Rollins, ‘not bitter,’ clings to idea that votes of Minnesota’s ‘dead Indians’ denied Reagan ’84 sweep

On CNN’s “American Morning” show today, at the end of a segment – about controversial comments such as those made last week by U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann – anchor John Roberts asked commentator Ed Rollins, who managed Ronald Reagan’s 1984 presidential re-election campaign, “How did you screw up Minnesota?” (Minnesota was the only state Democratic challenger Walter Mondale won.) Rollins’ reply: “They voted a lot of dead Indians along the border. 1620 votes, I’m not bitter.”

Rollins’ use of the phrase “dead Indians” is disturbing — especially coming amid what one blog says were “lusty laughs” during some playful patter at the end of a segment titled “America Divided” that co-anchor Kiran Chetry had kicked off with a replay of Bachmann’s calling the country’s first major-party African-American presidential nominee, U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, ”anti-American.”

In the most charitable light, Rollins seems to be asserting that through fraudulent means, Native Americans in northern Minnesota who were ineligible to cast ballots — possibly because they were actually deceased? — threw the election and denied Reagan a 50-state sweep.

It’s not the first time Rollins has nursed that particular surface wound to his professional campaign manager’s pride. On Nov. 14, 2000, in the midst of the Bush-Gore presidential election recount mess, he told CNN’s Larry King, “I’ve had many people second-guess campaigns that I’ve run, including why did I lose Minnesota when I was running Ronald Reagan’s campaign in 1984?” Right-wing blogs say Reagan himself pined for a recount, but the Minnesota secretary of state’s office tells Minnesota Independent that no recount took place in the state’s 1984 presidential election, which Mondale won by an actual count of “about 3,700 votes out of 2,000,000 cast.” 

Here’s an excerpt from CNN’s transcript of today’s “American Morning” show:

CHETRY: Is Pennsylvania, even though it looks right now to appear to be leaning toward Obama still up for grabs because of some of the comments that have been made?

ROLLINS: Well, I’m not saying it’s up for grabs, it’s always been a very competitive and a very hard state for Republicans to win. Even in Reagan’s campaign that I ran 24 years ago, it was the last state to come into the line. So it’s a competitive state. 13 points, 14 points is a pretty darn good lead. And if I was Obama, i would go back one more time. I would do what the governor wants.

CHETRY: All right. Ed Rollins, always good to have you with us.

ROLLINS: My pleasure.

CHETRY: Thanks.

ROLLINS: Thank you very much.

ROBERTS: How did you screw up in Minnesota? 

ROLLINS: They voted a lot of dead Indians along the border. 1620 votes, I’m not bitter.

ROBERTS: Ed, thanks.

ROLLINS: Thank you.