{"id":31051,"date":"2024-01-11T11:54:57","date_gmt":"2024-01-11T19:54:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=31051"},"modified":"2024-01-11T11:59:59","modified_gmt":"2024-01-11T19:59:59","slug":"1968-democratic-national-convention","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2024\/01\/11\/1968-democratic-national-convention\/","title":{"rendered":"1968 Democratic National Convention"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"225\" height=\"282\" src=\"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/image-15.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-31052\" srcset=\"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/image-15.png 225w, https:\/\/occupysf.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/image-15-120x150.png 120w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"225\" height=\"282\" src=\"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/image-16.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-31053\" srcset=\"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/image-16.png 225w, https:\/\/occupysf.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/image-16-120x150.png 120w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><tbody><tr><td colspan=\"2\"><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_United_States_presidential_election\">1968 presidential election<\/a><\/td><\/tr><tr><td colspan=\"2\"><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:DP68Humphrey.png\"><\/a>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:1968DPVPMuskie.png\"><\/a>Nominees<br>Humphrey and Muskie<\/td><\/tr><tr><th colspan=\"2\">Convention<\/th><\/tr><tr><th>Date(s)<\/th><td>August 26\u201329, 1968<\/td><\/tr><tr><th>City<\/th><td><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Chicago\">Chicago<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Illinois\">Illinois<\/a>, U.S.<\/td><\/tr><tr><th>Venue<\/th><td><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/International_Amphitheatre\">International Amphitheatre<\/a><\/td><\/tr><tr><th colspan=\"2\">Candidates<\/th><\/tr><tr><th>Presidential nominee<\/th><td><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hubert_Humphrey\">Hubert Humphrey<\/a>&nbsp;of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Minnesota\">Minnesota<\/a><\/td><\/tr><tr><th>Vice presidential nominee<\/th><td><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Edmund_Muskie\">Edmund Muskie<\/a>&nbsp;of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Maine\">Maine<\/a><\/td><\/tr><tr><th>Other candidates<\/th><td><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Eugene_McCarthy\">Eugene McCarthy<\/a><br><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/George_McGovern\">George McGovern<\/a><\/td><\/tr><tr><td colspan=\"2\">\u2039&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1964_Democratic_National_Convention\">1964<\/a>&nbsp;\u00b7&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1972_Democratic_National_Convention\">1972<\/a>&nbsp;\u203a<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The&nbsp;<strong>1968 Democratic National Convention<\/strong>&nbsp;was held August 26\u201329 at the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/International_Amphitheatre\">International Amphitheatre<\/a>&nbsp;in&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Chicago\">Chicago<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Illinois\">Illinois<\/a>, United States. Earlier that year incumbent President&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Lyndon_B._Johnson\">Lyndon B. Johnson<\/a>&nbsp;had announced he would not seek reelection, thus making the purpose of the convention to select a new presidential nominee for the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Democratic_Party_(United_States)\">Democratic Party<\/a>.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;The&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Keynote_speaker\">keynote speaker<\/a>&nbsp;was Senator&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Daniel_Inouye\">Daniel Inouye<\/a>&nbsp;of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hawaii\">Hawaii<\/a>.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-AP19680827-2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Vice President&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hubert_Humphrey\">Hubert Humphrey<\/a>&nbsp;and Senator&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Edmund_Muskie\">Edmund Muskie<\/a>&nbsp;of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Maine\">Maine<\/a>&nbsp;were nominated for president and vice president, respectively. The most contentious issues of the convention were the continuing American military involvement in the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Vietnam_War\">Vietnam War<\/a>&nbsp;and voting reform, particularly expanding the right to vote for draft-age soldiers (age 18) who were unable to vote as the voting age was 21. The convention also marked a turning point where previously idle groups such as youth and minorities became more involved in politics and voting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The convention of 1968 was held during&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Protests_of_1968\">a year of riots, political turbulence, and mass civil unrest<\/a>. The&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Assassination_of_Martin_Luther_King_Jr.\">assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.<\/a>&nbsp;in April of that year inflamed racial tensions to an unprecedented level.&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/King_assassination_riots\">King assassination riots<\/a>&nbsp;in more than 100 cities followed and marked the end of the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Civil_rights_movement\">civil rights movement<\/a>.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-BBC-3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup><sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Bailey-4\">[4]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;The convention also followed the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Assassination_of_Robert_F._Kennedy\">assassination of Robert F. Kennedy<\/a>&nbsp;on June 5.