AN ANALYSIS OF GEORGE ROMNEY'S AfiDRESsS TO THE MICHIGAN COMMUNITY ACTION ASSEMBLY Thesis for the Degree of M. A. MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY I Richard K. AIIen 1966 ‘h n... ‘__-_ LIBRARY Michigan State University masts » rv‘, '4 ~ 1. no r- 0 ma ‘ I‘M ‘- . 7‘“ “1* ‘ a 4“; ‘I (.9 do.) y‘v—g ~ . . \‘ Jl —" 1“; " _: ABSTRACT AN ANALYSIS OF GEORGE ROMNEY'S ADDRESS TO THE MICHIGAN COMMUNITY ACTION ASSEMBLY by Richard K. Allen This study is an attempt, by means of a study in depth of a single speech, to examine the Speaking of Governor George Romney, as applied to current racial and poverty issues. The thesis, in addition to analyzing the Governor's speaking, aims, through its study of this specific speaking situation, to give some insight into how he has applied a lifetime of experiences and beliefs to what communities can and should do for themselves as a supplement to the various state and federal programs in the area of race relations. This analysis attempts to answer such questions as why a certain statement was made in the address, what was behind certain statements, and why certain events related to the address occurred. Although it might be difficult to find support for such a label as "typical" for this address, a close exami- nation of Romney's speaking in general shows that the moral and ethical undercurrents found in this address may be found in many of his addresses. It is hoped that ‘the study, in addition to examining closely the speaking Richard K. Allen of George Romney, will contribute an insight into his personal attitudes toward deprivation, poverty and racial problems of today. The method of analysis employed may be considered by some readers to be quite different and unusual. It should be noted, however, that it is not the aim of the writer to do something different Just to be different. Rather the aim is to avoid the frequent pitfall of at- tempting to force a speaker or an address into a pre- conceived set of categories that simply do not fit the particular set of circumstances. It hardly seems reason— able to assume that, because many scholars have used a certain thesis format over the years and in some cases have done so correctly, all topics are perfectly suited to this single format. Chapter I, entitled, OCCASION and Chapter II, en- titled, GEORGE ROMNEY, are treated separately for several reasons. The occasion chapter is general in nature and describes the Michigan Community Action Assembly, the reasons for calling the meeting, its aims, and the setting. The George Romney chapter is treated separately because its overall content serves a general biographical and back- ground function. It is concerned with this speech and the general speaking and life of George Romney. Chapter III is an analysis of the textual divisions of the speech. The portions of text are divided as they Richard K. Allen are to make the thesis easier to read and to break the text in natural and logical places. Each section or division delves back into the historical and biographical data sug- gested by the portion of text. The textual divisions are also analyzed from the standpoint of audience response, preparation, delivery, style and particularly from the standpoint of the balance between materials of personal proof, materials of development and materials of experience. It was found that the Governor depended heavily upon his strong materials of personal proof, used his materials of experience well, but to a lesser degree, and made very limited use of the materials of development. The strong undercurrent of religious and moral be- liefs found in many of Romney's speeches was definitely present in this speech. Although speaking from a prepared text, the Governor departed from it frequently and spoke impromptu. These departures from the manuscript caused the address to be about twice as long as it was in its original form. These departures from the manuscript resulted in many vocalized pauses and some redundancy; however,they did provide all four of the occasions when spontaneous applause occurred. This study also revealed the fact that George Romney is a paradoxical figure in that he is somehow humble and yet, at the same time, very self-confident in his speaking. AN ANALYSIS OF GEORGE ROMNEY'S ADDRESS TO THE MICHIGAN COMMUNITY ACTION ASSEMBLY By 3. .3; Richard K? Allen A THESIS Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of J MASTER OF ARTS Department of Speech 1966 Approved: Affl—yfl 8 KM ..v.v , ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Grateful acknowledgment must go to Dr. David C. Ralph, my advisor and committee chairman, for his kind, critical application to my task; to Dr. Jack M. Bain and Dr. Frederick G. Alexander for their cooperation and in— valuable assistance; and to all Department of Speech staff members who have demonstrated so much faith in me. Acknowledgment must also go to my parents for their en- couragement over the years and, most particularly, to my wife, Jean and my two sons, Steven and Scott, without whose confidence, encouragement and patience this thesis could never have become a reality. 11 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . ii LIST OF APPENDICES . . . . . . . . . . . v INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Chapter I. OCCASION . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 II. GEORGE ROMNEY: THE MAN AND THE SPEAKER. . 18 Romney' 8 Life and Its Effect on His Speaking . . . . . . . . l8 Romney the Politician. . . . . . . 20 Speech Training. . . . . . 21 Materials of Personal Proof. . . . . 22 Materials of Personal Proof and Materials of Development. . . . . 24 Speech Preparation. . . . . . . . 25 Delivery . . . . 26 Paradoxical Personality of George Romney. . . . . 27 Typicality of Romney' 5 speaking . . . 28 III. THE TEXT . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 A Study of the Spoken Text at the Michigan Community Action Assembly . 31 Introduction . . . . . . . . . 31 The Urban League . . . . . Al The New Revised Constitution . . . . A7- Tumbling Legal Barriers . . . . . 52 Legal Victories; A Hollow Ring. . 54 Whitney Young; A Domestic Marshall Plan. 56 The War on Poverty. . . 59 Economic Opportunity Act .in Michigan. . 63 iii Chapter Page Need for New Staff People . . . . . 66 Michigan Is Concerned. . . . . . . 70 The Inaugural Address. . . . . . . 72 Romney the Freedom Fighter . . . . . 7A Our "Divine Destiny" . . . . . . . 76 Religious and Moral Attitudes . . . . 78 IV.- CONCLUSIONS . . . . . . . . . . . 8U BIBLIOGRAPHY . . . . . . . . . . . . . lO2 APPENDICES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106 iv Appendix A B LIST OF APPENDICES Textual Comparison KHAN Michigan Urban League Conference April lO-l2, 1965, Registrants Program Outline Page 107 116 122 INTRODUCTION This study is an examination of the speaking of Governor George Romney, as applied to current racial and poverty issues, through a study in depth of a single speech. The speech was presented to the Michigan Com- munity Action Assembly which was sponsored by the Michigan Urban League on April 10, 1966. The thesis, in addition to analyzing the Governor's speaking on this occasion, will try to show how he has applied a lifetime of experi- ence and beliefs to what communities can and should do for themselves as a supplement to the various state and national programs concerning race relations. This analy- sis will attempt to answer such questions as why a cer- tain statement was made in the address, what was behind certain statements, and why certain events related to the address occurred. Although it might be difficult to find universal support for such a label as "typical" for this address, a close examination of Romney's speaking in general shows that the moral and ethical undercurrents found in this address may be found in many of his speeches. These undercurrents, which are a natural manifestation of the Governor's strict Mormon background, have appeared in such major addresses as the 1965 Inaugural address when he said: And if as public officials and as citizens we can truthfully serve our state and each other, then we will have in all righteousness served the Creator who made us all, for, "He that is in the service of his fellow men is in the service of his Creator."1 Other examples of these undercurrents in Romney's speaking can be cited by quoting from the 1965 state of the State message in which he referred to "The divinely endow— ed right of all men without regard to creed, race or skin color to hold up their heads as self-respecting citizens,"2 and from a speech at an Associated Press meeting in 1965 when he said, "America is more than Just another nation. I believe that the hand of the Creator guided the formation and development of our country."3 The study, in addition to closely examining the speaking of George Romney, will contribute an insight into his personal attitudes toward deprivation, poverty, and racial issues today. The knowledge of these sociological ramifications are facets of the Governor that will be valuable contributions to the general body of knowledge surrounding this meteoric political figure. It appears, 1From an official transcript of the Inaugural ad- dress of Governor George Romney, January 1, l9 5. 2From the official copy of the text of the state 0f the State message of Governor George Romney, January, 1965. 3From the official copy of the text of an address is the6Associated Press by Governor George Romney, April . l9 5. according to newspaper reports, that the day may be rapidly approaching when the entire nation, and perhaps the world, may care how George Romney views these important cultural and sociological issues. The Associated Press indicated Governor Nelson Rockefeller's attitude toward Romney when it reported on the Nassau County Republican dinner, May 23, 1966 in Long Island, New York. Rockefeller and Romney shared the platform that evening. [Rockefeller said that] New York's Sen. Jacob K. Javits should be on the Republican national ticket in 1968 and indicates that Gov. Romney is his choice for the other spot. Rockefeller did not say which man should head the ticket, but it was generally interpreted that he had Romney in mind. Rockefeller, addressing himself to Romney said: "Let say here publicly, governor, that we in New York welcome and accept your initiative, and are happy to go with you down the road of sound and progressive Republican unity and strength.“I In a story referring to these statements made by Rockefeller, Jack Bell wrote: Gov. Nelson A. Rockefeller's suggestion of a 1968 Romney-Javits ticket gives Republican moderates a combination many of them might be willing to chance in an effort to retain party control. Most party leaders say that neither an all-out liberal nor an all-out conservative is likely to be nominated in 1968. Romney looks good to some leaders as a possible compromise candidate in this situation.5 On May 25, 1966 George Romney announced his intention to run for his third term as Governor, and Associated Press writer Dick Barnes wrote, "Gov. Romney of Michigan announced — “The Lansing State Journal (Michigan), May 2“, 1966. SIbid. as expected today for a third term--one that could propel him to Republican presidential nomination in 1968."6~ This possibility that the Governor may become a prime presidential candidate creates a situation in which his every speech and statement takes on added importance. This study is concerned with a specific address delivered on one specific occasion and it should be con- sidered a case study in depth. The methodology is critical, as defined in An Introduction to Graduate Study in Speech and Theatre, because the writer will be "evaluating phenomena of speech according to appropriate criteria or standards of Judgment."7 The method of reporting used here may be con- sidered by some readers to be quite different and un— usual. It is not the aim of the writer, however, to do something different just to be different. Rather the aim is to avoid the usual pitfall of attempting to force a speaker and an address into a pre-conceived set of ,categories that simply do not fit the particular set of 6The Lansing_State Journal (Michigan), May 25, 1966. (Romney was re—elected by a wide margin on NoVember 8, 1966, and carried into office with him the first Michi— gan Republican to be elected to the federal Senate in IA years. Additionally, the Governor helped regain for the Republicans the five federal congressional seats lost to Democrats two years ago and helped the Republicans wrest control of the Michigan Senate and gained a 55-55 dead- lock in the House of Representatives.) 7E1ton 8. Carter and Eline Fife, "The Critical AApproach," An Introduction to Graduate Study in Speech sand Theatre, ed. Clyde w. Dow (East Lansing, Michigan: Iflichigan State University Press, 1961), p. 82. circumstances. It hardly seems reasonable to assume that, because scholars have used a certain thesis format over the years and in many cases have done so correctly, all topics are perfectly suited to this single format. Al- though some forms of the familiar Aristotelean canons are used, each canon will not be treated as a separate chapter. It is difficult to separate the invention, arrangement, style, and delivery of this speech, and, more importantly in this address Governor Romney speaks toward several main topics, producing an address that naturally divides it- self into content parts, many of which could be developed into separate speeches. The chapters entitled OCCASION and GEORGE ROMNEY are treated separately for several reasons. The occasion concept will be handled as a separate chapter because it will describe the entire Michigan Community Action Assembly, indicate the reason the meeting was called, describe its aims and generally set the scene for the Governor's address. The George Romney chapter is treated separately because its overall content and function is biographical and deals with background materials. It is concerned with the total speech and the general speaking and life of George Romney as they apply to this speech. Chapter III is simply the analysis of the divisions of‘the text of the speech. These divisions make the thesis easier to read and break the text in natural and logical places. They are the product of a chronological substance outline which was prepared for the study. The choice of these breaking points was facilitated greatly by the fact that the Governor dealt with several separate and distinct facets of the total problem. Divisions in the text have also been made when passages are not in the original manu- script and are delivered impromptu. Each textual division delves back into the historical and biographical data sug— gested by these portions of the text. These sections of the address will also be analyzed from the standpoint of audience response, preparation, delivery, style and the materials of personal proof, development and experience. Particular attention will be paid to the Governor's use of the materials of personal proof, materials of development, materials of experience and the comparative balance of the use of these three materials of speaking. Perhaps it is wise to define these three terms. Materials of personal proof will refer to elements that arise from the speaker which lend credibility to what he says, such as competence, good character and good will.8 Materials of development may be such developmental factors as examples, statistics, repetition, comparisons, evidence, reasoning, and such factors which are intended to make the address more mean- ingful to the listener.9 Materials of experience are Inaterials "designed to appeal primarily to the listener's 8Kenneth'G. Hance, David C. Ralph, and Milton J. 'Wiksell, Principles of Speaking (Belmont, California: Wadsworth Publishing Company, Inc., 1962), p. 38. 91bid., p. 52. basic motives, his sensory experiences and memories of them, and his needs, hopes, fears and desires."10 To assist the reader in following the format, each textual division will begin with the actual section of the text involved which will be done in italic type to facili- tate the identification of the text. This text was taken by this writer from a tape recording of the address, and it should be noted that the pauses, stammers and "ahs" look much more inept in print than they sounded in the actual address. The conclusion chapter will deal with a summary of the discoveries the study will attempt to make concerning this speech to the Community Action Assembly, the speaking of George Romney in general and the attitudes of the Governor toward racial and poverty problems of today. The chapter will also discuss briefly the outcome of the conference and what George Romney's relationship is to this outcome. The basic sources used in this thesis are the above mentioned tape recording of the Romney text and an inter- view with Albert Applegate, a gubernatorial administrative assistant. Additional sources are interviews with Charles (Drlebeke, administrative assistant to the Governor and the writer of this speech, and with Bruce Alderman, a confer- ence consultant in Michigan State University's Continuing lOIbid., p. 71. Education Service. The basic source for definitions of rhetorical terms is Principles of Speaking by Hance, Ralph ll and Wiksell. lllbid. CHAPTER I OCCASION In this chapter an examination will be made of the events that led up to the Michigan Community Action As- sembly; the audience; the purposes of the Assembly; and Governor Romney's role in the total program. On December 10, l96A President Lyndon B. Johnson said: One of the Presidents that I admire most signed the Emancipation Proclamation 100 years ago. But emancipation was a proclamation and was not a fact. It shall be my purpose and it is my duty to make it a fact. There are men who are dying tonight in Viet Nam to preserve the freedom of us all, and the least that you can do, until you are called upon to give your life, is to give your support, give your talent, and give your heart to organizations like this and leadership of men like Whitney Young.12 The occasion of this speech was a Community Action Assembly in Washington, D. C. under the co-sponsorship of the federal government and the Urban League. The organ- ization to which the President referred is the Urban League. The aims of this Community Action Assembly were naturally 12Lyndon B. Johnson, from the official copy of the ‘text of an address by the Honorable Lyndon B. Johnson to 'the Urban League Community Action Assembly, Washington, D. 0., December 10, 196A. lO much the same as the aims of the Urban League, since the League co-sponsored it. The Michigan Community Action Assembly of 1965 was meant to be a follow—up meeting to this Washington meeting and was patterned after it as closely as possible. It is altogether fitting that the Urban League be involved in these Community Action Assemblies for, since its inception in 1910, the League has pledged itself to the elimination of racial discrimination in American life and to seek improvements in education, employment, housing, health and welfare. The League derives much of its sup- port from the United Fund organizations and has a tax exempt status. It is wise to note here that to be quali- fied in these areas an organization must be non—profit and non-partisan. A statement by the Urban League concerning how it stands on Civil Rights issues reports: The Urban League considers Civil Rights and Negro Rights as part of Human Rights. They are a vital part and have rightly been the concern of the League since it was founded in 1910. The League helped organize the march on Washington for jobs and free- dom, and we share the aims of other responsible Civil Rights groups, but we do differ in our methods. For instance, the Urban League does not take part in sit-ins, does not go on freedom rides, does not picket, does not supply funds to those who do. We do help responsible Civil Rights groups (as well as other social agencies, and industries, labor unions and government agencies) by offering the counsel of our trained staff. Our unique function in the cause of Civil Rights is to bring together the leaders of all factions in a dispute and help them work out a peaceful solution before a crisis develops. Whitney M. Young, Jr., Executive Director of the National 11 Urban League, put it this way, "You can holler, pro- test, march, picket, demonstrate, but somebody must be able to sit in on the strategy conferences and plot a course. There must be the strategists, the researchers and the professionals to carry out a pro— gram. That's our role."1 In short, the Urban Leaguers seem to feel that they operate on a higher level than the day-to-day struggle going on in the streets. For this attitude they are criticized by many of the more overt Civil Rights groups. It does appear to be possible, however, that their staff, which is for the most part college trained in social work and oriented toward community organization, may belong at the negotiation table when the time is right. As Whitney M. Young, Jr. said in 1964: the Urban League provides unique machinery for affecting communications between white citizens and Negro citizens to avoid racial misunderstanding and strife. This service of the League has assumed in- creasing importance as the social revolution goes into its second year.1 As noted before, the Michigan Community Action Assembly of 1965 was meant to be a follow-up meeting to the National Community Action Assembly held in Washington. The plans for the Michigan Assembly were handled mainly by the Michigan Urban League Council. The basic purpose of the Council is to facilitate joint planning by local League aifdliates in the State and to improve communications be- 1:ween them. In this particular case the Council, under l3A pamphlet published by the National Urban League, NeW'York. luIbid. 