Men of the Senate; 3; Senator John Tower

snow bird the cherokee national educational television resents man of the senate a close up look at legislate or is there politics policies philosophies and it even making the nation's laws this week senator john tower of texas as southern republican our correspondent all live in john tower enter the united states senate through a special election in nineteen sixty one to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of lyndon johnson would be elected senator and vice president mr

tyler is a conservative republican was a nineteen sixty four a supporter of barry goldwater wichita's election with something or political freak in this democratic state he was the first republican elected to the senate here since reconstruction days and most observers did not give it much of a chance of re election has led to a three years ago so you know i had the impression two or three years ago that you didn't expect to be reelected well of course after the defeat in sixty four have felt that the prospects were not particularly bright for my reelection how determined however to do everything that could be re elected then i was by various about two hundred thousand voters were about fifty six and a half percent i remember a pole a couple years ago which indicated that if governor connally renovation then it would be too much of poetry and after one week the eu and why didn't you write well on the garden of course presided over the political power structure in the

state and as such are going to come out might say of those of the the need of the democratic it would have a strong mandate the top to keep everything together taking him out of the governor's office would be like putting the keystone from the arched their former colony elected to stay on as governor to preside over the the political power structure in the state had he run against may i don't know what the outcome was being with those of course that's very much in question and have that question and difficult to assess owen does what would've happened had he run against a he was serving in an extremely topical and i would say that he would ban the toughest opponent that i could possibly have if he had gone to the senate and kept his present political view was he would've found himself in the position of voting against most of the proposals of his good friend president bill opponents of an embarrassing position because in the present are close friends that have been political allies and so you would have to make a choice between supporting his close friend and political ally or are

proposing on the visit michael mr johnson to have a republican senator from texas who have passed the president got there how your relations with allison druin are very cordial as a matter of fact there have been a number of white house briefing sessions no signings going to that sort of had a fairly frequent their personal contact with a pretzel you've always been cordial armed with the option for the presidential election were held here that day was just to carry texas law i would imagine that he would carry texas but not by anything like the majority that a poll in nineteen sixty four because his popularity has declined in texas as indeed it has all of the rest of the country said do you see any images was to counsel one from that year in sixty eight and not run i don't think saw him i guess is that the president will seek reelection of it is in development that is in good health i would see no reason why he would not elect to run again only join

instill in them bad shape those vietnam are still unsolved still i think i think there is that possibility that if he felt he would be defeated hubert for it retires the undefeated champions arrived in the end of the potion suffered defeat of course i imagine he's aware that it's often difficult to unseat an incumbent president and the things have to be pretty dead before incumbent president is on cd i think that the harry truman prove that and afro it's only occurred twice in a century and once was a result of a triangular a fire in nineteen twelve and the other than what we had a great depression in the absence of them a great economic crisis or in the absence of a great international crisis that that the administration is held accountable for our imagine the president ran against them a very good chance i'm in being reelected and that's not so that i just got a republican chances elected

president sixty yeah i would say that if the political climate in sixty eight is probably what it is now the chancellor be very good i wish you're going to go about this do you want a numbered do think punishment made some leaving the conservatives abbott and border own supporters going sixty for what you think it ought to turn to the other side and someone like governor romney are well i don't like to talk in terms as sides of the republican party because there is no clearcut dichotomy of wanes and the republican party that you can clearly labeled conservative and liberal or conservative and moderate of what happened gray areas in between i would say that there are people that would its position republican party and people concerned the disposition written that say senator javits and ignore but i think there's a great deal in between and i think the party consensus lives a somewhat to the right of center and i think that whoever is nominated should fairly accurately reflect party consensus i would say and i'm not mentioning him as president obama possibility because a it began when he would not even you would not

consider that ongoing but the senator dirksen i think is an example of the type of republican i'm talking about one who is not identified there with extreme conservatism extreme liberalism or even dogmatic conservatism and automatically with one man who does fall the right of saturn a man who i think pretty accurately reflects what i would go party consents is that a statement majority view point in the party would you be disposed towards its forces early and someone who supported the ticket in nineteen sixty four well i think that that girl we should give primary consideration are two contenders who have been regular party supporters i would not like to go beyond that and i would make an end up not criminal medic statement about it right now that means you're not the primary consideration to get around it i'm not mentioning any names of all i'm just saying that i think that the primary consideration should be given to those who have regularly support in the party and i'm not

