General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: The leak was an attempt to bolster the libertarian brand. [View all]Douglas Carpenter
(20,226 posts)By that time his popularity had fallen apart in New York City. By that time he was no longer a popular figure nationally. As good of man and a mayor as he was - by 1972 he was portrayed by just about he entire media as an out-of-touch New York City elitist which would been just as much a liability as McGovern's hippie leader image - a World War II hero and a former small town Methodist minister was turned into a counterculture icon. There is no reason to believe Nixon would not have been equally successful against the by then very unpopular Lindsay.
Of course McGovern was not an absolute pacifist - no one running for Commander and Chief is electable if they were. But he did challenge bipartisan Cold War assumptions on matters beyond only Vietnam and he did so more than any other major party post World War II nominee. I don't believe the system is going to support any candidate who challenges bipartisan foreign policy assumptions. If Rand Paul continues to challenge bipartisan foreign policy assumptions - there is no way the Republican establishment will back him - even if he does pull off the nomination - which would be highly unlikely. If Rand Paul stays in that mode and does launch a successful insurgency campaign it will rip apart the Republican Party from inside.