This brief wire reports on Reagan’s pledge to serve out his
full-term as Governor of California if elected.
When asked if he would make a “flat statement” about his potential as a
presidential candidate in 1968, Reagan said, “I have. What more flat statement could I make?”
If memory serves me, however, Reagan did indeed allow his
name to be put forward during the 1968 GOP convention. Though Reagan has always maintained that he
allowed this only in order to preserve unity among the California delegation
(i.e., everyone from CA could vote for their “favorite son” and avoid a
fractious division such as plagued California Republicans during the 1964
Goldwater-Rockefeller shoot-out). While
I think the bulk of evidence demonstrates that Reagan was being sincere in
1966, I can only imagine how the 1968 nomination was spun by Reagan critics.
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