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{{Infobox Officeholder
|name = Mike Gravel
|image = Mike Gravel.jpg
|imagesize = 220px
|smallimage =
|caption =
|jr/sr = United States Senator
|state = [[Alaska]]
|term_start = January 3, 1969
|term_end = January 3, 1981
|predecessor = [[Ernest Gruening]]
|successor = [[Frank Murkowski]]
|order2 = 3rd [[Speaker of the Alaska House of Representatives]]
|term_start2 = January 3, 1965
|term_end2 = January 3, 1967
|governor2 = [[William Allen Egan]]
|predecessor2 = [[Bruce Biers Kendall]]
|successor2 = [[William K. Boardman]]
|order3 = Member of the [[Alaska House of Representatives]] from the 8th district
|term_start3 = January 3, 1963
|term_end3 = January 3, 1967
|birth_date = {{birth date and age|mf=yes|1930|05|13}}
|birth_place = [[Springfield, Massachusetts]]
|death_date =
|death_place =
|constituency =
|party = [[U.S. Democratic Party|Democratic]] (until 2008) <br/>
[[U.S. Libertarian Party|Libertarian]] (2008-present)
|spouse = Rita Martin (divorced)<br/>Whitney Stewart Gravel
|profession = [[Real estate development]], author
|education = [[Columbia University]]
|religion = [[Unitarian Universalism]]<ref name="uu121007">[http://www.uuworld.org/ideas/articles/59987.shtml Mike Gravel's Unitarian Universalism], by Doug Muder, ''UUWorld'', December 10, 2007. Accessed December 19, 2007.</ref>
|signature = Gravelsign.JPG
|footnotes =
}}
'''Maurice Robert "Mike" Gravel''' ({{pronEng|grəˈvɛl}}) (born May 13, 1930) is a former [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] [[United States Senate|United States Senator]] from [[Alaska]], who served two terms from 1969 to 1981, and a former candidate in the [[United States presidential election, 2008|2008 presidential election]].


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Born and raised in [[Springfield, Massachusetts]] to [[French-Canadian]] immigrant parents, Gravel served in the [[United States Army]] in [[West Germany]] and graduated from [[Columbia University]]. He moved to Alaska in the late 1950s, becoming a [[real estate]] developer and entering politics. He served in the [[Alaska House of Representatives]] from 1963 to 1966 and became its [[Speaker of the Alaska House of Representatives|Speaker of the House]]. Gravel was elected to the United States Senate in 1968.
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As Senator, Gravel became nationally known for his forceful but unsuccessful attempts to end [[Conscription in the United States|the draft]] during the [[Vietnam War]] and for having put the [[Pentagon Papers]] into the public record in 1971 despite risk to himself. He conducted an unusual campaign for the Democratic nomination for [[Vice President of the United States]] in 1972, and then played a crucial role in getting Congressional approval for the [[Trans-Alaska pipeline]] in 1973. He was re-elected to the Senate in 1974, but gradually alienated most of his Alaskan constituencies and his bid for a third term was defeated in a Democratic [[primary election]] in 1980.


== See also ==
Gravel returned to business ventures and went through difficult times, suffering corporate and personal [[bankruptcy|bankruptcies]] amid poor health. He became a passionate advocate of [[direct democracy]] and the [[National Initiative]]. In 2006, Gravel began a run for the [[United States Democratic presidential candidates, 2008|Democratic nomination]] for [[President of the United States]] in part to promote those ideas. His campaign gained an [[Internet]] following and national attention due to forceful and idiosyncratic debate appearances during 2007, but showed very little support in national polls or in 2008 caucuses and primaries. In March 2008, he announced he was switching to the [[Libertarian Party (United States)|Libertarian Party]] and competing for its presidential nomination. In May 2008, he finished fourth at the [[2008 Libertarian National Convention|Libertarian National Convention]] and announced his political career had ended.
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==Early life, military service, education==
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Gravel was born in [[Springfield, Massachusetts]], to [[French-Canadian]] [[immigrant]] parents, Marie Bourassa and Alphonse Gravel, a painting contractor.<ref name="wvn">[http://www.worldvoicenews.com/Article.cfm?ID=6465&CID=0&T=NO%20SHORTCUTS%20TO%20THE%20TOP%20(2)&APTMS=1&L=0 "No Shortcuts to the Top (2)"], [[World Voice News]], April 30, 2007. Accessed July 20, 2007.</ref> There, he was raised in a [[working class]] neighborhood,<ref name="repub">Jo-Ann Moriarty, [http://www.masslive.com/metrowest/republican/index.ssf?/base/news-1/1171877454218870.xml&coll=1&thispage=1 "Springfield native has sights set on top job"], ''[[The Republican]]'', February 19, 2007. Accessed July 7, 2007.</ref> speaking only French until he was seven years old.<ref name="wapo090907">{{cite news |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/04/AR2007090401794.html?sid=ST2007101600688 |title=Last |author=Michael Leahy |publisher=''[[The Washington Post]]'' |date=[[2007-09-09]] |accessdate=2007-12-20}}</ref> Initially a poor student (due to what he later said was undiagnosed [[dyslexia]]<ref>Democracy Now, broadcast of forum on "How the Pentagon Papers Came to be Published...", July 2, 2007 [http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/07/02/1331255]</ref><ref name="wapo090907"/>), he was educated in [[parochial school]]s as a [[Roman Catholic]], attending [[Assumption College]] Preparatory School. He has a sister, Marguerite, who became a [[nun]],<ref name="wvn"/> but Gravel himself struggled with Catholicism.<ref name="uu121007"/>
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Gravel studied for one year at [[American International College]] in Springfield,<ref name="olson">James Stuart Olson, [http://books.google.com/books?id=u00YAAAAIAAJ&dq=%22dictionary+of+the+vietnam+war ''Dictionary of the Vietnam War''], [[Greenwood Press]], 1988, p. 174 ff. ISBN 0313249431.</ref> then enlisted in the [[United States Army]] in 1951 and served in [[West Germany]] as a Special Adjutant in the Communication and Intelligent Services and as a Special Agent in the [[Counter Intelligence Corps]] until 1954,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gravel2008.us/draft |title=Mike Gravel and the Draft |publisher=Mike Gravel for President |accessdate=2007-12-20}}</ref><ref name="repub"/> eventually becoming a [[First Lieutenant]].<ref name="nyt022776">{{cite web |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F30E14F83A58167493C5AB1789D85F428785F9 |title=Senators From Hinterlands Recall Early Years in City; U.S. Senators Recall Their Early Years in City |author=Martin Tolchin |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1976-02-27]] |accessdate=2007-12-11|format=fee required}}</ref> He attended [[Columbia University]]'s [[Columbia University School of General Studies|School of General Studies]] in [[New York City]], where he studied [[economics]] and received a [[B.S.]] in 1956.<ref name="westbio">Stephen Haycox, Gravel entry in ''American Legislative Leaders in the West, 1911-1994'', Greenwood Press, 1997. ISBN 031330212X. p. 126.</ref> He had come to New York "flat broke",<ref name="nyt022776"/> and supported himself by working as a bar boy in a hotel,<ref name="nyt022776"/> driving a [[taxicab]],<ref name="salon050707">Alex Koppelman, [http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2007/05/07/mike_gravel/index.html "Don't worry, be Mike Gravel"], ''[[Salon.com]]'', May 7, 2007. Accessed July 4, 2007.</ref> and working in the investment bond department at [[Bankers Trust]].<ref name="nyt022776"/> During this time he left the Catholic faith.<ref name="uu121007"/>

==Move to Alaska==
Gravel "decided to become a pioneer in a faraway place,"<ref name="nyt022776"/> and moved to pre-statehood Alaska in 1956, without funds or a job, looking for a place where someone without social or political connections could be a viable candidate for [[public office]];<ref name="salon050707"/><ref name="wapo090907"/> Alaska's voting age of 19, less than most other states' 21, played a role,<ref name="nyt070271">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F20D10FD3A5B1A7493C0A9178CD85F458785F9 |title=Impetuous Senator: Maurice Robert Gravel |author=Warren Weaver, Jr. |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-07-02]] |accessdate=2007-12-24|format=fee required}}</ref> as did its newness<ref name="wapo090907"/> and cooler climate.<ref name="salon050707"/> He found work in several areas, including [[real estate]] sales, [[brakeman]] for the [[Alaska Railroad]], and as a very successful property developer on the [[Kenai Peninsula]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.gwu.edu/~action/2008/gravel/gravel041706int.html|title=Interview with Former U.S. Sen. Mike Gravel|author=Democracy in Action|publisher=[[National Press Club (USA)|National Press Club]]|date=April 17, 2007|accessdate=2007-04-29}}</ref><ref name="nyt022776"/> He joined the Anchorage [[Unitarian Universalism|Unitarian Universalist]] fellowship, and would continue a sporadic relationship with the movement throughout his life.<ref name="uu121007"/>

Gravel married Rita Jeannette Martin, who had been Anchorage's "[[Miss Fur Rendezvous]]" of 1958,<ref name="currbio86">''[[Current Biography]] Yearbook 1972'', H.W. Wilson Co., published in collection 1986, p. 184.</ref> on April 29, 1959.<ref name="currbio86"/> They had two children, Martin Anthony Gravel and Lynne Denise Gravel,<ref name="currbio86"/> born circa 1960 and 1962 respectively.<ref name="nyt070271"/> Meanwhile, he ran unsuccessfully for the territorial legislature in 1958.<ref name="salon050707"/> He went on a national speaking tour concerning [[tax reform]] in 1959, sponsored by the [[Jaycees]].<ref name="westbio"/> He ran unsuccessfully for the [[Anchorage, Alaska|Anchorage]] City Council in 1960.<ref name="salon050707"/>

==State legislator==
With some newfound wealthy backers,<ref name="nyt070271"/> Gravel ran for the [[Alaska House of Representatives]] representing Anchorage in 1962 and won.<ref name="salon050707"/>

Gravel served in the [[Alaska House of Representatives]] from 1963 to 1966, winning re-election in 1964. During 1965 and 1966, he served as the Speaker of the House, surprising observers by winning that post.<ref name="nyt070271"/> As Speaker he antagonized fellow lawmakers by imposing his will on the legislature's committees.<ref name="nyt070271"/>

He did not run for re-election in 1966, instead choosing to run for [[Alaska's At-large congressional district|Alaska's seat]] in the [[United States House of Representatives|U.S. House of Representatives]], losing to four-term incumbent Democrat [[Ralph Rivers]]<ref name="salon050707"/> by 1,300 votes<ref name="nyt070271"/> and splitting the Democratic party in the process.<ref name="nyt070271"/>

Following his defeat, Gravel returned to the real estate business in Anchorage.<ref name="nyt070271"/>

