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Full-Text Articles in History
Beyond The Party-Group Continuum: Massachusetts Interest Groups In The 1980s, John C. Berg
Beyond The Party-Group Continuum: Massachusetts Interest Groups In The 1980s, John C. Berg
New England Journal of Public Policy
Studies in the 1960s determined that Massachusetts had strong parties and weak interest groups. In the 1970s and 1980s, as the Republican Party shrank, party competition declined, conflict with the Democratic Party grew, and interest groups gained more importance — and probably will remain important despite the Republican gains of 1990. However, group conflict and citizen mobilization, including increased use of the initiative and referendum, create a situation of interest-centered conflict rather than interest-group dominance as traditionally conceived. This article, based on a 1987 survey of state legislators and legislative aides, plus a summary of recent Massachusetts political history, assesses …
Whispers In The Golden Silence: Harry F. Byrd, Sr., John F. Kennedy, And Virginia Democrats In The 1960 Presidential Election, James R. Sweeney
Whispers In The Golden Silence: Harry F. Byrd, Sr., John F. Kennedy, And Virginia Democrats In The 1960 Presidential Election, James R. Sweeney
History Faculty Publications
In the election of 1960, Richard M. Nixon carried Virginia, the third consecutive victory for a Republican ticket in the strongly Democratic state. Senator Harry F. Byrd, Sr., the conservative Democratic power broker of Virginia, maintained what became known as a "golden silence," failing to endorse John F. Kennedy and privately working to ensure Nixon's victory. Byrd's stance angered many state Democrats, and by 1964 they broke the senator's power over the party, passing a resolution endorsing President Lyndon B. Johnson over Byrd's objections.