Interview with George M. Moore, January 29, 1981

Partial Transcript: The following is an unrehearsed interview with George M. Moore for the John Sherman Cooper Oral History Project.

Segment Synopsis: Moore shares his first memories of Cooper. Moore briefly talks of his career as an attorney.

Keywords: Attorneys; Capitol Hill (Washington, D.C.); Elections; Harry Byrd Jr.; Investigations; John Sherman Cooper; Joint Economy Committee; Law firms; Law practice; Parents; Pat McCarran; Political campaigning; Political campaigns; Political candidates; Senate Judiciary Committee; Senate campaigns; Supreme Court; World War II

Subjects: Chicago (Ill.); Covington (Ky.); Florida; Fort Thomas (Ky.); Kentuckians; Kentucky; Lawyers; Marriage; Montgomery Ward; Politicians; Speeches; Virginia; Washington (D.C.); World War, 1939-1945

Partial Transcript: To get some more background on your own career...

Segment Synopsis: Moore discusses his personal and educational background.

Keywords: Aunts; Cousins; Elections; Fathers; High schools; John Sherman Cooper; Law practice; Mothers; Normal schools; Superintendent of schools; Tobacco; Uncles; University; Votes

Subjects: Carrollton (Ky.); Death; Jackson (Ky.); Kentuckians; Kentucky; Kentucky Bar Association; La Grange (Ky.); Marriage; Politicians; Teachers; Washington (D.C.); Western Kentucky University

Partial Transcript: I campaigned with him four times.

Segment Synopsis: Moore recalls what it was like to work on Cooper's 1946 Senatorial campaign.

Keywords: 5th congressional district (Ky.); Democratic Party; Democrats; John Sherman Cooper; John Y. Brown Sr.; King Swope; Political campaigning; Political campaigns; Political candidates; Politics; Republican primary; Senators; Thruston Morton; Votes; Western Kentucky

Subjects: Jefferson County (Ky.); Kentuckians; Kentucky; Newspapers; Politicians; Research; Speeches; Travel; Volunteers; Washington (D.C.); Writing

Partial Transcript: What kind of--I'm sorry, go ahead.

Segment Synopsis: Moore discusses Cooper's 1954 Senatorial campaign against Alben Barkley.

Keywords: Alben Barkley; Democrats; Elections; John Sherman Cooper; Political campaigning; Political campaigns; Political candidates; Political opponents

Subjects: Barkley, Alben William, 1877-1956; Kentuckians; Kentucky; Lexington (Ky.); Politicians; Speeches

Partial Transcript: And during the campaign, of course, we'd talk about our heritage.

Segment Synopsis: Moore details the family ties that he shares with Cooper. Moore compares Cooper and his family to other political families.

Keywords: Brothers; Byrd family; Carpenters; Cooper family; Dick Byrd; Don Cooper; Farming; Father figures; Fathers; Grandfathers; Harry Byrd Jr.; High schools; John Sherman Cooper; Law firms; Law schools; Moore family; Mothers; Richard Cooper; Senators; Steel mills; University; Votes

Subjects: Bankruptcy; Carrollton (Ky.); Death; Debt; Education; Engineers; Families; Heritage; Jackson (Ky.); Kentuckians; Kentucky; New York (N.Y.); Politicians; Somerset (Ky.); South Pole; Washington (D.C.)

Partial Transcript: I want to go back to the '46 campaign.

Segment Synopsis: Moore describes Cooper's campaign finance procedures.

Keywords: Campaign contributions; Campaign finances; Campaign trail; Charles Taft; Connections; County judges; Expenses; Fathers; Finance chairman; John Sherman Cooper; Laws; Military ranks; Military service; Military officers; Political campaigning; Political campaigns; Political candidates; Statewide campaigns; Voluntary contributions; WHAS Louisville; World War II

Subjects: Advertisements; Bankers; Budgets; Cincinnati (Ohio); Elizabethtown (Ky.); Finance; Kentuckians; Kentucky; Money; Nuremberg War Crime Trials, Nuremberg, Germany, 1946-1949; Pikeville (Ky.); Politicians; Radio; Radio stations; Speeches; World War, 1939-1945; Yale University

Partial Transcript: You know, uh, one thing that interested me, uh, when you talk to people about Senator Cooper in the latter part of his career...