==U.S. Senator==
[[Image:Mikegravel.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Senator Mike Gravel]]
===Election to Senate in 1968===
In 1968 he ran against the 81-year-old incumbent Democratic Senator [[Ernest Gruening]], a popular former [[List of Governors of Alaska|governor]] of the [[Alaska Territory]] who was considered one of the fathers of Alaska's statehood,<ref name="salon050707"/> for his party's nomination to the [[United States Senate|U.S. Senate]]. Gravel's campaign was primarily based on his youth.<ref name="nyt070271"/> He hired [[Joseph Napolitan]], the first self-described [[political consultant]], in late 1966.<ref name="nyt070271"/> They spent over a year and a half planning a short primary election campaign that featured the slogan "Let's do something about the state we're in"<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-14321217.html | title=Great slogans: reading between the lines of America's best political rhymes and mottos | author=Ron Faucheux | publisher=''[[Campaigns & Elections]]'' | date=June 1993 | accessdate=2008-02-02 | format=fee required}}</ref> as well as a half-hour, well-produced<ref name="salon050707"/> biographical film of Gravel that was shown frequently on both television and on home projectors in many [[Eskimo]] villages.<ref name="nyt070271"/> The heavy showings quickly reversed a large Gruening lead in polls into a Gravel lead.<ref name="nyt070271"/> Gravel also benefited by being deliberately ambiguous about his Vietnam policy. Gruening had been one of only two Senators to vote against the [[Gulf of Tonkin Resolution]] and, according to Gravel, "...all I had to do was stand up and not deal with the subject, and people would assume that I was to the right of Ernest Gruening, when in point of fact I was to the left of him."<ref name="salon050707"/>

Gravel unexpectedly beat Gruening in a tight result<ref name="hnn080706">Robert KC Johnson, [http://hnn.us/articles/28947.html "Not Many Senators Have Found Themselves in Joe Lieberman's Predicament"], [[History News Network]], August 7, 2006. Accessed July 7, 2007.</ref> in the primary and went on to win the general election, gaining 45 percent of the vote against 37 percent for [[United States Republican Party|Republican]] [[Elmer E. Rasmuson]] and 18 percent for Gruening, who ran a [[write-in campaign]] as an [[political independent|Independent]].<ref>{{cite journal |url=http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0043-4078(196909)22%3A3%3C456%3AT1EIA%3E2.0.CO%3B2-U |last=Chinn |first=Ronald E. |title=The 1968 Election in Alaska |year=1969 |month=September |journal=[[The Western Political Quarterly]] |volume=22 |issue=3 |pages=456–461 |accessdate=2007-11-25 |doi=10.2307/446336}}</ref>

===Senate assignments and style===

Gravel served on the [[Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works|Environment and Public Works Committee]] throughout his Senate career. He also served on the [[United States Senate Committee on Finance|Finance]] and [[United States Senate Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs|Interior]] Committees and he chaired the [[Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources|Energy]], [[United States Senate Energy Subcommittee on Water and Power|Water Resources]], and [[United States Senate Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on Superfund and Environmental Health|Environmental Pollution]] subcommittees.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ni4d.us/people/gravel2.htm |title=Senator Mike Gravel |publisher=National Initiative for Democracy |accessdate=2007-12-20}}</ref>

By his own admission, Gravel was too new and "too abrasive" to be effective in the Senate by the usual means of seniority-based committee assignments or negotiating deals with other senators,<ref name="nyt070271"/><ref name="nyt102671"/> and was sometimes seen as arrogant by the more senior members.<ref name="nyt070271"/> Gravel instead relied upon attention-getting gestures to achieve what he wanted, hoping national exposure would force other senators to listen to him.<ref name="nyt102671"/> As part of this he voted with Southern Democrats to keep the Senate [[filibuster]] rule in place,<ref name="nyt070271"/> and accordingly supported [[Russell Long]] and [[Robert Byrd]] and opposed [[Ted Kennedy]] in Senate leadership battles.<ref name="nyt070271"/> In retrospective assessment, [[University of Alaska Anchorage]] history professor Stephen Haycox would say, "Loose cannon is a good description of Gravel's Senate career. He was an off-the-wall guy, and you weren't really ever sure what he would do."<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.miamiherald.com/540/story/375972.html |title=Gravel the Firebrand |author=David Westphal |publisher=''[[The Miami Herald]]'' |date=[[2008-01-13]] |accessdate=2008-01-16}}</ref>

===Nuclear issues and the Cold War===
In the late 1960s and early 1970s the [[U.S. Department of Defense]] was in the process of performing tests for the [[nuclear weapon|nuclear warhead]] for the [[LIM-49A Spartan|Spartan]] [[anti-ballistic missile]] interceptor. Two tests, the [[Amchitka#Milrow and Cannikin tests|Milrow and Cannikin tests]], were planned, involving the [[nuclear testing|detonation of nuclear bombs]] under [[Amchitka|Amchitka Island]] in Alaska. The Milrow test would be a one megaton calibration exercise for the second, and larger five megaton, Cannikin test, which would measure the effectiveness of the warhead. Gravel opposed the tests in Congress. Before the October 1969 Milrow test took place, he wrote that there were significant risks of earthquakes and other adverse consequences, and called for an independent national commission on nuclear and seismic safety to be created;<ref>{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=FA0F11F9355E1B7493C3AA178CD85F4D8685F9 |title=Risks in Alaska Tests |work=Letters to the Editor |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1969-07-31]] |accessdate=2007-12-30|format=fee required}}</ref> he then made a personal appeal to President Nixon to stop the test.<ref name="nyt082371">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=FB081FFD3D591A7493C1AB1783D85F458785F9 |title=Underground A-Test Is Still Set For Aleutians but Is Not Final |author=Richard D. Lyons |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-08-23]] |accessdate=2007-12-30|format=fee required}}</ref>

After Milrow was conducted, there was continued pressure on the part of [[environmental group]]s against going forward with the larger Cannikin test, while the [[Federation of American Scientists]] claimed the warhead being tested was already obsolete.<ref name="nyt082371"/> In May 1971 Gravel sent a letter to [[Atomic Energy Commission]] hearings held in Anchorage, in which he said the risk of the test was not worth taking.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F1071FFF395B14728FDDA90B94DD405B818BF1D3 |title=Witnesses Oppose Aleutian H-Blast |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-05-30]] |accessdate=2007-12-30|format=fee required}}</ref> Eventually a group not involving Gravel took the case to the U.S. Supreme Court, which declined to issue an injunction against it,<ref name="time_nov15">{{cite web |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,903217,00.html
|title=The Amchitka Bomb Goes Off |date=1971-11-15 |publisher=''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' |accessdate=2006-10-09}}</ref> and the Cannikin test took place as scheduled in November 1971.<ref name="time_nov15"/> Gravel had failed to stop the tests (notwithstanding his later claims during his 2008 presidential campaign<ref>Gravel claimed during his 2008 presidential campaign that "the Pentagon was performing five calibration tests ... [Gravel] succeeded in halting the program after the second test, limiting the expansion of this threat to the marine environment of the North Pacific." See {{cite news |url=http://www.gravel2008.us/legislature |title=Mike Gravel's Legislative Accomplishments |publisher=Mike Gravel for President 2008 |accessdate=2007-12-30}} In actuality, the Milrow and Cannikin tests were the only ones planned and both took place. See {{cite web |url=http://jcgi.pathfinder.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,905376,00.html
|date=1971-07-17 |publisher=''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' |title=Round 2 at Amchitka |accessdate=2007-12-30}}</ref>).

[[Nuclear power]] was considered an environmentally clean alternative for the commercial generation of electricity and was part of a popular national policy for the [[Atoms for Peace|peaceful use of atomic energy]] in the 1950s and 1960s.<ref name="nyt071670">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F70614F8385C1B7493C4A8178CD85F448785F9 |title=Atomic Power: A Bitter Controversy; Atomic Power: A Bitter and Growing Controversy |author=Anthony Ripley |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1970-07-16]] |accessdate=2007-12-31 | format=fee required}}</ref> Gravel publicly opposed this policy; besides the dangers of nuclear testing, he was a vocal critic of the [[Atomic Energy Commission]],<ref name="nyt071670"/> which oversaw American nuclear efforts, and of the powerful [[United States Congress Joint Committee on Atomic Energy]], which had a stranglehold on nuclear policy and which Gravel tried to circumvent.<ref name="nyt071670"/> In 1971, Gravel sponsored a bill to impose a moratorium on nuclear power plant construction and to make power utilities liable for any nuclear accidents;<ref>{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=FA0D1FFA3A55127B93C5A81789D85F458785F9 |title=Senator Seeks to Block Atom Plants |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-02-17]] |accessdate=2007-12-31 |format=fee required}}</ref> in 1975, he was still proposing similar moratoriums.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F20614FB3A5E157493CBAB178CD85F418785F9 |title=Nuclear Power Development Encounters Rising Resistance With Curbs Sought in a Number of States |author=Gladwin Hill |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1975-07-29]] |accessdate=2007-12-31 |format=fee required}}</ref> By 1974, Gravel was allied with [[Ralph Nader]]'s organization in opposing nuclear power.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.newspaperarchive.com/LandingPage.aspx?type=glpnews&search=nader%20%22mike%20gravel%22%20%22dream%20of%20a%20nation%22&img=39259683 |title=Nuclear Neighbor |publisher=[[Cedar Rapids Gazette]] |date=[[1974-01-20]] |format=fee required}}</ref>

Six months before [[United States Secretary of State]] [[Henry Kissinger]]'s secret mission to the [[People's Republic of China]] in July 1971, Gravel introduced legislation to [[diplomatic recognition|recognize]] and normalize relations with China, including a proposal for unity talks between China and [[Republic of China]] (Taiwan) regarding [[China and the United Nations|the China seat at the United Nations]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost_historical/access/144452802.html?dids=144452802:144452802&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&date=Jan+29%2C+1971&author=&pub=The+Washington+Post%2C+Times+Herald++(1959-1973)&edition=&startpage=A12&desc=Sen.+Gravel+Urges+U.S.+to+Back+Taiwan-Red+China+Unity+Talks |title=Sen. Gravel Urges U.S. to Back Taiwan-Red China Unity Talks |publisher=''[[The Washington Post]]'' |date=[[1971-01-29]] |accessdate=2007-12-31 |format=fee required}}</ref> Gravel reiterated his position in favor of recognition, with four other senators in agreement, during Senate hearings in June 1971.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F70814FC3854127B93C7AB178DD85F458785F9 |title=5 SENATORS BACK PEKING SEAT IN U.N.; 4 Urge Admission Even at Cost of Ousting Taiwan |author=Terence Smith |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-06-24]] |accessdate=2007-12-23 |format=fee required}}</ref>

