Johnson City Press from Johnson City, Tennessee (2024)

August 14, 1994

Publication:

Johnson City Pressi

Location:

Johnson City, Tennessee

Issue Date:

Sunday, August 14, 1994

Page:

45

Extracted Article Text (OCR)

SUNDAY August 14 1994 hacflow 'dancing Democrats return to Chicago stirs strong memories Gore avoids tarnish of negativity TpgT -ST No one who attended the 1968 Democratic Convention can forget it Nothing like it has ever happened in American history By Robert Thompson 1994 Hears! Newspapers WASHINGTON If Richard Nixon had checked into the Watergate for a weekend of relaxation and revelry after he was forced to resign his action would have been only slightly more audacious than the Democrats decision to return to Chicago in 1996 to nominate a president As file Watergate scandal left deep scars in the political flesh of Nixon the 1968 Chicago convention left lasting wounds in the psyche of a Democratic Party torn asunder over Vietnam The two fiascoes are joined in a perverse sort of way Nixons drive for the presidency was advanced by the bloody Democratic conclave which severely damaged the partys image as millions of aghast Americans watched the debacle on TV But almost six years later on Aug 9 1974 the same Nixon was flushed from the White House by the soaring Watergate tide that proved equally destructive to the Republican Party No one who attended the 1968 Democratic Convention can forget it Nothing like it has ever happened in American history I had a Buite in the Conrad Hilton Hotel looking down on Grant Park where thousands of young anti-war protesters had gathered to dramatize their cause and demonstrate their contempt for the establishment They chanted and sang their special anti-war anthems They smoked pot urinated on the grass burned the Stars and Stripes listened to impassioned anti-war polemics bellowed epithets and did whatever they could to antagonize the Chicago police The protesters were hippies yippies anti-war followers of Eugene McCarthy and the assassinated Robert Kennedy assorted flower children and liberal pacifists who were disillusioned with President Lyndon Johnsons escalation of American participation in Vietnam Day and night their verbal outpouring penetrated the otherwise tranquil atmosphere along the shores of Lake Michigan Theirs was a love-in theirs also was a hate-in Much of their time was spent shouting Pig pig pig oink oink oink at the Chicago police whose ultimate boss was the autocratic Mayor Richard Daley Then early one evening as a group of us headed into the hotel dining room before journeying to the convention in the International Amphitheater all hell broke loose Bodies came hurtling through the doors Screams and shouts filled file air Blood splattered the lobby of the Conrad Hilton and tear gas polluted the environment Night sticks pounded heads that moments before had been adorned with beads and bands The demonstrators had crossed Michigan Avenue in defiance of police orders and the police responded by trying to beat them back Soon the brutal incident became the topic for impassioned rhetoric in the convention hall By Judy Holland Slates News Service WASHINGTON Almost all the presidents men have been linked in the public eye to BUI Clintons troubles defending his embattled policies and personal woes on television and before Congress Not A1 Gore WhUe vice presidents tend to be hurt by their administrations political problems Clintons negatives havent stuck to his second in command Whitewater Haiti Bosnia health care reform and charges of sexual harassment against Clinton havent sullied Gore And some say the teflon quality of his public image could serve Gore well in a future presidential bid You dont see Gore going to all the talk shows saying Clinton is purer than the driven snow said WUliams Adams a George Washington University professor who writes about presidential popularity Hes positioning himself so he can extricate himself from some of the nfiore controversial aspects of this administration Either Gore has got good fortune and luck or hes been very strategic and very smart During the first year of the Clinton administration three-fifths of major network news about the president was negative whUe the same portion of the Gore coverage was positive according to the Center for Media and Public Affairs a nonpartisan media watchdog Gores been able to avoid the tarnish of negativity thats been focused on the administration said Rich Noyes political studies director for the center No one really criticizes him very much That contrasts with what people hear about President Clinton hes been kicked around almost since day one More positive media coverage of Gore appears to have translated into kinder public opinion about the vice president A mid-June poll showed fewer than one-quarter of people surveyed gave Gore a negative rating compared to more than one-third for Clinton according to Democratic pollster Peter Hart It appears A1 Gore has a better core and a betterjndividual positive image than other vice presidents Hart said So while Clintons staffers sit tense and grim defending their boss Gores aides in offices a few blocks from the White House work beneath poster-sized photos of their