Segment Synopsis: Moore characterizes Cooper's abilities as a speaker and orator. Moore also tells an anecdote that Cooper frequently used at campaign speeches.

Keywords: Children; Democrats; Elections; Friends; Golden wedding anniversary; Grandchildren; John Sherman Cooper; Neighbors; Political campaigning; Political campaigns; Political candidates; Public speaking; Relatives; Republicans; Votes

Subjects: Communities; Kentuckians; Kentucky; Politicians; Rural conditions; Speeches

Partial Transcript: But anyhow, um, as I was saying, we came on up to Washington and I came with him.

Segment Synopsis: Moore articulates some of the issues that Cooper advocated for during his first term in the Senate in 1946.

Keywords: "Separate but equal"; 80th U.S. Congress; Campaign chairman; Chief Counsel; Civil rights bills; Committees; Constitutionality; Donald Cooper; Elections; Equal rights; Fred Vinson; House Post Office and Civil Service Committee; House of Representatives; Independent; John Sherman Cooper; Kenneth Wherry; Laws; Lawyers; Louisville Courier-Journal; Malcolm Holliday; Party lines; Political campaigns; Politics; Portal to portal pay; Reporters; Republicans; Robert Taft; Senate; Senators; States' rights; Supreme Court; Thruston Morton; Tideland Oil; Votes; Voting

Subjects: Civil rights; Coal miners; Coal mines and mining; Criticism; Death; Education; Ethics; Kentuckians; Kentucky; Louisville (Ky.); Morals; Oil; Politicians; Washington (D.C.); Yale University

Partial Transcript: The one I remember probably more vividly...

Segment Synopsis: Moore reflects upon his experiences in Cooper's 1948 and 1952 Senatorial campaigns.

Keywords: 1952 Republican National Convention; Alben Barkley; C&O Railroad; Campaign contributions; Congress; Credit; Dean Acheson; Death; Democrats; Dwight Eisenhower; Earle Clements; Farmers; Favors; Finances; Foreign affairs; Friends; Governors; Influence; John Sherman Cooper; Law offices; Law practice; Laws; Legal voting; North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO); Political appointments; Political campaigning; Political campaigns; Political candidates; Political primaries; Popularity; Postal rates; Practicing law; Supreme Court; Tobacco; Tom Underwood; Vice presidents; Virgil Chapman; Votes

Subjects: Cold War; Kentuckians; Kentucky; Korean War, 1950-1953; Maryland; New York (N.Y.); Politicians; Rural conditions; United Nations; Voter turnout; Voting

Partial Transcript: Some people questioned, at the time, his move to go work with the Truman Administration at the U.N. or to serve with Acheson in NATO.

Segment Synopsis: Moore considers the effects of Cooper's experience in international affairs upon subsequent political campaigns.

Keywords: Civil Service Commission; Dean Acheson; Democratic administrations; Democratic states; Dwight Eisenhower; Eisenhower administration; Frank Carlson; Harry Truman; John Sherman Cooper; North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO); Political campaigns; Relationships; Republicans; Senators; Thruston Morton

Subjects: Administration; Friends; Kentuckians; Kentucky; Louisville (Ky.); New Deal, 1933-1939; Politicians; Pressure; United Nations

Partial Transcript: The, the, the interesting story--o--one more interesting story is that during one of these campaigns, John wanted to get married.

Segment Synopsis: Moore details how Cooper got married to his second wife. Moore considers why Cooper being divorced was surprisingly not an issue in the 1950s and compares this attitude to modern views on divorce.

Keywords: Domestic relations; First divorced president; First wife; John Sherman Cooper; Lorraine Cooper; Newspaper columns; Political campaigns; Politics; Ronald Reagan; Volunteer nurses

Subjects: Divorce; Frankfort (Ky.); Frontier Nursing Service, Inc; Kentuckians; Kentucky; Lexington (Ky.); Marriage; Politicians; Wives

Partial Transcript: --But I mean you worked in his office some right after he went back in '52, right?

