[Memo from Stephen A. Berrang to Barbara C. Jordan - February 11, 1985] Page: 3 of 8
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supported by his own groupies, the public did not perceive it as such. If the
party wants to field candidates that are acceptable to a majority, assuming
the Republicans don't nominate a Jesse Helms type of lunatic fringe candidate,
it should allow their candidates to be selected by the majority.
The second area of concern is the party institutions and and goals. I am
impressed by the operations of the RNC. Several years ago when they offered
me a job, they were fully integrated into the "high tech" era. (The position
involved aiding the GOP in the redistricting battle.) Upon a later visit to
the DNC, I was dismayed with the low tech, haphazard organization of the party
headquarters. As the RNC gears up for its fight for domination on the state
and congressional level, the democrats should be preparing for the onslaught.
It would be foolish to rest on their majority party status in light of the
considerable resources and talent that the RNC will be able to muster. If not
careful, the DNC could find its majority party status naught but a fig leaf in
a political garden resembling Eden after the fall from the state of grace.
A third area of concern for me is the goals of the party. I am reminded
of the old saying my mother would repeat to me in my more greedy days "Gimmie,
Gimmie never gets, have you not learned your manners yet?" To myself and
others (based mostly on an informal poll of my very extensive family network)
the Democrats seem to be composed of a bunch of greedy special interest
groups. This one wants comparable worth, this one wants protection that will
be costly to consumers, this one wants new and improved welfare and "give
away" programs that would involve new taxes that would hit my class fairly
hard, etc. While I am not suggesting that the Democratic Party try to clone
itself into a version of the GOP ( it would not work anyway: look how far
fiscal responsibility and anti communism got Mondale) they do need to change
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Berrang, Stephen A. [Memo from Stephen A. Berrang to Barbara C. Jordan - February 11, 1985], text, February 11, 1985; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth611546/m1/3/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas Southern University.