1984 United States Senate election in South Carolina

Transcription

Last Sunday we were out here with hundreds of those critters! Oh, they'll be here again. (male speaker) He's a typical South Carolinian, a typical Charlestonian. (male #2) We'd call him, affectionately, the "bull-headed Dutchman." I don't see any shrimp boats, but see that tanker? Where? See it way out there? (male #3) In any office, after being governor, he would have made many, many contributions to South Carolina. (female speaker) Fritz is so serious about the work that he does. (male #4) He's probably the most respected legislator up here. ♪ (Fritz Hollings) I never had any idea about being remembered. Just conscientious and hard-working. What a man'll do in politics is best proved by what he's done. Performance is better than promise. ♪ (male narrator) Ernest Frederick Hollings was born in Charleston, South Carolina, on New Year's Day, 1922, the fourth of five children. He finished public school at 16 and graduated from the Citadel in 1942. He served during World War II in North Africa and Europe in the Army and left as a captain. After receiving a law degree from the University of South Carolina, he began politics. Fritz's father used to have a... a distributor, a store in Charleston that he sold stuff to these country stores, and my father liked Fritz's father very much. He wouldn't buy nothing from nobody except what Mr. Hollings sold. In the Depression, he went broke. We all pitched in, trying to keep things going, but he ended up as a salesman, and he traveled around to the same stores he served. When I got out on the trail, I didn't know how much that meant, but whether or not you could get your card at that cash register-- they'd look at me and say, "Are you Bubba Hollings's boy?" "If you're half as honest as your daddy, put your cards there; we'll get you some votes." He didn't leave me one cent in actual money, but he left me a millionaire in reputation. (narrator) In 1948, Fritz Hollings was elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives, serving as speaker pro tempore for three years. The United States Junior Chamber of Commerce selected him as one of America's Ten Outstanding Young Men in 1954. That same year, he became one of South Carolina's youngest lieutenant governors. (male speaker) Hollings entered American politics at a time when there was an opportunity to make change, and the essential ingredient in making that change was enthusiasm and energy and the willingness and the will to do it. (narrator) In 1958, he ran against former University of South Carolina President Donald Russell in the Democratic primary for governor. Hollings won and became the state's chief executive officer at 37. We all have a mutual challenge, one mutual goal, and that is for South Carolina to provide the best opportunity for its citizens. (male speaker) When Senator Hollings became governor in 1959, the state was faced with a deficit, and he recognized that we could not attract industry if we did not have the state on a sound financial basis. (narrator) By raising taxes and cutting spending, South Carolina, under Hollings, balanced the state's budget, achieving the triple-A credit rating. The governor then went after jobs. Governor Luther Hodges was our chief competition from North Carolina, and we would try to stay ahead of Luther Hodges and get there before he did. (Fritz Hollings) You've got to position yourself. Fourteen thousand Chambers of Commerce, Committees of One Hundred are filing into New York saying, "We'll cook you a barbecue... moonlight and magnolias." That's nonsense. They want to get their operation into the black. (male speaker) Fritz was a one-man sales team, and he went into California to meet with some upper-level management people in a national industry and pretty well sold them with his articulate nature and personality and promised them that we could do a number of things that would be covered by the technical education program. The only thing, at that time, there was no such program in South Carolina. But he says, "We will do this," and then he saw that we did. (West) That's when the technical training program was born. We decided that we would have a program designed to train workers for specific industries, and we also would develop a program of technical-vocational centers that would service every area of the state. [heavy machinery rumbling] (Fritz Hollings) I never had an industry say, "You promised, but you didn't perform." (narrator) Industry brought over $700 million and 40,000 new jobs to the state. Other issues included education, insurance, mental health, and concerns of textile workers and farmers. ♪ While many Southern politicians spoke of states' rights and condemned integration, Hollings took another stance as he left the governor's office. (male speaker) Here we are in 1963, and his other colleagues throughout the South, the other governors, were making very popular stands against racial integration. Fritz Hollings had the courage to say to the people of South Carolina, "We must integrate our colleges peacefully." It was so tense, you