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'James Danforth "Dan" Quayle' (born February 4 1947) was the forty-fourth Vice President of the United States under George H. W. Bush (1989–1993). He unsuccessfully sought the Republican Party Presidential nomination.

Contents

Early life

Early political career

Vice Presidency

1992 election

Post-vice presidency

In popular culture

Electoral history

Published material

Further reading

Footnotes

External links

Early life

Quayle was born in to Martha Corinne Pulliam and James C. Quayle. He has often been incorrectly referred to as James Danforth Quayle III. In his memoirs, he points out that his birth name was simply James Danforth Quayle. The name Quayle originates from the Isle of Man.^[1]
His maternal grandfather, Eugene C. Pulliam, was a wealthy and influential publishing magnate who founded Central Newspapers, Inc., owner of over a dozen major newspapers such as the ''Arizona Republic'' and ''The Indianapolis Star''. James C. Quayle moved his family to Arizona in 1955 to run a branch of family's publishing empire. While the Quayle family was very wealthy, Dan Quayle was not; his total net worth by the time of his election in 1988 was less than a million dollars.^[2]
After spending much of his youth in Arizona, he graduated from Huntington High School in Huntington, Indiana in 1965. He then matriculated at DePauw University[1], where he received his B.A. degree in political science in 1969, and where he was a member of the fraternity Delta Kappa Epsilon. After receiving his degree, Quayle joined the Indiana National Guard and served from 1969–1975. While serving in the Guard, he earned a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree in 1974 at Indiana University School of Law Indianapolis.
Quayle's public service began in July 1971 when he became an investigator for the Consumer Protection Division of the Indiana Attorney General's Office. Later that year, he became an administrative assistant to Governor Edgar Whitcomb. From 1973 to 1974, he was the Director of the Inheritance Tax Division of the Indiana Department of Revenue. Upon receiving his law degree, Quayle worked as associate publisher of his family's newspaper, the ''Huntington Herald-Press'', and practiced law with his wife in Huntington.

Early political career

In 1976, Quayle was elected to the U.S. Congress from Indiana's Fourth Congressional District, defeating eight-term incumbent Democrat Ed Roush. He won reelection in 1978 by the greatest percentage margin ever achieved to that date in the northeast Indiana district. In 1980, at age 33, Quayle became the youngest person ever elected to the U.S. Senate from the state of Indiana, defeating three-term incumbent Democrat Birch Bayh. Making Indiana political history again, Quayle was reelected to the Senate in 1986 with the largest margin ever achieved to that date by a candidate in a statewide Indiana race.
During his tenure in the U.S. Senate, Quayle did legislative work in the areas of defense, arms control, labor, and human resources. He served on the Armed Services Committee, the Budget Committee, and the Labor and Human Resources Committee. In 1982, working with Senator Edward Kennedy, Quayle authored the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA).
In 1986, Quayle received much criticism from his fellow Senators for championing the cause of Daniel Manion, a candidate for a federal appellate judgeship, who was in law school one year above Quayle.^[3] The American Bar Association had evaluated him as unqualified. Manion was nominated for U. S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit by President Ronald Reagan on February 21 1986, and confirmed by the Senate on June 26 1986. As of 2006, Manion continues to serve on the Seventh Circuit.