===Vietnam War, the draft, and the Pentagon Papers===
President [[Richard Nixon]] had [[U.S. presidential election, 1968|campaigned in 1968]] on a promise to end the [[Conscription in the United States|U.S. military draft]],<ref name="evans">{{cite web |url=http://www.shsu.edu/~his_ncp/VolArm.html |title=The All-Volunteer Army After Twenty Years: Recruiting in the Modern Era |author=Thomas W. Evans |publisher=[[Sam Houston State University]] |date=Summer 1993 |accessdate=2007-12-31}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | last=Ambrose | first=Stephen | authorlink=Stephen Ambrose | title=Nixon, Volume Two: The Triumph of a Politician | publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]] | year=1989}} pp. 264–266.</ref> a decision endorsed by the February 1970 report of the [[Gates Commission]].<ref name="evans"/><ref name="griffith">{{cite book |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=yMLjkonemcsC&pg=PA61&dq=laird+%22volunteer+army%22+draft&sig=C7qzd0sWnoEYgbiHL6UlmAkOyk4#PPA40,M1 |last=Griffith |first=Robert K. |coauthors=Robert K. Griffith, Jr., John Wyndham Mountcastle |title=U.S. Army's Transition to the All-volunteer Force, 1868-1974 |publisher=DIANE Publishing |year=1997 |isbn=0788178644}} pp. 40–41.</ref>
The existing draft law was scheduled to conclude at the end of June 1971, and the Senate faced a contentious debate about whether to extend it as the [[Vietnam War]] continued.<ref name="nyt060571">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F40F1EFB3D5A1A7493C7A9178DD85F458785F9 |title=Senators Reject Limits on Draft; 2-Year Plan Gains |author=[[David E. Rosenbaum]] |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-06-05]] |accessdate=2007-12-29 |format=fee required}}</ref> The [[Nixon administration]] announced in February 1971 that it wanted a two-year extension to June 1973, after which the draft would end;<ref name="nyt020371">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F50C12FD3A55127B93C1A91789D85F458785F9 |title=Stennis Favors 4-Year Draft Extension, but Laird Asks 2 Years |author=[[David E. Rosenbaum]] |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-02-03]] |accessdate=2007-12-30 |format=fee required}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=http://proquest.umi.com/pdf/7d9c5e69bcdcbe29d972a3df32460be1/1202571045/share1/pqimage/hnirs3/20080209100048240/9442/out.pdf | title=Laird Briefs Hill On Volunteer Army | author=Robert C. Maynard | publisher=''[[The Washington Post]]'' | date=1971-02-03 | accessdate=2008-02-09 | format=fee required}}</ref> Army planners had already been operating under the assumption of a two-year extension, after which an [[all-volunteer force]] would be in place.<ref>Griffith et. al., [http://books.google.com/books?id=yMLjkonemcsC&pg=PA61&dq=laird+%22volunteer+army%22+draft&sig=C7qzd0sWnoEYgbiHL6UlmAkOyk4#PPA51,M1 ''U.S. Army's Transition to the All-volunteer Force''], p. 51.</ref> Skeptics such as [[Senate Armed Services Committee]] chairman [[John Stennis]] thought this unrealistic and wanted a four-year extension,<ref name="nyt020371"/> but the two-year proposal is what went forward in Congress.<ref name="nyt060571"/> By early May 1971, Gravel had indicated his intention to [[filibuster]] the draft renewal legislation, halting conscription and thereby bringing U.S. involvement in the war to a rapid end.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F60E11F6345F127A93CBA9178ED85F458785F9 |title=Congress vs. President |author=John W. Finney |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-05-09]] |accessdate=2007-12-31 |format=fee required}}</ref>

By June 1971, some Democratic senators opposed to the war wanted to limit the renewal to a one-year extension, while others wanted to end it immediately;<ref name="nyt060571"/> Gravel reiterated that he was one of the latter, saying, "It's a senseless war, and one way to do away with it is to do away with the draft."<ref name="nyt060571"/> A Senate vote on June 4 indicated majority support for the two-year extension.<ref name="nyt060571"/> On June 18 Gravel announced again his intention to counteract that by filibustering the renewal legislation,<ref name="nyt062271">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=FA081EF73B5B1A7493C0AB178DD85F458785F9 |title=Filibustering the Draft |author=Mike Gravel |work=Letters to the Editor |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-06-22]] |accessdate=2007-12-29 |format=fee required}}</ref> defending the practice against those who associated it only with blocking [[African-American Civil Rights Movement (1955–1968)|civil rights]] legislation.<ref name="nyt062271"/> The first filibuster attempt failed on June 23 when, by three votes, the Senate voted [[Cloture#United States|cloture]] for only the fifth time since 1927.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F70B1EFF3854127B93C6AB178DD85F458785F9 |title=Senate Votes Closure in Draft Debate, 65 to 27 |author=[[David E. Rosenbaum]] |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-06-24]] |accessdate=2007-12-29 |format=fee required}}</ref>

Protracted negotiations took place over House conference negotiations on the bill, revolving in large part around Senate Majority Leader [[Mike Mansfield]]'s eventually unsuccessful amendment to tie renewal to a troop withdrawal timetable from Vietnam; during this time the draft law expired and no more were conscripted.<ref name="nyt092271">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F50B10FD385C1A7493C0AB1782D85F458785F9 |title=Senate Approves Draft Bill, 55-30; President to Sign |author=[[David E. Rosenbaum]] |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-09-22]] |accessdate=2007-12-29 |format=fee required}}</ref> On August 5, the Nixon administration pleaded for a renewal before the Senate went on recess, but Gravel successfully blocked Stennis's attempt to limit debate, and no vote was held.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F60C1EF8395C1A7493C4A91783D85F458785F9 |title='72 Draft Lottery Assigns No. 1 to Those Born Dec. 4 |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-08-06]] |accessdate=2007-12-30 |format=fee required}}</ref> Finally on September 21, 1971, the Senate invoked cloture over Gravel's second filibuster attempt by one vote, and then passed the two-year draft extension.<ref name="nyt092271"/> Gravel's attempts to stop the draft had failed<ref name="nyt102671"/> (notwithstanding Gravel's latter claims that he had stopped or shortened the draft, taken at face value in some media reports, during his 2008 presidential campaign<ref>During Gravel's 2008 presidential campaign, he would claim that, "In 1971, Senator Mike Gravel (D-Alaska), by waging a lone five month filibuster, singlehandedly ended the draft in The United States thereby saving thousands of lives." See {{cite web |url=http://www.gravel2008.us/draft |title=Mike Gravel and the Draft |publisher=Mike Gravel for President 2008 |accessdate=2007-12-30}} A 2006 article in ''[[The Nation]]'' stated that "It was Gravel who in 1971, against the advice of Democratic leaders in the Senate, launched a one-man filibuster to end the peacetime military draft, forcing the administration to cut a deal that allowed the draft to expire in 1973." See {{cite news |url=http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0415-24.htm |title=Pentagon Papers Figure Bids for Presidency |author=John Nichols |publisher=''[[The Nation]]'' |date=[[2006-04-15]] |accessdate=2007-12-20}} Neither of these assessments is correct. From the beginning of the draft review process in February 1971, the Nixon administration wanted a two-year extension to June 1973, followed by a shift to an all-volunteer force — see {{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F50C12FD3A55127B93C1A91789D85F458785F9 |title=Stennis Favors 4-Year Draft Extension, but Laird Asks 2 Years |author=[[David E. Rosenbaum]] |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-02-03]] |accessdate=2007-12-30 |format=fee required}}; for confirmation, see {{cite news | url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,905414,00.html | title=Once More, "Greetings" | publisher=''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' | date=1971-10-04 | accessdate=2008-02-02}} — and this is what is what the September 1971 Senate vote gave them. Gravel's goal had been to block the renewal of the draft completely, thereby ending conscription past June 1971. See {{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=FA081EF73B5B1A7493C0AB178DD85F458785F9 |title=Filibustering the Draft |author=Mike Gravel |work=Letters to the Editor |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-06-22]] |accessdate=2007-12-29 |format=fee required}} In Gravel's 2008 memoir, he conceded that he failed to bring about the immediate end of the war that he wanted, and that Nixon had gotten the two-year extension he had originally asked for. However, Gravel wrote that he had never trusted Nixon's pledge to only extend the draft for two years, and that when Nixon let the draft expire in 1973 it was the threat of a renewed filibuster that caused him to stick to the pledge. See Gravel and Lauria, ''A Political Odyssey'', p. 180. No other accounts support this interpretation; in fact, Nixon had first become interested in the idea of an all-volunteer army during his time out of office, and he saw ending the draft as an effective way to undermine the anti-Vietnam war movement, since he believed affluent youths would stop protesting the war once their own possibility of having to fight in it was gone. See {{cite book | last=Aitken | first=Jonathan | title=Nixon: A Life | publisher=[[Regnery Publishing]] | year=1996 | isbn=0895267209}} pp. 396–397. and Ambrose, ''Nixon, Volume Two: The Triumph of a Politician'', pp. 264–266.</ref>).

Meanwhile, on June 13, 1971, ''[[The New York Times]]'' began printing large portions of the [[Pentagon Papers]].<ref name="nyt061371a">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F10B1FFD3D5813748DDDAA0994DE405B818BF1D3 |title=Vietnam Archive: Pentagon Study Traces 3 Decades of Growing U. S. Involvement |author=[[Neil Sheehan]] |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-06-13]] |accessdate=2007-12-30 |format=fee required}}</ref> The papers were a large collection of secret government documents and studies pertaining to the [[Vietnam War]], of which former [[United States Department of Defense|Defense Department]] analyst [[Daniel Ellsberg]] had made unauthorized copies and was determined to make public.<ref name="usc-timeline">{{cite web |url=http://www.topsecretplay.org/index.php/content/timeline |title=Timeline |work=Top Secret: The Battle for the Pentagon Papers |publisher=[[Annenberg Center for Communication]] at [[University of Southern California]] |accessdate=2007-12-30}}</ref> Ellsberg had for a year and a half approached members of Congress — such as [[William Fulbright]], [[George McGovern]], [[Charles Mathias]], and [[Pete McCloskey]] — about publishing the documents, on the grounds that the [[Speech or Debate Clause]] of the [[U.S. Constitution|Constitution]] would give congressional members [[immunity (legal)|immunity from prosecution]], but all had refused.<ref>{{cite book |last=Rudenstine |first=David |title=The Day the Presses Stopped: A History of the Pentagon Papers Case |publisher=[[University of California Press]] |year=1996 |isbn=0520213823}} pp. 46, 391.</ref> Instead, Ellsberg gave the documents to the ''Times''.

