Begin that future and the place to begin is in New Hampshire. On february 2nd, Richard Nixon held his First Press Conference of the 1968 president ial campaign in manchester, New Hampshire. Tell us why you feel that you can win now, when you wouldnt win in 60 . I have decided that i will test my ability to win and my ability to cope with the issues in the fires of the primary and not just in the smokefilled room of miami. The nixon schedule for the next three days would include a reception, a dinner speech, and conversations with people about issues in public and on television. In 1968, im looking to the future of this country, down to the end of the 20th century. In 1960, i necessarily have to think of the past, also of the future, but to think of the past and to defend it. In 1968, as you gentlemen will hear in my speeches starting saturday night, im going to be talking about americas future, my vision of that future, and what i think i can do with the years of experience ive had behind me. He looks like a candidate and he looks like a president to me. What will this campaign have that previous campaigns havent had . Any new things . I think it will, as a matter of fact. I think its that he has a view of the future, which has been lacking, woefully lacking the last two years. Hes going to have a long look to the turn of the center in 2000, and he thinks its important because were at a critical turning period when the decisions that are made in the next eight years, the turn of the next president , will likely determine the whole sweep of the last third of the century, where we go and how we get there. This is the kind of a choice that the public has got to make this year. As we begin to meet you, were just so delighted to be here and to find that you put on such a warm california day for us. But so you know who we are, youll know pat, my wife, of course, and this is julie and this is patricia, and well be delighted to meet all of you. We hope you can all stay so that we can greet you personally. Thank you very much. This is my sister, julie. Nice to see you. Good, good. Hello. Hi, nice to meet you. Thank you, very nice to meet you. You bet. I love it. Hello there, how are you . Whats your name . Julie. Nice to see you. Thank you very much. You have a great governor down there and a fine senator. And a fine president coming along. Thank you. So were going to come there. I bet we are. Just happy to see you. Thank you. Hello there. Coming in, hes in good spirits and it looks like this room is pretty well filled and a couple of rooms in the back. I think its going really well. How many hands will he have to shake tonight . All that are here. And he never leaves until theyve all been shaken. And then sign autographs for a while. So it will take a few minutes. What are you actually doing here . Identifying people no, im his personal aide, just help take care of him and help out wherever he needs me to. [ inaudible question ] yes, if i know the person. But its amazing, he remembers and recalls people from one lady for example he saw in 52 when he campaigned in New Hampshire, and he recognized her and mentioned what kind of day it was when they met last time. Theyre always surprised when he does that. Thats about the only polish i know. He did it again. Some man came up and said, i met you in 52 and he said, yes, we had our picture taken. The guy said yes. Seems to be a magnificent turnout. Estimate at least weve had somewhere in the neighborhood of 600, 700 go by already. And i guest mate well have more than 3,000 before the afternoon is over. Are these people all republicans or a mixture . I couldnt say looking out here. You cant tell a republican from a democrat or an independent out here. But i would assume its really just a good Cross Section of the people of manchester, frankly. Just wondering how many of these people you think are going to be especially sympathetic to mr. Nixon. We dont know how many coming in, but we hope they all will be going out. Oh, yes, i think hes the man for us today. I think hell do it this time. You judge a man by his handshake . No, no, by his past actions. Very, very sincere, very warm, very nice. It was a pleasure. I think hes a very well rounded person. Hes appealing more and more to the Younger Generation and to more people, which is the most important part. I feel anyones better than johnson. I think hes improved. There you are, theres three. Hows that . Thank you. One, two, three. All right. How you doing . Tell me, is this fellow a good fellow . A very good fellow. You really think so . I really think. Hes a good guy. All right, good, good. As a matter of fact, thats what we hear. We got a lot of people said, well, hes too young to be chairman, and i said, well, we need a fellow thats sort of a goer. Would you agree . I would agree 100 , yes, sir. Are you on his payroll . [ laughter ] im retired. You were in the service . First world war. You were . The big one . Right . Eight years. What division were you in . The 73rd division. Heavy artillery. Heavy artillery, the big ones. We trained on the naval guns. The coast artillery, sure. Well, gee, its hard to realize, weve had so many wars since then. We thought that was the end, the last one, then we had world war ii, then korea, now vietnam. Lets hope we can get rid of them, huh . Lets do something. Lets do something. All right, good to meet you. Nice to meet you. Richard nixons interest in teem, what they think, what they do, and the questions they ask, are the basis of nixons television conversations. You notice that in the television material thats been put together, an effort has been made to put mr. Nixon in front of a panel of people. Now, hes never met these people before. He walks on kocoals. Some are republican, some are democrat, some are independents. One panel is an agriculture group. Another panel is a youth group. Another panel is a business group. Television is a vital political meeting place. To be successful, a candidate must use the medium and use it well. Richard nixon prefers informal, noholdsbarred discussions. How are you . Where are you from . Right here. Dairy. You still have a few cows. Yeah, yeah. Weve heard a lot about you. I believe in a short time [ indiscernible ] oh, absolutely. As a matter of fact, people shouldnt be screaming about the surplus. We should be thankful we got it. Because as a matter of fact too, thats another thing we can make a far greater use of that surplus in our foreign