And he also picked Henry Cabot Lodge, II. Apparently ol’ Cabot Lodge, I, was alright, but not what came later.
Had he picked Rep. Walter Judd (R-Minn.) as his running mate, I believe Nixon would have won the election. Judd was a solid conservative and an articulate and spellbinding speaker. He was also a solid conservative. After eight years of "me, too" Republicanism, many Americans were eager for a leader who would take us in a conservative direction, as evidenced by the huge rallies for Sen. Barry Goldwater (R-Ariz.) at the GOP's National Convention in Chicago.
However, Nixon chose to give the back of his hand to conservatives, many of whom stayed home in November, believing that the election pitted Tweedledee against Tweedledum.