emerge
First to award these predommanth lib-
The former Horida congressman said
eral groups live times their justibed
that. to the best of his understanding.
"minority ethine groups" take 111 Ne-
THIS WEEK'S NEWS FROM
Inside
Washington
and submarine design technology. They will be much
more difficult to detect and attack than our Polaris
submarines for two reasons: the new longer-range
Trident missiles will give the submarines vastly more
more or less to set up quotas based on Democratic
ple than others adconsiderably lessinterested
ocean area to hide in. and the new submarines will
voting strength within each state.
in what used to be called democracy.
be much quieter than the Polaris submarines."
The same is true of the requirement for 25, per
How open was the Democratic National Conven-
Rickover charged that the Soviets have been in-
cent represent then for the 25-and-under voters, the
tion last month" On the face of its method of selec-
vesting heavily in anti-submarine warlare. work-
and group :ff the population
tion, and on the evidence of its conduct. it was the
ing industriously to neutralize out Polaris force
5.6. !!! and his goals over Presi-
most closed convention in American history.
ever since the first one went to NOT 12 years
dent Nixon and the Republicans. Moreover, 25-und-
ago. Thus. said Rickover, it is imperative to begin
under voters. even when registration IS complete. are
A troupe of young. inexperienced delegates. who
production of the new Trident right away, a move
likely to number more like 10 per cent of the voters
owed their presence (0 the McGovern organization
that could not be taken if Bentsen's amendment were
than the 25 per cent they are to be allotted on future
and/or the accident of their race, sex. or age. re.
to have passed.
convention committees.
sponded to a handful of stage managers as though
their futures depended on it.
Contrary to what Bentsen was claiming. the num-
What is the justification for such a provision.
ber of missiles carried by the Trident has not been
other than to push the Dest convention
For McGovern's tactical convenience. they
firmly set at 24. Furthermore. the production money
degrees to the left of the party rank and tite?
"threw" the South Carolina challenge even though
authorized in the procurement bill will 20 for con-
Meanwhile on the floor of the full convention,
they supported it: voted against abortion even though
young roters would be represented exactly as if
they believed in it; and accepted. almost without
they were about as Republican as the rest of the
protest. a ruling on a voice vote that was contrary to
population, instead of by far the most sparsely
what nearly every reporter heard from the floor.
Republican of any age group.
All things considered, it is impossible to argue
Before we move to discussion of quotas in gen-
with liberal political reporter Richard Reeves. who
eral even those that do make an attempt to repre-
wrote in New York magazine that what was billed
sent fairly the party's voting strength in the general
by the networks and press as "the must open con-
population let us pause briefly in the state of Ne-
vention in American political history "J2 in reality
braska.
"aghtly controlled and run by an efficient, ruthless
ind double-dealing cadre led by Gary Hart and Rick
In the 1976 convention, Nebraska is likely to have
Stearns. the precise young
16 delegates. Each state sends four representatives
out of the McGovern headquarters trailer behind the
to each of the Tour committees but un states that
The U.S. submarine force will be bolstered by the
hall.
introduction of the Trident-type boats
have enough delegates to around) no delegate can
serve on more than one committee. But the new rules.
That the convention was both leftist and tightly
struction of the aft section, containing the reactor
Madopted. require that each state send one mi-
controlled is no accident. A quota system lends itself
and the propulsion plant. not the mid-section. which
contains the missile tubes and associated launching
nority ethine member to each committee.
superbly to an elite of disciplined extremists -as
equipment. The design for the mid-section will not be
Therefore, to fill its committee quotas, Nebruska's
Italy found in the 1920s In the name of broader
finalized until the fall of 1973.
16 delegates would have to include at least four per-
representation for the masses. Mussolini segregated
sons who were either Negro. Spanish-speaking, or
the process of election. not by geographical districts
Briefly. then. the more hawkish forces won the day
Indian. or a mix of the three There are virtually no
as has been done by every real democracy. but by
in the Senate last week. despite the best efforts of
Negroes. Spanishespe there or Indians. not in
classes.
Sen. Bentsen.
the Nebrask Republics but in Nebraska.
In this way, argued 11 Duce. poor people workers
period. This IN the "more representative" parts the
and farmers would win the representation then had
Following is the 47-to-39 rollcall vote by which
reformers wint for Nebraska and for many states
been denied by well-financed politicians, Abolishing
the Senate on July 27 defeated the Bentsen amend-
like it.
the role of the "middle man. or politician, would
ment. thus approving the acceleration of the Trident
enable the poor and uneducated to represent them-
submarine program.
The reformers. including Mrs. Ginn and Rails-
selves.
FOR THE TRIDENT: 47
back. pay constant lip service to the goal of an "open
DEMOCRATS ANDERSON. ERVIN HOL-
party. But in reality there is no system that could
Mussolini was not as naive as the people who be.
LINGS. JACKSON. LONG. MAGNUSON MCCLELLAN. MCINTYRE.
PASTORE, RIBICOFF. SPARKMAN STENNS and TALMADGE
be less open than a quota system, even one that ac-
lieved him. Like Gary Hart, he knew that inexperi-
REPUBLICANS(32) AIKEN. ALLOTT. BAKER. BEALL BELLMON.
curately reflects the party's local and group strengths.
enced people (however well-intentioned) who owed
BENNETT. BROCK. BROOKE. BUCKLEY. COOK. COTTON. CLRTIS.
their selection to their status in life and to the domi-
DOLE FANNIN, FONG GRIFFIN. GURNEY. HANSEN. HRS Mit-
If you are a 40-year-old man, seeking a delegate
post. the party is not "open" to you if the seat you
nant party elite would be not only willing but anxious
LER, PACKWOOD PEARSON SCHWEINER SCOTT. SMITH, STAF-
FORD. STEVENS. TAFT. THURMOND. WHICKER and YOUNG
are seeking must be won by a woman.
to please their benefactor.
If you are a 60-vear-old woman who has labored
Mussolini promised the people "direct" and
AGAINST THE TRIDENT:39
for the Republic in 11. more na-
"open" representation. without the evil politicians.
DEMOCRATS (29): BAYH. BENTSEN. BIRLF. B RDICK. BYRD
tional or local electrons. the parts 15 not "open" if
but what they got was one-man rule and no represen-
(Va). BYRD(W. Va.). CANNON. CHILES. CRANSION. FULBRIGHT.
GRAVEL HARRIS. HART. HARTNE. HUGHES. HUMPHREY. KEN-
the seat you seek must. for reasons of liance. 20
tation at all.
NFDY. METUALE MONDALE MONTOYA. Moss. Mt SKIE NELSON
to a young BEST or woman who before
Thoughtful Democrats. including many liberals.
PROXMIRE. SPONG. STEVENSON. SYMINGTON, TUNNEY and WIL-
voted in national election.
LIAMS.
are coming to these conclusions- too late for 1972.
Nothing could he worse for party morale than for
but perhaps not 100 late to reverse this course of
REPUBLICANS (10): BOGGS, CASE, COUPER. GOLDWATER
highly motivated. loyal Republicans to be shunted
folly in future years.
JAVITS. (Idaho). MATHAS PERCY. Romand SAX BE
aside in favor of political novices who would never
Paired for Democrats Merice and Pell
have won election on their own record or merits. but
Nothing could be more ironic than for the Re-
who are needed in the mad scramble for exact nu-
publicans-wo now have justification 111 cating
Paired against: Democrats Randolph and Mansfield
merical quotas, A strong and open party is one in
themselves the truit open party in this COMMEN
which men and women who would be elected on their
and who are beginning to receive J. from
merits or their hard work are, in fact. the ones
the closed are a George McCordin formation
Continued from Page I
elected.
McGovern's ruinous example.
Democrats are discovering these truths in the
Never has the mindless opportunism that is the
GOP Liberals Plan
most dramatic possible fashion. Veteran party regu-
hallmark of Inheral Republicanism posed a graver
lars. swept aside by inexperienced newcomers using
threat to the future of the party.
quotas as their No. 1 weapon. are sitting out this
Republicans would do well to reject every form
To McGovernize Party
election in large numbers.
of the quota system. including the most seemingly
In Chicago. a legally elected bloc of 59 delegates
innocuous. and to take their case to the American
weight on the decision-making committees of future
Was thrown aside by one of the most unrepresenta-
people this fall. After all. there is*something to he
Republican national conventions is rong
tive groups ever to "represent" a major city at a
said for a party open enough not to attach condi-
because
It
national convention. a group led by radicals who
tions of race. sex. class and age to the free election
**** over betwingh defented in the Illinois primary
of its most import int decision-male every five
last March by the men and comen who were ejected
years.
ethnic groups that de support the party
from the convention.