could just sense it. He said, "We are a government of laws, not of men. "Harvey Gantt will be admitted to Clemson. There will be no violence." [band playing "Dixie"] [crowd cheering] (Fritz Hollings) Senator Kennedy's record of running to represent all sections of this nation and his record of service to all sections of this nation is unquestioned. (Riley) He is the reason that John F. Kennedy carried South Carolina by 10,000 votes in 1960. Hollings put his reputation on the line. He stumped the state for John F. Kennedy, and it's the reason that Kennedy won. That might have cost Hollings the Senate race in '62. (male speaker) I got interested in politics in my teen age. I determined then that I was going into politics and try to do something for the working people of this state. And part of the concern for now and the future is, shall we continue to tolerate Senator Johnston in the United States Senate? And this must be decided now, in June, not in November. We must ask, frankly, has he represented South Carolina, or has he just represented himself? Hollings' decision to challenge Olin D. Johnston is probably one of the bravest acts of his political career. I don't know if he would consider it brave or perhaps even foolhardy because the senator had been in office for a very long time, he had a great deal of seniority, and he had powerful committee posts. And I think in the final analysis, Senator Hollings would agree that he really never had a chance, and he did lose very badly in that election. ♪ [indistinct lyrics] ♪ Fritz Hollings! [crowd cheering and screaming] Republicanism says, Throw your sticks away here in our Southland and shout loudly. Holler to the top of your voice, and then run around in circles with the old Navy expression, "When in danger, when in doubt, run in circles, scream and shout." I want to direct your attention to my record of performance in a little more a year. The 1966 primary was different, quite different in that both Russell and Hollings had run against each other once before. Hollings defeated Russell in that election in 1958, and the primary was such that people in South Carolina were disturbed over the fact that Russell had been responsible for his own appointment to the U.S. Senate. (narrator) Hollings defeated Russell in the primary, but encountered a tougher win in the general election against Republican Marshall Parker. As Hollings took office, it was a time of wars: a war on poverty, and a war in Vietnam. (Terry) He came back and was called to the White House almost immediately after his return. Lyndon Johnson was there to greet him, and he said, "Well, what did you think?" And Senator Hollings said, "If we don't bomb some particular targets, "it's going to be a long, unpopular war, "and we're not gonna win this war the way it's being fought now." ...many good reasons not to have a declaration of war. The President, acting as commander in chief, has the full support of the Congress. To say this war's unconstitutional is not the fact and is not the law. Well, it is shocking that in 1968, it's still this bad. We were the lowest per capita income state second from the bottom, it's not a surprise at all that we do have poverty. But the housing conditions, they are no less than shocking. (male speaker) Fritz Hollings actually came out, spent days going from home to home, looking in refrigerators, looking at the roofs that were actually leaking, met with families, saw the areas where water was not available and inadequate sanitary facilities did exist, or none in existence at all. He showed his caringness with finesse, with professionalism, with tact, with concern, and with wisdom. ♪ (narrator) The poverty tours led to a book... and an agenda, which included nutrition for poor women and children, further development of the food stamp and Medicaid programs, and the addition of low-cost, preventative health care. From a moral standpoint, the compassion that he had for the people. The need was clearly identified at the time, and he took the initiative to do something and make a change. (narrator) In social areas, some observers would say Hollings is a liberal. In other areas, a conservative. Fritz Hollings knows more about the federal budget than any person in the country, bar none. If you eliminated the Budget Committee, the President, the Congress, the courts, the FBI, the drug enforcement program, the environment program, your nuclear waste program, the Department of the Interior, the Indian program, all foreign aid, and just eliminated the loss to government, at this minute, we're spending $100 billion more than we'd be taking in. (narrator) As senior member of the Budget Committee, Hollings has led numerous initiatives to curb deficit spending. In 1985, he coauthored the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Reduction Act, so-called the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings bill. Its intention was to balance the federal budget by 1991. Let me let our colleague Fritz Hollings and then the cosponsors of this bill make a statement... Fritz. I'm glad to join Senator Gramm and Senator Rudman. I'm