Editing Adlai Stevenson II (section)

==1952 presidential bid==
{{See also|1952 United States presidential election|Electoral history of Adlai Stevenson}}
[[File:President Harry Truman, Adlai Stevenson, and John Sparkman2.gif|thumb|President [[Harry S. Truman]], vice presidential nominee [[Alabama]] [[United States Senate|senator]] [[John J. Sparkman]] and presidential nominee [[Governor of Illinois|Illinois governor]] Adlai Stevenson in the [[Oval Office]], 1952]]
Early in 1952, while Stevenson was still governor of Illinois, President [[Harry S. Truman]] decided that he would not seek another term as president. Instead, Truman met with Stevenson in Washington and proposed that Stevenson seek the Democratic nomination for president; Truman promised him his support if he did so. Stevenson at first hesitated, arguing that he was committed to running for a second gubernatorial term in Illinois. However, a number of his friends and associates (such as [[George Wildman Ball]]) quietly began organizing a "draft Stevenson" movement for president; they persisted in their activity even when Stevenson (both publicly and privately) told them to stop. When Stevenson continued to state that he was not a candidate, President Truman and the Democratic Party leadership looked for other prospective candidates. However, each of the other main contenders had a major weakness. Senator [[Estes Kefauver]] of Tennessee won most of the presidential primaries and entered the [[1952 Democratic National Convention]] with the largest number of delegates, but he was unpopular with President Truman and other prominent Democrats. In 1950, Kefauver had chaired a Senate committee that traveled to several large cities and held televised hearings into organized crime. The hearings revealed connections between organized-crime syndicates and big-city Democratic political organizations, which led Truman and other Democratic leaders to oppose Kefauver's bid for the nomination: "a machine politician and proud of it, [Truman] had no use for reformers who blackened the names of fellow Democrats."<ref>(Manchester, p. 608)</ref> Truman favored U.S. diplomat [[W. Averell Harriman]], but he had never held elected office and was inexperienced in national politics. Truman next turned to his vice-president, [[Alben Barkley]], but at 74 years of age he was dismissed as being too old by labor union leaders. Senator [[Richard Russell Jr.]] of Georgia was popular in the South and [[Richard Russell 1952 presidential campaign|his campaign]] easily won the [[1952 Florida Democratic presidential primary|Florida primary]], but his support for racial [[Racial segregation|segregation]] and opposition to civil rights for blacks made him unacceptable to Northern and Western Democrats. In the end, Stevenson, despite his reluctance to run, remained the most attractive candidate heading into the 1952 Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

[[File:Adlai Stevenson 1952 campaign poster.JPG|thumb|A poster from the 1952 campaign]]

At the convention, Stevenson, as governor of the host state, was assigned to give the welcoming address to the delegates. His speech was so stirring and witty that it invigorated efforts to secure the nomination for him, in spite of his continued protests that he was not a presidential candidate. In his welcoming speech he poked fun at the [[1952 Republican National Convention]], which had been held in Chicago in the same coliseum two weeks earlier. Stevenson described the achievements of the Democratic Party under presidents Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman, but noted:<blockquote>our Republican friends have said it was all a miserable failure. For almost a week pompous phrases marched over this landscape in search of an idea, and the only idea that they found was that the two great decades of progress...were the misbegotten spawn of bungling, of corruption, of socialism, of mismanagement, of waste and worse...after listening to this everlasting procession of epithets about our [party's] misdeeds I was even surprised the next morning when the mail was delivered on time. But we Democrats were by no means the only victims here. First they [Republicans] slaughtered each other, and then they went after us...perhaps the proximity of the stockyards accounts for the carnage.<ref>(Manchester, p. 621–622)</ref></blockquote>

Following this speech, the Illinois delegation (led by Jacob Arvey) announced that they would place Stevenson's name in nomination, and Stevenson called President Truman to ask if "he would be embarrassed" if Stevenson formally announced his candidacy for the nomination. Truman told Stevenson "I have been trying since January to get you to say that. Why should it embarrass me?"<ref name="Manchester, p. 622">(Manchester, p. 622)</ref> Kefauver led on the first ballot, but was well below the vote total he needed to win. Stevenson gradually gained strength until he was nominated on the third ballot.<ref name="Manchester, p. 622"/> The 1952 Democratic National Convention was the last political convention of either major party to require more than one ballot to nominate a presidential candidate.<ref>(Bain and Parris, p. 350)</ref>

Historian John Frederick Martin says party leaders selected Stevenson because he was "more moderate on civil rights than [[Estes Kefauver]], yet nonetheless acceptable to labor and urban machines—so a coalition of southern, urban, and labor leaders fell in behind his candidacy in Chicago".<ref>John Frederick Martin, "The Trappings of Democracy,"  ''Historically Speaking'' (2013) 14#4 p4 [http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/historically_speaking/v014/14.4.martin.html in Project MUSE]</ref> Stevenson's 1952 running mate was Senator [[John Sparkman]] of [[Alabama]].