12 the direction of its Chairman at that time, Ted Cobb of Flint, Michigan, began planning for the Michigan Community Action Assembly in December of 196“. In a December 18th letter to Dr. Armand Hunter, the Michigan State University Director of Continuing Education, Mr. Cobb outlined the preliminary plans for the Michigan meeting as follows: This is to confirm the request of the Michigan Urban League Council for the cooperation of your office in carrying out a state-wide Community Action Assembly during the latter part of March or the first part of April, 1965, at the Kellogg Center. The Assembly will be sponsored by the Michigan Urban League Council. Our aim will be to draw to- gether top Negro leaders from all sectors of the state for a review of the President's Poverty Pro- gram and to formulate means by which Negro leaders may take a more affirmative part in its implemen— tation. We will also be concerned with general ad- vances which may be achieved in the state through a broader involvement of relatively untapped local community Negro leadership. Support for the As- sembly has been expressed by George Romney's office and by various national officials administering the President's Program on Poverty. Expected attendance is set at about 150 to 200 persons. In many respects the Assembly will be modeled after a similar activity just conducted in Washington, D. C. by the National Urban League with co-sponsorship by President Johnson.1 This portion of Mr. Cobb's letter sets the scene for what the expectations were for the Michigan Community Action Assembly. As plans for the Assembly were beginning to materi- alize, Ted Cobb left the scene to take a position with ‘the United States government as the Program Director for 15Letter from Wesley T. Cobb, the Chairman of the Michigan Urban League Council, December 18, 196A. 13 the Neighborhood Youth Corps in Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Ohio and Minnesota. John W. Mack, an Urban League staff member in Flint, Michigan, took over Mr. Cobb's duties including the planning of the Assembly. Whether or not this had an effect upon the efficiency of the Assembly is not certain, but Mr. Mack said that this shift of responsibility did cause some confusion.16 The Michigan Community Action Assembly actually came into fruition on the ninth, tenth and eleventh of April, 1965, at the Michigan State University Kellogg Center in East Lansing, Michigan. The theme of the three day meet- ing was Expanding Michigan's Economic Opportunities: A New Key to Civil Rights Progress. The 150 to 200 delegates originally expected, however, turned out to be 136 in actual attendance. The 136 figure was broken down in the following manner: Registrants . . . . . . . . . . 97 Program Personnel Michigan State University . . . . 2 Off Campus . . . . . . . . . 25 Guests Michigan State University . . . . y 2 Off Campus . . . . . . . . . _;g Total . . . . . . . . . . . . 136 16Interview with John W. Mack, Executive Director, Flint Urban League, Flint, Michigan, February 9, 1966. 1A No attempt was made to invite professional social workers, but rather an attempt was made to gain the sup- port of various types of community leaders. The Assembly was a heterogeneous cross-section of people from the fields of education, industry, local governments and business, the majority of whom were Negroes. Since community action was the ultimate aim of this assembly, the above broad range of backgrounds, representing all types of community leader- ship, was an effort to gain the interest and support of the local power structures. It is reasonable to assume that local social workers would be strong in their support of such programs and plans as discussed here. Without the support of the power structure of the communities repre— sented here, however, the community action accomplishments of the social workers would very likely have been diminished considerably. On Friday, April 9, 1965, at 3:00, the Michigan Community Action Assembly delegates registered at the Kellogg Center in East Lansing, Michigan for the three day conference. Urban League Executive Directors Charles Sanders of Muskegon, Michigan and John W. Mack of Flint, Michigan, chaired the late afternoon and evening sessions, which were concerned with the briefing and groundwork for the remainder of the conference. Saturday morning, April 10, 1965, registration was re—opened for the late arrivals and the general session was opened with a welcome by Ted Cobb, the former Chairman 15 of the Michigan Urban League Council. Bruce Alderman, a Conference Consultant from Michigan State's Continuing Education department, spoke to the conference concerning leadership development and better community organization, followed by comments by Dr. Louis A. Doyle, the Associate Director of the Michigan State Continuing Education. The pace of the Assembly picked up some as Dr. Albert Brown, consultant to the Michigan Economic Oppor- tunity program and Joseph Beebe, a program research specialist with the National Urban League in its Washington Bureau, spoke on the subject of the dimensions of poverty in Michigan. With this outline of the problems and needs in mind, the assembled delegates heard an analysis of the Economic Opportunity program by Malcomb Lovell, its Michi- gan director. Following the 12:30 P.M. luncheon, Ramon S. Scruggs, Urban League Vice-President, introduced Governor George Romney. According to Bruce Alderman, the pace of the en— tire conference was a little slower than anticipated and rather disappointing, particularly up to the time of the 17 Governor's address. Considering this, there was little apparent build-up to Romney's speech. Any concerned civil rights groups, particularly the Negro segment, would naturally tend to listen to a — 17An interview with Mr. Bruce Alderman, the Michi- gan Continuing Education Conference Consultant assigned to the Michigan Community Action Assembly, May 5, 1965. 16 Caucasian speaker speaking on civil rights issues with a certain amount of skepticism. This audience, however, should have had little doubt that Governor Romney repre- sented the state of Michigan's commitment to a vast pro- gram of help to all deprived citizens, since the Governor stated that, in addition to his personal commitment, the Constitution provides legal mandates which the executive office was required to uphold. The Governor generally speaks with a friendly but firm manner which became apparent to the leadership of the Urban League prior to the actual address.18 While the aforementioned morning session was taking place, he met with these League leaders and told them that, while the State would give all the help possible, much of the real civil rights work could only be started properly from within their own communities. As he spoke to the entire Assembly Romney made it clearer that he and the State would go far in working with the local communities if they were willing to initiate the action. According to Alder- man, some of the Urban League leaders expressed surprise that the Governor spoke so frankly.19 In general, the purpose of the Governor's address was to discuss ”plans to utilize the new Economic 18 From personal observation at the address. 19Ibid. l7 Opportunity Act to launch self—help projects for dis- advantaged Negro citizens.2 The address, which lasted about thirty minutes, was only one of three addresses Romney delivered around the State that day, according to Albert Applegate, an Adminis trative Assistant to the Governor and the Governor's main speech writer.21 Following the address was a series of workshops and lectures lasting through the remainder of Saturday and until about 2:30 P.M. Sunday, April 11, 1965. It is difficult to understand why the Governor's address was placed where it was in the program. It would seem that, since the Governor's address was the acknow- ledged high point of the Assembly, it would have enhanced both the program and the address to have placed the speech either at the beginning in a keynote spot or at the end for a more stimulating finish. As the program was organ— ized, it started slowly and ended slowly, with the fea- tured address in the middle. This seemed to do neither the speech of the Governor nor the Assembly as much real service as might have been the case under one of the other schedules suggested above. 20The State Journal, April 11, 1965. 21Interview with Albert Applegate, Administrative Assistant to Governor George Romney, August 23, 1965. CHAPTER II GEORGE ROMNEY: THE MAN AND THE SPEAKER The purpose of this chapter is not to produce a full ILength biography, but rather to probe the phases of the ZLife of George Romney which are pertinent to his political J.ife, his speaking in general and this speech in particular. Tflie chapter will look into such aspects of the Governor's 1;ife and speaking as his ethics, materials of personal jpinoof, preparation, reasoning and delivery. The Story of George W. Romney; Builder, Salesman, Clausader is certainly an apt title for the Romney bio- .gxeaphy written in 1960 by biographer Tom Mahoney. Since 15960, however, one could really add the designation "politician" to the title. Romney's Life and Its Effect on His Speaking Governor Romney was born July 8, 1907 in Chihuahua, IWeJf the new State Constitution in early 1963. It was aidopted April 1, 1963 and took effect the following January. By any standard the Governor is a phenominal paradox iri today's political world. As Bruce Biossat wrote in a IVeWVSpaper Enterprises Association series: . George Romney is a tantalizing blend of evan- gelist, salesman, strong—headed leader, dedicated servant of varied and changing causes. Evangelism is most likely the key. A young missionary who shouted Mormonism from a soapbox in London's Hyde Park, the Governor has been schooled from childhood to elevate cause above 21 person. He must keep on doing it to be square with the teachings of his lifetime. So in the political world, he shouts program, platform, principle and tries to scale down candi— dates, including himself.2 When pressured, Romney once said, "I'm a citizen who is a Such a philosophy seems to be a source of considerable annoyance to many of the Republican leaders because of its non-partisan ring. These leaders are, however, well aware of the fact that they have not found a Michigan Republican with Romney's vote-getting power for many years and so they seem to be inclined to endure as quietly as possible such lion—partisan statements. Speech Training As we shall see, the Governor does not necessarily éadhere to all the principles of rhetorical training; how- eever, in the case of many prominent speakers, we find a leather large gap between training in public speaking and t;raining f2: speaking in public. George Romney has had c:onsiderable training for speaking in public, almost since txirth. For instance, public speaking is an integral part CDf‘ Mormon education, with small children making two and cnaee-half minute talks as a part of their Sunday school ‘trwaining. At his own high school graduation Romney was 196 23Bruce Biossat, Lansing State Journal, April 27, 53. 2“"Cover Story on George Romney," Time, November 15. 1962, p. 21. Republican, not a Republican who is incidentally a citizen."2u 22 the valedictorian and, of course, he was called upon to deliver the customary valedictory address. This pre- sented no great problem, however, since he had belonged to his high school speaking club. Later, while working in California for the Aluminum Company of America, the Governor took public speaking courses at the University of Southern California. Although this is not a great amount of formal speech training, it is certainly more speech training than many citizens, and even many poli- ticians, can claim. Although all of this speech training has no doubt been invaluable, a political figure must be prepared to speak to all audiences, sometimes quite hostile or indifferent audiences. As it was pointed out in the George Romney biography: Speaking to an indifferent or hostile public street meeting is more difficult than talking to friends. The street meeting, in the course of which the speaker is likely to be heckled by any bystander and must compete with other speakers talking at the same time, is an institution better established in the British Isles than in the U. 8.25 One might assume, then, that all this experience, parti- cularly the tour of missionary duty, was excellent train— ing for speaking in public. Materials of Personal Proof An apparent source of annoyance to many Democrats, as well as some Republicans, is the Governor's image of 25. . 23 "goodness.” The Democrats fret over how to combat this image and the Republicans worry that such a candidate in these times will be perceived by the voting public as " A Democrat was being literally "too good to be true. once heard muttering, "He's for home, mother, free beer, wide highways and early spring."26 One fact seems to be that Romney is: a truly religious man, a Mormon who was a missionary in his youth and really prays over de- cisions; tithes; obeys the faith's ban on drinking and smoking; and, as president of its Michigan "stake,” is the spiritual leader of 3,600 members of the denomination in Eastern Michigan, Western Ontario and Northern Ohio;27 Another fact is that, "devout Mormons count as cardinal principles of their religion, individual responsibility and dedication to public service.”28 These materials of personal proof are rare in politicians in any era and are powerful tools when used to full advantage. Some materials of personal proof are stronger and more effective than others and perhaps one of the strong— est a speaker could hope for is a quality called "charisma.' Time Magazine said of Romney's first gubernatorial victory: In the end, Romney won because he appeared to be a prophet at a time when Michigan desperately needed one. His victory was one of charisma, that indefinable quality of leadership, force and spiritual magnetism that defies pat explanations.29 26Bruce Biossat, Lansing State Journal, April 25, 1965. 27Mahoney, op. cit., front of book jacket. 28 Time, loc. cit., p. 21. 29Time, loc. cit., p. 22. I 2A Materials of Personal Proof and Materials of Development This rather magical support—eliciting power, known as charisma, seems to play a large part in Romney's suc- cess, both personally and politically. The perceived personal proof of the Governor is one of his strongest points and, perhaps without realizing it, he seems to rely on it heavily. Personal proof as strong as George Romney's has a tendency to take the place of lengthy, well-developed proofs and at times during an address Romney begins a phrase with the words, "I believe . . . ." When these words appear it may be taken as a signal that you are not likely to get many more materials of develop— ment than just that. "I believe" is tied closely to his personal proofs and could be translated to mean, "I say this is true and you know I would never state or support any falsehoods." Since the Governor delivers speeches that are gener- ally short and to the point, he rarely is on his feet for what could be considered a lengthy piece of oratory. The frequent result is speeches filled with several main topics and rather limited development of proofs. This, of course, is not to say that Romney's speaking is bad because of these limited proofs. In this regard Robert T. Oliver Said that the fact that a speaker's method is nonlogical "is of itself no proof that the speaker's ideas are bad."30 —_‘ 30Robert T. Oliver, Psychology of Persuasive Speech (New York: Longmans, Green and Company, 1957). 25 Speech Preparation Since busy political personalities could not possibly be everywhere and do everything at the same time, they must surround themselves with experts and talented assistants. In the area of communications, George Romney utilizes a press secretary, an assistant press secretary, a speech writer and occasionally the particular talents of his other administrative assistants. The Governor has a staff of assistants who research, advise and represent him in many varying areas. Although Albert Applegate, the Gover- nor's speech writer, does most of the speech writing, speeches are at times written by other members of the staff. In the particular case of this address to the Michigan Com- munity Action Assembly, the speech writer was Dr. Charles Orlebeke, the Governor's administrative assistant in charge of Civil Rights problems. He was chosen because he is the specialist in the Civil Rights issues related to the Governor's office. No matter which staff member is assigned to write a speech for the Governor, there is an attempt made toward a consistency of style and preparation. They all try to apply and integrate their subject knowledge with their laiowledge of the Governor's feelings and the organization, style and delivery he would be likely to express himself 31 on the subject in question. The Governor seems to * 31Applegate, op. cit. 26 follow the manuscripts prepared by these people with vary- ing degrees of accuracy, depending upon the speaking situ- ation. For instance, a textual study of a state of the State message and an inaugural address revealed very little variance from the prepared text. Conversely, in other cases, such as speeches delivered in a less formal situ— ation he seems to vary from the script to a much greater degree. Since the responsibility for what is actually said from the platform is ultimately his, the Governor always reads his speeches before delivering them. Mr. Applegate reported that he has been told since the beginning of his speech writing duties to write with virtually a free hand and let the Governor take the responsibility of what is actually delivered.32 Although this would seem to be the only logical course for a public figure to follow, some busy people, such as the late Governor Kim Sigler of Michigan, do not assume this responsibility.33 The added burden this places upon the press secretary or speech writer is quite obvious; he becomes totally responsible for another human beings' public image and is very likely not. to be as imaginative as he might be. Delivery Often, according to Applegate, when the Governor is rushed and has many speaking engagements, he will read the 32Ibid. 33Ibid. —— .—_—— 27 manuscript through several times and then speak from these ideas, almost extemporaneously. His staff reports that they worry about an excessive amount of extemporizing because it jeopardizes the total length of the speech, which desirably is usually about twenty to thirty minutes.3u The Governor speaks with a firm, resonant voice and possesses diction that could actually be called crisp. His I: general appearance and dress are usually impecable and, al- though relatively short in stature, he presents a rather imposing figure when speaking from a platform. He employs a modicum of appropriate gestures and bodily action. Tom Mahoney's biography summed up the persuasive speaking of George Romney this way: As a speaker George Romney is earnest rather than polished. His platform manner has a certain awkward quality of innocent, unsophisticated sin- cerity that strikes a friendly chord with listen— ers. "He leaves you feeling," a lawyer says, "that he is not a smooth speaker, maybe not even a trained speaker, but that he is in the right and, if you know what is good for you, you will go out and vote for bonds, or buy a small car, or whatever he is asking you to do."35 The Paradoxical Personality of George Romney The personality of Governor George Romney is it- seelf a paradox. He is self-assured and yet humble; rather surrogant and yet sensitive to the needs of others; a Bulbid. 35Mahoney, op. cit., p. 230. 28 perfectionist and yet understanding. His Mormon teach- ings give him his responsibility toward his fellow men and his humility, and as Bruce Biossat stated: . . these notions are at war within him and other compelling beliefs-—in strong leadership and his view that he is an ordained leader of men. From these flow ambition which he seeks constantly to keep veiled. Some critics who perceive the conflict label his ambition real and his concern for causes phony. But many who study the Governor closely and con- tinuously believe both are thoroughly real. None denies that the leader always shows through. He looks, acts, and talks the part. He has a sense 8f where power resides--and what to do with it.3 Typicality of Romney's Speaking If one were to name two words that typify the speak- ing of George Romney they would probably be "implicative" and "inductive." With the partial limitation of proof development found in the speaking of the Governor, impli— cative thoughts and ideas seem rather inevitable. This type of implication, which is caused by limited proof, is, however, only one type. Another type is one that could best be termed an ever-present underlying theme in the thinking and speaking of the speaker. Governor Romney also enmloys this type of implicit speaking. Partly because of his strong Mormon training and partly because of his own {Mersonal beliefs, he rarely speaks on any subject without the presence of an implied plea for a higher morality and 37 a stronger family life. Sometimes, when extemporizing, * 36Biossat, loc. cit., April 27, 1965. 37Applegate, op. cit. 29 these implicit ideals become explicit and these philo— sophical ideals seem, in the opinion of this writer, to be the most effective portions of Romney's speaking. If this is actually the Governor's most effective style, it could perhaps be so because it is most natural for him and it represents language and ideals with which he seems to be most familiar. A point that should be noted is that, while the Governor organizes inductively, using ethical appeals ex- tensively (and his staff uses these factors in attempting to write as nearly as possible in the manner in which he speaks), they all seem to have no idea that they are writing inductively organized speeches which are full of Inaterials of personal proof.38 The interesting facet of ‘this is that, while the Governor and his staff simply do inhat is "natural" to them and is their ordinary manner of Ioresenting spoken material, speech critics have developed llabels for what they are doing. In our investigation of tile speaking of an individual we attempt to match him up ‘Wixth this preconceived set of standards and when we tell hiJn that he is organizing inductively or developing Stlrong materials of personal proof, he says, "I am?" His II arnswer seems to be half surprise and half a sort of so Wherb" attitude. The latter attitude presents an inter- estfiing proposition for study in itself. \ 381bid. 30 In this address, we should find examples of these characteristics of the speaking of George Romney. The highly inductive organization, the frequent absence of rnaterials of development and the very powerful materials of personal proof, all so much a part of the Governor, should be present in this speech. CHAPTER III THE TEXT The textual material presented in Chapter III is reproduced as exactly as possible from a tape recording of the speech made by the writer. No editing has been done and all of the vocalized pauses, incomplete sentences, repeated phrases, and other typical manifestations of im— promptu speaking are retained in this transcription. The text of the address is indented and done in italic type to facilitate the separation of the text from the narrative for the reader. The reader should refer to the appendix before read- ing this chapter in order to get a better perspective con- cerning the ratio of impromptu passages spoken in this text as compared to the passages spoken directly from the prepared manuscript. By the rough estimate of this writer, the actual spoken text is approximately twice as long as the original prepared manuscript. