George H. W. Bush 1980 presidential campaign
George H. W. Bush 1980 presidential campaign | |
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Campaign | 1980 Republican primaries 1980 U.S. presidential election |
Candidate | George H. W. Bush, 11th Director of Central Intelligence Agency (1976–1977) |
Affiliation | Republican Party |
Status | Announced, May 1, 1979[1] Withdrew, May 26, 1980[2] |
Headquarters | Washington, D.C. |
Key people | James Baker, campaign manager Barber Conable, head of steering committee[3] |
Slogan | A President We Wont Have to Train |
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Pre-vice presidency
43rd Vice President of the United States 41st President of the United States
Policies
Appointments
Tenure
Presidential campaigns Vice presidential campaigns Post-presidency
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The 1980 presidential campaign of George H. W. Bush began when he announced he was running for the Republican Party's nomination in the 1980 United States presidential election, on May 1, 1979,[1][4] after over 16 months of speculation as to when or whether he would run. At the outset of the primaries in 1980, Bush won the Iowa caucuses, but only won seven other primary contests, the rest being swept by Ronald Reagan. Bush withdrew on May 26, 1980,[2] and later that year was selected by Reagan to be the Republican vice-presidential candidate, in a successful electoral bid that ultimately led to Bush's election as president in the 1988 United States presidential election.
Background
Prior to his candidacy, Bush had held a number of elected and appointed offices, most recently serving as the 11th Director of Central Intelligence Agency. Bush's tenure at the CIA ended after Jimmy Carter narrowly defeated Gerald Ford in the 1976 presidential election. Out of public office for the first time since the 1960s, Bush became chairman on the executive committee of the First International Bank in Houston.[5] He also spent a year as a part-time professor of Administrative Science at Rice University's Jones School of Business,[6] continued his membership in the Council on Foreign Relations, and joined the Trilateral Commission. Meanwhile, he began to lay the groundwork for his candidacy in the 1980 Republican Party presidential primaries,[7] noting as early as December 1977 that he was "interested" in pursuing the 1980 Republican presidential nomination.[8]
Campaign
In the 1980 Republican primary campaign, Bush faced Ronald Reagan, who was widely regarded as the front-runner, as well as other contenders like Senator Bob Dole, Senator Howard Baker, Texas Governor John Connally, Congressman Phil Crane, and Congressman John B. Anderson.[9] The Bush campaign acknowledged that Reagan and Connally were considered the early front-runners, and that Bush intended to "do as well as possible in the early primaries, and hope to pick up additional support if and when one of the front-runners falters".[3]
Announcement and themes
Bush officially announced his candidacy in a speech on the morning of May 1, 1979, criticizing "
Primaries
Reagan's campaign director
Reagan boycotted the
Bush revitalized his campaign with a victory in Massachusetts but lost the next several primaries. As Reagan built up a commanding delegate lead, Bush refused to end his campaign, but the other candidates dropped out of the race.[19] Criticizing his more conservative rival's policy proposals, Bush famously labeled Reagan's supply side-influenced plans for massive tax cuts as "voodoo economics".[20] Though he favored lower taxes, Bush feared that dramatic reductions in taxation would lead to deficits and, in turn, cause inflation.[21] As the race dragged on and Reagan's delegate lead became increasingly insurmountable, journalist Nicholas von Hoffman published an op-ed sarcastically accusing Bush of trying to physically weary a "tired" Reagan by forcing the older candidate to continue campaigning after the outcome of race was no longer in serious doubt.[22] The following day, Bush withdrew his candidacy and endorsed Reagan, urging his convention delegates to support Reagan.[2] Bush blamed the failure of his campaign on the media having written about the campaign as if Reagan's victory was a foregone conclusion, dampening Bush's ability to engage in needed fundraising.[2]
