For the Record

Immediate post-debate polls varied widely, from a one-point Mondale lead (ABC) to a twenty-point Mondale lead (Mondale pollster Peter Hart). Only White House pollster Richard Wirth-lin thought Ronald Reagan shaded his opponent, 41 to 38 per cent. . . . The politicos were quick to mount the attack. Said Rep. Tony Coelho, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman: “The age issue is in the campaign now and people like me can talk about it even if Mondale can’t.” One day later, Coelho had lost some of his delicacy. To a question on whether the President was doddering, he replied: “Well, he didn’t quite drool.” . . . On the right, Terry Dolan of NCPAC commented: “Gone was the vision of the future that he put forward in 1980. He [the President] was using statistics that made no sense.” . . . And Gary Hart predicted the Yuppie vote would “turn massively to Mondale” in the weeks ahead. . . . Washington Post wheeled out its big guns on its Op-Ed page, Tuesday, the 9th. Joseph Kraft: “Mondale is no longer just a bad joke.” Richard Cohen: “It was the revenge of the nerd.” Mark Shields: “Before our very eyes Mondale the Loser turned into Mondale the Underdog.” George Will: “Mondale’s problem was to get people to take him seriously. He did that.” David Broder: “My guess is that some of them [under-35 voters] may be taking a second look [at Walter Mondale]. Youth is not particularly tolerant of the vagaries of age such as Reagan displayed.” . . . Evans & Novak report that in both Mondale and Reagan headquarters in Louisville the afternoon of the debate “talk of a realignment election was in the air. It had vanished less than 12 hours later.”

Still, the week’s U.S. News & World Report’s cover story asks: “Are You Better Off Today than You Were Four Years Ago?” and the answer from the people it polled is a pretty resounding yes. To wit: 46 per cent feel their financial condition will be better next year than this year; 41 per cent feel it’s better than it was four years ago, and 38 per cent credit Reagan with achieving that. Who handles the economy better? Republicans, by nearly 2 to 1. Who handles foreign policy better? Republicans, 38 to 22 per cent. If the election were held today whom would you vote for? Reagan 50 per cent, Mondale 24 per cent. . . . On the vice presidential scene, David Broder threw up his hands the other day. Geraldine Ferraro’s crowds are larger, he reported, her speeches are tougher and more passionate, her press more laudatory than George Bush’s, “but Bush beats her every which way in the polls.” Bush is regarded more favorably by a whopping 61 to 33 per cent according to Washington Post/ NBC News polls.

Featured Tags

Manage following

Ronald Reagan

Presidential Election

Immediate post-debate polls varied widely, from a one-point Mondale lead (ABC) to a twenty-point Mondale lead (Mondale pollster Peter Hart). Only White House pollster Richard Wirth-lin thought Ronald Reagan shaded his opponent, 41 to 38 per cent. . . . The politicos were quick to mount the attack. Said Rep. Tony Coelho, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman: “The age issue is in the campaign now and people like me can talk about it even if Mondale can’t.” One day later, Coelho had lost some of his delicacy. To a question on whether the President was doddering, he replied: “Well, he didn’t quite drool.” . . . On the right, Terry Dolan of NCPAC commented: “Gone was the vision of the future that he put forward in 1980. He [the President] was using statistics that made no sense.” . . . And Gary Hart predicted the Yuppie vote would “turn massively to Mondale” in the weeks ahead. . . . Washington Post wheeled out its big guns on its Op-Ed page, Tuesday, the 9th. Joseph Kraft: “Mondale is no longer just a bad joke.” Richard Cohen: “It was the revenge of the nerd.” Mark Shields: “Before our very eyes Mondale the Loser turned into Mondale the Underdog.” George Will: “Mondale’s problem was to get people to take him seriously. He did that.” David Broder: “My guess is that some of them [under-35 voters] may be taking a second look [at Walter Mondale]. Youth is not particularly tolerant of the vagaries of age such as Reagan displayed.” . . . Evans & Novak report that in both Mondale and Reagan headquarters in Louisville the afternoon of the debate “talk of a realignment election was in the air. It had vanished less than 12 hours later.”

Still, the week’s U.S. News & World Report’s cover story asks: “Are You Better Off Today than You Were Four Years Ago?” and the answer from the people it polled is a pretty resounding yes. To wit: 46 per cent feel their financial condition will be better next year than this year; 41 per cent feel it’s better than it was four years ago, and 38 per cent credit Reagan with achieving that. Who handles the economy better? Republicans, by nearly 2 to 1. Who handles foreign policy better? Republicans, 38 to 22 per cent. If the election were held today whom would you vote for? Reagan 50 per cent, Mondale 24 per cent. . . . On the vice presidential scene, David Broder threw up his hands the other day. Geraldine Ferraro’s crowds are larger, he reported, her speeches are tougher and more passionate, her press more laudatory than George Bush’s, “but Bush beats her every which way in the polls.” Bush is regarded more favorably by a whopping 61 to 33 per cent according to Washington Post/ NBC News polls.