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Schlesinger,_JR._1968-5\">[5]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Kennedy&#8217;s assassination derailed the convention, paving the way for Humphrey. Both Kennedy and Senator&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Eugene_McCarthy\">Eugene McCarthy<\/a>&nbsp;of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Minnesota\">Minnesota<\/a>&nbsp;had been running for the Democratic nomination at the time. The Humphrey\u2013Muskie ticket would be defeated in the presidential election by the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Republican_Party_(United_States)\">Republican<\/a>&nbsp;ticket of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Richard_Nixon\">Richard Nixon<\/a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Spiro_Agnew\">Spiro Agnew<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Before the convention<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><video poster=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/8\/87\/DEMOCRATIC_CONVENTION_1968_REEL_1_306-1424-r1.webm\/300px--DEMOCRATIC_CONVENTION_1968_REEL_1_306-1424-r1.webm.jpg\" preload=\"none\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\"><\/video><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:DEMOCRATIC_CONVENTION_1968_REEL_1_306-1424-r1.webm\"><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Duration: 4 minutes and 28 seconds.4:28<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:DEMOCRATIC_CONVENTION_1968_REEL_1_306-1424-r1.webm\"><\/a>Film of the convention shot inside the convention center by the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/United_States_Information_Agency\">United States Information Agency<\/a>  Link to film:  <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:DEMOCRATIC_CONVENTION_1968_REEL_1_306-1424-r1.webm\">https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:DEMOCRATIC_CONVENTION_1968_REEL_1_306-1424-r1.webm<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Democratic_Party_(United_States)\">Democratic Party<\/a>, which controlled the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/United_States_House_of_Representatives\">House<\/a>, the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/United_States_Senate\">Senate<\/a>, and the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/White_House\">White House<\/a>&nbsp;in&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/90th_United_States_Congress\">1968<\/a>, was divided.&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/United_States_Senator\">Senator<\/a>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Eugene_McCarthy\">Eugene McCarthy<\/a>&nbsp;entered the campaign in November 1967, challenging incumbent&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/President_of_the_United_States\">President<\/a>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Lyndon_Johnson\">Lyndon Johnson<\/a>&nbsp;for the Democratic nomination. Senator&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Robert_F._Kennedy\">Robert F. Kennedy<\/a>&nbsp;entered the race in March 1968.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Johnson, facing dissent within his party, and having only barely won the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/New_Hampshire\">New Hampshire<\/a>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Primary_election\">primary<\/a>, announced that he would not seek re-election on March 31, 1968.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-6\">[6]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;The&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Wisconsin\">Wisconsin<\/a>&nbsp;primary was scheduled for April 2, and public opinion polls showed Johnson as third in the race, behind McCarthy and Kennedy.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Karnow_1983:_559-7\">[7]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;For an incumbent president to come in third in a primary would be unprecedented humiliation, and for Johnson it was better to drop out of the race on March 31 rather than to come in third in the Wisconsin primary.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Karnow_1983:_559-7\">[7]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;In his television address announcing his withdrawal from the presidential race, Johnson also announced the United States would stop bombing&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/North_Vietnam\">North Vietnam<\/a>&nbsp;north of the 19th parallel and was willing to open peace talks.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-8\">[8]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;On April 27&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Vice_President_of_the_United_States\">Vice President<\/a>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hubert_Humphrey\">Hubert Humphrey<\/a>&nbsp;entered into the race but did not compete in any primaries; instead he inherited the delegates previously pledged to Johnson and then collected delegates in&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Caucus\">caucus<\/a>&nbsp;states, especially in caucuses controlled by local Democratic&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Political_boss\">bosses<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Peace talks had begun in&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Paris\">Paris<\/a>&nbsp;on May 13, 1968, but almost immediately became deadlocked as Xuan Thuy, the head of the North Vietnamese delegation, demanded that the U.S. give a promise to unconditionally stop bombing North Vietnam, a demand rejected by&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/W._Averell_Harriman\">W. Averell Harriman<\/a>&nbsp;of the American delegation.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_506-9\">[9]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Like many other newly independent nations in Africa and Asia, the North Vietnamese were extremely sensitive about threats to their newly won sovereignty and independence.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_413-10\">[10]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Under&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/French_Indochina\">French colonial rule<\/a>, the French had carried out their policy of&nbsp;<em>mission civilisatrice<\/em>, under which the Vietnamese were to be &#8220;civilized&#8221; by being assimilated into the French language and culture, which had caused an intense&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Vietnamese_nationalism\">Vietnamese nationalist<\/a>&nbsp;reaction.&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Ho_Chi_Minh\">Ho Chi Minh<\/a>&nbsp;and all of the other Vietnamese&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Communism\">communist<\/a>&nbsp;leaders had spent decades struggling against the French, and he, together with the rest of the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Politburo_of_the_Communist_Party_of_Vietnam\">Politburo<\/a>, felt that the U.S. dropping bombs on North Vietnam was a violation of their country&#8217;s sovereignty.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_413-10\">[10]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;In a way that many Americans had trouble understanding, Ho felt that to negotiate with the Americans reserving the right to bomb North Vietnam whenever they wanted to would diminish the country&#8217;s independence.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_413-10\">[10]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Right from the moment&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Operation_Rolling_Thunder\">Operation Rolling Thunder<\/a>&nbsp;started in 1965, the North Vietnamese had demanded the U.S. unconditionally halt the bombing as the first step towards peace.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_413-10\">[10]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Though the North Vietnamese had agreed to talk in 1968, it soon became apparent that no progress would be possible in Paris until the U.S. promised to unconditionally cease bombing, as the talks floundered on that issue all through the spring, summer and fall of 1968.