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Thank you very muoh--ah--Ray Scruggs. Now as I look around the room I realize that Ray's—-ah—-sentiments about the recent gubernatorial 31 32 elections are not necessarily endorsed by everybody in the room but-~ah--in any event, I appreciate Ray's--ah--feeling that way. It is true that--ah-—I've had some exposure to poverty. As a matter of fact--ah--I was a revolu- tionary refugee at the age of five. Our family was driven out of Mexico on forty-eight hours notice with nothing and—-ah--we were housed and fed by the United States Army until my father could get a job as a carpenter. And without going through all of the vicissitudes--ah--we were a struggling family-- ah--for the next fourteen years and I picked a lot of Idaho potatoes at a time when--ah--you couldn't sell 'em and you just ate 'em; morning, noon and night. So--hav--I do have a first hand acquaintance with the problem of families under difficult--ah-- economic circumstances. As shown in the textual comparison in the appendix, the material covered in the first three paragraphs of the text was entirely impromptu. The original text which the Governor took to the Community Action Assembly was not put to use until later when he began to speak concerning the Urban League. The fact that this first section of the text is completely impromptu helps, to a large extent, explain the relatively large number of pauses, hesitations and the rather profuse use of the word "ah." 33 Governor Romney seems to have a tendency to open his speeches by saying "thank you" repeatedly as the audience applauds his appearance on the platform. Here again, these "thank you's" look more awkward in print than they sounded on the tape recording. The gentleman named Ray Scruggs mentioned in the text was the man chosen to introduce the Governor. Scruggs, a Negro vice-president of the National Urban League and former employee of the Michigan Bell Telephone Company, is a public relations executive with American Telephone and Telegraph. His personal proof and popularity with this audience was naturally high, tending to give the Governor the added advantage of external personal proof even before he began to speak. In introducing Romney, Mr. Scruggs said: I'd like to say hello in this more formal manner to all of my friends in Michigan, many of whom I'm sure are wondering why I'm out here today and I'm sure that the only reason I'm here is that Ray Brown thought, along with Ted Cobb, that following the three day Community Action Assembly in Washington, where the whole--ah--Economic Opportunity Program was thoroughly discussed and aired and passed along to grass roots leaders from all over the country, that he—-they thought perhaps just for a matter of form, a member of the National Urban League board of trustees should be out here and I was the only one who probably would pay his own way to come out; so I'm here. I do want to congratulate you here in Michigan for gathering today to go into this whole matter of the anti—poverty program. Ted Cobb said for me to talk about some aspects of this from the national board's point of view, but I told Ted that this was not the time and place for me to make a speech; that I was asked to preside and introduce our honored speaker and I'm going to try to stick very close to that. Last night I happened to run 3A into two of my good and firm friends in Michigan, Marion Carter and Louise Cobb and they said to me, "Well, knowing you, I know that you have had your speech written out to introduce the Governor to- morrow," and I said, "No I haven't," and they seemed a little surprised. And I just said to the Governor that I didn't know how to introduce him today and that——ah-—I was-~ah-—going to let-—ah--the spirit move me about my introduction that I made to him. My firm conviction is that he needs no introduction, but just to re-emphasize one or two things. I would like to say to you that the state of Michigan has always been for--ah--fortunate in the decision of its electorate to put into the Governor's office at a time in the history of the State--ah—-the particular--ah-—person who--ah--had the attributes to provide the kind of leadership that the State was in need of at that particular period in history. And so you've put into office in Michigan—-ah--a person who has-~ah—-in my opinion one of the few people in public life who has real deep-seated con— victions about many of these human problems that we are concerned with. Ah-—our honored guest, and I'm only saying this for emphasis, has gone through the whole experience of persecution as a child, exile from his own country and then reverse persecution forcing him back as a child into his country. He has gone from the potato fields as a picker up to the presidency of one of the outstanding industrial concerns of America and all of this has been done because of some very basic human factors. And I'd just like to say that those have been faith, con- viction, determination and an understanding and belief in the basic worth of the individual. And I think that we are indeed fortunate that we have with us today the Governor of Michigan, the Honor- able George w. Romney.39 The Governor interjected a bit of humor at the start of the address when he noted, in a good-natured way, the presence of some known Democrats in the audience by stating that he was certain that every delegate present didn't necessarily share Scruggs' enthusiasm toward the outcome of the gubernatorial election. In a Newspaper 39Taken from a tape recording of the actual address. 35 Enterprises story, Bruce Biossat pointed out, "Last year [196A] he [Romney] won nearly 20 per cent of the Negro votes, cut into the Democrats' labor strongholds in Detroit and Flint ."AO While the 20 per cent was a very good record, there were very likely some solid Democrats in this predominantly Negro audience. Romney then proceeded to play upon the Scruggs com- ments concerning his humble beginning. Many people proba— bly think of Governor George Romney as as influential in- tellectual who has risen to political prominence in recent years, and many people probably also remember him as a man who took a floundering automobile manufacturing firm and brought it into line with the leaders of that industry. Undoubtedly a much smaller number of citizens realize the comparatively humble beginning into which Governor Romney was born. Since the Governor was addressing a group of people concerned with poverty, economic opportunity and civil rights, many of them Negroes, the facts brought out by Mr. Scruggs in his introductory remarks should have done much to externally enhance the Governor's personal proof. The facts stated by both Romney and Scruggs concerning the humble beginning are certainly well documented in sources such as Tom Mahoney's book, The Story of George W. Romney; Builder,4Sa1esman, Crusader. As stated in Chapter II, the Governor was a revolutionary refugee and, according to ”Osiossat, loo. cit., April 27, 1965. 36 Mahoney, the Governor's early life actually was spent on farms in Idaho and Utah where he did pick potatoes "at a time when you couldn't sell 'em so you ate 'em morning, noon and night.“1 There can be little doubt, after checking the facts, that the Romney family knew plenty of hardship and diffi- culties during George's early years. Not the least of these were economic difficulties; however, the problems of a carpenter [George's father] in search of a job during any period of time would seem to be rather a far cry from the deprivation encountered by the average Negro in the street today. If the Negroes in the audience were generally at a higher intellectual and economic level than the average Negro, and they probably were, many of them had still very likely encountered greater ”vicissitudes" than most tempo- arily unemployed carpenters. When speaking of the Romney family as poor, one must realize they were not poor in the same sense in which we classify our poor today; not the kind of poor for which this conference was being held. It seems that in the earlier 1900's there were not as many extremely wealthy people as we find today but, conversely, not as many were poor as we know poverty today in certain areas either. For instance, Michael Harrington pointed out in The Other America the following thoughts concerning different types of poverty: ulMahoney, op. cit. 37 If one is to make the mistake of being born poor, he should choose a time when the majority of the people are miserable too. Unlike the poor today, the majority poor of a generation ago were an immediate (if cynical) con- cern of political leaders. Harrington was speaking here of the majority poor in the depression days of the early 1930's. He goes on to say: Today's poor, in short, missed the political and social gains of the thirties. They are the first minority poor not to be seen, the Eirst poor whom the politicians could leave alone. 3 The Romney family had to work hard, and whenever possible young George and his brothers had to help their father, but their circumstances hardly paralleled those of many Negores today. The genre of poverty found today in most Negro families is not only based upon meager liveli- hood and long, hard work but one based upon unbearable frustration; a poverty of soul, mind, spirit and oppor— tunity, as well as one of economics. Poverty today has been defined as follows: To all too many people, poverty means merely the absence of money. This is a definition influenced, perhaps, by the belief in American society that if money is lacking, work and determination will pro— vide it, and that in our affluent society no one need starve. Admittedly, nobody starves today and apples will probably never again be sold on the street corners. But it must also be remembered that poverty is not merely a question of food, or ugMichael Harrington, The Other America (New York: The MacMillan Company, 1962), p. 7. u3lbid., p. 9. 38 of money, or of determination. For poverty deprives the individual not only of material comfort but also of human dignity and fulfillment. Its causes are much more complex, and its cure requires more than merely a relief check or the creation of one or two programs of training and retraining. It must be realized that, because of the growing complexity of modern society, the disadvantaged, in particular, more and more lose the very ability to make choices, to be responsible, to know what must be done, and to take action. In short, poverty has today become a complex interlocking set of circumstances, caused by and in turn reinforcing each other, that combine to keep the individual without money, without help, without work. It can truly be said that today people are poor who can least afford it. The strengthened personal proof created for Romney by this introductory material is not without foundation because, although the Governor had not probably known poverty as some know it today, he certainly had a humble beginning. For a man to begin his life in this humble manner and rise to prominence in any of the fields of en- deavor which Goerge Romney has, presents to the Horatio Alger oriented American public a thrilling success story; one that has to carry with it great personal proof. There might be some question concerning whether or not this excitement concerning a Horatio Alger type story is pri— marily a middle-class phenomenon. According to Ralph A5 Bonner and Bruce Alderman“6 the audience was made up of uuFrom hearings before the Select Committee on Poverty of the Committee on Labor and Public Welfare, United States Senate, 88th Congress, Second Session. 145An interview with Ralph Bonner, the Executive Director of the Urban League office, Lansing, Michigan, April, 1965. “6A1derman, op. cit. 39 at least middle class people and not the "grass roots” Negro poor, which should place it in the success-centered cul- tural group. It is also the personal belief of this writer that many people who have little hope or desire to be suc- cessful themselves still thrill to such a story. For example, Robert K. Merton, the top sociologist, points out: No matter how many times we hear this Horatio Alger story with new names substituted, we always thrill to its success-centered ending. Most Americans consider, either consciously or subconsciously, such a story to be additional proof that the Ameri- can dream of power and monetary success is attain- able if one but has the requisite abilities. The symbolism of a commoner rising to the estate of economic royalty is woven deep in the texture of the American cultural pattern finding what is per- haps its ultimate expression in the words of one who knew where of he spoke, Andrew Carnegie: "Be a king in your dreams. Say to yourself, 'My place is at the topl'"u7 The Governor's humble beginning helps explain, in part at least, the firm hold the Mormon principles have on his life, since humility is a paramount Mormon virtue. As previously mentioned, Governor Romney organized inductively for the most part. The first part of the text covered by this chapter is a good example of this. The Governor piles fact upon fact concerning the problems of his early life and finishes the segment with the purpose u7Robert K. Merton has said, "We always thrill" here in Social Theory and Social Structure (Glencoe, Illinois: The Free Press of Glencoe, Illinois, 19A9), p. 132, while he himself was born to immigrant parents in a South Philadelphia slum. A0 sentence which states that he had first hand acquaintances with poverty. Much has been said both here and in other sources about the strong Romney personal proof but there is another element of the materials of speaking definitely present in this address. The Governor and Mr. Scruggs, through their description of his early life and its vicissitudes, made use of materials of experience and created an audience identification. The introduction by Scruggs and Romney's accompanying comments were attempts, whether conscious or unconscious, to identify the man with the problems of the audience. Reactions to the Governor's introductory remarks tend to indicate that these introductory thoughts sustained, perhaps even increased, his already strong personal proofs even before he reached the body of the speech. Further- more the chains of materials of experience seemed to have been accepted by the audience as indicative of Romney's empathy, as well as his sympathy, for the problems of dis- advantaged people. The Governor continued to build his materials of experience from this point by showing feeling and under- standing for the big job and even bigger problems that the Urban League has faced and is now facing, in the following passage: A8 From the personal observation of the writer. Al I want to congratulate the Urban League for calling this Community Action conference and I'm well aware of the important contribution of the Urban League over the past half century. Of course, in its earlier years the--ah--Urban League concen- trated on helping migrants from the South to learn the strange and bewildering ways Northern cities but then when the trickle of migrants--ah-—grew to a flood-—ah--neither the League nor any other organization could—-ah-—keep up with the needs for assistance and Negroes by the tens of thou— sands moved into the older and deteriorating centers of our great--ah--Northern cities. And, of course, many of them were not only unskilled but uneducated and—~ah--had practically no edu- cation and in some instances none at all. And the result is that a number were illiterate and a vicious system of segregation Northern style kept Negroes boxed into menial, low-paying jobs and crowded into inadequate housing. The fact is that the National Urban League was originated for the purpose of helping migrants from the South to make the difficult adjustment to the ways of the North. Now operating offices in over 70 cities in the United States, the League has performed a great service in some areas. The Urban League has operated in Michigan for one half century and presently has affiliate offices A2 in Detroit, Pontiac, Flint, Lansing, Grand Rapids and Muskegon. All League affiliates are associated with the National Urban League, participating in programs of the Red Feather and Council of Social Agencies in their re- spective communities as well as the Michigan United Fund and the Michigan Welfare League on the statewide level. The League, in Michigan, maintains a trained staff of 29 people who are supplemented by more than four thousand active volunteers and members. They have an aggregate service radius of approximately three million people, in- cluding the bulk of the State's Negro population, which stands above the one-half million mark.149 The Michigan Urban League Council, which sponsored this Community Action Assembly, was formed due to a need for continuity of policy and action around the State. The Michigan Urban League Council, in its present form, was established officially by the National Urban League in cooperation with the Michigan Urban League affiliates in the Spring of 1963. While Urban Leagues have maintained a close communication over the years, the organization of a council takes into account the increased complexity and inter—relationship of race problems which spread beyond the boundaries of any community in the State. Presently, the organization and continuity of the Council is main- tained through regular bi—monthly meetings of the Executive ugFrom the mimeographed material printed by the Michigan Urban League. 43 Directors or specially designated representatives from each League affiliate. The group is headed by a Chairman chosen from among the Michigan Urban League Executive Directors with the approval of the National Urban League. Throughout the foregoing portion of the address, Romney was very complimentary toward the past and present efforts of the Urban League and its leaders. At the same time, he was attempting to prove that he was quite know- ledgable concerning the League's accomplishments and many of the difficulties encountered by them. These comments by the Governor seemed to convey to the audience the fact that he either knew a great deal about their problems or he had researched them quite so This apparently adequate preparation could thoroughly. probably be attributed in part to the fact that the speech was written by Dr. Charles Orlebeke, the Governor's adminis- trative assistant in charge of Civil Rights matters. This somewhat emotionally presented account of the Urban League's role to date was an excellent way for the Governor to build his personal proof through an increased rapport with this particular audience. Further, the Governor's apparent understanding feeling for the League's problems should have carried with it considerable personal proof. As mentioned before, Romney's speech writing staff has certain misgivings, which seem at times to be well 50Personal observation of this writer at the address. AA founded, concerning extreme departures from the prepared text. A textual comparison between this address (see Appendix A) as it was originally written and its delivered form reveals such an instance. In the last sentence of this paragraph under study concerning the Urban League, the Governor added the words, "And the result is," to the text. These words changed the paragraph from a mere series of facts, as it was written by Dr. Orlebeke, to an unsup- ported causal relationship. While the staff worries about too many departures from the text making a speech too long or causing damage to the Governor's public image, it is doubtful that the above mentioned result of textual vari- ance ever occurred to them. Nevertheless, the unsupported assertion at this point in the text might have been damag- ing to the speakers personal proof, assuming, of course, that it was perceived as such by the listeners. Now the Urban League--ah-—has rendered a great service in finding jobs for Negroes and certainly it has provided the leadership and salesmanship and sometimes more than that in prying open--ah-- many doors of opportunity--ah—-which--ah--have been traditionally closed. And the League saw all along that the drive for Negro advancement would fail unless Negroes were equipped to share fully in the fruits of our American society. Now some might say "American prosperity”; I think it’s more fundamental than ’45 that. I think it's a sharing in the total American society, which at base is spiritual and moves on into the political and the social as well as economic. But far too often the League's powers of per- suasion could not break through the indifference or hostility of the so-called white power structure. Now as the plight of Negroes throughout the country worsened it became clear that the civil rights of Negroes must be spelled out in law and backed up by enforcement power. And the result is that Civil Rights has-—ah--over shadowed all other aspects of our extremely complex social and economic crisis. And militant civil rights organizations have moved into the forefront of the struggle and challenged the American conscience with dignified and dramatic protest against the intolerable delay in granting Negroes full enjoyment of their citizenship rights. The form of the Urban League's contribution to the ‘total racial movement seems to be a little contradictory. The League offices are staffed with knowledgable people, inostly graduate social workers, and they claim to have a definite opinion of just how they fit into the total milieu” Both Ralph Bonner, the Lansing, Michigan Urban League director and Whitney M. Young, Executive Director of the National Urban League convey the thought that, A6 while the League has no quarrel with militant demonstrations, they neither take part in or support them. Mr. Young said: You can holler, protest, march, picket and demonstrate, but somebody must be able to sit in on the strategy conferences and plot a course. There must be the strategists, the researchers and the professionals to carry out a program. That's our role.51 The contradiction is exemplified in the fact that the National Urban League sponsored the march on Washington and Young, himself, took part in the march on Montgomery, Alabama. The difference seems to be that the less militant attitude was the League's original policy and, although even Whitney Young still occasionally follows this policy, the actual policy of the League has changed. Allan Morrison said in an article concerning the revitalized League: Over the years, their organization [the Urban League] became more and more "militant,” evolving slowly from an original ”social work” agency concerned with find- ing jobs and housing for urban Negroes to the often brash and insistent instrument of social change it is today.52 Whitney Young recently said, "Urban League people today talk tall. Nobody now apologizes for being an Urban Leaguer. We are not social workers in the case—work sense ”53 of the term, we are social actionists. 