| All of them but one were wearing my campaign buttonsI made my way down each aisle, shaking hands to the music and fighting back the tearsI knew the election was overMy people were bringing their native son home
Near the end of almost all my campaigns, I turned up at the morning shift at the Campbells Soup factory in Fayetteville, where the workers prepared turkeys and chickens for soups it was the earliest shift change in ArkansasIn 1982, it was cold and rainy when I began shaking hands in the darkOne man joked that he had intended to vote for me, but was having second thoughts about voting for someone with no better sense than to campaign in the dark in a cold rain
I learned a lot on those dark morningsIll never forget seeing one man drop his wife offWhen the door to their pickup opened, there were three young children sitting between themThe man told me they had to get the kids up at a quarter to four every morningAfter he took his wife to imitation louis vuitton wallets work, he dropped the kids off with a babysitter who took them to school, because he had to be at work by seven
Its easy for a politician in this mass-media culture to reduce electioneering to fund-raisers, rallies, advertisements, and a debate or twoAll that may be enough for the voters to make an intelligent decision, but the candidates miss out on a lot, including the struggles of people who have their hands full just getting through the day and doing the best they can for their kidsI had made up my mind that if those folks gave me another chance, Id never forget them
On November 2, they gave me that chanceI won 55 percent of the vote, carrying fifty-six of the seventy-five counties, losing eighteen counties in Republican western Arkansas and one in south ArkansasMost of the white rural counties came back, though the margins in several were closeThe margin wasnt close in the largest county, PulaskiI swept the eleven counties in northeast Arkansas cartier santos 100 watch where we had worked especially hardAnd the black vote was staggering
One black leader I particularly liked, Emily Bowens, was mayor of the small community of Mitchellville in southeast ArkansasI had helped her in my first term, and she repaid the debt in full: I won Mitchellville 1968 in the primary runoff with PurcellWhen I called her to thank her for getting me 96 percent of the vote, she apologized for the eight votes we lostGovernor, Ill find those eight people and straighten them out by November, she promisedOn November 2, I carried Mitchellville 2560Emily had turned the eight and registered fifty-two more
After the election, I heard from people all over the countryTed Kennedy and Walter Mondale called just as they had in 1980And I received some wonderful lettersOne came from an unlikely source: General James Drummond, who had commanded the troops during the Cuban crisis at Fort Chaffee two years earlierHe said he was glad I won, because while rolex datejust it may have seemed that we marched to different drums at Fort Chaffee I appreciated and admired your leadership, your principles, and your willingness to stand up and be counted for the people of ArkansasI admired Drummond too, and his letter meant more to me than he could have known
The Democrats did well all over the country and especially in the South, winning a majority of the thirty-six governorships, picking up seats in the House of Representatives, up for grabs largely because of Americas troubled economyAmong the new governors were two old ones besides me: George Wallace of Alabama, who had apologized to black voters for his racist past from his wheelchair; and Michael Dukakis of Massachusetts, who, like me, had been defeated after his first term and had just defeated the man who beat him
My supporters were ecstaticAfter a long, history-making campaign, they had every right to their raucous celebrationBy contrast, I was feeling strangely chanel silver clutch bag subduedI was happy but didnt feel like gloating over my victoryI didnt blame Frank White for beating me last time or for wanting to be governor againLosing had been my faultWhat I mostly felt on election night, and for days afterward, was a deep, quiet gratitude that the people of the state I loved so much were willing to give me another chanceI was determined to vindicate their judgment
O n January 11, 1983, I took the oath of office for the second time, before the largest crowd ever to attend an inauguration in our stateThe celebrants had brought me back from the political grave, and their support would keep me in the governors office for ten more years, the longest period I ever stayed in one job
The challenge I faced was to keep my promise to be more responsive to the people while maintaining my commitment to move our state forwardThe task was complicated, and made more important, by the dismal state of the economyThe states unemployment rate cheap chanel bags for sale wa |