policy, i think. We can get money for it. Its a great weapon for peace. We can use it effectively. I have a rule about press conferences that some of my professionals on my staff dont agree with. I never plant questions and i know that most people do. I said most, many do. Im not sure that most do. The reason i dont plant them, however, is that the answer then is contrived. Nobodys going to get away with a question where you say, now id like to have this question asked. The other thing is this. I also have a feeling that generally speaking, when the question is hard, and strong and tough, not belligerent, but strong and tough, it gets a better answer. Always save me from what i call the easy questions where somebodys trying to help me, because the average viewer or listen to that kind of question says, thats a patsy. Thats one of his friends. Just to restate this question, why do you want to do this, such a mankilling thing, and youve already put in time, already served your country . Well, thats a question that, believe me, has occurred to me too, and it occurs to my family. I suppose that your wife and your children believe more deeply about their father and husband being involved in a great battle than he himself does, because the man whos in the battle, he can fight back, can answer, where as those on the sidelines have to suffer in silence. But yonder, the reason on the other hand, the reason that motivates me the most is very simply this, i feel that this is the period in the history of the United States in which what we do or fail to do can determine the future of peace and freedom for the balance of this century. We didnt ask for this, but it is a role that has been placed upon us because of the power that we have, and the vacuum of power in western europe, which previously had this burden. I believe the dangers of world war iii, the dangers of civil war, approaching civil war, in a very difficult sense of home, and other problems, are greater than this country has ever had. But on the other hand, i believe that never in our nations history have we had more capability to handle these problems. In other words, the forces that can bring peace and avoid war, the forces that can unite america and reconcile america, and bring progress in our cities, are now stronger than they have ever been if they just brought to play. What we need is leadership, leadership that will take americas great harnessed power and unharness it and put it to work on the Unfinished Business at home and the Unfinished Business abroad. By the acts of where ive been, a congressman, a senator, eight years as Vice President , seven years to travel around the world many times and to think about these problems, by reason of that experience, i have thought deeply and ive reached some conclusions as to what we ought to do to keep the piece abroad and to restore peace at home. And i think that in the presidency, i would have an opportunity to put some of those conclusions into practice, and thats the reason why ive decided to seek the office. There has been a lot of criticism of president johnson, some of it justified, much of it petty and unjustified. There are those that dont like his accent. And there are those that dont like its style. And there are others that dont think he goes over too well on tv. [ laughter ] i know how he feels. [ laughter and applause ] but, my friends, the issue in 1968 is not the johnson personality, but the johnson policies. And i say, whether you look at americas record abroad, or at home, this is not a time to continue with lyndon johnson. Its time for new leadership under a republican president and a republican administration. [ applause ] it is time to begin. Lyndon johnson says, let us continue for four more years. This is my answer. When the strongest nation in the world can be tied down for four years in a war against a fourth rate military power in vietnam with no end in sight, when the richest nation in the world cannot manage its own economy, when a nation with the greatest tradition for the rule of law is torn apart by lawlessness, when a nation which has been a symbol of equality, of opportunity, is torn apart by racial strife, when the president of the United States cannot travel at home or abroad without fear of a hostile demonstration, then i say its time for new leadership in the United States of america. [ applause ] ideas are important to Richard Nixon. He seeks them from a variety of sources. His staff represents a wide range of interests, backgrounds, and beliefs. And they are all young. One of the great things about my staff is its youth. Its the youngest staff that a president ial candidate has ever had. And even well, perhaps even younger than John Kennedys staff when he ran for the presidency, although his also was a young staff. And this is good. Its good for me because it bridges the generation gap. Although my daughters, 19 and 21, help to do that. They and their boyfriends that they bring home to dinner. But apart from that, we live in a young nation and in a young world. Half the people in the world right today were born after world war ii, and i, who fought in that war, and who was part of that generation, need to know what these people are thinking. We live in a world thats looking to the future, rather than the past. And so this young, vigorous, intelligent, exciting staff of mine keeps me involved in the problems of the future and also keeps me from turning too much to the past. On february 5th, Richard Nixon left New Hampshire to address several thousand students at wisconsin state university. Nixon would return to New Hampshire, but before he did, he would initiate his campaign in wisconsin. The primary in that state is only three weeks after the New Hampshire primary. The demands of a National Political campaign have begun. Mrs. Nixon, how do you feel starting out on another campaign . Youve been on quite a few yurs. Yes, i have. But theyre always exciting, and the one that started in New Hampshire couldnt have been more so. I think even the local people were surprised at the enthusiasm and the size of the crowds, and the wonderful spirit of the people. These are very exhausting experiences. Do you have a couple of qualms in the back of your mind about having to face so many months of this . No, actually, ive done it so many times they dont, and also, my heart is in it. Im a willing volunteer, i might say. Is there anything about this campaign that you already sense is