Michael Dukakis, former governor of Massachusetts and a previous Democratic presidential candidate, cracked jokes and discussed the 2008 election at “What’s Ahead on Super Tuesday?,” an event held in the School of Public Affairs on Tuesday afternoon.
The event gave interested UCLA community members the chance to hear from and ask questions of both Dukakis, who is also a professor of public policy at UCLA, and Mark Peterson, a professor of public policy and political science at UCLA.
Dukakis and Peterson addressed the general election process and the specific campaigns of this year’s presidential candidates.
The most critical aspect of any campaign is precinct-based grassroots organizing, Dukakis said.
“The only way to guarantee that you are communicating with the electorate is by walking up to their door and knocking on it,” Dukakis said. “I’m worried that if we (the Democratic Party) don’t do this, we’re in danger of losing.”
Dukakis referenced the grassroots organizing he did with his own campaign in 1988 and said he was confused why the 2008 candidates did not begin recruiting intensively on the ground early in their campaigns in the states with primaries scheduled on Super Tuesday.
“Had I been advising the candidates, I would have advised them to organize every single one of the Super Tuesday states with grassroots movements,” he said. “In my judgment, if Obama had done this from the beginning, he’d be flying right now coming out of South Carolina.”
In addition to discussing the importance of precinct-based campaigning, Dukakis and Peterson talked about the differences between the Democratic and Republican races, the role of the media in the campaigns, and former president Bill Clinton’s presence in Democratic Sen. Hillary Clinton’s campaign.
In reference to the Democratic race, Peterson said the similarities in the candidates’ policies are causing voters and the media, to home in on non-policy issues when making decisions.
“The media focus on the most asinine things you can imagine,” Peterson said.
Throughout the event, Dukakis made audience members laugh and kept them engaged by poking fun at the Republican Party and various Republican candidates.
Before the event began, he apologized for President Bush and said, “If I’d have beat the old man, you’d have never heard of the kid. It’s all my fault.”
The School of Public Affairs hosted the event to give UCLA students an opportunity to hear from Dukakis and get his perspective, said VC Powe, executive director of external programs for the School of Public Affairs.
Some students said they came to the event hoping to learn more about the upcoming election.
“There are always events like this going on, but this one caught my eye because Super Tuesday is coming up,” said Patricia Ramirez, a fourth-year international development studies student. “I wanted to get a better sense with what’s going on in regards to the election.”
Though Courtney Sage, a graduate student in the social welfare program, said she expected the discussion to focus a bit more on the current political race and candidates, she added she was pleased to learn more about the political process.
“It’s not as much about the issues but more about how the whole system works,” she said.
But, she added, “I feel a little more encouraged knowing that there are ways to improve the process. Precinct organizing is an exciting idea.”