51A pamphlet published by the National Urban League, New York, 196A. 52An Urban League paper entitled, New Look For the Urban League, 1965. 53lbid. A? In reality, then, the actual accomplishments of the Urban League have often been questioned, particularly by the other Negro organizations. In this regard Allan Morrison noted: It was not too long ago that the Urban League was thought of as the "Girondists" of the Negro revolt. Like the classic French conservatives, it balked at the more abrasive measures of social change. It was said to be hopelessly dependent on white spon- sors, powerless to ignite the fire of social re- volt. "Revolution is war," hissed the critics, "not handouts.”54' In this passage we also find a brief example of the explicit expression of the Governor's normally implicit moral theme which was discussed in the thesis introduction when he refers to the Negroes'problems being basically "spiritual." In the last paragraph of this portion of the text Romney followed the text very closely and then suddenly once again added the phrase, "And the result is." As mentioned in the discussion of the preceeding passage, this changed a factual statement use to a "cause and ef- fect” relationship. In the following portion of the text Governor Romney Speaks of the new revised Constitution, the Civil Rights Commission and the legal aspects of the racial issues. Now in Michigan--ah--we adopted a new Consti— tution and our Civil Rights Commission in the state 5“Ibid. A8 began to function in 196A and it is empowered to function in every area. There isn't any area in- volving Civil Rights that the Civil Rights Com- mission in Michigan is not empowered to deal with and to deal with effectively and adequately. And I believe that the people who've been serving and the basic approach they have developed, which is a solid one of moving--ah--in a way that will come mand the-~resp-—support of the courts and the pub- lic, is going to result in this state achieving progress in this respect--ah--that is more-~ah-- adequate than you’ll find in any other state in the union. At least that's our objective and that's our purpose. The new Constitution Governor Romney refers to is Michigan's new revised Constitution, which was the product of the Constitutional Convention of 1961. The Consti— tutional Convention, or Con—Con as it came to be known around the State, was authorized by the voters in April of 1961 to replace the antiquated Michigan Constitution of 1908. The Convention was an outgrowth of Romney's Citizens for Michigan organization and he was not only among the one hundred and forty-four delegates elected September 19, 1961, but was named vice—president of the Convention by the delegates. The new revised Constitution was adopted by the Convention on August 1, 1962 and by the voters of Michigan on April 1, 1963 to become A9 effective January 1, 196A. It is interesting to note that Romney was elected Governor for the first term in September of 1962. The new Constitution seemed to be the latest in a series of springboards toward the Governor's ever-growing political prominence and it has always been tied closely to him. It has been so closely tied to the Governor that his election in 1962 and the adoption of the new Constitution by the people in April of 1963 were thought of by many as votes of confidence for each other. There must be very few Governors in history who have taken office with their own tailored Constitution with which to work. As Romney indicated in the address, the Civil Rights Commission was a great part of the revised Constitution and, in fact, is the only constitutionally provided Civil Rights Commission in the country. The actual declaration of a citizen's civil rights is contained in Article 1, Section 2 of the new revised Constitution as follows: Sec. 2. No person shall be denied the equal protection of the laws; nor shall any person be denied the enjoyment of his civil or political rights or be discriminated against in the exer- cise thereof because of religion, race, color or national origin. The legislature shall_implement this section by appropriate legislation.55 The Constitution provides for a Civil Rights Com- mission and, in replacing the Fair Employment Practices Commission, the Civil Rights Commission was given a much broader scope. The Civil Rights Commission is established [I 5“Taken from the new revised Michigan Consti— tUtion, adopted in April of 1963. 50 and empowered under Article V, Section 29 of the new Consti- tution, as follows: Sec. 29. There is hereby established a civil rights commission which shall consist of eight per- sons, not more than four of whom shall be members of the same political party, who shall be appointed by the governor, by and with the advice and consent of the senate, for four-year terms not more than two of which shall expire in the same year. It shall be the duty of the commission in a manner which may be prescribed by law to investigate alleged discrimination against any person because of religion, race, color or national origin in the enjoyment of the civil rights guaranteed by law and by this constitution, and to secure the equal protection of such civil rights without such discrimination. The legislature shall pro— vide an annual appropriation for the effective operation of the commission. The commission shall have power, in accor— dance with the provisions of this constitution and of general laws governing administrative agencies, to promulgate rules and regulations for its own procedures, to hold hearings, adminr ister oaths, through court authorization to re- quire the attendance of witnesses and the sub— mission of records, to take testimony, and to issue appropriate orders. The commission shall have other powers provided by law to carry out its purposes. Nothing contained in this section shall be construed to diminish the right of any party to direct and immediate legal or equitable remedies in the courts of this state. Appeals from final orders of the commission, including cease and desist orders and refusals to issue complaints, shall be tried de novo before the gircuit court having jurisdiction provided by law. As Governor Romney stated, the Civil Rights Com— mission is empowered to deal with civil rights problems in all areas. At the first meeting of the Commission its Co-Chairman made the following statement: 56Ibid. -——__ 51 The people of Michigan by adopting a new Constitution, created this Civil Rights Commission. The challenge to our Commission stems from the Declaration of Rights in our new Constitution. We intend to administer the mandate set forth in this Constitution in a judicious and responsible manner. While we safeguard the rights of all our citizens as we work out this great challenge, we mean business in protebtion against discrimination because of religion, race, color or national origin. Civil rights do not accrue to a group. They are guaranteed to individuals, to people, and we will be mindful that we are dealing with the rights of people as individuals. It is an awesome responsibility and in its administration we need the sustaining hopes, co- operation and prayers of all our people. 7 The Governor departed from the prepared manuscript considerably within the foregoing portion of text. Although in the portion of text here being examined Romney did not depart completely from the manuscript, he did attempt to enlarge considerably upon it. In the beginning of this section of text the Governor said, "Our Civil Rights Com- mission in the State began to function in 196A and it's empowered to function in every area." He then said in the next sentence, "There isn't any area involving civil rights that the Civil Rights Commission in Michigan is not em- powered to deal with . . .". These two back to back state- ments, which are both very loose interpretations of the prepared manuscript (see Appendix A), form a peculiar sounding redundancy. This seems to constitute another 57A statement by Co-Chairmen of Michigan's Civil Rights Commission, John Feikens and Damon Keith, January 3, 196A at the first meeting of the Commission, taken from the official printed text. 52 major problem for concern in excessive departures from the manuscript. It is possible, of course, that when the Governor does this he is knowingly editorializing or com- menting on his own spoken comments, particularly when one considers the fact that the original manuscripts are in reality not Romney's own words, but the words of a speech writer. There is no denying the fact, however, that it is still a redundancy. This portion of text presently under study contains a number of "ah's" and partially stated and mis-spoken words. It should be noted, as stated earlier, however, that when studying the actual, unedited text, as we are here, the stammer, pauses and partially stated words appear to be more serious in the written form than they actually sounded during the address.58 Now since the explosive summer of 1963 legal barriers to equal rights have tumbled at a record rate and legal safeguards of equal opportunity have been built up. The Civil Rights Act of 196A estab- lished a national policy on problems of discrimi- nation in voting, public accomodations, employment and the use of federal funds. And we've now arrived near the point where most of the fundamental legal questions about civil rights have been settled. 58 From my personal observation at the address. 53 The "explosive Summer of 1963" to which the Governor referred were the riots such as those in Harlem. The Civil Rights Act of 196A is a piece of federal legislation which covers all areas of Civil Rights including voting, public accomodations, public facilities, public education, equal employment and the creation of a Commission to carry these out.59 This is the second paragraph of text in a row which the Governor began with the word "Now," both of which were not in the original text. Romney uses the word "Now" at the beginning of many thoughts in his speeches60 and when heard in person his "Now" sounds like a sort of verbal pointed finger. This section of the address was no ex— ception, as it sounded like he was saying, "You listen to what I am going to say." Sure, we need additional implementation in the voting rights area and some other areas but basically there's-~no one——no particular challenge of the legality of--ah—-the fundamental civil rights of Negroes. And the result is that--we-—now the fight for equal opportunity is becoming the big and im- portant aspect of this whole situation. 59From a summary of the Civil Rights Acts of 196A, published by the U. S. Commission on Civil Rights, Washing— ton, D. C., August, 196A. 6OFrom studying the 1965 Inaugural address and the 1965 state of the State message of Governor Romney. 5A Here again the Governor has departed from the manu- script and he seems to be personally emphasizing and qualifying the preceding portion of text. In reading this portion of text and the preceding one the reason remains obscure why the Governor said, ”And the result is." It is difficult to imagine that he really means to portray these two sections of text as a legiti- mate cause and effect relationship. The meaning of the phrase, "this whole situation" is also quite obscure to this writer. Perhaps when the Governor speaks impromptu or de— parts from the text materially, he uses certain key phrases which appeal to him and apparently, since they are im— promptu, are not too well thought out from an organ— izational point of View. In other words, it seems possible that Romney uses the phrase "And the result is" because it appeals to him and comes to his mind when he is forming thoughts in an impromptu fashion and not because he really means to tell his audience that one certain event or philosophy is the result of a series of other events or philosophies. It is also possible that this phrase is a habitual vocalization the same as the "ah's" and the pauses. Legal victories have a hollow ring for Negro masses who are poorly equipped to compete in our economy. Fair employment laws help the Negro with 55 exceptional ability and training to get the job he's—-qual--qualified for but these laws don't prepare a single unqualified Negro to compete for the skilled jobs our economy demands.v And I'm sure that most Negroes are simply asking for the opportunity to develop their skills and abilities so they Egg compete and demonstrate their capacity and abilities on a basisof fairness and equity. Now Fair Housing laws help the Negro with enough money to buy a better home but they don't help the many Negroes who can't afford to move out of the slums. In short, all of the legal safe- guards we now have and will have aren't enough to deal with the staggering legacy resulting from-centuries of deprivation and discrimination. Throughout the foregoing section of the text Governor Romney seems to be attempting to build his personal proofs more and more with a display of understanding for the under— lying, grass-roots problems of the Negro. Particular evi- dence of this appeared in the opening lines of this passage in the truism spoken by the Governor concerning the "hollow ring for Negro masses" contained in the civil rights legal victories. The ensuing series of "hollow ring" applications should have been particularly well taken by this audience which was made up of people who have lived through this apparent dichotemy between the new laws and their enforce- ment. 56 The audience, through their attention and facial expressions, definitely seemed to approve of these state- ments,61 possibly because they concerned the two most pressing racial issues, housing and employment. In addition, it is worthy of note that the Governor employs reasonably tight causal reasoning in this section. Romney followed his manuscript closely here, ex- cept at the end of the first paragraph where he began, "And I'm sure that most Negroes . . .". The Governor seems to be speaking from his own personal convictions, and no evidence is offered. The National Urban League's brilliant Execu- tive Director, Whitney Young, has done much to dramatize the destructive impact of poverty. He’s called, as you know, for a domestic Marshall Plan; a massive public and private offensive against--ah-— unemployment, poor housing, disease and family breakdown. And we simply must redefine our con- cept of equal opportunity to include both legal safeguards against discrimination and positive action to deal with the disastrous economic and social biproducts of discrimination. Whitney Young's proposed Domestic Marshall Plan is a point worthy of further consideration. This Domestic 61 address. From the writer's personal observations at the 57 Marshall Plan is for all practical purposes now in effect because, according to Ralph Bonner, the Urban League Di- rector in Lansing, Michigan, this plan was actually the idea that germinated into President Johnson's War on Poverty program.62 This is further substantiated by Elizabeth Wickenden in a paper on the Office of Economic Opportunity poverty program's concentrated services. She stated: In many ways this aspect [concentrated ser- vices]of the poverty program follows the proposal for a compensatory Marshall Plan type of concen- tration of services for Negroes, put forward by Whitney Young. In the foregoing section of text, in which Romney follows the original manuscript almost perfectly, he is consistent in calling for solutions to both the legal and the practical problems of discrimination. The mention of Urban League Director Whitney Young's plan and furthermore labeling him as "brilliant," which he is reported to he, seems to be an effective means for the Governor to further his rapport with this Urban League audience. 62Bonner, op. cit. 63Elizabeth Wickenden, "Federal Legislation; Its Impact and Opportunity for Social Welfare," Paper read before the National Conference on Social Welfare, Atlantic City, New Jersey, May 27, 1965. 58 And I think the most serious one and the most vital one is motivation. There isn't any question but what the key to overcoming the handicaps is to provide the assistance that children need in their early lives, to have the desire to acquire the edu- cation and the training that will enable them to fill their full potential in society. And this, I believe, will receive increasing attention. The Governor was saying here that we should provide young people with the desire to better themselves. Many of the poverty problems existing today stem from the basic attitudes of people whose parents never even really had a chance in life and from such people as third generation ADC mothers, most of whom have given up.“4 The entire foregoing passage is impromptu and another of the types of problems which trouble the Gover- nor's advisors and speech writers, when he speaks outside of the manuscript, arises here. The problem is in the area of organization, or the lack of it. For example, the last sentence in the section of text covered here uses the words "will receive" and then "must receive" in that order. It would seem to be far more logical to have had "must" preceed "will." *7.— 6A From personal observations in my work with the poverty program of the Office of Economic Opportunity. 59 Now the ”war on poverty” phase of the Civil Rights movement calls for a new type of action. Our local communities must be inspired by persistent determination to equip every willing citizen with the tools he needs to earn a livelihood. There must be also constant impatience with apathy, in- difference, greed and rationalization. Thus re- cruits in the "war on poverty” are motivated, not only by a sense of justice, but more particularly by a sense of responsibility. Today we're forging new and more effective weapons to defeat poverty. I believe our efforts should not cease until we've developed programs and policies needed to eliminate the causes of poverty other than the refusal of individuals to do their part. When the Governor spoke concerning the War on Poverty program he was speaking to this Urban League oriented audi- ence concerning a program which is a deeply integrated part of civil rights problems in most areas. Many of the areas blighted with poverty include the Negro sections of cities and the discrimination against the Negro has been a contri- buting factor toward his membership in the poverty stricken portion of the population. Another close alliance between the War on Poverty and this Urban League oriented audience was the previously mentioned Domestic Marshall Plan pro- posed by Whitney Young and its relationship to the present 60 poverty program. The Office of Economic Opportunity, which administers the War on Poverty program, is particularly concerned with involving the people to be served, the poor themselves, in the action programs and in gaining their opinions of proposed programs.65 With this in mind, it is apparent that race or color has no real bearing on who is in this group to be served. The Negro is already a part of this group and was before the War on Poverty program was ever proposed. There should have been some audience identification with Romney's stated backing of the poverty program, in view of the above mentioned one- ness of purpose between the War on Poverty and the Urban League. According to the stated purpose of the Community Action Assembly, which was to urge affirmative action in implementing the war on poverty program, this statement by the Governor seems to be right at the heart of the subject. Here he is calling for the delegates and their local peers at home to mount an all out attack on poverty and its causes. Romney has, in the passage, charged the audience with its responsibilities. During this entire section of the address the Governor adhered very closely to the original manuscript, 65An interview with James Jacobs, Lansing repre- sentative of the Michigan Economic Opportunity Office, May, 1966. 61 perhaps because of the crucial nature of the passage to the entire purpose of the Assembly. And here I want to emphasize the fact that Ray Scruggs has pointed out in a meeting we've just had and pointed out to me in earlier conversations and that is that the poverty program--ah--as it's presently conceived is es- sentially one for making up for deficiencies in regular and well established programs. For ex- ample, we shouldn't limit our effort in the field of education to simply helping those who have gone through school and still can’t read and write or haven't had the opportunity in the past to get adequate education to read and write and be able to use mathematics. We ought to focus our effort equally on making certain that the youngsters who are now in school are going to get the sort of edu- cation that our school system ought to supply them.66 And the same things are true with our other insti- tutions that exist to enable young people to be equipped when they complete their regular programs. For the first time in the address, the Governor drew spontaneous applause from his audience.67 This favor- able audience reaction occurred when Romney referred in an 6Spontaneous applause, from the actual tape of the address. 67From the actual tape of the address. 62 impromptu manner to his conversation with Ray Scruggs con- cerning educational deprivation and deficiencies. The Governor was asking in this portion of the address for a better initial job of student training, as well as for attention to be paid to the big job of retraining those whom the system had originally failed to train properly. In other words, he wanted a system which, while attempting to remedy its past deficiencies, would also eliminate any future deficiencies. These thoughts must have enhanced his rapport with his audience since they registered their apparent approval through their applause. Perhaps Governor Romney struck a note of rapport68 here with his audience because at approximately the same time as this address was delivered, the Detroit school system was being criti- cized by employers in the Detroit area for some of its recent high school graduates who were unable to pass simple employment tests. It should be noted that the favorable audience reaction occurred at a point where Romney's impromptu remarks seem rather vague and disorganized. A possible suggestion here is that good organization may be less important when personal proof is high. The last sentence in this passage is vague and appears a bit anti-climactic. 