The [[U.S. Justice Department]] immediately tried to halt publication, on the grounds that the information revealed within the papers harmed the national interest.<ref name="usc-timeline"/> Within the next two weeks, a federal court injunction halted publication in ''The Times''; ''[[The Washington Post]]'' and several other newspapers began publishing parts of the documents, with some of them also being halted by injunctions; and the whole matter went to the [[U.S. Supreme Court]] for arguments.<ref name="usc-timeline"/> Looking for an alternate publication mechanism, Ellsberg returned to his idea of having a member of Congress read them, and chose Gravel based on the latter's efforts against the draft;<ref name="wapo090907"/> Gravel agreed where previously others had not. Ellsberg arranged for the papers to be given to Gravel on June 26<ref name="wapo090907"/> via an intermediary, ''Washington Post'' editor [[Ben Bagdikian]].<ref name="beacon-hist">{{cite web |url=http://www.beacon.org/client/pentagonpapers.cfm |title=Beacon Press & the Pentagon Papers: History |publisher=[[Beacon Press]] |date=[[2006-10-22]] |accessdate=2007-12-30}}</ref> Gravel used his counter-intelligence experience to choose a midnight transfer in front of the [[Mayflower Hotel]] in the center of Washington.<ref name="uu2001">{{cite news |url=http://www.uuworld.org/ideas/articles/6394.shtml |title=A courageous press confronts a deceptive government |author=Warren R. Ross |publisher=''[[UU World]]'' |date=September/October 2001 |accessdate=2007-12-30}}</ref>

On the night of June 29, 1971, Gravel attempted to read the papers on the floor of the Senate as part of his filibuster against the draft, but was thwarted when no quorum could be formed.<ref name="nyt063071">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F60617FC395C1A7493C2AA178DD85F458785F9 |title=Gravel Speaks 3 Hours; Senator Reading Study to Press |author=[[David E. Rosenbaum]] |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-06-30]] |accessdate=2007-12-30 |format=fee required}}</ref> Gravel instead convened a session of the Buildings and Grounds subcommittee that he chaired.<ref name="nyt063071"/> He got New York Congressman [[John Dow]] to testify that the war had soaked up funding for public buildings, thus making discussion of the war relevant to the committee.<ref name="prados">{{cite book | last=Prados | first=John | coauthors=Porter, Margaret Pratt (eds.) | title=Inside the Pentagon Papers | publisher=[[University Press of Kansas]] | year=2004 | location=Lawrence, Kansas | isbn=0-7006-1325-0}} p. 60.</ref> He began reading from the papers with the press in attendance,<ref name="nyt063071"/> omitting supporting documents that he felt might compromise national security,<ref name="nyt070171">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F70B14FC3A5B1A7493C3A9178CD85F458785F9 |title=Action by Gravel Vexes Many Senators |author=John W. Finney |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-07-01]] |accessdate=2007-12-30 |format=fee required}}</ref> and declaring, "It is my constitutional obligation to protect the security of the people by fostering the free flow of information absolutely essential to their democratic decision-making."<ref name="nyt070171"/>

He read until 1 a.m., until with tears and sobs he said that he could no longer physically continue,<ref name="nyt070171"/> the previous three nights of sleeplessness and fear about the future having taken their toll.<ref name="wapo090907"/> Gravel ended the session by, with no other senators present, establishing [[unanimous consent]]<ref name="prados"/> towards inserting 4,100 pages of the Papers into the [[Congressional Record]] of his subcommittee.<ref name="usc-timeline"/><ref name="nyt102671"/> The following day, the Supreme Court's ''[[New York Times Co. v. United States]]'' decision ruled in favor of the newspapers<ref name="usc-timeline"/> and publication in ''The Times'' and others resumed. In July 1971, [[Bantam Books]] published an inexpensive paperback edition of the papers containing the material ''The Times'' had published.<ref name="nyt081871">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F50D14F9355B1A7493CAA81783D85F458785F9 |title=Church Plans 4-Book Version of Pentagon Study |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-08-18]] |accessdate=2007-12-30 |format=fee required}}</ref>

Gravel, too, wanted to privately publish the portion of the papers he had read into the record, believing that "immediate disclosure of the contents of these papers will change the policy that supports the war."<ref name="beacon-hist"/> After being turned down by many commercial publishers,<ref name="beacon-hist"/> on August 4 he reached agreement with [[Beacon Press]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.beacon.org/client/client_pages/images/stair_ltr.jpg |title=Letter from Gravel to Beacon Press |publisher=[[Beacon Press]] |date=[[1971-08-04]] |accessdate=2007-12-30}}</ref> the publishing arm of the [[Unitarian Universalist Association]], of which Gravel was a member.<ref name="nyt102671"/> Announced on August 17<ref name="nyt081871"/> and published on October 22, 1971,<ref name="beacon-hist"/> this four-volume, relatively expensive set<ref name="nyt081871"/> became the "Senator Gravel Edition", which studies from [[Cornell University]] and the [[Annenberg Center for Communication]] have labeled as the most complete edition of the Pentagon Papers to be published.<ref>{{cite journal |title = The Pentagon Papers: A Critical Evaluation |first = George McT. |last = Kahn |date=June 1975 |journal = [[American Political Science Review]] |volume = 69 |issue = 2 |pages=675–684 |url=http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0003-0554(197506)69%3A2%3C675%3ATPPACE%3E2.0.CO%3B2-O |accessdate = 2007-12-30 |month = Jun |year = 1975 |doi = 10.2307/1959096}}</ref><ref name="usc-resources">{{cite web |url=http://www.topsecretplay.org/index.php/content/resources |title=Resources |work=Top Secret: The Battle for the Pentagon Papers |publisher=[[Annenberg Center for Communication]] at [[University of Southern California]] |accessdate=2007-12-30}}</ref> The "Gravel Edition" was edited and annotated by [[Noam Chomsky]] and [[Howard Zinn]], and included an additional volume of analytical articles on the origins and progress of the war, also edited by Chomsky and Zinn.<ref name="usc-resources"/> Beacon Press then was subjected to a [[FBI]] investigation;<ref name="uu2001"/> an outgrowth of this was the ''[[Gravel v. United States]]'' court case, which the U.S. Supreme Court ruled upon in June 1972;<ref name="uu2001"/> it held that the [[Speech or Debate Clause]] did grant immunity to Gravel for his reading the papers in his subcommittee, did grant some immunity to Gravel's congressional aide, but granted no immunity to Beacon Press in relation to their publishing the same papers.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://law.jrank.org/pages/12642/Gravel-v-United-States.html |title=Gravel v. United States |publisher=Jrank.org |accessdate=2007-12-30}}</ref>

The events of 1971 changed Gravel in the months following from an obscure freshman senator in a far corner of the country to a nationally-visible political figure.<ref name="nyt102671">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F30A12F73D5E127A93C4AB178BD95F458785F9 |title=Fame Travels With Senator Gravel, the Man Who Read Pentagon Papers Into the Record |author=[[David E. Rosenbaum]] |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-10-26]] |accessdate=2007-12-24 |format=fee required}}</ref> He became a sought-after speaker on the college circuit as well as at political fundraisers,<ref name="nyt102671"/> opportunities he welcomed as lectures were "the one honest way a Senator has to supplement his income."<ref name="nyt102671"/> The Democratic candidates for the [[United States presidential election, 1972|1972 presidential election]] sought out his endorsement.<ref name="nyt102671"/> In January 1972 Gravel did endorse [[Maine]] Senator [[Ed Muskie]],<ref>{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F00D16F83C591A7493C7A8178AD85F468785F9 |title=More Muskie Support |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1972-01-15]] |accessdate=2007-12-24 |format=fee required}}</ref> hoping his endorsement would help Muskie with the party's left wing and in the ethnic [[French-Canadian]] areas in [[New Hampshire primary|first primary state New Hampshire]]<ref name="nyt102671"/> (which Muskie would indeed win, but not convincingly, and his campaign faltered soon thereafter). In April 1972, Gravel appeared on all three network nightly newscasts to decry the Nixon administration's reliance on [[Vietnamization]] by making reference to the secret [[National Security Study Memorandum]] 1 document, which stated it would take 8–13 years before the [[Army of the Republic of Vietnam]] could defend [[South Vietnam]].<ref name="ftp">{{cite book | last=Oudes | first=Bruce | title=From the President: Richard Nixon's Secret Files | publisher=[[Harper & Row]] | year=1989 | isbn=0060916214}} p. 428.</ref> Gravel made excerpts from the study public,<ref>{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=FB081FFB3455127B93C4AB178FD85F468785F9 | title=1969 Study Shows War Policy Split | author=[[Tad Szulc]] | publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' | date=1972-04-26 | format=fee required}}</ref> but his attempt to read NSSM 1 into the Congressional Record was blocked by Senators [[Robert P. Griffin]] and [[William B. Saxbe]].<ref name="ftp"/>

===Run for Vice President in 1972===
Gravel actively campaigned for the office of [[Vice President of the United States]] during the [[United States presidential election, 1972|1972 presidential election]], announcing on June 2, 1972, over a month before the [[1972 Democratic National Convention]] began, that he was interested in running for the nomination should the choice be opened up to convention delegates.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F10910F63B591A7493C1A9178DD85F468785F9 |title=Senator Gravel to Seek Vice-Presidential Spot |publisher=[[Associated Press]] for ''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1972-06-03]] |accessdate=2007-12-23 |format=fee required}}</ref> Towards this end he began soliciting delegates for their support in advance of the convention.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F70A11FA345A137B93CAAB178DD85F468785F9 |title=Uncommitted Delegate in the Spotlight |author=Steven V. Roberts |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1972-06-28]] |accessdate=2007-12-23 |format=fee required}}</ref> He was not alone in this effort, as former [[Governor of Massachusetts]] [[Endicott Peabody]] had been running a quixotic campaign for the same post<ref name="nyt070972">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F20F10FB3E5E127A93CBA9178CD85F468785F9 |title=The Air Went Out Of the Whoopee Cushions |author=James M. Naughton |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1972-07-09]] |accessdate=2007-12-23 |format=fee required}}</ref> since the prior year. Likely presidential nominee [[George McGovern]] was in fact considering the unusual move of naming three or four acceptable vice-presidential candidates and letting the delegates choose.<ref name="nyt070972"/>

