Institute of Politics Will Invite Major Presidential Candidates

The Institute of Politics (IOP) this fall is inviting all the presidential candidates from the Democratic and Republican parties to speak at the Kennedy School of Government.

Rep. John Anderson (R-Ill.) will speak here October 23, but he is the only presidential candidate who has set a date for his talk, Nicholas T. Mitropoulos, executive assistant to the director of the IOP, said Thursday.

George Bush, former head of the Central Intelligence Agency, John Connally, former governor of Texas, and Rep. Phil Crane (R-Ill.) have already agreed to come, Mitropoulos said.

The Candidates

The candidates will speak in the K-School Forum either on the role of the presidency or on their perceptions of the three most critical public policy issues. They will also have a private session with Faculty members on any subject they choose and participate in a round-table discussion on their qualifications for president with local dignitaries and journalists.

Candidates who have not yet replied to the invitations are President Carter, California Gov. Jerry Brown, Sen. Howard H. Baker Jr. (R-Tenn.), Sen. Robert J. Dole (R-Kan.) and former California Gov. Ronald Reagan.

If Sen. Edward M. Kennedy '54 (D-Mass.) declares as a presidential candidate, he will be invited, Mitropoulos said.

Most of the candidates will probably accept the invitation to speak at the K-School, he added. They will be able to use K-School resources and make contacts among the faculty.

Candidates who have not yet received invitations include Gen. Alexander Haig, former Supreme Commander of NATO, Sen. Larry Pressler (R-S.D.) and Benjamin Fernandez, a chicano California businessman.

Issues and?

The presidentail candidate speeches are part of Campaign '80, an IOP program designed to acquaint the Harvard and Cambridge communities with the candidates and issues before the March 4 presidentail primary in Massachusetts.

Campaign '80 will also include panels on economic issues and a panel with reporters from the New York Times, Brian L. Dunmore '80, chairman of the Guests Subcommittee of the IOP, said Thursday. The IOP is still considering other panels for the program, he added.

Campaign programs this fall include a panel with Cambridge school committee and city council candidates held in conjunction with the Cambridge League of Women Voters.

The Guests Subcommittee, which has almost 100 student members, will handle the presidential candidates' visits by escorting them, putting up posters and marshalling the crowds.

The Special Projects Subcommittee will help line up the panels for the campaign program.

Other issues under consideration are the role of women in the campaign or an examination of the states with primaries, Carol Colburn '81, head of the Special Projects Subcommittee, said yesterday