The Inaugurals

Their right hands raised, their hopes displayed either in the determined set of their jaws or the shine of their smiles, 17 U.S. Governors (out of 35 elected or re-elected in 1962) took their oaths of office. Among them were two pre-eminent possibilities for the 1964 Republican Presidential nomination: New York's Nelson Rockefeller and Michigan's George Romney. The contrasting styles of their inaugural addresses gave a fascinating glimpse of the vast difference in their political situations.

Anyone who had any lingering doubt that Rocky was already off and running toward '64 could forget about it. In Albany's crowded State Assembly Chamber, he gave only passing mention to his plans for New York, devoted himself mainly to an enunciation of national political principle. His delivery was calm and confident.

The Danger of Delusion. Rocky spoke of what "every American'' must do to help shape "the destiny of our American society." Said he: "It is the duty of every citizen not only to cast his ballot, but to cast it as wisely as he can--and this is not always easy. There is a danger that the voter may mistake words for substance, panaceas for basic solutions, and be deluded by slogans and labels such as conservative, liberal and progressive. [They] are not mutually exclusive concepts.

"We should respect conservatism, because we know the measureless value that is our heritage to save, to cherish and to enrich; because we believe that everything that is soundly built for the future is built in the present on the foundations of the past. We should respect liberalism, because we should be more concerned with the opportunities of tomorrow than with the record of yesterday. And we should respect a progressive point of view, because we believe in stable, ordered change and human progress, in the perfectibility of the individual human being and of the human society." That was a platform that almost anyone could readily stand on.

Green Pastures. First-Termer Romney is in an entirely different situation. He is ambitious, and he will certainly be a serious presidential contender in '64 if he can make a reasonable start on whipping Michigan's problems. But that is an awfully large if. The savage factionalism of Michigan's politics has resulted in economic stagnation for the state. Romney was elected on the promise that he could and would get everyone working together to cure Michigan's ills; it would be suicide if, at this stage, he were to cast hopeful glances toward Washington.

Romney therefore pledged total dedication to his new job. "without an eye to greener pastures somewhere else." Just as wisely, he issued an evangelistic call for "an end to the cold war that has been hindering our state progress'' and for greater "citizen participation'' in state government.

Wearing long underwear beneath his blue suit for protection against the 19DEG temperature and the winter wind that howled across the capitol steps in Lansing, Romney declared: "Man is a creature first of God--and then of society. Most problems of our present day are in moral terms and are insoluble without generosity and vision. The people of Michigan have spoken in crisp, clear tones. They demand an end to partisanship for the sake of partisanship. Men of good will from both parties must get together. I shall encourage, support and recognize coalitions of concerned citizens."

Rewards for Billboards. Other oathtaking Governors, with perhaps less at stake in national terms, tailored their cloth to fit their own political patterns:

sbCalifornia's Pat Brown, who stuck pretty much to state issues in his triumphant re-election campaign against Richard Nixon, was not about to change now. Brown laced his speech with specific state proposals. They ranged from the removal of some 840.000 low-income persons from the state income tax rolls to the strict control of highway billboards--"When a man throws an empty cigarette package from an automobile, he is liable to a fine of $50; when a man throws a billboard across a view, he is liable to be richly rewarded"--and at least a moratorium on capital punishment. Declared the determined Brown: "I intend to invite disagreement, not for its own sake, but for the health of our commonwealth. I am concerned not about personal prestige but about public progress."

sbMassachusetts Democrat Endicott ("Chub") Peabody proposed a thorough reorganization of the executive branch to give the Governor greater power, called for "a partnership for progress between Governor and legislature, between Democrats and Republicans, between government and the people." He urged an end to the "critical self-analysis" which "we in Massachusetts have raised to the level of a genius for self-destruction." The mild applause at speech's end had an ironic ring, since Peabody had just angered many of the legislature's top Democrats by recklessly urging the dumping of veteran Democratic House Speaker John Thompson. The Democratic-controlled House re-elected Thompson, seemed mad enough to mutilate Peabody's programs.

sbNew Hampshire's John W. King, first Democratic Governor of the state in 40 years, faced a Republican legislature and said he was not afraid. "I have been cast in the role of a Daniel in the lions' den.

I do not share the anxiety. The vast majority of these [legislators] hold principle above party and public interest above political considerations."

sbNebraska's Incumbent Democratic Governor Frank B. Morrison assumed again the conservative stance that helped him defeat Fred Seaton, President Eisenhower's Interior Secretary. "Nebraska has the lowest per capita tax rate of any of the 50 states," he said. "I would like to see it remain so." Moreover, he had not lost the humble humor that makes him popular. Interrupting his speech to quaff a cup of water, he quipped: "I was raised in Kansas and never completely recovered from being dry."

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