Democrats: Elated and Divided

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Conservative Tack. The speech may suggest that Humphrey will now move to woo the right. The theory is that, barring a massive fourth-party revolt, the party's left will probably vote for Humphrey anyhow when faced with the alternative of Nixon and Agnew in November. Therefore, Humphrey might be persuaded to take a more conservative tack on law and order and the war in order to cut into Republican strength on the right.

In hopes of giving the dissidents a fair hearing at the convention, a group of Democrats led by Iowa's Governor Harold Hughes last week formed the unwieldy sounding Commission of Democratic Selection of Presidential Nominees. Its aims are to campaign for abolition of the unit rule, offer guidelines on seating of disputed delegations, and work to ensure adequate representation for minority groups. Yet Hughes, now running for the Senate, is unhappy with McCarthy as well as Humphrey. Once a confidant of Lyndon Johnson, Hughes fell out with the Administration, largely because of the war, and became a Robert Kennedy supporter. Hughes agrees with McCarthy on Viet Nam, but does not regard him as presidential timber. Some other R.F.K. partisans, such as Larry O'Brien, have switched to Humphrey. Others, like Richard Goodwin, have gone to McCarthy; but many have stayed estranged from both candidates and are likely to rally behind George McGovern. And before the convention is called to order, still more may seek out Harold Hughes as another dark horse possibility.