Ann Armstrong of Texas
Representative John Anderson of Illinois
Majority leader Howard Baker of Tennessee.
Former CIA Director George H. W. Bush
Former Governor John Connally of Texas
Representative Phil Crane of Illinois
Senator and former VP Nominee Bob Dole
RNHA Chairman Ben Fernandez of California
Former Governor of California Ronald Reagan
Senator Larry Pressler of South Dakota
Former Minnesota Governor Harold Stassen.

There were tons of stories in the media in 1980 about what a lousy list of candidates the Republicans had to choose from. That was apparent because an out of work actor and failed governor was leading in the polls for the Republican  nomination.

Yes it was sad, the media told us,  that the best the Republicans could do was nominate a poor quality actor and a  failed governor  of California. 

John Sears was Reagan's campaign manager and he advised Reagan to stay above the fray and play the roll of a favorite that does not need to get in the fray. That ended when George  H. W. Bush won Iowa. Reagan then changed his plans and campaigned heavily in New Hampshire and won it. On the very night that  Reagan won New Hampshire he fired his campaign manager, John Sears.  The media was full of stories that Ronald Reagan was in deep trouble, because he fired the most famous and capable  campaign manager in the nation.  Remember the Bush description of Deep Do Do?

They said  it just proved that actors are not qualified to run for national office. Do you remember that Reagan lost five more primaries to Bush, including one where he came in third behind John Anderson?  It just went to show that Reagan was not in the Jimmy Carter class.

Anderson went on to run as a third party candidate. And we were told over and over that Carter was headed for reelection in the fall. Carter after his huge victory over Teddy Kennedy in the Democratic primary was certain to defeat a loser like Ronald Reagan. The media had no doubts.

And to add to the odds against a Reagan victory, John Anderson declared as a third party candidate. It was widely acknowledged that if Anderson got over 5 percent of the vote, Reagan did not stand a chance. The polls showed Anderson getting more than 5 percent.

Reagan started the campaign at the end of August some 20 points behind Carter. Carter was so confidant that he refused to debate Reagan. Carters excuse was that he was working 24/7 on freeing the hostages held by  the Iranian government. The polls showed Anderson getting more than 5 percent of the votes on election day. Yes Reagan was toast... everyone could see that.. the media said.

But with Carters own tracking polls showing him in trouble Carter decided to debate Reagan in the final two weeks before the election.

But the pundits on TV told us over and over that the election was too close to call and constantly reminded us how much damage Anderson was doing to the Reagan campaign. The polls showed Anderson getting 9 percent of the votes on election day and if that were true then Reagan was a gonner.

 Even on election day as they started counting the votes on the east coast, the media told us the election was way to close to call.

I later leaned that at on election eve, Carter was told by his staff that Reagan was going to win the election by a huge margin.  That same night Reagan was  told by his staff that there was no way that he could lose.

The media reports on AP and all the major media told us the race was too close to call just 4 minutes before Jimmy carter conceded the election to Reagan.

It was sort of hard to make us believe that the race was too close to call with Jimmy Carter congratulating Ronald Reagan on his victory and as our next president. In fact Reagan defeated Jimmy Carter by almost 10 points and Carter only won 6 states.

My point is we tend to forget how wrong the media is. I believe that  many members of the media tell us what they want to happen as if it actually were happening.

There are lots people talking about the Reagan landslide and Reagan victory as if it had always been a sure thing. What the media was saying about 1980 before the Republican nominee was selected was very much like what they are telling us this year.  I predict that what they tell us after the nominee is selected will  be much like what they told us after Reagan won the nomination in 1980.

The real question is... Why in the world does anyone in either party ever listen to them?  

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