68Ibid. 63 Now I believe that the disadvantaged youth, the functionally--it--illiterate and other victims of poverty, both in urban and rural areas, can and must be afforded appropriate opportunities equal to other members of society. Stating this fact, which is one that this Community Action Assembly audience no doubt already accepted and understood, as his own belief, was apparently designed to further build the Governor's personal proof. The state- ment actually is an obviously necessary answer to the edu- cational problems brought out in the preceding paragraph. I believe that the Economic Opportunity Act affords Michigan additional resources to wage our continuing war on poverty and presents a united attack that is being integrated with Michigan's all-out campaign to help eliminate this paradox of poverty in the midst of plenty; The Economic Opportunity Act to which Romney has referred here in the address is the federal Economic Oppor— tunity Act of 196A, which has been helpful to the citizens of all states, including Michigan. The Act is involved in areas of youth programs, urban and rural community action programs, special programs to combat poverty in rural areas, employment and investment incentives, family unity through jobs and the creation of the Office of Economic Opportunity. The specific responsibilities of the Office of Economic Opportunity are as follows: 6A The Bill establishes the Office of Economic Oppor— tunity in the Executive Office of the President. The Director of the Office is provided with coordi- nating powers with respect to existing Federal agency poverty—related programs, and with authority to carry out new programs to attack poverty. Oper- ating functions of the new programs, except for the Job Corps, the community action programs and the Volunteers for America program, will be performed by other departments and agencies.69 The Governor has pointed out here that the state of Michigan is moving in on the State's poverty problems and referred to the problem in the familiar terms of "poverty in the midst of plenty." and we do have an all-out campaign. And Mac Lovell here is the man responsible for the direction of this campaign as far as it relates to the Economic Opportunity Act and there are other individuals-- ah--involved in state government who have the responsibility for making certain that we take advantage of the other programs that are coming along that relate to this same basic problem. Again the Governor has added what we have already identified as a sort of commentary on what are supposed to be his own comments originally. As shown before, these additional comments border on redundancy. It is really impossible to be objective after the fact; however,it seems that, with the difference in wording and organization, 69Louis A. Ferman, Joyce L. Kornbluh, and Alan Haber (ed.), Poverty in America (Ann Arbor, Michigan: The University of Michigan Press, 1965), Appendix. 65 one can almost discern where the script and the impromptu portions begin and end. "Mac" Lovell, whom the Governor mentioned in the address, is presently the Director of the Michigan Employ- ment Security Commission, but was the first Director of the Michigan Office of Economic Opportunity and was its di- rector at the time of this address. Obviously, by his statements in the address, Governor Romney believed Mr. Lovell to be very competent in this endeavor. Now I believe that, working together, federal, state, local and private agencies possess the skills and knowledge to mobilize our total resources and effectively apply them in this war on poverty promptly and decisively. As previously mentioned logical proofs and such materials of development are often limited or missing com- pletely in a Romney address and these past few passages studied seem to be representative examples of this tendency. Here may be found the use of "I believe" and ”I think" several times and, apparently, these phrases often take the place of proof development. This example also illustrates the use of materials of personal proof in place of materials of development, for, once the personal proofs are estab— lished, "I believe" and "I think" can take on a great impor- tance with the audience. This portion of text and the previous two portions Which all began with the words, "I believe" point out the 66 efforts of the Governor's speech writers to write as nearly as possible to the way the Governor speaks. In other words, although "I believe" is the Governor's language, an analysis of the original text (see Appendix A) shows that these words were written for him by Dr. Orlebeke. And another thing that was brought out in our discussion ahead of this luncheon was this. We must not let these new programs weaken the estab— lished programs like the Urban League programs and the private programs that have been making a 70 contribution. These new programs ought to add to the total effort not tend to replace present effort and I think we're going to have to pay a good deal of attention to these programs to make certain that that doesn't happen. And one of the most obvious aspects of that problem is the extent to which those individuals who have been well trained in the most distinctive aspect of Ameri- can life, in terms of progress, namely these voluntary cooperative organizations, must not be drained away into these new programs so that the established programs are lacking in leadership and trained staff to get the jobs done. And I think this is a problem that must not be over- looked. \ 70 Spontaneous applause from the actual tape of the addPeSS . 67 The entire foregoing passage was, of course, im- promptu since it is concerned with a conversation in which the Governor was engaged just prior to the luncheon ad- dress. Although Romney went into detail concerning the problems created when new programs drain off trained people from existing programs in an inductive manner, he really hit at the heart of the situation in his first sentence. The Governor, in fact, touched the audience in this first sentence to the extent that he again drew spontaneous ap- plause from these Urban League oriented listeners.71 The applause was apparently a reflection of the audience re- action to Ted Cobb's move from the chairmanship of the Michigan Urban League Council to a federal position in Chicago, mentioned earlier in Chapter I. Cobb had left Michigan shortly before the Michigan Community Action Assembly to take a position with the federally operated Neighborhood Youth Corps as the Regional Director, cover- ing Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Ohio and Minnesota. He was a brilliant, effective and well-respected Urban Leaguer whom many people have felt will be sorely missed in Michigan. According to Bruce Alderman, of the Kellogg Center, many members of this audience were consider- ably upset by Cobb's being called away from the Michigan Urban League scene.72 71Ibid. 72Alderman, op. cit. 68 It cannot be determined whether or not the Governor purposely played upon the listeners'feelings here, but, since Alderman was aware of their feelings, it seems quite logical that Romney would also be aware of the situation. Given this awareness, it would certainly be wise on the part of the speaker to make full use of it. One factor worthy of consideration, with regard to the organization of this passage, is that the pauses and stammers found in other impromptu portions of this address were not present here. This may possibly indicate that the Governor knew very well where he was going and just what his point would be here. Now I believe these things--both--I believe these things both as a matter of personal cone viction and as a matter of public duty and responsi- bility under our State's Constitution. And, inci- dentally, our state Constitution contains this man- date: The public health and the general welfare of the people of the state are hereby declared matters of primary public concern. Romney delivered this portion of text in language very close to the language in which it was written into the original manuscript. Earlier we had a situation where the Governor delivered a series of "personal beliefs" written for him in the manuscript, represented by the passages beginning with the words, "I believe." The passage immedi- atEIy preceding this one departed completely from the text 69 and then he came back to the text here and said, "Now I believe these things both as a matter of personal con— viction and as a matter of public duty and responsibility under our State's Constitution." It seems that the im- promptu remarks concerning the proselytizing of trained people to new programs has interrupted the chain of pass- ages which adhered so closely to the manuscript. The interruption seems to have caused the passage now under study to make less sense and not to flow properly. This may be a danger in speaking from a manuscript, then speak~ ing impromptu, and then attempting to return to the script. The Governor then spoke of a mandate contained in the new Constitution.73 The reference here is to Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution, which was passed on May 11, 1962. The Constitutional section serves as "the basis for many of the decisions of the Civil Rights Commission and gives them a direction in their decisions"?!4 In reference to the new Constitution, Romney was emphasizing the fact that these mandates set up in the Constitutional Convention of 1961 were now beginning to function in a manner of significance to all humanity in general and to the civil rights movement in particular. This section of 73The new Constitution of the State of Michigan, 1962. 7“Interview with Donald Holtrop, a field worker wiph the Michigan Civil Rights Commission, April 22, 19 5. 70 the new Constitution would naturally be vital to the inter- ests of this audience. Now I'm glad that we live in a system that expresses deep concern and takes strong positive action to eliminate unemployment at a time when most people are employed. I don't think there has been any time in the history of this state when so many of us have joined together in suchcvz affirmative way to aid the few who are not sharing in Michigan's general prosperity. The Governor once again brought in the fact that efforts should be, and were being, made to eliminate "poverty in the midst of plenty." The "poverty" group he referred to here, which he called the "few," were, in some cases, members of this audience, while in other cases members of the audi- ence represented the "few." In either case, the Governor seemed to be complimenting the efforts of the audience and Speaking on behalf of the accomplishments of his adminis- tration at the same time. The entire foregoing passage was almost spoken verbatum from the manuscript. We have a lot to be proud of in our state. We cer- tainly can feel good that our general economic pic- ture is more favorable than it has been. 0ur--ah-- our employment levels are high, our unemployment is lower than it's been in a long, long time, and 71 there's a general feeling of well being throughout the state. But despite that fact we face serious problems and one of them is the problem we're here to deal with today. And your state government is ready to help and federal officials have promised cooperation and are providing leadership, and if we work together with vision and vigor we can make fully effective use of these tools in the war on poverty. From the previous passage, which was delivered exact- ingly close to the manuscript, Romney now suddenly has spoken all around the manuscript. The Governor, uniquely, has neither read his manuscript here nor spoken in an im- promptu fashion, but rather has done something that could be classified as extemporizing from the manuscript. A textual comparison (see Appendix A) reveals that without using the exact words in the manuscript, he has said, in his own words, no more and no less than the original text. In speaking in this manner the Governor has created a sort of relaxed, off-handed manner of speaking Just a little different from any he has used up to this point in the address. The general message in the foregoing section of text is really a further amplification of the previous passage in which Romney gave the audience a sort of capsule state Of the State message. The message here appeared to be that 72 Michigan was in the best economic condition it had been in for some time. In the latter portion of the passage the Governor told his listeners what they probably had hoped to hear him say when they came to the Community Action As- sembly; his pledge of federal and state assistance toward the fulfillment of the goals of the assembled delegates. Romney seems here to have attempted to weld his audience together with group pride and used his materials of experi- ence well by moving from emotional appeals into motivational appeals in an interesting manner. May I remind you of what I said in my Inaugural address on January 1, 1963. I said to the people of Michigan then and I repeat it here today because it's right on target: Only when brotherhood is translated into practical citizenship can we build a floor below which man's inhumanity to man shall not operate, eliminate poverty and raise every citizen above want without getting the beehive or the antheap. Only thus can we--compete--complete Lincoln's unfinished work of creating a society in which all men can hold up their heads as equal and self- respecting citizens. The portion of text considered here was designed by true speech writer to be the closing passage of the address anti'well could have been, except that Romney did not begin thee first phrase with "In closing," as it was written. Thiis would certainly lead an observer to believe that the Govequior had preplanned the additional message which : follcnved this manuscript ending. In other words, it 73 appears that he purposely kept this from being the end of the address because there was more he wanted to say to his audience. Most of this final passage was spoken directly from the mansucript without variation. It would seem extremely difficult to follow the manuscript faultlessly, leave it for a few phrases and then return to it, as Romney had done in these last three divisions in the text. The reference in this passage was to the Governor's first inaugural address in 1963 and it apparently was, as he said, "right on target" considering the aims of this Urban League audience. The portions of the text from this point to the end of the address are all impromptu, but represent areas in which the Governor speaks well and with authority, in the writers opinion. These are materials with which Romney is very familiar because of his religious background and areas which would, at the same time, likely be difficult for a Speech writer to write for him. One cannot really say that these patriotic and religious statements were spoken in an absolute impromptu manner because, in one sense, the Governor has spent his lifetime preparing himself to state these ideals. Over the course of his life these beliefs have become so strong that, upon close examination, one would find these same Words or slight variations on the theme present, either 7U implicitly or explictly expressed, in nearly all addresses by Romney. Now while I was sitting here during lunch and talking to Ted Cobb he told me that his son here wanted him to ask me a question and the question he wanted his father to ask me was, what made me a freedom fighter and my response was this; every American who really understands America and the principles on which America is founded, starting with the opening words of the Declaration of In- dependence, will be a freedom fighter.75 And it's my hope that the freedom fighters that are being trained in America to eliminate human injustice and discrimination, that has continued too long since we recognized the evil of slavery and the denial of full citizenship, will be available to use their capacities and abilities to fulfill our warld role as freedom fighters. Once again the audience-revered name of Ted Cobb appeared, which seemed to be a way to excite, or at least 76 gain the full attention of, this audience. By using TEd Cobb, his son, and the type of question which was asked, Romney tried to establish himself as a "freedom ‘ 75 applause. From the actual tape of the address, spontaneous 76From the writers personal observation of the address. 75 fighter" without further question or doubt. The question, it should be noted, was not worded, "Are you a freedom fighter?", but "What made you a freedom fighter?" In other words, the question, as the Governor related it, was worded to say, "We all know you are a freedom fighter but how did you get to be one?” This was an excellent use of suggestion. The Governor's explanation of what made him a free- dom fighter drew spontaneous applause from the audience.77 The delegates to this Community Action Assembly no doubt considered themselves freedom fighters, one and all. Through the establishment of himself as a freedom fighter, then, an identification seemed to be taking place between the Urban League audience and Romney. Simplifying freedom fighter status to merely a basic understanding of the opening words of the Declaration of Independence seemed to be saying that anyone who followed the mandates of this document could not be anything but a freedom fighter. This seems to be logically sound reason- ing, or at least it is certainly reasoning that was followed by this audience. We could support this by recalling an earlier point in the address which referred to the "hollow ring" of the legal victories, which also elicited strong audience applause and approval. The "hollow ring" statement and the assertion concerning why Romney is a freedom fighter 77From the actual tape of the address. 76 have a similarity in that they both point out that people cannot really consider themselves to be law abiding citizens unless they carry out the letter of the law in their every- day dealings with their fellow men. This nation has a divine destiny. This nation is not just another country. This nation is founded by individuals who were inspired to write into the Declaration of Independence and Constitution of the United States, principles that you won't find else- where fully expressed. You'll find segments, sure, because they come out of the Judeo-Christian herit- age of Rome and Greece, but, as expressed in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States, they bring together the very essence of the inspiration of the ages in terms of human rights and this country the these principles home that people human relationships, and they make country responsible for taking and expressing them so fully at elsewhere through the Earth will want to adopt them and adapt them to their circum- stances. And they also make us, as Americans, re— sponsible to share these principles with peoples around the Earth. And this we must do, in my humble opinion, if we’re going to keep the peoples of the Earth from turning on us to take away-—ah-- the blessings and abundance that--ah--we enjoy. 77 Basically this passage charges the audience with its responsibility as Americans, to their fellow Americans and furthermore to the peoples of the world. The consequences Romney outlines here are no less than the loss of the "blessings and abundance that we enjoy." Perhaps one of Romney's greatest speaking assets is his ability to charge an audience with its responsibilities in a frank, firm manner. Such a speaking endeavor seems to be powered with strong materials of experience and carried on a base of high personal proofs possessed by the speaker. In this portion of the text the Governor has used some strong materials of experience through connecting the found- ing of the United States to such factors as the Judeo- Christian heritage, the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. When such materials of experience and materials of personal proof are present and the actual platform speak- ing is well done, a speaker such as George Romney can ap- parently preach a sermon or engage in activities commonly called "flag—waving" without being too severely criticized by even the most cynical critics. Toward the end of this passage the Governor uses the phrase "in my humble opinion," but most of the remainder Of what he said and the manner in which he said it belied the fact that he really considered his opinion to be "humble." The reference here is to his firm, outspoken style and the 78 previously discussed use of "I believe," "I think," and "Now” at the beginning of a phrase, with a relative lack of materials of development. A person who truly thinks of himself as humble is not apt to expect people to accept what he says as incontrovertible fact without further proof. 78 the follow- In the chronological substance outline ing portion of the text was set aside as the beginning of the conclusion of the address, but in another sense it might be considered the beginning of the basic part of the address. As mentioned before, when speaking impromptu, the Governor sometimes turns his implicit feelings into explicit terms. Such is the case from here to the end of the speech, since what Romney said from this point on was the real underlying philosophy of what he had been saying implicitly throughout the address. Now that leads to one final comment and that's this. I've had the pleasure in the last few years to become acquainted with some of your fine ministers and many are increasingly concerned and I share their concern. They're increasingly concerned that, as their membership is elevated in a material sense, they reduce their activity in a religious sense. And if this happens, it'll be a great tragedy, be- cause in a period of difficulty, such as you and 78The chronological substance outline was done prior to beginning the study. 79 your people have been living through, you live on the basis of faith more than on a material basis. And this has been one of your great strengths and one of your great contributions to our nation. And, in my humble opinion, the most serious threat to the future of this nation is the decline in religious conviction, moral character and family life. Now these are the great dangers of the country.79 And I’m all for this effort to overcome these things that have provided obstacles and barriers to the ability of anyone, without regard to race, color, creed or national origin, to—-to-- secure whatever degree of economic recognition he or she is entitled to. But let's not let it occur at the cost of losing things that are more impor- tant. Earlier in this thesis Bruce Biossat was quoted as saying, "George Romney is a tantalizing blend of evangelist, salesman, strong—handed leader, dedicated servant of varied and changing causes. Evangelism is most likely the key."80 The passage under consideration here seems to support this statement, because the Governor touched on the religious and faith implications of the civil rights Struggle. Without demeaning the importance of the social 79Spontaneous applause, from the actual tape of the address. 