Vice Presidency

In August 1988, at the 1988 Republican National Convention in New Orleans, Louisiana, George H. W. Bush called on Quayle to be his running mate in the general election. This decision was criticized by many who felt that Quayle did not have enough experience to be President should something happen to Bush. Questions were raised about Quayle's use of family connections to get into the Indiana National Guard and thus avoid possible combat service in the Vietnam War.^[4]
Quayle was widely characterized as a buffoon by his political opponents during his tenure as vice president.^[5]
Criticism and ridicule of Quayle by those opposed to his ideology reached an apogee after the campaign's televised vice-presidential debate, in which Quayle compared his amount of Congressional experience to that of John F. Kennedy when he was running for president. Democratic candidate Lloyd Bentsen said in rebuttal, "Senator, I served with Jack Kennedy. I knew Jack Kennedy. Jack Kennedy was a friend of mine. Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy," to which a noticeably angry Quayle replied, "That was really uncalled for, Senator," as both applause and boos were heard from the debate audience. Bentsen replied that it was Quayle who had made the initial comparison. Quayle's reaction to Bentsen's comment was played and replayed by the Democrats in their subsequent television ads as an announcer intoned: "Quayle: just a heartbeat away." Comedians riffed on the exchange, and an increasing number of editorial cartoons depicted Quayle as an infant or child. The jibes, however, failed to derail the Republican campaign. Although Republicans were trailing by up to 15 points in public opinion polls taken prior to the convention, the Bush/Quayle ticket went on to win the November election by a decisive 53-46 margin, sweeping 40 states and capturing 426 electoral votes.
On February 9 1989 President Bush named Quayle head of the Council on Competitiveness. In contrast with his successors, Vice Presidents Gore and Cheney, Quayle had a limited role in policymaking.
He criticized the emerging gangsta rap movement, denouncing Tupac Shakur's debut album ''2Pacalypse Now'' as having "no place in our society."
Throughout his time as Vice President, Quayle was widely ridiculed in the media and by many in the general public, in both the USA and overseas, as an intellectual lightweight. For example, Quayle received the satirical Ig Nobel Prize for "demonstrating, better than anyone else, the need for science education" in 1991. Critics facetiously remarked that Quayle was a good reason for even Bush's critics to pray for Bush's health and that he was the only Vice President who made his President "impeachment-proof."
Contributing greatly to Quayle's perceived incompetence was his tendency to make public statements which were either self-contradictory ("We don't want to go back to tomorrow, we want to go forward"), logically redundant ("The future will be better tomorrow"), obvious ("For NASA, space is still a high priority"), or fallacious ("It's time for the human race to enter the solar system").^[6][7]
As Vice President, Quayle was the first chairman of the National Space Council, a space policy body reestablished by statute in 1988. Shortly after Bush announced the Space Exploration Initiative, which included a manned landing on Mars, Quayle was asked his thoughts on sending humans to Mars. His response was stunning for the number of errors he made in just a few short sentences. "Mars is essentially in the same orbit [as earth]....Mars is somewhat the same distance from the Sun, which is very important. We have seen pictures where there are canals, we believe, and water. If there is water, that means there is oxygen. If oxygen, that means we can breathe."^[8]
His most famous blunder occurred when he corrected a student's correct spelling of "potato" as "potatoe" at an elementary school spelling bee in Trenton, New Jersey, on June 15, 1992.^[9][10]
According to his memoirs, Quayle was uncomfortable with the version he gave, but did so because he decided to trust what he described as incorrect written materials provided by the school. He informed student William Figueroa that he had misspelled the word "potato", when in fact Figueroa had spelled it correctly. Quayle then added an "e" making it incorrect, being spelled "potatoe". Quayle was widely lambasted for his apparent inability to spell the word "potato." Figueroa was a guest on ''Late Night with David Letterman'' and was asked to lead the pledge of allegiance at the 1992 Democratic National Convention. The event became a lasting part of Quayle's reputation.
On May 19, 1992, Quayle gave a speech to the Commonwealth Club of California on the subject of the Los Angeles riots. In this speech Quayle blamed the violence on a decay of moral values and family structure in American society. In an aside, he cited the fictional title character in the television program ''Murphy Brown'' as an example of how popular culture contributes to this "poverty of values", saying: "[i]t doesn't help matters when primetime TV has Murphy Brown—a character who supposedly epitomizes today's intelligent, highly paid, professional woman—mocking the importance of fathers, by bearing a child alone, and calling it just another 'lifestyle choice.'" Quayle drew a firestorm of criticism from feminist and liberal organizations and was widely ridiculed by late-night talk-show hosts for this remark. The "Murphy Brown speech" became one of the most memorable incidents of the 1992 campaign. Long after the outcry had ended, the comment continued to have an effect on U.S. politics. Stephanie Coontz, a professor of family history and the author of several books and essays about the history of marriage, says that this brief remark by Quayle about Murphy Brown "kicked off more than a decade of outcries against the 'collapse of the family.'"^[11] In the 1992-93 season premiere of ''Murphy Brown'', the title character watched Quayle's comments on television and responded on the fictitious news show ''F.Y.I.'' Later in the episode, she hired a truck to dump a thousand potatoes on Quayle's doorstep. In 2002, Candice Bergen, the actress who played Brown, said "I never have really said much about the whole episode, which was endless, but his speech was a perfectly intelligent speech about fathers not being dispensable and nobody agreed with that more than I did."

