Risking it All

WASHINGTON, D.C.: "There are very few surprises in Washington," says TIME's Laurence Barrett of Dole's announcement. "This was a genuine surprise. This is as big as Lyndon Johnson's decision to pull out of the race in 1968." Those who know Dole and know how closely his identity is tied to his political career also know how difficult and wrenching was his decision to wager all on his third attempt to win the presidency. "This must have been an agonizing decision," says Barrett. "But he was finally forced to do something dramatic to save his floundering campaign." Barrett reports that Dole could have simply stepped away from his majority leader duties, as everyone expected him to do when rumors were first afloat, but Dole decided to make a bold statement and stake the rest of his career on the presidency. In an effective and moving speech, Dole said: "My time to leave this office has come, and I will seek the presidency with nothing to fall back on but the judgment of the people, and nowhere to go but the White House or home." As he struggles to connect with voters and overcome President Clinton's double-digit lead, Dole is betting not only his career but his entire sense of himself that Bob Dole the man will play better than Bob Dole the Senator.

The man who set Washington abuzz with his decision to stake all on one last campaign has been defined for the last 35 years by his service in Congress. He is a political workhorse who has no hobbies, except an occasional inclination for sunbathing, and no outside interests. He spends his time in Congress, working the halls of the Senate building, getting things done, pushing bills through, convincing colleagues to vote this way or that. And when Dole is not in the Senate, he is attending fundraisers, gathering money for his campaigns or helping out fellow Republicans. When Dole regained his seat as Senate majority leader after the 1994 elections, everyone agreed that he is one of the most successful leaders the Senate has ever had. Now he is determined to convince American voters that he should be given the chance to apply that legacy to leading the nation. -->