Baker Defends Reagan Administration Policies

The Cooper Point Journal Volume 10, Issue 24 (May 20, 1982)

U.5. Senate Majority Leader Howard Baker (R-Tenn) spoke before an audience of approximately 250 students and community members Sunday night in TESC’s library lobby. Throughout the evening, Baker handled the somewhat hostile crowd with poise and good humor as he reiterated his support for President Reagan’s economic and military policies.

Outside the library a dozen or so Evergreen students, and friends demonstrated with placards reading, “With Ronnie the cook and Howie the Baker-we’ll all go hungry,” and chanted slogans including, “No draft, no war-U.S. out of El Salvador!” Kris Mccamant, a spokesperson for the demonstrators, claimed that their vocal disdain was not “part of the Olympians against Intervention in El Salvador group- but only the expression of those at the demonstration.”

Commenting on the heckling inside the library during Baker’s talk, Evergreen’s President Dan Evans said that Senator Slade Gordon (R-Wash), “myself, and the Senator (Baker), were probably the least embarrassed people there. The people who attempted to disrupt (Baker’s speech) were amateurs compared to those in the 1960’s.” Evans said that he thought it might be interesting to talk to those involved in the demonstration and heckling inside about the nature of dissent and ways to make their dissent more effective.

According to Evans the members of the Olympia community and the members of the President’s club left Baker’s talk with bad feeling about the students’ lack of manners. Dan Evans also pointed out that many of the major donors of the Evergreen Foundation were present and said that the display may make it hard for them to justify giving money to the college. The foundation sponsors scholarships and helps out with research as well as funding many Evergreen activities.

Senator Baker, in his introductory remarks, said he believed “this country must make sure that we are strong enough from the standpoint of conventional weapons, of nuclear weapons and our strategic systems to deter anyone, including the Soviet Union, from being tempted to think that they can profit from a first strike against this nation. I believe that that logic supports an increase in armaments in this country.” While admitting that the “nuclear genie is so far out of the bottle that there is no realistic prospect that anyone can gain a superiority and military advantage in that field,” Baker concluded that, “I do not believe that we will have meaningful negotiations with the Soviet Union if we are weak and inferior.” A round of boos and hisses followed the remark.