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_506-9\">[9]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Assassination_of_Robert_F._Kennedy\">Kennedy&#8217;s assassination on June 5<\/a>, the Democratic Party&#8217;s divisions grew.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Schlesinger,_JR._1968-5\">[5]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;At the moment of Kennedy&#8217;s death the delegate count stood at Humphrey 561.5, Kennedy 393.5, McCarthy 258.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-11\">[11]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Kennedy&#8217;s murder left his delegates uncommitted. Support within the Democratic Party was divided between McCarthy, who ran a decidedly anti-war campaign and was seen as the peace candidate;<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-12\">[12]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Humphrey, who was seen as the candidate representing the Johnson point of view;<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-13\">[13]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;and Senator&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/George_McGovern\">George McGovern<\/a>, who appealed to some of the Kennedy supporters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Convention<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Before the start of the convention on August 26, several states had competing slates of delegates attempting to be seated at the convention. Some of these delegate credential fights went to the floor of the convention on August 26, where votes were held to determine which slates of delegates representing&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Texas\">Texas<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Georgia_(U.S._state)\">Georgia<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Alabama\">Alabama<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Mississippi\">Mississippi<\/a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/North_Carolina\">North Carolina<\/a>&nbsp;would be seated at the convention. The more racially integrated challenging slate from Texas was defeated.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-14\">[14]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The convention was among the most tense and confrontational political conventions ever in American history. The convention&#8217;s host,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Mayor_of_Chicago\">Mayor<\/a>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Richard_J._Daley\">Richard J. Daley<\/a>&nbsp;of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Chicago\">Chicago<\/a>, had refused permission for &#8220;anti-patriotic&#8221; groups to demonstrate at the convention, and had the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/International_Amphitheatre\">International Amphitheatre<\/a>, where the convention was being held, ringed with barbed wire while putting the 11,000 officers of the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Chicago_Police_Department\">Chicago Police Department<\/a>&nbsp;on twelve-hour shifts.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_515-15\">[15]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;In addition, there were 6,000 armed men from the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Illinois_National_Guard\">Illinois National Guard<\/a>&nbsp;called up to guard the International Amphitheatre, giving the feeling that Chicago was a city under siege.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_516-16\">[16]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Todd Gitlin, one of the leaders of the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Students_for_a_Democratic_Society\">Students for a Democratic Society<\/a>&nbsp;(SDS) protest group, was highly worried about the potential for violence, and at a speech paraphrased a lyric from a song, &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/San_Francisco_(Be_Sure_to_Wear_Flowers_in_Your_Hair)\">San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair)<\/a>&#8220;, saying: &#8220;If you&#8217;re going to Chicago, be sure to wear some armor in your hair&#8221;.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_516-16\">[16]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Johnson had wanted the Democratic convention to be held in&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Houston\">Houston<\/a>, but Daley had successfully lobbied the president to have the convention held in Chicago, as he wanted the convention held in his city to showcase to the national media how successful he had been since he started serving as mayor in 1955.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Rokyo_1988:_172-17\">[17]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Daley, a man who ruled Chicago in an extremely authoritarian style, felt very strongly that the protesters were going to ruin what was supposed to be his moment of triumph and was determined to stop them.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Rokyo_1988:_172-17\">[17]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;One of Daley&#8217;s aides told the media that the anti-war demonstrators were &#8220;revolutionaries bent on the destruction of America&#8221;.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Karnow_1983:_580-18\">[18]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;The mayor attempted to impose restrictions to keep protesters as far away as possible from the convention, on their numbers, and on their activities, making it very clear that he much preferred that no protesters come to his city.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-19\">[19]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Two of the SDS leaders,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Tom_Hayden\">Tom Hayden<\/a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Rennie_Davis\">Rennie Davis<\/a>, had planned to keep their protests peaceful, but the lack of permits for protesting together with thinly veiled threats that the Chicago police would beat demonstrators made it clear that there would probably be violence.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_516-16\">[16]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;When the media reported that Daley had given orders to the police to restrict the activities of Democratic delegates loyal to McCarthy, Daley was enraged, giving a rambling press conference saying, &#8220;This is a vicious attack on this city and its mayor&#8221;.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Taylor_and_Cohen_2001:_468-20\">[20]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The leaders of the Yippies (an acronym for&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Youth_International_Party\">Youth International Party<\/a>),&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Abbie_Hoffman\">Abbie Hoffman<\/a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Jerry_Rubin\">Jerry Rubin<\/a>, specialized in outlandish, bizarre rhetoric that attracted maximum media attention, and Daley took many of their more outrageous threats seriously.