Stevenson accepted the Democratic nomination with an acceptance speech that, according to contemporaries, "electrified the delegates:"<ref>Kennedy, Edward M., ''True Compass: A Memoir.'' 2009.</ref>

{{blockquote|When the tumult and the shouting die, when the bands are gone and the lights are dimmed, there is the stark reality of responsibility in an hour of history haunted with those gaunt, grim specters of strife, dissension, and materialism at home, and ruthless, inscrutable, and hostile power abroad. The ordeal of the twentieth century&nbsp;– the bloodiest, most turbulent age of the Christian era&nbsp;– is far from over. Sacrifice, patience, understanding, and implacable purpose may be our lot for years to come. ... Let's talk sense to the American people! Let's tell them the truth, that there are no gains without pains, that we are now on the eve of great decisions.}}

Although Stevenson's eloquent oratory and thoughtful, stylish demeanor impressed many intellectuals, journalists, political commentators, and members of the nation's academic community, the Republicans and some working-class Democrats ridiculed what they perceived as his indecisive, aristocratic air. During the 1952 campaign [[Stewart Alsop]], a powerful Connecticut Republican, labeled Stevenson an "egghead", based on his baldness and intellectual air. His brother, the influential newspaper columnist [[Joe Alsop]], used the word to underscore Stevenson's difficulty in attracting working-class voters, and the nickname stuck.<ref name="Halberstam, p. 235">(Halberstam, p. 235)</ref> Stevenson himself made fun of his "egghead" nickname; in one speech he joked "[[Workers of the world, unite!|eggheads of the world unite]], you have nothing to lose but your yolks!" In his campaign speeches Stevenson strongly criticized the Communist-hunting tactics of Senator Joseph McCarthy, labeling "McCarthy's kind of patriotism" as "a disgrace" and ridiculing right-wing Republicans "who hunt Communists in the Bureau of Wildlife and Fisheries while hesitating to aid the gallant men and women who are resisting the real thing in the front lines of Europe and Asia...they are finally the men who seemingly believe that we can confound the [[Moscow Kremlin|Kremlin]] by frightening ourselves to death."<ref name="Halberstam, p. 236"/> In return, Senator McCarthy stated in a speech that "he would like to get on the Stevenson campaign trail with a club and thereby make a good and loyal American out of the governor".<ref name="Halberstam, p. 235"/>

In the 1952 campaign, Stevenson also developed a strong dislike for [[Richard M. Nixon]], then the GOP vice-presidential candidate. "Adlai literally loathed Nixon. No other person aroused such disgust; not even Joseph McCarthy...Friends who often wished he could be more of a hater were awed at the strength of his distaste for Nixon."<ref>(McKeever, p. 228)</ref> A biographer wrote that "for Stevenson, Nixon was an ambitious, unprincipled partisan who craved winning, the exact personification of what was wrong with modern American politics...[for Stevenson] Nixon was an entirely plastic politician...Nixon was Stevenson's complete villain. Others sensed the potential for immorality that led to Nixon's humiliating resignation in 1974, but Stevenson was among the first."<ref>(Baker, p. 378)</ref> During the 1952 campaign Stevenson often used his wit to attack Nixon, and once stated that Nixon "was the kind of politician who would cut down a redwood tree, and then mount the stump and make a speech for [tree] conservation".<ref>(McKeever, p. 230)</ref>

