A Public Affair; Election '72: GOP Off and Running

A In 1972 we're running on a positive record of accomplishment. In 1976 when we celebrate the birthday of our nation we'll also be celebrating another birthday and that will be the eight-year birthday of the Nixon administration.

We have a great president, the American needs leadership, the world needs leadership, intelligence, we love Richard Nixon, dedication, we want him reelected, and I guess that's what it's all about, I guess that's why we're all involved in politics. Tonight, the GOP, all-fin-running, with Empaxing Your Correspondent Robert McNeil.

Good evening. It's only 10 days until the Democratic National Convention and Senator McGovern is confident enough about getting the nomination to begin planning his campaign against President Nixon. But what have the Republicans been up to all these months while the Democrats plotted through 23 expensive and exhausting primaries? Well, in fact the Republicans have been quietly and efficiently building their Nixon re-election machine. We're still nearly two months to go before their own convention to re-nominate the president, the GOP machine is nearly ready for the fall campaign and parts of it have been humming smoothly for weeks. Bits of the Nixon re-election strategy have begun coming to light. For example, the president himself made pretty clear last week that opposition to busing will be a key theme. As for tactics, some of his campaign aids say the president will spend little time on the stump, but will campaign more by acting as president in the White House. A few weeks ago when it became apparent that Senator McGovern would probably be the president's opponent, there were yelps of joy from the Republican camp.

They thought it would be easy to paint McGovern as a dangerous radical, and some like Vice President Agnew have already started. Now, not all the GOP strategists are so sure, but for the moment the main emphasis is on organization, and there the Republicans are well advanced. Tonight we'd like to show you how well advanced they are by visiting some of the people and places around which the campaign is being built. We'll have a talk with John Mitchell, the president's campaign director in Washington, listening on campaign seminars in Philadelphia and Denver. Visit the November group, the men who will create the president's advertising in New York. Visit a convention of the GOP Heritage Council, aimed at the ethnic vote in Chicago. Look at a GOP registration drive in Texas, and we begin by visiting the opening of a campaign headquarters in Illinois. We're all going to sing this together now, I'm not going to do a solo.

So everybody join in as we get going on the starting thing about it, okay? Oh, say can you see by the dawn's early light what so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming? Whose bright stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight, or the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming? I love this world, the first dreaming light, gave proof through the night that our flag was still there, Oh say can the stars bang the banner yet wave, or the banner of the field, and the hope of the day? Two months before the 1972 election campaign officially begins, the committee to re-elect the president has already opened headquarters in 23 states.

Eventually they'll appear in all 50 states. It's a, I think a great data, open a headquarters here in this critical pivotal state. The sun's out, we have a great ticket in the state of Illinois, and I'm here to tell you that the president of the United States stands behind your great governor and your great state ticket and your great Republican elected officials all the way. Friends of Richard Nixon, the people in this country who think of them as Republicans are a lot fewer than the people in this country who think of themselves as Democrats.

Therefore a Republican, whether he's an incumbent or not, starts out with a tough race, and there aren't enough Republicans simply to elect a president or your fine state ticket. I think the thing for us to do is to recognize that politics is human beings, and it means I think that each person here has to recognize that. That this Republican party has to be an open party, and that each of us as individuals and collectively have to reach out for the young, for the old, for the white and the black and the rich and the poor, and see that we bring people in. There are roughly 25 million potential new voters this year to capture some of them the Republicans have mounted more than 300 regional registration drives. They claim to have registered 480,000 to date. It's really great to be in Texas. I have been in 24 states in four months, and we've been putting together voter registration drives in every state in the country. The significance of voter registration cannot be underplayed this year.

The only thing I can say to you is that we consider voter registration to be the most important project that we have to undertake. There are two questions you ask. The first one is, are there any Nixon or Tower supporters in this home? If the answer is no to that question, you thank them for their time, and you go on to the next house. If the answer is yes, then you ask, are all the occupants of this house registered who will be 18 years of age or older in November? If they say no, then you ask their name and a phone number, and have them fill out, or you help them fill out, application for registration. We're working on voter registration drive. Okay. And we came up to register. Well, I'm afraid it will be a little early to register now. What we're doing, we started that here on Flag Day in O'Lean. We came around and we were registering for... Just a couple minutes ago. Oh, good, good. Nixon or Tower.

