New York, June 12—The Democrats are not even bothering to conceal their strategy. Which, in the current season, is a combination of good sense and good politics. What’s bad for the Republican Party is good for the country, they are saying in effect: but it must not be made to look as though they are opportunizing on the misfortunes of President Nixon. Thus when a few weeks ago Mr. Nixon appeared on television to announce the publication of the tapes, Senator Mansfield, speaking for the Democratic Party, graciously declined the proffered video time to dispute with Mr. Nixon. They have all felt that if Nixon is going to be impeached and convicted, it must be accomplished in a nonfactional, even nonpolemical way.
By contrast, the Republicans have no strategy. Last week Senator Dole, running for reelection in Kansas, and himself formerly chairman of the Republican National Committee, spoke candidly about his difficulties. 1) He is not permitted to say anything anywhere except something that relates to Nixon and Watergate—audiences simply yawn when he speaks about such distractions as world peace or the energy crisis. 2) Half his audience opposes Nixon, and wishes to hear from Senator Dole that the time has come to get Nixon off the back of the Republican Party. 3) Half his audience is prepared to die for Nixon (and probably will). Senator Dole gave an example of his dilemma. Someone asked him a few weeks ago whether President Nixon would fly in to campaign for him. Senator Dole replied jauntily that he would be glad if President Nixon would “fly over.” In better years this would be accepted as an adroit compromise between a resolutely proNixon and a resolutely anti-Nixon position. For Senator Dole it resulted in angry letters from the loyalists, including such statements as: for this offense I’ll never vote for you, and will see to it that my family and friends don’t either.
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