80Biossat, loc. cit. 80 and material needs in the civil rights movement, Romney pointed out here that people involved in these movements should guard against a possible decline in the religious activity of the deprived people as they began to realize the fulfillment of their material goals. Apparently these thoughts met with considerable audience approval, since another burst of applause occurred here as shown in the text. As stated before, the Governor's beliefs manifest- ing themselves in this portion of the address were woven into the entire text of this address. These beliefs, of course, stem from Romney's active participation in the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-Day Saints (Mormon), as the Governor has long been active as a district lay leader and lay preacher in the Church. His religious con- victions, such as no alcohol or stimulants of any kind and keeping Sunday strictly as a sacred day of rest, have been a marvel to his political associates. According to Albert Applegate, Romney has a set of life values and an order to them which he follows devoutly. These values take the form of duties or obligations and are listed in their order as follows: l. Obligation to God. 2. Obligation to family. 3. Obligation to community8 A. Obligation to vocation. l 81 Applegate, op. cit. 81 The Governor's close associates say he prayerfully considers all important decisions and, in speaking of his beliefs, Romney once said: [Religion] "has taught me to honor the convictions and personal rights of others, to accept truth wher- ever I find it, and to seek everywhere for 'anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy.'" Among the values he listed were: The end of all Learning is to know God. And knowing Him, to love Him and strive to be ' like Him . . . When we serve our fellow men, we serve our God. Marriage and the family ties can and should be eternal. Man is that he might have Joy. Freedom of choice is man's great privilege We cannot be saved in ignorance; we cannot be saved any faster than we gain know- ‘ledge. That America is the "Land of Promise" and the "Everlasting Hills" referred to in Israel's blessing to Joseph who was sold unto Egypt. That the Constitution of the United States is a divinely inspired document whose purpose is to free Americans and through their ex- ample and assistance free mgn everywhere from bondage of all forms. . . . 2 It is easy to see, from such moral and religious principles, why the Governor is such a strange political paradox and why these factors keep coming up in his speak- ing. One has only to investigate other speaking texts of the Governor to find that these religious and moral state— 83 ments in this address were simply variations on the theme. 82Mahoney, op. cit., p. 88. 83Inaugural address and state of the State message, 22;.£5Ui- 82 Additionally, Romney once again used the phrase, "in my humble opinion" in much the same manner as it was previously used. The history of the world can be--sa--covered in--this--th--these simple words. Mankind—-ah—— in groups and in nations and in civilizations have moved from fetters to faith, from faith to freedom, from freedom to folly, and from folly back to into fetters. Now that's the history of the world up to this time, basically. And, as a nation, we're only going to avoid that pattern if those of you who have a --mor--a sharper appreciation of free- dom in it's full sense, as a result of fighting for it today, can retain your faith and these things that have urged you on in this fight and to make this great effort. The Governor was supplementing the moral and religious philosophies discussed in the preceding section here by using this sort of parable. He urged the delegates not to forget the attitudes and beliefs that had carried them to that point in their fight for their rights when they finally achieved success. Romney used this rather strong emotional aPpeal to warn them that, as they achieved the freedom they were fighting for, they should avoid the pitfall which has occurred over and over again throughout history of failure to success and back to failure. 83 And so I hope that your contribution will be a complete--ah--contribution and will strengthen our society in those places where it needs strengthening, as well as to enjoy a complete and full expression of your rights and oppor- tunities. Thank you very much.87 Romney concluded his address by charging the as- sembled delegates to give back to society at least as much as they take from it in order to enjoy a complete freedom and full citizenship rights. This conclusion not only looks weak in the printed form, but it sounded weak at the time of the address and on the tape recording, as well. It seems to be anti— climactic to some of the passages just preceding it. As Governor Romney finally thanked the listeners for their earnest attention, they generously applauded the man and his address.85 8“Spontaneous applause, from the actual tape of the address. 85From observation at the address and the tape recording. CHAPTER IV CONCLUSIONS In the introduction it was stated that this thesis, in addition to analyzing a specific speech, would attempt to point out other factors surrounding Governor George Romney and his speaking. The address was to be analyzed from the standpoint of preparation, delivery, style, audience response and particularly from the standpoint of the balance between materials of personal proof, materials of development and materials of experience. These other factors which were to be brought out were to show how the Governor has applied a lifetime of beliefs to what communities can and should do for themselves as a supplement to the various state and national programs concerning race relations. It was hoped that the study would also contribute an insight into Romney's personal attitudes toward deprivation, poverty and racial issues. The study additionally sought to answer such questions as Why a certain statement was made, what was the historical Significance of such a statement, and why certain events which were related to the address occurred. 8U 85 The purpose of this chapter, then, will be to dis- cuss the findings of this study in relation to these original goals concerning Romney and his speaking, particularly as they apply to this speech. Also included will be a brief examination of the outcome of the Michigan Community Action Assembly as compared to the original expectations of the Assembly, as well as the role of the Governor in this out— come. The process of outlining and plotting the organization of this address was not extremely difficult, since Romney spoke in a manner that often sounded like an outline. This speaking method tended to divide the speech into separate speeches within themselves. That is why this particular thesis structure was chosen. Governor Romney has a staff of press and public re- lations people, including a speech writer. The speech writer, Albert Applegate, is responsible for writing most of the major addresses. Governor Romney's speaking schedule is planned well ahead of time and Charles Harmon, the Governor's press secretary, assigns the speech writing duties from that schedule. Mr. Applegate writes 60 per cent of the total of all addresses written for the Cover- nor, while the remaining speech writing assignments are given out to the other members of the administrative Staff in accordance with their specific talent and/or areas of interest. Such was the case in this address, 86 as Dr. Charles Orlebeke, the Governor's administrative assistant in the area of civil rights, was assigned to write the speech. No matter who writes an address for the Governor, there is an attempt at uniformity from one speech to another, and all writers attempt to write as nearly as possible to the style in which the Governor speaks.86 This drive for consistency is natural, since the words, when delivered from the platform, are supposed to be Romney's own words and incidentally could in part explain the sameness of Romney's speaking which has been discussed I in this study. The staff is concerned about the length of the speeches, too many departures from the manuscript, and the preservation of the general Romney image. A critical Democrat said, while explaining why Romney's image gets so many votes: He looks perfect. He has an innate PR [public relations] sense. His PR victories are his own making, not his staff's. He looks the pipgegirSSE—gggizlprggident, white sidewalls The Governor has been quoted many times as saying he doesn't like small talk, hence the short speeches of about twenty minutes duration, to which Applegate said the staff members prefer to have Romney limit himself,88 k 86Applegate, op. cit. 87Arthur Edson, "Not Talking, But Thinking," The §E§E§Journal, (July 31, 1966), p. D-l. 88 Applegate, op. cit. 87 are probably also to the liking of the Governor. Romney recently told an interviewer: I have been involved with people all my life. This was true in business. I'm not inclined to sit around and gab without some point to it. I am inclined to be frank and blunt at times. (Short laugh.) I Just let the chips fall.89 This perhaps also helps account for the fact that this speech is made up of a series of short, direct points with a minimum of preliminaries and, in fact, sometimes limited use of materials of development. It was learned that the Governor reads a speech, at least for content, before delivering it, which makes him responsible for the content, rather than the speechr writer. In fact, Romney told Mr. Applegate, when he Joined the staff, to write with a free hand and use all the imagi- nation possible. The Governor said he would assume full responsibility for what was said from the platform.90 Surprisingly, this is not always the case with every speaker. It happens that Applegate's sister was the writer and press secretary for Michigan's late Governor Kim Sigler, who practically never read a speech before delivering it, placing the full responsibility for the man's public image in the hands of the writer.91 Governor Romney and his staff are no doubt well aware Of the words and philosophies that must be used to a given _ 89Edson, loc. cit., p. D-2. 90Applegate, op. cit. 91Ibid. 88 audience to create the proper image, mood or reaction. In analyzing an address we attempt-to use our rhetorical labels for the phenomena we find contained in the address. The Governor and his staff may execute a perfect example of a rhetorical principle, however, without ever having heard of such a label and without realizing precisely what they have done. In fact, by Applegate's own admission, they are not necessarily aware of whether they are writing inductively or deductively.92 The position in which we find ourselves is one of applying a theoretical label to an already exe- cuted practical act, at best a difficult task. Labels are a necessity, however, if with any meaning we are to analyze and comment upon what we hear and see in an address. Two such labels which were found to be appli- cable to George Romney in this speech were "inductive" and "implicative." There are rare exceptions, but, for the most part, Romney's methods of organization appear to be inductive and practically this entire address is a prime example. When making the logical outline of this address, the writer usually had to go to the end of a thought pattern to find the topic sentence and then go back to the beginning of the thought pattern to gather the supporting materials. For instance, the main theme of this address was the religious, moral and philosophical aspects of the civil 92Ibid. 89 rights movement. This thought, however, was not expressed explicitly until the end of the address, which means that the overall organization of the address was actually in- ductive. These moral aspects expressed explicitly at the end of the address were found implicitly throughout the address, Just as they are in many Romney addresses. The religious and moral beliefs of the Governor seem to form an under- current in most of his speaking, in fact, in most of his thinking, and they are explicitly expressed somewhere in many of his speeches. It is through the expression of these ethical and moral beliefs that the Governor's strong materials of per- sonal proof manifest themselves. In the conclusion of this address the Governor talked of ethical beliefs and religious convictions as they apply to the struggle against poverty and discrimination in which the delegates were involved. The ethical and moral level, known to be part of Romney's everyday life, once again evidenced itself here, and the feeling of the "good man" that was concerned about their problems seemed to be communicated to the listeners. This high level of morality presented by Governor Romney is the real heart of his strong personal proof. The Governor's strong Mormon background, with its Stress on family life, abstinance from stimulants or alcohol, and a generally high level of morality in dealing 90 with one's fellow men has given him an unusual, built-in moral fiber. These factors, coupled with the previously mentioned life value order of God, family, community, and vocation make George Romney tend to fit the "white knight" label given him by some observers and cause him to appear to be a bit of a political phenomenon. The honest image of "goodness" created by the Gover- nor is a source of annoyance to some Republicans because they are afraid that, in this age, the image may seem to some voters to be literally "too good to be true."93 This may be due in part to a feeling that the average voter is not this "good" and will not want to believe that another man is either, particularly a political figure. The real annoyance, however, is to those who oppose Romney. It is difficult, even in the heat of a political campaign, to find a weak spot in the Governor's armor—plated personal proof. To be openly critical of the Romney image could open the critic to the risk of an atheistic label and perhaps political suicide. The frustrations of searching for a method of combating Romney politically are heightened by the Governor's apparent ability to rise up in righteous indignation when he is personally attacked and come out of the political fray a winner. For instance, as the UAW-CIO in Michigan prepared for their Labor Day, 1966, reception and program for President Johnson and memorial to the late _—— 93Ibid. 91 Senator Patrick McNamara, they absolutely refused to offer the Governor a formal invitation. Instead of creating a noisy political furor, Romney simply said: I don't need an invitation, . . . I'll be there, whether I'm on the platform or seated in the audience or standing at the back of the hall. Labor Day is a day when we all pay our re— spects to working people, . . . It would be negli— gent on my part if I didn't show my respefit to the working people and to Sen. McNamara.9 How strong a man's materials of personal proof should be or how much benefit he gains from this strength is difficult to ascertain however, as stated earlier, Romney's personal proof has been said to approach the magical quality known as charisma. This would seem to be a level of personal proof to which many aspire and few achieve. It appears that the Governor, at least in this ad— dress, relies heavily upon these strong personal proofs. He relies on them so heavily, in fact, that materials of. development are non-existent at times and the personal proof is used to carry the burden of proof for his state- ments. Although the Governor is methodical and well organ- ized in the presentation of his materials of development when he uses them, he frequently seems to feel it is sufficient to add simply, "and I believe this is very important" or "and this must receive increasing attention." Many times during this address Romney began a phrase with 9“The State Journal, September 1, 1966, p. A-6. v '- «' xx 1 Inaug- “s n- 92 the words, "I believe . . .". When these words appear, it may be taken as-a signal that you are not likely to get much more development than Just that. "I believe" is tied closely to his personal proofs and could be translated to mean, "I say this is true and you know I would never state or support any falsehoods." George Romney, whether it is done intentionally or not, is quite adept at heaping materials of experience on his already strong materials of personal proof. The result of this is an image of a man who believes strongly in certain convictions and, through his firmness in them, seems to bring most of his listeners along with him. Because of his own sincere religious and ethical principles, Governor Romney is able to use strong materials of experience and get away with them. Somehow, when he speaks out concerning God, mother and the flag, it does not seem to carry with it the "false" qualities usually connoted by the label, "flag- waving."95 In summary, it may be said that in this address the Governor very definitely has relied most heavily upon his materials of personal proof, which were interspersed with ii considerable use of materials of experience. Materials of development were, however, extremely limited in this address. 95From my personal observations and opinions at the address. 93 The most peculiar facet of the personality of George Romney is that he is a very paradoxical figure, notwith- standing these strong personal proofs and image factors. There appears possibly to be another side to the man. A Democrat who knows the Governor well has said: We had an argument shortly after he [Romney] took office. A change came over him that was absolutely frightening. His knuckles went white. He lost control of himself. There's something in this man's makeup that gives him the knowledge that he is doing right and that those who oppose him are the apostles of the devil. I actually believe he feels he's divinely ordained.9 Although it should be noted that these are the thoughts of a political opponent, there is evidence of at least some truth to the above statement in this address when the Governor uses the very strong, firmly stated word, "Now" at the beginning of phrases. As stated in Chapter III, this word, "Now," as it was used, seemed to be a verbally pointed finger that said, "You listen to what I have to say."97 Further proof is Romney's ability to charge an audience in a frank manner, apparently secure in thought that his directives are the correct ones. The Governor has a way of charging an audience to do whatever must be done, not necessarily by "nice" talk, but rather by firmly telling the people what is expected of them; what their role in achieving the desired goal must be. He 96Edson, loc. cit., p. D-l. 97From my personal observations at the address. 94 demonstrated this when he told the Assembly leaders, in a morning meeting before his address, that the initial effort in the war on poverty would have to come from within their 98 Several times during the address he went on own ranks. emphatically to inform the audience what would be expected of them if their goals were to be achieved. The Governor used his "humble" childhood to gain some rapport, through identification, with his listeners. Al- though we established in Chapter III that this beginning was not as humble as that of some people in his audience, Romney did seem to gain stature with his listeners through the mention of these facts pertaining to his early child- hood.99 Humility is an admirable quality in anyone, parti- cularly a political figure, but self-proclaimed humility is not always acceptable or in keeping with the man's pro— jected total image. At several points in this address the Governor referred to "my humble opinion," however his forceful method of stating facts and expecting them to be accepted without question belies the fact that he really looks upon his own opinion as "humble." No man could be considered extraordinarily humble when, in fact, he has an overwhelming belief that his cause is the "right" cause and the tenacity to hold to it. 98Alderman, 0p. cit. 99From my observations at the address. 95 Such a man is George Romney, and this belief in himself, and even more particularly his tenacity in a speaking situ- ation, may stem in part from the fact that he has had con- siderable experience in speaking to hostile audiences. Starting with his early Mormon days when, as was pointed out in Chapter II, the Governor competed with others for an audience on a street corner or in a park in London, and moving on to his present encounters with his political Opponents, Romney has frequently found himself in the position of having to literally shout down the Jeers of his detractors. Time Magazine reports that in his early days of campaigning, more than once Romney . turned up uninvited at labor gatherings and demanded to be heard. More than once, he was sent away. At last union leaders decided that they were getting a reputation for undemocratic attitudes. After that they sent Romney invitations and he did not hesitate to appear and preach his gospe1.100 Governor Romney has exhibited a tendency in this address to follow his manuscript, leave it completely for a few passages and then return to it. Seemingly, it would be quite difficult to depart sporadically from the manu- script and still follow the organization of it well enough to pick it up again at will. Arthur Edson, citing Dr. D. Duane Angel's doctoral dissertation concerning "The Cam- paign Speaking of George Romney," said, "Campaign oratory lOOTime, loc. cit., p. 21. illllil IA 96 "101 does not show Romney at his best. Edson, further citing Angel, went on to say: Romney does fine on inspirational talks, but he gives him poor marks on prepared texts. "He doesn't read Speeches very well anyway," Angel says. "But I think Romney is a word artist. He invented the words 'compact car.' The small car means you're cheap while the compact car means you're thrifty. When he proposed a Michigan state income tax, Romney Spoke of fiscal reform. And he said in 1964, 'I accept but do not endorse Gold— water.