DBWI: Democratic Convention, 1964

As we know, Sen. John F. Kennedy (D-MA) is mounting a conservative challenge to President Humphrey. The "Senate Triplets", namely Robert (D-NY) and Ted (D-MA) have also been quite vocally outspoken against the Administration's economic policies. Republicans have renominated Gov. Nixon of California, and we might see a rematch of 1960. So what are your thoughts on this? I think that Nixon-Scott will win decisively if Humphrey's nominated, and a toss-up if they nominate Kennedy, leaving JFK an open net in '68.
 
As we know, Sen. John F. Kennedy (D-MA) is mounting a conservative challenge to President Humphrey. The "Senate Triplets", namely Robert (D-NY) and Ted (D-MA) have also been quite vocally outspoken against the Administration's economic policies. Republicans have renominated Gov. Nixon of California, and we might see a rematch of 1960. So what are your thoughts on this? I think that Nixon-Scott will win decisively if Humphrey's nominated, and a toss-up if they nominate Kennedy, leaving JFK an open net in '68.

Not sure why you're handing the race to Nixon. Humphrey won pretty decisivly last time around, and has had fairly good first term by all accounts. I wouldn't rule out Kennedy, but my money's on the president. either way, i think whomever makes it out of the convention is going to win the election.

not really sure what Nixon is thinking here. He basically is staking his entire future on an improbable rematch victory. A loss here, and he basically becomes being a Bryan. Not sure what the republicans were thinking nominating him, either; backing the same horse isn't going to work. better to step back and rebuild, and try to find a new candidate, if the GOP is ever going to find its way back out of the wilderness.
 
He's running on his relatively successful term as Governor, and saying Humphrey's bungled the economy and is too liberal for the country. I think it will be very close either way. The key for Kennedy is the South: they know he's liberal on civil rights, but they see Humphrey's domestic program as New Deal statism, or even socialism. Nixon will have a much tougher time against Kennedy.
 
Kennedy can't deny Humphrey the nomination. He's got little support outside of the Northeast, and I thought that the last primary season showed us that--that's why Humphrey and Johnson are in charge, rather than Kennedy and his pal Symington.
 
He can still cripple Humphrey if the party's divided enough. The problem is that they'll deny JFK the '68 nomination if that happens. Here's what the Indiana state chairman had to say after meeting JFK's hatchet man, his brother Bobby: "I'd rather have three teeth extracted than go through that again."* He's pledged support to the President, but he doesn't have full control of the Indiana delegation. Mayor Daley's adopted a wait-and-see attitude from recent reports.

*I don't think "you can't get any work out of a politician" helped, but I could be wrong.
 
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