By Denise Ross

The growing rift in the Republican Party, highlighted by yesterday’s House election in New York’s District 23, reminds CBS’s Bob Schieffer of the Democrats in 1972 and the presidential defeat of South Dakota’s own George McGovern.

Here’s video from Tuesday’s CBS Evening News, with Schieffer’s comments specific to McGovern transcribed below. (Shieffer begins his analysis at about 3:09, and the McGovern bit starts at about 3:55.)

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ANCHOR HARRY SMITH:  Does this race tell us trends in terms of how Republicans expect to be running in the future?

BOB SCHIEFFER: In this case, I think it will, Harry, because what have is this third party conservative who literally pushed a moderate Republican out of the race, and she went on to endorse Obama. The Republican Party is really split, and it is the conservatives who seem to have the juice right now. It’s very much like what Democrats went through in 1972. The party activists on the left were so upset with mainstream candidates that in an effort to purify the party, they pushed it so far to the left that they nominated the very liberal George McGovern for president.

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By Denise Ross

It’s not unreported news, but if I ever knew it, I’d forgotten that George McGovern dismissed the idea of asking Walter Cronkite to be his 1972 running mate, thinking the revered newsman wouldn’t risk his gravitas on a political campaign. Years later, Cronkite told him he would have accepted.

McGovern told the story on public radio’s Dakota Midday program today, saying that with Cronkite he believes he could have defeated Richard Nixon.

Listen here. (As of this posting the audio is not yet up. Given my experience, it goes up as a full hour-long chunk and isn’t divided into segments. The McGovern bit starts roughly about 40 minutes in.)

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By Denise Ross

While waiting to make my weekly appearance as one of SD Public Radio’s political junkies, I listened to George McGovern on the same program. (See below for the bombshell news McG dropped Wednesday.)

McGovern said this about Barack Obama, his new pick for president:

I think Barack Obama is a potentially great president. I don’t have any hesitancy in supporting him.

I’ll get audio up when it’s available.

Meanwhile, McGovern also said this about his longtime friend Hillary Clinton.

I think she has a great future ahead of her.

McGovern called former President Bill Clinton to break the news.

There wasn’t a cross word spoken. It was a good, friendly conversation.

I didn’t sleep much last night. It was very difficult to call President Clinton this morning.

McGovern said Bill Clinton wanted him to stay in Hillary’s camp, but “he didn’t make any great effort in that direction.”

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By Denise Ross

So I guess he won’t be greeting her at the airport in Sioux Falls tomorrow?

George McGovern tells Hillary to leave the campaign trail and head back to Capitol Hill, thus betraying South Dakota’s chance at glory on June 3. I’m sure in time South Dakotans will forgive him. I don’t know about the Clintons.

After watching the returns from the North Carolina and Indiana primaries Tuesday night, McGovern says it’s virtually impossible for Clinton to win the nomination.

McGovern says he is calling former President Clinton to tell him of the decision and adds that he remains close friends with the Clintons.

Gulp. (No Christmas card for you, George!)

McGovern’s grandson, Matt of Rapid City, is among many in the McGovern clan who are openly enthusiastic about Obama. Matt so much so that he quit his lawyer job to join the Obama campaign full time.

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By Denise Ross

I’ve heard George McGovern say somewhere recently that while he’s sticking by Hillary Clinton, his children and grandchildren are supporting Barack Obama.

Indeed. In the case of his grandson Matt McGovern, a lawyer in Rapid City, the support extends to service as Obama’s campaign co-chairmain for South Dakota.  

(Photo by David Larson)

Matt McGovern spoke Sunday at the open house of Obama’s new Rapid City campaign office. He said:

I feel great about our chances June 3. And then we’ll take back the White House in November!

The crowd cheered.

So, when Hillary opens some campaign offices in SD, will George McG be on the scene? (And if she’s going to open offices, she’d better get to it, no?)

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By Denise Ross

These days, we tend to think of the historic 1972 presidential campaign when George McGovern is the topic of conversation. Long before that, he built up the SD Democratic Party from 2 state legislators in the early 1950s to more than 10 times that many lawmakers, himself in the Congress, Ralph Herseth as governor and nail-biting Senate races, although the GOP held on there.

Here are some images to remember the 1950s and South Dakota’s Democrats from that time.

There’s George, Ralph and presumably a US Senate House candidate named Clarkson. Anybody have the history on Clarkson? (UPDATE: A commenter named Gatsby reports some details on Clarkson; click on the comments section to read them.)  

This business card from McGovern’s days in the US House is on display at the McGovern Center on the campus of Dakota Wesleyan University in Mitchell.

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