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-McNally_2007:_275-21\">[21]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;To sabotage the convention, Hoffman and Rubin announced that they were sending &#8220;super-hot&#8221; hippie girls to seduce the delegates and give them&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/LSD\">LSD<\/a>; that they were going to put LSD into the water supply of the International Amphitheatre; and were sending well-endowed hippie &#8220;studs&#8221; to seduce the wives and daughters of the delegates.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-McNally_2007:_275-21\">[21]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;In a typical press release, Hoffman and Rubin stated about their plans in Chicago: &#8220;We are dirty, smelly, grimy and foul&#8230;we will piss and shit and fuck in public&#8230;we will be constantly stoned or tripping on every drug known to man&#8221;.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-McNally_2007:_275-21\">[21]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Daley took all of this seriously, and much of the excessive security was due to his belief that the Yippies were going to disrupt the convention in the manner that they had proclaimed they would.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-McNally_2007:_275-21\">[21]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><tbody><tr><th colspan=\"2\">External videos<\/th><\/tr><tr><td colspan=\"2\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"video icon\" src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/1\/1b\/Nuvola_apps_kaboodle.svg\/16px-Nuvola_apps_kaboodle.svg.png\" width=\"16\" height=\"16\" srcset=\"\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/1\/1b\/Nuvola_apps_kaboodle.svg\/24px-Nuvola_apps_kaboodle.svg.png 1.5x, \/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/1\/1b\/Nuvola_apps_kaboodle.svg\/32px-Nuvola_apps_kaboodle.svg.png 2x\">&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.c-span.org\/video\/?444739-1\/cbs-news-1968-democratic-national-convention-coverage\">CBS News 1968 Democratic National Convention Coverage, August 28, 1968<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/C-SPAN\">C-SPAN<\/a><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Daley&#8217;s heavy-handed security measures incensed the media.&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Walter_Cronkite\">Walter Cronkite<\/a>&nbsp;complained of &#8220;a totally unwarranted restriction of free and rapid access to information&#8221;.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Taylor_and_Cohen_2001:_468-20\">[20]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Eric_Sevareid\">Eric Sevareid<\/a>&nbsp;stated that Chicago &#8220;runs the city of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Prague\">Prague<\/a>&nbsp;a close second right now as the world&#8217;s least attractive tourist destination&#8221;.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Taylor_and_Cohen_2001:_468-20\">[20]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Intelligence agents had infiltrated the protesters, including agents from the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Central_Intelligence_Agency\">Central Intelligence Agency<\/a>, who \u2013 contrary to American law \u2013 had been sent to spy upon Americans in the United States.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Karnow_1983:_580-18\">[18]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Just before the convention started, Hoffman and Rubin showed up at the Civic Center Plaza to free the pig named&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Pigasus_(politics)\">Pigasus<\/a>&nbsp;whom they had nominated as the Democratic candidate, leading the police to seize Pigasus while arresting Rubin and five others.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_516-16\">[16]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;The Pigasus incident was captured live on television. Over 10,000 people had arrived in Chicago to protest against the Vietnam War, and the city in late August was much on the edge.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Karnow_1983:_580-18\">[18]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;The Chicago police raided the mostly black neighborhoods of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/South_Chicago\">South Chicago<\/a>&nbsp;to stage mass arrests of the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Almighty_Black_P._Stone_Nation\">Blackstone Rangers<\/a>, a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Black_power\">black power<\/a>&nbsp;group that was alleged to be planning to assassinate Humphrey.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-22\">[22]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;When Humphrey arrived in Chicago, Daley was not at the airport to greet him, instead sending a police bagpipe band to welcome him.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Solberg_2003:_357-23\">[23]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;As Humphrey was driven to his room at the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hilton_Chicago\">Conrad Hilton hotel<\/a>, he noticed that no one in the streets cheered him, in marked contrast to the arrival of McCarthy who was greeted by 5,000 cheering supporters when he landed in Chicago.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Solberg_2003:_357-23\">[23]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Within the convention itself, tensions were much evident between pro-war and anti-war Democrats. One of the principal issues at the peace talks in Paris was the North Vietnamese demand that the U.S. unconditionally cease bombing North Vietnam as an essential precondition before discussing other matters. The more dovish Democrats favored accepting the North Vietnamese demand while more hawkish Democrats demanded the North Vietnamese promise not to send any men down the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Ho_Chi_Minh_Trail\">Ho Chi Minh Trail<\/a>&nbsp;as their precondition for a bombing pause, a demand that the North Vietnamese rejected.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-24\">[24]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Humphrey, confronted with a divided party, attempted to craft a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Party_platform\">party platform<\/a>&nbsp;that would appeal to both factions, writing a platform calling for a bombing pause that &#8220;took into account, most importantly, the risk to American troops as well as the response from&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hanoi\">Hanoi<\/a>.&#8221;<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-25\">[25]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Humphrey&#8217;s platform held out the possibility of a complete bombing pause without explicitly saying so, though Humphrey&#8217;s statements suggested that if elected president he would order a complete bombing pause.