eliminating anybody and so far its content is concerned i'm not saying i would hold my support from anybody and perhaps but for a vacation in the previous election here they get those who live on those kinds of conservative and when those positions might settle in compromise on next well let's have courses the type of republican that i mentioned that dirksen it is one involved the right of center but do i think pretty well reflection of party consensus but there've been many such men i can imagine in a number of the men like a senator russell nebraska senator dominic of colorado these are the type of republican senator murphy of california aziz in the texas campaign you were supported apparently by some liberal democrats who wanted to punish governor connally in the party leaders for nominating a conservative robert have been shown going only to the national press many them

either stayed away or actually voted for you is that true oh yes a number of liberal democrats to support may and voted for mayor number of them stayed away from the polls i think her power quite a few that when democrats supporting my opponent alison of the democratic free world of it some of them worked actively for my own such as a congressman's office of the us and some fun on the other hand some of the liberals not public office holders but for the most part party or some party officials precinct chairman of something that support may have led to the detector their support well i have always followed the philosophy of my good friends and mr scott new hampshire who once said that the e layaway one night all night trying to think of somebody hated so bad it even more and vote for and even they did it but of course so we welcome both for many poor but we do not and i never have made deals are made promises to people who are of divergent political views from

mile for the sake of getting their votes as take my position positively and people can except to reject me on that basis now course as you noted a zombie was afforded me not because they agree with him but because largely because the disagreement my opponent for the negative next constituency that you're elected primarily by republicans and disenchanted defecting democrats with a vote i got a very stronghold of conservative democrats to a conservative may concern and democrats were felt this way that power is a known quantity we know what his performances know a period of six years we we know that he reflects our view is there for them stay within what they chat about what you don't feel any special responsibility toward that liberals don't like your name you can think you know i think my responsibility is to is to texans as individuals my responsibility is reflective nearly as i can what i can see to be the consensus view for the people of my state and my responsibility to

follow my convictions and i think the protections expected it and i think women inevitably forming they expect me to continue to do to vote conservative senators your political philosophy changed in many important ways as you enter the senate now i'm always been basically conservative in my political philosophy and iron remain such a conservative i think sometimes hear when you're in public office for a while you're approached changes you perhaps becoming a little less rigid dogmatic about things but the us earning my basic philosophy of mccain i think that pretty well reflected in an unraveling wracked with internal security of medicine is becoming less rigid and they sometimes liberals also when there's a murder is not something that the conservatives have a monopoly on there what we call them the jerking liberal you know the heavy automatic reaction of you know sharp right shibboleth you know given that there were sort of let what is it

in congress in the senate that causes you to become less rigid you find compromises necessary to find solutions to somebody say that legislation is the art of the possible and obviously if if you can't make your own viewpoint prevail than you then for your viewpoint to carry any influence on legislation peculiar operating from minority status you have to understand and accept the intellectual honesty the other side and you have to make accommodations because it's a matter of getting a half a loaf rather not have all this means there's a ninety of low for an unknown rather than none as you say but sometimes occasionally people said no if i can handle a lo fi mama can take anything well i think that this is probably a very practical approach you know they have influence on legislation that has come before the eight gigabyte in and currency committee on which i serve as the number two ranking minority member and oh i voted against a lot of the legislation has been reported out of that

committee nonetheless some that legislation has my staff and my influence on it i believe that that legislation would've been less good and i'm not attempted and let some way solo so therefore even though i might disapprove of a specific legislative approach long tunnel that approach has not prevailed it's incumbent on me to and floods the only character in the quality of the legislation of much of a camp when he first came to the senate you were often in a fight with various right wing organizations right wing word guesses of what is it fair to say you have moved perceptibly away from these split want my because splinter groups matthiessen say that i have never associate myself with anything that i consider to be extremist and that any plan that i may have given a word of encouragement to such a group that later turned out to have some extreme tendency that have completely dissociate myself from of course so you never know what direction organization to go away for a startup but that really my record pretty clean in that respect that have not

associated with extreme right wing organizations the prisoners but i think i'm a villain you moving from which michael respectable conservative groups are a little bit wait for the center of the body out of the mainstream of republican politics is that to say that although i have been identified some conservative organizations i have never i think men identified and a splinter group within the party and this like the idea of splinter groups i think the republicans are going to have to hang together with a certain anxiety and therefore i have always discourage o'donovan that could discourage the formation of clicks and factions within the party a bank which is going on and your point is you know it is whether what kind of convention goers out whether it should try almost to keep up with or exceed the democrats' bills desegregation sentiment or whether it should quote the negro vote says governor left ruckel of arkansas did how do you do in the world which is a you know