They don't run against each other. No, no, no, no. They're running in separate elections, but are you going to vote for Nixon or are you going to vote for Tower? Oh, I imagine both of them. Okay, well then... Are you registered to vote? No, not yet. You're not registered. Okay. I'm going to go to the junior PTA. Okay. And what's your address? For our next out of debt, the star of movie Tarzan, Ridge Rider, a stuntman, movie anchor and television star, and strong supporter of the president, Jock Mahoney. Ladies and gentlemen, honored guests, and gentlemen running for office. You've been standing out there and it's hot and the sun. Maybe you'd like to tell me who you're going to vote for. Well, you're going to have to work harder than that. Now, here it again. Who you're going to vote for? Come on, let him hear it on the outskirts. Who you're going to vote for? Are you willing to work hard to elect it?

Because you're going to have to. This is not a shoe in, you know? God bless your work hard. Put Mr. Nixon back where he belongs. Thank you. Today we are concentrating on the presidential campaign as the most important one, what all of us are going to participate. They are also willing the 40 million ethnic Americans who are traditionally Democrats. Heritage councils have been formed in 27 states, and a convention was held to plan the drive for ethnic votes. We have 24 states represented here today at this convention. We have 31 different nationalities, ethnic groups represented on this meeting. And I would like to thank all of you for coming and representing your groups. I have been working in the vineyard as they say since 1948. I can speak with authority on several fields relating to the Italian vote. I just returned from the Far East and Southeast Asia serving as the chairman of United Citizens in Asia for Nixon. But I think President Nixon, by virtue of the fact that he always grew up and understood Spanish-speaking problems, took that position and understanding and carried it through to the things that he has done.

What do we see for 1972? It is this council's duty to develop the best possible approach to attract the ethnic and the Republican Party. Do you feel a national committee is really taking this business of appealing to the ethnic community seriously, or it's a kind of token thing too? I think they are very serious. I think that as of two or three years ago, there are indications that the national committee has adopted this as a component part of the national effort. And I think they are very wise to do that because there are indications historically, and in other instances that perhaps the ethnic vote itself can be the deciding factor in a national election. There are 40 million Americans who are tied somehow to an ethnic movement of our church. Our subscribers to our newspapers are something like that. They identify themselves, you see, by the country of their parentage.

If this man can be brought out, or can be drawn out, you see, the Republican Party I think has it made. Is the most important thing about the Republicans to ethnic communities like yours from Eastern Europe? Yes. Mr. Nixon's anti-strong anti-communism. Is that the sort of the platform that you think is the strongest thing? We are concerned what is another party doing, and we see the Republican Party is more patriotic, and the Republican Party is more interested to stop the communism. That's what Mr. Nixon said. We don't want to give it to 300 million people again in Asia that come in this end, and that's it. I think President Nixon is doing a marvelous job in bringing the men home from Vietnam. We should give him a chance to carry out his programs to the fallen. And I don't believe in changing horse's midstream.

The President Nixon is certainly proving himself as a world leader in his trip to China. I think the economy has done very well under President Nixon. I think President Nixon is terrific. America needs President Nixon, and he needs you. Reelect the President. I am definitely going to vote for President Nixon. Rumors about the huge war chest to finance Mr. Nixon's re-election are legendary, but undocumented. Clearly, there's no lack of money, and plans to spend millions on media advertising are well-advanced. That is the job of a specially-created Manhattan advertising team called the November Group. My name's Pete Daly, and I'm an overall charge of the ADC operation. Well, what's the function of the November Group going to be? We're responsible for all paid communications, radio commercials, television commercials, newspaper, magazine, outdoor advertising, documentary films, direct mail copy. All things of that nature, we develop the strategy, develop the actual materials, produce the commercials. We're also responsible for the planning and buying of the media for the campaign.

How far have you got along the road now? We're in a process now of working on various commercials and ads and things, and taking a look at those and trying out different approaches, and really haven't affirmed up anything at this point in time, we feel it's still a bit early. Well, does it depend on who the Democratic candidate is going to be? To some degree. It's been remarked that the plan is this year to use Mr. Nixon's name a lot less, and to concentrate on the words the President. Could someone describe first the rationale of that? I read those stories, and it kind of amused me, because I think everybody knows President Nixon's name, you know. And I don't see it, I don't see any advantage or disadvantage or not using it, I wouldn't understand. It's an interesting strategy, but we didn't think of it. Have you got so far as to actually have bought or reserved time now for the fall? That I'd rather not comment on.

