The Man Who Wasn't There

While the G.O.P. met, its prodigal son was chasing votes abroad

As his old colleagues cavorted in Detroit, Independent Presidential Candidate John Anderson was off on the modern political version of the grand tour. His aim: to show the folks back home that foreign leaders take his candidacy seriously--and to make a little contrapuntal publicity when he could. Visiting five nations in twelve days, Anderson managed to create the image of bustling importance and organized pandemonium so necessary to a presidential candidacy.

The G.O.P. prodigal son's first stop was Israel. After praying at the Wailing Wall and meeting with recuperating Prime Minister Menachem Begin, Anderson disputed Carter's view that Israeli settlements in the Arab-populated West Bank were "an obstacle to peace." Echoing Begin, Anderson said the settlements were essential to Israel's security and endorsed the annexation of the Arab sections of Jerusalem. The U.S., he said, should even move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem as the final step in the peace process.

Not surprisingly, that displeased Anderson's next host, Egyptian President Anwar Sadat. But the candidate managed to soothe the Egyptian by playing down his strong support of Israel. Mollified, Sadat warmed to praise from Anderson, who called him "the George Washington of the Middle East."

Anderson then took off on what he called "a sentimental journey" to West Berlin, where in the early '50s he was married to his wife Keke while serving as a young Foreign Service officer. In Bonn, he talked with Chancellor Helmut Schmidt for two hours and pleased West German leaders by faulting Carter for failing to consult European allies more often.

In Paris, President Valery Giscard d'Estaing did not deem Anderson important enough to grant him an audience, but the Congressman did meet with French Foreign Minister Jean Franc,ois-Poncet and had a long discussion with Premier Raymond Barre.

Giscard's snub was more than offset by the warm reception Anderson received from the British. Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and Anderson got along so well that she invited him to use the doorstep at 10 Downing Street for an impromptu press conference.

Anderson conceded that a Reagan-Ford ticket would have been hard to beat; the Reagan-Bush combination was more vulnerable. "Initially, the impression may be that Bush is a moderate," he said. "But Bush has had to accept a platform that puts the Republican Party outside the mainstream." Anderson's assessment: "The vital political center of the U.S. is still valid for my campaign."

Harking back to Adlai Stevenson, the twice-defeated Democratic candidate in the '50s who was much beloved in Britain, one London newsman asked, "What makes you think you can win the presidency on the basis of intelligence and realism if Adlai Stevenson could not?"

Said Anderson: "I am not running against General Eisenhower. I am running against Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan, and I would respectfully suggest that neither is an Eisenhower." qed

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