At the convention's final day on July 14, 1972, presidential nominee McGovern selected and announced Senator [[Thomas Eagleton]] of [[Missouri]] as his vice-presidential choice.<ref name="nyt071472">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F00910F93C5A137A93C6A8178CD85F468785F9 |title=Impassioned Plea: Dakotan Urges Party to Lead the Nation in Healing Itself McGovern Names Eagleton Running Mate; Calls Nixon 'Fundamental Issue' |author=[[Max Frankel]] |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1972-07-14]] |accessdate=2007-12-23 |format=fee required}}</ref> Eagleton was unknown to many delegates and the choice seemed to smack of traditional [[ticket balancing]] considerations.<ref name="nyt071472"/><ref name="nation-72"/> Thus, there were delegates willing to look elsewhere. Gravel was nominated by Bettye Fahrenkamp, the national committeewoman of Alaska;<ref>{{cite book | editor=Sheila Hixson, Ruth Rose (eds.) | title=The Official Proceedings of the Democratic National Convention, 1972 | publisher=[[Democratic National Committee]] | year=1972}} p. 8.</ref> He then seconded his own nomination, breaking down in tears at his own words<ref name="wapo090687">{{cite news | url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-8026532.html | title=Filling Nostalgia Gap with Democratic Stars of the Past 20 Years | author=[[David S. Broder]] | publisher=''[[The Washington Post]]'' | date=1987-09-06 | accessdate=2008-02-02}}</ref> and maybe trying to withdraw his nomination.<ref name="wapo090687"/> In any case he won 226 delegate votes, coming in third behind Eagleton and [[Frances Farenthold|Frances "Sissy" Farenthold]] of Texas, in [[United States presidential election, 1972#The vice-presidential vote|chaotic balloting]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=3903470 |title=The Worst Acceptance Speech? |author=Ken Rudin |work=Political Junkie |publisher=[[NPR]] |date=[[2004-09-27]] |accessdate=2007-11-19}}</ref><ref name="nation-72">{{cite news | publisher=''[[The Nation]]'' | url=http://ssl.thenation.com/doc/19720724/sherrill/2 | title=The Foregone Convention | date=July 24, 1972}}</ref> that included several other candidates as well.

For his efforts, Gravel attracted some attention: famed writer [[Norman Mailer]] would say he "provided considerable excitement" and was "good-looking enough to have played leads in B-films",<ref>{{cite book |last=Mailer |first=Norman |authorlink=Norman Mailer |title=St. George and the Godfather |publisher=[[Arbor House]] |year=1983 |isbn=0877955638}}</ref> while ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' correspondent [[Hunter S. Thompson]] said Gravel "probably said a few things that might have been worth hearing, under different circumstances ..."<ref name="hst72">{{cite book |last=Thompson |first=Hunter S. |authorlink=Hunter S. Thompson |title=[[Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72]] |publisher=[[Popular Library]] |location=New York |year=1973}} pp. 319–320.</ref> Yet, the whole process had been doubly disastrous for the Democrats. The time consumed with the nominating and seconding and other speeches of all the vice-presidential candidates had lost the attention of the delegates on the floor<ref name="hst72"/> and pushed McGovern's speech until 3:30 a.m.<ref name="hst72"/> The haste with which Eagleton had been selected led to surprise when his past [[Treatment of mental disorders|mental health treatments]] were revealed; he withdrew from the ticket soon after the convention, to be replaced by [[Sargent Shriver]].

===Re-election to Senate in 1974===
Several years earlier, Alaska politicians had speculated that Gravel would have a hard time getting both renominated and elected when his first term expired,<ref name="nyt102671"/> given that he was originally elected without a base party organization and tended to focus on national rather than local issues.<ref name="nyt102671"/>

Nonetheless, in 1974 Gravel was re-elected to the Senate,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F00613FB3D5B147B93C5A9178AD95F408785F9 |title=Alaska Governor's Contest in Doubt |author=Wallace Turner |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1974-11-07]] |accessdate=2007-12-23 |format=fee required}}</ref> winning 58 percent of the vote against 42 percent for Republican State Senator C. R. Lewis, who was a national officer of the [[John Birch Society]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F00B1EF93C5B1A7493C3A8178AD85F408785F9 |title=John Birch Official Seeks to Replace Gravel in Alaska |publisher=[[United Press International]] for ''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1974-01-11]] |accessdate=2007-12-23 |format=fee required}}</ref>

===Second term===
In June 1976, Gravel was the focus of a federal investigation into allegations that he was involved in a sex-for-vote arrangement. Congressional staff clerk [[Elizabeth Ray]] (who was already the subject of a sex scandal that led to the downfall of Representative [[Wayne Hays]]) stated that in August 1972, she had sex with Gravel aboard a houseboat on the [[Potomac River]], under the instruction of Representative [[Kenneth J. Gray]], her boss at the time.<ref name="nyt061276">{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F10912FE3F5B167493C0A8178DD85F428785F9 | title=U.S. Studies Charge Of Sex-for-Vote Bid | author=Crewdson, John M. | publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' | date=1976-06-12}}</ref> Gray allegedly wanted to secure Gravel's support for further funding for construction of the [[National Visitor Center]] in Washington, a troubled project that was under the jurisdiction of subcommittees that both members chaired.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F50B13FB3D5A107B93C1A8178DD85F428785F9 | title=Miss Ray Said to Link Tryst to Building Project | publisher=[[Associated Press]] for ''[[The New York Times]]'' | date=1976-06-13}}</ref><ref name="time102582">{{cite news | url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,953582-1,00.html | title=In Washington, D.C.: Last Stop for Union Station | author=[[Maureen Dowd]] | publisher=''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' | date=1982-10-25}}</ref> Another Congressional staffer said she witnessed the boat encounter, but Gravel said at the time that he had never met either of the women.<ref name="nyt061276"/><ref>{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F20B10F83C5A167493C6A8178DD85F428785F9 | title=Rep. Howe Held on Sex Charge in Utah; Gravel Denies Sex on Boat With Miss Ray | author=Oelsner, Lesley | publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' | date=1976-06-14}}</ref> Both Gravel and Gray strongly denied that they had made any arrangement regarding legislation,<ref name="nyt061276"/> and neither was ever charged with any wrongdoing.<ref name="nyt050878">{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F20F12F6395413728DDDA10894DD405B888BF1D3 | title=Now Washington Wants Its Station Back | author=[[Steven Rattner]] | publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' | date=1978-05-08}}</ref> Decades later, Gravel wrote that he had indeed had sex with Ray, but had not changed any votes because of it.<ref name="odyssey-196"/>

===Alaskan issues===
[[Image:Gravel Stevens.jpg|thumb|right|230px|Gravel (left) with fellow Alaska Senator [[Ted Stevens]]]]
By 1971, Gravel was urging construction of the much-argued [[Trans-Alaska pipeline]], addressing [[Natural environment|environmental]] concerns by saying that the pipeline's builders and operators should have "total and absolute" responsibility for any consequent environmental damage.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F30D12F63454127B93CAA81789D85F458785F9 |title=Senator Supports Pipeline; Would Make Operator Liable |publisher=[[United Press International]] for ''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1971-02-18]] |accessdate=2007-12-29 |format=fee required}}</ref> Two years later, the debate over the pipeline came to a crux, with ''[[The New York Times]]'' describing it as "environmentalists [in] a holy war with the major oil companies."<ref name="nyt071473">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F50E15F9385C1A7A93C6A8178CD85F478785F9 |title=Senate, 61-29, Blocks Bid to Delay Alaska Pipeline |author=Edward Cowan |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1973-07-14]] |accessdate=2007-12-30 |format=fee required}}</ref> In February 1973 the [[U.S. Court of Appeals]] blocked the issuance of permits for construction;<ref>{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F50812FA3C54137A93C2A81789D85F478785F9 |title=U.S. Court Blocks Permits to Build Alaskan Pipeline |publisher=[[Reuters]] for ''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1973-02-10]] |accessdate=2007-12-30 |format=fee required}}</ref> Gravel and fellow Alaskan Senator [[Ted Stevens]] reacted by urging Congress to pass legislation overturning the court's decision.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F20F1EF73C5C1A7A93C4A81789D85F478785F9 |title=Morton Hints Congress Bid To Clear Alaskan Pipeline |publisher=[[United Press International]] for ''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1973-02-16]] |accessdate=2007-12-30 |format=fee required}}</ref> Environmentalists opposed to the pipeline, such as the [[Environmental Defense Fund]] and the [[Sierra Club]]<ref name="nyt071873"/> then sought to use the recently-passed [[National Environmental Policy Act]] to their advantage;<ref name="nyt071473"/> Gravel designed an amendment to the pipeline bill that would immunize the pipeline from any further court challenges under that law,<ref name="nyt071473"/> and thus speed its construction. Passage of the amendment became the key battle regarding the pipeline. On July 17, 1973, in a dramatic roll call vote, the Gravel amendment was approved as a 49–49 tie was broken in favor by Vice President [[Spiro Agnew]].<ref name="nyt071873">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=FB0613FD3859137A93CAA8178CD85F478785F9 |title=Senate, 77-20, Votes For Alaska Pipeline; Court Test Barred, With 49-to-49 Tie Broken by Agnew |author=Edward Cowan |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1973-07-18]] |accessdate=2007-12-30 |format=fee required}}</ref> The actual bill enabling the pipeline then passed easily;<ref name="nyt071873"/> Gravel had triumphed.

In opposition to the Alaskan [[fishing industry]], Gravel advocated American participation in the formation of the [[United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea]]. For two years he opposed legislation that established a {{convert|200|mi|km|sing=on}} [[Exclusive Economic Zone]] for marine resources. He was one of only 19 senators to vote against Senate approval for the expanded zone in 1976,<ref name="nyt012976">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F30913FC385A1A7493CBAB178AD85F428785F9 |title=Senate Approves a 200-Mile Limit on Fishing Rights |author=David Binder |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1976-01-29]] |accessdate=2007-12-31 |format=fee required}}</ref> saying it would undermine the U.S. position in Law of the Sea negotiations and that nations arbitrarily extending their fishing rights limits would "produce anarchy of the seas."<ref name="nyt012976"/> The legislation was passed, and the United States has signed but never [[ratification|ratified]] the Law of the Sea treaty.