1992 election

During the 1992 election, Bush and Quayle were challenged in their bid for reelection by the Democratic ticket of Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton and Tennessee Senator Al Gore, as well as the independent ticket of Texas businessman H. Ross Perot and retired Admiral James Stockdale.
As Bush lagged in the polls in the weeks preceding the August 1992 Republican National Convention, some Republican strategists (led by Secretary of State James Baker III), viewed Quayle as a liability to the ticket and pushed for his replacement.^[12] Quayle survived the challenge and secured re-nomination.^[13]
Quayle faced off against Gore and Stockdale in the vice-presidential debate on October 13, 1992. Quayle was able to avoid the one-sided outcome of his debate with Lloyd Bentsen four years earlier by staying on the offensive. Quayle criticized Gore's book ''Earth in the Balance'' with specific page references, though his claims were subsequently criticized for inaccuracy.^[14] Quayle's closing argument sharply asked voters "Do you really believe Bill Clinton will tell the truth?" and "Do you trust Bill Clinton to be your president?", challenges to which Gore did not directly respond.^[15] Republicans were largely relieved and pleased with Quayle's performance, and the vice-president's camp hailed it as an upset triumph against a veteran debater. However, post-debate polls were mixed on whether Gore or Quayle had won.^[16] Like most vice-presidential debates, it was ultimately a minor factor in the election, which Bush and Quayle would eventually lose.
Quayle's presence on the ticket in 1992 was not viewed as a significant cause of Bush's defeat, leaving the possibility open for a future bid for national office. In fact, during the Bush/Quayle term in office, an increase in income tax rates was supported by the President, in direct violation of his earlier "no new taxes" pledge. This eroded public support for re-election of the Republican ticket in 1992. In later interviews and memoirs, those included in the decision to support an increase in income tax rates stated that the only real opposition came from Quayle.

