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Lawrence Joseph Sarsfield Daly

American politician (1912–1978) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Lawrence Joseph Sarsfield Daly (January 22, 1912 – April 17, 1978), usually known as Lar Daly, was an American fringe politician and novelty candidate from Chicago, Illinois who ran unsuccessfully for a variety of political offices between 1938 and 1978. He often campaigned wearing an Uncle Sam suit and typically campaigned in the Republican Party primary on a platform emphasizing American nationalism and moral issues.[1]

His use of the equal-time rule in 1959 and 1960 made him the central figure in a case that influenced the relationship between mass media and American politics through the resulting amendments to the Communications Act of 1934 and the adoption of televised United States presidential debates.

Biography

Lawrence Joseph Sarsfield Daly was born in Gary, Indiana on January 22, 1912 to Irish immigrants, moving to Chicago when he was six years old. From the ages of 8 to 24, he sold fruits and vegetables. He lived on the South Side of Chicago and owned a furniture store which primarily sold bar stools. For extra money, he worked as a singer in taverns, and he was known for his rich baritone singing and speaking voice.[2][3][4]

In 1932, Daly ran his first ever political campaign and was successfully elected as a Republican ward committeeman. However, he was too young to accept the role and deemed ineligible. During his next campaign, for Cook County superintendent in 1938, he began shortening his name to "Lar," which he hoped would win votes from the county's Swedish population.[3]

Over the next forty years, Daly ran several times for state and local office in Chicago. He ran on the ticket of whichever party he perceived to be stronger, including running at least one campaign (for mayor in 1959) in both the Democratic and Republican primaries.[3] Beginning in 1954, he appeared at most campaign events wearing an Uncle Sam costume, though he later sold it because of "economic circumstances."[2]

Political positions

Politically, Daly was once described[by whom?] as the "archconservative of all conservatives."[4] His most forward position was his opposition to internationalism; he often billed himself on the ballot as Lar "America First" Daly.[3] During his 1967 campaign, he promised that if elected, he would order that every drug trafficker be shot on sight.[2] In 1968, he campaigned for president on a platform including the prompt obliteration of North Vietnam "with atomic bombs if necessary" and a system of bounties awarded to policemen for each drug trafficker they shot. The New York Times referred to him as athe only right-wing minor-party candidate in the race, as most similar candidates had deferred to bolster George Wallace.[4]

He also displayed a tendency towards libertarianism, favoring the legalization of gambling, abolition of public education, and major reductions in taxes.[3]

Unsuccessful campaigns for public office

Daly ran approximately 30 unsuccessful campaigns for public office.[3] His unsuccessful campaigns for public office included candidacies in the following elections:[5][6]

In 1973, Daly won his only primary for higher office, in the special election for Illinois's 7th congressional district. He ran unopposed in the Republican primary and lost the general election in a landslide. His final campaign came in 1978, when he polled 15 percent of the vote against incumbent United States senator Charles Percy. Daly died less than a month later, but his strong showing may have signaled Percy's unpopularity; he nearly lost the general election to political unknown Alex Seith.[3]

In addition to his own campaigns for office, Daly also unsuccessfully filed the name of Douglas MacArthur as a candidate in every Republican presidential primary in Illinois for decades.[2]

Equal-time rule

Daly is best known for suing television and radio news stations under the federal Communications Act of 1934, specifically its equal-time rule requiring broadcasts to give him equal coverage with other, better known candidates, beginning with Chicago mayor Richard J. Daley during the 1959 mayoral election. In reaction to Daly's appearances and the FCC decision in his case, the United States Congress amended Section 315 of the Communications Act to exempt bona fide newscasts, news interviews, and documentaries from the equal-time rule.[6] However, the amendment could not prevent Daly from making a particularly bizarre appearance on the national NBC broadcast of Tonight Starring Jack Paar during his 1960 presidential campaign, in which Daly received equal time with John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon.[1][7]

1959 lawsuit and Communications Act amendment

In 1959, Daly was denied equal time by three Chicago television stations which had broadcast footage of Chicago mayor Richard J. Daley meeting President of Argentina Arturo Frondizi and launching a polio fund drive. Daly appealed his case to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Although Daly's own appeal for equal-time in the 1956 presidential campaign had been rejected and the FCC had recently rejected Michigan state senator Allen H. Blondy, who brought a similar case, on the grounds that the candidate was not responsible for initiating the broadcast and that it was "nothing more than a routine newscast by a station in the exercise of its judgment as to newsworthy events," it distinguished Daly's case on the grounds that the total exposure given to Daly's opponents in the mayoral election was seventeen minutes. On a petition for reconsideration, the FCC affirmed its opinion and referred to the equal-time rule as an "unequivocal mandate."[7][8]

Reaction against the FCC decision was swift. Although most Chicago stations agreed to put Daly on the air, WBBM-TV (whose parent network, CBS, had been a longtime opponent of the equal-time rule) appealed the decision on the grounds that its coverage of the incumbent and Republican challenger Timothy P. Sheehan were legitimate news and equal-time for every candidate would make news a farce, dealing a blow to freedom of the press. President Dwight D. Eisenhower called the FCC decision "ridiculous" and instructed Attorney General William P. Rogers to find a solution, and the United States Congress began hearings on legislation to override the FCC decision. Although broadcasters pushed for a complete repeal of section 315 of the Communications Act, eliminating the equal-time rule entirely, the resulting compromise exempted bona fide newscasts, news interviews, news documentaries, and on-the-spot news coverage from section 315 of the Act, leaving broadcasters with journalist discretion to determine what was newsworthy. The amendment passed on September 14, 1959.[7][8]

Daly's FCC case has been credited with inspiring the traditional formality of televised United States presidential debates, which began in 1960 and rely on the amended section 315 to exclude minor candidates.[3]

Subsequent broadcast appearances

Despite the limitations his case brought to the equal-time rule, Daly continued to press for equal time when his better-known political opponents appeared on broadcasts that were not covered by the 1959 amendment. After Democratic nominee John F. Kennedy appeared as a guest on Tonight Starring Jack Paar in June 1960, Daly requested equal time, and he was granted a 47-minute interview with Paar.[9]

His July 7 appearance, in which Daly appeared in full Uncle Sam attire and a placard soliciting donations, smoking a cigarette, gained national attention. The audience booed him and Paar said during the interview that he was "shocked and ashamed" to have Daly on his show.[4][10]

He also requested equal time to respond to a July 4 Kennedy press conference and repeatedly pressed for time on national networks to respond to Kennedy and Richard Nixon, but his appeals were denied by the FCC.[11]

Personal life and death

Daly's grave at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery

Daly was married to Alice Daly and had five children. He was considered well-liked and was known to play the fiddle or violin to entertain friends at parties.[2][3]

Death and burial

Daly died of lung disease at Little Company of Mary Hospital in Evergreen Park, Illinois on April 17, 1978.[12] He was buried at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Alsip.

Since his death, Daly's name has remained synonymous with perennial candidates. In 2001, when perennial presidential candidate Harold Stassen died, one Chicago commentator described him as "a big-time Lar Daly."[3]

See also

References

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