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The announcement loosed a flood of excitement. Conspiracy theories took wing like a fallout of finches. Barry Goldwater I-told-you-so-ed: "Romney was nothing more than a stalking-horse for Rockefeller." Some seers deduced that Rockefeller had stabbed Romney the previous week by admitting that he would accept a draft. Others whispered that it was a twin double cross: Romney quitting early enough to wreck Rockefeller's timetable in retaliation for Rockefeller's supposed duplicity. No one, of course, could substantiate anything, and the speculation was subsiding as the shock wore off.
What did not subside was the suddenly overwhelming pressure on Rockefeller. Upon landing in Washington minutes after the Romney announcement, Rocky was engulfed in a fog bank of conflicting advice from fellow Republicans. Those already sympathetic to him—Senators Jacob Javits, Hugh Scott, Edward Brooke and a chorus of others —counseled action. The general feeling was that Romney's departure had removed the last shred of justification for Rockefeller's judicious isolation. Senator Mark Hatfield of Oregon spoke for most of them: "He can't play coy. If he's going anywhere, he should get out on the track now."
Votes & Headlines. But which track? It was still early enough for Rockefeller to enter the Wisconsin, Indiana and Nebraska primaries. To do so would take enormous energy and bravery—some said foolhardiness—because he would be exposing himself to conservative animosity, with virtually no chance of victory. Midwestern Republican leaders questioned by TIME supported this view. The Midwest is essentially Nixon country, and although it contains pockets of Rockefeller sentiment, the leaders agreed that the risks would be far too large. Oregon Governor Tom McCall, who had earlier announced a write-in campaign for Rockefeller in his state, invited the New Yorker to challenge Nixon in his bailiwick, where Rockefeller beat Goldwater in 1964 and where Nixon is now vulnerable. Rockefeller and Nixon, said McCall, "are the best. If we had them, it would be a primary at its very best in a state that is a microcosm of the national election."
Not to compete could also be dangerous. There are delegate votes to be wooed and headlines to be won. In Rockefeller's case, total abstention from primaries, or even holding out for a relatively easy run in Oregon, has special risks. Those who accuse him of not being a "regular" Republican would count it as further evidence of his disdain for the party apparatus and for traditional procedures. Besides, Nixon can hardly be counted on to stand still for the next couple of months.