Campaign 1978, Governor, Democrat; Democratic Primary; Jerome Fitzgerald, Tom Whitney, Warren Strait; Lt. Gov.: Minnette Doderer, William Palmer

Plan. Right. And I BBN public affairs special report. Campaign seventy eight the Democratic primary. Here is Dean board. Good evening. There's a theory that traditional a primary campaigns in Iowa have been won or lost inside the mainstream of party politics and they've usually attracted the polls only a small percentage of party lead in party committed. They have in other words up to now been pretty much organizational affairs. But this year things look differently. Candidates for many of Iowa's statewide primary nominations are campaigning as if next Tuesday's vote for the general election itself. This time they're devoting a large share of their time to standard organizational efforts talking to party regulars at coffees and small gatherings across the state organizing precinct workers and raising money among small groups of diehard supporters. But they're also addressing the issues this time which have often been

forgotten in past primary campaigns and perhaps even more importantly they're going outside the regular party apparatus they're spending large amounts of money on sophisticated media campaigns aimed at the general public many of whom won't even be voting in the primary. Well tonight we're going to find out why when we began the first of two special programs of the 1978 primary elections with a review tonight of the campaigns of the candidacies for the Democratic nomination for governor and lieutenant governor. We look at the styles of those candidates. Some of their issues their media and their money. Now when we do so we're going to be following very strict guidelines allocating equal time for each candidate and for each campaign and finally we'll be talking with the person who is going to be responsible for directing the fortunes of the party after the primary state Democratic chairman Ed Campbell. Now we'll start with the race for the Democratic nomination for governor which pits two longtime very organizationally active Democrats and occasional coworkers against each other. Jerome Fitzgerald of Fort Dodge is a former

Democratic Party strategist now House Majority Leader. He's against Tom Whitney a former Democratic state party chairman and longtime Polk County supervisor. In addition Warren straight and on leave a conservation officer from Sheraton is running a long shot campaign. We'll be covering all three of these campaigns this evening and of the three the obvious front runners are Whitney and Fitzgerald and Fitzgerald is a 37 year old restaurant owner from Dodd who's been active in the Democratic organization in Lebanon for the past 10 years. Last six of which have been spent in the Iowa House where he is to serve as majority leader since 1974. He bases much of his campaign of what he calls a proven record of leadership as majority leader when he says that his experience in the legislative process has given him an advantage or risk to opponents. The Democrats next Tuesday will be boarding not only for a person who they think would be a good leader but also for a person they think would be a good candidate one who can defeat Robert Gray in November. Earlier this month I was pressed on that Gerald was asked about his chances to defeat the

incumbent governor in the general election. I mean well there are two things that come up often as I go around the state first of all is the length of time he's been in office with the number large number of appointments over eleven hundred that require Senate confirmation. Working on a second time for most of them for appointing him and would be a third time and many of them if he's re-elected that's caused considerable concern on the part of many Iowans and I think that's a plan that usually is starting here but as you can see and you know I wish I didn't say me I said it's called same on many islands. I'm not referring to my own opinion right now. I'll let you know. Another thing that I think is important and this is more and more of interest to me than the question of the length of time but I do think that first is important. There are definite different issue differences that the governor and I have had on the record not what we've espoused and as a potential for the future and areas where we might want to be but name one income tax reform in 1975 the governor was the single most important reason I didn't pass the i what i will legislature passed the House and I stopped in the Senate. 1076 property tax relief Bill Gavin

recommended 50 million dollars going back to the people who were supposedly going to get relief. Thirty million of it went to farmers and homeowners and they had caused 50 million of it to come from their pockets. We recommended all 50 of it go back to them 20 million dollar difference in taxes paid on the part of those people in our program versus a governor who seems to have to carry those messages to the general public that Fitzgerald has as of May 20th raised just over forty four thousand dollars that is spent just under 30. That doesn't include an undisclosed amount this use for meeting his family's personal expenses. Nor does it reflect any funds received since May 20th because of the length of this year's legislative session. Fitzgerald got a late start both in fund raising and in campaigning and because of that his staff says that he hopes to make up the difference with the media which we'll see later in this program. The other front runner for the nomination is Tom Whitney a pole cutting supervisor from Des Moines. He's been campaigning for the nomination since last September and partly as a result he's raised considerably more money than have either of his opponents.

