Background
Eugene McCarthy was first elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1948 as a member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party. He served five terms before winning a seat in the United States Senate in 1958. His speech at the 1960 Democratic National Convention in support of Adlai Stevenson placed him on the national stage. President Johnson considered selecting him as his running mate in 1964, but instead chose fellow Senator Hubert Humphrey of Minnesota. McCarthy vehemently opposed the Vietnam War.
Months prior to his announcement, McCarthy hinted that he would challenge President Johnson for the Democratic nomination due to his contrasting views with the president on the Vietnam War. The Americans for Democratic Action announced that they would support McCarthy's campaign if he decided to run. Johnson took these mentions seriously, privately confiding to Democratic congressional leaders that McCarthy could gain the support of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Dr. Benjamin Spock, splintering the party. It was rumored that McCarthy had $100,000 pledged to use on the New Hampshire and Wisconsin primaries in the upcoming year. One politician explained to Johnson that McCarthy's run could be reminiscent of Estes Kefauver, whose 1952 campaign in the early primaries is speculated to have caused President Harry S. Truman to not seek re-election. McCarthy privately explained his intentions to Vice President Hubert Humphrey with whom he had served Minnesota in the Senate for nearly two decades. He commented that he did not believe he could win, but that he had "lost interest" in the Senate and felt "very strongly about the war," believing that the best way to express himself was to "go on out and enter the primaries." Humphrey stated that McCarthy was "more vain and arrogant than his supporters wanted to admit", but that he did not decide to run for president because of his personal feelings for Johnson, but his genuine feelings about the Vietnam War.
Read more about this topic: Eugene Mc Carthy Presidential Campaign, 1968
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