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<p align="center"><img border="0" src="viet/bobby68.jpg" width="174" height="139">&nbsp;
<img border="0" src="viet/McCarthy68.JPG" width="161" height="142">&nbsp; <img border="0" src="viet/hump2.jpg" width="147" height="144"><br>
<font color="#FFFFFF">Robert
Kennedy&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
Eugene
McCarthy&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
Hubert Humphrey</font></p>
<p align="center"><font color="#FFFFFF" size="5"><b><i>The Impact of Vietnam on
Domestic Politics: <br>
The Election of 1968</i></b></font></p>
<p align="center"><font color="#FFFFFF" size="2">[</font><a href="Change-Viet3b.html"><font size="2" color="#FFFFFF">Click
Here for a Printable Version</font></a><font color="#FFFFFF" size="2">]</font></p>
<p align="center"><font color="#FFFFFF" size="5"><b><i>The Democrats Nomination
Fight</i></b></font></p>
<p><font color="#FFFFFF">1968 was a most chaotic year.&nbsp; It started with the
siege of Khe Sahn in January and continued with the TET offensive in February.
In that same month, a relatively unknown Democrat Senator from Minnesota scored
a dramatic &quot;victory&quot; in the New Hampshire presidential primary.
Senator Eugene McCarthy, mobilizing college students and running as an anti-war
candidate, received 41.9% of the vote. Lyndon Johnson, anticipating no challenge
for the nomination, was not on the ballot. He received 49.6% of the vote in
write-in balloting. But the story was McCarthy whose surprise showing vaulted
him into the national limelight.&nbsp;</font></p>
<p><font color="#FFFFFF"> Shortly thereafter, Robert Kennedy announced that he too would be a candidate for the Democrat
nomination.&nbsp; And on March 31st, President Johnson withdrew from the race. Hubert Humphrey,
Vice President and former Senator from Minnesota, then announced his candidacy.
For the duration of the primary campaign, Humphrey was cast in the role of&nbsp;
&quot;defender&quot; of administration policy while McCarthy and Kennedy waged
campaigns critical of administration policy. The Democrats, as the year would
prove again and again, were hopelessly divided over the Vietnam War.</font></p>
<p><font color="#FFFFFF">The spring of 1968 brought more shock and
turmoil.&nbsp; Martin Luther King was assassinated in Memphis on April 4,
1968.&nbsp; In the wake of his death, a wave of violence broke out in numerous
American cities.</font></p>
<p align="center"><img border="0" src="Change%20Pics/kingshot.jpg" width="214" height="138"></p>
<p><font color="#FFFFFF">That evening, Robert Kennedy
was campaigning in Indiana and paused to talk to an audience, many of whom had
not heard of King's death.&nbsp; The following is a recording of Kennedy's
statement:</font></p>
<p align="center"><a href="viet/Martin%20Luther%20King%20Jr.,%20Announcing%20the%20Shooting%20of%20-%20Robert%20F.%20Kennedy.mp3"><font color="#FFFFFF">[Robert
Kennedy on the death of Martin Luther King]</font></a></p>
<p align="left"><font color="#FFFFFF">Thereafter, Kennedy and McCarthy engaged
in an increasingly competitive and testy battle for votes in the primary.&nbsp;
The difficulty faced by both candidates was that most delegates to the
convention would not be selected in primaries. Instead, they would be chosen by
state party leaders. Rather than compete in primaries, Hubert Humphrey worked
the party apparatus (which he had served for four years as vice president).
Thus, as the campaign progressed, Kennedy and McCarthy played the role of
&quot;insurgents&quot; while Humphrey remained the &quot;party loyalist.&quot; </font></p>
<p align="left"><font color="#FFFFFF">For the insurgents, the showdown primary
