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"Welcome." After hearing Scranton's announcement of candidacy, Dwight Eisenhower said, rather remarkably: "At last someone has done what I have urged." Romney and Rockefeller both praised Scranton's move, but neither promised to deliver his delegates. In London, Nixon said he thought Scranton was doing the right thing, but he remained neutral. But when he got back to New York, Nixon flashed his stiletto, said of Scranton: "If a man receives a phone call and changes his mind, he isn't a very strong man. He's got to make his own decisions and not appear to be a puppet maneuvered by someone else."
Leaders of Henry Cabot Lodge's campaign immediately threw their support to Scranton. Barry Goldwater said, "I welcome Bill Scranton into the race."
Then he reminded everyone that Scranton had written him a letter in December, saying, "I hope you decide to run." Cracked Goldwater: "Governor Scranton's persuasiveness is one of the major reasons I announced my own candidacy for the presidency."
Barry had every cause for confidence. Every tried and tested political factor weighs heavily against Scranton's being able to pick up enough delegates to win in San Francisco. Indeed, his move required a degree of bravado: rarely before has a major U.S. presidential candidate stood up a bare four weeks before a nominating convention and insisted that in that short time he could prove to the U.S. that he should be in the White House.
Yet Bill Scranton will be no neophyte pushover. He has youth, style and a nonstop campaign technique. He is a millionaire, an American aristocrat descended from a proud and public-spirited family. His political credentials are solid. He served in the State Department first as a press aide, later as office manager and liaison man with the White House and Cabinet under the Eisen hower Administration. He was elected to Congress from Pennsylvania's 10th District in 1960—a year in which John F. Kennedy carried the state. In 1962 he was elected Governor over former Philadelphia Mayor Richardson Dilworth by nearly half a million votes. As Governor, he has reformed the state's corruption-filled patronage system, beaten big labor's bosses in a legislative fight over unemployment-compensation reforms, attracted new industry.
Even more relevant, he resurrected the Pennsylvania Republican Party after it had been fractured by factionalism. If there is a split in the national party —which there could well be if Scranton wins the nomination from Barry—his polished abilities at unifying will be indispensable. So far, Scranton has retained a personally friendly attitude toward Goldwater, even while smashing hard at Goldwater's stand on some issues. In his telegram to Barry, he said, "I think you know that, though I cannot agree with many of the positions you have taken, I respect you as a man." And Scranton's views are such as might appeal to the broadest segment of the Republican spectrum. His own favorite thumbnail self-description: "I am a liberal on civil rights, a conservative on fiscal policies and an internationalist on foreign affairs."