Conversation 034-038

Transcript (AI-Generated)

This transcript was generated automatically by AI and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Do not cite this transcript as authoritative. Consult the Finding Aid above for verified information.

Hello?

Just a moment, sir.

I have Mr. Huck.

Yeah.

I'm going to return you a call.

You are.

Hello?

Hello.

Hello, Huck.

How are you?

Fine.

How are things in Kansas?

Well, it's cold right now, but otherwise beautiful.

Cold and beautiful, and I hope everybody's making a little money.

I think they are.

It's been the finest year we've ever had in our area.

Christmas sales are good, and how's the advertising?

Well, it shouldn't be any better.

That's what counts.

I just had a good long talk with our mutual friend Bob, and he's just out now talking to the White House press, and I wanted you to know before he did that he's come in and recommended after talking to you and leaders around the country that with his campaign coming up and everything that he feels that

First, his own interests require him not to stay on as chairman, but mainly that we need the full-time chairman now that we've got the presidential thing out.

And that most everybody thinks Bush should be the man if we can get him to do it.

So Bob and I got Bush on the phone, continued the arm twisting that he had begun earlier and Bush has agreed.

So he will announce that Bush will accept as of the inauguration.

Bush of course will stay on through the session.

So I was thinking that in Kansas if you could

put that light on, because this is all the truth.

As a matter of fact, Bob came to me right after the Republican Convention and said that he said, now look, this is a good time for me to resign.

He's got to run and so forth.

I said, no, if we want to change, I want you to stay on through the election.

So it's not no surprise.

It's just a question of having it done the right way.

And it was my thought the best way was to have Bob make the recommendation, which he's now done.

I have accepted it.

I'm going to support

Bush, and he'll go in with flying colors, and Bob will continue to be a strong, close advisor and hard fighter, and we trust the reelected senator.

Did that sound all right to you?

Yes, it seemed to me that it was, you know, the speculation that always arises on things of this sort.

I didn't want it to reach a point where

it would be, you know, any difficulty for Bob.

Yeah, the way they speculate, they got the feeling that they're hauling Bob up and they're going to cut his head off for a lot.

They didn't.

I mean, after all, he was campaigning all over the country, traveled half a million miles, worked his tail off.

The main thing we're going after now is candidates, so I'll tell you that's the real answer.

I looked at the average ages of our candidates as compared with theirs in the close districts.

I looked at the general backgrounds and so forth, and I'd vote for any one of ours were one of theirs, but frankly they beat us with sometimes in the close races that your candidates were a little better.

Yes, I'm afraid they did.

And it's up for you fellows in the party organization.

I trust the next national committee

Huck, if you just step up there and say, now look here, each of us in our own states has got to pick the candidates, pick them early, pick them before the primary, and not tear ourselves to pieces, and then we can win some of these races.

I mean, the light is to us.

You're certainly putting it into better words than I can, exactly how I feel.

I believe that for years.

It's the way I got into the Congress.

They had a little committee out there, and they were going to have a terrible primary fight, and a few fellows from the district got together, picked me in 46.

I ran for the House, won.

From there on, that's the way it works.

And that's what we ought to do nationally, is that people have got to get behind the best man and whoever he is.

In some districts, it'll be an Italian, and in some districts, it'll be a bull.

In some districts, it'll be a wasp and, you know.

Yeah, we tried awfully hard to get Art Letcher back and run our second district out here, because to the one in that seat...

Marvelous fellow.

...it just couldn't...

Well, maybe if this next year, if he wants to go, I'll give him a push.

I was thinking about it from the standpoint that if he had a little house out there in a district someplace, he could be anywhere then and still be a resident.

Right, right, right.

That's where he graduated from.

Almost a mailbox.

You know, that's right.

Yeah, yeah.

Well, that's good.

I have the feeling that he'd be a great man for us.

Art Fletcher?

Oh, he's a great spokesman, strong man, and marvelous candidate.

He almost won as lieutenant governor of Washington.

I know, I know.

We could have done that for him, and we're going to have to do more of that.

I think you're correct.

All over.

I mean, that's what the new majority is all about.

I mean, with only 25% of the people, according to Gallup, admitting that they're Republicans today,

You can't get 61 percent of the vote without getting some people that aren't Republicans.

That's absolutely right.

Not that we don't want some of those Republicans, too, in a state like Kansas.

Yes, but we still do need to do a better job on that very elemental basis.

You don't know how much I appreciate your call.

I just feel that Bob does need to get out of this, you know, in the best way possible.

That's right.

And he's a great guy.

He's been a marvelous spokesman.

And as a matter of fact, he can do us more good in the Senate now that he's out because his tongue is sharp.

And he'll cut that Teddy Kennedy to pieces.

Yes, he will.

But there's a lot of difference in doing it as a nurse.

That's right.

Because everything you do is tagged on.

That's right.

Oh, boy, he's going to love it, too.

Yes, I think he will.

He loves a good fight.

Right, right.

Well, we'll take good care of him, and we do appreciate your help, and we'll see you on the 19th.

All right, and I appreciate it ever so much.

Bye-bye.

Thank you very much.