an endangered species. I have voted for a balanced budget as a member of Congress. ♪ ♪ (narrator) Efforts to protect the South Carolina textile industry urged fairness and competition, pushing Congress to pass a bipartisan, comprehensive trade policy. [marchers chanting] One thing that the import of textiles was doing was cutting the standards of workers in this country. We couldn't compete with a dollar an hour in some places and 27 cents an hour in other places. So his main concern was taking care of the people he represented. Why is...textile bill that you're supporting so important? The bill is so important actually to enforce these 34 agreements. We have 34 bilaterals. The mentality in the Congress is that we deserve to go out of business. Read the "New Republic" and these magazine articles for this sophisticate, Georgetown, drawing room crowd. We're gone if we don't sober up. Senator Ernest Hollings of South Carolina is tall, white-haired, shoulders back, chin up, a bit of a Southern accent, and now, in addition, a candidate for President. I am announcing today my candidacy for the Presidency of the United States. [cheering and applause] [cheering and applause] (male speaker) I think he ran for President because he thought that this government could accomplish something. It galls him to see people come into town who don't like government: "I want to preside over government, but I don't like government." That is fundamentally repulsive to Senator Hollings. He thinks disciplined, well-administered government has a positive role to play in moving this country forward, in educating its people, in making us competitive in the economic marketplace, and he believes that that resource has to be hands-on leadership. It's the vehicle to serve the country. (male voice-over) On February 28th, the people of New Hampshire will go to the polls and send a message to the American people. Let's make sure that message makes sense. Fritz Hollings for President. (narrator) The path to the White House ended in New Hampshire. Frankly, I think part of it was that he was a Southerner, and I think that that hurt. It was controlling, but it certainly wasn't an advantage. Secondly, he is a maverick. In the midst of that campaign, there were seven or eight people running, and everybody had their solution for this and that, and he says, "Why don't we freeze the budget?" That was one of the principal things that he advocated, and it seemed so simple that all of the Washington gurus couldn't quite buy it, and its great premise was in its simplicity. Third, and this is not quite so complimentary, he has a habit-- not a habit, but an inclination sometimes to say the wrong things and to use the wrong expression, and he gets himself into political difficulty, and he did that a couple of times. Fourth, there is the money problem, and fifth, he is very much a hands-on person. He really, really likes to have control of what he's doing, and he never was willing in his own mind to delegate and to give up enough responsibility in that campaign to other people so that he could do what he can do best. (narrator) Today, the junior senator from South Carolina is the sixth-ranking member in the Senate. While not the power of the White House, it reaches far. Here in the Senate, where important roles tend to come as much from your committee assignments as anything else, Fritz, of course, has two powerful committee assignments due to his seniority. He is chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee. That is a very important committee. Lots of legislation comes out of that committee. Many issues affecting this country and the world come out of that committee. He also is chairman on a committee that I'm now the ranking member called Commerce, State, Justice Subcommittee of Appropriations. That committee is a huge budget dealing with some of the most important agencies in the country. So he and I have a dual role of fashioning legislation, and that is a terrific power base to get things done. I could authorize everything in the world. I could be on the "Today" show and "Good Morning America" and on the Sunday talk shows, talking about my plan for the drug enforcement policy of America. I get all done, and I get everybody to vote for it, and then it goes over to Fritz Hollings. Fritz is the guy that says, "This works; this doesn't." Bum-bum-bum, zip-zip, he cuts it out, and he appropriates the money. [rockets booming] (narrator) As chairman of Commerce, Science, and Transportation, Hollings oversees NASA. Do we have an ordered mission for NASA over five to ten years to know where we're headed? (narrator) Railroads. Does Conrail intend to sue the union for furnishing a drunk driver? (narrator) The oceans and environment. I'm worried about the performance of the Coast Guard and keeping the reserve up. (narrator) And broadcasting. I want to rock! (narrator) Rock videos were shown at a 1985 Senate hearing. I...would tell you it's outrageous filth. (narrator) Hollings does not hesitate to use his debating skills learned as a trial lawyer. My question is, would the Soviet Union, if they