£4t Sfri"an Dad1 Eighty-one years of editorial freedom Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan JAMES WECHSLER Looking backwards... to autumn, 1972 420 Maynard St., Ann Arbor, Mich. News Phone: 764-05521 Editorials printed in The Michigan Daily express the individual opinions of staff writers or the editors. This must be noted in all reprints. FRIDAY, APRIL 7, 1972 NIGHT EDITOR: ZACHARY SCHILLER[ The verdict at Harrisburg, PHILLIP BERRIGAN and Elizabeth Mc- Allister were convicted of carrying on an illegal correspondence Wednesday, 16 months and thousands of headlines aft- er they were first formally charged with conspiring against the U.S. government. Thus, barring a reversal on appeal, Sister McAllister will soon join Father Berrigan in prison. Berrigan, guilty on four counts of letter smuggling, gets a maximum of 40 years while McAllister got by with only a 30 year maximum sen- tence. It is not enough to say that the con- viction is unjust because an FBI inform- er actually carried the letters between Berrigan - then, as now in prison for de- stroying selective service records - and McAllister outside. Likewise it is inadequate to point to the fact that all Harrisburg seven defend- ants escaped conviction on the conspir- acy charges against them, which includ- ed allegations that the group planned to destroy draft records, bomb government facilities in Washington and kidnap Henry Kissinger. REAL SIGNIFICANCE of the ver- dict is that it in no way challenges the government's tactics used to stop those who challenge its legitimacy. In- stead, it leaves all the defendants in a position where they can be tried again for conspiracy since the present jury reached no verdict. If the government and courts so choose, they can seek the same conspiracy charges with another jury and more of the defendants' time and money will be spent in defending themselves. In cases that havetheir origins in such far-ranging political questions as this nation's involvement in Southeast Asia, it is hardly sensible to pretend that the issue is whether illegal mail was ex- changed. Naive though they might have been, the Berrigan group was militating for immediate withdrawal and the gov- ernment was trying to stop such action. The government set a grand jury after the Berrigans, spent thousands for in- formers and dragged the Harrisburg sev- en into - court for what amounts to "thoughtcrime." Q0 THE RESULT is that all that is prov- able is that an activist prisoner was taken in by an informer into using his services as a courier, a rather incomplete conclusion for a court of law. Perhaps nothing more will ever be proven against the Harrisburg seven, but their govern- ment still seems willing to harrass those who dissent. Thatisnthe lesson of the Harrisburg seven. -MARK DILLEN Editorial Page Editor The convention (Excerpt from a future history book) BY THE TIME the Democratic convention assembled in Miami Beach in early July, 1972, the prospect of a bitter, intermin- able deadlock had clearly depress- ed and demoralized many of the delegates. In the long succession of pri- maries none of the aspirants had been able to assume a command- ing lead. There were intervals when Senator Ed Muskie of Maine seemed to regain his early role as front-runner but suffered new re- versals in the latter stages. While Hubert Humphrey edged forward in some of the primary tests, the threat of his eventual nomination had intensified preparation for a bolt under the leaership of Eu- gene McCarthy. George Wallace seemingly held a key to breaking the stalemate. He had steadily amassed a signi- ficant delegate bloc - far insuffi- cient to give him a serious chance for the nomination but probably large enough to swing it to one of the other major contenders. He insisted, however, that he would release his supporters only in re- turn for the Vice Presidential place on the ticket. AS THE DELEGATES converg- ed on Miami. the long speculation that they would eventually turn to the man who had remained aloof from the primaries - Sena- tor Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts -became feverish. Kennedy,eunder mounting pres- sure, then issued a startling an- nouncement; it was a "Sherman statement" in which he declared his unequivocal unwillingness to accept the nomination. In that setting began a conven- tion