Long familiar to regular Democrats as their former state chairman fact Tom Whitney presided over the party from 1973 to 93 77 during those four years he helped direct the party's organizational restructuring and its highly successful get out the vote program requests for the last year. Whitney has traveled throughout the state trying to convince the Democrats she used to work with that he's their best choice to defeat Bob Gray in November. He's insisted that he's not running against either of his two opponents and instead has directed much of his attacks against the incumbent governor. He criticizes Ray for centralizing government in Iowa which Whitney says has excluded Iowa small towns and communities partly because he had no legislative platform from which to campaign. Whitney has put the past year armed himself with numerous detailed position papers which outline some of the issues he to address if elected. The IRS program mentioned earlier got Whitney talked about some of those issues and was questioned about why he thinks he'd be a better governor than Robert Ray.

Well I think that the issues in terms of 1978 is really a period in which we're electing the leadership of the decade of the 80s. And I think the question is leadership I think it's one of responding to the larger questions of substantive issues that are going to face the people of Iowa as we face the decade of the 80s ranging from tax reform and energy to the questions of soil conservation the delivery of Human Services and Education. I think that my background experiences not only as a tenure official when the larger local community governments in the state which gives you a broad and different kind of experience and my experience as state chair of the Iowa Democratic Party I not only have the responsibility to provide leadership to that party through the period of 1973 to 77 but also had the responsibility to bring divergent viewpoints together and make those few points respond in terms of the process as the Democratic Party in the process of our political system. So I think that it's really one of an issue of leadership and a difference in terms of viewpoint and perspective. As you were state to finance his campaign he has raised over ninety thousand dollars. Forty seven thousand of which has been raised since the first of the year. His campaign

treasurer calls that the greatest grassroots fundraising effort by a non incumbent politician in Iowa up to ninety seven thousand that's been raised. Whitney has spent nearly seventy one thousand. And Whitney says if you can raise it he'd like to spend a hundred thousand in the primary campaign. And that hundred thousand is a far cry from what the third candidate for the Democratic nomination for governor is spending his name is Warren Strain a conservation officer from shared and is presently on a leave of absence from his job to run his Dark Horse campaign. The political experts don't give this 46 year old former farmer much of a chance. After all he's not spending much money. He has no staff and no campaign headquarters. All there is is Warren Street driving from town to town meeting people on the street addressing any group he can find offering himself as an alternative candidate who's running because he's fed up with what he calls too much bureaucracy and red tape in government that straight says that big government in what he calls this duplicative services strangle the efforts of

the state to deliver services to its here and a lot of you have heard I mean I'm more than straight I'm running for governor. He complains that there isn't enough attention paid to environmental quality in Iowa to soil conservation practices or to the elderly. A group to which he devotes much of his campaign. These people are. Maybe not as fast as they were with their knowledge and experience and background. Is your replaceable. It's taken him a lifetime to get the information that they have and I feel that there is a definite source of information there that we should listen to. They have some problems problems I hear most often is where their home value has went out the taxes went up. And even there there are a tax credit I talked to a couple them for diversion she said after we filled everything out we got nine dollars and sixty cents back on a tax credit. She said it was hardly worth filling the forms out. But if these people could retire and know that their

retirement is that they're going to have so much for taxes and tax evaluation not sure if they know that. When they do get an increase in Social Security it's a cost of living increase that's not taken up by their taxes can be used for. These are some of the things that these people need is there. They're concerned they've worked their whole life or they've got to pay their doctor bills are they going to be able to stay in their own home and will they be able to have enough straight chances to knock off either of his opponents who had raided the slim and none primarily because not many people are taking his candidacy seriously. He has no fund raising base. And of the ten thousand dollars that he's raised thus far this year 9000 of it has come from his own pocket. He spent nearly eight dollars and this is the first of the year most of which is gone for incidental campaign expenses and little of it for the sophisticated TV commercials that both of his opponents are using. However he has purchased television time from his meager campaign war chest and later on

