My Friend, Gene McCarthy, 1916-2005

Special to FreeRepublic ^ | 11 December, 2005 | John Armor (Congressman Billybob)

[Congressman Billybob]

The reporting on the life and death of my friend, Gene McCarthy, has been woefully inadequate to the truth of the man, especially in his last three decades. Gene was an intelligent and honest man, who had the courage of his convictions. That included the courage to change his convictions when the facts required.

The news media brought on a number of classic tax-and-spend liberals like Eleanor Clift to talk about Gene as if he was one of them. Of course, he was that, as a professor first elected as a Senator. But in his final maturity he was much more than that. He no longer believed that every problem was to be solved with more government, more regulation, and more tax money. I say that from personal knowledge.

I’m grateful for having worked for one of Gene’s presidential campaigns. No, it was not the legendary one when Clean Gene caused President Lyndon Johnson to decline to run again in 1968. No, his little-noted campaign as an independent in 1976 changed my career forever.

Because of my work in 1972 for the People’s Party and American Independent candidates for President, Gene’s campaign asked me in 1975 to review the laws in all jurisdictions for an independent candidate. In 1976, I became his General Counsel. In ten months, we struck the election laws of 26 states in ten months, for preventing an independent from running for President. (That history was in the ABA Journal in August, 1977, “The Bloodless Revolution of 1976.”)

That massive litigation, including eight trips to the Supreme Court in 1976, got me hooked on First Amendment cases there. Eleven Court briefs have followed, including a successful one in Bush v. Palm Beach Canvassing Board, December, 2000. None of that would have happened without Gene’s request in 1975 to analyze all the election codes.

But this is about what I observed of changes in Gene’s politics, late in his life. During that campaign, Gene was coauthoring A Political Bestiary with James Kilpatrick, his friend and neighbor in rural Virginia. The late Jeff McNeely did the cartoons for that excellent book. Gene and James first agreed on the subjects, and then each wrote half of them and reviewed the other’s work. The fascinating aspect was that these two gentlemen’s views on government were in entire agreement. One is often and falsely described as a “classic liberal,” the other a “classic conservative.” Yet they agreed, because by this time, both were pragmatists and keen observers of American politics.

In that book, humor was their weapon of choice. Yet, humor is often the most perceptive way of telling the truth. Laughter is merely the sudden recognition of truth. Here are some examples:

“The Bloated Bureaucracy” – “a bloated government has serious digestive problems. The more it eats, the more it wants; the more it wants, the more it eats. [Its] life span ranges between the infinite and the eternal.”

“The Staggering Deficit” – “It is sometimes thought that nothing new ever emerges among the fish, fowl and mammals that comprise a political Bestiary. But new species do come along from time to time. One of the most interesting is the Deficit.” This item points out that the exact same Deficit will be described as Staggering, Stimulative, or Acceptable, depending on the newspaper editorials one reads.

One final personal story about Gene. He knew that in 1980 I had designed the litigation for John Anderson, as an independent for President. Anderson litigated in ten states for ballot access. As I’d advised, all those laws were struck on First Amendment grounds.

Gene called me one day and said, “It is everyone’s civic duty to vote for John Anderson, even though he’s a jerk.” As with many of Gene’s quips, it was excellent. I quoted him several times, and it got back to him. He called again and said, “I said it. I meant it. But don’t quote me.” I honored his request for 25 years. Now, I’m free to quote him.

I’ll close with one of his famous quotes. He said of Walter Mondale, “Mondale has the soul of a Vice President.” That quote was on the cover of the Opposition Research book for Ronald Reagan in 1984. And by the way, Gene McCarthy endorsed Reagan in that election.

Gene was a rarity in American politics. He was honest, he was courageous, he had excellent powers of observation, topped off with a sharp wit. At the end, he could not be dismissed as merely a liberal. He was much more than that. The nation should be grateful for his life. And I am personally grateful as well.

About the Author: John Armor is a First Amendment attorney and author who lives in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. John_Armor@aya.yale.edu

[Congressman Billybob]

Originally, I was not going to write about Gene McCarthy because thousands of other articles are appearing in all media. But I have personal knowledge of this man. And much of the coverage I have seen and read this weekend falsely categorize him as a "classic liberal."

This is false. And I felt compelled to write about what I knew of him, personally, late in his career. I hope that y'all will appreciate this.

John / Billybob

[Theodore R.]

I believe that McCarthy endorsed Reagan in 1980, not 1984.

[Tribune7]

Thanks for the post.

[Herford Turley]

Good post.

[NormsRevenge]

Former U.S. Senator Eugene McCarthy is photographed at the Women's National Democratic Club in Washington October 7, 2004. McCarthy, 89, whose 1968 anti-Vietnam War presidential candidacy helped drive President Lyndon Johnson from office, had suffered from Parkinson's disease, fell ill on Friday night and died from complications on the morning of December 10, 2005 in a Georgetown retirement home, said his son Michael McCarthy. Photo taken October 7, 2004. (Anna Frame/Reuters)

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RIP Senator.

Never met him but he was one of my former Senators from Minnesota back then along with HHH.

[lexington minuteman 1775]

I worked in his California primary campaign. And always thought he was an honorable guy. I moved away from the Democratic party during Reagan's first term. But I do remember the campaing and always thought this guy has character and principle, something missing in many modern politicians.

[Ciexyz]

Interesting perspective on a man who helped change history. McCarthy's challenge to Johnson knocked the Prez out of the ring. (I played a miniscule part in that, as I supported Gene in his first campaign and even collected signatures for him. I was in high school at the time and was too young to vote. I supported McCarthy as an alternative to Johnson, who I regarded as hopeless for the country.)