Segment Synopsis: Moore describes his work as Cooper's administrative assistant in the early 1950s.

Keywords: Administrative assistants; Amendments; Civil rights bills; Constituents; Foreign affairs; Jimmy Carter; John Sherman Cooper; Louisville Courier-Journal; Malcolm Holliday; Political campaigns; Reporters; Ronald Reagan; Senate; Senate floor; Senators; Thruston Morton

Subjects: Administration; Civil rights; Health; Kentuckians; Kentucky; New York times; Politicians; Press; Speeches; Tennessee; Travel; Washington (D.C.); Work

Partial Transcript: Then after that I went...

Segment Synopsis: Moore lists some of the positions he held in the federal government in the 1960s. Moore also details Cooper's 1954 Senatorial campaign.

Keywords: Alben Barkley; Assistant Postmaster General; Brown Hotel (Louisville, Ky.); Campbell House (Lexington, Ky.); Civil Service Commission; Communication; Elections; Foreign trade; John F. Kennedy; John Sherman Cooper; National Committee; Official positions; Political campaigning; Political campaigns; Postal supervisors; U.S. Ambassador to India

Subjects: Careers; Civil service; Federal government; Horse racing; India; Kentuckians; Kentucky; Lexington (Ky.); Louisville (Ky.); Politicians; Postmasters

Partial Transcript: He really hesitated before he made the race in '56.

Segment Synopsis: Moore talks of Cooper's difficult decision to run for the Senate in 1956. Moore then describes Cooper's personality.

Keywords: Alben Barkley; Character; Choices; Decisions; Depressed Areas bill; Eisenhower administration; Governors; John F. Kennedy; John Sherman Cooper; Political campaigning; Political campaigns; Richard Nixon; Senate

Subjects: Administration; Friends; Kentuckians; Kentucky; Personality; Politicians

Partial Transcript: And he was close to Senator Kennedy, apparently--President Kennedy.

Segment Synopsis: Moore discusses Cooper's friendship with John F. Kennedy. How Cooper assisted Kennedy in the 1960 Democratic primary to be successful in West Virginia is examined.

Keywords: 1960 Presidential election; Clifford Case; Conservative republicans; Democrats; Elections; Foreign affairs; Friends; George Aiken; Harry Byrd Jr.; Jackie Kennedy; Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis; John Sherman Cooper; John Stennis; Leverett Saltonstall; Lorraine Cooper; Nationwide syndicates; Newspaper columns; Political campaigns; Political candidates; Political nominations; Political primaries; Presidents; Republicans; Senators; Ultra-conservative

Subjects: Friendship; Kentuckians; Kentucky; Politicians; Tennessee; Washington (D.C.); West Virginia

Partial Transcript: Well, it--it's interesting, you know, that Senator Cooper in his Senate career voted for the social legislation in the Kennedy and Johnson administrations...

Segment Synopsis: Moore illustrates some of the political principles Cooper upheld in support of his constituents. Moore also considers Cooper's popularity in Kentucky.

Keywords: Aid to Education programs; Alben Barkley; Anti-ballistic missile debates; Appalachia; Elections; Independent voters; John F. Kennedy; John Sherman Cooper; Lyndon Johnson; Malcolm Holliday; Political campaigns; Re-election; Richard Nixon; Social legislation; Voting records

Subjects: Aging; Coal miners; Kentuckians; Kentucky; Leadership; Politicians; Popularity; Teachers; Tobacco; Vietnam War, 1961-1975

Partial Transcript: But somebody like Thurston Morton didn't become a household word.

Segment Synopsis: Moore evaluates the working relationship between Cooper and Thruston Morton.

Keywords: Administrative assistants; John Sherman Cooper; Judges; Lee Nunn; Political campaigns; Poverty; Republicans; Senior Senators; Thruston Morton; Votes

Subjects: Education; Ivy League (Athletic conference); Kentuckians; Kentucky; Management; Morton, Thruston Ballard, 1907-1982; Personality; Politicians; Reputation; Staff