Nation: Projecting the Image

Time was when top officers of national political conventions were picked because of their position of integral power within the party structure. For example, the permanent chairman has often been the party leader in the U.S. House of Representatives—Democrat Sam Rayburn or Republicans Joe Martin and Charlie Halleck. But such senior party citizens have a tendency toward bald heads, bulb noses, or gravel voices—and none of these come over well on television. The fashion nowadays is to select younger, better-looking men to project the party's image. Thus, the Republican National Committee last week named Oregon's Governor Mark Hatfield, 41, temporary chairman...

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