we'll show you what his spots look like. Gubernatorial candidates aren't the only ones spending money for media this year lieutenant governor candidates doing the same thing. The opponents in that race are two longtime members of the state legislature. State Senator Monette daughter are from Iowa City and State Senator William Palmer from Des Moines. Because of the length of the recent legislative session both candidates got a late start but in the last five weeks they've been crisscrossing the state meeting the party regulars primarily in eastern Iowa where the Democratic vote is very heavy trying to gather as much support as possible before next Tuesday. We'll look first at the campaign of Monette daughter. She announced her candidacy in January saying that she's been training 15 years for the job and now she wants a daughter is 55 years old and is first elected to the legislature in 1964. She served in the house for five years and in 1969 moved to the Senate in 1970 she ran unsuccessfully for lieutenant governor only she says because then the Democratic Party needed

candidates and she wanted to pay her dues to the Democrats. Because of that we do is paying because of her experience in both the legislature and in party organizational politics donor feels that she is the more qualified of the two candidates. It was our record at a five candidate has made earlier this month and she listed some of those qualifications in a more detailed way. And when it's all said and done I want my advertising to cite my work for the people of this state. And I would like to have it cited for number one for equality of rights under the law for women and for minorities for civil rights legislation for the public employees of the state the collective bargaining law that I helped to write. I was on that labor Industrial Relations Committee that year we wrote it. For the public employees to be full employees full citizens on their jobs just as as private sector employees. And then I'd like to be remembered for my legislation for the children of this state. And I can think of the

first maybe not the first but one that comes to mind as a mandatory reporting of child abuse law I was a chief sponsor on that. For mandatory inclusion of all newborn babies under the health insurance policy for this state before that law they were covered at age 10 days. And you know how expensive the first 10 days can be. I'd like these are the themes that go to repeats just about every place she goes and just about every place she goes reporters ask if she feels being a woman is a detriment in the campaign. She answers that it isn't saying that eight years ago when she ran for lieutenant governor being a Democrat was more of a handicap than being a woman. Says the first of the year she's raised just over $20000 and has spent just over 12. Daughter is being challenged in the primary by a state senator William Palmer of Des Moines himself a longtime legislator with two previous statewide campaigns under his belt. Palmer has served in the legislature since 1963 and has spent the last nine

years here in the Senate where he serves as the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee. He got into the race at the last minute announcing his candidacy last March and after both Senate majority leader George Kinley and House Speaker Dale Cochran decided not to run like his opponent Palmer is running on his record inside the legislative process and primarily his record as chairman of the Budget Committee. He says that in that job he's taken a no nonsense approach to state spending and his campaign literature stresses that Palmer has helped the state live within its means. Houses at the debate we talked about earlier. Palmer was asked to list the reasons why he wants the nomination and why he feels he's the right candidate for the job as a state senator who has served some 14 years now the General Assembly. Last year and I was a senator. That I played a major role in some of the progress that has been accomplished. But as a lieutenant governor I feel I'm more forcefully. But can address the problems that remain with us.

One thing I think is interesting about my own candidacy is somewhat difficult. Talk about yourself and then say how important you are and what qualities you do have but one thing I will say I've been also privileged with the opportunity of realizing increasing support each and every time I've ran for public office. There is one thing that I even more proud of. If you stab somebody a member of my constituency and ask them about Bill Palmer. I think about the first thing come out their mouth and we don't always agree with Bill Palmer but we know where he stands what he knows is can a deceased convert in Seoul the self-proclaimed underdog role saying that he was starting his campaign with a nickel in his jeans and implying that he was going to have a difficult time raising the funds necessary to conduct a come from behind statewide campaign. But it appears that he hasn't done a bad job of raising the money. Since the first of the year his campaign committee has collected more than twenty seven thousand dollars and has spent just over 20 much of it on a highly sophisticated commercial