That is an argument that most Americans, as well
This " J Incasure " CALCOLL GARD 11 goes beyond
Apparently the Democratic party under its
as all Italians old enough to remember Benito Mus-
even what the McGovern reforms did. which was
new rules is considerably more open to some peo-
solini, will reading understand
6/ Human Events/AUGUST.1972
558
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
July 23, 1972
MEMORANDUM TO THE PRESIDENT
(As Requested)
FROM:
PATRICK J. BUCHANAN
SUBJECT: The Vice President and the Campaign
Because the Vice President remains, outside RN, the biggest gun
we have, the Veep should be staffed up at least on the level of
the 1970 campaign. Full plane, and gear and constant contact and
communication with the White House and Re-Election Committee.
1. He will have to visit those states the President cannot visit,
as of course the first responsibility.
2. However, as often as possible, the Vice President should be
scheduled into those areas and among those groups -- that are the
battleground in 1972. And that is not Republicans. We, by and
large, have the South now. In the North, it is Catholic, ethnic,
urban, Jewish, middle-income, working class Democrats who are the
swing votes, the ones who will decide by how large a margin we will
win this one, if we do win it.
Therefore, schedulers should look to Pulaski Day Parades, Columbus
Day Parades (What about a WH function, along the lines of the
St. Pat's Party), union halls, Knights of Columbus, Queens, PBA,
and ethnic community meetings.
This is vital, in my judgment -- and we should schedule Dole ,and
MacGregor into the GOP functions, using the Veep for those areas
where he can do us the most good - - among the Wallace Democrats
in the North, in places like Michigan and elsewhere.
3. The Vice President should have a set-piece speech, as the
President had, and instead of an entire new text every day -- as in
1970 - we should have a new "Ten Graphs" in each speech. This
is one hell of a lot easier on speech writers, and gives us greater
control of the material that the press runs.
-2-
4.
The Vice President should carry the fight to the opposition
ticket, by and large ignoring Eagleton -- and zeroing in on McGovern.
The Veep has the Assault Book. What is needed now more than
anything is co-ordination of the attack strategy so that we don't pee
away everything in the first weeks, and so that our strategies can
be co-ordinated.
5.
Frankly, we need better press relations between the Vice
President and the national and local press; this might well require
a more conciliatory attitude on the part of the Veep's staff toward
the traveling press. (We had good relations we thought, by and
large, in the 1970 election.) Certainly, the Vice President should
do something for the locals at each stop. And we ought, of course,
to shelve for the campaign the broad anti-media attacks; unless
a) it proves politically necessary in light of their shafting. We have
the political dividends out of this -- our target is McGovern.
6.
Contact on a regular basis between the President and the Vice
President would be especially helpful -- not simply for morale purposes,
but to review the success of failure of a given strategy and to maintain
campaign flexibility.
7.
We should, on the campaign trail, avoid I think, the epithet
and make our charges -- based strictly the record. So that
McGovern is forced to respond to what he himself said -- not to what
we called him. However, the extremism of the McGovern positions
and statements, and the "elitism" of the New Left controllers of the
Democratic Party remains an effective theme appealing to Democrats.
8.
We should remember that the swing voters in this election are
Democrats and strictly Republican appeals this fall are only useful
for rallying the troops, nothing more. The "McGovernites" is right
on the mark.
9.
The situation of 1970 where the President's people were on
board the Vecp's plane- at the Veep's invitation -- was a good one.
Since the President is not going to be stumping, his top writing talent,
or much of it, should be withthe Vice President.
10.
I recognize the need to defend the President and his Administration,
but what the press considers "news" is usually negative news, i. e.,
an "attack" rather than a defense. And we must not allow McGovern
to swing over onto the offensive i. c., I would argue that the Vice
President should be carrying the struggle to their ticket, rather than
waiting for them to attack, and defending the President.
-3-
In my view, whereas in 1968 it was relatively easy to scare the
voters, with attacks on RN's economics and position on medicare,
etc. that tactic on the part of the other side won't work today.
Whether they agree with RN or not, very few Americans are
"frightened" by the prospect of another RN term. The same cannot
be said of McGovern; and this is the factor which opens up the
possibility of a landslide. Thus, a campaign which continually raises
specters about McGovern's extremism, and the crazyness of his
ideas, is the only kind of campaign I think that can win us a major
landslide. A defensive strategy, thus, does not commend itself to
me -- especially for our biggest gun outside of the President. We
ought to have other views on this.
11.
We have to be wary of making George a Martyr. Mean-spiritedness
has no place in this campaing; thus, it is important that the campaign
staff not be tired and bitchy as the campaign heats up. The humor
used should be light and needling not mean in character.
Again, on this score, though unfair, it is true that we have a smaller
margin for crror than the Democrats. The Veep can call McGovern a
"fraud" and be excoriated for it McGovern can compare RN to Hitler
and his policy in Victnam to the "extermination of the Jews" and get
away with it, without comment. Without tearing into our friends in the
media, we have got to keep pointing this up.
12.
Vitally important that we not allow a situation to develop, as
in 1960 with RN or 1968 with the Veep, when the candiate and his
traveling press were at sword's point. Even if the press is shafting
us, it is not to our advantage to conduct a Cold War with them when
they are reporting what we say and do. In the fall, on the Vice
President's plane, there should be some who will bring that "can of oil"
when necessary, and will, in a good cause, eat a little crow and
humble pie.
13.
Essential that the Vice President, this fall, feel that he has
the full confidence and support of the President, and regular backing.
My view is that in 1968, when the Vice President was under attack,
we would have done better by bringing him on to answer the charges
against him. In 1972, we can be sure that the Vice President will be
an issue the answer to this is to put him on the air, on national
television, and to let him in his own calm way, with his own accents,
answer the allegations that will be made against him. To show he does
not have horns. We might even consider a visit to some campus or
a youth confrontation on the tube for the campaign. As in 1952, a
-4-
harsh and strident and unfair attack on a Vice President can be made
to back-fire against its perpetrators.
Considering that one of the advantages of McGovern is that he may
be perceived as the underdog, the anti-Establishment candidate, it
might be good to get the Vice President into this role, and come
fighting back fairly, against all these elements and institutions that
are out to get him.
14.
Lastly, the major appearance the Vice President -- the major
national impression -- will come from his acceptance speech. This
speech can do a tremendous job for him, and for us, in laying out the
record of the Democratic ticket, in appealing to those Democrats who
have bolted, and in leaving an impression of the Vice President before
the country.
PJB would like to help put some of this together for the Vice President,
and if the President suggested that, would be most helpful.
15.
Recognizing that there are many within the White House and
the Hill who are not exactly enthusiasts of the Vice President, word
should go forth that this is a "team" effort, there should be no
"background" knocking the Number Two man, who will be shouldering
as RN did, much of the nasty workload of the party and the campaign.
Nothing is more embittering than to pull off the wire some holier-than-
thou statement from a fellow Republican, when-- in the interests of the
Administration -- we are throwing Goodell to the sharks. Even a
word from RN to all involved that this is a team effort; that no good
is served us or the Party by background back-stabbing, and that this
is an all-for-one, one-for-all operation, would be beneficial in the
campaign, I would think from the 1970 experience.
Buchanan
TALKING PAPER FOR BUIIHAN
FU
7/20
You should talk with the Vice President and sell him on
your inion of the day talk with the pre- 3.
Also, 173 need some heavy thinking regarding the Vice President's
vole and how he chould play it if he is the nominee for reelection.
We should determine first how he can help, and second, how 1:0
can avoid hurting the prospects of the ticket.
We need your strategy views on this, but we also need you to talk
with the Vice President, try to get him to stop the swipes at the
NEW YORK TIMES, and DO forth, and also to avoid the personal
attacks on McCovern as you suggest in your latest memorandura.
HRII
July 13, 1972
HRIL:kb
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
July 12, 1972
MEMORANDUM TO THE PRESIDENT
(THRU HRH)
FROM:
PATRICK J. BUCHANAN
Observations from a study of the McGovern primary ads, TV,
radio and press -- and the interesting McGovern biography.
Points worth noting:
1.
Despite the ideological liberalism of Mr. McGovern, there
is a clear conservative thrust to many of his issues ads --
particularly those for "cleaning up the welfare mess, 11 and
relieving the property tax burden on the average citizen. The
McGovern proposals to increase the welfare payments and rolls,
and the manifest inconsistency in proposing $150 billion in new
spending -- while appearing to be for a reduction in and
redistribution of the tax burden are not present in these ads.
