Democrats: Unforeseen Eugene

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Another Dog's Bone. Bobby Kennedy's entry had McCarthy supporters furious. Growled Actor Newman: "It's a shame Kennedy chose to take a free ride on McCarthy's back." Bobby was called a "claim jumper" and a "cow-bird." Said a student: "Hawks are bad enough. We don't need chickens." Commented New Hampshire Attorney Eugene S. Daniell Jr.: "It is something like trying to steal another dog's bone." Pulitzer-prizewinning Historian Barbara Tuchman (The Guns of August), whose daughter Jessica worked for McCarthy, fired off a telegram accusing Bobby of "cynicism and opportunism" and voicing "outrage" at "Kennedy's indecent rush to exploit another's efforts." One of the things that prompted Kennedy's belated decision to take on Johnson was the evidence that his "squealers and jumpers" were growing up and drifting away from him. Since 1964, at least 12.6 million Americans have reached voting age, and Bobby once laid claim to a large percentage of them. "Kennedy thinks that American youth belongs to him as the bequest of his brother," noted ardently pro-McCarthy Columnist Mary McGrory. "Seeing the romance flower between them and Mc Carthy, he moved with the ruthlessness of a Victorian father whose daughter has fallen in love with a dustman." McCarthy was not about to submit meekly. The morning after the election, he flew to Washington for a meeting with Bobby. Aboard the plane, he ran into Johnson Loyalist Tom McIntyre, and unleashed one of the sly barbs of which he is a master. "You shouldn't be traveling first class this morning, Senator," said McCarthy.

After 20 minutes with Kennedy, McCarthy emerged with another sardonic quip. "Now," he said, "at least three people in Washington are reconsidering their candidacy." Later, he urged Kennedy to "leave the primaries to me," hinted that at the convention "some kind of settlement" might be arranged. He also announced plans to enter two more primaries—in Indiana and South Dakota—in addition to those in Wisconsin, Nebraska, Oregon and California.

Cluttered Track. Before Kennedy took the plunge, he sent Brother Teddy, the Senator from Massachusetts, winging out to Wisconsin to inform McCarthy. Teddy reached Green Bay's Northland Hotel shortly after midnight, spent three-quarters of an hour with a drowsy, just-awakened McCarthy. Said the Minnesotan afterward "It was hard ly worth the trip. It was a courtesy on his part and I appreciate the effort, but there was no offer of any concession from me."

Watching Bobby the following day on television, a tight-lipped McCarthy smiled only when Kennedy lauded his "remarkable victory" in New Hampshire. He stood firm on his own can didacy. "There's room for us both, yes," he said. "But it may clutter up the track a bit." For a while, he added, "I had begun to look as though I was the front runner, and I'm not sure I liked that. Now I am back in the race again, looking like a challenger, beset on both sides. I think it's a slight plus."