American History TV continues to reair C-SPAN's history series
“The Contenders,” which features profiles of key figures who ran
for president and lost, but changed political history. This
week, we focus on the life and career of Hubert H. Humphrey.
With anti-Vietnam war protests raging across the country in
March of 1968, President Lyndon Johnson made his announcement
that he would not seek, nor accept, the nomination of his party
for the presidency. With that, the doors were opened for Vice
President Hubert Humphrey and other Democrats to try and win
that nomination. In April, the same month that Martin Luther
King was assassinated, and less than two months before Robert F.
Kennedy would also be gunned down, Hubert Humphrey announced his
candidacy. With this tumultuous year as a backdrop, our
Contenders program on Hubert H. Humphrey originates from the
Minnesota History Center - where their exhibit on 1968 helps us
delve into Humphrey and his Vice-Presidency, his relationship
with LBJ, his views on Vietnam,