Rocky's Turn to the Right

Zealous as ever, Vice President Nelson Rockefeller has thrown himself into a campaign to prove that he is one political animal that can change its spots. His goal: to convince powerful G.O.P. conservatives that the liberal they used to hate has become a middle-of-the-roader they can learn to tolerate, if not to love.

The principal target of Rocky's campaign is Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater--an old political enemy, but also the man who has the best chance of persuading rebellious Republican conservatives to stick with the party. Rocky and Barry would seem to constitute the odd couple of the G.O.P. In 1964 Rockefeller, then New York Governor, was jeered by the conservative-dominated convention. In the campaign, Rockefeller gave only tepid support to the Senator's bid for the presidency. In turn, Goldwater voted against confirming Rockefeller as Vice President.

But bygones, apparently, are bygones. Last month, while the two men were flying to the funeral of Chiang Kai-shek in Taiwan, the Vice President invited the Senator to breakfast. As their two-hour conversation drew to an end, Rockefeller asked bluntly: "Why did you vote against me?" Just as bluntly, Goldwater replied that at the time he had been trying to be re-elected to the Senate in Arizona, and "I found you're not very popular out there." "I thought that was it," said Rockefeller. "Thank you very much." The two men shook hands.

Rockefeller's wooing of the right has implications not only for himself but for

Gerald Ford, former California Governor Ronald Reagan and the entire Republican Party. To have any chance of winning the 1976 presidential election, Ford must lead a united G.O.P. to the polls. But as the President tries to hold the party together, one of his main problems is Rockefeller, who has enraged conservatives over the years with his liberal big-government, big-spending approach to domestic problems. If Ford ran with an unrepentant Rockefeller on his ticket, the G.O.P. right wing would be more likely to break away and form a third party under Reagan's banner.

Ford clearly wants to run--and win.

Last week the usually unflappable President snapped, "that was a planted story," at a report in Newsweek that he will not be a candidate in 1976. This week, in fact, a steering committee will begin planning his campaign.

Love Fest. If Ford ever should withdraw, perhaps because of the health of his wife, the Republican nomination would be up for grabs. Rockefeller would desperately need conservative support to win the honor for himself and to pursue his eternal dream of reaching the White House. Thus in any exigency, the cold logic of presidential politics dictates that Rockefeller must assuage the right-wingers who still see pink whenever they mention his name.

After the Vice President extolled the merits of the free-enterprise system at last week's convention of the Chamber of Commerce of the U.S., Goldwater declared: "If he keeps speaking that way, he'll get the backing of conservatives all over the country. He's talking about the economy, and that's the only issue." Rockefeller took another big step toward conciliating the right a fortnight ago when he apologized to the Senate for any "discourtesy" he may have shown Alabama's Democratic Senator James B. Allen. Last February, while chairing the Senate, Rockefeller had angered conservatives by refusing to recognize Allen during debate of a rule change to limit filibustering (TIME, March 17). In the love fest that followed Rockefeller's apology, conservatives in both parties rose to extol the Vice President for his wisdom and generosity.

To help his image, Rockefeller has also been the guest of honor at a series of dinner parties arranged by Tennessee's Senator Howard Baker and Marlow Cook, a former Senator from Kentucky and now an influential Washington lawyer. The goal of the dinners is to show Senate Republicans--particularly conservative skeptics--that the Vice President is really just a misunderstood victim of his own fame. This week Rockefeller will be the grilled guest at another stag, all-business dinner given by Nebraska's Senator Roman Hruska, one of the G.O.P.'s right-hand anchors.

New Detente. Although he has been winning some ground on Capitol Hill, Rockefeller's courting of conservatives has as yet made little impact on G.O.P. stalwarts throughout the country. "I don't see how he can change the habits of 30 years," says Robert J. Huber, an industrialist and former state senator from Michigan. Indeed, Rockefeller recently alienated West Coast conservatives by naming to his staff John Veneman, a liberal Californian who once served as Under Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare. Notes a Reagan aide: "The symbolism of the Veneman appointment goes against the grain of any Rockefeller rapprochement with the right."

Rockefeller, of course, would like to accomplish the rapprochement before 1976, but he is realistic enough to realize that time is short and that his reputation still causes what he calls a "visceral reaction" among many conservatives. He is pleased with the new spirit of detente that he has managed to work out with Goldwater. "I'm very big on him," says Rockefeller. "We have been good friends over the years--with a few unfortunate hiatuses. We have a great many fundamental concepts about this country that are very similar."

Rockefeller is also clearly scoring points with the man who counts: Jerry Ford. Last month the President told CBS's Walter Cronkite, "I think the public has the wrong perception of Nelson Rockefeller. He is not the wild liberal that some people allege." Ford has also consistently maintained that the vice-presidential candidate he wants to run with him in 1976 is the Vice President himself.

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