The Nation: Eagleton's Own Odyssey

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Looking relaxed and puffing Pall Malls in a San Francisco hotel suite, Thomas Eagleton last week told TIME's Donald Neff, Karsten Prager and Eleanor Hoover in his own fashion how he felt about events of the past few weeks. He began with his agonizing wait in Miami Beach for a call he was not sure would ever come: George McGovern's request that he run as the vice-presidential candidate. Finally, McGovern was on the line, made his offer and Eagleton accepted. After that, Eagleton related:

GEORGE said, "Now I'm going to turn you over to Frank Mankiewicz. Work out some details." This lasted tops a minute and a half. Frank gets on and says, "You know now you got to get an acceptance speech. You got some clean shirts?" He said, "Let me ask: Do you have any old skeletons rattling around your closet?"

Now this is the key factor: I'm not being a Philadelphia lawyer when I say this. I never have viewed the hospitalizations in terms of being skeletons. I view skeletons as something you've done that is sinister, corrupt, evil, filthy—something in that sense. I very quickly said no. One word: no. I never was asked about the booze rumor or the nervous-exhaustion rumor that the staff knew about. The McGovern lieutenants—they were not just lieutenants, they were generals, higher-ups—had heard the rumors at the convention. Both of those items were talked about at the powwow where they were going down the names. I was asked about skeletons. If I were asked the same question today under the same circumstances I would give the same answer. You can call it nitpicking if you like. I don't. I'm not ashamed. There is nothing dirty or corrupt or evil about the fact that I had voluntarily gone into a hospital.

Friday the Eagleton staff and the Mankiewicz staff kicked the thing around. My people informed them that I had been hospitalized; my aides didn't know all the precise dates, but they knew about the shock treatments. Mankiewicz then went to the Virgin Islands, knowing about the health problem. He called me Sunday or Monday and said: "Can I talk with you about the health thing?" I said: "I don't trust the phones." He said: "I understand." So the first day he's back we had breakfast in the Senate dining room—Mankiewicz, Gary Hart, Doug Bennet, my administrative aide. I told Mankiewicz the full story of my health, leaving out no item, including the dates and electric shock. His reaction was calm, but he said, "This word shock. Boy, that's a tough word for the public."