The Nation - News from May 10, 1985

Democratic National Chairman Paul G. Kirk Jr. said he wants the party to reject the idea of staging a midterm policy conference in 1986, as it did in 1974, 1978 and 1982, and to concentrate instead on gaining ground in the November elections next year. Such a conference tends to drain the party’s resources and could become “a playground for political mischief,” Kirk said in a breakfast meeting with reporters. Although the 1984 Democratic National Convention recommended a 1986 conference, a final decision on holding it will be made by the Democratic National Committee when it meets in June.