Further, late in the primaries, his new "hard-line" on Israel
was a major topic of his advertising. Could find nothing in the
way of elitist, new left ad themes in McGovern's primary
campaing. Amnesty, abortion, pot, soak-the-rich, slash
defense, $1000-a-person were clearly not major themes. There
are, however, several old-liberal approaches which he has
pushed in his advertising. These include:
a)
Social Security benefits beginning at 62 years of age --
a straight shot appeal to old folks, along traditional
liberal Democratic lines.
b)
An interesting emphasis on "occupational health and
safety. 11 For example, a number of TV spots focusing
on how workers were losing life and limb in unsafe
plants, and this was a serious problem. Imagine
this approach to be one with great appeal where McGovern
is weak -- among production workers.
-2-
c)
Medical care for everyone. This is one of the positive
"liberal" programs, which McGovern emphasized in the
primaries. Again, it is traditional Scammon-Wattenburg
economic liberalism. Again, there is hardly a trace of
what one might call social liberalism, or "radical chic"
politics in the McGovern advertising campaign. And,
clearly, our people should never cease making references
to his "elitist" "radical chic" positions -- and focus on
them, rather than leaving the debate to resolve around
his more traditional "liberal" approaches.
d)
A relatively hard-nosed approach on drugs.
OTHER APPROACHES
The KENNEDYS -- Mr. McGovern is clearly running
on the coattails of two dead men, John and Robert Kennedy;
his documentary is almost a Kennedy Documentary; his TV
and radio spots make extensive use of the Kennedy endorse-
ments of George McGovern as the "most decent man in the
Senate. " We can expect much of this in the fall.
PERSONALITY -- McGovern's campaign consistently
contrasts Mr. McGovern as an honest, open, straight-forward,
candid, consistent candidate with Mr. Nixon's Administration,
which is portrayed as deceitful, closed, secretive, distrustful.
This is clearly in the McGovern campaign judgment a winner
for them -- and a loser for us. They focus upon the "personality"
of the two candidates and the two campaigns, as much as upon
any two issues. The need for us, again, in my judgment, is to
move early to get out the record of both the McGovern waffles
No
on positions, that McGovern compromises on principles,
McGovern's nasty and vindictive attacks upon the President and
his political adversaries. The press, which nails Mr. Agnew
to the mast for his rugged rhetoric has allowed Mr. McGovern
to get away with some of the more incredible statements in
American politics. We have Mr. McGovern's cruel and nasty
statements recorded, but these, along with his waffles and
back-downs, have to be moved into the public record. As with
Mr. Muskie, one of our problems is to contradict this idea
that, whether you agree or disagree with McGovern, you
"know where he stands, 11 and you know he can be trusted.
-3-
Other attributes the McGovern camp is playing up are such
as "warmth, humanity, sympathy, compassion," and they are
attempting to contrast them with a cold-blooded, super-efficient,
rather heartless White House and President. Such as RN's visit
to the flood-stricken areas of the country is most helpful as an
antidote to this kind of approach. We could do more of the last.
Also, an openness, and a new accessibility to the press and public
on the part of the President might, in my view, be helpful in
working against this "inaccessibility" allegation that is part of the
McGovern mode.
ISRAEL - - McGovern's extraordinary sensitivity on this
issue is manifest in the 180-degree turnabout on the issue, and the
astonishing hawkishness of his latest ads. He is vulnerable here;
and the lesson is obvious that we ought to continue to focus upon
his opposition to the Eisenhower Doctrine, to measures to promote
Israeli security, etc. He is vulnerable here; and aware of it.
POPULISM -- While "Professor McGovern" is a representative
of the "outs" against the "ins," the fighter against the "interests" for
the common man who bears too much of the burden, while powerful
corporations and institutions get off without paying their fair share.
The clear need is, as stated in previous memos, to portray McGovern
as a Candidate of the Elite, "Professor McGovern, 11 the leader
of the party of the PHds. and limousine liberals, whose elitist
shock troops took over the party of the people, the "noise-makers"
and the "exotic, 11 the tiny minority who are imposing an asinine
social policy of bussing on a country, eight-five percent of whose
people do not want bussing.
There are few larger imperatives in our campaign than to mov
McGovern into the position of the Establishment Candidate
running against the candidate of Middle America. Crucial to our
success this fall is to put McGovern in the bag with the "radical
chic" and this message it seems to me, has to be impressed upon
our speakers. If we allow him to be perceived as his ads, and
previous campaigns portray him, we could have a serious problem.
-4-
VIETNAM McGovern's approach is that he is the one man
in the country, who has been "right from the start, 11 about this
miserable, horrible war. This should be confronted, not ignored,
and surely, not conceded. These are three basic approaches,
some of them not complementary, if not consistent:
a)
McGovern has been a waffler on the war; he voted for the
Gulf of Tokin in 1964, against its repeal in 1966, for appropriations
for the conflict throughout the early and mid-sixties, and only voted
to get out after a Republican had come in to clean up the mess
McGovern's Presidential choices (JFK, LBJ, HHH) had made of
the situation. His bitter attacks on RN thus come not from
principle but from the effort to pick up partisan dividends from under-
cutting an American President trying to get us out of a war into which
he voted us.
b)
McGovern has repeatedly made predictions as to what the
enemy would do if we made concessions and every single
McGovern promise and prediction has been wrong. Nobody had
a worse record on Vie tham in terms of understanding the enemy
than McGovern.
c)
McGovern's attacks on the President who is now honorably
ending American involvement in this war are not something to be
proud of they rank among the most shameful episodes in
American history. While President Nixon sought courageously to
ext ricate America from this conflict with his two objectives,
American honor intact, and our commitment not defaulted
McGovern badgered and sabotaged this courageous effort every step
of the way.
Again, our people should not concede the war is immoral, should
not concede that McGovem was right, but we are right too, and
we are trying to end it as best we can. We should challenge him
on this issue, on many grounds. We should confront his claim -
not co-opt it, by saying: "Well, we are against the war, too, and
we are trying to do our best to end it. "
McGovern should be conceded nothing on Vietnam. He is a back-
stabber who would go "begging" to Hanoi and abandon our
prisoners to the enemy, without any guarantee we would ever get
them back. We should view his positions, not with disagreement,
but with contempt.
-5-
THE STRENGTH & WEAKNESS OF GEORGE MCGOVERN THE MAN --
From reading McGovern, a most interesting and sympathetic
biography, and observing the man, the following becomes clear.
McGovern's great strength and great weakness lies in his
personality; he is a minister in his own right and a minister's son;
he is a True Believer, his is the "Passionate State of Mind;" he
sees issues in moral terms, not simply mistaken versus wise, but
evil versus good. At the same time he is extraordinarily ambitious --
unlike Goldwater. Frankly, he bears striking similarities to our
present Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Mr. Romney.
Thus it is that McGovern can both shift positions and express a righteous
faith in his new position to match his faith and fanaticism in expressing
his old.
Thus, it is that McGovern can compare RN with Hitler and his bombing
policy with extermination of the Jews -- and still believe in his
own mind that Mr. Agnew is the "demagogue" who says horrible
things. McGovern's self-righteousness can be a great strength --
he has a preacher's appeal; against us his is the appeal of a man
who believes deeply in a "faith" against the man who is the
quintessence of the pragmatist.
His weakness is, again the weakness of Romney he is, not
unlikely to state and re-state his convictions about RN being like
Hitler, when pressed on the question, rather than backing off. In
a pressure situation, he will fall back upon the "Gospel" of the
left, rather than frame some non-committal neutral response.
Very probably, he will be mor e sensitive, more likely to move to
outrage, with the suggestion that he is a waffler, a hypocrite, than
against the blanket charge he is a radical. Indeed, his campaigns
have shown that he is extremely effective in combating the charge
that he is a "radical"; he has been at his most effective against the
straight-on smear attack and his worst defeat to Karl Mundt --
came when his zealotry and hatred of Karl Mundt got the better of him.
This analysis of McGovern's character reinforces my belief that
our best attack against him is not the heavy-handed direct charge
that he is a radical and extremist, not a shouting denunciatory
approach -- but repeatedly elevating his wild positions, his slanderous
statements about the President, and suggesting and pointing to his
radicalism and extremism without raging against it. No meat ax;
the scalpel is to be preferred.
-6-
Keep his positions and statements in front of the public, but
a posture of humor, of incredulity about the wildness of his
positions, of indignation and justified anger at the character
of his slanders of the President and other decent, good men
will, in my view, be far more effective than for us to think
up another new way to call McGovern a jackass every
morning. What McGovern the radical has going for him is
something which Jim Buckley had going for him - - when you
look at the guy on the tube and listen to him, it is hard to
accept him as a radical. We have the media which will be
helping him clean up his past for this election; and our job
is to consistently, and insistently, get that past on the public
record -- and make McGovern defend or talk about that
record and, hopefully, hysterically denounce us as SOBs,
which his sense of moral worth and righteousness is fully
capable of leading him to do.