Let's just put it this way, we are quite a ways down the road. You know, a lot of what we're doing, but beyond that I'd rather not comment. Could I ask some of you, what do you think is the main problem facing you? What do you think, for instance? Well, I think the main problem that we have is to really get across what Richard Nixon has accomplished. I think it's very easy for people to forget. Think back to 1968, to this country, and to the strike, and the violence, and the problems, and the excesses we were paying for. And look where we've come in these three years. In order to turn the message of the Nixon record into votes, there's great emphasis on organization. GOP has produced a 100-page manual covering everything from fundraising to media. Already 12 regional seminars have been held to instruct campaign workers. This is the first of what we think will be many similar training functions to be held all around the country this year.

My goal, as director of education and training for the Republican National Committee, is to try to cause enough functions to occur, enough people to come together, the 15,000 Republican leaders this year will be exposed to this kind of a training seminar. We have an incumbent president. We have a president who has done an outstanding job. We've got to get that across to the media. And maybe you can't sell them the administration's philosophy. But newspapermen, generally, will go for news. Radio, you contact the news director of radio. If you're doing it with TV, and you want TV to come, you contact the assignment editor. Don't just think that you call it the station, but if you can call up specifically one of those areas, if you can call the city editor, and you know the name of the city editor, and you can tell your story,

you can get a greater response from the newspaper than you do by just saying, just give me the news room. I can tell you that I have seen in the newspaper business and out of it and in political public relations. 10,000 pictures of the Republican Women's Club of East Goshen and its Mrs. James Van Buskerk, Tilly Wilder, the ninth, using her grandfather's silver service that the town gave him when he lost his leg in the Civil War, and he's bitten by a mule. And it's always the same kind of stand-up pictures of people that are over the hill, looking gracious at each other and making believe they like each other. And the best kind of picture is to get some people that look good in photographs, and you may have to hunt a little, but you can find them and put them in a paper and have them doing something.

You see, we are the minority party, we just have to face that based on registration and stated party preference. And because we are, we not only have to work harder than the other party in order to compete, but we have to work smarter. As you get into the black community, understand how to go out and ask for this support. There must be a different strategy, relative to this most important vote. You see a black voter and you approach him about the subject of voting or becoming a member of the Republican Party. He says, what's in it for me? So what is in it for them? I tell them, first of all, it's a great measure of your own self-respect in knowing that nobody owns you and you're not in anyone's pocket. We're not going to get blacks tomorrow to vote a straight Republican ticket. We can get blacks tomorrow to vote for a Republican candidate of whom they feel they can identify with.

Campaign manager? Well, he's the boss. Candidate isn't, or at least we claim he shouldn't be, the campaign manager. He's the boss, he's the guy that makes today by day decisions. He's the guy that says no, the 10,000 times it has to be said during a campaign to the many workers, vendors, salesmen, this sort of thing. He's the guy that takes the heat for saying no. Mr. Mitchell, could you describe the function of the committee to re-elect the president? This is the hub of the operation that involves the citizen type organizations in all of the 50 states. For those citizens who have banded together in the states, Republicans, Democrats, and Independents to further the re-election of the president. Well, how is your strategy made in this campaign? Well, most of it today has been made in the Democrat Party for us. They seem to have been our most knowledgeable and important strategist. The great strategy in this campaign, if you want to call it that, is to have the proficiency to get the vote registered, to get it out to the polls and get it voted, and then make sure it's properly counted afterwards.

And how much money are you going to need this year? From my point of view, was a campaign manager will spend every dollar that we can raise. You've said that you thought that looked at in total about 100 million was spent last time. I don't know. I would doubt that would be the case. And of course, I want to make sure that 100 million was understood. It was not 100 million spent by the committee to re-elect the president, the committee to elect Nixon Agner Ticket in 1968. That 100 million was my guest of it as what was spent by the county committees and the state committees and the precinct committees and all of the various other activists on behalf of the candidate around the country. Since you came over here, how often have you actually talked to Mr. Nixon about the campaign?