[Congressman Billybob]

I'm writing from memory, but I think I'm right. Reagan offered in return to appoint two minor officials, on Gene's recommendation. James Baker, Reagan's transition leader, did not honor that request. I know this because Gene asked for only one appointment, and that was me. LOL.

John / Billybob

[docbnj]

The article is correct. McCarthy was not a blind ideologue, as are so many modern liberals.
Although I do not agree with many of the positions that he took during his career, I recognize and salute him as a clean, honest, and intelligent man, and I am proud that I once got to shake his hand.

[skinkinthegrass]

Thanks, for the information...as usual; the MSM, sees fit, only to report whats favorable to them.
....err, their viewpoint. :)

[Congressman Billybob]

I thought I would have to "put my soul in a closet." But over the years, I have refused almost every potential client whom I did not respect, regardless of what they were prepared to pay.

There was, however, a price for that decision. When less able colleagues from law school were earning $250,000 a year (later years, of course), I was still making do with $50,000 a year or less. But I've never regretted that choice. It's been a challenge, and a fun ride. And it's not over yet.

John / Billybob

[the final gentleman]

____________________________________________________________

"Gene was a rarity in American politics. He was honest, he was courageous, he had excellent powers of observation, topped off with a sharp wit. At the end, he could not be dismissed as merely a liberal." - Billybob
__________________________________________________________

Now really, Billybob. I remember a Gene who was honest but naive, who at the end couldn't even make it as a mush-mouthed liberal.

Maybe that makes him a better man...maybe it doesn't.

[NormsRevenge]

Presidential candidate Sen. Eugene McCarthy, D-Minn., left, and his wife, Abigail, celebrate in Portland, Ore., in this May 29, 1968, file photo after the senator's victory in the Oregon Democratic presidential primary was forecast. McCarthy, whose insurgent campaign toppled a sitting president in 1968 and forced the Democratic Party to take seriously his message against the Vietnam War, died Saturday, Dec. 10, 2005. He was 89. (AP Photo)

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Presidential candidate Sen. Eugene McCarthy, D-Minn., discusses his defeat in this Aug. 29, 1968, file photo. McCarthy, whose insurgent campaign toppled a sitting president in 1968 and forced the Democratic Party to take seriously his message against the Vietnam War, died Saturday, Dec. 10, 2005. He was 89. (AP Photo/file)

[don-o]

That just might be the best post, of many. Thank you.

[Cincinnatus]

I obviously didn't know him as well as you, but I think in a five minute conversation in 1976 I met the same man. Here is my blog entry on the subject, from The Judge Report:

Former Minnesota Senator Eugene McCarthy has died at the age of 89. Back in 1968, when I was a junior in High School, he ran a quixotic campaign for president, challenging Lyndon Johnson in the early primaries. At a time when the really scummy look was becoming popular, "Keep Clean with Gene" was the slogan of his student volunteers.

He is often credited with having driven Johnson from the presidency. I don't believe he ever actually won a primary, but he beat the expectations game. He was on the ballot in New Hampshire and Johnson wasn't. Johnson's 55% of the vote came on write-ins. Still, McCarthy's 45% was astonishing. In April he finished strong in Wisconsin as well.

His success proved to be his undoing. Bobby Kennedy, suddenly realizing that Johnson was vulnerable, hastily announced his own candidacy, probably four years ahead of his previous game plan.

In an amazing week or so in April of 1968, Johnson got hammered in Wisconsin, Martin Luther King was assassinated (with the accompanying riots in numerous cities), Johnson announced the beginning of the Paris Peace Talks, and oh, by the way, I've decided not to seek or accept a renomination.

The whole game changed overnight. McCarthy now had to face not only another anti-war liberal in Kennedy, but also a traditional liberal and fellow Minnesotan, Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey. If enough wasn't already happening, Bobby Kennedy was shot and killed right after winning the California Primary in June.

While there was some talk of drafting 36 year old Ted Kennedy, who had given a stunning and emotional eulogy at his brother's funeral, McCarthy was really the only one left to carry the anti-war banner at the Chicago convention. The less-than-clean rioting demonstrators disrupted the affair and split the party wide open. The old pro-American wing never recovered. Their last gasp was Humphrey's nomination. The hate-America-first crowd took over for good in 1972, but their nominee was George McGovern, not McCarthy, for just as quickly as McCarthy rose, he faded away.

Eight years after his brief fame, as Spring ended in a year when Ronald Reagan still had a chance to dethrone President Ford at the Republican Convention, McCarthy gave the baccalaureate address the night before my brother Tim's graduation from RPI. At the reception afterwards, I noticed him just standing around, alone. I slipped my Reagan button into my pocket and went over to chat.

He was kind, gracious, witty, unassuming. I liked him.

Unlike many of the wackos who followed him, I think McCarthy was a sincere man, who opposed the Vietnam War for honorable reasons. There weren't too many guys like him, and way too many of the John Kerry types. It's sad that ultimately his legacy is wrapped up in his political progeny.

Rest in Peace, Senator. You never would have had my vote, but you earned my respect.

[Gay State Conservative]

Sorry,but I can't find any respect in my heart for McCarthy because he fails my "we will support any friend and oppose any foe" test.

My momma,like many of her day,taught me that you're known by the company you keep. He failed (abysmally) that test as well.

[WarrenC]

McCarthy hated President Bush so much he said he couldn't bear to watch his inauguration. Called him a "bully". So according to "Clean Gene" the guy who attempts to end the mass grave industry is the "bully".

[LET LOOSE THE DOGS OF WAR]

Thank You for your post. I respect everything you comment on. Your comments clarify my befuddled brain on the subjects you post about. You have given me more insight on this man and I appreciate that - may he rest in peace.