WAR HERO Look for Guggenheim, his documentary
man, and his ad campaign, and his statements, to appeal to
his lost constituency by focusing heavily upon his war record
as a bomber pilot; and one will find, I would think, that the
national media will help out with regular reminders that
George McGovern was a medal-winning bomber pilot in the
war against Nazi Germany, and thus can hardly be considered
a woolly-headed peacenik. McGovern has expressed
consternation that the press was constantly referring to
"War Hero McCloskey" and not to "War Hero McGovern. 11
Their documentary also focuses heavily on his war record.
Buchanan
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
DATE
TO:
FROM: DWIGHT CHAPIN
FYI
PLEASE HANDLE
OTHER:
Engr Cordo only To
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
July 12, 1972
MEMORANDUM TO THE PRESIDENT
(THRU HRH)
FROM:
PATRICK J. BUCHANAN
Observations from a study of the McGovern primary ads, TV,
radio and press -- and the interesting McGovern biography.
Points worth noting:
1.
Despite the ideological liberalism of Mr. McGovern, there
is a clear conservative thrust to many of his issues ads --
particularly those for "cleaning up the welfare mess, 11 and
relieving the property tax burden on the average citizen. The
McGovern proposals to increase the welfare payments and rolls,
and the manifest inconsistency in proposing $150 billion in new
spending - - while appearing to be for a reduction in and
redistribution of the tax burden are not present in these ads.
Further, late in the primaries, his new "hard-line" on Israel
was a major topic of his advertising. Could find nothing in the
way of elitist, new left ad themes in McGovern's primary
campaing. Amnesty, abortion, pot, soak-the-rich, slash
defense, $1000-a-person were clearly not major themes. There
are, however, several old-liberal approaches which he has
pushed in his advertising. These include:
a)
Social Security benefits beginning at 62 years of age --
a straight shot appeal to old folks, along traditional
liberal Democratic lines.
b)
An interesting emphasis on "occupational health and
safety. 11 For example, a number of TV spots focusing
on how workers were losing life and limb in unsafe
plants, and this was a serious problem. Imagine
this approach to be one with great appeal where McGovern
is weak among production workers.
-2-
c)
Medical care for everyone. This is one of the positive
"liberal" programs, which McGovern emphasized in the
primaries. Again, it is traditional Scammon-Wattenburg
economic liberalism. Again, there is hardly a trace of
what one might call social liberalism, or "radical chic"
politics in the McGovern advertising campaign. And,
clearly, our people should never cease making references
to his "elitist" "radical chic" positions -- and focus on
them, rather than leaving the debate to resolve around
his more traditional "liberal" approaches.
d)
A relatively hard-nosed approach on drugs.
OTHER APPROACHES
The KENNEDYS -- Mr. McGovern is clearly running
on the coattails of two dead men, John and Robert Kennedy;
his documentary is almost a Kennedy Documentary; his TV
and radio spots make extensive use of the Kennedy endorse-
ments of George McGovern as the "most decent man in the
Senate. " We can expect much of this in the fall.
PERSONALITY -- McGovern's campaign consistently
contrasts Mr. McGovern as an honest, open, straight-forward,
candid, consistent candidate -- with Mr. Nixon's Administration,
which is portrayed as deceitful, closed, secretive, distrustful.
This is clearly in the McGovern campaign judgment a winner
for them -- and a loser for us. They focus upon the "personality"
of the two candidates and the two campaigns, as much as upon
any two issues. The need for us, again, in my judgment, is to
move early to get out the record of both the McGovern waffles
on positions, that McGovern compromises on principles,
McGovern's nasty and vindictive attacks upon the President and
his political adversaries. The press, which nails Mr. Agnew
to the mast for his rugged rhetoric has allowed Mr. McGovern
to get away with some of the more incredible statements in
American politics. We have Mr. McGovern's cruel and nasty
statements recorded, but these, along with his waffles and
back-downs, have to be moved into the public record. As with
Mr. Muskie, one of our problems is to contradict this idea
that, whether you agree or disagree with McGovern, you
"know where he stands, 11 and you know he can be trusted.
-3-
Other attributes the McGovern camp is playing up are such
as "warmth, humanity, sympathy, compassion, and they are
attempting to contrast them with a cold-blooded, super-efficient,
rather heartless White House and President. Such as RN's visit
to the flood-stricken areas of the country is most helpful as an
antidote to this kind of approach. We could do more of the last.
Also, an openness, and a new accessibility to the press and public
on the part of the President might, in my view, be helpful in
working against this "inaccessibility" allegation that is part of the
McGovern mode.
ISRAEL -- McGovern's extraordinary sensitivity on this
issue is manifest in the 180-degree turnabout on the issue, and the
astonishing hawkishness of his latest ads. He is vulnerable here;
and the lesson is obvious that we ought to continue to focus upon
his opposition to the Eisenhower Doctrine, to measures to promote
Israeli security, etc. He is vulnerable here; and aware of it.
POPULISM - - While "Professor McGovern" is a representative
of the "outs" against the "ins, " the fighter against the "interests" for
the common man who bears too much of the burden, while powerful
corporations and institutions get off without paying their fair share.
The clear need is, as stated in previous memos; to portray McGovern
as a Candidate of the Elite, "Professor McGovern, 11 the leader
of the party of the PHds. and limousine liberals, whose elitist
shock troops took over the party of the people, the "noise-makers"
and the "exotic, 11 the tiny minority who are imposing an asinine
social policy of bussing on a country, eight-five percent of whose
people do not want bussing.
There are few larger imperatives in our campaign than to mov e
McGovern into the position of the Establishment Candidate
running against the candidate of Middle America. Crucial to our
success this fall is to put McGovern in the bag with the "radical
chic" and this message it seems to me, has to be impressed upon
our speakers. If we allow him to be perceived as his ads, and
previous campaigns portray him, we could have a serious problem.
-4-
VIETNAM - - McGovern's approach is that he is the one man
in the country, who has been "right from the start, 11 about this
miserable, horrible war. This should be confronted, not ignored,
and surely, not conceded. These are three basic approaches,
some of them not complementary, if not consistent:
a)
McGovern has been a waffler on the war; he voted for the
Gulf of Tokin in 1964, against its repeal in 1966, for appropriations
for the conflict throughout the early and mid-sixties, and only voted
to get out after a Republican had come in to clean up the mess
McGovern's Presidential choices (JFK, LBJ, HHH) had made of
the situation. His bitter attacks on RN thus come not from
principle but from the effort to pick up partisan dividends from under-
cutting an American President trying to get us out of a war into which
he voted us.
b)
McGovern has repeatedly made predictions as to what the
enemy would do if we made concessions -- and every single
McGovern promise and prediction has been wrong. Nobody had
a worse record on Vietnam in terms of understanding the enemy
than McGovern.
c)
McGovern's attacks on the President who is now honorably
ending American involvement in this war are not something to be
proud of they rank among the most shameful episodes in
American history. While President Nixon sought courageously to
ext ricate America from this conflict with his two objectives,
American honor intact, and our commitment not defaulted
McGovern badgered and sabotaged this courageous effort every step
of the way.
Again, our people should not concede the war is immoral, should
not concede that McGovem was right, but we are right too, and
we are trying to end it as best we can. We should challenge him
on this issue, on many grounds. We should confront his claim -
not co-opt it, by saying: "Well, we are against the war, too, and
we are trying to do our best to end it. 11
McGovern should be conceded nothing on Vietnam. He is a back-
stabber who would go "begging" to Hanoi - - and abandon our
prisoners to the enemy, without any guarantee we would ever get
them back. We should view his positions, not with disagreement,
but with contempt.
-5-
THE STRENGTH & WEAKNESS OF GEORGE MCGOVERN THE MAN --
From reading McGovern, a most interesting and sympathetic
biography, and observing the man, the following becomes clear.
McGovern's great strength and great weakness lies in his
personality; he is a minister in his own right and a minister's son;
he is a True Believer, his is the "Passionate State of Mind;" he
sees issues in moral terms, not simply mistaken versus wise, but
evil versus good. At the same time he is extraordinarily ambitious --
unlike Goldwater. Frankly, he bears striking similarities to our
present Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Mr. Romney.
Thus it is that McGovern can both shift positions and express a righteous
faith in his new position to match his faith and fanaticism in expressing
his old.