that some feared might last as long as the conclave at Madi- son Square Garden in 1924 in which the roll calls continued for 10 days and nights, with John W. Davis, a. conservative corporations lawyer, finally emerging as ±h "dark horse" choice on the 103rd ballot. Now, in 1972, the same situation appeared to prevail after Ken- nedy's declaration of unavailabil- ity. All the candidates who had participated in the long, gruelling primary exercises were visibly fa- tigued, irritable and in varying degrees, intransigent. While Muskie was able to pull together most of the McGovern, Lindsay, and Chisholm delegates, the Humphrey, Jackson and San- ford forces maintained their al- liance. And Wallacessteadfastly refused to modify his price -- the Vice-Presidential nomination -for his troops. IT WAS in that atmosphere of frustration and frenzy that the candidacy of journalist Jack An- derson was born. Many were later to claim credit for originating the idea but the most authoritative inquiries indi- cate that it grew outof a bibulous discussion among a group of news- paper correspondents assembled in a bar at the Fontainebleu Hoel. And those present were later to differ angrily about who first. uttered Anderson's name. In any case, what apparently began as a saloon fantasy increas- ingly took hold of the participants, its fascination perhaps increasing with each round. Before 1.mg it had been agreed that the thought would be transmitted to such var- ied personages as Larry O'Brien, 'Chicago's Mayor Daley, ADA's Joe Rauh, Sen. Kennedy, George Meany, Julian Bond, Gloria Stein- em and many others. * * * AT THAT POINT the conven- tion had been in session for eight days and nights, five of them de- voted to futile, inconclusive roll- calls. The TV networks had aban- doned any semblance of full-time coverage. Desolation and discord had long been the dominant mood; Washington dispatches reported gaiety at Mr. Nixon's W h i t e House. Then, at a news conference on late Monday afternoon of the can- vention's second week, the diverse Democratic personalities previous- ly mentioned, augumented by a large crowd of new recruits, join- ed in announcing their sponsor- ship of Anderson. ALTHOUGH THE move at first seemed the bizarre, almost capri- "Do they really think the Amer- ican people would entrust all our secrets to that man?" Spiro Ag- new asked. The coolness was echoed by some Washington journalists whose dinner parties had often been distracted by reports of An- derson's latest revelation. "With- out denying Ande:son's zeal as a. reporter, it must be said that he has never established any creden- tials as a student of world affairs," one of them wrote. President Nixon initially re- frained from public comment; his aides said he planned to campaign without any reference to Anderson. But one of them confided to re- portersythat Mr. Nixon seemed strangely upset, adding: "He thinks this a whole new ball -,.".*.-4':-,............ game -- and he isn't sure he knows what game-plan this guy mnay have." The President was reported to have summoned the Rev. Billy Graham - rather than his usual political counselors - for an ex- tended conference. ** * IT BECAME swiftly apparent that' the Anderson caper w a s neither frivolouis nor aberrational. Ahs his runningmabeyAndero assent the spirited young Gover- nor of Flor'ida, Reubin Askew. It was widely regarded as a shrewd choice. On the one hand Askew had acquired large esteem among the party's prgressives by resolutely resisting the racist overtones of the George Wallace campaign in his own state. At the same time the designation afforded recogni- tion for the Southern wing of the party, and especially for new, mo- derat forces min many paces. h.eimove clearl undermined Solid South for himself. When Gov. Wallace soon asserted that he would "sit this one out." it was assumehethat he was covertly pro vidngthelp orNion.Askew em- bodied a serious counterthrust to the GOP's Southern strategy and simultaneously won wide approval among black Democratic consti- tuencies. THE NATURE of the Anderson campaign, deftly supplemented by Askew, quickly rattled the Nixon- Agnew forces. In his first major speech, An- derson announced that, if elected, he would serve for only one term. Pointing out that his personal as- pirations remained those of a cru- sading