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Interview no.	A-0026
Restrictions	No restrictions. Open to research.
Project	A.1. Southern Politics: Bass-DeVries Interviews
Project description	Interviews, 1973-1975, conducted by Jack Solomon Bass and Walter De Vries with political leaders, journalists, editors, party officials, political scientists, campaign directors, union officials, and civil rights leaders from Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia, as part of a study of politics in the South, 1945-1974.
Date	17 July 1974
Interviewee	Bumpers, Dale.
Interviewee occupation	Politicians
Interviewee DOB	1925
Interviewee ethnicity	Whites
Interviewer	Bass, Jack. De Vries, Walter.
Abstract	Dale Bumpers was elected governor of Arkansas in 1970, before his election to the United States Senate in 1974. Bumpers begins the interview by offering an assessment of his administration as governor of Arkansas. Emphasizing such accomplishments as tax reform and reorganization of state government, Bumpers describes how his election and administration helped to demystify political myths in the South. In particular, Bumpers explains that his successful elections in 1970 and 1974 demonstrated that political power could be wrested from those who had a larger financial backing, and that it was not necessary to be highly visible in the state in order to garner enough support. On the contrary, Bumpers was a virtual unknown on the political landscape when he defeated Governor Winthrop Rockefeller in 1970. Rockefeller was the first Republican governor to serve in Arkansas since Reconstruction. According to Bumpers, Rockefeller's election demonstrated a shifting political landscape that ultimately foretold the crumbling political power structure that had dominated southern politics for decades. It was the weakening of this power base that, in part, allowed Bumpers to defeat Rockefeller in 1970 and incumbent senator William Fulbright (who had served in the United States Senate for thirty years) in 1974. In describing his successful campaign strategies, Bumpers explains how he sought to appeal to Arkansas pride and a tendency of citizens to feel defensive about their rural roots. Bumpers had just been elected when the interview was conducted, and he offers his predictions for southern politics in coming years. Namely, Bumpers expresses his hope that southern Democrats would rejoin the national Democratic Party. Bumpers concludes the interview by offering his thoughts on the changing political landscape of the South, arguing that the term "emerging South" was more appropriate than "New South" in describing the region's economic growth and social developments.
Subject Topical	Arkansas--Politics and government. Southern States--Politics and government. Governors--Arkansas. Legislators--United States. Political campaigns--Arkansas.
Subject Name	Bumpers, Dale. Democratic Party (Ark.) Democratic Party (U.S.)
Citation	Interview with Dale Bumpers by Jack Bass and Walter De Vries, 17 July 1974. A-0026 in the Southern Oral History Program Collection #4007, Southern Historical Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

A-0026

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A-0026

A-0026