media campaign designed to increase his name identification among Democrats who are not familiar with his record. It should be obvious from all of our references now to the amount of money that's being spent on commercial media that this is an election representing a dramatic change in Iowa primary party politics. Nothing is being taken for granted this year and that's why all of the candidates that we've just profiled in all the Republican candidates that we intend to profile tomorrow night are spending any excess dollar they can find and some that they don't have right now on paid commercial time for a primary candidate any large expenditure on television and radio is really a risk primarily because when candidates pay for television they're paying to reach an audience that's far larger than the actual number of people going to the polls. For example if you were to purchase television time in the morning you're paying for all of the people watching a particular program at a particular time you may be say paying for 100000 viewers. And there's no guarantee that those hundred thousand people are going to vote. Indeed if we were to base

ourselves on past primary campaigns indications are that perhaps 80000 of those hundred thousand that you've reached won't even bother to go to the polls. But nevertheless staff members of the campaigns that we surveyed for these election specials say that they had no choice but to spend that money. They say the old organizational apparatus that carried past Democratic Party candidates by Paul Franzen Bergen one hundred seventy two. That doesn't exist anymore they say that volunteers to a very hard to come by and that money is actually easier to raise. In addition there is an escalation factor I mean by that when one candidate hears that his opponent is going to buy time he goes out and does the same thing. Now because these paid advertisements have become a fundamental part of this year's political process we thought you'd like to see them. We also thought that you should see what the media cost to produce and what they cost to air the figures that you're going to be seeing on the screen will not in all cases reflect the total amount of money that's been spent to date for these commercials. And that's because the financial reporting requirements compel candidates to

disclose only what they spent prior to May 20th before any large contributions will recede and before some of the candidates actually purchased their large blocks of commercial time. Now when we list the cost and they'll be showing on your screen in numbers that represent dollar amounts we're going to identify their source says either being from the official campaign disclosure reports or from campaign staff estimates. We'll take the advertisement in alphabetical order. They're all 30 seconds long except for Warren straights who could afford only 10 seconds and will begin first with Jerry Fitzgerald. There's something new going on in Iraq. Not a lot of flash but something down to earth to the point. Talking. And a lot of listening. I will House majority leader Gerry Fitzgerald small town urban areas all have the same sort of problems. Government cannot solve all of the problems but government can provide leadership leadership.

A record of accomplishment. Jerry Fitzgerald. A Democrat for governor. You need straight thinking in the governor's office. You need straight leadership in Iowa. You need straight answers and commonsense leadership voted straight in the primary election. We're in the strait for a new direction. You are. People are terrible for you. That daughter has made a difference in the I was state house. My record speaks for itself. I'm proud of my legislation on child abuse reporting bus rides for the elderly and

inheritance tax changes. I've been training for this job for 15 years now. Monette daughter is ready to be a lieutenant governor. My commitments are to the people who have made Iowa what it is and who seek to make it better. I What is ready for daughter to be lieutenant governor the Democrat who makes a difference when She Wins You Win. One reason Iowa senior citizens got a property tax break this year is Bill Palmer taking care of all Iowans needs as Bill Palmer is vital sincerity. I breeze improvements in the Iowa Housing Authority the county assistance fund. These are just a few of the programs Bill Palmer has worked for as senator as lieutenant governor Bill Palmer will do even more for all of us but it can only happen if you the Democrats of Iowa vote for Bill Palmer in the June 6 primary promise the sensible choice for the tenant governor. If you haven't seen those spots yet indications are that in the next few days you probably will as candidate scratch and grab for the funds to pay for whatever airtime is still available for them to buy.

All of this point sod as we've been saying throughout this program that something new and different may be going on in Iowa primary politics and because of that we're curious to see whether this trend might continue into the general election. That is the heavy media buying the heavy spending that we're seeing right now in the primary and that's the question that I'm going to be posing to Ed Campbell who is chairman of the state Democratic Central Committee he's been here talking with Norman Sandler of United Press International Ed let's get right to that question. Are we likely to see heavy spending going on that we have been seeing in the primary right into the general election I would think so because the if you win one you want to lose the big one. But where is the money going to come from. Well Dean I think we have to go back and take a look at four years ago and four years ago there was as much money spent. In the Democratic primary for governor. In fact I think there might have been more than has been spent this year for the Democratic primary and I think also we can take a look back in history at the lieutenant governor's race for the

