The Phantom Candidate

Cabot Lodge's chance to score one last impressive win before the Republican Convention will come in Oregon's free-for-all May 15 primary, when all major Republican contenders will be on the ballot.

Last week Lodge workers, still full of pizazz from their New Hampshire surprise, opened campaign headquarters in Portland. Headed by Paul Grindle, a Cambridge importer, and Boston Lawyer David Goldberg, the organization talked poor-mouth, reported that of their $25,000 costs in New Hampshire, only $8,000 has actually been paid. A money-raising drive is on in Boston, Washington and New York. The Lodge men figure they will need another $75,000 for the Oregon campaign --even though they plan no billboards, radio or newspaper advertising.

Eye on the Ball. Most of the cash will go for a flood of direct-mail literature. The organization has purchased --for roughly $ a name--mailing lists of thousands of Oregon Republicans. Rationalized Goldberg about the organization's money shortage: "If you're given too much money, you can do everything, and that's too much. It's a great diffusion. You lose your sense of priority. You take your eye off the ball. Our way, you must develop a sense of discipline."

Lodge, who insists he will not leave Saigon to campaign, got support on his absenteeism from Richard Nixon, now a Pepsi-Cola lawyer touring the Far East. After a two-hour talk with Lodge last week, Nixon emerged to say the two men had "covered everything significant about this political year." What did Nixon think of the U.S.'s current policies in Viet Nam? "So far, there's been doubt and inconsistency about the goal, there's been an inadequacy of personnel to carry out the plan, there's been inconsistency of planning. I don't know how good the present plan is. It would be a mistake to be overoptimistic." And how did he think Lodge's Viet Nam involvement might affect his run for the G.O.P. nomination? Hedged Nixon: "People I've spoken with here generally rate him as doing a good job. But he is not a policymaker. That's done in Washington." All in all, Nixon made it clear that he thought Lodge's interest--and presumably his own--would be best served if Lodge stayed in Saigon a bit longer.

Ready for Tahiti. Less philosophical about the ambassador's phantom candidacy were Barry Goldwater and Nelson Rockefeller. Goldwater, campaigning in California, let fly at a San Francisco news conference: "With all due respect to Mr. Lodge, whom I consider a good friend of mine, it would be impossible to sell him to the Republican Party after his performance in 1960. If he or Rockefeller had worked just half as hard as the rest of us worked, Richard Nixon would be in the White House today." What did Barry think of Lodge's refusal to come home? "This is a sad commentary on the state of American politics. A Lodge victory in Oregon would mean a victory for Madison Avenue; it would have a decided effect on American politics. Campaigning would become completely Madison Avenue-ized." Said Goldwater with a wan smile: "I'm very interested in a trip to Tahiti, so if the Lodge approach works, then I'll go to Tahiti and campaign."

Rockefeller, plugging away in Oregon and California, labeled Lodge "a part of the Democratic Administration and a candidate who is working from out there very hard." Cried Rocky: "I think that the ambassador is running and running hard, and that he is running from the privileged sanctuary of diplomatic immunity."

Back in Saigon, Cabot Lodge said nothing.

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