Margaret Chase Smith : The Persistence of a Political Archetype

Margaret Chase Smith : The Persistence of a Political Archetype

Article describing the political method and image of former Maine Republican congresswoman, Margaret Chase Smith. The paradigmatic elements of her political tenure and their subsequent impact on the shapes of later Maine political campaigns and leadership styles. Particular emphasis on the successes of Maine moderates William Cohen, Olympia Snowe, and Susan Collins. The major elements of a "Margaret Chase Smith archetype" : independent leadership style and stance, support for national defense, and an identification with hard work and the working class. The ways in which Smith's successful followers in government imitated these elements, or how notable political defeats relate to a candidate's departures from her moderate archetype. Discussion of Smith's little acknowledged French Canadian roots.

Potholm, Christian P.

2009

en

Journal Article

1950-2009; Maine

1

42-94

The New England Journal of Political Science

4