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Karnow_1983:_580-18\">[18]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Anticipating the &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Vietnamization\">Vietnamization<\/a>&#8221; strategy later carried out by&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Richard_Nixon\">Richard Nixon<\/a>, Humphrey&#8217;s platform called for the &#8220;de-Americanization&#8221; of the war as it called for the U.S. to gradually pull out American troops from South Vietnam and to shift the burden of fighting the war back to the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/South_Vietnam\">South Vietnamese<\/a>.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-26\">[26]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Humphrey previewed his platform to two of Johnson&#8217;s more hawkish advisers,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/United_States_Secretary_of_State\">Secretary of State<\/a>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Dean_Rusk\">Dean Rusk<\/a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/National_Security_Advisor_(United_States)\">National Security Advisor<\/a>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Walt_Whitman_Rostow\">Walt Whitman Rostow<\/a>.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_515-15\">[15]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Rostow very reluctantly gave his approval while Rusk told Humphrey, &#8220;We can live with this, Hubert.&#8221;<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_515-15\">[15]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Johnson, despite not attending the convention as he had chosen to decamp to his ranch in Texas instead, maintained a very tight control over the proceedings and angrily rejected Humphrey&#8217;s compromise peace plank as a personal affront, telling Humphrey in a telephone call to change his plank at once.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Karnow_1983:_580-18\">[18]<\/a><\/sup><sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_515-15\">[15]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;When Humphrey protested that, &#8220;Dean Rusk approved it,&#8221; Johnson shouted over the phone: &#8220;That&#8217;s not the way I hear it. Well, this just undercuts our whole policy, and by God, the Democratic Party ought not to be doing that to me, and you ought not to be doing it. You&#8217;ve been a part of the policy.&#8221;<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_515-15\">[15]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;To put further pressure on Humphrey, Johnson called up General&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Creighton_Abrams\">Creighton Abrams<\/a>, the commander of the U.S. forces in Vietnam, to ask if a complete bombing pause would endanger the lives of American soldiers; Abrams, unaware that Johnson&#8217;s question was really about an intra-Democratic dispute, replied that it would.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_515-15\">[15]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Johnson, who also received Abrams&#8217;s answer to his question in writing, passed on a copy to&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hale_Boggs\">Hale Boggs<\/a>, the chairman of the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Democratic_National_Committee\">Democratic National Committee<\/a>&nbsp;(DNC), who in turn showed it to various leading delegates to show how reckless and &#8220;unpatriotic&#8221; Humphrey was in contemplating a bombing pause.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_515-15\">[15]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Faced with Johnson&#8217;s fury, Humphrey gave in and accepted a plank that was more to Johnson&#8217;s liking.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_515-15\">[15]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Johnson always had a strong contempt for Humphrey, a man whom he liked to bully, telling&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/United_States_Secretary_of_Defense\">Secretary of Defense<\/a>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Clark_Clifford\">Clark Clifford<\/a>&nbsp;that he would respect Humphrey more if only he &#8220;showed he had some balls&#8221;.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_521-27\">[27]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Though some of Humphrey&#8217;s advisors counseled him to defy the lame-duck president, Humphrey resignedly stated: &#8220;Well, it would not look like an act based on principle or conviction; it would seem like a gimmick. It would seem strange. And it would enrage the president.&#8221;<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-28\">[28]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The platform that Humphrey had written on Johnson&#8217;s dictation was introduced onto the floor of the convention and prompted a passionate three-hour long debate on the floor, as anti-war Democrats were unrelenting in their objections.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Karnow_1983:_581-29\">[29]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;The platform was passed by a narrow margin, with 1,567 delegates voting for the platform while 1,041 voted against.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_515-15\">[15]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;When the platform was passed, the delegation from&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/New_York_(state)\">New York<\/a>&nbsp;put on black armbands and began to sing &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/We_Shall_Overcome\">We Shall Overcome<\/a>&#8221; in protest.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Karnow_1983:_581-29\">[29]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Humphrey later stated that his biggest mistake of the 1968 election was to have given in to Johnson, contending that if he stuck to his original platform it would have differentiated himself enough from Johnson to give him a lead in the polls.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Karnow_1983:_581-29\">[29]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Humphrey always believed that if he gave the speech that he planned to give in Chicago and later gave in&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Salt_Lake_City\">Salt Lake City<\/a>&nbsp;on September 30, 1968, calling for an unconditional bombing pause of North Vietnam as &#8220;an acceptable risk for peace&#8221;, that he would have won the election.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Karnow_1983:_581-29\">[29]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Humphrey also complained that the convention had been held in late August to coincide with Johnson&#8217;s birthday, which cost him a month to organize, and would preferred to have the convention held in July.