different than other campaigns in the past . Not yet. There is enthusiasm. There always has been, but i feel that theres even more. And also by the mail that we receive, i feel that way. I think people now want a man of experience and they are also want a man of principle, and i think that fits my husband. Youre in a campaign because you want to do something about the problems of the country, and the problems of the world in which the country is involved. From your own personal point of view, is there a special joy in politics and campaigning that you find a deep personal satisfaction from that goes beyond what you might be able to do for the country . I wouldnt be doing it, i wouldnt be going through it unless i enjoyed it. I enjoyed meeting people, discussing issues, fighting for my positions, arguing about them, refining them, debating them once in the battle, theres nothing that quite equals the excitement of the battle. [ cheers and applause ] hi, how are you . Nice too see you. Thank you. And youre very beautiful. I can see why youre the queen. Thank you. And are you the queen of the packers too . I sure hope so. Especially in green bay in february. You know, after seeing that game on tv [ laughter ] wearing those long underwear. I cant stand them. Which nobody can deny for hes a jolly good fellow for hes a jolly good fellow for hes a jolly good fellow which nobody can deny hi. Hi. Lets have some cheers for mr. Nixon [ cheers and applause ] hi. Wonderful to see you. For hes a jolly good fellow thank you. [ applause ] thank you. Dr. Dreyfus, i have distinguished guests on the platform and the distinguished members of the audience, its a very great privilege and an honor for me to be here, just prior to the winter carnival. I say prior to it, im afraid if i got here during the carnival somebody would ask me to ski. I [ laughter and applause ] i remember the first time i met bob hope in the year 1952, right after having been nominated for the vice presidency. And we were sitting together at a dinner and photographers came up and they said, look at each other, you know, thats how they are, to get you in some silly pose. Theyre the only ones theyll use, at least with me in them. Anyway, we finally turned to each other, and bob hope, with that wonderful humor of himself. He has writers, but he can think too. Said, you know, senator when we get our noses together, what a wonderful ad for sun valley. [ laughter ] just to set the record straight on skiing, i did try it once, but im not going to try it now. I have only one knee to give to my country. [ applause ] now we come directly to the subjects of interest and perhaps what i can do at the outset is to lay a framework, a frame of reference so to speak, for the questions that im sure will follow. Yes, it is a difficult world, and you inherited and you didnt create it, and those of us who did create it, made a lot of mistakes. But the exciting thing is, you can change it. You have the power to change it. The world is changing. Its looking for change. The old isms no longer have their appeal. Communism, maxism, socialism. The world is looking for the new leaderships and the new ideas. And what you do can change the world. And i say to you today, as you go through your studies and as you look at the prospects of the draft and all the other things which i know hang over some of the men here as well as perhaps some of the fears that the girls may have with regard to that matter, i can say to you, look at the other side. Never has a generation lived in a more exciting time, or in a more exciting place than america. And now youwere going to find how exciting because youre going to ask some very exciting questions. Thank you. [ applause ] mr. Vice president , i understand that yesterday huberts coming next week. [ laughter and applause ] sorry. I mean former Vice President nixon thats all right, sir. Ive been called everything. Its all right. Mr. Nixon, in describing the approach in this campaign, a lot has been said about a new mr. Nixon. How do you feel about that . Well, my wife says ive got less hair than ive had before. You know the hairline goes back a bit here and there. And of course im older. Im 55, whi is, of course seven years older than i was when i ran before in 1960. And of course im more experienced, i know more. I wont make as many mistakes as i might have made had i been elected in 1960. Of course other discovered that i perhaps have a sense of humor, which i think ive always had, but perhaps people didnt see it. Others discovered other things that they seem to find for the first time. Let me just answer it this way. Of course i have changed. But also perhaps the people who are looking at me have changed also. Theyre looking for a new leadership in this country and theyre taking a fresh look at what i may have to offer. And i of course am presenting a new case that i was unable to present and did not present in 1960. To that extent, yes, i am new, but in another sense, im not. Im really the most difficult man in the world when it comes to a socalled Public Relations firm. Nobodys going to package me. Nobodys going to make me put on an act for television. Im not going to engage in any gimmicks or stunts, wear a silly hat, for the purpose of getting a publicity stunt or the rest. Im not an actor. So when people say i have to change myself, take lessons about how to stand, how to talk, how to act, look in the mirror, listen to my voice on radio, look at myself on television, the answer is, i never have, and im not going to start now. If theres anything i do have to offer to the American People and to leadership, as far as our review and our role in the world is concerned, its the fact that i believe deeply in what i say and that i am myself. And im going to continue to play that role. If people looking at me say thats a new nixon, then all that i can say is, well, maybe you didnt know the old nixon. For hes a jolly good fellow which nobody can deny lets hear some cheers for mr. Nixon. Book tv has 48 hours of nonfiction books and authors every weekend. And here are some programs to watch for. On saturday at 7 15 eastern, George Washington University Professor kathryn ross discusses her book, lessons in sensorship, which examines free speech issues for college students. And then at 10 00, former Civil Rights Commission chair, mare Francis Barry examines illegal voting practices in the United States in her
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