‘ What does that mean? I don't know, but the people bought it."102 One extremely interesting point related to the dis- cussion of Romney's impromptu speaking and the passages in which he adhered closely to the manuscript is the fact that in each of the four cases which drew spontaneous applause during the address, he was speaking impromptu at the time. This could be taken as further proof that the Governor is more effective when not speaking directly from a manuscript. Excessive departures from the script have certain shortcomings for Romney, however, which are pointed out rather well in this address. These problems seem mainly to be a lack of organization and excessive redundancy, as pointed out in Chapter III. Close observation of the impromptu portions of the Speech bears out the fact that the original manuscript was lOlArthur Edson, "Not Talking, But Thinking," The §£§£§ Journal (July 31, 1966), p. D—2, citing D. Duanefi— Angl, "The Campign Speaking of George Romney," unpublished Ian. D. dissertation. .102Ibid. 97 not written by the Governor himself, since he appears to be commenting upon comments which were already supposed to be his own in the manuscript. If Romney had actually written the manuscript all of this would be unnecessary, but, since he didn't, he was actually editorializing on a manuscript which was written by Dr. Orlebeke. It has been mentioned several times during this thesis that the use of the word "ah” and similar incidents of vocalized pauses are prevalent. These occur, for the most part, when Romney is speaking impromptu and apart from the manuscript. As was shown in Chapters II and III, however, these breaks in the flow of the address appear to be momentus flaws in the printed form, but actually they did not sound nearly as bad on the tape recording or at the time of delivery.103 This brings to light an inter— esting point in relation to the long-standing philosophical issue as to Just how much difference there is between words which are spoken and the same words when they are written. The difference in this case is unquestionably great, even to a casual observer of the comparison. To some observers, Romney is not considered to be an orator of high style; howeven Thonssen and Gilkinson pointed out that 103From the writer's personal observations at the address and from the tape recording. 98 A speaker's style serves the important function of clothing ideas with language. Its purpose is to Open the minds of the listeners for a reception Of the speaker's thought. It is not an instrument Of display, or of exhibition. Flashy, showy language that fails to make listeners give full attention to the material content of a talk has no intrinsic value. To be effective, style must further the ends of communication; it must tell the message the speaker intends and tell it with unmistakeable clarity.10u If we accept this criterion, the Governor seems to be an effective speaker. There appears to be very little doubt that, after he has spoken, Romney has communicated with his receivers, regardless of how his speeches may sound to the critical Observer of speeches. For instance, we already have cited the example from the Romney bio- graphy by Tom Mahoney, in which it was reported: As a speaker, George Romney is earnest rather than polished. His platform manner has a certain awkward quality of innocent, unsophisticated sin- cerity that strikes a friendly chord with listeners. "He leaves you feeling," a lawyer says, "that he is not a smooth speaker, maybe not even a trained speaker, but that he is in the right and, if you know what is good for you, you will go out and vote for bonds, or buy a small car, or whatever he is asking you to do."105 It can safely be stated, from studying this particular address and from almost daily political examples, that George Romney is a very persuasive man. His persuasive ability evidences itself at all levels of communication, for in day to day situations he seems to get that which he lo“Lester Thonssen and Howard Gilkinson, Basic Training in Speech (Boston: D. C. Heath and Company, 1947), p. 525. 105Mahoney, op. cit., p. 230. 99 desires more Often than not. Representative William S. Broomfield, the Republican Congressman from Romney's home district in Michigan, was quoted as saying, "He's one of the greatest campaigners I ever saw. He electrifies people. You can feel it."106 It is certainly difficult to make a value judgment concerning the typicality of a particular speech in re- lation to a speaker's usual pattern of organization, style and delivery. It can be stated, however, that certain characteristics found in this speech to the Michigan Com- munity Action Assembly are present in many other Romney speeches which the writer has heard. In fact, many people feel that most of Romney's speeches are simply variations on one theme, adapted to particular situations. That main theme, of course, is the constant reference to the religious and moral aspects Of life. In a recent newspaper article by Arthur Edson of the Associated Press it was pointed out that underneath this neatly tailored exterior lurks an Old—fashioned evangelist. For years Romney has preached one theme; down with big government, big business, big labor unions; up with individual, local, family and state responsi- bility. "He's the only politician in the country," one critic has said, "who can make exactly the same speech at a commencement exercise one night and at a political rally the next." Through almost all Of Romney's speeches runs a firm religious note. "I believe," George Romney has said, "that the hand of the Creator guided the formation and 106Edson, loc. cit., p. D-l. 100 development of this country. I believe that God has a purpose for this nation, and a plan for every individual in it."107 Dr. Angel, now a speech professor at the University of Dela- ware, said, "Romney has been making the same speech for 10 years."108 The writer's comparisons of various Romney addresses 5 and these foregoing comments seem to indicate that there is f a high degree Of typicality in most Of the Governor's speak- ing, including this address. , The Michigan Community Action Assembly itself was g not as well attended as was originally planned, since Mr. Cobb's letter, included in Chapter I, said that 150 to 200 persons were expected, whereas only 136 attended (see Appendix B). The meetings did not meet the expectations of Bruce Alderman, of the Kellogg Center, in terms of activity, discussion and meaningful content. Alderman felt that perhaps the Michigan Community Action Assembly, which was one of the first follow—up meetings in the country after President Johnson's similar Washington meeting, was planned a bit too soon and tOO fast.109 In view of the fact that the basic purpose of the meeting was to stimulate interest in community action pro- grams under Title IIa of the Economic Opportunity Act, however, there has been some success. All but-two of Edson, loc. cit., p. D—2. 108Ibid. —— 107 109Alderman, Op. cit. lOl Michigan's 83 counties now have community action programs Iand growing out from these programs are many local programs designed to assist the poor and disadvantaged people. It is virtually impossible to say to what degree the suc- cesses are directly attributable to the Michigan Com- munity Action Assembly. It seems equally difficult to make a value judgment concerning what degree of effect the Romney address had on the total Michigan Community Action Assembly and the suc— cesses which have followed. It is possible, however, to assess the feelings of the people I have interviewed who were in the room the day Of the address and, from infor- mation gathered from these interviews, it is my conclusion that Governor Romney gave his listeners considerable en- couragement to go back to their local areas and get these programs implemented. It is also my Opinion that he con- veyed the thought that he and the state of Michigan were behind them in this endeavor. The image seemingly created here was that the Governor, a "good man," was in favor of moving in on these local problems with organized community action. This image should have contributed a great deal toward local interest in these programs. BIBLIOGRAPHY 102 - —I—'u4~‘¢lr BIBLIOGRAPHY Books Dow, Clyde W. An Introduction to Graduate Study in Speech and Theatre. East Lansing, Michigan: Michigan State University Press, 1961. Ferman, Louis A., Kornbluh, Joyce L. and Haber, Alan (ed.). Poverty in America. Ann Arbor, Michigan: The University of Michigan Press, 1965. Harrington, Michael. The Other America. New York: The MacMillan Company, 1962. Mahoney, Tom. The Story of George Romney; Builder,,Salesman, Crusader. New York: Harper and Brothers, 1960. ' Merton, Robert K. Social Theory and Social Structure. Glencoe, Illinois: The Free Press of Glencoe, Illinois, 19A9. Oliver, Robert T. Psychology Of Persuasive Speech. New York: Longmans, Green and Company, 1957. Thonssen, Lester and Gilkinson, Howard. Basic Trainin in Speech. Boston: D. C. Heath and Company, 1 A7. Newspapers and Periodicals Biossat, Bruce. The State Journal (Lansing, Michigan), April 25, 1965. . The State Journal (Lansing, Michigan), April 27, 1965. "Cover Story on George Romney," Time, November 16, 1962. Edscni, Arthur. "Not Talking, But Thinking," The State Journal (Lansing, Michigan), July 31, 19661 The State Journal, May 214, 1965- 103 , ' it“ 33" 10A The State Journal, May 25, 1966. September 1, 1966. Pamphlets and Papers Feikens, John and Keith, Damon. A statement Of purpose read at the first meeting Of the Michigan Civil Rights Commission, January 31, 1964. Urban League. A pamphlet printed by the National Urban. League, New York, 1964. . New Look for Urban League. A paper from the National Urban League, New York, 1965. Wickendon, Elizabeth. Federal Legislation; Its Impact and Opportunity for Social Welfare. A paper read before the National Conference on Social Welfare, Atlantic City, New Jersey, May 27, 1965. Interviews Applegate, Albert. A personal interview with Albert Apple- gate, Governor George Romney's Administrative Assistant and speech writer, August 23, 1965. Alderman, Bruce. A personal interview with Bruce Alderman, the Michigan State University conference consultant assigned to the Michigan Community Action Assembly, May 5, 1965. Holtrop, Donald. A personal interview with Donald Holtrop, a field representative with the Michigan Civil Rights Commission, April 22, 1965. Jacobs, James. A personal interview with James Jacobs, the Lansing field representative from the Michigan Office of Economic Opportunity, May, 1966. Mack, John. A personal interview with John Mack, the Executive Director of the Flint Urban League, February 9, 1966. Bonner, Ralph. A personal interview with Ralph Bonner, the Executive Director of the Lansing Urban League, April, 1965. 105 Other Sources Cobb, Wesley T. A letter from Wesley T. Cobb, former chair- man Of the Michigan Urban League Council, to Dr. Armand Hunter, the director Of the Michigan State University Continuing Education, December 18, 1964. Johnson, Lyndon B. The Official text of an address by President Lyndon B. Johnson to the Community Action Assembly, Washington, D. C., December 10, 196A. Romney, George. The Official text of Governor George Romney's Inaugural address in Lansing, Michigan, January 1, 1965. . The Official text of Governor George Romney's state of the State message, Lansing, Michigan, January, 1965. . The official text Of Governor George Romney's address to the Associated Press, April 19, 1965. A summary of the Civil Rights Act, published by the. United States Commission on Civil Rights, Washington, D. C., August, 1964. The New Revised Michigan Constitution. APPENDICES 106 .fi‘bnfifla’ I |.l |.|l|..lnlu.|..FE APPENDIX A 107 TLXTUA; Delivered 7 ext* *Taken from a ding address. tape recor Thank you very much. T much. Thank you very mich. much—-ah-—Ray Scruggs. Low as I look around the room I alize that Ra, s--ah--sentiments u recent Gubernatorial electi-o ns are necessarily endorsed by “verytcdy room but--ah—-in any :Vent, I ~ Ray's--ah——f eeling th wiy. It is true that-—ah--I've exposure to poverty. ‘J'e I‘y V9 Ty , 1!” V P‘- nk you nk you 1r 11 mrw -Jd As a matter of --ah--I was a revolutionary re ugee age of five. Our family was drivm Mexico on forty—eight hours nctice with nothing and—~ah—-we were housed the United States Army until mV could get a job as a carpenter. out going through a‘l of ne vi --ah—-we were a straw g1 ing : the next fourteen years and of Idaho potatoes at a time couldn't sell 'em and you just ate em; morning, noon and night. So——nav——I do have a first nand acquaintance with the problem of families under difficult-—ah --circumstances. I want to congratuthe the Urban Leagues for calling this Commir i.y Action conference and I'm well aware of the im- portant contribution of the Urban "eague over the past half century. Cif I‘crurse, in its earlier years the--ah--U a: League concentrated on elping mi: rarts from the South to learn“ the strange and bewildering ways of Northern cities bu then when the trickle oi" migrants grew to a flood--ah--neith * nor any other organization keep up with the neeis for ass Tegroes by ten: ff thousands moved ntc the older aLu deteriorating centers “ our great——ah--Northern cities. And, f course, many of them were, not onl" unSKilled, but unedicated and—~ah——had practically no education and, in i stances none at all. And the result is that a number were illiterate ' vicious system of sezreati on, Northern style, kept Negroes boxed into menial, paying jobs and crowded into inadequate housing. H 1.0 1D '0 H' 5 ‘1 that ugly ('3 C1 P’ I low- 108 JOM*ARISCN Prepared Manuscript“ *A machine copy of the original manuscript, courtesy of the Governor's Office. I want to congratulate the Michigan Urban LVeague council for calling this Com- munity Act ion Assembly. This assembly of community service leaders is yet another sign that the Urban League is determined to spearhead a broad attack on poverty and its relate 1 social evils. For more than half a century, the Urban League has been the firm friend Of Negro Americans. In its early years, the League helped Negro migrants from the South is -arn the strange and bewildering ways of Northern cities. But when the trickle of mi:r;nts swelled into a flood, neither the League nor any other organization could keep up with the needs for assistance. Negroes moved by the tens Of thousands into tr is older, deteriorating centers of our great “ities. Many of them were unskilled and uneducated, and an alarming number were illiterate. A vicious system of segregation -—Northern style—-kept Negroes boxed into menial low-paying jobs and crowded, in- adequate housing. .,v TI.-. Now the Urban League-—ah--has rend- ered a great service in finding jobs for Negroes and certainly it has provided the leadership and the salesmanship and some- times more than that in prying open--ah-— many doors Of Opportunity which--ah--have been traditionally closed. And the League saw all along that the drive for Negro advancement would fail unless Negroes were equipped to share fully in the fruits of our Ameri- can society. Now some might say "Ameri- can prosperity;” i think it's more funda- mental than that. I think it‘s a sharing in the total American society, whicf at base is spiritual and moves on into the political and the social, as well as the economic. But far too often the League's powers of persuasion could not break through the indifference or hostility of the so-called white power structure. Now as the plight of the Negroes throughout the country worsened it became clear that the civil rights of Negroes must be spelled out in law and backed up by en- forcement powers. And the result is that Civil Rights has--ah—-overshadowed all other aspects of our extremely com- plex social and economic crisis. And militant Civil Rights organizations have moved into the forefront of the struggle and challenged the American conscience with dignified and dramatic protest against the intolerable delay in granting Negroes full enjoyment of their citizenship rights. Now in Michigan--ah--we adopted a new Constitution and our Civil Rights Commission in the state began to func— tion in 196A and it is empowered to function in every area. There isn't any area involving Civil Rights that the Civil Rights Commission in Michigan is not empowered to deal with and to deal with effectively and adequately. And I believe that the people who've been serving and the basic approach they have developed, which is a solid one of moving--ah--in a way that will command the-~resp--support of the courts and the public, is going to result in this state achieving progress in this respect—-ah-—that is more—~ah—-adequate than you'll find in any other state in the union. At least that's our Ob- jective and that's our purpose. 109 The Urban League worked hard to find jobs for Negroes, and it pried Open many doors of new opportunity which had tradi- tionally been closed. The League saw all along t i the drive for Negro advancement would fail unless Negroes were equipped to share fully in the fruits of American pros- perity. But far too Often, the League's powers of persuasion could not break through the indifference or hostility of the so-called "white power structure." As the plight of Negroes throughout the country worsened, it became clear that the civil rights of Negroes must be spelled out in law, and backed up by enforcement powers. The issue Of Civil Rights eventu- ally overshadowed all other aSpects Of an extremely complex social and economic crisis. Militant Civil Rights organira moved into the forefront of the struggl . tions and challenged the American conscience with dignified and dramatic protest against the intolerable delay in granting Negroes full enjoyment Of their rights. In Michigan, in l963, a new "oneti- tution and a constitutionally established Civil Rights Commission launched an all— out attack on Civil Rights discrimination anywhere. Now since the explosive summer of 1963 legal barriers to equal rights have tumbled at a record rate and legal safe- guards of equal opportunity have been built up. The Civil Rights Act of 196M established a national policy on problems of discrimination in voting, public ac- comodations, employment and the use of federal funds. And we've now arrived near the point where most of the fundamental legal questions about civil rights have been settled. Sure, we need additional implementation in the voting rights area and some other areas but basically there's --no one--noparticular challenge of the legality of--ah--the fundamental civil rights of Negroes. And the result is that--we_-now the fight for equal oppor- tunity is becoming the big and impor— tant aspect of this whole situation. Legal victories have a hollow ring for Negro masses who are poorly equipped to compete in our economy. Fair employment laws help the Negro with exceptional ability and training to get the Job he's--qual-—qualified for but these laws don't prepare a single un- qualified Negro to compete for the skilled Jobs our economy demands. And I'm sure that most Negroes are simply asking for the opportunity to develop their skills and abilities so they gag compete and demonstrate their capacity and abilities on a basis of fairness and equity. Now fair housing laws help the Negro with enough money to buy a better home but they don't help the many Negroes who can't afford to move out of the slums. In short, all of the legal safeguards we now have and will have aren't enough to deal with the staggering legacy resulting from cen- turies of deprivation and discrimi- nation. The National Urban League's brilliant Executive Director, Whitney Young, has done much to dramatize the destructive impact of poverty. He's called, as you know, for a domestic Marshall Plan; a massive public and private offensive against-~ah--un— employment, poor housing, disease and family breakdown. And we simply must re-define our concept of equal oppor— tunity to include both legal safe- guards against discrimination and positive action to deal with the disastrous economic and social by- products of discrimination. 110 Since the explosive summer of 1963, legal barriers to equal rights have tumbled at a record rate, and legal safe- guards of equal opportunity have been built up. The Civil Rights Act of 196a established national policy on problems of discrimination in voting, public ac- comodations, employment, and the use of federal funds. We have now arrived near the point where most of the fundamental legal questions about Civil Rights have been‘settled. Now the fight for equal opportunity is entering a new and more difficult phase. Legal victories have a hollow ring for Negro masses who are poorly equipped to compete in our economy. Fair employment laws help the Negro with exceptional ability and training to get the Job he is qualified for, but these laws don't pre- pare a single unemployed Negro to compete for the skilled Jobs our economy demands. Fair housing laws help the Negro with enough money to buy a better home, but they don't help the many Negroes who can't afford to move out of the slums. In short. all the legal safeguards we now have, and will have, are not enough to deal with the staggering legacy resulting from centuries of deprivation and discrimination. The National Urban League's brilliani Executive Director, Whitney Young, has don* much to dramatize the destructive impact of poverty. Young has called for a domestic "Marshall Plan"--a massive public and pri- vate offensive against unemployment, poor housing, disease, and family breakdown. We simply must re-define our concept of "equal opportunity" to include both legal safeguards against discrimination, and positive action to deal with the disastrous economic and social by-products of discrimi- nation. - 'rv u» ' “4-“ d I think the most serious one and vital or is motivation. There any question but what the key to ng the handicaps is to provide the nce that children need in their ives, to have the desire,to ac— quire the education and the training that will enable them to fill their full po- tential in society. And this, I believe, will receive increasing att ntion and must receive increas ng att Now the "war on pove Civil Rights movement type of action. Our be inspired by pers ion to equip every wi the t JOlS he needs . There must be also c ence with apathy, indif d ar.d rat ional izat irin. 5 ts in the "war on poverty' are V o i e U) 3‘.) L3’ ("1‘ :- O. 3 H O H- (t (i U) ’ 3 (D (n 0 If 3 w H *1 (T 0 << l—’ W (D W m m *3 01 (D s o n C (T’ 13' lb Cf (D "D C‘ C9 F-‘ ‘4 .3 .. CY U) i" T] O 1 ( f 0 (f ('9 U) :‘:. S :1: {'7 (1‘ r—Jp—J LT .1 (D :3 II) C: {L‘ Y H. ,_J OOWLO'SfiWOHw I‘D ated, not only by a se. se ce, out more particularly by a of responsibility. Today we're ing n w and more effective weapons efeat poverty. I believe our ef— 8 should not cease until we've de— oped programs and policies needed to minate the causes of poverty other ar the refusal of individuals to do heir part. And here I want to empha- ize the fact that Ray Scruggs has irted out in a meeting ze've just d and pointed out to me in earlier or.vers at ions and that is that the m: erty program-—ah——as it's presently orceixed is essentially on for making p s at fifimdx‘; (rammno-j-H-mr—J-Q 'wpmo :H": O 1 Q1 for deficiencies in regular and well ‘ tablished programs. For example, we ouldn't limit our effort in the field of education to simply helping those who have gone through school and still can't read and write or haven't had the opportunity in the past to get adequate education to read and write and be able to use mathematics. We ought to focus our effort equally on making certain that the do ungsters who are how in sch,ol are going to get the sort of edu- cation that our school system ought to supply them.