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_520-30\">[30]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Complicating the election was the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Third_party_(United_States)\">third party<\/a>&nbsp;candidacy of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Governor_of_Alabama\">Alabama governor<\/a>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/George_Wallace\">George Wallace<\/a>, who ran on a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/White_supremacy\">white supremacist<\/a>&nbsp;platform promising to undo all of the changes wrought by the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Civil_Rights_Movement\">Civil Rights Movement<\/a>. Traditionally, conservative whites in the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Southern_United_States\">South<\/a>&nbsp;had voted as a bloc for the Democrats, but in the 1960s many were starting to move away from the Democratic Party. Nixon had embarked upon his&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Southern_strategy\">Southern strategy<\/a>&nbsp;of wooing conservative Southern whites over to the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Republican_Party_(United_States)\">Republicans<\/a>, but Wallace (who had the advantage of always appearing more extreme on racial questions than was possible for Nixon) threatened to upend the Southern strategy. Johnson had wanted Humphrey to nominate as his running mate a conservative white&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Southern_Democrat\">Southern Democrat<\/a>&nbsp;who might prevent Southern whites from voting for Wallace or Nixon, bringing back to the Democratic Party a group who had been one of the most loyal Democratic voting blocs for over a century.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_521-27\">[27]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Humphrey managed to muster up the courage to defy Johnson and choose as his running mate Senator&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Edmund_Muskie\">Edmund Muskie<\/a>&nbsp;of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Maine\">Maine<\/a>, a dignified, centrist Democrat.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_521-27\">[27]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Humphrey had been well known as a liberal supporter of the Civil Rights Movement, and he felt that with Nixon and Wallace competing for the conservative white Southern voters there was no realistic opportunity for him to appeal to that group. In 1948, Humphrey, at that time the mayor of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Minneapolis\">Minneapolis<\/a>, had first come to national attention when he delivered a speech at the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1948_Democratic_National_Convention\">1948 Democratic National Convention<\/a>&nbsp;denouncing racial injustices in the South.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-31\">[31]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;However, over the protests of liberals, Humphrey did not resist Johnson&#8217;s decision to seat several all-white delegations from several Southern states despite the complaints that Black Americans (and in the case of the Texas delegation,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Mexican-Americans\">Mexican-Americans<\/a>) had been consciously excluded.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-32\">[32]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Johnson distrusted Humphrey and had the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Federal_Bureau_of_Investigation\">Federal Bureau of Investigation<\/a>&nbsp;illegally tap his telephones to find out what the vice president was planning to do.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_515-15\">[15]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;At the same time, though Johnson had announced that he had dropped out of the election, he sent his friend&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/John_Connally\">John Connally<\/a>, the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Governor_of_Texas\">Governor of Texas<\/a>, to meet with other Democratic governors of southern states attending the convention to inquire if they would be willing to support nominating Johnson to be the Democratic candidate after all.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_515-15\">[15]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Daley, a strong Johnson supporter, was enthusiastic about having Johnson re-enter the election.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_515-15\">[15]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Daley, who was apparently oblivious of the depth of the antagonism between Johnson and the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Kennedy_family\">Kennedy family<\/a>, favored having Senator&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Ted_Kennedy\">Ted Kennedy<\/a>&nbsp;serve as Johnson&#8217;s running mate, saying that a &#8220;LBJ-TEK&#8221; ticket would easily win the election.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_515-15\">[15]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Daley was so committed to having Johnson re-enter the race that he had secretly printed up signs reading &#8220;We Love LBJ&#8221; to be waved about by the delegates when he was to announce that Johnson return to the race.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Taylor_and_Cohen_2001:_470-33\">[33]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;He also called up Kennedy to discuss his plans, but Kennedy, who was seriously&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Depression_(mood)\">depressed<\/a>&nbsp;after the assassination of his brother Robert, was not interested in attending the convention nor in being a candidate.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Taylor_and_Cohen_2001:_470-33\">[33]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;It remains unclear if Johnson was actually serious about re-entering the presidential race, or if he was merely using the prospect of running again as a way to keep Humphrey from straying too far from his policies.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_515-15\">[15]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Regardless of what Johnson was intending, Connally had to tell his fellow Texan that general feeling about Johnson being the Democratic candidate in 1968 was, &#8220;No way!&#8221;<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_515-15\">[15]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The security measures imposed by Daley had been so intense that it was not possible to walk across the convention floor without jostling other delegates, which added to the tensions as dovish and hawkish Democrats fiercely argued about whether to accept Johnson&#8217;s war plank to the platform. All of it was captured live on national television.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Parker_2005:_471-34\">[34]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Pro-war Democrats challenged the right of the economist&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/John_Kenneth_Galbraith\">John Kenneth Galbraith<\/a>, who was serving as the floor manager for McCarthy, to be there and sought to have him expelled from the convention.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Parker_2005:_471-34\">[34]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Inside the convention hall were televisions showing the police beating and clubbing demonstrators outside, which increased the tension.