Nation: The Man Who Quit Kicking the Wall

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On Tippy Toes. By then, even as ebullient and optimistic a man as Hubert Humphrey might have resigned himself to spending the rest of his political days in the Senate, even enjoying some leisurely living with his wife Muriel, their four children and two grandchildren, and perhaps more regular returns to the family's lakefront home in Waverly. Minn. To most men. this would hardly be an unpleasant prospect, and Humphrey himself admits that after hectic weeks in the capital, he likes nothing better than to visit Waverly to "put on a pair of blue jeans, get out in a boat—and just smell bad."'

But the assassination of President Kennedy and the accession of Lyndon Johnson again changed Humphrey's prospects.

Hardly had Johnson taken office last November when the Veep-guessing game began. From the very start, Humphrey ranked high, and little wonder. He would, after all, balance the ticket almost to perfection—Northerner Hubert with his pure liberalism and appeal to labor, along with Southwesterner Lyndon with his more conservative bent and appeal to the business community.

But other vice-presidential heads bobbed up with alarming frequency. Bobby Kennedy, to hear the pollsters tell it, was the popular favorite. Then there was Peace Corps Director Sargent Shriver, Defense Secretary Robert McNamara, New York City's Mayor Robert Wagner, Montana's Senator Mike Mansfield, Connecticut's Senator Thomas Dodd, and a score of others, including Humphrey's fellow Minnesota Senator, Eugene McCarthy.

Humphrey, of course, badly wanted the job, but he had to walk tippy-toe in seeking it. He knew Lyndon Johnson would resent any overt pressures aimed at forcing him into selecting a particular running mate.

Therefore Humphrey remained carefully absent when, last February, some of his closest political associates began holding nighttime strategy sessions in the Washington home of Attorney Max Kampelman, onetime Humphrey legislative assistant and still a friend and adviser.

From newspapers and magazines the Humphreymen gleaned articles, polls and opinions favorable to Humphrey, sent off copies to party officials, labor leaders and potential convention delegates. In June they commissioned a leading pollster to survey farm and labor leaders. The results, which showed Humphrey an overwhelming favorite, were quietly called to Johnson's attention. That same month, at the annual Governors' conference in Cleveland, Minnesota's Democratic Governor Karl Rolvaag set about corralling more support. As a result of Rolvaag's work, several Democratic Governors casually indicated to Lyndon that Hubert was their personal preference.

Last Man Out. In retrospect, Hubert's top aides now feel that the only other serious contenders were McNamara, whom Lyndon admires tremendously, and Bobby, because he is a Kennedy.