In the early 1970s Gravel supported a demonstration project that established links between Alaskan villages and the [[National Institute of Health]] in [[Bethesda, Maryland]], for medical diagnostic communications. Gravel helped secure a private grant to facilitate the first [[Inuit Circumpolar Council|Inuit Circumpolar Conference]] in 1977,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ebenhopson.com/papers/1976/AFNConfabSpeech.html |title=Speech Before the Alaska Federation of Natives Convention |author=Eben Hopson |publisher=ebenhopson.com |date=[[1976-10-22]] |accessdate=2007-12-31}}</ref> attended by [[Inuit]] representatives from Alaska, [[Canada]], and [[Greenland]]. These conferences now also include representatives from [[Russia]]. In 1977, Gravel helped lead an effort to have the [[U.S. Interior Department]] rename [[Mount McKinley]] to Denali;<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,947952,00.html | title=Pique over the Continent's Tallest Peak | publisher=''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' | date=1977-11-07 | accessdate=2008-02-02}}</ref> this eventually led to [[Denali National Park]] being so named. Subsequently Gravel proposed a never-built "Denali City" development above the [[Tokositna River]] near the mountain, to consist of a giant [[Teflon]] dome enclosing hotels, golf courses, condominiums, and commercial buildings.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-91517275.html | title=In Alaska, Big Schemes Often Yield Empty Dreams | author=Joel Connelly | publisher=''[[Seattle Post-Intelligencer]]'' | date=2002-09-13 | accessdate=2008-02-02 | format=fee required}}</ref>

A key, emotional issue in the state at the time was "locking up Alaska", making reference to allocation of its vast, mostly uninhabited land.<ref name="nyt082680"/>
In 1978 Gravel blocked passage, via procedural delays<ref name="nyt082680">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=FA0F17FF355F12728DDDAF0A94D0405B8084F1D3 |title=Polls Indicate Gravel Is in Trouble In Alaska's Senate Primary Today |author=Wallace Turner |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1980-08-26]] |accessdate=2007-12-11 |format=fee required}}</ref> such as walking out of [[United States Congress Conference committee|House-Senate conference committee]] meetings,<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,912207,00.html | title=Birth and Death In the Night | publisher=''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' | date=1978-10-30 | accessdate=2008-02-02}}</ref> of a complex bill which represented a compromise on land use policy. The bill would have put some of Alaska's vast federal land holdings under state control while preserving other portions for federal parks and refuges;<ref name="salon050707"/> the action would earn Gravel the enmity of fellow Alaska Senator [[Ted Stevens]].<ref name="salon050707"/> In 1980, a new lands bill came up for consideration, that was less favorable to Alaskan interests and more liked by environmentalists; it set aside {{convert|127000000|acre|km2}} of Alaska's {{convert|375000000|acre|km2}} for national parks, conservation areas, and other restricted federal uses.<ref name="time112480">{{cite news | url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,952829-1,00.html | title=Ah, Wilderness! Ah, Development! | publisher=''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' | date=1980-11-24 | accessdate=2002-02-02}}</ref> Gravel blocked it, as not ensuring enough future development in the state.<ref name="time112480"/> A new compromise version of the bill came forward, which reduced the land set aside to {{convert|104000000|acre|km2}}.<ref name="nyt082680"/> Gravel, in representation of Alaskan interests, tried to stop the bill, including staging a filibuster.<ref name="salon050707"/> The Senate, however, voted cloture and then passed the bill.<ref name="nyt082880"/><ref name="time112480"/> Frustrated, Gravel said "the legislation denies Alaska its rights as a state, and denies the U.S. crucial strategic resources,"<ref name="time112480"/> and commented that the Senate was "a little bit like a tank of barracudas."<ref name="nyt082680"/>

In 1978, Gravel authored and secured the passage into law of the [[General Stock Ownership Corporation]], that became Subchapter U of the Tax Code under the [[Internal Revenue Code of 1954]].<ref name="kelso-dates">{{cite web |url=http://www.kelsoinstitute.org/important-dates.html |title=Important Dates in the History of Binary Economics |publisher=[[Kelso Institute]] |date=2000 |accessdate=2007-12-31}}</ref><ref name=gauche>{{cite journal |title=Binary Economic Modes for the Privatization of Public Assets |first=Jerry N. |last=Gauche |date=2000 |journal=[[Journal of Socio-Economics]] |volume = 27 |issue = 3 |pages=445–459 |url=http://kelsoinstitute.org/pdf/binaryeconomicmodes.pdf |accessdate = 2007-12-31 |doi=10.1016/S1053-5357(99)80098-5}}</ref> While that was originally done as a prerequisite to a failed 1980 Alaskan [[ballot initiative]] that would have paid dividends to Alaskan citizens for pipeline-related revenue,<ref name="gauche"/> it also turned out to be significant in the development of [[binary economics]].<ref name="kelso-dates"/>

===Loss of Senate seat in 1980===
{{main|United States Senate election in Alaska, 1980}}

In 1980, Gravel was challenged for the Democratic Party's nomination by State Representative [[Clark Gruening]], the grandson of the man Gravel had defeated in a primary 12 years earlier. Gruening won the bitterly-fought<ref name="nyt082880"/> primary, with about 55&nbsp;percent of the vote to Gravel's 44&nbsp;percent.<ref name="nyt082880">{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=FB0817FA355F12728DDDA10A94D0405B8084F1D3 |title=Gravel Loses a Bitter Fight In Senate Primary in Alaska |author=Wallace Turner |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[1980-08-28]] |accessdate=2007-12-10 |format=fee required}}</ref> As an insurgent candidate in 1968, Gravel had never established a firm party base.<ref name="hnn080706"/> A group of Democrats, including future governor [[Steve Cowper]],<ref name="nyt070682">Wallace Turner, [http://select.nytimes.com/search/restricted/article?res=FB0613F9385F0C758CDDAE0894DA484D81 "Side Issues Figure in Tricky Alaska Primary"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', July 6, 1982. Retrieved July 7, 2007.</ref> led the campaign against Gravel, with Gravel's actions in respect to the 1978 and 1980 Alaskan lands bills a major issue,<ref name="salon050707"/><ref name="nyt082880"/> especially given that the latter's dénouement happened but a week before the primary.<ref name="nyt082680"/> The sources of Gravel's campaign funds, some of which came from [[political action committee]]s outside the state, also became an issue in the contest.<ref name="nyt082880"/> Another factor may have been Alaska's primary system, which allows unlimited voting across party lines and from its many independents.<ref name="nyt070682"/> Republicans believed Gruening would be an easier candidate to defeat in the general election.<ref name="nyt082880"/> In any case, Gravel would later concede that by the time of his defeat, he had alienated "almost every constituency in Alaska."<ref name="salon050707"/> Gruening lost the [[general election]] to Republican [[Frank Murkowski]]. Gravel is the last Democrat to represent Alaska in Congress.

==Career after leaving the Senate==
===A difficult transition===
Gravel took the 1980 defeat hard, recalling years later: "I had lost my career. I lost my marriage. I was in the doldrums for ten years after my defeat,"<ref>Politics1, [http://www.politics1.com/blog-0406a.htm#0417 "P2008: An Interview With Presidential Candidate Mike Gravel"] by Ron Gunzburger, April 17, 2006.</ref> and "Nobody wanted to hire me for anything important. I felt like I was worthless. I didn't know what I could do."<ref name="wapo090907"/> By his own later description, Gravel had been a womanizer while in the Senate, and by 1980 his marriage to his wife Rita had broken up.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://newyork.metromix.com/events/article/q-and-a-mike/492923/content | title=Q&A: Mike Gravel | author=Leonard Jacobs | publisher=[[Metromix]] | date=2008-07-08 | accessdate=2008-07-20}}</ref><ref name="odyssey-196">Gravel and Lauria, ''A Political Odyssey'', pp. 196–197.</ref> By the early 1980s, they were divorced; she would later get all of his Senate pension income.<ref name="salon050707"/>

During the 1980s, Gravel was a [[real estate developer]] in [[Anchorage, Alaska|Anchorage]] and [[Kenai, Alaska]],<ref>''[[Biographical Directory of the United States Congress]]'', [http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=G000388 Mike Gravel profile]</ref> a [[consultant]], and a [[stockbroker]].<ref name="salon050707"/> One of his real estate ventures, a [[condominium]] business, was forced to declare [[bankruptcy]] and a [[lawsuit]] ensued.<ref name="salon050707"/> Gravel married his second wife, Whitney Stewart Gravel, a former administrative assistant for Senator [[Jacob Javits]],<ref name="wapo090907"/> in 1984.<ref>Gravel and Lauria, ''A Political Odyssey'', p. 243.</ref>

===Return to politics===
[[Image:gravelcouple.JPG|thumb|right|Mike and Whitney Gravel with their dog Ginger]]
In 1989, Mike Gravel reentered politics.<ref name="salon050707"/> He founded and led [[The Democracy Foundation]], which promotes [[direct democracy]].<ref>[http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/0413-11.htm "First Democrat to Announce Candidacy for President on Monday"], Joe Lauria, CommonDreams New Centre, Published April 13, 2006.</ref>

Gravel led an effort to get a [[United States Constitution]]al [[Constitutional amendment|amendment]] to allow voter-initiated federal legislation similar to state ballot [[initiative]]s. He argued that Americans are able to legislate responsibly, and that the Act and Amendment in the [[National Initiative]] would allow American citizens to become "law makers".

Mike and Whitney Gravel live in [[Arlington County, Virginia]]. They have the two grown children from his first marriage, Martin Gravel and Lynne Gravel Mosier, and four grandchildren.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gravel2008.us/bio |title=Mike Gravel Biography |publisher=Mike Gravel for President 2008 |accessdate=2007-12-29}}</ref> Whitney Gravel's income has sustained the couple since 1998.<ref name="wapo090907"/> In the 2000s, Gravel suffered poor health, requiring three surgeries in 2003 for [[back pain]] and [[neuropathy]].<ref name="salon050707"/> Due to unreimbursed medical expenses and debts from his political causes, he declared [[personal bankruptcy]] in 2004.<ref name="salon050707"/><ref name="wapo090907"/> He began taking a salary from the non-profit organizations for which he was working; much of that income was lent to his presidential campaign. In 2007, he declared that he had "zero net worth."<ref name="salon050707"/>

