Ted Kennedy

:This article is about the U.S. senator, for information about the ice hockey player see Ted Kennedy (hockey player).

Presidential bid

The unfavorable publicity and investigative press scrutiny surrounding the Chappaquiddick incident resulted in Kennedy's putting off any presidential aspirations at the time. However, a decade later, Kennedy decided to throw his hat in the ring for the Democratic nomination in the 1980 presidential election. He launched an insurgent campaign against Democratic incumbent Jimmy Carter. Kennedy was unafraid of criticizing the president who was mired in the Iran hostage crisis. He did, however, vow to support Carter if he were re-nominated. Despite much early support, his bid was ultimately unsuccessful, largely due to controversy surrounding the incident at Chappaquiddick. He lost substantial credibility in November 1979 during the week his campaign was officially launched when he was widely ridiculed in the press following an interview with Roger Mudd on CBS News Special Reports. When Kennedy was asked by Mudd: "Why do you want to be President?", he was unable to provide a straightforward answer. Kennedy did go on to win some primaries, even after it appeared that Carter would probably win renomination. Eventually he bowed out of the race, but delivered a rousing speech before the 1980 Democratic National Convention in New York City that many consider to be one of his finest moments.

Related Topics:
1980 presidential election - Jimmy Carter - Iran hostage crisis - Roger Mudd - 1980 Democratic National Convention - New York City

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