Говард Бейкер из Теннесси без труда переизбрался в 1978, а в 1980 стал лидером сенатского большинства. Но голосование в поддержку договора с Панамой стоила ему номинации в президенты и вице-президенты.
Mr. Baker was Senate minority leader in 1977 when President Jimmy Carter asked him to support the treaties turning over the Panama Canal to Panama. One issue he weighed was the effect on his chances of winning the Republican nomination for president in 1980. Aides such as James Cannon told him that backing the treaties would mean that the Republican Party would never nominate him. Both Mr. Baker and Mr. Cannon told me that the senator snapped, “So be it.” He backed the treaties and got other Republicans to join him. The Senate approved them in 1978. https://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/28/opinion/howard-baker-who-put-the-nation-ahead-of-himself.html
Baker aspired big. He didn’t make a secret of that. He hoped that President Gerald Ford would pick him for his running mate in 1976. And Ford might’ve. Baker seemed to have the inside track to land on the ticket. But when he revealed that his wife, Joy, was a recovered alcoholic, the tables turned. Ford instead chose Sen. Bob Dole of Kansas as his running mate. That might have been to Ford’s detriment. Baker was the man of compromise, the conciliator who was admired on both sides of the political landscape. Dole, by contrast, was much more of a conservative firebrand. Ford ultimately lost that election to Georgian Jimmy Carter. Four years later, Baker made a run for the presidency, finishing third in the New Hampshire Republican primary behind Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. Although he was polling second among the GOP candidates, it was clear that Reagan would win the nomination, and Baker withdrew from the race fairly early. Baker then campaigned to be Reagan’s running mate. But Reagan chose Bush, instead. As it turned out, the very characteristics that made Baker a household name in American politics were the ones that prevented him from being vice president and, perhaps, president. As is the case in most walks of life, standing on principle can sometimes prove costly in politics. Baker learned the hard way. His middle-of-the-road stance angered some conservatives. Not only had he supported civil rights legislation and the Equal Rights Amendment, but he had supported the treaty ceding the Panama Canal to Panama. That left some right-wing members of the party incensed. So, when it came time for Reagan to choose a running mate, conservative Republicans blocked Baker. http://www.ihoneida.com/2021/01/26/howard-baker-would-be-an-outcast-in-todays-washington/
В 1987 Бейкер согласился занять пост руководителя администрации Рейгана и тем самым отказался от выставления своей кандидатуры на выборах 1988. В качестве руководителя администрации он сыграл центральную роль в назначении Энтони Кеннеди в Верховный суд.
Mr. Baker was Senate minority leader in 1977 when President Jimmy Carter asked him to support the treaties turning over the Panama Canal to Panama. One issue he weighed was the effect on his chances of winning the Republican nomination for president in 1980.
Aides such as James Cannon told him that backing the treaties would mean that the Republican Party would never nominate him. Both Mr. Baker and Mr. Cannon told me that the senator snapped, “So be it.” He backed the treaties and got other Republicans to join him. The Senate approved them in 1978.
https://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/28/opinion/howard-baker-who-put-the-nation-ahead-of-himself.html
Baker aspired big. He didn’t make a secret of that. He hoped that President Gerald Ford would pick him for his running mate in 1976. And Ford might’ve. Baker seemed to have the inside track to land on the ticket. But when he revealed that his wife, Joy, was a recovered alcoholic, the tables turned. Ford instead chose Sen. Bob Dole of Kansas as his running mate.
That might have been to Ford’s detriment. Baker was the man of compromise, the conciliator who was admired on both sides of the political landscape. Dole, by contrast, was much more of a conservative firebrand. Ford ultimately lost that election to Georgian Jimmy Carter.
Four years later, Baker made a run for the presidency, finishing third in the New Hampshire Republican primary behind Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. Although he was polling second among the GOP candidates, it was clear that Reagan would win the nomination, and Baker withdrew from the race fairly early.
Baker then campaigned to be Reagan’s running mate. But Reagan chose Bush, instead.
As it turned out, the very characteristics that made Baker a household name in American politics were the ones that prevented him from being vice president and, perhaps, president. As is the case in most walks of life, standing on principle can sometimes prove costly in politics. Baker learned the hard way. His middle-of-the-road stance angered some conservatives. Not only had he supported civil rights legislation and the Equal Rights Amendment, but he had supported the treaty ceding the Panama Canal to Panama. That left some right-wing members of the party incensed. So, when it came time for Reagan to choose a running mate, conservative Republicans blocked Baker.
http://www.ihoneida.com/2021/01/26/howard-baker-would-be-an-outcast-in-todays-washington/
В 1987 Бейкер согласился занять пост руководителя администрации Рейгана и тем самым отказался от выставления своей кандидатуры на выборах 1988. В качестве руководителя администрации он сыграл центральную роль в назначении Энтони Кеннеди в Верховный суд.
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