George C. Wallace and the Politics of Powerlessness: The Wallace Campaigns for the Presidency, 1964-76

by Jody Carlson

Overview

This is the only complete study of the Wallace phenomenon. It covers all of the presidential campaigns and views wallace from a variety of vantage ints: historical context, content anal-ysis of speeches, and analysis of elec-tion data, including voting statistics and attitudinal patterns of supporters. Poli-tics of Powerlessness examines na-tionwide support for George C. Wal-lace in the presidential campaigns of 1964, 1968, 1972, and 1976. A number of election and candidate preference surveys are used as sources of data on supporters. An understanding of Wal-lace's appeal is provided through an examination of themes noted through-out his speeches and an analysis of his political history from biographical sources, personal interviews, and newspaper accounts of the time. The picture of Wallace that emerges is one of a man who saw himself as a crusader for his supporters' interests, while de-liberately heightening and intensifying their feelings of powerlessness as a means of getting votes.

Carlson shows that Wallace voters were not marginal. They did not reflect a loss of status, nor were they simply outside the mainstream of political life. They were very much like major party voters, with the exception of their feel-ings of political powerlessness that me about by increased government ..rticipation in state politics. This work informed not only by a careful anal-ysis, but by interviews with Wallace, many of his followers, and people active in his campaigns. The work has the additional advantage of having follow-up analyses and interviews as, late as 1978. In this sense, it represents not only a scholarly analysis of the Wallace phenomenon, but the most up-to-date analysis as well.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781138510340
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	12/18/2020
Pages:	332
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

Table of Contents

List of Tables and Figures viii

Preface xi

Acknowledgments xiv

Prologue: Wallace's South 1

1 The Politics of Powerlessness 5

2 Voting Theories and the Wallace Voter 9

3 Public Office 1945-1963: Wallace's Move Toward Segregation and National Notoriety 19

4 The 1964 Presidential Primaries: Breaking in on the National Scene 27

5 Wallace Support in 1964: Building a Constituency 45

6 Analysis of 1964 Speeches: "George C. Wallace for President" 61

7 1968: The Third Party 67

8 Wallace Support in 1968: From Southern to National Politics 85

9 Analysis of 1968 Speeches: "Stand Up for America" 127

10 1972: Going After the Democratic Nomination 133

11 Wallace Support in 1972: The Florida Primary 157

12 Analysis of 1972 Speeches: "Send Them a Message" 173

13 1976: The Last Hurrah 181

14 Wallace Support in 1976: Into the Mainstream 221

15 Analysis of 1976 Speeches: "Trust the People" 247

16 Wallace Support: Demographic and Attitudinal Changes, 1964 to 1976 253

Epilogue 269

Conclusion 275

Appendix: Methods 281

Bibliography 287

Index 319

Editorial Reviews

"Dr. Carlson has written a simultane- i ouslyfascinating and scholarly study of the Wallace movement. It combines analysis of voting data, psychological f theory, and public speeches, and does so in a literate writing style. Her unique access to George Wallace and his staff makes this an indispensable beginning to understanding an important trend in American politics." —Gerald Pomper, professor of political science, Rutgers University "Dr. Carlson has, without a doubt, il­luminated the actual popular physics of the Wallace phenomenon as thoroughly as they've ever been explored before. For that reason, her book will be an indispensable resource for future stu­dents of and commentators on that phe­nomenon and its decline." —Marshall Frady, author of Wallace

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