Word: romney
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
Twin Double Cross? Word of the decision trickled out by early afternoon as the National Governors' Conference was gathering in Washington. Romney made it official by reading a 387-word statement to reporters when he arrived in the capital. Perhaps because of the relief he felt after a long ordeal, he performed more gracefully than he had on most occasions during his 102 days of declared candidacy and during the earlier buildup. He candidly admitted failure to attract the support he needed, blamed no one for his troubles. He timed his announcement when he did, he said, because...
...announcement loosed a flood of excitement. Conspiracy theories took wing like a fallout of finches. Barry Goldwater I-told-you-so-ed: "Romney was nothing more than a stalking-horse for Rockefeller." Some seers deduced that Rockefeller had stabbed Romney the previous week by admitting that he would accept a draft. Others whispered that it was a twin double cross: Romney quitting early enough to wreck Rockefeller's timetable in retaliation for Rockefeller's supposed duplicity. No one, of course, could substantiate anything, and the speculation was subsiding as the shock wore...
What did not subside was the suddenly overwhelming pressure on Rockefeller. Upon landing in Washington minutes after the Romney announcement, Rocky was engulfed in a fog bank of conflicting advice from fellow Republicans. Those already sympathetic to him-Senators Jacob Javits, Hugh Scott, Edward Brooke and a chorus of others -counseled action. The general feeling was that Romney's departure had removed the last shred of justification for Rockefeller's judicious isolation. Senator Mark Hatfield of Oregon spoke for most of them: "He can't play coy. If he's going anywhere, he should...
...thoughts were undoubtedly jogged by Romney's follow-up press conference Friday morning. Instead of coming out for Rockefeller as many expected he would do, Romney said he was not advising his supporters in New Hampshire or anywhere else about whom to work for. Like Rockefeller, he talked of the need for unity. Unlike Rockefeller, he also talked of the need for potential candidates to make clear their positions on major issues-most especially on Viet Nam. This jab hit Rockefeller in the vitals. There are few subjects on which he has been more silent recently, and his reticence...
...Romney followed up his plea for a discussion of the issues by remarking that he could support Nixon if the other Republican Governors went that way. Then Montana's Tim Babcock, previously thought to be holding out for Ronald Reagan, announced loudly that he would support Nixon, and that half the Republican Governors would do the same. It was after that-just a few hours after the Romney press conference-that Rockefeller issued his statement of availability. Said George Hinman: "We decided that we simply had to clear up his position...