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Sept. 17, 1968
September 17, 1968
Humphrey goes AWOL from the campaign trail
Where has Mr. Humphrey gone? Nobody in Washington seems to know. Three weeks after accepting the Democratic nomination for President, Mr. Humphrey is missing in action. He has vanished from the Senate floor. He’s absent from the campaign trail. Maybe he’s in Vietnam fighting for the Viet Cong? [1]
Or maybe Mr. Humphrey just can’t stand the heat from Mr. Romney, who is currently leading in the polls. Perhaps he’s afraid he’ll be upstaged at next week’s debate [2]. He simply can’t show his face in public because he can’t stop chattering his teeth at the thought of the onslaught he is likely to receive.
His doctor, of course, claims Mr. Humphrey has the flu. While Mr. Humphrey is sick in bed, we see Mr. Muskie trying to do good old Hubert’s job on the campaign trail. But he can’t seem to give a speech lately without starting to cry. Is the thought of defeat in November bringing a tear to Muskie’s eye? [3]
[1] I’ve written this from the point of view of a right-wing pundit, like William Buckley (I think the sarcasm is a bit Buckley-esque).