Republican side is that are you know when he ran the first time against Bill Harbor he's been in excess of $50000 in that campaign. You're saying it's not something new then it's not a phenomenon this year that we've spent that much money and just going to be that much tougher I think come in the fall to raise more money for the particular candidates who come out of the primaries and work that money going to come from what's going to have to come obviously from the same sources from the individual candidate comes out of the primaries and of course it has to be the healing process to go back and try to get some of those funds from the persons of the people who didn't make it. And also to try and rely on the party organization to do what they can to help come up with additional monies for. We hear a lot of talk about difficulty raising money this year is it any harder to raise are people less willing to give this year than they were four years ago. I think you've probably seen more money raise issue or norm and smaller amounts than we've seen in the past last because I think you've seen at least in the case of Fitzgerald and Whitney of organizational Democrats who know how to organize who know how to put

finances together and they've got out in a very good job of doing it. Is this use of heavy media advertising while at the same time candidates nights you say at a local school all the candidates come in they go begging for a crowd. Are you seeing that the general public doesn't want to meet their candidates face to face anymore and question them they want to see a quick image on the screen and have the candidate tell them what they want to say and that's it. Well I think you go back again to what I said earlier but the two people I mentioned running for governor the Democratic ticket are both seasoned professionals and they know that in today's age of politics is that media is the name of the game. So the best place to put your money is in the media. But I mean to go out they probably can't see more than 1000 or 2000 individual Democrats in the course of a primary. And I think that's why if they know that that's the last leader of what I call politics. I mean you have to go out hit the hustings go the coffees in the reception's and things like that. If you want to get to the to the people I mean the average parochial Democrat you

have to go to the media Mark what you're saying then it's more the candidates who are choosing to do this rather than the public being apathetic. I think it's more the candidates making that determination of trying to get out to the rank and file people who don't have the time or not involved organizational politics but who do vote in a Democratic primary because there's probably a hundred ten hundred twenty thousand Democrats that would turn out on Election Day. So why mention a figure of 2000 people. There's a hundred thousand plus that never have an opportunity or a chance to even look at them let alone here unless you go to that media market. But is is television all that effective are you convinced that that's the most cost effective way of reaching those voters I think we we mentioned earlier that are maybe 15 percent of the registered Democrats voting in the selection next Tuesday. If you're spending all this money on media aren't you just wasting it on 85 percent of the market and you reach those people better through Mailer or through other some other type of con. I personally don't think so I don't think you have any other alternative running in today's

politics. But the butcher dollar we get the most return on it. And that is with television. Why is any question about the matter what office you're running for. I think you've got to do that. Ed how much work can you as a state party chairman do before the primaries are over and laying the groundwork for the fall campaign must you know who the candidates are going to be if their style and so on before you can read to get involved. Not necessarily because ours is a very basic premise organizationally I think we have two basic things we have to want to see to it the parties will organize going to the fall campaign and secondly to see that we're on a sound financial basis going into the fall campaign Ellen for the party's standpoint but also to try and see that we're going to have adequate finances to assist any and all candidates come primary which is always very tough for us. When you say we'll organized it how can you be we'll organized at the candidates right now are kind of split up you can't have a unification which organization to be means unification. Well that's part of the healing process that we have to help also but I'm talking about seeing to it that our county organizations for example are getting geared up and tooled up say for a voter

identification program going into the fraud that they're all prepared to go to work to the fair booths. They're going to have coffees are going to have reception. We're going to put together campaign committees for the various candidates and that's part of our responsibility once the primaries are over with grout with the cans and say Here we are we're going down the road together unified for a fall campaign. You you brought up the the whole issue of unity and the importance of coming out of this primary as a unified party. Most of the candidates in your party have avoided taking off at one another as some of the candidates in the Republican side have done as a result. We hear there's a lot more interest in the Republican race is in there on the Democratic races and the Democrats all say well it's just the reporters trying to make a dog fight to get good copy. But doesn't that type of activity possibly campaigning more against one another than against an incumbent doesn't it stimulate more interest in the campaign or are you a little bit concerned that there might be some apathy on the Democratic side next Tuesday. I don't think there's going to be apt to tell you why because all the people running for statewide offices