journalist, he said, he would be liberated from the pres- sures besetting a Chief Executive "who becomes obsessed, as Mr. Nixon has, with the prospect for his own reelection." In an era when "politicians" were help in deepening disrepute among voters of all ages and sec- tions, the declaration confirmed Anderson's image as a wholly new, different and independent species of candidate. His speeches further sustained the portrait of freshness, novelty and excitement. They bore little resemblance to conventional ora- ory; in his TV performances lhe produceda series of exposures rivaling some of those that had made him a national celebrity. (He had, of course, suspended his column for the duration of the campaign). At one point, for example, he unfolded secret Pentagon docu- ments detailing plans for a contin- ued U.S. "presence" in Vietnam- on the day after Mr. Nixon had pledged "total withdrawal" by Jan. 1. THE PRESIDENT could no long- er ignore his adversary as the crucial campaign weeks bore on. Instead he began accusing him of "irresponsible transgressions that give aid and comfort to the enemies of the American way of life." But many Americans apparently saw nothing "unAmerican" in the sptctacle of a candidate who vow- ed "to keep telling the people what they have a right to know" and who pledged, if elected, to end "the secrecy that has masked the behind-the-scenes influence ex- erted by special interests and the military-industrial lobbies on pub- lic officials." By late October the Red Scare had become Mr. Nixon's domin- ant theme, and J. Edgar Hoover was enlisted in the assault: But Hoover's attempt to link Ander- son with "alien conspiracies en- gaged in a drumfire criticism of oor institutions" was marred by a mirthless reference to Anderson as a man "lacking in respect or the sacred American right of privacy." Twenty-four hours later Ander- son took to the air to rea0I confi- dential FBI files that described surveillance of several members of - Congress. ANDERSON had finally estab- lished a commanding lead in the polls in the final tw6 weeks of the campaign. His climactic flour- ish, however, occurred on Election Eve when he went on TV for half an hour to read - and 'rebut - large excerpts from the unreleas- ed, carefully-guarded text Mr. Nix- on was to deliver, later that night. It was a spectacular close to an unprecedented campaign. Mr. Nixon lamely and hastily revised his remarks (feigning ignorince of Anderson's coup) but he seemed a beaten quarterback wildly fight- ing last-minute passes. On Elec- tion Night he conceded at a few moments after 11. O New York Post * The latest action plan AFTER MORE than a year and a half of dealing with the .ins and outs of affirmative action plans, the administra- tion has come up with their answer to the maze. President Robben Fleming announced Wednesday that he will appoint a single Affirmative Action Director to monitor the University's equal employment oppor- tunity programs for women and minori- ties. The present Commissions for Women and Minorities would become advisory to the director or could chose to act as om- budspersons, Fleming said in a memo to the heads of the commissions. While the employment of a full-time person with the sole responsibility to im- plement and monitor the University's equal employment plans might give some long-needed direction to those schemes, the form proposed by Fleming raises some doubts. THE CONCEPT of an Affirmative Action Officer comes from the Department of Labor's Revised Order No. 4, which sets the compliance guidelines all federal con- tractors except public institutions must meet. Editorial Staff ALAN LENHOFF Editor SARA PITZGERALD ................ Managing Editor TAMMY JACOBS .................. Editorial Director CARLA RAPOPORT................ Executive Editor ROBERT SCHREINER...............p. News Editor COSE SUE BERSTEIN...............Feature Editor PAT BAUER. .......Associate Managing Editor LINDSAY CHANEY..............Editorial Page Editor MARK DILLEN................Editorial Page Editor ARTHUR LERNER .............. Editorial Page Editor PAUL TRAVIS .. . .................Arts Editor GLORIA JANE SMITH .........Associate Arts fditor JONATHAN MILLER ......... Special Features Editor TERRY McCARTHY............Photography Editor ROBERT CONROW..............Books Editor NIGHT EDITORS: Linda Dreeben, Chris Parks, Gene Robinson, Zachary Schiller. COPY EDITORS: Robert Barkin, Jan Benedetti, John Mitchell, Tony Schwartz, Charles Stein, Ted Stein. DAY EDITORS: Dave Burhenn, Daniel Jacobs, Mary Kramer, Judy Ruskin, Sue Stephenson, Karen Tink- lenberg, Rebecca warner, Marcia Zoslaw. ASSISTANT NIGHT EDITORS: Mark Allshouse, Susan Brown, Janet Gordon, Meryl Gordon, Scott Gordon, Lorin Labardee, Diane Levick, Jean McGuire, Jim O'Brien, Martin Porter, Marilyn Riley, Linda Rosen- thal, Marty Stern, Doris waltz. ASSISTANT DAY EDITORS: Dan Biddle, John Glan- cey, Nancy Hackmaier, Cindy Hill, Jim Kentch, John Marston, Nancy Rosenbaum, Paul Ruskin, Ralph Vartabedian. Sports Staff JOHN PAPANEK Sports Editor ELLIOT LEGOW Executive Sports Editor BILL ALTERMAN............Associate Sports Editor AL SHACKELFORD ..........Associate Sports Editor BOB ANDREWS..............Assistant Sports Editor SANDI GENTIS................Assistant Sports Editor MICHAEL OLIN..........Contributing Sports Editor RANDY PHILLIPS ....... Contributing Sports Editor NIGHT EDITORS: Chuck Bloom, Dan Borus, Chuck Drukis, Joel Greer, Frank Longo, Bob McGinn. ASSISTANT NIGHT EDITORS: Mark Feldman, Rob Halvahs, George Hastings, Roger Rossiter, Rich Stuck. Business Staff ANDY GOLDING The University is therefore not required to appoint such a person, but seems 'to have found it convenient to do so. The plan would get the vocal Commission for Women off the University's back and en- able it to deal with just one person hired by the administration. Given that dealing with one person would be better, it is still questionable whether the individual would be placed where he or she could be most effective. Fleming chose not to give the position the status of a vice president, saying there is sentiment at the University that there are already too many vice presi- dents. However, putting the Affirmative Ac- tion Officer at tht level would give the individual the clout a mere assistant to the president doesn't have in dealing with people and problems. At the vice presidential level, such an officer would have multi-pronged control of many areas of the University. Affirm- ative action officers have worked well in industry, but experts have questioned their effectiveness at Universities-which are very diversified and, as is the case here, do their hiring through many dif-- ferent offices. THE PROPOSED ROLE of the commis- sions is not very different from what they do now - advise and act as ombuds- persons for women and minorities. But Fleming's plan should insure that they'll have a direct pipeline to him - and do not have to go through such an officer. All the work the commissions have ac- complished thus far in studying the prob- lems of discrimination could be for naught if the new person is not willing to listen or use their help. The special in- sights of these groups should be given the weight they now have, Perhaps more questionable than the plan itself is the way in which it was proopsed. Fleming told the chairpersons of the commissions about the plans, but instructed them not to tell the commis- sions. Women and minorities have studied the University's affirmative action plans for quite a while; and they certainly would have had ideas Fleming might have heeded on how the new position should be set up, if at all. IT IS INDEED sad to think that the af- firmative action officer may only be more window dressing for an affirma- tive action plan the University seems only trying to get over and done with. -SARA FITZGERALD Managing Editor Ttr -u cious act of lost political soul;;; some observers quickly noted An- derson's assets. He was not only the most widely read journalist in America; he had become a frequent, articulate TV perform- er; he was more written about and intervitwed than most public figures. And, of course, his name had been associated with a long series of, sensational exposures, ranging from the "Anderson papers" - the inside recordsof high govern- ment floundering in the India-Pak- istan crisis of 1971 - to the pres- sures exerted on the Administra- tion by the powerful ITT conglo- merate. At a time when public skepti- cism about government credibility had reached major proportions, the 49-year-old Anderson was ob- viously a voice of that unrest. He was also a family man (nine children) and a diligent