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Parker_2005:_471-34\">[34]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Robert Maytag, the chairman of the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Colorado\">Colorado<\/a>&nbsp;delegation asked: &#8220;Is there any rule under which Mayor Daley can be compelled to suspend the police state terror being perpetrated at this minute on kids in front of the Conrad Hilton [hotel]?&#8221;<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Taylor_and_Cohen_2001:_478-35\">[35]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Daley&#8217;s face flushed with anger while his supporters began to boo Maytag.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Taylor_and_Cohen_2001:_478-35\">[35]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;On the convention floor, Senator&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Abraham_Ribicoff\">Abraham Ribicoff<\/a>&nbsp;rose to give a speech nominating McGovern as the Democratic candidate.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_518-36\">[36]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;During his speech, Ribicoff pointed to Daley and said: &#8220;With George McGovern, we wouldn&#8217;t have&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gestapo\">Gestapo<\/a>&nbsp;tactics on the streets of Chicago.&#8221;<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_518-36\">[36]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Pandemonium broke out in the convention hall, with some delegates praising Ribicoff while others denounced him. Daley rose up to scream at the top of his voice at Ribicoff: &#8220;Fuck you, you Jew son of bitch! You lousy motherfucker! Go home!&#8221;<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_518-36\">[36]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Despite Daley&#8217;s foul-mouthed antisemitic tirade, Ribicoff merely said: &#8220;How hard it is to accept the truth. How hard it is.&#8221;<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_518-36\">[36]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Four Chicago city officials, known Daley loyalists, jumped on the stage to usher Ribicoff away, and Daley&#8217;s bodyguards surrounded him, though from what threat they protected him remained unclear.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Taylor_and_Cohen_2001:_478-35\">[35]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The convention was noteworthy for leading to a significant change in the rules governing delegate selection, largely overshadowed at the time by the rioting in Chicago.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Taylor_and_Cohen_2001:_521-37\">[37]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;The&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/McGovern%E2%80%93Fraser_Commission\">McGovern\u2013Fraser Commission<\/a>, chaired by Senator McGovern, officially known as the Commission on Party Structure and Delegate Selection, was appointed to examine how delegates were selected.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Taylor_and_Cohen_2001:_521-37\">[37]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;The commission documented that in many places in America the Democratic Party was &#8220;an&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Autocracy\">autocratic<\/a>, authoritarian organization&#8221; that engaged in the &#8220;shameful exploitation of the voter&#8221;.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Taylor_and_Cohen_2001:_521-37\">[37]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Nomination<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>In the end, the Democratic Party nominated Humphrey. The delegates had defeated the peace plank by&nbsp;1,567+<sup>3<\/sup>\u2044<sub>4<\/sub>&nbsp;to&nbsp;1,041+<sup>1<\/sup>\u2044<sub>4<\/sub>.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Gitlin_1987:_331-38\">[38]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;The loss was perceived to be the result of Johnson and Daley influencing behind the scenes.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Gitlin_1987:_331-38\">[38]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Humphrey, who had not entered any of the thirteen state primary elections, won the Democratic nomination shortly after midnight, and many delegates shouted, &#8220;No! No!&#8221; when his victory was announced.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Langguth_2000:_518-36\">[36]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;The nomination was watched by 89 million Americans.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Solberg_2003:_365-39\">[39]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;As a sign of racial reconciliation, Humphrey had intended for his nomination to be seconded by a speech by&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Carl_Stokes\">Carl Stokes<\/a>, the Black mayor of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Cleveland\">Cleveland<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Ohio\">Ohio<\/a>.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Solberg_2003:_365-39\">[39]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Stokes&#8217;s speech was not shown on live national television as planned, as the networks instead broadcast live the &#8220;Battle of Michigan Avenue&#8221; that was taking place in front of the Conrad Hilton hotel.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Solberg_2003:_365-39\">[39]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Humphrey went on to lose the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_United_States_presidential_election\">1968 presidential election<\/a>&nbsp;to the Republican Richard Nixon.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-Jennings_&amp;_Brewster_1998:_413-40\">[40]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Gallery of candidates<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:EugeneMcCarthy.jpg\"><\/a>Senator&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Eugene_McCarthy\">Eugene McCarthy<\/a>&nbsp;of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Minnesota\">Minnesota<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:SWPC-RFK-C004-003.jpg\"><\/a>Senator&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Robert_F._Kennedy\">Robert F. Kennedy<\/a>&nbsp;of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/New_York_(state)\">New York<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:George_McGovern_bioguide.jpg\"><\/a>Senator&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/George_McGovern\">George McGovern<\/a>&nbsp;of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/South_Dakota\">South Dakota<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Hubert_Humphrey_crop.jpg\"><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/VPOTUS\">Vice President<\/a>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hubert_Humphrey\">Hubert Humphrey<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Channing_Phillips_at_his_desk_at_the_NEH.jpg\"><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Channing_Phillips\">Channing