===''Barnes Review'' controversy===
In June 2003, Gravel gave a speech on [[direct democracy]] at a conference hosted by the ''[[American Free Press]]''. The event was cosponsored by the ''[[Barnes Review]]'',<ref name="salon050707"/> a journal that endorses [[Holocaust denial]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://wymaninstitute.org/articles/2003-denialreport.php |title=Holocaust Denial: A Global Survey - 2003 |author=Alex Grobman, Rafael Medoff |publisher=[[David S. Wyman Institute for Holocaust Studies]] |accessdate=2009-12-29}}</ref> In the wake of criticism for his appearance,<ref name="pjv">{{cite news |url=http://www.pjvoice.com/v26/26300words.aspx |title=Interview with Senator Mike Gravel |author=Alan Tuttle |publisher=[[Philadelphia Jewish Voice]] |date=August 2007 |accessdate=2008-01-01}}</ref> Gravel has said repeatedly that he does not share such a view,<ref name="pjv"/> stating, "You better believe I know that six million Jews were killed. I've been to the Holocaust Museum. I've seen the footage of General Eisenhower touring one of the camps. They're [referring to the ''Barnes Review'' and publisher [[Willis Carto]]] nutty as loons if they don't think it happened".<ref name="politics1"/> The newspaper had intended to interview Gravel about the National Initiative. Gravel later recounted the background to the event:
<blockquote>
"He [Carto] liked the idea of the National Initiative. I figured it was an opportunity to discuss it. Whether it is the far right, far left, whatever, I'll make my pitch to them. They gave me a free subscription to ''American Free Press''. They still send it to me today. I flip through it sometimes. It has some extreme views, and a lot of the ads in it are even more extreme and make me want to upchuck. Anyways, sometime later, Carto contacted me to speak at that ''Barnes Review'' Conference. I had never heard of the ''Barnes Review'', didn't know anything about it or what they stood for. I was just coming to give a presentation about the National Initiative. I was there maybe 30 minutes. I could tell from the people in the room (mainly some very old men) that they were pretty extreme. I gave my speech, answered some questions and left. I never saw the agenda for the day or listened to any of the other presentations."<ref name="politics1">{{cite news |url=http://www.politics1.com/blog-0406a.htm |title=An Interview with Presidential Candidate Mike Gravel |author=Ron Gunzburger |publisher=Politics1.com |date=[[2006-04-17]] |accessdate=2007-12-29}}</ref>
</blockquote>
The group invited Gravel to speak again, but he declined.<ref name="pjv"/>

==Political positions==
[[Image:Graveld.JPG|thumb|right|Mike Gravel with [[campaign finance reform]] activist and friend Ethel ''[[Granny D]]'' Haddock]]
{{main|Political positions of Mike Gravel}}
Gravel has stated that he is an advocate for "a national, universal single-payer not-for-profit health care system" in the United States which would utilize [[voucher]]s and enable citizens to choose their own doctor.<ref name="issues">{{cite web |url=http://www.gravel2008.us/issues |title=How Mike Stands on the Issues |publisher=Mike Gravel for President 2008 |accessdate=2007-12-29}}</ref> He has proposed to index veteran health care entitlements to take full account of increases in the costs of care and medicine.<ref name="issues"/> He supports a drug policy that legalizes and regulates all drugs, treating [[drug abuse]] as a medical issue, rather than a [[War on Drugs|criminal matter]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.iowaindependent.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=131 |title=Fmr. Sen. Mike Gravel: Unfiltered |publisher=[[Iowa Independent]] |date=[[2007-05-14]] |accessdate=2007-12-29}}</ref> Gravel favors a [[guest worker program]],<ref name="issues"/> supports the [[FairTax]] proposal that calls for eliminating the [[IRS]] and the [[income tax]] and replacing it with a progressive national [[sales tax]] of 23&nbsp;percent on newly manufactured items and services, retaining progressivity via all taxes on spending up to the [[poverty]] level being refunded to every household.<ref name="issues"/> Gravel has advocated that [[carbon tax|carbon energy should be taxed]] to provide the funding for a global effort to bring together the world's scientific and engineering communities to develop energy alternatives to significantly reduce the world’s energy dependence on carbon.<ref name="issues"/> Gravel in principle does not object to the use of [[embryonic stem cell]]s for [[stem cell research|medical research purposes]]. He is avowedly [[pro-choice]] on the issue of [[abortion]] and women's reproductive rights. He supports [[constitutional amendment]]s towards [[direct democracy]].

Gravel's political leanings and convictions are also in his 1972 manifesto, ''[[Citizen Power: A People's Platform]]''.

==2008 presidential campaign==
{{main|Mike Gravel presidential campaign, 2008}}

[[Image:Mgravelgrandpa.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Mike Gravel at the launch of his Presidential campaign in April 2006]]
At the start of 2006, Gravel decided the best way he could promote [[direct democracy]] and the [[National Initiative]] was to run for president.<ref name="salon050707"/>
On April 17, 2006,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A01EED8173FF93BA25757C0A9609C8B63 |title=Washington: A 'Maverick' For President |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[2006-04-18]] |accessdate=2007-12-24}}</ref> Gravel became the first candidate for the [[Potential Democratic candidates in the 2008 U.S. presidential election|Democratic nomination]] for [[President of the United States]] in the [[United States presidential election, 2008|2008 election]], announcing his run in a speech to the [[National Press Club (USA)|National Press Club]] in [[Washington, D.C.]] Short on campaign cash, he took [[public transportation]] to get to his announcement.<ref>Philip Elliot, [http://209.85.165.104/search?q=cache:cjtjIeygU4EJ:public.findlaw.com/pnews/news/ap/p/621/04-18-2006/c60b0015abcf40d9.html+%22mike+gravel%22+marriage+whitney&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=16&gl=us "Ex-Alaska Sen. Gravel Runs for President"], [[Associated Press]], April 17, 2006. Accessed March 10, 2007.</ref>
Other principal Gravel positions were the [[FairTax]], [[withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq]] within 120 days, a [[single-payer health care|single payer national health care system]], and [[term limits]].

Gravel campaigned almost full time in [[New Hampshire]], [[New Hampshire primary|the first primary state]], following his announcement. [[Opinion polling for the Democratic Party (United States) 2008 presidential candidates|Opinion polls of contenders for the Democratic nomination]] showed Gravel with 1&nbsp;percent or less support. By the end of March 2007, Gravel's campaign had less than $500 in cash on hand against debts of nearly $90,000.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://query.nictusa.com/cgi-bin/dcdev/forms/C00423202/285065/ |title=FEC Form 3P for Mike Gravel |publisher=[[Federal Election Commission]] |date=[[2007-04-15]] |accessdate=2007-12-29}}</ref>

Because of his time in the Senate, Gravel was invited to many of the early Democratic presidential debates. During the initial one at [[South Carolina State University]] on April 26, 2007, he suggested a bill requiring the president to withdraw from Iraq on pain of criminal penalties. He also advocated positions such as opposing preemptive [[Nuclear warfare|nuclear war]]. He stated that the [[Iraq War]] had the effect of creating more terrorists and that the "war was lost the day that George Bush invaded Iraq on a fraudulent basis." Regarding his fellow candidates, he said, "I got to tell you, after standing up with them, some of these people frighten me — they frighten me."<ref name="abc042607">[http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=3086826 No Breakout Candidate at Democratic Debate], [[ABC News]], Apr. 26, 2007</ref> Media stories said that Gravel was responsible for much of whatever "heat" and "flashpoints" had taken place.<ref>[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article1713018.ece "Clinton edges ahead after first Democratic debate"], ''[[The Times]]'', April 27, 2007.</ref><ref>[http://www.guardian.co.uk/uselections08/story/0,,2066862,00.html Hillary Clinton shines in Democratic candidates' debate], Ewen MacAskill, ''[[The Guardian]]'', April 27, 2007.</ref><ref name="abc042607"/> Gravel gained considerable publicity by shaking up the normally staid multiple-candidate format; ''[[The New York Times]]''<nowiki>'</nowiki> media critic said that what Gravel had done was "steal a debate with outrageous, curmudgeonly statements."<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/04/us/politics/04tvwatch.html |title=A Show Where Candidates Are More Prop Than Player |author=Alessandra Stanley |publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' |date=[[2007-05-04]] |accessdate=2007-12-28}}</ref> The Internet was a benefit: a [[YouTube]] video of his responses in the debate was viewed more than 225,892 times, ranking seventeenth in most views for week and first among news and politics clips;<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gMlHv2lDqA |title=p. Mike Gravel at the Democratic Debate |work=This video has been removed due to terms of use violation |publisher=[[YouTube]] |accessdate=2007-05-04}} It was also ranked #7 top rated (for week), #23 top favored (for week), #25 most discussed (for week), #4 most linked (for week), and #1 top rated - news and politics (for week).</ref> his name became the fifteenth most searched-for in the [[blogosphere]];<ref>{{cite news |url=http://blogs.usatoday.com/onpolitics/2007/04/mike_gravel_soo.html |title=Mike Gravel, soon to be a household name |author= Mark Memmott, Jill Lawrence |publisher=''[[USA Today]]'' |date=[[2007-04-30]] |accessdate=2007-12-28}}</ref> and his website garnered more traffic than those of frontrunners [[Hillary Rodham Clinton]], [[Barack Obama]], or [[John Edwards]].<ref name="salon050707"/> Gravel appeared on the popular ''[[Colbert Report]]'' on television on May 2,<ref name="salon050707"/> and his campaign and career were profiled in national publications such as ''[[Salon (magazine)|Salon]]''.<ref name="salon050707"/> Two wordless, [[Andy Warhol|Warholesque]] campaign videos, "Rock" and "Fire", were released on YouTube in late May and became hits,<ref>{{cite news | url=http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/06/18/mike-gravel-behind-the-music/ | title=Mike Gravel: Behind the Music | author=Lisa Tozzi | publisher=''[[The New York Times]]'' | date=2007-06-18 | accessdate=2008-02-15}}</ref> and eventually gained over 450,000 and 125,000 views respectively.<ref>{{cite video |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rZdAB4V_j8 | title=Mike Gravel - Rock |publisher=[[YouTube]] |date2=2007-05-27 |accessdate=2008-02-15}}</ref><ref>{{cite video |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRwizmuCnOw | title=Mike Gravel - Fire |publisher=[[YouTube]] |date2=2007-05-28 |accessdate=2008-02-15}}</ref> "Rock," in turn, was given airtime during an episode of ''[[The Daily Show with Jon Stewart]]''. Some thirty-five years after he first achieved the national spotlight, he had found it again.

