The Road to a Contested Convention

The only thing upon which the pundits can agree is that the Republican nomination for president is up for grabs. Fred is likely to score a considerable number of delegates on Super Tuesday (see most recent blog entry), but the nomination will not be decided on that day.

With no clear frontrunner and several contenders, it appears that no candidate will enter the convention with enough comitted delegates to win the nomination. The last time the party held a contested convention was in 1976.

In 1976, President Ford had won more delegates than President Reagan, but did not have enough to secure the nomination. There was a real, clear sense that either candidate could win. Ford was a true Rockefeller Republican in every sense of the word. Indeed, his vice president at that time was Nelson Rockefeller. Reagan was the favorite of the strong national defense conservative wing of the party.

Strong national defense was then, like today, the issue of the day. We were facing what appeared to be a militarily strong enemy in the Soviet Union, and were coming off of the divisive period of Vietnam and Watergate. The Right to Life was then, as it is today, a major issue. On the heels of Roe v. Wade, the party's platform first included the pro-life plank.

Fred's personal and political history is strongly rooted in the 1976 convention. His mentor, Tennessee Senator Howard Baker delivered the keynote address. In his address, he spoke words that resonate today with the timeless ideals of Republican Party:

"My friends, for decades the Democratic Party have peddled the patronizing notion that only in Washington are officials wise enough or far sighted enough to decide for us what our priorities should be, how we should spend our taxes, what our goals should be, how we should organize our communities . . . "

It was at the right hand of Senatory Baker that Fred learned about limited government and less taxes, those cornerstones of Republican beliefs.

In the end, the Republican Party nominated Gerald Ford by a vote of 1187 to 1070. That Reagan was able to come that close against an incumbent president speaks volumes about the power of conservative ideas. After Ford won the nomination, Reagan was given the podium. He delivered an historic speech that electrified the party.

It is quite likely that no one, not even Fred, will win enough delegates to enter the convention as the nominee. We must learn the lessons of that 1976 convention. Ford won the nomination but lost the general election to Jimmy Carter, and a disaster ensued. This time, we need to nominate someone who can credibly carry the Republican banner, whose history does not include wholesale lapses into liberalism. That candidate is Fred Thompson.