Not once that I recall. Well, how do you communicate by extra sensory perception on how it's going to go? The president, the president really isn't interested in politics these days. You told some Republican campaign workers back in March, I think it was, that to win, they must run scared. Are you still running scared? And if so, why? Until that last ballot is counted, there is no other way to run a campaign until run scared and run hard. One reads that this year you were planning a campaign in which Mr. Nixon will maintain a very lofty above-the-battle presidential stance. Is that how you see it? I would believe that any campaign or an incumbent president would and should be run that way. I don't know there's any other way to run a campaign. A lot of reports have said recently that you would rather run against George Montgomery than Hubert Humphrey. Is that true? I have not said that. I have not said that at all.

No, they've been mostly attributed to other people in the committee or working for the real estate. That might be their opinions and I have not expressed an opinion on the subject matter, even though Mr. McGovern tried to attribute that to me. Do you have an opinion? I do not at this particular time. If Governor Wallace should be able to run on a third-party ticket, would he help or hurt the president? I'm inclined to believe that it would not be particularly helpful. How do you feel coming back to do this same job again when a lot of your opponents, democratic strategists and others say the best thing the Republicans could do for the Democrats is to have you running the campaign because you nearly lost the election for Mr. Nixon in 1968? Well, apparently there are some people around that don't have that same opinion. Otherwise, I would not be stuck with this job again. And everybody's entitled to their opinion. Whether it has any basis and factor or not, I don't know. I certainly didn't volunteer for the job. You were volunteered? I was volunteered.

Governor Peterson of Delaware, one soldier in an army of politicians fighting Mr. Nixon's battles while he remains aloof and presidential. They've toured the country saying the things Mr. Nixon prefers not to. They're called the Nixon stand-ins. Look back over the past four years. It's been a period of tremendous change. One that has followed the course of our nation and indeed of the world. In our foreign policy, we had 550,000 troops in South Vietnam and there was absolutely no plan to either win or bring them home or anything else. There certainly has been a change in the international situation, whether you look at the salt talks that were bogged down there and the progress that has been made since then. Or NATO, or opening up communications with the sleeping giant of China and 850 million people. Richard Nixon is the only president I would trust to go to China. And we've got the Sue Sayer from South Dakota. Mr. Montgomery, he's so pure, he's quakes.

Because had it been George Montgomery getting off the plane, he probably would have taken the mortgage to the United States and handed it right over to Chauhan Lai. He's been backed by Abby Hoppen, you know, and Jerry Rubin, that's going to be real interesting. But the president has given us tremendous leadership, not only here, but he's given us tremendous leadership here at home. You know, look at the new economic policy and what he inherited and how he has gone from there. We see food prices down again. We see the consumer prices down again, four months running. We see a very dramatic curve in the indices of inflation. We will either continue moving ahead with confidence and determination. Or we will return to the confusion and isolation that have been raiding our country and its people on those agonizing pre-Nixon youth. The Democratic Party, frankly, is getting into more and more trouble with every primary that they have.

They go from one primary election to the next and they come up with a different front run. You know, at first it was trying at Muskie. He started on the slopes of the mountains in New Hampshire and he slipped all the way down to Florida and on into the Democratic Ocean from there. Hubert, the Minnesota Warbler. They said about him, you know, for a long period of time that you cannot misquote Hubert Humphrey. In fact, the fellow Tom and the other day said, Hubert's talking so fast. They remind me of a man trying to read playboy magazine with his wife turning the pages for him. What? There are those who, when they hear the name Richard Nixon, are completely turned off. There is a record of accomplishment by this administration that absolutely every Republican can be proud of. We have produced, we have campaigned with the people.

What we must do in these coming months is to tell our story and to tell it probably. We've got to do one thing more besides speaking up for that record because unless we translate the support that we have for the President and other Republican officials, in the votes on November the 7th, it can all go for naught. Next week on a public affair, Sander Van Oker looks at how a national convention is put together. And starting July 10th, join Robert McNeil and Sander Van Oker on the scene at the Democratic National Convention. A public affair is a production of Enpacked, the National Public Affairs Center for Television.

Thank you.