occurred on June 4 in California. Kennedy won the primary with 46.3% of the vote
to McCarthy's 41.8%. That evening, Kennedy faced his supporters and network
cameras in the ballroom of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. As he finished
his statement, he flashed a peace sign and said &quot;On to Chicago and let's
win there.&quot;&nbsp; (Theodore White, <i>Making of the President 1968</i>, p. 183).
It was shortly after midnight on June 5.&nbsp; Kennedy's route from the stage
took him through the kitchen of the hotel. There, 22 year-old Sirhan Sirhan
opened fire with a .22 caliber pistol. Several people were injured; Kennedy was
shot three times and died less than 24 hours later. Sirhan Sirhan was found
guilty of murder and sentenced to death. When California abolished the death
penalty, Sirhan's sentence was changed to life in prison.</font></p>
<p align="center"><font color="#FFFFFF"><img border="0" src="viet/rfkpeace.jpg" width="187" height="162">&nbsp;&nbsp;
<img border="0" src="viet/sirhan.jpg" width="133" height="163">&nbsp;&nbsp; <img border="0" src="viet/Bobbyshot.jpg" width="135" height="164"></font></p>
<p align="center"><font color="#FFFFFF">[</font><a href="viet/John%20F.%20Kennedy%20-%20Edward%20Kennedy%20gives%20eulogy%20for%20JFK.mp3"><font color="#FFFFFF">Excerpts
from Robert Kennedy's eulogy given by his brother, Edward</font></a><font color="#FFFFFF">]</font></p>
<p align="center"><font color="#FFFFFF" size="5"><b><i>The Democratic National
Convention of 1968</i></b></font></p>
<p align="left"><font color="#FFFFFF" size="3">Delegates attending the 1968
Democratic National Convention in Chicago were bitterly divided over the war in
Vietnam and other issues. These divisions would lead the party that won an
overwhelming victory in 1964 to self-destruct before a prime time national
television audience.&nbsp; Forces allied with Eugene McCarthy and George
McGovern (who inherited much of Kennedy's support) challenged the credentials of
several state delegations on the grounds of racial discrimination as well as
loyalty to the party. There was bitter debate over a minority resolution that
would have, in effect, repudiated the policy of Lyndon Johnson in Vietnam.&nbsp;
The convention became most divisive when, in nominating George McGovern for
president, Senator Abraham Ribicoff of Connecticut declared that &quot;with
George McGovern as president of the United States, we wouldn't have to have
Gestapo tactics in the streets of Chicago&quot; (Guide to U.S. Elections, p.
90). </font></p>
<p align="left"><font color="#FFFFFF" size="3">Ribicoff was referring to the
outbreak of violence between anti-war demonstrators and the Chicago police.
Footage of this violence was shown by the television networks throughout the
convention. Thousands of demonstrators traveled to Chicago to protest the war
and, if possible, disrupt the convention. Although accounts vary, it is clear
that some demonstrators sought to provoke the police and that the police
responded in an excessively violent manner.</font></p>
<p align="left"><img border="0" src="viet/Chimassing.jpg" width="260" height="156">&nbsp;
<img border="0" src="viet/chiriot.jpg" width="206" height="156"><img border="0" src="viet/chidrag.jpg" width="240" height="160"></p>
<p><font color="#FFFFFF">The Democratic debacle in Chicago had three
consequences.&nbsp; First, the prospects for victory in 1968 were severely
damaged. The Democrats were more divided than ever and the perception of the
party, based on the convention, was negative. Thus, the ticket of Vice President
Humphrey and Edward Muskie, a Senator from Maine, would begin the campaign&nbsp;
having to &quot;defend&quot; a weakened administration and national party.</font></p>

