Twenty Years Ago this week in The Colorado Statesman … Republican presidential nominee Bob Dole and his running mate Jack Kemp – the “American Dream team” – would make their first post-convention campaign appearance in Denver, underlining the importance of Colorado as a crucial swing state in the 1996 election. The Kansas senator gave a preview of his campaign style at stops around San Diego during the RNC, promising to cut taxes and boost childcare credits as volunteers tossed around neon-colored footballs to make sure no one forgot that Kemp was once a quarterback. The “Republican revolution” was out, the “Reagan revival” was in, and Newt Gingrich’s “Contract with America” was but a faded memory. But the uneasy truce between pro-life and pro-choice Republicans seemed to be all anyone was talking about. Although the RNC had promoted the GOP’s “big tent” approach, showcasing diverse speakers of all religious and ethnic persuasions, the “enforced civility” between Republicans on both sides of the abortion debate was strained. Anti-abortion protesters disrupted a pro-choice press conference, forcing California Gov. Pete Wilson to yell above “the cacophony and chaos.” Still, “Unity will last through the election on Nov. 5, because four years of Bill Clinton was bad enough,” said pro-choice Colorado delegate Jack Weil, who sat smiling next to pro-lifer Kendal Unruh, herself hobnobbing in the aisles with Moral Majority founder Jerry Falwell. One night of the convention was dedicated to “capturing the women’s vote” by promoting family values and criticizing Clinton’s morals. Republicans also made a play for the youth of America with a thousand teenagers waving “Bob Rocks the House” placards, singing “I’m a Dole Man” to the tune of “Soul Man.” …

… U.S. Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell and U.S. Rep. Dan Schaefer joined the Colorado delegation on the floor of the Republican convention, while delegation chair Natalie Meyer was invited to sit with Elizabeth Dole in the VIP box for an hour. When she delivered Colorado’s votes, Meyer extolled the state’s virtues, name-checking everything from Pike’s Peak – inspiration for “America the Beautiful” – to the Stanley Cup-winning Colorado Avalanche, as delegates waved Avs, Nuggets, Rapids, Rockies and Broncos pennants. …

… Colorado GOP press wrangler Cinamon Watson made it clear reporters were banned from all RNC events sponsored by individuals or corporations – and there were plenty – but that didn’t stop half a dozen journalists from finagling invites to a party thrown by Carl Williams at his vacation home north of San Diego. State Republican chairman Don Bain greeted delegates with a smile but scowled at journalists, including KOA personality Mike Rosen, Denver Post “special correspondent” State Treasurer Bill Owens and Villager publisher Bob Sweeney, all Republicans in good standing. Douglas County delegate Kendal Unruh made a splash at the party in a chartreuse leather cocktail dress. El Paso County Republican Party chairman Bob Gardner arrived late, driven by Steve Forbes’ chauffeur. If Dole won the White House, Gardner crowed, Forbes would likely be named secretary of the treasury and bring along Gardner as a key aide. …

… RNC delegates Leslie Hanks, Grover Coors, Guy Short and Doug Dean skipped the Colorado delegation dinner Sunday, instead rallying with 1,200 Pat Buchanan supporters, who had called a truce with the GOP after Buchanan lost the presidential nomination to Bob Dole. “It was emotional because this long campaign came to a close,” said Short. “You put your heart and soul in an effort to elect Pat, and instead it’s a truce. The truce will help him win the nomination in 2000. If Dole loses, Pat doesn’t want to be blamed.” …

… Upon further inspection, former Gov. Dick Lamm “has not lost his marbles,” wrote radio talk show host Aaron Harber in a guest commentary assessing the Democrat’s run for the Reform Party’s presidential nomination. Lamm was, Harber wrote, “in the midst of a brilliant political crusade.” While naysayers scoffed that Lamm’s bid was “quixotic at best,” or perhaps just a way to raise his profile to get a big book advance and boost his speaking fees, Harber wrote that the Dick Lamm he had known for more than two decades was running because of his “willingness to speak out on unpopular issues,” including the trillions of dollars of unfunded obligations ignored by the major parties. “Unlike his 1992 race for the U.S. Senate,” Harber wrote, “Lamm actually seems to be enjoying the race.” And who could blame him? Instead of having to spend years and vast sums chasing the Democratic of Republican nomination, the Reform Party’s season was just a few weeks long and the campaign was costing under $100,000. “He’s discussing issues, hardly raising money, and is having fun. To him, this is what politics should be about, and he knows how rare this is.” Harber noted that if Lamm won – a big if, since Reform Party founder Ross Perot had jumped in the race just 36 hours after Lamm declared – he would suddenly be thrust on stage with Bill Clinton and Bob Dole, perhaps gaining the attention needed to move the party’s support from 5 percent to 20 percent “and firmly establish the Reform Party as the party of the future.” Was Lamm “duped” into running in order to give Perot a candidate he could easily beat? It was a risk, Harber admitted. “Lamm needs to get across his key messages about the future but he also needs to explain to Reform Party members that while Perot should be given credit, and emeritus status, as the founder of the party, Perot’s intense desire to maintain personal control could destroy the party.” Lamm was the right standard-bearer, Harber argued, and could make the case at the national convention. “It is important for Reform Party members to know Ross Perot is destroying the party he sought to create. As he increasingly evolves from a ridiculed caricature into an outright cartoon,” Harber wrote, “he will take the Reform Party down with him.”

– ernest@coloradostatesman.com