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White, Jackson shaved the tips off his Za-pata-style mustache and dropped his usual rhymes and alliterations. His aim was to become a "general market" candidate appealing to more than just blacks and the poor. To a degree, Jackson succeeded.
"He seemed 'statesmanlike,' " said Iowa Democratic Vice Chairman Barbara Leach, a Hart supporter. After the debate, Jackson stepped up his attacks on Mondale, trying to drive home the message that he is a genuine alternative to the front runner, not just someone out to spur black voter registration.
To Jackson's chagrin, the Democratic National Committee flatly refused at week's end to open up the delegate-selection rules, which he claims favor party regulars like Mondale. Jackson's organization has been able to document only about $100,000 of the $400,000 raised so far, in order to obtain federal matching funds, and has missed the filing deadlines for the Nevada, Rhode Island and Puerto Rico delegate selections. Moreover, Jackson has been enjoying a honeymoon, not only with the press but with the other candidates. They have been respectful of his bid to become the first black to contend seriously for the nomination, and mesmerized by his brilliant speaking and charismatic style. In the debate and on the hustings, Jackson's positions have yet to be vigorously challenged.
> Senator Ernest Rollings of South Carolina is perhaps the only candidate who is as quick-witted as Jackson, or more so. He is unafraid to take risky positions, like backing a restoration of the draft and freezing all Government spending for a year to reduce the deficit. But during the debate his wit turned nasty when he snapped at Askew, "You listen! You've got a tic in your ear too." Askew has a slight facial tic.
Said a friend of Rollings': "It was as bad as James Watt talking about the woman, the black and the cripple. It revealed a meanness." To be a contender, Rollings will have to finish in the top three in New Hampshire, an unlikely prospect.
>Former Florida Governor Askew may have earned sympathy from Rollings' attack, but he appeared too eager to overcome his hopelessly low poll standing.
Last week he failed to get the one vote he needed most: the endorsement of the right-wing Manchester, N.H., Union Leader, which has considerable influence among the conservative, pro-life Democrats courted by Askew. The newspaper lambasted all the candidates with a pungent headline: SPARE us THE NITWITS FROM NEVER-NEVER LAND.
> Senator Alan Cranston of California has struggled to overcome his age (69) and bald, gaunt appearance. When a woman at the debate asked him why he dyed his sparse hair, his smile looked a little forced. He sheepishly answered that he was trying to keep up with Moderators Koppel and Donahue. Cranston's one-note campaign for a nuclear freeze appears to be melting, though his antinuke supporters could be an effective weapon in the Iowa caucuses, which favor organized activists. Cranston said last week that he would almost surely quit the race if he did not break out of the pack in Iowa or New Hampshire.
> George McGovern, the party's badly beaten nominee in 1972, seemed gentle, avuncular and irrelevant. His most memorable statement was to urge his colleagues not to gang up on Mondale.