Post-vice presidency

Quayle considered but decided not to run for the governorship of Indiana in 1994.
He pulled out of his bid for the 1996 Republican presidential nomination, citing health problems related to phlebitis.
In April 1999, he announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for 2000, attacking George W. Bush by saying "we do not want another candidate who needs on-the-job training". In the first contest among the Republican candidates, the Ames Straw Poll of August 1999, he finished eighth. Commentators said that while he had the most political experience among prospective candidates (over Bush and Elizabeth Dole) and potential grassroots support among conservatives, his campaign was hampered by the legacy of his vice-presidency. He withdrew from the race the following month and supported Bush.
The Quayles live in Paradise Valley, Arizona.
It was reported in the May 5, 2007 New York Times in an article about a lawsuit filed by Greg LeMond against Timothy Blixseth, that Dan Quayle and Bill Gates both have homes in the ultra-exclusive Yellowstone Club, a Rocky Mountain ski and golf club located just north of Yellowstone National Park in Montana. Lots at the club cost in range of $2 million to $10 million; about 85 houses are built there and cost from $3 million to $10 million; annual dues are $16,000.^[17]
Dan Quayle is Chairman of an international division of Cerberus Capital Management, a multi-billion dollar hedge fund, and president of Quayle and Associates. He is an Honorary Trustee Emeritus of the Hudson Institute.
Quayle also authored his memoir, ''Standing Firm'', which became a bestseller. His second book, ''The American Family: Discovering the Values that Make Us Strong'', came out in the spring of 1996 and ''Worth Fighting For'' came out in 1999. Quayle also writes a nationally syndicated newspaper column, serves on a number of corporate boards, chairs several business ventures, and was chairman of Campaign America, a national political action committee. As chairman of the international advisory board of Cerberus Capital Management, he recruited former Canadian prime minister Brian Mulroney who would have been installed as chairman if Cerberus had successfully acquired Air Canada.
Dan Quayle signed the statement of principles of the Project for the New American Century.
Quayle is the only vice president (without having become president) to have a museum, The Dan Quayle Center and Museum in Huntington, Indiana. The museum features information on Quayle and all U.S. vice presidents.
As of 2007, Quayle is the only living former vice president never to have received his party's nomination for the presidency. (Walter Mondale, George H. W. Bush, and Al Gore were respectively nominated by their parties in 1984, 1988 and 1992, and 2000. Since 1952, only two other U.S. vice presidents have not gone on to be nominated for the presidency: Spiro Agnew who was the heir-apparent to Richard Nixon, but was indicted and resigned in disgrace in 1973; and Nelson Rockefeller, who died two years after his term ended.) While some have pointed to the legacy of Quayle's vice-presidency as a factor, others said that he was unfortunate not to be in the line of succession. For instance, 1992 was the re-election campaign for President George H.W. Bush, while in 1996 the nomination was given to Bob Dole as gratitude for his long years of service to the party. In 2000, George W. Bush had all but locked up the nomination save for a challenge from John McCain.

In popular culture

The book "Where's Dan Quayle?" was published as a spoof of the popular "Where's Waldo?" books, in which the reader searches cartoon pictures of various political arenas and other locales (such as a golf course) for the vice-president.
In the 1993 film ''Mrs. Doubtfire'' a direct criticism of Dan Quayle's comments on single mothers was made by the title character. In the "''Murphy Brown'' incident" (see above), Quayle had criticized what he saw as media "glamorization" of consciously chosen single motherhood as contributing to a rise in illegitimacy and its associated social problems. Director Chris Columbus explained in a commentary on the film's DVD that Mrs. Doubtfire's final speech, in which she explains divorced parents can still love their children just as married parents could, was intended to be "a slap in the face to Dan Quayle and was specially written for the purpose by myself and Robin (Williams)."
In the popular computer game series ''Sid Meier's Civilization'', the player receives a score in the form of a comparison to historical figures such as Caesar Augustus or Abraham Lincoln. In every installment of the game thus far, a comparison to Dan Quayle is the lowest score a player can get.
President George H.W. Bush is parodied in ''The Simpsons'' episode "Two Bad Neighbors." There is a scene where Bush's memoirs are shredded, and a small, torn-up piece of paper can be seen passing down the screen that says "V.P. Quayle, embarrassment."
Comedian George Carlin referred to him and his wife, Marilyn Quayle, commenting on Quayle's judgment calls and the aesthetic looks of his wife.
Tupac Shakur refers to Quayle several times on his 1993 album Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z, saying of the controversy, "Quayle ain't did nothing but put my name up."
Quayle was mentioned in the Oingo Boingo song "Insanity", on their album Boingo.
:"The white folks think they're at the top/
:Ask any proud white male/
:A million years of evolution/
:We get Danny Quayle"
In episode 0620 of ''Married... with Children'' titled "Hi I.Q.", when Kelly Bundy agrees to be someone's date to a High I.Q. Club mixer, her brother Bud has to show her a picture of Quayle on the club's wall captioned "Last Year's Winner" to convince her that she's really an unwitting participant in a club contest to arrive with the dumbest date.
Comedian Lewis Black makes fun of Dan Quayle in several of his stand-up performances.
On Tiny Toon Adventures Dan Quayle was portrayed as a hyper-active man-child with an annoying hyena laugh.
In Donnie Darko a woman is seen talking about Dan Quayle in the background as Donnie's parents leave the principal's office.

