Senator Barry Goldwater (R-Arizona) is nominated by the Republican Party to run for president. During the subsequent campaign, Goldwater said that he thought the United States should do whatever was necessary to win in Vietnam. At one point, he talked about the possibility of using low-yield atomic weapons to defoliate enemy infiltration routes, but he never actually advocated the use of nuclear weapons in Southeast Asia. Although Goldwater later clarified his position, the Democrats very effectively portrayed him as a trigger-happy warmonger. This reputation, whether deserved or not, was a key factor in his crushing defeat at the hands of Lyndon B. Johnson, who won 61 percent of the vote to Goldwater’s 39 percent.
How Barry Goldwater Brought the Far Right to Center Stage in the 1964 Presidential Race
Despite a landslide loss, the Arizona Republican ignited his party's ultra-conservative wing for decades to come.
Despite a landslide loss, the Arizona Republican ignited his party's ultra-conservative wing for decades to come.