Thus, it is that McGovern can compare RN with Hitler and his bombing
policy with extermination of the Jews -- and still believe in his
own mind that Mr. Agnew is the "demagogue" who says horrible
things. McGovern's self-righteousness can be a great strength --
he has a preacher's appeal; against us his is the appeal of a man
who believes deeply in a "faith" against the man who is the
quintessence of the pragmatist.
His weakness is, again the weakness of Romney -- he is, not
unlikely to state and re-state his convictions about RN being like
Hitler, when pressed on the question, rather than backing off. In
a pressure situation, he will fall back upon the "Gospel" of the
left, rather than frame some non-committal neutral response.
Very probably, he will be mor e sensitive, more likely to move to
outrage, with the suggestion that he is a waffler, a hypocrite, than
against the blanket charge he is a radical. Indeed, his campaigns
have shown that he is extremely effective in combating the charge
that he is a "radical"; he has been at his most effective against the
straight-on smear attack and his worst defeat -- to Karl Mundt
came when his zealotry and hatred of Karl Mundt got the better of him.
This analysis of McGovern's character reinforces my belief that
our best attack against him is not the heavy-handed direct charge
that he is a radical and extremist, not a shouting denunciatory
approach -- but repeatedly elevating his wild positions, his slanderous
statements about the President, and suggesting and pointing to his
radicalism and extremism without raging against it. No meat ax;
the scalpel is to be preferred.
6
Keep his positions and statements in front of the public, but
a posture of humor, of incredulity about the wildness of his
positions, of indignation and justified anger at the character
of his slanders of the President and other decent, good men
will, in my view, be far more effective than for us to think
up another new way to call McGovern a jackass every
morning. What McGovern the radical has going for him is
something which Jim Buckley had going for him -- when you
look at the guy on the tube and listen to him, it is hard to
accept him as a radical. We have the media which will be
helping him clean up his past for this election; and our job
is to consistently, and insistently, get that past on the public
record -- and make McGovern defend or talk about that
record and, hopefully, hysterically denounce us as SOBs,
which his sense of moral worth and righteousness is fully
capable of leading him to do.
WAR HERO -- Look for Guggenheim, his documentary
man, and his ad campaign, and his statements, to appeal to
his lost constituency by focusing heavily upon his war record
as a bomber pilot; and one will find, I would think, that the
national media will help out with regular reminders that
George McGovern was a medal-winning bomber pilot in the
war against Nazi Germany, and thus can hardly be considered
a woolly-headed peacenik. McGovern has expressed
consternation that the press was constantly referring to
"War Hero McCloskey" and not to "War Hero McGovern."
Their documentary also focuses heavily on his war record.
Buchanan
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
July 12, 1972
MEMORANDUM TO THE PRESIDENT
(THRU HRH)
FROM:
PATRICK J. BUCHANAN
Observations from a study of the McGovern primary ads, TV,
radio and press -- and the interesting McGovern biography.
Points worth noting:
1.
Despite the ideological liberalism of Mr. McGovern, there
is a clear conservative thrust to many of his issues ads --
particularly those for "cleaning up the welfare mess, " and
relieving the property tax burden on the average citizen. The
McGovern proposals to increase the welfare payments and rolls,
and the manifest inconsistency in proposing $150 billion in new
spending -- while appearing to be for a reduction in and
redistribution of the tax burden are not present in these ads.
Further, late in the primaries, his new "hard-line" on Israel
was a major topic of his advertising. Could find nothing in the
way of elitist, new left ad themes in McGovern's primary
campaing. Amnesty, abortion, pot, soak-the-rich, slash
defense, $1000-a-person were clearly not major themes. There
are, however, several old-liberal approaches which he has
pushed in his advertising. These include:
a)
Social Security benefits beginning at 62 years of age --
a straight shot appeal to old folks, along traditional
liberal Democratic lines.
b)
An interesting emphasis on "occupational health and
safety. 11 For example, a number of TV spots focusing
on how workers were losing life and limb in unsafe
plants, and this was a serious problem. Imagine
this approach to be one with great appeal where McGovern
is weak -- among production workers.
-2-
c)
Medical care for everyone. This is one of the positive
"liberal" programs, which McGovern emphasized in the
primaries. Again, it is traditional Scammon-Wattenburg
economic liberalism. Again, there is hardly a trace of
what one might call social liberalism, or "radical chic"
politics in the McGovern advertising campaign. And,
clearly, our people should never cease making references
to his "elitist" "radical chic" positions -- and focus on
them, rather than leaving the debate to resolve around
his more traditional "liberal" approaches.
d)
A relatively hard-nosed approach on drugs.
OTHER APPROACHES
The KENNEDYS -- Mr. McGovern is clearly running
on the coattails of two dead men, John and Robert Kennedy;
his documentary is almost a Kennedy Documentary; his TV
and radio spots make extensive use of the Kennedy endorse-
ments of George McGovern as the "most decent man in the
Senate. 11 We can expect much of this in the fall.
PERSONALITY McGovern's campaign consistently
contrasts Mr. McGovern as an honest, open, straight-forward,
candid, consistent candidate -- with Mr. Nixon's Administration,
which is portrayed as deceitful, closed, secretive, distrustful.
This is clearly in the McGovern campaign judgment a winner
for them -- and a loser for us. They focus upon the "personality"
of the two candidates and the two campaigns, as much as upon
any two issues. The need for us, again, in my judgment, is to
move early to get out the record of both the McGovern waffles
on positions, that McGovern compromises on principles,
McGovern's nasty and vindictive attacks upon the President and
his political adversaries. The press, which nails Mr. Agnew
to the mast for his rugged rhetoric has allowed Mr. McGovern
to get away with some of the more incredible statements in
American politics. We have Mr. McGovern's cruel and nasty
statements recorded, but these, along with his waffles and
back-downs, have to be moved into the public record. As with
Mr. Muskie, one of our problems is to contradict this idea
that, whether you agree or disagree with McGovern, you
"know where he stands, 11 and you know he can be trusted.
-3-
Other attributes the McGovern camp is playing up are such
as "warmth, humanity, sympathy, compassion," and they are
attempting to contrast them with a cold-blooded, super-efficient,
rather heartless White House and President. Such as RN's visit
to the flood-stricken areas of the country is most helpful as an
antidote to this kind of approach. We could do more of the last.
Also, an openness, and a new accessibility to the press and public
on the part of the President might, in my view, be helpful in
working against this "inaccessibility" allegation that is part of the
McGovern mode.
ISRAEL -- McGovern's extraordinary sensitivity on this
issue is manifest in the 180-degree turnabout on the issue, and the
astonishing hawkishness of his latest ads. He is vulnerable here;
and the lesson is obvious that we ought to continue to focus upon
his opposition to the Eisenhower Doctrine, to measures to promote
Israeli security, etc. He is vulnerable here; and aware of it.
POPULISM While "Professor McGovern" is a representative
of the "outs" against the "ins," the fighter against the "interests" for
the common man who bears too much of the burden, while powerful
corporations and institutions get off without paying their fair share.
The clear need is, as stated in previous memos; to portray McGovern
as a Candidate of the Elite, "Professor McGovern, 11 the leader
of the party of the PHds. and limousine liberals, whose elitist
shock troops took over the party of the people, the "noise-makers"
and the "exotic, 11 the tiny minority who are imposing an asinine
social policy of bussing on a country, eight-five percent of whose
people do not want bussing.
There are few larger imperatives in our campaign than to mov e
McGovern into the position of the Establishment Candidate --
running against the candidate of Middle America. Crucial to our
success this fall is to put McGovern in the bag with the "radical
chic" and this message it seems to me, has to be impressed upon
our speakers. If we allow him to be perceived as his ads, and
previous campaigns portray him, we could have a serious problem.
-4-
VIETNAM McGovern's approach is that he is the one man
in the country, who has been "right from the start, 11 about this
miserable, horrible war. This should be confronted, not ignored,
and surely, not conceded. These are three basic approaches,
some of them not complementary, if not consistent:
a)
McGovern has been a waffler on the war; he voted for the
Gulf of Tokin in 1964, against its repeal in 1966, for appropriations
for the conflict throughout the early and mid-sixties, and only voted
to get out -- after a Republican had come in to clean up the mess
McGovern's Presidential choices (JFK, LBJ, HHH) had made of
the situation. His bitter attacks on RN thus come not from
principle but from the effort to pick up partisan dividends from under-
cutting an American President trying to get us:out of a war into which
he voted us.
b)
McGovern has repeatedly made predictions as to what the
enemy would do if we made concessions -- and every single
McGovern promise and prediction has been wrong. Nobody had
a worse record on Vietnam in terms of understanding the enemy
than McGovern.
c)
McGovern's attacks on the President who is now honorably
ending American involvement in this war are not something to be
proud of - they rank among the most shameful' episodes in
American history. While President Nixon sought courageously to
ext ricate America from this conflict with his two objectives,
American honor intact, and our commitment not defaulted
McGovern badgered and sabotaged this courageous effort every step
of the way.
