Congratulations to Mike Royko for his astute, incisive articles about the qualifications and dubious military career of vice presidential candidate J. Danforth Quayle.
I can still recall when Dan Quayle was first running for the office of United States senator in Indiana. He had a campaign commercial that went something like this: ”I know what it`s like to work for a living, to try to make ends meet.” This strategy succeeded, because that same year this alleged champion of the working class-born into one of the richest families in the state and heir to a publishing fortune-won the election.
As Mike Royko states, the controversy surrounding Quayle`s tour in the National Guard during the Vietnam war is one of consistency. Here is a right- wing senator, from a wealthy, conservative family, who has forged a political career on an anticommunist, pro-defense platform. Yet, when he had the opportunity to physically oppose the ”Red Menace” on a personal level, it appears he was reluctant. Whether the hawks or doves were correct on the Vietnam issue is irrelevant in this instance. The legitimate concern is Quayle`s apparent belief that it is better to send your neighbor to confront a bully than to have to face him yourself.