Ultimately, Bush won eight primary contests, of which six were states, in Iowa (January 21), Puerto Rico (February 17), Massachusetts (March 4), Connecticut (March 25), Maine (April 19), Pennsylvania (April 22), Washington, D.C. (May 6), and Michigan (May 20). His campaign spent $16.2 million, and ended with $300,000 in debt.[2]
Major endorsements
- Francis W. Hatch Jr. of Massachusetts, former state representative[23]
- Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. of Massachusetts, former senator, ambassador and 1960 Republican Vice-Presidential nominee[23]
- Elliot Richardson of Massachusetts, former United States Attorney General and Commerce Secretary[23]
- William B. Saxbe of Ohio, former senator and U.S. Attorney General[24]
- Robert Taft Jr. of Ohio, former senator[24]
National polls
Over the course of the campaign, polls were periodically conducted by Gallup, Inc..[25] Throughout the race, Bush never led in the polls, and was often in single digits, abd was often in fifth place or worse. Bush had his best polling outcome after winning the Iowa caucuses in late January, at which time Bush polled at 28%, with Reagan polling at 29%. By February, Reagan's lead had again widened.[25]
Publication date | ||||||||
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July 1978 | – | 9% | 1% | 5% | 4% | 37% | 31% | 5% |
Dec. 1978 | 1% | 9% | 1% | 6% | 1% | 24% | 40% | 11% |
Apr. 1979 | 2% | 8% | 1% | 12% | 1% | 26% | 31% | 11% |
May 1979 | – | 10% | – | 8% | 3% | 27% | 28% | – |
June 1979 | 0% | 11% | 0% | 5% | 0% | 29% | 37% | 5% |
July 1979 | 3% | 11% | 1% | 9% | 2% | 27% | 32% | 15% |
Aug. 1979 | 1% | 10% | 3% | 8% | 1% | 21% | 29% | 16% |
Nov. 1979 | 1% | 14% | 2% | 10% | 3% | 22% | 33% | 15% |
Nov. 1979 | 0% | 11% | 5% | 8% | 3% | 24% | 40% | — |
Dec. 1979 | 1% | 9% | 7% | 10% | 4% | 18% | 40% | 10% |
Jan. 1980 | 3% | 9% | 9% | 9% | 0% | 27% | 33% | — |
Jan. 1980 | 0% | 6% | 28% | 7% | 0% | 18% | 29% | — |
Feb. 1980 | 2% | 6% | 17% | 4% | 1% | 32% | 34% | 3% |
Feb. 1980 | 3% | 7% | 16% | – | – | 25% | 44% | — |
Aftermath
1980 Republican Party Ticket | |
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Campaign | U.S. presidential–vice-presidential election, 1980 |
Candidate | George H. W. Bush (vice-presidential) Director of Central Intelligence, 1976–1977 |
Affiliation | Republican Party |
Status | VP nominee |
Reagan–Bush ticket
After Reagan clinched a majority of delegates in late May, Bush reluctantly dropped out of the race.[26] At the 1980 Republican National Convention, Reagan made the last-minute decision to select Bush as his vice presidential nominee after negotiations with Ford regarding a Reagan–Ford ticket collapsed.[27] Though Reagan had resented many of the Bush campaign's attacks during the primary campaign, and several conservative leaders had actively opposed Bush's nomination, Reagan ultimately decided that Bush's popularity with moderate Republicans made him the best and safest pick. Bush, who had believed his political career might be over following the primaries, eagerly accepted the position and threw himself into campaigning for the Reagan–Bush ticket.[28]
The 1980 general election campaign between Reagan and Carter was conducted amid a multitude of domestic concerns and the ongoing Iran hostage crisis, and Reagan sought to focus the race on Carter's handling of the economy.[29] Though the race was widely regarded as a close contest for most of the campaign, Reagan ultimately won over the large majority of undecided voters.[30] Reagan took 50.7 percent of the popular vote and 489 of the 538 electoral votes, while Carter won 41% of the popular vote and John Anderson, running as an independent candidate, won 6.6% of the popular vote.[31] Bush served as vice-president for eight years, and was himself elected president in 1988.[32]
See also
- 1980 Republican Party presidential primaries
- 1980 Republican Party vice presidential candidate selection
- 1980 Republican National Convention
- 1980 United States presidential election
- George H. W. Bush 1988 presidential campaign
- George H. W. Bush 1992 presidential campaign
Notes
References
- ^ a b c Allan F. Yoder, "It's official: Bush in '80 GOP race", The Hackensack Record (May 1, 1979), p. 4.