Again, our people should not concede the war is immoral, should
not concede that McGovem was right, but we are right too, and
we are trying to end it as best we can. We should challenge him
on this issue, on many grounds. We should confront his claim -
not co-opt it, by saying: "Well, we are against the war, too, and
we are trying to do our best to end it. 11
McGovern should be conceded nothing on Vietnam. He is a back-
stabber who would go "begging" to Hanoi and abandon our
prisoners to the enemy, without any guarantee we would ever get
them back. We should view his positions, not with disagreement,
but with contempt.
-5-
THE STRENGTH & WEAKNESS OF GEORGE MCGOVERN THE MAN
From reading McGovern, a most interesting and sympathetic
biography, and observing the man, the following becomes clear.
McGovern's great strength and great weakness lies in hi S
personality; he is a minister in his own right and a minister's son;
he is a True Believer, his is the "Passionate State of Mind;" he
sees issues in moral terms, not simply mistaken versus wise, but
evil versus good. At the same time he is extraordinarily ambitious --
unlike Goldwater. Frankly, he bears striking similarities to our
present Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Mr. Romney.
Thus it is that McGovern can both shift positions and express a righteous
faith in his new position to match his faith and fanaticism in expressing
his old.
Thus, it is that McGovern can compare RN with Hitler and his bombing
policy with extermination of the Jews and still believe in his
own mind that Mr. Agnew is the "demagogue" who says horrible
things. McGovern's self-righteousness can be a great strength
he has a preacher's appeal; against us his is the appeal of a man
who believes deeply in a "faith" against the man who is the
quintessence of the pragmatist.
His weakness is, again the weakness of Romney -- he is, not
unlikely to state and re-state his convictions about RN being like
Hitler, when pressed on the question, rather than backing off. In
a pressure situation, he will fall back upon the "Gospel" of the
left, rather than frame some non-committal neutral response.
Very probably, he will be mor e sensitive, more likely to move to
outrage, with the suggestion that he is a waffler, a hypocrite, than
against the blanket charge he is a radical. Indeed, his campaigns
have shown that he is extremely effective in combating the charge
that he is a "radical"; he has been at his most effective against the
straight-o: smear attack and his worst defeat -- to Karl Mundt
came when his zealotry and hatred of Karl Mundt got the better of him.
This analysis of McGovern's character reinforces my belief that
our best attack against him is not the heavy-handed direct charge
that he is a radical and extremist, not a shouting denunciatory
approach -- but repeatedly elevating his wild positions, his slanderous
statements about the President, and suggesting and pointing to his
radicalism and extremism without raging against it. No meat ax;
the scalpel is to be preferred.
-6-
Keep his positions and statements in front of the public, but
a posture of humor, of incredulity about the wildness of his
positions, of indignation and justified anger at the character
of his slanders of the President and other decent, good men
will, in my view, be far more effective than for us to think
up another new way to call McGovern a jackass every
morning. What McGovern the radical has going for him is
something which Jim Buckley had going for him when you
look at the guy on the tube and listen to him, it is hard to
accept him as a radical. We have the media which will be
helping him clean up his past for this election; and our job
is to consistently, and insistently, get that past on the public
record -- and make McGovern defend or talk about that
record and, hopefully, hysterically denounce us as SOBs,
which his sense of moral worth and righteousness is fully
capable of leading him to do.
WAR HERO -- Look for Guggenheim, his documentary
man, and his ad campaign, and his statements, to appeal to
his lost constituency by focusing heavily upon his war record
as a bomber pilot; and one will find, I would think, that the
national media will help out with regular reminders that
George McGovern was a medal-winning bomber pilot in the
war against Nazi Germany, and thus can hardly be considered
a woolly-headed peacenik. McGovern has expressed
consternation that the press was constantly referring to
"War Hero McCloskey" and not to "War Hero McGovern."
Their documentary also focuses heavily on his war record.
Buchanan
LDXD SC
THE WHITE HOUSE
5:45PM
WASHINGTON
July 5, 1972
MEMORANDUM TO THE PRESIDENT
(Per HRH)
FROM:
PATRICK J. BUCHANAN
At HRH's request, some thoughts on 1968 and 1960.
First, it is imprecise to say that "in 1968 there was a substantial
decline during the campaign." (If there is a single hallmark of RN's
runs against both JFK and HHH it is the remarkable stability of the
Nixon vote from August through November.) The President did not
so much lose votes fro m August to November of 1968 -- as we lost a
historic opportunity, the "lost landslide" as someone has referred to
it. While we failed to edge upwards in the slightest, Humphrey closed
a 13 paint gap. What were the reasons for this?
A)
Some of the HHH gains were inevitable; the Democratic candidate,
if he performed reasonably well, was simply going to win back some
of the traditional Democratic vote, horrified at the Chicago convention,
but not a Nixon voter at heart.
B)
We failed utterly to pick up the Wallace defectors in the North,
who slipped away from Wallace through Nixon, back to HHH. This
return to HHH is partly due to the efforts of the AFL-CIO, probably
partly due to RN's "anti-union" image from the fifties, partly due to
our own short-comings. (Incidentally, we are in better and the
Democratic Left in worse shape with these voters than in 1968; our
opportunity is renewed.)
The startling thing about the Gallup Poll, 1968, is the almost precise
correlation between the Humphrey rise and the Wallace fall in the polls.
Wallace, too, by holding onto Southern votes and Southern states which
surely might have been ours, had a hand in preventing the "landslide"
that might have been.
-2-
But, in my judgment, our own campaign had serious short-comings
in 1968. Basically, they were these:
a)
A lack of flexibility. We established a game plan, and followed
it through, although by early October, it should have been evident that
we were losing the interest of the press and the country as well. The
hoopla campaign -- to demonstrate RN had the kind of enthusiasm and
unity HHH did not, was ideal for September. It was not for October.
Once Humphrey made his Salt Lake City speech, the President should
have, in my judgment, attacked him directly and vigorously, to force
back the split in the Democratic Party between the pro-bombing and
the anti-bombing forces who had fought at the convention and who were
yet at sword's point. We let HHH off the hook on this. By so doing,
he got off of that petard and went over onto the attack.
On the attack, he began to move, to make new and different charges,
to attract interest.
b)
The President in the fall campaign of 1968 was plagued by the
identical problem he had in the fall campaign of 1960. A Hostile Press.
Teddy White testifies to this in 1960 and Miss Efron in 1968. In addition,
I have on personal knowledge that a group of 19 Washington press types
who had divided 10-9 pro-RN in September, were 18-1 pro-HHH at
election time.
What explains the bad press? We are partly at fault I believe. We shut
down communication with them compared with the primaries where
we got good press. We also, because of circumstances, were maneuvered
into the upper-dog position. We were the more conservative of the two
leading candidates. We did not deviate from the set-speech-Man-in-the-
Arena-handout routine sufficiently to attract their on-going attention or
interest. They were more concerned with reporting a breaking story,
The Humphrey Comeback, which was exciting news, than the RN Radio
Speeches, which with few exceptions only got a stick of type or two.
Our personal relations with the traveling press deteriorated from the
campaign, partly due to the "size" of the corps, the natural hostility of
liberals, and our natural antipathy toward them which was coming through
late in the game.
-3-
c)
But, rather than strict comparison of 1960 and 1968, which may
or may not be useful, and rather than belabor the shortcomings of
the various campaign, which are many but which are as well
counter-balanced by the right decisions, let me rather enumerate
those dangers which lurk for us, in my view, in 1972 based on the
campaigns presidential of the last 12 years. What we face in my
view is:
THE DANGERS OF 1968 & THE OPPORTUNITY OF 1964
If McGovern is nominated, in my judgment:
1)
We must place him on the defensive from the outset, and not
let him off of it until November. In our 1968 and 1970 campaign, we
did this for the first three weeks then either HHH "got well" on
Vietnam, or the liberals "got well" on "law and order, 11 and our issue
hand had been played. Again, we have enough on McGovern to keep
him on the defensive throughout the fall -- we ought not to blast it
out of the cannon at once; our speakers should be on the attack.
