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The '76 Republican National Convention In KC: 'Blood-letting' In The West Bottoms

By Sam Zeff,
Lisa Rodriguez
Published July 21, 2016 at 1:31 PM CDT

You think this Republican National Convention is full of drama? The 1976 convention at Kemper Arena was the last contested party convention. It pitted President Gerald Ford, who rose to the presidency after Richard Nixon resigned, against Ronald Reagan, who was becoming the darling of conservatives.

Guests:

  • Craig Shirley is a historian and public affairs consultant. He’s the author of three bestselling book on Reagan.
  • Bill Lacy is director of the Dole Institute of Politics. He was a long time Republican political operative, including serving in the Reagan Administration.

​The exhibition, "From State to Nation: Dole for VP, 1976", opens August 14 at the Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics.

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Up To Date Republican National ConventionWest BottomsRepublicansTalk ShowBob DolepoliticsPresidential Politics
Sam Zeff
As KCUR’s metro reporter, I hold public officials accountable. Are cities spending your tax money wisely? Are police officers and other officials acting properly? I will track down malfeasance by seeking open records and court documents, and by building relationships across the city. But I also need you — email me with any tips at <a href="mailto:sam@kcur.org" target="_blank" link-data="{&quot;cms.site.owner&quot;:{&quot;_ref&quot;:&quot;0000016e-ccea-ddc2-a56e-edfe57dc0000&quot;,&quot;_type&quot;:&quot;ae3387cc-b875-31b7-b82d-63fd8d758c20&quot;},&quot;cms.content.publishDate&quot;:1678388669808,&quot;cms.content.publishUser&quot;:{&quot;_ref&quot;:&quot;00000170-820a-de8d-af78-a70f6b270000&quot;,&quot;_type&quot;:&quot;6aa69ae1-35be-30dc-87e9-410da9e1cdcc&quot;},&quot;cms.content.updateDate&quot;:1678388669808,&quot;cms.content.updateUser&quot;:{&quot;_ref&quot;:&quot;00000170-820a-de8d-af78-a70f6b270000&quot;,&quot;_type&quot;:&quot;6aa69ae1-35be-30dc-87e9-410da9e1cdcc&quot;},&quot;cms.directory.paths&quot;:[],&quot;anchorable.showAnchor&quot;:false,&quot;link&quot;:{&quot;attributes&quot;:[],&quot;cms.directory.paths&quot;:[],&quot;linkText&quot;:&quot;sam@kcur.org&quot;,&quot;target&quot;:&quot;NEW&quot;,&quot;attachSourceUrl&quot;:false,&quot;url&quot;:&quot;mailto:sam@kcur.org&quot;,&quot;_id&quot;:&quot;00000186-c7c2-da91-a187-d7d3863a0001&quot;,&quot;_type&quot;:&quot;ff658216-e70f-39d0-b660-bdfe57a5599a&quot;},&quot;_id&quot;:&quot;00000186-c7c2-da91-a187-d7d3863a0000&quot;,&quot;_type&quot;:&quot;809caec9-30e2-3666-8b71-b32ddbffc288&quot;}">sam@kcur.org</a>, find me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/samzeff" target="_blank" link-data="{&quot;cms.site.owner&quot;:{&quot;_ref&quot;:&quot;0000016e-ccea-ddc2-a56e-edfe57dc0000&quot;,&quot;_type&quot;:&quot;ae3387cc-b875-31b7-b82d-63fd8d758c20&quot;},&quot;cms.content.publishDate&quot;:1678388695547,&quot;cms.content.publishUser&quot;:{&quot;_ref&quot;:&quot;00000170-820a-de8d-af78-a70f6b270000&quot;,&quot;_type&quot;:&quot;6aa69ae1-35be-30dc-87e9-410da9e1cdcc&quot;},&quot;cms.content.updateDate&quot;:1678388695547,&quot;cms.content.updateUser&quot;:{&quot;_ref&quot;:&quot;00000170-820a-de8d-af78-a70f6b270000&quot;,&quot;_type&quot;:&quot;6aa69ae1-35be-30dc-87e9-410da9e1cdcc&quot;},&quot;cms.directory.paths&quot;:[],&quot;anchorable.showAnchor&quot;:false,&quot;link&quot;:{&quot;attributes&quot;:[],&quot;cms.directory.paths&quot;:[],&quot;linkText&quot;:&quot;@samzeff&quot;,&quot;target&quot;:&quot;NEW&quot;,&quot;attachSourceUrl&quot;:false,&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://twitter.com/samzeff&quot;,&quot;_id&quot;:&quot;00000186-c7c3-d5fc-addf-e7fb02120001&quot;,&quot;_type&quot;:&quot;ff658216-e70f-39d0-b660-bdfe57a5599a&quot;},&quot;_id&quot;:&quot;00000186-c7c3-d5fc-addf-e7fb02120000&quot;,&quot;_type&quot;:&quot;809caec9-30e2-3666-8b71-b32ddbffc288&quot;}">@samzeff</a> or call me at 816-235-5004.
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Lisa Rodriguez
Kansas City needs journalists who show up not just on people’s worst days, but on their best ones — and the boring ones in between. I build relationships across the metro, so our newsroom can bring you critical information when times are tough, and seek out moments of joy to celebrate. Email me at lisa@kcur.org.
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