<p align="center"><img border="0" src="viet/humpmusk.jpg" width="187" height="133"><br>
<font color="#FFFFFF">The Democratic ticket: Hubert Humphrey &amp; Edwin Muskie</font></p>

<p align="left"><font color="#FFFFFF">Second, in an effort to heal party wounds,
Vice President Humphrey agreed to appoint a special commission to reform the
party rules governing delegate selection and presidential nominations.
Humphrey's nomination was viewed by many as the product of the &quot;back
room&quot; politics practiced by old-line party leaders. The commission, headed
by Senator George McGovern of South Dakota and Representative Donald Fraser of
Minnesota, would adopt substantial reforms and create the modern day marathon of
primaries and caucuses.</font></p>

<p align="left"><font color="#FFFFFF">Third, eight people were indicted for
violating the anti-Riot Act of 1968. The specific charges were crossing state
lines with the intent to incite, organize, promote, encourage, participate in, and carry on a riot and to commit acts of violence in furtherance of a riot.
The defendants included Abbie Hoffman (leader of the Youth International Party
or &quot;Yippies&quot;), Jerry Rubin (co-founder of the &quot;Yippies&quot;),
David Dellinger (described as an evangelical Christian Socialist and anti-war
activist), Tom Hayden (co-founder of Students for a Democratic Society), Rennie Davis (a national organizer for the SDS),&nbsp; John Froines&nbsp; and Lee Weiner,
both activists. The trial judge eventually severed the trial of the last
defendant, Bobby Seale (co-founder of the Black Panther Party) from the other
defendants. Thus was born the Chicago 7.</font></p>

<p align="center"><img border="0" src="viet/chi7conf.jpg" width="287" height="169">&nbsp;
<img border="0" src="viet/Chicartoon.jpg" width="210" height="270"></p>

<p align="left"><font color="#FFFFFF">The trial of the &quot;Chicago 7&quot; was
a circus. Bobby Seale, when still a defendant, was bound to a chair and gagged
for his outbursts. The team of Hoffman and Rubin effectively &quot;made a
joke&quot; of the ordeal. The jury acquitted Froines and Weiner who were charged
not with conspiracy but with making incendiary devices (&quot;stink
bombs&quot;). Hoffman, Rubin, Davis, Dellinger, and Hayden were found guilty but
their convictions were later overturned by a Federal Appeals Court.</font></p>

<p align="center"><font color="#FFFFFF" size="5"><b><i>The Wallace Factor</i></b></font></p>
<p align="left"><font color="#FFFFFF" size="3">The campaign of 1968 also
featured a credible third party candidate, Governor George Wallace of Alabama,
who vaulted into the national limelight in the 1962 desegregation incident at
the University of Alabama. His candidacy injected much uncertainty into the
campaign. Democrats feared he would attract normally reliable Democratic voters
in the South. Republicans worried that he would attract conservative voters that
would otherwise be won by Nixon.&nbsp; </font></p>

<p align="left"><font color="#FFFFFF" size="3">The Wallace candidacy, given its
third party status, was doing surprisingly well in the polls as the general
election campaign began. On October 3, George Wallace announced his selection of
a vice presidential candidate, retired Air Force General, Curtis LeMay. LeMay
was a hero in World War II and served as Air Force Chief of Staff during the
Kennedy Administration. His nickname was &quot;Old Ironpants&quot; and, at the
press conference announcing his selection, LeMay -- to the chagrin of George
Wallace -- spoke critically about the public's fear of nuclear weapons and his
willingness, if necessary, to use such weapons. </font></p>

<p align="center"><img border="0" src="viet/gwallace.jpg" width="106" height="158">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<img border="0" src="viet/lemay.jpg" width="94" height="157"><br>
<font color="#FFFFFF" size="2">The American Independent Party: George Wallace
and Curtis LeMay</font></p>

<p align="center"><font color="#FFFFFF">[</font><a href="Change-LeMay.html"><font color="#FFFFFF">Excerpts
from the press conference of General Curtis LeMay</font></a><font color="#FFFFFF">]</font></p>

<p align="left"><font color="#FFFFFF">After the selection of LeMay, the Wallace
candidacy lost the momentum it had been building.&nbsp; His standing in the
polls crested at this point (with over 20% of voters expressing a preference)
and then declined. No doubt, some were concerned about LeMay's statements.
Others, however, either saw Nixon as a more viable alternative; some Democrat
loyalists, while uneasy with Humphrey, did &quot;return to the
fold.&quot;&nbsp;&nbsp;</font></p>

<p align="center"><font color="#FFFFFF" size="5"><b><i>The Republicans: The
Return of Richard Nixon</i></b></font></p>

<p align="left"><font color="#FFFFFF" size="3">1968 was also heralded the year
of the &quot;New Nixon.&quot;&nbsp; This&nbsp; &quot;New Nixon&quot; was
reported to be calmer, more reflective, and more at ease with himself.&nbsp; As
a candidate, Nixon had only to point to the domestic unrest and violence along
with the war in Vietnam to argue that it was a time for change.&nbsp; His
largely media-based campaign emphasized how the country had deteriorated since
1965 while Nixon spoke of &quot;peace with honor&quot; and &quot;law and
order.&quot;&nbsp; He had little, if any, difficulty in winning the Republican
nomination.&nbsp; As his running mate, Nixon chose a relatively unknown governor
of Maryland, Spiro Agnew.</font></p>
<p align="center"><img border="0" src="viet/nixag.jpg" width="144" height="142">
<img border="0" src="viet/nixagnew.gif" width="199" height="144"></p>