- ^ a b c d e "Bush Ends Try For GOP Bid, Supports Reagan", Anderson Independent (May 27, 1980), p. 1-A, 6-A.
- ^ a b Louis Peck, "Conable to support George Bush campaign", Rochester Democrat and Chronicle (May 1, 1979), p. 6B.
- ^ a b "George H. W. Bush: Life Before the Presidency". Miller Center. Retrieved 2023-04-25.
- ^ "George H. W. Bush". Presidential Timeline of the Twentieth Century. Archived from the original on May 3, 2008. Retrieved July 30, 2016.
- ^ "President George H. W. Bush: Kyiv National Taras Shevchenko University". Ukrainian Embassy. May 21, 2004. Archived from the original on May 19, 2008. Retrieved March 29, 2008.
- ^ Meacham 2015, pp. 209–210.
- ^ John D. Lofton Jr., "George Bush: Alive, well and kicking for the U.S.", Cardunal Free Press (December 13, 1977), p. 4.
- ^ Meacham 2015, pp. 211, 214–215.
- ^ Meacham 2015, pp. 215–217.
- ^ Meacham 2015, pp. 221–222.
- ^ Noble, Jason (November 30, 2018). "George H.W. Bush in Iowa: The family campaign". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved December 1, 2018.
- ^ a b c Hatfield, Mark (with the Senate Historical Office) (1997). "Vice Presidents of the United States: George H. W. Bush (1981–1989)" (PDF). Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 23, 2003. Retrieved November 4, 2015.
- ^ Meacham 2015, pp. 228–229.
- ^ Marquard, Bryan (October 2, 2017). "Jon Breen, 81, editor who moderated famous Reagan-Bush debate". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on October 8, 2017. Retrieved July 20, 2021.
- ^ "RealClearSports – Ronald Reagan: "I am paying for this microphone."". RealClearPolitics. November 11, 2015. Archived from the original on 2021-04-15. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
- ^ Meacham 2015, pp. 230–233.
- ^ Meacham 2015, pp. 233–235.
- ^ Neikirk, William R. (March 13, 1988). "Bush conjures up voodoo economics". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved December 1, 2018.
- ^ Meacham 2015, pp. 211–212.
- ^ Nicholas von Hoffman, "Bush Resorts to Dirty Pool", The Muncie Star Press (May 25, 1980), p. 11.
- ^ a b c "1980 Massachusetts Republican Primary". Our Campaigns. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
- ^ a b "1980 Ohio Republican Primary". Our Campaigns. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
- ^ a b "US President - R Primaries". OurCampaigns.com. 16 Nov 2004. Retrieved 29 Oct 2020.
- ^ Meacham 2015, pp. 236–238.
- ^ Cannon, Lou; Broder, David S. (July 17, 1980). "Reagan Nominated, Picks Bush". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 1, 2018.
- ^ Meacham 2015, pp. 242–255.
- ^ Rossinow 2015, pp. 23–27.
- ^ Rossinow 2015, pp. 27–28.
- ^ Patterson 2005, pp. 149–151.
- ^ Leip, David (2012). "1988 Presidential General Election Results". Us Elections Atlas. Retrieved October 12, 2016.
Works cited
- ISBN 978-1-4000-6765-7.
- Patterson, James (2005). Restless Giant: The United States from Watergate to Bush v. Gore. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195122169.
- Rossinow, Douglas C. (2015). The Reagan Era: A History of the 1980s. Columbia University Press. ISBN 9780231538657.