clean-cut boss energized and upbeat Gore has kept his good name partly by distancing himself from the presidents problems and immersing himself in his own mostly noncontroversial agenda White House watchers say The vice presidents image as a devoted family man with a well-liked wife also boosts his stature While Hillary Rodham Clinton has been slammed for crafting the policy of an administration to which she was not As Connecticut Sen Abraham' Ribicoff accused Daleys Chicago of resorting to gestapo-like tac-1 tics Daley sitting in a nearby -box hurled four-letter insults at Ribicoff The melee was a bitter ordeal for many people but especially -for Vice President Hubert Humphrey a man of innate decency and honesty who fulfilled his longtime dream of becoming the Democratic presidential nom-inee It was a Pyrrhic victory He- won his prize but his party was in almost total disarray He lacked sufficient money and he-lost to Nixon in the general elec-1' tion because in the publics mind he was linked indelibly to the- unpopular Lyndon Johnson It also was a sad moment for Johnson who four years earlifer had been nominated by acclama -tion at the Democratic Conven-'J tion in Atlantic City and had gone -i on to win the highest percentage of the popular vote accorded any presidential candidate in modenC times He had passed a vast arrays of reform measures and were it not for Vietnam would have been at the zenith of his presidency Plans called for Johnson to' appear before adoring delegates on Aug 27 to celebrate his 60th birthday But the hostility in Chicago destroyed that strategy The delegates were no longer 'I adoring an angry and heavy-hearted Johnson remained at the LBJ Ranch in Texas There is nothing unusual about a political convention being bit- terly divided over policies per- sonalities and philosophies Both panties have weathered such conclaves over the decades 5 The Democrats have fought over the coinage of silver their stand on Prohibition and their deep divisions on civil rights and" Vietnam The Republicans have battled over basic issues of conservatism and progressivism as well as isolationism versus internationalism What the Democrats need to remember as they return to Chicago is that the bustling city was not only the site of their most debilitating convention it also was the site of the gathering that nominated Franklin Roosevelt in 1932 and converted their party from minority to majority status in the republic As for Bill Clinton he can only hope that his fortunes will have improved by 1996 and that his 50th birthday that August will not duplicate LBJs 60th APPhoto A1 and Tipper Gore get Nashville welcome after November 1992 election win A 4 4 -4 at 4 Vi Vo 1 1 4 terer he is not a person with a background of financial chicanery Doman said Whether by accident or design Gore has remained independent and immersed in his own agenda He spends part of his time in Washington meeting with federal employees to elicit their stories about how to cut government waste i When he isnt boosting the morale of Uncle Sams troops presenting them with framed hammer awards for reducing yards of federal forms to a single sheet hes immersed in another noncontroversial pet project advancing the information superhighway By promoting this futuristic global communications network Gore has won approval from the computer-inclined who envision tapping into new electronic frontiers in cyberspace Gore says he especially enjoys working toward his goal of eliminating waste in federal bureaucracy: but I dont know if its helped with my popularity He says he isnt sure how hes been able to avoid much of the dogged exchanges between the two through television campaign ads some wonder if Bredesen' truly knows the story of the Taylor brothers legendary race Regardless of the answer one thing appears to be true: Sundquist and Bredesen will never be mistaken for Alf and Bob Taylor The Taylor race was known as The War of the Roses" a term borrowed from the 15th-century battle for the throne of England Despite their political differences Bob often remarked that he and his brother were roses from the same garden" The two grew up in Happy Valley and both held a special reverence for Tennessee history The only thing their would-be 20th-century counterparts have in common aside from an identical passion to be governor is the fact they were not bom or reared in Tennessee Bredesen hails from a small town in upstate New York while Sundquist spent his formative years in Illinois While the Taylor brothers political contest was known as the War of the Roses" the Bre- vJfi a fl: Wo i'o 5k flak his boss has attracted I try to concentrate on doing the best job I can and do whatever possible to help President Clinton" Gore said Gores public image has remained separate from Clin tons partly because he forged a separate identity by running for president himself pollsters say Running on a national stage in 1988 gave him a sense of exposure that enabled him to be his own person Hart said Once in the White House Gore retained his independence according to author Bob Wood ward who portrays the vice president as one of three independent power centers besides Bill and Hillary Gores ability to avoid criti cism would