2)
We have to maintain a flexibility that I do not believe existed in
1968, and from what 1 read did not exist in 1960. As Ike said, "planning
is essential; plans are worthless. 11 We should have a mapped-out
game plan before the campaign starts both for attack on the
Opposition, and for presentation of the candidate, but there should be
a "Review Committee" to look over that plan, and over our media at
least once a week.
3)
While we should rule out the President for the time being -- on
the Attack Role; I would not rule out a Presidential address to the
country, splitting RN off from McGovern on the issues, right now.
4)
We should have ourselves a strategy meeting on dealing with the
press and media between now and November. In my view, we have
discredited them for the bias of which they are guilty for three years --
indeed, public confidence in their performance is on the dedine. But
should there be a "detente" between the White House and national press
corps between now and November? While I am more than willing to
carry my hod in a campaign to discredit the national media as pro-
McGovern, would such a campaign be in our interest, at this point in
time. This is something which should not be determined ad hoc
because in my view a hostile media is one of the prime reasons why
RN's presidential campaigns have never seen him rise in the national
polls by a single cubit.
-4-
5)
We should keep in mind that it was not LBJ's performance and
personality which won him 60% of the vote -- it was the portrayal
of Goldwater as an extremist, which frightened even Republicans.
In my view, given the antipathy of the national media, and the
smallness of the GOP, there is no way we could conceivably do better
than a 54-46 victory over a centrist, popular Democrat with a united
party. Against a divided Democratic Party, however, with a candidate
who is far out on the issues, with a press that is less concerned with
their antipathy toward RN than with the wild schemes of his opponent,
we could go up to 58 to 60 percent.
Thus - - it will not be how wonderful we are, but how terrible McGovern
is -- that will make the difference this fall between a respectable clear
victory, and a Nixon landslide. Seems to me vital that we keep this
in mind.
To get that good media, we should confront McGovern on the "issues, 11
clearly; we should be almost generous to him personally; we should
deliberately avoid any nasty, smear attacks. We have enough on the
record to hang the guy what we have to avoid at all costs are such
media-negatives as the 1970 "ads" and the 1972 Watergate Caper, which
they are trying to hang around our necks. We should hammer the issues
and his positions and let McGovern come off as the "name-caller. 11
6)
One great concern of mine is the "Humphrey Phenomenon" of
McGovern, if nominated, being case into the role of "under-dog"
anti-Establishment, 11 "come-from-behind" candidate whose campaign
will provide one hell of a good deal more media interest and human
interest than ours.
We should have some real-life "drama" in store for this fall to
attract national attention. We should, in a pleasant enough way, but
unmistakably make this the campaign of Richard Nixon and the Average
Man agains the Establishment and the Radical Chic.
Goldwater was kept on the bottom through his own and his campaign
shortcomings and through the media. Again, how the media handles
this will determine much. The medi a could treat McGovern like
Goldwater, or they could make him into an inept, but good "under-dog"
like HHH in which event, they could make a run out of it.
-5-
7)
As for the suggestion that RN go out and do more, a la 1960, I
would say, no -- if that means "political campaigning. 11 However
Richard Nixon on the move as President, yes; and Richard Nixon in
action in the White House, as President, yes, and Richard Nixon
addressing the nation -- for fifteen minutes as President, to strike a
contrast with McGovern, yes. But not the stump-speaking. RN as
President is a far more effective campaigner than RN as campaigner.
8)
Scheduling. This campaign, unlike 1968, we should schedule RN
into the "undecided" arenas, union halls, Columbus Day activities,
Knights of Columbus meetings, etc. We should keep in mind that there is
only -- at most 20 percent of the electorate that will decide this, not
who wins, but whether or not it is a landslide, and quite frankly, that
20 percent is not a principally Republican vote. Perhaps RN has to make
appearance at GOP rallies -- but when he does, he is not going where the
ducks are. In a McGovern race the ducks are suddenly in city areas of
the North we never carried before.
9)
Perhaps this has been repeated before -- but again, of maximum
importance is that we not convince the media to make McGovern a picked-
on under-dog, by naine-calling. We have to massively confront him with
his positions, and if we need any characterization -- we can take that
from the Democrats. Regrettably, the media does not allow us the same
latitude in name-calling it will give McGovern who has already charged
the Administration with "racism" Hitler-like conduct and war-mongering.
Buchanan
50
45
RN
40
35
HHH
30
25
20
WALLACE
15
Gallup Poll - 1968
RN
HHH
Wallace
April
43%
34%
9%
10
Late May
36
42
14
July
40
38
16
Aug. 21
45
29
18
Late Sept.
43
28
21
Early Oct.
44
29
20
Mid Oct.
43
31
20
5
Oct. 27
44
36
15
Nov. 4
42
40
14
0
April
Late
July
Aug. 21
Late
Early
Mid Oct.
Oct. 27
Nov
May
Sept.
Oct.
60
Gallup Poll - 1960
Nixon
JFK
Und.
Early June
48%
52%
Late June
48
52
July
50
44
6
August
47
47
6
55
September
47
48
5
October
48
48
4
November
48
49
3
JFK
50
RN
45
40
35
Early
Late
July
August
Sept.
October
Nov.
June
June
50
45
HHH
40
35
RN
30
25
20
WALLACE
15
Harris Poll - 1968
10
RN
HHH
Wallace
May
36%
38%
13%
June
36
43
13
July
36
41
16
5
Aug.
40
34
17
Sept.
39
31
21
Nov. 1-2
42
40
12
Nov. 3
40
43
13
0
May
June
July
Aug.
Sept.
Nov. 1-2
Nov. 3
:
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
July 7, 1972
THOUGHTS ON THE POST-CONVENTION
(Democratic)
MEMORANDUM TO:
H.R. HALDEMAN
CLARK MAC GREGOR
FROM:
PATRICK J. BUCHANAN
KEN KHACHIGIAN
This memo deals with strategy thoughts strictly for the period
between the conventions.
DISENCHANTED DEMOCRATS
This is the first priority. No sooner should the dust have settled
from the Democratic Convention (a few days following, perhaps) than
a National Democrats for Nixon should be formed publicly to serve
as an "umbrella" for all of the less bold fence-straddlers to join.
We should move fast on the Democrats, post Miami Beach, as they
will be most vulnerable immediately following the convention. If
we have a number of Democrats already locked in, to either abandon
their ticket, or bolt the party -- we should trickle these out, state-by-
state -- not drop them all at once.
In our judgment, if we have a choice it is far better for Democrats
to stay in their party, and denounce McGovern -- than to switch parties
now.
Elitism and extremism in the Democratic Party should form the
basis of the abandonment of McGovern -- followed by support and
endorsement of RN. But, in my view, the former is the more important
news story.
Also, if a figure is immensely prominent, his departure should
be for national television. But someone like Mills Godwin should
have done it from a platform in Richmond.
Page 2
In addition, we should focus upon and publish not simply
the major names, but the minor ones state legislators and the
like -- and publish those names in ads in the "swing states"
especially. The purpose is to leave the impression of massive
defections, not just major ones, from the Democratic Ticket.
We should be working on these people right now -- all over the
various swing states.
Sometime during the campaign, this fall, we need a national
press conference, and a national mailing to all political writers
etc. listing the hundreds of Democratic party officials who have
publicly abandoned the McGovern ticket. The idea, of course,
is to create a stampede so that the fence-straddlers and others
who might want to hang in there will at the least be publicly
disassociating themselves from McGovern.
Also, in this time, GOPers running for State Legislature,
Governor, Senator, Congressmen, should be instructed to force
their opponents to take a stand for or against McGovern and his
positions. (This might well involve mailing a copy of the McGovern
Assault Book to every GOP candidate, with instructions on how to
use it).
THE SHAFTING OF WALLACE
If this is a credible argument, it should be made intensively
by our people. That Wallace who had more votes than any other
candidate, before California, was stripped of delegates and dignity
by the radicals at Miami. That the convention which was supposed
to be "democratic" ended up stealing his delegates, and denying
him the rightful claim to a voice in the platform. The Party is
highly unlikely to buy the Wallace positions as announced today
on national TV; we should go directly to these voters and the
GOP Platform should mirror some of the Governor's concerns.
On matters of defense, bussing, welfare, responsiveness of
government, etc. this should not be difficult.
1701 (RNC) should be collecting assiduously all of the negative
statements by Wallace people about their treatment at Miami and
about the Democratic Platform; we already have some excellent
ones that will go into the Briefing Book.
Page 3
CONVENTION
The theme, "If they can't unite their party, how can they
unite the country; if they can't even run an orderly convention,
how can they run the United States, " the same one used in 1968
is a natural.
