Oral history transcript, Robert Short, interview 1 (I), 8/22/1979, by Joe B. Frantz

Title:

Oral history transcript, Robert Short, interview 1 (I), 8/22/1979, by Joe B. Frantz

Number of Pages:

44

Description:

How Short met LBJ; Short's involvement in the Minnesota Committee on Rocketry; LBJ accepting JFK's offer to be his vice presidential running mate before a deal could be worked out with Orville Freeman; LBJ's vice presidential duties relating to civil rights and space; Short's experience campaigning from 1948 to 1960; Short's "can-do" attitude and how it differed from that of the rest of Hubert Humphrey's staff; staying at the LBJ Ranch to plan the 1964 campaign; staff members involved in the 1964 campaign; Humphrey's loyalty to LBJ; LBJ's popularity in Minnesota; JFK's assassination and the fear that more tragedy would follow; the likelihood that LBJ would run for re-election in 1968; LBJ's admiration of Dwight Eisenhower's life in retirement; Short's "Discover America" work with government agencies; Humphrey's relationship with Eugene McCarthy; Short's work for Humphrey and McCarthy while they waited for LBJ to decide who would be his vice presidential running mate; Democratic fund-raising in Minnesota; LBJ's skill as a politician and campaigner; the effect of working on Humphrey's campaign in 1964 on Short's personal and business lives; Humphrey's effort to influence LBJ's choices on appointees; who was expected to be the Democratic presidential nominee in 1968; how to organize a major fund-raising event; efforts to get LBJ to support Humphrey in 1968; the 1968 Democratic National Convention and the Minnesota delegation; 1968 Democratic rally for Humphrey at the Astrodome; problems fund-raising for Humphrey in Texas; possible Democratic presidential nominees for 1980; Humphrey's refusal to publicize information about Anna Chennault's dealings with Richard Nixon and the South Vietnamese government in 1968; Democratic Party finances and paying for media time in advance; taking money from Jimmy Hoffa; Walter Jenkins; a rumor that Humphrey had an altercation with a prostitute.

Contributor:

Short, Robert

Collection:

LBJ Library Oral Histories

Collection Description:

Go to List of Holdings

Series:

Transcripts of LBJ Library Oral Histories

See Also:

See all online interviews with Robert Short

Relation:

Go to Interviewee bio page

Rights:

Possibly copyright restricted: see deed at end of transcript for details