Electoral history

★ '1992 Presidential Race'

★
★ Clinton/Gore (D), 43% (370 Electoral Votes)

★
★ Bush/Quayle (R), 37% (168 Electoral Votes)

★
★ Perot/Stockdale (I), 19% (0 Electoral Votes)

★ '1988 Presidential Race'

★
★ Bush/Quayle (R), 53% (426 Electoral Votes)

★
★ Dukakis/Bentsen (D), 46% (111 Electoral Votes)

★ '1986 Race for U.S. Senate'

★
★ Dan Quayle (R) (inc.), 61%

★
★ Jill Long (D), 39%

★ '1980 Race for U.S. Senate'

★
★ Dan Quayle (R), 54%

★
★ Birch Bayh (D) (inc.), 46%

★ '1978 Race for U.S. House of Representatives — 4th District '

★
★ Dan Quayle (R) (inc.)

★ '1976 Race for U.S. House of Representatives — 4th District '

★
★ Dan Quayle (R), 54%

★
★ Ed Roush (D) (inc.), 45%

Published material

★ ''Worth Fighting For'', W Publishing Group, July 1999, ISBN 0-8499-1606-2

★ ''Standing Firm: A Vice-Presidential Memoir'', Harper Collins, May 1994. hardcover, ISBN 0-06-017758-6; mass market paperback, May, 1995; ISBN 0-06-109390-4; Limited edition, 1994, ISBN 0-06-017601-6

Further reading

★ ''What a Waste It Is to Lose One's Mind: The Unauthorized Autobiography of Dan Quayle'', Quayle Quarterly (published by Rose Communications), April 1992, ISBN 0-9629162-2-6

★ Joe Queenan, ''Imperial Caddy: The Rise of Dan Quayle in America and the Decline and Fall of Practically Everything Else'', Hyperion Books; October 1992 (1st edition). ISBN 1-56282-939-4

★ Richard F. Fenno , ''The Making of a Senator: Dan Quayle'', Cq Pr, January 1989. ISBN 0-87187-506-3

Footnotes

1. http://www.wargs.com/political/quayle.html
2. Ramesh Ponnuru, No Joke: Dan Quayle runs to win, ''National Review'', April 5, 1999, accessed May 16 2007.
3. http://air.fjc.gov/servlet/tGetInfo?jid=1470
4. "Quayle Under Glass," Ander Plattner et al., ''U.S. News and World Report,'' August 29, 1988, p.32
5. http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20040721/news_lz1e21deerlin.html
6. http://www.quotationspage.com/quotes/Dan_Quayle/
7. http://www.snopes.com/quotes/quayle.htm
8. William E. Burrows, ''This New Ocean'' ISBN 0-679-44521-8, p.576
9. 1992: Gaffe with an 'e' at the end
10. See video of this gaffe on Youtube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imHK5-JhxXg
11. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/04/30/AR2005043000108.html
12. [2]
13. Time, "Quayle v. Gore," Oct. 19, 1992, [3]
14. [4]
15. "Debate Transcript, Commission on Presidential Debates, http://www.debates.org/pages/trans92d.html
16. Columbia Journalism Review, September/October 1993 "http://archives.cjr.org/year/93/5/books-rosensteil.asp
17. NY Times, "New Twists and New Bitterness in Suit Over Montana Resort", May 5, 2007 [5]

External links

★

★ Official Dan Quayle Site

★ Campaign contributions made by Dan Quayle

★ Speech to the Commonwealth Club of California ("Murphy Brown speech")

★ List of Quayle Quotations

★ Vice Presidential Museum at the Dan Quayle Center

★ nndb

★ Cerberus Capital Management LP

★ Genealogy of the family of J. Danforth Quayle