time are seasoned professionals. Tena governor Governor Secretary of State and I know that you're going to see a big turnout this time from person to two and four years ago. But I would rather have us go down the road with some unity even the primaries because both these people for example are very good friends. Talk about winning fishtail. And there's not too much difference between the two of them philosophically or on the Republican side I mean they talk about not breaking the 11th commandment in terms of speaking ill will against one another that's all they've been doing. I think our healing process is going to be very minimal compared to Republicans going into the fall campaign. Is that unity going to help you. Capture the governorship this year I don't there's any question about because Bob Rae is between a crack and a Hard Rock I think he's going to end up with Roger Jepson a good end up with Terry Branstad behind him with that put together back to back he's going to have to pull off dead center and he can no longer appeal to the liberal moderate Democrats in the in the Democratic Party because I've been saying ever since I've been state chairman is that the only reason a bobbery as

governor of this state today is because the guy was Democratic Party and we have to get him out on the streets and getting campaign on the issues and he can no longer walk down the middle when he has say conservatives on one side and he in the middle in the Liberal Democratic Party and on the other side. How are you going to do that and how are you going to use as you say force him out if that's what you think will do it. I think we can force him out on the issues to articulate and probably single out certain issues for example the tax issue. I don't think there's any question that one of the most hidden issues of bobber is when he would sweep under the rug in the last year or two and that is the state of I was going to be in serious financial situation at the end of the next Bayani. And he's been very skillful in our foreign trying to say that we're in good shape we spend as we go when it's just common knowledge that we're down to what I call a 20 to 40 million dollar working budget for the state of Iowa which is just the bottom line. Aren't you a little bit afraid that. The Democratic legislature not the governor going to be blamed for that

problem with the state's financial situation. We've had an inflated budget should say a surplus for a good number of years and Bryce Oakley the candidate for lieutenant governor personally said the other day is that the I would General Assembly has only spent 1 percent above the governor's recommendations. Governors well aware of what's been spent. He signs the bills put some in the law. So I think if there's any responsibility to be shared or lack responsibility it will have to do but I think the Democrats have been more responsible in their spending in their priorities than the lack of leadership that we've gotten from the government on these particular issues. You mentioned that it may be difficult for Robert Ray to run this fall if certain. Primary elections go the way that you mention Roger Jepps and so on is that the way that you'd like to have them go you'd like to see Roger Jepson win that Senate nomination. You bet. I think number want to be a clear cut division within the Republican Party with a conservative element like Roger Jepson in bob or a with the

liberal moderate wing if you like see Branstad win then too. You bet I would because I think for the first guy a barber is going to stand up be counted on some of these issues and he's going to no longer be needed fission or fall is going to be right in the middle. What are some key state Senate races you're really tight in there you could come up with a tie vote this time 25 25 if the election goes one way. What are some key races there. I am predicting Dean that we're going to pick up five Senate seats this fall we've already targeted the five states that I think we can pick up even on paper he won a majority. That's right. I don't predict that we're going to lose one Democratic senator will pick up five new seats and party will just hold her own house. What about for the state not the state senate but the US Senate. How are what are the issues going to be there. Well I take it all depends a bit a lot of demagoguery going on in the primary right now with a lot of accusations being made. But I think that a lot depends on the national scene the national level of the president's popularity as to how much fallout is going to have

on Senator Clark and a good senator and I think he's going to be re-elected by a little question in my mind and I think of Roger Jefferson's the nominee the people of Iowa have a very clear choice as to who they want to be back in Washington is going to be Dick Clark. Well I hate to interrupt right here but we are out of time and we've got to go. That concludes our first of the two specials on campaign 78 for IPB and public affairs I want to thank Ed Campbell for being here tonight. Norm Sander of United Press International Thank you Norm for your questions. Now tomorrow night at 10:30 we're going to have the other side of this us the Republican campaigns of Joseph Birch Roche Roger Jepson Moore even Austria and Terry Branstad of Willard Hanson and Bryce Oakley. Until then I'm Dean Borg. Thanks for joining us. And soundest stage is next. Gambling 78 the Democratic primary. Was a public affairs

production of the eye with public broadcasting.