Archive: Harrison Hickman
Democratic pollster Harrison Hickman has the answers to your questions. Hickman, a key strategist for the Gore 2000 campaign knows more about polling and the Democratic party than just about anyone. Veteran CBS News White House Correspondent Bill Plante brings a top political expert into the Smoke-Filled Room each week to answer your questions:
Plante: Our first viewer, Samuel Mukasa gets right to the point: “What do you think of the possibility of a Gore/George Mitchell ticket?”
Hickman: Senator Mitchell is one of many people who would be great vice-presidential candidates, but the process has only just begun. Keep one thing in mind as you hear and read the endless speculation about prospective running mates in the weeks to come: Those who are talking don’t know what’s going on, and those who know what’s going aren’t talking. But one thing I know for certain is that it won’t be Dan Quayle.
Plante: Steve from Tuscon notes “Vice President Gore sent his kids to private schools. Are there no public schools good enough for Mr. Gore's kids? He seems to believe that low income families shouldn't have the same choice for better schools that he chose for his kids with his opposition to school vouchers.”
Hickman: The Gores have sent their children to public and private schools, making the best choice for each of their own children. As a public official, the Vice President believes his responsibility is to do everything possible to make our public schools the very best in the world, since over 90% of American families depend on the public schools to educate their children. And as the son of two public school teachers, I certainly agree!
Hickman: The Vice-President has proposed dozens of new policy initiatives during the campaign, as you’ll see at the campaign website (www.algore2000.com). Most of the Bush campaign has been walk-and-wave or slash-and-burn, so he is playing catch up on the policy side. (He never mentioned health care before last week.) Many of the Gore initiatives were announced last year, and new proposals come out on a regular basis, so keeping checking the website.
Plante: Mark Sirabella wants to know if “any consideration been given by the Gore campaign to have the Vice President ask that the Commission on Presidential Debates open them to any candidate that is on the ballot in al 50 states and/or has qualified for federal matching funds? Under such a guideline, the Reform and Libertarian Party Presidential candidates would be included in this campaign's upcoming debates.”
Hickman: The Vice President has offered to debate the presumptive Republican Party nominee twice a week, every week until Election Day instead of television and radio ads. We’re disappointed Governor Bush has refused this proposal so far, but hopeful he will see the value of it. On the other matter, the Gore campaign responds to invitations made by sponsoring organizations, not the other way around.
Plante: ”With the GOP doing very well in recent polling in the key states of Illinois, Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania it becomes all the more important for the Democrats to make inroads in the conservative south. How do the Democrats intend to compete in the south or do you feel your efforts are better spent in Illinois and Michigan?” asks E.J. Loudon.
Hickman: Our intention is to compete in every state – no matter how long they have been in the Union and no matter how many times they tried to leave. (As a native of North Carolina, I feel entitled to say that.)
Plante: ”How will Al Gore be able to separate himself from his past money raising fiascos to support campaign finance reform,” asks Ed Weber. “He is currently coming off as a polldriven, typical oldschool politician. He seems he saw Senator McCain have some success with this issue and then all of a sudden, adopted it as his own.”
Hickman: Several unknown (and generally unreported) pieces of history might interest you. The Vice President’s interest in campaign finance reform is a very long and deeply personal one. Al Gore, Sr., held some of the very first Senate hearings into campaign finance in the 1950s. He also was defeated in part by illegal contributions to his opponent in 1970 (the Townhouse Money scandal uncovered in the Watergate investigation). Al Gore, Jr., proposed public financing for Congressional campaigns in 1979, shortly after he was elected to the Congress, and has supported essentially every reform proposal since then – including the relatively recent McCain-Feingold bill. So he’s hardly a recent convert on this issue.
Plante: ”Do you think the Clinton fatigue factor will have an adverse effect on Gore’s campaign?” questions Courtney.
Hickman: No. All Americans who are not members of the Republican Congressional Caucus are ready to move on to other issues. In the final analysis, the Vice President will be judged on his own merits and how he compares to the Republican nominee.
Plante: Another viewer writes “President Clinton is known for his extensive use of polling. How much does Vice President Gore rely on polls in deciding which issues he will stress?#148;
Hickman: I’m tempted to say, “not nearly enough.” But the reality is that the Vice President uses polls to monitor our progress in communicating his issue positions, not to determine what those positions will be.
Plante: ”Answer this one honestly” says Daniel. “Which Republican opponent did you fear the most? Bush, McCain or someone else?”
Hickman: There isn’t one. Honestly.
Plante: Rick questions “Are the national party conventions in the summer still important parts of presidential campaigns? They seem so scripted and boring; are they still relevant?”
Hickman: The conventions remain important at a number of levels. The roll call of the states and the acceptance speeches remain essential parts of the American political tradition and symbols of how our system works. Scads of academic research shows that the party platforms, which are accepted and announced at the party conventions, are excellent predictors of what the winning candidate will do in office. And, besides, where else could you see that many silly hats or balloons in one place?
Plante: And finally, are Americans more interested in politics and campaigns than they were when you started your career, or less? Has their opinion of politicians changed much over the years?
Hickman: Americans are more interested in policy but less interested in politics than they were when I first began doing this professionally. At this precise moment, American voters’ actually like politicians a little more than they have at several points in the last 30 years.
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