+ And the same things are true with our other institutions that exist to enable young people to be equipped when they complete their regular programs. :1 (t L; ('2 *Applause lll The "war on poverty" phase of the Civil ghts movement calls for a new type of tion. Our local communities must be in- spired by persistent determination to equip every willing citizen with the tools he needs to earn a livelihood. There must be, also, constant impatience with apathy, in— difference, greed, and rationalization. Thus, recr ruits in the war on poverty are motivated not only by a sense of justice, but more particularly, by a sense of re— sponsibilit i- T“ Toda ay we are forging new and more effective weapons to defeat poverty. I believe our efforts should not cease until we have developed programs and policies needed to eliminate the causes of poverty, other than the refusal of indivi- duals to do their part. Now I believe that the disadvantaged cuth, the functionally--it——illiterate 11d other victims of poverty, both in urban and rural areas, can and must be af- forded appropriate opportunities equal to other members of society. I believe that the Economic Oppor— tunity Act affords Michigan additional re- sources to wage our continuing war on poverty and presents a united attack that is being integrated with Michigan's all- out campaign to help eliminate this para- dox of poverty in the midst of plenty; and we do have an all-out campaign. And Mac Lovell here is the man responsible for the direction of this campaign as far as it relates to the Economic Opportunity Act and there are other individuals—-ah --involved in state government who have the responsibility for making certain that we take advantage of the other programs that are coming along that re- ate to this same basic problem. Now I believe that, working together, federal, state, local and private agencies possess the skills and knowledge to mobilize our total resources and effectively apply them in this war on poverty promptly and decisively. And another thing that was brought out in our discussion ahead of this luncheon was this. We must not let ,nese new programs wciaen the ;stab— -€_7hemi PIVTETEL.7 l'1 e ‘13e 'flritq: :tgig *e c.,grams c;: tr: p_-”; . pingrin' L.a. ~ve been ml ‘ - ”124‘ n r - e‘e new 1,;r"m: rift: to a}: to t" 2 al e'fort not teni To r?; ;;e pre— : ; ef ort and I tt;nk we‘re going to ale to pay a good deal of attention .;05: programs to make ct ' ha. .-’ Jc.sn't banter An} one L: the .:<: obvious aspects of that przblem is t.e extent to e»lcn t‘-‘e i'.i:idlal° who have been we: ‘r’ired in the most distinctive aspect of anezlcan life. in terms of progress, namefy these voluntary cooperative organizations, must not be drained away into these new programs so that the established programs are lacking in leadership and trained staff to get the Jobs done. And I think this is a problem that must not be overlooked. +Applause 112 I believe that the disadvantaged youth, the functionally illiterate and other victims of poverty, in both urban and rural areas, can and must be afforded appropriate opportunities equal to other members of society. I believe that the Economic Oppor- tunity Act affords Michigan additional re- sources to wage our continuing war on poverty, and presents a united attack that is being integrated with Michigan's allout campaign to help eliminate this paradox of poverty in the midst of plenty. I believe that, working together, federal, state, local and private agencies possess the skills and knowledge to mobilize our total resources, and effectively “rply them in this war on poverty promptly and decisively. 113 Now I believe these things--both-- I believe these things, both as a I believe these things both as a matter of matter of personal conviction and as a matter personal conviction and as a matter of of public duty and responsibility under our public duty and responsibility under our state's new constitutional mandate which pro- state's Constitution. And, incidentally, vides: our state Constitution contains this man- date: The public health and the general " . . the public health and general welfare of the people of the state welfare of the people of the state are hereby declared matters of pri- are hereby declared to be matters of mary public concern. primary public concern. . ." Now I'm glad that we live in a system that I am glad that we live in a system expresses deep concern and takes strong that expresses deep concern, and takes strong positive action to eliminate unemployment positive action to eliminate unemployment at at a time when most people are employed. a time when most people are employed. I don't I don't think there has been any time in think there has been any time in the history the history of this state when so many of of this state when so many of us have Joined us have Joined together in such an affirm- together in such an affirmative way to aid the ative way to aid the few who are not few who are not sharing in Michigan's general sharing in Michigan's general prosperity. prosperity. We have a lot to be proud of in our state. We have much to be proud of in Michigan. We certainly can feel good that our We can congratulate ourselves on our rate of general economic picture is more favor- economic growth, our higher employment level, able than it has been. Our--ah--our our relatively low level of unemployment, and employment levels are high, our unem- the general feeling of well being which per- ployment is lower than it's been in a vades our state today. But we face serious long, long time, and there's a general problems, both today and in the years immedi- feeling of well being throughout the ately ahead. state. But despite that fact we face serious problems and one of them is the problem we're here to deal with today. And your state government is ready to Your state government is ready to help. help and federal officials have pro- Federal officials have promised cooperation. mised cooperation and are providing If we work together with vision and vigor, we leadership, and if we work together can make fully effective use of these addi- with vision and vigor we can make fully tional tools in our unrelenting war on effective use of these tools in the war poverty. on poverty. May I remind you of what I said In closing, may I remind you of what in my Inaugural address on January 1, I said in my inaugural address on January 1, 1963. I said to the people of Michigan 1963. I said to the people of Michigan then, then and I repeat it here today because and I repeat it here today because it is it's right on target: right on target: Only when brotherhood is trans- . . . only when brotherhood is trans- lated into practical citizenship lated into practical citizenship can can we build a floor below which we build a floor below which man's man's inhumanity to man shall inhumanity to man shall not operate, not operate, eliminate poverty eliminate poverty, and raise every and raise every citizen above citizen above want, without creating want without getting the beehive the beehive or the ant-heap. Only or the antheap.~ Only thus can we thus can we complete Lincoln's un- --compete_.complete Lincoln's un- finished work of creating a society finished work of creating a in which all men can hold up their society in which all men can hold heads as equal and self-respecting up their heads as equal and self- citizens." respecting citizens. 114 Now while I was sitting here during lunch and talking to Ted Cobb he told me that his son here wanted him to ask me a question and the question he wanted his father to ask me was, what made a free- dom fighter and my response was this; every American who really understands America and the principles on which America is founded, starting with the opening words of the Declaration of Independence, will be a freedom fighter.+ And it's my hope that the freedom fighters that are being trained in America to eliminate human injustice and discrimination, that has continued too long since we recognized the evil of slav- ery and the denial of full citizenship, will be available to use their capacities and abilities to fulfill our world role as freedom fighters. This nation has a divine destiny. This nation is not Just another country. This nation is founded by individuals who were inspired to write into the Declar- ation of Independence and Constitution of the United States, principles that you won't find elsewhere fully expressed. You'll find segments, sure, because they come out of the Judco-Christian heritage and Rome and Greece, but, as expressed in the Declaration of Inde- pendence and the Constitution of the United States, they bring together the very essence of the inspiration of the ages in terms of human rights and human relationships, and they make this country the country responsible for taking these principles and expressing them so fully at home that people elsewhere through the Earth will want to adopt them and adapt them to their circumstances. And they also make us, as Amer cans, re- sponsible to share these u~inciples with peoples around the Earth. And this we must do, in my humble opinion, if we're going to keep the peoples of the Earth from turning on us to take away--ah-- the blessings and abundance that-—ah--we enjoy. Now that leads to one final com- ment and that's this. I've had the pleasure in the last few years to become acquainted with some of your fine ministers and many of them are increasingly con- cerned and I share their concern. They're +Applause 115 increasingly concerned that, as their member- ship is elevated in a material sense, they reduce their activity in a religious sense. And if this happens, it'll be a great trag- edy, because in a period of difficulty, such as you and your people have been living through, you live on the basis of faith more than on a material basis. And this has been one of your great strengths and one of your great contributions to our nation. And, in my humble opinion,the most serious threat to the future of this nation is the decline in religious conviction, moral character and family life. Now these are the great dangers of the country.‘ And I'm all for this effort to overcome these things that have provided obstacles and barriers to the ability of anyone, without regard to race, color, creed or national origin, to-—to-- secure whatever degree of economic recog- nition he or she is entitled to. But let's not let it occur at the cost of losing things that are more important. The history of the world can be_-sa-- covered in—-this_-th__these simple words. Mankind--ah—-in groups and in nations and in civilizations have moved from fetters to faith, from faith to freedom, from freedom to folly, and from folly back to into fetters. Now that's the history of the world up to this time, basically. And, as a nation, we're only going to avoid that pattern if those of you who have a--mor—-a sharper appreciation of freedom in its full sense, as a result of fighting for it today, can retain your faith and these things that have urged you on in this fight and to make this great effort. And so I hope that your contribution will be a complete--ah-- contribution and will strengthen our society in those places where it needs strengthening, as well as to enjoy a complete and full expression of your rights and opportunities. Thank you very much.+ +Applause r ‘\""§\‘ v q-gm , APPENDIX B 116 REGISTRANTS: Beasley, Mrs. Olive R. Benison, Richard Bennett, Grady Jr. Blackman, Saul Bloodworth, Ralph Blow, J. M. Bristol, Agnes Brown, Dr. C. Bassett Carter, Cheryl Carter, Marion Cheng, Charles Cobb, Louise S. Coburn, Frances E. Cofer, Lloyd M. Coleman, Lucile Conley, Dorse Crawley, John N. Cummings, Roy Cunningham, Ira Dawley, Lewis H. Dosey, Donovan Duncan, William M. Dunn, Patricia Eiwards, George H. Evans, Mrs. Helen Ford, William R. 117 KHAN MICHIGAN URBAN LEAGUE CONFERENCE April 10-12, 1965' Mich. Civil Rights Comm. Mich. Econ. Opportunity Office Central High School State Representative Motown Record Corp. Consultant, Special Projs. Dept. of Public Inst. 812 Citizens Bank 328 S. Saginaw St. Flint, Michigan 200 E. Kearsley St. Flint, Michigan 2023 Ferris Avenue Flint 3, Michigan 7310 Woodward St. Detroit, Michigan 121 Monroe Street Flint, Michigan 2uuo Reynolds St. Muskegon Hts., Mich. 1241 Joseph Campau Detroit 7, Michigan MO? S. Fair Avenue Benton Harbor, Mich. 720 Wellington St. Flint 3, Michigan 620 Chandler Ave. Detroit 2, Michigan 2918 N. Saginaw Flint, Michigan 111 King St. Detroit, Michigan 10085 Xenowa S. W. Grand Rapids, Mich. 2A2S Tuxedo St. Detroit, Michigan 6A6 Franklin Grand Rapids, Mich. 8039 Northlawn Detroit, Michigan 230 Birdie Ave. Benton Harbor, Mich. A69 S. Paddock Pontiac; Michigan uu3 Thomas St., 3.2. Grand Rapids, Mich. 1506 S. Milwaukee St. Jackson, Michigan 906 Holten St. Lansing, Michigan 1381 Coolidge Hwy. River Rouge, Michigan 911 E. Grand River East Lansing, Michigan 87 Woodland St. Detroit, Michigan 1977 Courtland St. Detroit 6, Mich. Lansing, Michigan *Provided by the Michigan State University Continuing Education Service. 118 REGISTRANTS (Continued Franks, Mrs. Daisy French, Mabel J. Fuller, Alex Gillespie, Marjorie Gogulski, Joan Garber, Mrs. J. Patrick Gardner, Mabry Grady, Ozie Graham, F. O. Greene, Leo A. Hayes, Annemarie Office of Economic Hill, Charles, Jr. & Mrs. ' Opportunities Himmelhoch, Martha Hughes, Roberta V. Jones, Andrew Jones, Jeweldean National Urban League, Inc. Johnson, Louis Johnson, Marie Kennedy, Mrs. Jessie Northwestern High School Kernen, C. James Keyes, Karl M. Lattimore, Mrs. Equilla M. Layton, Mary Lee, Delbert H. Leibov, Joellen Lewis, Anne A. Lowrey, Flossie Mack, Harriett McCullough, Ethel 19U2 Emerald N. E. Grand Rapids, Mich. 926 W. Kalamazoo Lansing 15, Michigan 2310 Cass Ave. Detroit, Michigan SASO John R. Hwy. Detroit 2, Michigan 172“ Aberdeen N.E. Grand Rapids, Michigan 3139 Risedorph St. Flint, Michigan 1A2? Princeton Kalamazoo, Michigan 200 E. Kearsley St. Flint, Michigan 2021 Dyson Street Muskegon, Michigan 1839 McPhail St. Flint, Michigan 208 Luther St. Pontiac, Michigan m-“"'~ « . I _r .4.) ~. Eloise, Michigan All 6th Street Fenton, Michigan 1701 Water Board Bldg. 735 Randolph St. Detroit, Michigan 500 W. Muskegon Ave. Muskegon, Michigan 1U East “8th Street New York, N. Y. 3900 Beaubien Ave. Detroit, Michigan “6 Chapman Pontiac, Michigan 6300 Grand River Detroit, Michigan 1308 N. Hayford Ave. Lansing, Michigan 1306 W..St. Joseph St Lansing, Michigan 3&5 Logan St. S.E. Grand Rapids, Michigar 513 S. Jenison St. Lansing, Michigan 515 Owen St. Detroit, Michigan 200 E. Kearsley St. Flint, Michigan 208 Mack Avenue Detroit, Michigan 731% Tilden St. Flint, Michigan 857 E. 7th St. Flint, Michigan 566 Prospect Ave. S.E. Grand Rapids, Michigan 119 REGISTRANTS (Continued) U.A.W. Executive Board Member McCullough, Rudolph McFadden, Charlene McGuire, Cyril F.E.P. Committee McMullen, Frances Minard, L. H. Nelson, Marian Norton, John C. Perry, Lowell Pharms, Mrs. Frank Ponders, Phyllis Chairman, F.E.P.C. Committee Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Porter, Grady Randolph, Hazel Reynolds, Henry G. Rombouts, Jack Russau, Helen Rutledge, Philip J. Assistant Dir. Mayor's Ryan, Elvin Sabbath, Clarence B. Schenck, Douglas G. & Mrs. Scott, Moses Matthews Scudder, Elmer A. Seaman, Mrs. John Lansing Urban League Shaw, Albert C. Shearer, Leon Sheffield, H. Snead, Herman Spencer, Edward Spencer, Leona Steele, Mrs. Marshall Pres. Elect, Flint Deanery Council of Catholic Women Stewart, W. L. 8000 E. Jefferson Detroit, Michigan 1289 Juliah Street Flint, Michigan 1609 W. St. Joseph Lansing, Michigan 122 E. Flint Park Blvd. Flint 5, Michigan 28A Rapid Pontiac, Michigan Pioneer Hall Alma College 1220 S. Grand Traverse Flint, Michigan 16630 Normandy Detroit 21, Michigan 733 Cass S.E. Grand Rapids, Mich. 5&50 John R. Detroit 2, Michigan 1210 W. St. Joseph Lansing, Michigan 21“ E. Hancock St. Detroit, Michigan 2211 Jarman St. Muskegon Hts., Mich. 530“ River Ridge Lansing, Michigan 111 Franklin St. S.E. Grand Rapids, Mich. 800 Guardian Bldg. Detroit 26, Michigan 132 Franklin Blvd. Pontiac, Michigan - 508 Frazier River Rouge, Michigin 293M S. Washington ave. Saginaw, Michigan u7u Moore St. Pontiac, Michigan 2&5 N. Wood St. Battle‘Creek, Mich. 835 Westlawn East Lansing, Mich. 196 Old Riley Ct. Pontiac, Michigan 5038 S. Clarendon Detroit 9, Michigan 8000 E. Jefferson Detroit, Michigan 2951 Doris Detroit 38, Michigan AAO Thomas S.E. Grand Rapids, Mich. UAO Thomas S.E. Grand Rapids, Mich. 3517 Bennett Flint, Michigan 2231 Moffett St. Muskegon, Michigan REGISTRANTS (Continued) Thomas, Mary Catherine Turner, Hazel M. Veldman, Nella Warfield, Rev. Bernis, Jr. Warren, Wilbur Watts, James Williams, Calvin Wexler, Charles W. Williams, Mrs. Leila Williams, Rev. John V. Williams, Maxine Broyles Willis, Robert & Mrs. Wright, William & Mrs. PROGRAM PERSONNEL: MSU Alderman, Bruce Doyle, Dr. Louis Off Campus Barnes, Clarence Brown, Dr. Albert Brown, Ernest L. Brown, Raymond R. Gillespie, Frank Glick, Lawrence Hasklns, Wm. L. Hill, Walter W. Johnson, Mrs. Cernoria Kennedy, Edward Kornegay, Francis 120 Detroit Urban League Flint Urban League Pontiac Urban League Mich. Economic Opportunity Program Michigan Consolidated Gas Company Mideastern Regional Office National Urban League Michigan Urban League Council National Urban League, Incorporated National Urban League Detroit Urban League 527 Prospect Ave., S.E. Grand Rapids, Michigan 803 Holten Street Lansing, Michigan 16 Graceland Grand Rapids, Mich. 1&1“ N. Church St. Kalamazoo, Michigan A28 Delaware Grand Rapids, Michigan 8222 Joy Rd. Detroit A, Michigan 717 E. Philadelphia Flint, Michigan 200A Lafayette Twrs. Detroit, Michigan 715 Sherman S.E. Grand Rapids, Mich. 1817 Covington S.E. Grand Rapids, Mich. 20139 Santa Rosa Dr. Detroit 21, Michigan 6606 N. Saginaw Ave. Flint, Michigan U30 Morris S.E. Grand Rapids, Michigan 132 Franklin Blvd. Pontiac, Michigan lush Whitmire Ypsilanti, Michigan 1 Woodward Detroit, Michigan 106 S. Main St. Akron, Ohio 200 E. Kearsley St. Flint, Michigan 922 E. Gillespie Flint, Michigan 1701 Penna. Ave. N.W. Washington, D. C. 1226 First Nat. Twr. 106 S. Main St. Akron, Ohio 625 N. Main Ann Arbor, Michigan 777 luth St. Washington, D. C. 21AU7 Scotia Lane Ferndale, Michigan 208 Mike Street Detroit, Michigan PROGRAM PERSONNEL (Continued) Layton, William & Mrs. Lovell, Malcolm Mack, John McCree, Floyd Megbell, Joseph Phillips, Paul Romney, George W. Sain, Leonard F. Sanders, Charles Scruggs, Ramon Tucker, Charles M., Jr. Turpin, Robert R. Washington, Lawrence MSU Clinton, Ivory Williams, Mattie Off Campus Edwards, Donald Fraser, Archie C. Jarvie, Dr. L. L. Robbs, Rev. Alfred Sharp, Mrs. M. 3. SUMMARY Registrants. . . . . . . . . 97 Program Personnel Michigan State University . . . 2 Off Campus . . . . . . . . 25 Guests Michigan State University . . . 2 Michigan State University Students Off Campus . . . . 10 Total 136 CONSULTANT: Bruce Alderman CONTINUING EDUCATION MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN 121 Michigan Economic Opportunity Program Flint Urban League Flint Urban League Grand Rapids Urban League Governor Kettering Senior High School Muskegon Urban League National Urban League Oakland County NAACP Flint Public Schools 513 S. Jenison Lansing, Michigan 200 E. Kearsley St. Flint, Michigan 739 E. Baker Flint, Michigan Flint, Michigan 16A-166 Ottawa N.W. Grand Rapids, Mich. 7630 Harper Ave. Detroit, Michigan 500 W. Muskegon Ave. Muskegon, Michigan 195 Broadway New York, N. Y. 903 Pontiac State Bank Pontiac, Michigan 108 Franklin Blvd. Pontiac, Michigan 7535 Dexter, Detroit 6, Michigan 206 W. 10th Ave. Flint, Michigan A685 Woodcraft Rd. Okemos, Michigan 923 E. Kearsley St. Flint, Michiga- 910 Gillespie St. Flint, Michigan 950 Audubon Rd. East Lansing, Mich. lb. I-"nzx=“ APPENDIX C 122 PROGRAM OUTLINE MICHIGAN COMMUNITY ACTION ASSEMBLY* "Expanding Michigan's Economic Opportunities" A New Key to Civil Rights Progress Friday, April 9, 1965 Designed especially for early arrival. Afternoon and evening SaturdayL Registration, Conference Registration Desk, Lobby, The Kellogg Center ADVANCE BRIEFING Chairman--Charles Sanders, Executive Director, Muskegon Urban League Dinner-~On your own FILM FORUM PREVIEW Moderator—-John W. Mack, Acting Executive Director, Flint Urban League April 10, 1965 Morning Registration--continued Continental Breakfast--on your own OPENING GENERAL SESSION Chairman's Welcome--Ted Cobb, Chairman, Michigan Urban League Council *Provided by the Michigan State University Continuing Education Service. 123 l2“ Kellogg Center's Concern With Leadership Development Bruce W. Alderman, Conference Consultant, Continuing Education Service, Michigan State University Comments Dr. Louis A. Doyle, Associate Professor and Associate Director, Continuing Edu- cation, Michigan State University DIMENSIONS ON POVERTY IN MICHIGAN Dr. Albert Brown, Consultant, Michigan Economic Opportunity Program Joseph Beebe, Program Research Specialist, National Urban League, Washington Bureau ANALYSIS OF THE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY ACT Malcomb Lovell, Director, Michigan Economic Opportunity Program Afternoon—Evening 12:30 to 2:00 2:00 to A:00 Luncheon--Centenia1 Room Presiding—-Ramon S. Scruggs, Vice President, National Urban League Address by Governor George Romney AFTERNOON WORKSHOPS Chairman--Charles Sanders EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES AND WORK TRAINING Chairman--Francis Kornegay, Executive Director, Detroit Urban League SMALL COMMUNITIES Chairman-—Clarence Barnes, Executive Director, Pontiac Urban League ASSISTANCE TO SMALL BUSINESS OPERATIONS Chairman-—Pau1 Phillips, Executive Director, Grand Rapids Urban League CITIZENS PARTICIPATION Chairman——Floyd McCree, Member, Board of Directors, Urban League of Flint, Vice Mayor, Flint 4:30 6:00 8:30 125 FILM FORUM—-A special showing of an outstanding documentary Produced by The National Urban League Forum Chairman--John W. Mack Film Commentator--William Haskins, Associate Director, Mideastern Regional Office, National Urban League Banquet--Big Ten Room COMMUNITY LEADERSHIP RESPONSIBILITY IN A CHANGING SOCIETY Presiding—~Joseph Megbell, President Flint Urban League, President, Yankee Stores Raymond R. Brown, Director, Mideastern Office, National Urban League Mrs. Cernoria Johnson-~Director, Washington Bureau, National Urban League Reception—-Centenia1 Room Sunday, April 11, 1965 Morning-Afternoon 8:00 10:00 to 12:00 12:30 2:30 Continental Breakfast--on your own Reports and Recommendations Presiding--Raymond R. Brown Luncheon-—on your own SUMMING UP Raymond R. Brown Mrs. Cernoria Johnson Tedd Cobb Adjourn 1293 03037 9691