church- goer; he neither drank nor smok- ed; hiscrusades against big busi- ness machinations and Pentagon lunacies made him at once accept- able to the party's progressive wing and to "populist" elements in the Wallace movement. The other candidates, by t h at- time angrier at each other than anyone else, capitulated without a major struggle. While Wallace voiced some displeasure, evenrhe said he would "think things over." The cam paig;n THE NEWS that the Democrats had finally broken their op- pressive convention deadlock by nominating journalist Jack Ander- son evoked public disdain and pri- vate bewilderment among the Re- publican high command. Candidates tryngto u the organization By TED STEIN "IT'S THE YEAR for the politician who least seems to be a poli- tician," Frank Mankiewicz was saying Monday as he flicked his cigarette ashes onto the plush Milwaukee Inn carpeting. "Right now, the voter is getting screwed. They key to winning is understanding his alienation." The results of Tuesday's Wisconsin primary proved that Mankie- wicz - former press secretary for Robert Kennedy now in charge of Sen. George McGovern's campaign - had accurately perceived the state's political situation. The primary showed that not only could McGovern's anti-establish- ment protest in-the-Fred-Harris-mold could win, but that the organiza- tion is the message. McGoverneandgAlabama Gov. George Wallace were the two win-. ners in 'Wisconsin because while politically opposite, they both came across as sincere advocates of the "little guy." WALLACE'S campaign slogan of "Send them a message" provided the central focus for the pri- mary. "Them" stood for any of the forces respon- sible for higher taxes and unemployment, -and in . general a mal-distribution of income which the can- didates all decried. For Wallace; the Wis- consin primary establish- . ed that he could poll well in the North, and must be considered a contender for the Democratic presi- dential nomination. McGovern's primary win proved what he con- tended throughout his Wisconsin campaigning- that his support reached beyond t h e so-called white liberal establish- ment and embraced blue collar, suburban, a n d farm or rural segments of the electorate as well. McGOVERN On Milwaukee's South Side, for instance, McGovern beat Muskie soundly in one of the erstwhile frontrunner' s supposed strongholds. Muskie finished fourth. 12,000 votes behind McGovern. Only a few weeks before the primary, political observers had conceded the heavily Polish, Roman-Catholic' neighborhood to Muskie. 4 #i 1 WHEREAS WALLACE charmed Wisconsin voters with his charis- matic folksy style, McGovern relied for support at his low-key rhetoric on his tightly-knit organization. Mankiewicz and his staff started a year ago to intensively canvass and leaflet Wisconsin voters, many of whom were unfamiliar with the South Dakota Senator. "We did here in Wisconsin what we did in New Hampshire and Florida," said Tom Southwick, McGovern's national youth coordinator. "We took a survey of voters, and then sent a position paper to them depending on what issues they were interested in." According to Southwick, McGovern's organization aimed most of its literature at voters who had indicated they were either "leaning" toward McGovern or "undecided." Why Muskie collapsed in Wisconsin perhaps can best be explained in his failure to create this kind of grassroots organization. Muskie had hoped to carry the rank and file by bagging top political endorse- ments. But Wisconsin- merely confirmed the impossibility of this strategy. Muskie could not overcome in Wisconsin his reputation for being vague and not providing concrete solutions. As Mankiewitz said, "The problem with Muskie is that he doesn't have any focus. He's not the peace candidate or the civil rignts candidate. Who is . he?" And while his lackluster rhetoric failed to generate excitement or support for the Muskie bandwagon, his organization could not take up the slack. IN SHEER NUMBERS of workers, Muskie was greatly outdistanced by McGovern's organization. About 1500 volunteers - or ten times the number of Muskie recruits-from outside the state campaigned for McGovern in the final days before the primary. Muskie himself only n art + r ? 7.: .. - c .. . ! ... . ;... :"u 'F. 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