444 Hart, Gary The Eighties in America
three years later. He received a Yale University law
degree in 1964 and was admitted to the Colorado
and District of Columbia bars the following year. In
1972, Hart managed Senator George McGovern’s
anti-Vietnam War presidential campaign. While that
effort was unsuccessful, Hart won a Senate seat from
Colorado two years later and became a vocal spokes-
person for the reform wing of his party.
From 1975 to 1987, Hart built a record in the Sen-
ate as a thoughtful advocate of change and substan-
tive reform of the military, the economy, and na-
tional security. In 1984, Hart ran as a Democratic
Party alternative to former vice president Walter
Mondale. Hart stressed the need for his party’s presi-
dential nominee to focus on the future, not the past.
In response to Hart’s insistence that the nation
needed new ideas, Mondale implied that this was an
empty phrase: Quoting a popular fast-food television
commercial, Mondale asked “Where’s the beef?”—a
phrase of the 1980’s with which Hart found himself
associated, to his detriment. While Hart was unsuc-
cessful in wresting the nomination from Mondale,
however, his 1984 run laid the foundation for a
stronger campaign four years later in 1988. That ef-
fort, however, was wrecked by a 1987 extramarital
encounter with a young woman named Donna Rice
on a ship aptly namedMonkey Busi-
ness.The affair came to light after
Hart issued a challenge to jour-
nalists.The New York Timeshad con-
fronted Hart about rumors of ex-
tramarital affairs, and the senator
in response had invited journalists
to “Follow me around,” presum-
ably to establish his innocence.
When the press accepted the in-
vitation, however, Hart unwisely
continued his activities. As a re-
sult, theMiami Heraldwas able
to secure a photograph of Rice
perched on the smiling Hart’s lap
on theMonkey Business.
Hart initially withdrew from
the race, but he then reentered it,
saying “Let the people decide.”
His momentum could not be re-
gained, however, and he withdrew
a second time, ceding the party’s
presidential nomination to Mas-
sachusetts governor Michael Dukakis, who lost the
general election to Republican vice president
George H. W. Bush.Impact United States senator Gary Hart’s efforts to
focus the national debate on the need for change
and reassessment in the post-Vietnam War world
were destroyed by the scandal that wrecked his presi-
dential aspirations.Further Reading
Dionne, E. J., Jr. “Paper and Hart in Dispute Over Ar-
ticles.”The New York Times, May 4, 1987, p. A16.
Drew, Elizabeth.Election Journal: Political Events of
1987-1988.New York: William Morrow, 1989.
Hart, Gary.The Courage of Our Convictions: A Mani-
festo for Democrats.New York: Times Books, 2006.
Toner, Robin. “Hart Stresses Ideals, Formally Enters
the 1988 Race.”The New York Times, April 14, 1987,
p. A16.
Joseph Edward LeeSee also Advertising; Bush, George H. W.; Con-
gress, U.S.; Dukakis, Michael; Elections in the
United States, 1984; Elections in the United States,
1988; Mondale, Walter; Scandals.A scandal-ridden Gary Hart announces his withdrawal from the presidential primary
elections on May 8, 1987.(AP/Wide World Photos)