position him well in a presidential bid in 2000 or in 1996 if Clintons political problems force him to step aside analysts say Despite Gores good name history shows he could face a tough battle The second-in-com mands political fortunes usually fall with a troubled administration desenSundquist race will likely be known as The War of the Sound Bite Poses A day after inviting Sundquist to join him in a return to the brotherly civility of the 19 th century Bredesen was flooding TV airwaves statewide with ads critical of the Republican congressmans record in Washington The Memphis lawmaker wasted no time in responding with equally negative ads of his own questioning Bredesens ethics It is a far cry from what proved to be the highlight of each of the Taylors campaign stumps Alf and Bob would always lighten the political tension by breaking out their fiddles for some toe-tapping music and wit The Taylor brothers were never shy when it came to a face-to-face debate on the issues of the day In fact the two met in 41 debates throughout the state But while the Taylors Bhared hotel rooms during that Bimple campaign Bredesen and Sundquist have had difficulty in agreeing on a date and place for their first debate Forget about sharing expenses like the Taylors Governor hopefuls far cry from Taylor brothers elected Tipper Gore is seen riding bicycles with her children speaking out for better mental health coverage and comforting starving Rwandan children Gore also got off to a strong start because he replaced the perpetually gaffe-plagued Vice President Dan Quayle said Del Ali vice president of Mason-Dixon Political-Media Research A lot of people felt awfully glad that A1 Gore was not Dan Quayle Ali said Theres no baggage on Gore Hes one of the few politicians who is straight as an arrow" Gore has been quiet on the controversies emphasized the positives and downplayed the whispers that have dropped the presidents popularity to a plus rating relative to past occupants of the Oval Office Even one of the most conservative Republicans recognizes how formidable a presidential contender Gore is California Rep Bob Doman flatters Gore at Clintons expense He is not a triple-draft dodger he is not a serial adul has suggested something akin to fiie Taylor brothers shoulder-to-shoulder race in his gubernatorial contest with Congressman Don Sundquist R-7th After besting nine other candidates in the Aug 4 Democratic Primary Bredesen extended an invitation for his tepublican opponent to make oint campaign appearances with lim across the state Forget about the slick Madison Avenue campaign propaganda Bredesen said lets do it like Alf and Bob Taylor did a century ago But after seeing last weeks AiiiuMr trf i tion features a number of familiar names in unlikely places Steve Lacy a veteran mover and shaker in the Washington County Democratic Party had his name written in for several offices on the state ballot Six voters thought hed make a great candidate for the US Senate while at least one thought he should be a member of the state House of-Representatives Bob Good who was elected to the County Commission received votes for his old job as county executive and for the state Legis- lature In the county trustees race Pamela Fitzgerald the loser qf Mays GOP primary for the office received five write-in votes Bobby Murray a Washington County election commissioner" with designs on the office in 1998 received a vote as did 1st District -Attorney General David Crockett The most entertaining slate of write-in candidates came for thel Washington County Board ofj Education where dissatisfied voters wrote in the names of Bo2o the Clown Bart Simpson and Clfr- tus for the seats did in 1SSS todays gubernatorial candidates will likely spend a record amount of money in their respective bids to become the states chief executive Sundquist has challenged Bredesen a self-made health care millionaire to limit his campaign spending to $3 million in the race Meanwhile Sundquist is said to be loading up with political action committee contributions from a variety of traditional Washington GOP sources As for the Taylor brothers Bob was elected governor in 1886 while his brother Alf would have to wait until 1921 before he got his chance to sit in the governors chair Over the years the brothers managed to put aside their sibling rivalry and partisan differences long enough to rejoice in each each others political successes It seems highly unlikely Bredesen and Sundquist will ever have such warm and fuzzy feelings for each other A check of the write-in candidates marked on Washington County ballots in the Aug 4 elec- 1 antique reminder of a time when a pair of Carter County brothers one a stubborn Democrat the other a rock-hard Republican campaigned side-by-side for governor It is the horse-drawn carriage in which Alf and Bob Taylor rode to campaign stops across Tennessee Alf the Republican nominee and Bob the Democratic candidate in the race toured the state in the 1886 governors race engaging each other in lively debate and flowery rhetoric at each' stop along the way Some 108 years later Nashville Mayor Phil Bredesen tnij hii fr- ft Si fciAikafcmi lb.

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