KU News Release

Dole Institute takes a look back at historic election — of 1976

LAWRENCE — The Dole Institute of Politics at the University of Kansas will host “Spirit of 1976: Why the Presidential Campaign is a Classic” at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 10.

Dole Institute Director Bill Lacy will interview two of President Jimmy Carter’s top aides about the 1976 campaign.

The guests are Jody Powell, Carter’s press secretary, and Scott Burnett, director of the Presidential Speakers Bureau during the Carter administration. Powell was featured on the cover of Time magazine in 1977 as one of “the President’s Boys” and is currently CEO of the public relations firm Powell Tate. Burnett is the Dole Institute’s spring fellow and legislative chairman of the Jackson County, Missouri, legislature.

“Last semester, the presidential political campaign fascinated the nation and the world,” said Lacy. “Historically, one of the most enthralling campaigns prior to 2008 was the election of a small state governor in 1976. We are delighted to host Carter’s White House spokesman and confidant Jody Powell for a look back at that entertaining year.”

The program is free and open to the public.

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