pursued that, what would their step be? What do you think they're gonna do? They're gonna continue, I guess. (Kerry) They're gonna continue. (Fritz Hollings) Right. And if they continue, what will our response be? We're gonna continue. We live in the real world. You don't need arms control agreements. As you said, "This ABM Treaty defends us." Hooey! That's already been violated. (narrator) Such debates of international conflicts paled when Hollings' own Charleston faced a new threat. When Hugo hit South Carolina in September 1989, he became the chief critic of FEMA. (Riley) Fritz Hollings was an absolute tiger on behalf of the state of South Carolina after the hurricane. People were wringing their hands and saying, "It's not going too well with FEMA," and doggone it, Hollings said, "My people in South Carolina are hurting," and he had the courage to speak up for us. (narrator) A longer storm with more devastating effect is that of drugs and its impact on America. The 1990 statewide drug hearings, held before the Appropriations Committee chaired by Hollings, resulted in increased federal funding to South Carolina to fight substance abuse. So that's what we'll do. But we need to call March of Dimes and ask to keep reporting in about the reservations so we'll have some idea. (narrator) Rita Louise Liddy-- "Peatsy"--and Fritz were married in 1971. She is one of the few congressional wives who not only works in her husband's office but also travels with him. Nice to see you. (Peatsy Hollings) Because I'm involved in what goes on in the office, I'm not just going to stand there, "Hi, how are you?" I can just get right in there, and I enjoy that. Now, I'm careful that if I disagree with Fritz that I do not talk about it because he's the one that's elected to office. So I don't disagree with him publicly, but I do disagree with him privately, and I lobby, but he listens to me like he listens to any other constituent. Peatsy is my best calling card. I tell you right now, she is the best. She started in public education as a teacher in Florida and South Carolina and in the rural areas too. And she continues to teach; I'm the pupil. She is powerfully interested in everything we do and the best called-on in Washington to give a talk to the bankers' group, to the saving and loan, to the farmers' wives when they come 'cause she can talk on all these different subjects, but she can give you an update on this budget. She reads everything. You've got the intellectual genius that can read a book a day just by turning the pages, and then you've got the sensitive genius. When somebody dies, I say, "Well, I sure am sorry." When you say that, she's hurt. She's a sensitive genius. (male speaker) You know me, sir? Yes, sirree! (Fritz Hollings) You see us on the weekend, at social events, on the floor of the United States Senate. One thing South Carolinians won't stand for is some two-faced, dubious public servant. Even if they don't agree with you, they appreciate the truth and standing for what you believe in. I think that's what's got me elected five times. They know where I stand. (Mitchell) He fights for what he believes in. He speaks out. And he has what I think is that rarest of things in American politics: independence of judgment. Fritz Hollings is nobody's man. Now, what's the rush while it's working... while it's working on the President's blockade where we can keep them together? We need to redeploy. We need to get all of those ground forces of the United States off that desert. Leave the 200,000 Arab forces there, not as a trigger, but as a bait. We've got our Air Force. We'll keep them and the Navy there, and if Saddam comes over, we'll really have an Arab versus Arab war, and we'd get some credibility in this thing, and then we might win, but we've made it an American war, an American attack, and an American invasion, a superpower against a third-world country, for oil. When Fritz votes, you know that the only thing that is dictating his vote is his conscience. Senator Hollings does not mind offending people if he thinks that his position is correct and if what he's looking for is the right thing to do. He really does not hesitate to go against the grain. He's been a terrific senator in my book. I know one thing: He is my friend, and I know I'm his. And I know he's a good man. There's nothing in the world he could gain to be a friend of mine, nothing political or economical or religious. There's nothing that he could gain for being a friend of a poor thing as I am but if he wasn't a good man. (Peatsy Hollings) I think he likes what he's doing because there are too many opportunities that come, maybe not every day, but very often, to do something else that would be far more lucrative financially for him, but he loves what he's doing, and he thinks that he really is making a difference. [seagulls screeching] (narrator) Senator Fritz Hollings is in his fifth term, ranked sixth in seniority after over 40 years in public office. [seagulls screeching] ♪ ♪ Captioned by: CompuScripts Captioning, Inc. www.compuscriptsinc.com ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