Journalist [[David Halberstam]] later wrote that "Stevenson [was] an elegant campaigner who raised the political discourse" and that in 1952 "Stevenson reinvigorated [the Democratic Party] and made it seem an open and exciting place for a generation of younger Americans who might otherwise never have thought of working for a political candidate."<ref name="Halberstam, p. 236"/> During the campaign, a photograph revealed a hole in the sole of Stevenson's right shoe.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.flintjournal.com/125/paper/galleries/history/source/14.html |title=Visual History |newspaper=The Flint Journal |access-date = January 24, 2015 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120421213204/http://www.flintjournal.com/125/paper/galleries/history/source/14.html |archive-date=April 21, 2012 }}</ref> This became a symbol of Stevenson's frugality and earthiness. The Eisenhower campaign attempted to use the symbol of the shoe with a hole to criticize Stevenson in advertising, to which Stevenson said, “Better a hole in the shoe than a hole in the head.”<ref>{{Cite web |title=Original Chicago Cocktail: Old Shoe |url=https://news.wttw.com/2016/07/22/original-chicago-cocktail-old-shoe |access-date=2022-04-09 |website=WTTW News |language=en |archive-date=July 16, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220716175954/https://news.wttw.com/2016/07/22/original-chicago-cocktail-old-shoe |url-status=live }}</ref> Photographer [[William M. Gallagher]] of the ''[[Flint Journal]]'' won the [[1953 Pulitzer Prize|1953 Pulitzer prize]] on the strength of the image.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pulitzer.org/awards/1953 |title=1953 Winners |publisher=The Pulitzer Prizes |access-date=December 20, 2011 |archive-date=July 21, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721164154/http://www.pulitzer.org/awards/1953 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Stevenson did not use television as effectively as his Republican opponent, war hero [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]], and was unable to rally the [[New Deal]] voting coalition for one last hurrah. Historian Richard Aldous wrote "Occasionally persuasive, [Stevenson] was rarely compelling and, unlike Eisenhower, he lacked any kind of rapport or common touch with large crowds. He also failed to respond quickly enough to Eisenhower's pioneering use of TV. Both candidates resisted the new medium at first, but Ike relented sooner. He used "Mad Men" advertising executive Rosser Reeves of the Ted Bates agency to create brilliant thirty-second TV spots. Ironically, Stevenson came across well on TV, but his arrogant nature caused him to minimize it in the campaign. "This is the worst thing I've ever heard of," he scoffed, "selling the presidency like breakfast cereal!" That attitude left him behind the curve."<ref>(Aldous, p. 161)</ref> On [[1952 United States presidential election|election]] day, Eisenhower won the national popular vote by 55% to 45%. Stevenson lost heavily outside the [[Solid South]]; he carried only nine states and lost the [[Electoral College (United States)|Electoral College]] vote 442 to 89. In his concession speech on election night, Stevenson said: "Someone asked me...how I felt, and I was reminded of a story that a fellow townsman of ours used to tell – Abraham Lincoln. He said he felt like the little boy who had stubbed his toe in the dark. He said that he was too old to cry, but it hurt too much to laugh."<ref>(Manchester, p. 640)</ref>

Biographer Jean H. Baker summarized Stevenson's 1952 campaign: "Uncomfortable with the carnival side of elections, Stevenson tried to be a man for the people, not of them; a man of reason talking sense, not manipulation or sentiment."<ref>(Baker, p. 336)</ref> He continued:<blockquote>Liberals...were attracted to the Illinois governor because he firmly opposed [[McCarthyism]], [and] they also appreciated Stevenson because of his style...he had clearly dissociated himself, as did many Americans, from the plebians. Stevenson dramatized the complex feelings of educated elites, some of whom came to adore him not because he was a liberal, but because he was not...he spoke a language that set apart from average Americans an increasingly college-educated population. His approach to voters as rational participants in a process that depended on weighing the issues attracted reformers, intellectuals, and middle-class women with time and money (the "Shakespeare vote", joked one columnist). Or as one enthralled voter wrote "You were too good for the American people ... Adlai Stevenson ended the 1952 campaign with an adoring group of Stevensonites. Articulate and loyal...they would soon create the Stevenson legend and make the Man from Libertyville a counterhero to President Eisenhower, whom they would portray as inept and banal."<ref>(Baker, pp. 336–337)</ref></blockquote>

===1953 World Tour and 1954 elections===
[[File:Stevenson and Korean officials at USAF base in Korea, March 1953.jpg|thumb|Stevenson in March 1953 at U.S. Air Force 17th Bomb Wing base in Korea, joined by US ambassador to Korea [[Ellis O. Briggs]] (left), acting foreign minister of the Republic of Korea Cho Chong-Hwan (second from right) and acting prime minister Paik Too-chin (far right)]]

Following his defeat, Stevenson in 1953 made a well-publicized world tour through Asia, the Middle East and Europe, writing about his travels for ''[[Look (American magazine)|Look]]'' magazine. His political stature as head of the Democratic Party gave him access to many foreign leaders and dignitaries. He was elected a Fellow of the [[American Academy of Arts and Sciences]] in 1953.<ref name="AAAS">{{cite web|title=Book of Members, 1780–2010: Chapter S|url=http://www.amacad.org/publications/BookofMembers/ChapterS.pdf|publisher=American Academy of Arts and Sciences|access-date=April 7, 2011|archive-date=June 18, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060618090058/http://www.amacad.org/publications/BookofMembers/ChapterS.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> In the 1954 off-year elections, Stevenson took a leading role in campaigning for Democratic congressional and gubernatorial candidates around the nation. When the Democrats won control of both houses of Congress and picked up nine gubernatorial seats it "put Democrats around the country in Stevenson's debt and greatly strengthened his position as his party's leader."<ref>(Martin, pp. 148)</ref>