My name is jimmy carter, i am running for president. [applause] tonight, tonight i have some good news for you. We will have a democrat in the white house in 1977. Ladies of the convention, probably i present before you the name of jimmy carter as the party, of the democratic the next president of the United States. Election 1976, the Democratic National convention. Analystt is political richard scanlon. Richard inis is washington, with me are professor Howard Penniman and mr. Stephen hess of the brookings and touche and. We want to discuss the Democratic Convention. We will do the Republican Convention at a later time when that meeting has been finished. Before we do either of the detailed discussions we have to spend a few minutes talking about the basic purpose of the nominating convention. One has said these are real ideological struggles told by circuses. Penniman, beyond that, how can we briefly describe the cosession of American Convention . Convention national is the nominating of the president and Vice President. Party hasone time the the national existence. Delegates from every state. By the directlly primary. It reads as a national partnership. It is a platform upon which the kim candidate stands. It serves as a Meeting Place between the leaders of the party and unity as there was at this last convention of the Democratic Party. Job. Es the it services a kind of morality for the benefit of the faithful around the country. It starts monday night and runs through thursday night. That gives usays american electorate and voters a chance to look in on this party or at least the large collection of leaders and get a sense of what they are all about. Do they put somebody from the south before us . . Hat are the issues in 1968 and 1972 there were many issues. What happened to them . We come out of it. We have this intense exposure with some sense of who these people are. Interviews with the candidates and the party leaders. It helps us make a decision. Richard one must treat this platform with a great deal of caution. In most instances, all of us americans and never friends overseas would be better advised to listen to the candidate who makes it real if he becomes president. One who never forgets the basic ink will run for president november and if successful will form a new administration. Howard there is also the exciting issues he is talking about. What we have exciting issues we have a divided party. NotDemocratic Party was divided in the fashion that it has been. Richard it is interesting what you are saying. That democrats would much rather have the quiet convention of 19 ebony six than a controversial issue oriented debate of 1968 or 1972. They were dramatic, there were fights, there were disputes. Perhaps i would say yes. The allstar baseball game was held right during this convention. A lot of people watch that. Lets watch some of the scenes from this past Democratic Convention. It was 144 years ago. Members of the democratic artys first selected president ial candidate. It is a continuation of that tradition. There is Something Different about tonight. Theres Something Special about tonight what is different, what is special. I am a keynote speaker. [applause] a lot of years have passed since 1832. It wouldve been unusual for a Political Party to ask Barbara Jordan to deliver a keynote address. Tonight, here i am. I feel that notwithstanding the ist that my presence here one additional bit of evidence that the American Dream need not forever be deferred. [applause] we are in the tradition of america. A tradition of pioneering. Of optimism. , a tradition of caring and sharing. Americathe character of and that is the story of the Democratic Party. Ours has always believed no challenge is too great for the american nation. Therefore we must muster our strength, courage and our energy. Of thees and gentlemen convention, proudly i placed before you the name of jimmy carter as the nominee of the Democratic Party. Madam secretary, 164 votes for the next president , jimmy carter, two votes or brown, one and one fork wallace. State ishe 34th pleased to cast 34 votes, 32 for carter, two for udall. The kansas vote is 32 votes for carter, two votes for senator udall. Dakota, the Geographic Center of the north american continent, the peace garden votescasts all of its 13 for governor jimmy carter. Dakota votes 13 votes for jimmy carter. The ohio delegation, this , imns largest delegation proud and honored to join the congressman and his 21st with unitylegation and victory in november. [applause] to be the democratic candidate and the president of the United States. Delegates and friends i am proud to accept your nomination as your candidate for Vice President of the United States. And ige to you tonight pledge to all americans that i will do everything in my power to elect jimmy carter the next president of the United States. [applause] the party of the man who was nominated by those conventions. Who inspires and restores this nation in its darkest hour. Franklin d roosevelt. [applause] the party of fighting democrats who showed us that a common man could be an uncommon leader. Harry truman. A party of a brave young who called the young at heart regardless of age to seek a new frontier of national greatness, john f. Kennedy. Now the party who took office in a tragic hour and went on to do more than any other president in this century. Lyndon johnson. [applause] our party was built out of the old lower east side. The blazing heart of illinois, the coal mines of pennsylvania. [applause] the southern coastal plains, and the unlimited frontiers of america. Welcomeshat generations of immigrants. , polls, all of the others. They thought the political battles that helped bring them to the American Dream and they have shaped the character of our party. That is our heritage. Our party has not been perfect. We make mistakes. Ours is a tradition of leadership, compassion, and progress. Americans, united, a diverse power of the nation. Entering with pride and confidence. An america that lives up to the majesty of the constitution and simple decency of our people. This is the america we will pass. Thank