Phillips<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Dan_K._Moore.jpg\"><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Governor_of_North_Carolina\">Governor<\/a>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Daniel_K._Moore\">Dan Moore<\/a>&nbsp;of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/North_Carolina\">North Carolina<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Ed_Muskie_speech_1972.jpg\"><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/US_Senator\">Senator<\/a>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Edmund_Muskie\">Edmund Muskie<\/a>&nbsp;of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Maine\">Maine<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Julian_Bond_(48591893556).jpg\"><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Julian_Bond\">Julian Bond<\/a>&nbsp;of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Georgia_(U.S._state)\">Georgia<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">First ballot<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><thead><tr><th colspan=\"4\">1968 Democratic National Convention nomination votes<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-41\">[41]<\/a><\/sup><\/th><\/tr><tr><th>Presidential candidate<\/th><th>Presidential tally<\/th><th>Vice presidential candidate<\/th><th>Vice presidential tally<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><th><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hubert_Humphrey\">Hubert Humphrey<\/a><\/strong><\/th><td>1759.25<\/td><td><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Edmund_S._Muskie\">Edmund S. Muskie<\/a><\/strong><\/td><td>1942.5<\/td><\/tr><tr><th><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Eugene_McCarthy\">Eugene McCarthy<\/a><\/th><td>601<\/td><td>Not Voting<\/td><td>604.25<\/td><\/tr><tr><th><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/George_S._McGovern\">George S. McGovern<\/a><\/th><td>146.5<\/td><td><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Julian_Bond\">Julian Bond<\/a><sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-42\">[42]<\/a><\/sup><\/td><td>48.5<\/td><\/tr><tr><th><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Channing_E._Phillips\">Channing E. Phillips<\/a><\/th><td>67.5<\/td><td>David Hoeh<\/td><td>4<\/td><\/tr><tr><th><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Daniel_K._Moore\">Daniel K. Moore<\/a><\/th><td>17.5<\/td><td><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Edward_M._Kennedy\">Edward M. Kennedy<\/a><\/td><td>3.5<\/td><\/tr><tr><th><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Edward_M._Kennedy\">Edward M. Kennedy<\/a><\/th><td>12.75<\/td><td><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Eugene_McCarthy\">Eugene McCarthy<\/a><\/td><td>3.0<\/td><\/tr><tr><th><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Bear_Bryant\">Paul W. &#8220;Bear&#8221; Bryant<\/a><\/th><td>1.5<\/td><td>Others<\/td><td>16.25<\/td><\/tr><tr><th><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/James_H._Gray_Sr.\">James H. Gray Sr.<\/a><\/th><td>0.5<\/td><td><\/td><td><\/td><\/tr><tr><th><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/George_Wallace\">George Wallace<\/a><\/th><td>0.5<\/td><td><\/td><td><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Dan Rather incident<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>On the second night of the convention,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/CBS_News\">CBS News<\/a>&nbsp;correspondent&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Dan_Rather\">Dan Rather<\/a>&nbsp;was grabbed by security guards and roughed up while trying to interview a Georgia delegate being escorted out of the building.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-rather68-43\">[43]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;CBS News anchorman&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Walter_Cronkite\">Walter Cronkite<\/a>&nbsp;turned his attention towards the area where Rather was reporting from the convention floor.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-rather68-43\">[43]<\/a><\/sup>&nbsp;Rather was grabbed by security guards after he walked toward the delegate who was being hauled out, and asked him, &#8220;What is your name, sir?&#8221; Rather was wearing a microphone headset and was then heard on national television repeatedly saying to the guards &#8220;don&#8217;t push me&#8221; and &#8220;take your hands off me unless you plan to arrest me&#8221;.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-rather68-43\">[43]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After the guards let go of Rather, he told Cronkite:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\">\n<p>&#8220;Walter &#8230; we tried to talk to the man and we got violently pushed out of the way. This is the kind of thing that has been going on outside the hall, this is the first time we&#8217;ve had it happen inside the hall. We &#8230; I&#8217;m sorry to be out of breath, but somebody belted me in the stomach during that. What happened is a Georgia delegate, at least he had a Georgia delegate sign on, was being hauled out of the hall. We tried to talk to him to see why, who he was, what the situation was, and at that instant the security people, well as you can see, put me on the deck. I didn&#8217;t do very well.&#8221;<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention#cite_note-rather68-43\">[43]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>An angry Cronkite tersely replied, &#8220;I think we&#8217;ve got a bunch of thugs here, Dan.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>More at:  <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention\">https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1968_Democratic_National_Convention<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 1968 presidential election &nbsp;NomineesHumphrey and Muskie Convention Date(s) August 26\u201329, 1968 City Chicago,&nbsp;Illinois, U.S. Venue International Amphitheatre Candidates Presidential nominee Hubert Humphrey&nbsp;of&nbsp;Minnesota Vice presidential nominee Edmund Muskie&nbsp;of&nbsp;Maine Other candidates Eugene McCarthyGeorge McGovern \u2039&nbsp;1964&nbsp;\u00b7&nbsp;1972&nbsp;\u203a The&nbsp;1968 Democratic National Convention&nbsp;was held August 26\u201329 at the&nbsp;International Amphitheatre&nbsp;in&nbsp;Chicago,&nbsp;Illinois, United States&#8230;. <a class=\"continue-reading-link\" href=\"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2024\/01\/11\/1968-democratic-national-convention\/\"> Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr; <\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31051"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31051"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31051\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31057,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31051\/revisions\/31057"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31051"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31051"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31051"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}