THE MC GOVERN SMEAR
Again, clearly the McGovern answer to any and all attacks
will be to charge the "Old Nixon" with his "smear" tactics. The
response to Stein demonstrated this. We will have five or six of
the most egregious McGovern attacks listed -- and out to all
speakers, with a short memo by convention's end -- if McGovern is
nominated. At that point we ought to elevate all of these horrible
statements, and demand to know if McGovern intends to campaign on the
issues -- or to continue in this vein of comparing RN with Hitler,
calling his Administration "racist" etc. McGovern is still being
allowed to get away with being "the most decent man in the Senate"
and his rhetoric has been the wildest of any man in recent political
history.
THE ESTABLISHMENT THEME
We ought to set this early that McGovern is not the candidate
of the people, but of a small elite, of New Leftists, the elitist
children, etc. Again, this impression should be made early
in the campaign, before many voters have made their minds up.
McGovern theme is certain to be to make himself the "candidate of
the people" against the "candidate of the politicians, 11 i.e. us. We
have to get in early with this elitist idea; we have to capture the
anti - Establishment theme early.
Again, my great concern is that McGovern may successfully
establish himself as underdog, anti Establishment, "out" candidate.
Our speaking resources, early, should be directed to thrusting
us into the position of the candidate of the coinmon man, in the
titanic struggle with the power of the Eastern Establishment.
Page 4
THE WAFFLER
Again, another strength of McGovern's which will necessarily
be weakened post-convention is his reputation for "candor, honesty,"
"you know where he stands, 11 nonsense. He will start moving, he
already is moving on the issues right now -- and there is no
contradiction between nailing him with his $1000 giveaway program
one day, and denouncing him for "trimming" by abandoning it the
next. For McGovern, movement in and of itself can be damaging --
because his whole campaign program is "Right from the Start. " We
should nail every shift, every movement -- and nail that "Right from
the Start, 11 right from the start.
Buchanan
Note: Have read the McGovern Book in part and analyzed
his ads to a degree, and will have some followup thoughts on the
"character" of McGovern -- and where he is investing his resources,
what issues, what personality traits.
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
June 25, 1972
MEMORANDUM TO THE PRESIDENT
FROM:
PAT BUCHANAN
SUBJECT: McGovern Problems with Party Regulars (News Summary Note)
Cronkite is right. The McGovern camp is divided between True
Believers and Pragmatists; the former of whom would be distraught
with a McGovern "deal" to save the Daley delegation, for example.
The True Believers are notunlike the Goldwaterites in the galleries
at the Cow Palace, who gave Rocky the treatment before a national
audience, while Cliff White and the others on the floor were holding
their people to a respectful silence.
The Pragmatists in McGovern's camp, however, are themselves
divided, essentially over the question of what course to follow:
A)
Stay on his positions, with little fudging, thus running against
the President as a truthful, honest, candid, far-reaching reformer,
who does not back off what he believes. (By doing this, he will force
some Democrats to bolt).
B)
Or move to the center, right in the public glare, by "embracing"
a Democratic Platform more moderate than his own on welfare, taxes,
defense, etc.
Manckiewicz and some of the others who are pragmatists apparently
feel that the pragmatic thing to do is to stand fast -- to try to win not
on coalition politics, but win on the undiluted Prarie Populism
approach, which keeps the True Believers happy.
On the challenge at the convention, however, all of McGovern's
pragmatists wish they would go away. They don't want Dick Daley
kicked out of the Convention; they are not supporting the challenges
openly; though it is inevitably their people (Jesse Jackson & Co.) who
are carrying out purges.
The point of the matter is that right now, McGovern does not control
his delegates, the way Cliff White and the others could control the
Goldwater delegates. They are "issues" people, many of them, who
-2-
are womens lib, pro-abortion, anti-war, etc. types first, and
McGovern delegates second. They are for McGovern because of
his stand on these issues, not for the issues -- because McGovern
is for them. Their first loyalty is, in many cases, not to form
a coalition that can win -- but to guarantee the success of the
particular and independent causes in which they are working. Some
of them are using McGovern as a vehicle for the advancement d
their own objectives, which McGovern's best interest may or may
not dictate at this point in time.
And if McGovern tries to turn them off, they will raise hell publicly;
and if he does not -- and lets the purges and challenges run amok --
he risks the outrage and alienation of the party regulars, because
it is his animals raising hell in the cage.
Buchanan will be astonished, and we will be in for some difficulty,
if those Gay Lib, Women's Lib, black militant, etc. types -- all of
them camera hogs -- do not raise hell if they do not get their way
at Miami Beach. At this point, it seems to me impossible for the
Democrats to quietly reconcile the basic differences they have - -
and highly improbable that the resulting internecine war can be kept
off the television cameras.
Some of the preliminary caucuses promise exciting events for Miami.
Buchanan
2105
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
June 24, 1972
MEMORANDUM FOR:
THE STAFF SECRETARY
FROM:
CHARLES COLSON
SUBJECT:
Action Memorandum #P-2105
Democratic Convention
Request
It was requested in Presidential Action Memorandum P-2105 to comment
on a comment noted in the June 23 News Summary by Walter Cronkite
as to McGovern's position on the Democratic Convention.
Response
I think Cronkite's point was absolutely accurate. It is a thesis that I
have also been arguing. McGovern is in a very difficult position. The
left forgives him moving to the center; the conservative regulars in
the Democratic Party, the Meanys and the Daleys, etc., really do not
trust him and will not believe him if he does shift positions. Moreover,
he is beginning now to get some pressure from the left as he did in the
Wicker column this week, challenging his credibility and in effect
making it harder for him to shift.
The fact that he now controls the Platform Committee -- and that has
been made public -- puts him in an extremely difficult position. If the
platform comes out in moderate terms, he can be held accountable for
the "sell-out"; if it comes out as a radical platform, we will call it
the McGovern Platform. Either way he will try not to accept responsi-
bility for it but he should be vulnerable to one side or the other.
Most of the press analyses that suggest that McGovern will clean himself
up have been predicated on the fact that he can embrace a moderate plat-
form and that is his excuse for moving to the center. He may no longer
use that excuse, however, since he controls the Platform Committee.
2.
Indeed, as Cronkite pointed out, the rules and credential fights also
will be within his control. He can hardly avoid being held accountable
for actions of the delegates and it is almost impossible for him to avoid
taking sides himself. I don't think that Cronkite was simply trying to
build suspense; I think he was reporting one of the toughest problems
McGovern has.
MEMORANDUM
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
June 23, 1972
ADMINISTRATIVELY CONFIDENTIAL
MEMORANDUM FOR:
MR. CHUCK COLSON
FROM:
BRUCE KEHRLI
BAL
SUBJECT:
Dem Convention
The June 23 News Summary had the following note on the Democratic
Convention:
-- CBS had half-hour special (4:30-5:00) on Dem pre-
convention hearings. McG seems well on his way,
said Cronkite, but ahead lies a booby trap -- the
rules, credential, and platform hearings. If McG
extremists crowd out regulars and take extreme
position it'll confirm worst fears of his opposition,
said Walter, and it could even drive away supporters.
If he sides with his backers, he'll risk alienating
center and right, but if he backs the regulars in the
interest of party harmony, he'll risk alienating his
supporters,
Referring to the above, the question was raised as to whether this
was really a possibility or just a way to keep interest up.
Please forward your response to the Office of the Staff Secretary
by close of business, Monday, June 26.
cc: H.R. Haldeman
Alexander P. Butterfield
Patrick Buchanan
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
June 25, 1972
MEMORANDUM TO:
JOHN MITCHELL
I H. R. HALDEMAN
FROM:
PAT BUCHANAN
Last week or so, Mills Godwin, a respected former Governor of
Virginia, announced that he could not support McGovern & Co.,
and was going for Nixon in November. That was good news, but
terrible timing. Godwin got a nice little spread in the "metro"
section of the local paper. If we have lined up, or know of,
Democrats about to bolt to RN -- they should be called upon to
hold until after the Convention, when it becomes major political
news in terms of November, and then to do so, with Maximum
Fanfare in their State Capitals. Also, this is probably being done,
but we should orchestrate them, so that they fall sequentially, one
or two major figures a week -- and then on a regular basis, the
RNC or Re-Election Committee can send out a release listing major
national Democrats who cannot support the "extremism" of McGovern.
Muskic did most things badly, but one thing he did extraordinarily
well was to drop the endorsements he had lined up with the kind of
skill that made it appear opposition to him was hopeless. The fellow
looked like he was filling up a straight, with ease, only to turn over
nothing on the last card. But the buildup was impressive; and we
should orchestrate similarly.
Buchanan