Newsletter

On behalf of the campaign, I was in a meeting with a couple of dozen activists—leaders of traditional liberal organizations. Someone walked into the room and announced Carter had just chosen Mondale for VP. The room went wild with joy; Carter was the new kid and a bit of a stranger; Mondale was family, and he legitimized the strangers from Georgia.

At age 19, I was the youngest delegate to the Convention in New York City. Having worked on the campaign in New Hampshire, Florida, and Pennsylvania, it was quite the experience to see the campaign from the perspective of a delegate. That honor and privilege has remained with me over the years, as have some of the friendships I made at the Convention.

Thank you all for doing this! I was an Iowa delegate pledged for Mo Udall, who was widely beloved throughout the party. (We bonded early because we were both blind in one eye and I knew all the jokes). After Mo endorsed Jimmy Carter, he was invited to address the Convention. He made his way across the floor to the stage amid wild cheering. Our delegation was seated near the front. He saw me, came over, put his arm around my shoulder and said, ‘You know, Tom, I went everywhere in the country telling people that in the land of the blind, one-eyed men are kings, but they’re not ready for us yet.’

Helping organize arrangements before the Convention and backstage during it. And (my) wife Kit managing the Carter’s hotel suite.

I was surprised there was a point when I had done what I could to get the campaign staff ready, and now it was up to them. I didn't have much else to do (at the Convention) after that.

The sheer joy that greeted the announcement of Sen. Mondale as Jimmy Carter's running mate.

I watched it with a group of friends in Albany, Georgia. We'd watch the returns for each primary night and Hamilton's parents often would be there as well as many of his friends from high school shouting with joy at the TV—as this was as close as they could get to him.