put out by workers from here actually at the low turnout was very low mr holder madison is of the vote very decorum locality depending on on the degree of effort and work that was put into two naval precincts in various parts of the state where we had worked among them we've we didn't fare so bad that where we had not be very very badly and he but i think my most striking gain was among the latin american citizens and we did nixon it's very significant politically emboldened and then enter this group what was your advice be to republicans seeking election to the congress in a district held by ad extreme segregationist democrat physician john roswell and that that is not a problem in texas and that this does not dirt is not a continuing problem in our state we have adjusted very well i think two desegregation in texas and destined to probably way before most of southern states did so it's not really a problem here and i wouldn't presume to counsel

somebody leaves out about our own elections and do not think that that our party should ever take on it magnolia sadjadpour with overtones that though we should ever be segregationists in the i am not a segregationist myself all while a native southerner i have i have a postal rights legislation cost usually around so it but i don't think that that you could characterize the southern republican party as being segregationist and i don't think that that the progress thats been made by republicans in the south and is based on segregation no more on that issue at all and they've essentially because the republican party nationally is the more conservative of the two parties' southerners are turning toward the republican party not the cause of civil rights and the cover of the variety of other reasons this sound is becoming more politically sophisticated and turning away the democratic party's rest part of becoming more industrialized and the band for these reasons the republican party is going inside the republican party both in the south has virtually nothing to

do with issues so righteous indignation or average some of your colleagues in the senate no reason to think the party must go after the negro of the minority votes in the big cities in order for that is what i think we should do i think we should appeal to them as individuals what we what i think we should do is to break the bloch building have it in other words though we would like to appeal discontent with the democratic party for these votes to let them make up their minds and i think very often now too many of my of my negro friend avengers and i'm glad a lot of the democratic party not a matter of not a mathematician in particular campaign it's not about it it's like daley also the habit of voting democratic well it was a quite natural a nineteen sixty four for is is that most of them would vote against a presidential nominee who had just been one of the very few northerners in the senate to vote against the civil rights act i'm not sure honestly out with their orange issue between the very low poll isn't ago were secured in the negro areas yes it is well yes yes yes yes i'm certain

that there was a relationship between the two again i would point out that that he was not alone in that and then a number of non southern senators voted against that measure now lot of course this is a big issue with them right now but i think that issue eventually i'm afraid that essentially that issue that's going to draw the votes of the individual negroes is going to be a socio economic or economic issues social issues rather than aside from seoul right because i think that but with her legislative of elements and her judicial alonso the past few years that the big issue looming free will was offered with any issues which you use successfully here this past fall that you think the magical boarding can use successfully the sixtieth well this isn't i knew that they were probably preventing so the country app book about inflation flight money and about the year in the war in southeast asia because these are the two things are uppermost on people's minds

certainly a lot of things that you are states such as a as agriculture or the oil industry and think of the sort that we talk about to but these are the two remaining issues that were a general concern everybody i think they're going to be a continuing concern i don't know what industries like posters all our current monetary crisis but i think it is going to be a continuing issue at least through the first section it accounts what about the personality of the president at the stickers every president has his ups and downs and patch chronologically mr johnson as the point where you you're expected to be and this is low point but the democratic governor's criticizing with more and more articles in the press about the credibility gap in some evidence that his prayer is personality is a negative factor in his political fortunes first not important animal facts and politics and won one that would engage it is pretty obvious that that that's president johnson does not have the type of charisma

that eisenhower had a kennedy it is i think probably one of the most skillful politicians ever occupy the white house the effect of these personalities live weekly gauge and two it's the way that the mass media play up a man first about their what they didn't do it very often that determined what his image isn't it may not always be an academic liz has a little door so what does it mean when he stands up in a news conference and denies even planned a trip around the country on the last weekend before the election one white house aides have been telling people where i was going with stands were being built in versus the president denied it and blamed all the speculation on image makers and then turns around again complains about a so called big deliberative credibility gap is it sometimes hard to follow well now of course moore and the mass media