you very much. [applause] those were excerpts from the proceedings of the Democratic National convention. This month in july, the convention nominated jimmy carter and Chris Mondale for president and Vice President. We want to analyze what happened in that convention. Years ofeans for the administration. , what does jimmy carter really stand or . Howard jimmy carter stands for richard other than the decency of the rest of the speech. Stands for unity within the Democratic Party. Somewhere in the center of that party, maybe to the left of center. He stands for the things that could unify a once badly divided party. Instands for improvement racial conditions, greater equality. At a time when the north and south are now much closer together than they have been. Precisely this issue began ing in 1948. On the economic side he stands for a good deal of relatively limited reform. It will increase the expenditures of the National Government in the welfare field. The National Health program. The forms from the aid to the unemployed. In theind of things decr governor or state chief executive to be president since Franklin Roosevelt they have tended to come out of the legislature. Carter seems to be very interested in how government run. The Organization Made a big issue of government reorganization. Very he he has a is a very serious planner. I candidate is virtually unknown at the beginning of the year. He has a game plan, and actual scenario to capture the if therec nomination should be a carter presidency, i think it would be much more managerial then we have known in recent past. Howard managing the American Government is a massive task. Maybe you greatly something we will not see. Difficult in any organization. The thing that has impressed me most about this Democratic Convention in the primary was that this was such a small swing away from the perceived leftwing convention of 1972. The swing back towards the center. Maybe a little left of center. The center of the Democratic Party. The deceit, the real core of the party is a party of the liberal center, left of center. Whatever you wish to call. It is a very strong move away campaign suchern as the republicans in 68 moved far away from the campaign of 1964. Part of it many principal, part of it may be expediency. It looks likely assuming mr. Ford has been nominated by the republican that this selection of 1976 may be slightly left of Center Versus slightly right of center. Two basic moderates. Howard certainly we saw a party that wanted to win. Is what holdsn politicians together. Now they have come together and nominated a southerner, which is unique in itself. It was a major proponent of the coalition that elected Franklin Roosevelt. It has been drifting into republican camp. In a southerner as the president ial nominee, it is a major step that kept them in office between the 30s and 40s. There were the issues of civil rights and the issues of vietnam war. The civil rights one is at least minimized because of the tremendous progress in the United States. Qualityee of racially has come about over the last 15 years. That is not at such an exacerbated level that a party gets fully divided that the Democratic Party once was. Let me ask both of you, that in Foreign Policy, which i know is a major concern of many of our friends overseas, that in Foreign Policy many speaker on the podium. Basically a Carter Aministration would maintain Foreign Policy not significantly different, not markedly right or left from president ford, would you agree with this . Stephen i think all of our clues to this point point in that direction. There was very little emphasis on Foreign Policy. Like i said before he has not. Een experienced we have very little to go on in terms of his personal record. Advisors he is turning to are not very different then the advisors john kennedy and Lyndon Johnson had when they were president. Party platform is certainly a continuation in my judgment of the direction of Foreign Policy that we have had for the last eight years. All of the clues point in the direction. Howard the speeches gave much less emphasis. Any time if you are not in a crisis, you will not emphasize that. The platform gives an enormous amount of space to Foreign Policy. Changes, some emphasis here or there. Expectation must be to continue the policy that has been guiding the United States since the truman period. As you look at the messick policy domestic policy, we have this problem, two problems. Jimmy carter maintained this reconciliation of many divergent elements in the party. The gaps in the Democratic Party was still there. He maintained this reconciliation until november. If you wins, how long after november before those gaps open up again . You could probably maintain the better part of it november. It gets more difficult when you begin writing legislation next january and february. If there is a large democratic , he should be able to get the support of congress on virtually any issue. Should maintain that energy well into the summer or fall. Than economic reform that we talked about earlier. That if would you agree these economic changes, which many republicans say will result in inflation, would you feel that honeymoon year might be shortened up . It will be a very carter. Future for jimmy i think in terms of having a president and congress in the same party, which we have not had. I tend to think that is a charade. The diversity of both the Democratic Party and the interest of congress. The new man ae little breathing room. A jimmyshould there be carter presidency and a continuation of the Democratic Congress we may see over time richard here stephen and howard have been discussing with me in democratic t the national convention, what happened and why. Later after the Republican Convention, we will be work of that convention as well. This is Richard Steadman from washington. [cheers and applause] [captions Copyright National cable satellite corp. 2020] your m honored by nomination and i accept it to order please come to begin the 1976 Republican National convention. Mr. Chairman, the great state wishes to place a nomination, the name of ronald reagan