[The 90’s Election Specials raw: RNC #2]

Raw footage for The 90's Election Specials. Onscreen personality Stoney Burke attends a College Republicans rally outside of the 1992 Republican National Convention. Actor Robert Downey, Jr. participates in a town hall discussion with those in attendance.

00:00Copy video clip URL Stoney Burke interviews the Deputy Convention Manager at the RNC about his views on Bill Clinton and homelessness.

00:45Copy video clip URL Burke speaks with Larry King about his thoughts on the convention and its outcome. King states that if the election were held the following day, Clinton would win. He also talks about his disappointment over Ross Perot bowing out of the debate and also predicts his return to the race. Hercules asks King about his thoughts on TV coverage of the election, and King responds that he thinks that television enhances events. King then talks about his love for baseball and leaving a baseball game at Candlestick Park due to cold weather.

02:59Copy video clip URL Burke arrives at the front desk of a College Republicans For Bush rally. Burke asks an attendee about his views on the election and who will come out victorious. The man believes that the pro-life/pro-choice issue will be a deciding factor in the election. Burke slowly makes his way inside of the event. Hercules gathers footage of numerous signs that showcase different conservative values.

05:02Copy video clip URL Burke speaks with two college students about their support of George Bush in the election and their views on abortion. One of the students comments on Barbara Bush’s belief that abortion shouldn’t be an issue. She says that there needs to be reforms on the abortion issue. Deeper into the rally, Burke approaches a group of College Republicans. The students, from a variety of different schools, talk about their reasons for supporting President Bush. Burke asks the students questions about various issues, including available federal funds for college, the Persian Gulf War, Saddam Hussein, and nuclear proliferation. The students take conservative stances on all of the issues raised. Burke closes their conversation by asking if they believe in peace. After the conversation, Burke is approached by one of the students who asks him about entertaining California colleges and universities with his political satire. The student talks about his experience attending Berkley.

09:18Copy video clip URL Burke interviews Quincy McDonald of the Youth Coalition for the re-election campaign for George Bush. Wearing a shirt that reads “Nixon ’92,” McDonald promotes Nixon’s foreign policy. He and Burke then get into a debate about the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, and the current Republican platform. Burke brings up the subject of energy independence. Burke goes on to speak with a man about his disapproval of Ross Perot, and a woman adorned in a fake elephant nose. When asked why Bush is going to win the election, the woman hesitates, then jokingly responds, “Clinton sucks.” She goes on to say that Bush will win because of family values. Another man goes on to criticize Bill Clinton for his infidelity. “Bill Clinton married his wife, right? That is supposed to be the person that is the dearest to him. That’s his wife. He makes a contract with her, a marriage vow with her. I mean, that goes beyond just a regular contract. If Bill Clinton is going to violate that trust with his wife, what is he going to do with the American people?” Eventually, Burke is surrounded by a group of students who discuss their views on the Iran-Contra Crisis, and Oliver North.

18:46Copy video clip URL Burke speaks with a Texas A&M student who talks about the prevalence of conservative values in the younger generation. The man then states that if Bush were to lose the election, it would be because of the economy. Burke moves on to speak with a student named Matt Ausfahl who jokes with Burke about his political satire. Burke continues to make conversation with other students. He speaks with a student who explains that her grandparents were FDR supporters and that she wishes Ronald Reagan were her father. “He is about as close to God as they come, I feel.” When asked for further clarification, she responds, “He symbolizes what America has always been and what America will always be.” Burke goes on to speak with an African-American man about his Republican views. He states that family values are very important to him. He also talks about his father being a Republican and his mother being a Democrat, and thinks that Bush should focus on domestic issues in order to win the election.

28:10Copy video clip URL Cut to a shot of Robert Downey, Jr. shaking hands and greeting those in attendance. Burke briefly speaks with Downey, Jr. about his experience at the RNC. “I’ve been learning about what happens when people get active and I’ve been learning about the process and also seeing through some of the nonsense and you know, trying not to form too many opinions and try to stay as objective as I can because, you know, looks like this thing’s going to be close and I want to just pay attention.” When asked who he believes will win the election, Downey states that he has no idea, but that if he did he would call his bookie. We then watch Downey debate with a group of students at the rally.

32:05Copy video clip URL Downey and the group of students prepare to begin the discussion.

33:59Copy video clip URL Downey begins to ask a few students about the notion that the youth could swing the vote. One of the students talks about their outreach programs to high schools and colleges actively selling the Republican Party. He emphasizes family values and criticizes the Democratic Party for impeding the American family. He blames Congress for the problems that plague the country. The student goes on to say that Congress is “an institution that is there for their own preservation. They’re not there to a guardian of individual liberty. They’re not there to make the country run right. The Congress itself is an overstuffed bureaucracy.” He then emphasizes the need to put caps on term lengths.

36:40Copy video clip URL Downey asks a few students from Arkansas about their reasons for supporting Bush, and they criticize Bill Clinton for a lack of economic progress in Arkansas. Another Arkansas native criticizes Clinton as well, but does give him credit for being a a good politician. He also says that Arkansas has the highest teen pregnancy rate. Downey then asks the student if he had ever gotten a woman pregnant, and goes on to talk about getting a woman pregnant, however, his answer is cut off by an airplane flying overhead. He eventually touches on the abortion issue. The students discuss their views on the subject and state that the abortion issue is the fundamental issue that drives the modern conservative movement. He emphasizes the improper framing of the issue and states that the “pro-choice” term is a way of escape dealing with the issue. “If you have a convention or a party that doesn’t deal with such fundamental issues as the pro-life issue, then what you’ve got is a party of the process and mechanics and that’s not what the American people are interested in.”

41:50Copy video clip URL Downey is offended by Vice President Dan Quayle’s remarks about Hollywood having a negative impact on the American family. One of the students responds by saying that television, radio, and movies have no base value, and that one can’t have an “anything-goes” society and still function properly. Downey then talks about Bush’s indirect or direct involvement in drug trafficking for covert operations. The student immediately disagrees. Downey receives a number of boos from the audience. The student goes on to state that much of Bush’s involvement in drug trafficking is hearsay and media hype. The tape ends shortly afterward.

45:59Copy video clip URL Tape ends.