are better qualified to comment on that i am i would say that certainly however the president's relations with the media i'm not going to do it in the first few weeks but i detect some sympathy with his impatience with the media and you have the same experience with them yourself or you said i don't as they have been pretty fair to treat it and i think that my i must have enjoyed a very good relationship with a working press very often as a matter of fact i would have been as well the publishers and into the working press frankly not done a lot of publications they did not let me an election with the working press republican what does that mean that that the establishment such as there is here is not for you was not the establishment candidate let's put it that way that is doubling as conservative but still democratic yes or no family it misused against me was that we had to maintain one party rule in texas to assure the preservation of

conservative government and the state but you you entered politics is a conservative candidate you've been in the state senate for six years one would've thought that you are conservative credentials would would be locally elected they were good enough what have you made the establishment argument against the world with the sophisticated maybe even first thought or they made that were important it didn't detonate the arguments did influence on this is professionally leaders but it didn't penetrate down today to the average conservative voter and state republicans and respectable and sixties i would say that i have made their republicanism respectable i would say that republicans in fact have made republicanism respectable where we have good leadership in our state we haven't had good candidates and we skied in electing a few more of them live here and of course our party was it was growing by leaps and bounds up until that time the tragic assassination of president

kennedy and the assumption of the presence in that president johnson didn't to arrest our party's growth for a time but the visit with a sixty six election that night were all running again desert a tendency among conservatives here to work regardless to johnson as a heretic but they are to perhaps because he's a text well there is a lot of it or put it this way you are you more inhibited in criticizing the president on a platform in texas than a senator a pure ideological persuasion would be in another state obviously i am a cozy is a native texan lanny as many friends here and this is an apple innovations the one in opposition sat i might say that i've hesitated to criticize administration policy and actively oppose it and i can see the role at our member of vocal supporter of the president on this southeast asian posing on his basic policy position upton when you expect to get the two points just going in texas within this day it's

going right now i think and now we still have very few public offices but we've got a good start and i think that i'm sixty eight we will probably enjoy a songwriter degree of electoral success i'm curious result here with a winning republican congressional candidate was elected over democratic opponent was more conservative that he was that he was confused well i think from which are for and is the election that infusion of george bush or risk go and two i think it's probably splitting hairs do to determine what is more conservative than the other george bush does not like to take on any luggage labels such as conservative or liberal and these jews i would say however in examining your his political philosophy of what i know about it that really is a suspension to the right of center is is basically a conservative instinct sadly you know the kind of people who nominated sonia

goldwater in nineteen sixty four now reconciled to the inevitability of nominating someone less conserved up with a number for the wind was somewhat narrow near the center or would prefer to lose again with an ideological in a pure conservative i don't think that there you'll find many people in the party who have what we might call the political and death wish it would nominate someone annoying of a person they defeated two i think that there are number of attractive candidates that do reflect the majority view point the party unfortunately not very often publicized with an image of well loved the second that example as a young vigorous articulate senator like pete dominick in colorado for example the definitive picture of a fonda slept slick magazines like some of that for moderate or liberal members of the party that again merman haste to point out that that he's not conservative and the dogmatic about finance and he is a progressive conservative that when i

would leave them is that it just one example of the type of of i think and that we have a party that goes unnoticed before nineteen sixty four there were millions of conservatives in the country we've been telling each other for a long time that they hadn't been a clear joyce's nineteen thirty two that for the first time one of the parties nominate a real conservative conservatives would come out of the woodwork and their millions and carry the day i was never cruel concerned is deluding themselves into something else go out the thing is i have a good most american people are essentially conservative in effect a noun now we get down the definition is turn conservative what we mean by ed mean so many different things only people actually i would characterize myself in the classical sense as a liberal but in the context of modern politics and less about myself as a conservative because i believe in maximum individual liberty and freedom of choice and leave and then among government affairs this essentially conservative point and i didn't think it would go a little what they want and i and i classify an

acclaimed and the quest wasn't available so what do you mean we talk about conserving of segregation steve what might be characterized conservative on the other hand though from i think a conservative is one dedicated to do the preservation of a lot of that freedom of equality for all citizens so on you really get an end to end to the question what do you mean by the term concert so as i understand it a conservative and one who wants to do too to slow the triumph over socialization government are unwashed of one award for her to do to preserve a good climate for the free enterprise system in this country this is essentially a conservative pundit i'm talking about i think the i think the majority of republicans would agree on this i disagree on specific legislative approaches but i think generally speaking most republicans would agree that that we should not over centralize power in the hands of the central government and that we should preserve a favorable climate for a market regulated

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