<p align="left"><font color="#FFFFFF">Nixon's position and statements on Vietnam
were studiously ambiguous. He promised new leadership that &quot;will end the
war and win the peace.&quot; He asserted that the &quot;war must be ended. It
must be ended honorably.&quot; Although he referred to a plan, Nixon, as Page
and Brody argue, &quot;refused to explain how he would end the war on the
grounds that an explanation might interfere with the efforts of the Johnson
administration to achieve a settlement or would weaken his own bargaining
position if he became President&quot; (Benjamin Page and Richard Brody,
&quot;Policy Voting and the Electoral Process: The Vietnam War Issue,&quot; <i>American
Political Science Review,</i>1972 (66), p. 987).&nbsp;</font></p>

<p align="left"><font color="#FFFFFF">Privately, however, Nixon was acting more
assertively on the Vietnam issue. Over the course of the campaign, Nixon grew
increasingly concerned about President Johnson's negotiations with the North
Vietnamese. Word was &quot;out&quot; that LBJ would be proposing a bombing halt
of North Vietnam provided the South Vietnamese were permitted to participate in
the ongoing peace talks in Paris. To blunt the possibility of a late campaign
&quot;Peace Offensive&quot; by the Democrats, Nixon developed a &quot;back
channel&quot; to persuade President Thieu of South Vietnam not to cooperate with
President Johnson. The line of communication went from Nixon to John Mitchell
(who would be named Attorney General) to Anna Chenault, a strong Nixon support
who was close to a number of South Vietnamese officials, including President
Thieu. Nixon's message was subtly delivered but unambiguous.&nbsp; Thieu should
refuse to join the peace talks in 1968 because the South Vietnamese would be
treated better by a Nixon rather than a Humphrey Administration. Thieu
ultimately followed Nixon's suggestion and did not participate in the peace
talks during the fall of 1968 (see, Steven Ambrose, <i>Nixon: Triumph of a
Politician</i>, pp. 206-218).&nbsp;</font></p>

<p align="left"><font color="#FFFFFF">The closing weeks of the campaign saw
Nixon's lead in the polls narrow.&nbsp; On September 30th, Hubert Humphrey
delivered a speech from Salt Lake City, broadcast nationally, in which he broke
from the Johnson Administration and argued that a unilateral halt in the bombing
would be an acceptable risk for peace. Humphrey was also helped by Johnson who,
on October 31st, called a full bombing halt of North Vietnam.&nbsp;&nbsp;</font></p>

<p align="left"><font color="#FFFFFF">The momentum gained by Humphrey in the
closing weeks of the campaign was not sufficient to win. Nxion won a razor-thin popular
vote victory with 43.42% to 42.72% for Humphrey and 13.53% for Wallace.&nbsp;
Because Nixon carried the key states of California, Illinois and Ohio and
Florida, he won more
decisively in the Electoral College with 301 votes to 191 for Humphrey and 46
for Wallace.&nbsp;</font></p>

<p align="center"><img border="0" src="viet/1968mapb.jpg" width="647" height="237"></p>

<p align="left"><font color="#FFFFFF">Nixon was magnanimous in victory. Facing
the press the day after the election, he recalled a sign held by a girl in Ohio
and noted that his great objective would be to &quot;bring us together.&quot;&nbsp;&nbsp;
His inaugural address spoke of &quot;black and white together, as one nation, not two.&quot;&nbsp;
He urged Americans to &quot;lower our voices,&quot; to &quot;listen to 'the better angels of our
nature,'&quot; and to &quot;build a great cathedral of the spirit.&quot;&nbsp;
Noting that the &quot;greatest honor history can bestow is the title of peacemaker,&quot;
Nixon explained that &quot;the peace we seek to win is not victory over any other people, but the peace that comes
'with healing in its wings.'&quot;&nbsp;</font></p>

<p align="left">&nbsp;</p>

<p align="center"><font color="#FFFFFF">All Text &amp; Analysis, Copyright �, August 2002, Dennis M.
Simon</font></p>

<p align="left">&nbsp;</p>

<p align="left">&nbsp;</p>

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