[[Image:Mike Gravel for President 2008 fundraising.png‎|thumb|Gravel's fundraising efforts for the first three quarters of 2007.]]
All this did not improve his performance in the polls; a May 2007 [[CNN]] poll showed him with less than 0.5 percent support among Democrats.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/05/07/schneider.2008.polls/index.html |title= Poll: Liberals moving toward Clinton; GOP race tightens |author=[[Bill Schneider]] |publisher=[[CNN.com]] |date=[[2007-05-07]] |accessdate=2007-12-29}}</ref>
Gravel was in the next several debates, in one case after [[CNN]] reversed a decision to exclude him.<ref>{{cite press release |url=http://www.gravel2008.us/?q=node/471 |title=Gravel Dismisses CNN, WMUR-TV And Union Leader Statement |publisher=Mike Gravel for President 2008 |date=[[2007-03-19]] |accessdate=2007-12-29}}</ref> Gravel, as with some of the other second-tier candidates, did not get as much time as the leaders; during the June 2, 2007, [[New Hampshire]] debate, which lasted two hours, he was asked 10 questions and allowed to speak for five minutes and 37 seconds.<ref>{{cite press release |url=http://www.gravel2008.us/?q=node/1360 |title="The Mainstream Media Has Gone Underground..." |publisher=Mike Gravel for President 2008 |date=[[2007-06-05]] |accessdate=2007-12-29}}</ref>

During the July 23, 2007, [[CNN-YouTube presidential debate]], Gravel responded to audience applause when he had complained of a lack of airtime and said: "Thank you. Has it been fair thus far?"<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/07/23/debate.transcript/index.html |title= Part I: CNN/YouTube Democratic presidential debate transcript |publisher=[[CNN.com]] |date=[[2007-07-24]] |accessdate=2007-12-28}}</ref> Detractors began to liken him to "the cranky uncle who lives in the attic,"<ref name="bsun010708">{{cite news |url=http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/news/politics/blog/2008/01/mike_gravel_tells_teens_do_pot.html |title=Mike Gravel to teens: Say 'yes' to drugs |author=Rick Pearson |publisher=''[[Baltimore Sun]]'' |date=[[2008-01-07]] |accessdate=2008-01-09}}</ref> or "the angry old guy that just seemed to want to become angrier."<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_8043044 | title=Democratic hopeful Gravel visits Park City | author=Dan Harrie | publisher=''[[The Salt Lake Tribune]]'' | date=2008-01-22 | accessdate=2008-02-01}}</ref> In the [[ABC News]]
[[Des Moines, Iowa]], debate of August 19, 2007, moderator [[George Stephanopoulos]] noted that Gravel polled a statistical zero percent support in the state, meaning less than 0.5% support, and then directed roughly five percent of his questions to Gravel;<ref>{{cite news |title=Statistical Analysis Shows ABC News Unfair in Democrat Debate |url=http://newsbusters.org/blogs/p-j-gladnick/2007/08/24/statistical-analysis-shows-abc-news-unfair-democrat-debate |publisher=[[NewsBusters]] |date=[[2007-08-24]] |accessdate=2007-12-28}}</ref> in a poll asking who did the best in the debate, Gravel placed seventh among the eight candidates.<ref name = "ABC News Poll">[http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/Decision2008/popup?id=3493427 "ABC News Poll"] August 19, 2007, [http://www.abcnews.com ABC News]</ref> [[Opinion polling for the Democratic Party (United States) 2008 presidential candidates|National opinion polls of contenders for the Democratic nomination]] continued to show Gravel with one percent or zero percent numbers. By the end of the third-quarter 2007, Gravel had about $17,500 in cash on hand, had collected a total of about $380,000 so far during the 2008 election cycle,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://query.nictusa.com/pres/2007/Q3/C00423202.html |title=Report for Mike Gravel for President 2008 |publisher=[[Federal Election Commission]] |date=[[2007-10-17]] |accessdate=2007-12-29}}</ref> and was continuing to run a threadbare campaign with minimal staff.<ref name="wapo090907"/>

Beginning with the October 30, 2007, [[Philadelphia]] event, Gravel was excluded from most of the debates, with the debate sponsors or the [[Democratic National Committee]] saying Gravel's campaign had not met fund-raising, polling, or local campaign organizational thresholds.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21548813/ |title=Democratic rivals target Clinton’s vote on Iran |author=Alex Johnson |publisher=[[MSNBC.com]] |date=[[2007-10-31]] |accessdate=2007-12-29}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/nevada/2007/nov/07/110710306.html |title=CNN keeps Gravel out of Democratic debate in Las Vegas |publisher=[[Associated Press]] for ''[[Las Vegas Sun]]'' |date=[[2007-11-07]] |accessdate=2007-12-29}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://thehill.com/campaign-2008/kucinich-booted-from-iowa-debate-2007-12-12.html |title=Kucinich booted from Iowa debate |publisher=[[The Hill (newspaper)|The Hill]] |date=December 12, 2007 |accessdate=2007-12-14}}</ref> For the Philadelphia exclusion, Gravel blamed corporate censorship on the part of sponsor owner and alleged [[military-industrial complex]] member [[General Electric]] for his exclusion<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gravel2008.us/?q=node/2510 |title=Corporate Censorship! |author=Mike Gravel |publisher=Mike Gravel for President 2008 |date=[[2007-10-30]] |accessdate=2007-12-29}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/10/30/gravel-vs-msnbc/ |title=Gravel vs. MSNBC |author=Sarah Wheaton |date=[[2007-10-30]] |accessdate=2007-12-29}}</ref> and mounted a counter-gathering and debate against a video screen a short distance away,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.philly.com/philly/news/breaking/20071030_Democratic_debate_starts_at_9.html |title=The debate is on. Here. Tonight. |author=Larry Eichel |publisher=philly.com |date=[[2007-10-30]] |accessdate=2007-12-29}}</ref> but he had lost his easiest publicity. In reaction, supporters organized "[[mass donation day]]s" to try to help the campaign gain momentum and funds, such as on December 5, 2007, the anniversary of the [[Repeal of Prohibition]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thepresidentialcandidates.us/2007/12/december-5-is-mass-donation-day-for.html |title=December 5 Is "Mass Donation Day" For Mike Gravel |publisher=The Presidential Candidates |date=[[2007-12-04]] |accessdate=2008-01-04}}</ref>

Gravel did not compete in the initial 2008 vote, [[Iowa Democratic caucuses, 2008|the Iowa caucuses]],<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.whotv.com/Global/story.asp?S=7572270 |title=Second-Tier Dems Hope for Caucus Boost |publisher=[[WHO-TV]] |date=[[2008-01-03]] |accessdate=2008-01-04}}</ref> but was still subjected to a false report from [[MSNBC]] that he had pulled out of the race afterward.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.gravel2008.us/content/were-still-race |title=We're Still in the Race! |author=J. Skyler McKinley |publisher=Mike Gravel for President 2008 |date=[[2008-01-04]] |accessdate=2008-01-04}}</ref> Gravel did focus his attention on the second 2008 vote, the [[New Hampshire primary]]. There he received about 400 votes out of some 280,000 cast, or 0.14&nbsp;percent,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/primaries/results/state/#NH |title=Election Center 2008: Primary Results for New Hampshire |publisher=[[CNN]] |date=[[2008-01-09]] |accessdate=2008-01-09}}</ref> before taking time off to improve his health.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.boston.com/news/local/new_hampshire/articles/2008/01/08/former_alaska_senator_to_keep_campaigning/?rss_id=Boston.com%20--%20Top%20political%20stories |title=Mike Gravel to campaign on |publisher=[[Associated Press]] |date=[[2008-01-08]] |accessdate=2008-01-08}}</ref> He resumed campaigning, but fared no better in subsequent states. By the end of January 2008, Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and Gravel were the only remaining Democrats from the initial debates still running;<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.dailycal.org/article/100285/candidate_speaks_to_political_science_class | title=Candidate Speaks to Political Science Class | author=Sarah Morrison | publisher=''[[The Daily Californian]]'' | date=2008-02-07 | accessdate=2008-02-07}}</ref> Gravel vowed to stay in the presidential campaign until November.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.yaledailynews.com/articles/view/23498 | title=Gravel urges direct democracy at YPU | author=Isaac Arnsdorf | publisher=''[[Yale Daily News]]'' | date=2008-02-13 | accessdate=2008-02-15}}</ref><ref name="time030408">{{cite news | url=http://www.time.com/time/politics/article/0,8599,1719305,00.html | title=The Third Democrat in the Race | author=[[Joel Stein]] | publisher=''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' | date=2008-03-04 | accessdate=2008-03-09}}</ref> On March 11, 2008, Gravel continued to remain in the Democratic race but additionally endorsed a [[Green Party (United States)|Green Party]] candidate for president, [[Jesse Johnson (politician)|Jesse Johnson]],<ref>{{cite news | url=http://thirdpartywatch.com/2008/03/11/mike-gravel-endorses-jesse-johnson-green-party-for-president/ | title=Mike Gravel endorses Jesse Johnson (Green Party) for President | publisher=Third Party Watch | date=2008-03-11 | accessdate=2008-03-12}}</ref> saying he wanted to help Johnson prevail against Green Party rivals [[Cynthia McKinney]] and [[Ralph Nader]].<ref>{{cite news | url=http://reason.com/blog/show/125552.html | title=Several Minutes with Mike Gravel | author=David Weigel | publisher=''[[Reason (magazine)|Reason]]'' | date=2008-03-18 | accessdate=2008-03-24}}</ref> By late March, Gravel had almost no fundraising and was only on the ballot in one of the next ten Democratic primaries.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/elections/article432763.ece | title=Mike Gravel has gone from long shot to no shot for presidency | author=Amy Hollyfield | publisher=''[[St. Petersburg Times]]'' | date=2008-03-27 | accessdate=2008-05-26}}</ref>

===Switch to Libertarian Party===

On March 25, 2008, Gravel announced that he would leave the Democrats and join the [[Libertarian Party (United States)|Libertarian Party]],<ref name="lp">{{cite web|url=http://www.lp.org/media/article_573.shtml|title=Former U.S. Senator Mike Gravel joins Libertarian Party ranks|date=2008-03-25|accessdate=2008-03-25|publisher=[[Libertarian Party (United States)|Libertarian Party]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.gravel2008.us/content/personal-message-mike | title=A Personal Message from Mike | author=Mike Gravel | publisher=Mike Gravel for President 2008 | date=2008-03-26 | accessdate=2008-03-26}}</ref> saying: "My libertarian views, as well as my strong stance against war, the military industrial complex and American imperialism, seem not to be tolerated by Democratic Party elites who are out of touch with the average American; elites that reject the empowerment of American citizens I offered to the Democratic Party at the beginning of this presidential campaign with the National Initiative for Democracy."<ref name="lp"/> The following day Gravel entered the race for the [[United States Libertarian presidential candidates, 2008|2008 Libertarian presidential nomination]],<ref name="nw033108">{{cite news | url=http://www.newsweek.com/id/129467/ | title=Maverick Mike | author=Sarah Elkins | publisher=''[[Newsweek]]'' | date=2008-03-31 | accessdate=2008-04-01}}</ref> saying that he would have run as a third-party candidate all along except that he needed the public exposure that came from being in the earlier Democratic debates.<ref name="nw033108"/> Gravel's initial notion of running as a [[electoral fusion|fusion candidate]] with other parties was met with skepticism<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.nysun.com/national/barr-gravel-eye-libertarian-nod-for-president/73744/ | title=Barr, Gravel Eye Libertarian Nod for President | author=Josh Gerstein | publisher=''[[The New York Sun]]'' | date=2008-03-27 | accessdate=2008-05-26}}</ref> and not pursued.

As a Libertarian candidate, Gravel faced resistance to his liberal past and unorthodox positions;<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.spectator.org/dsp_article.asp?art_id=13249 | title=Will the Real Libertarian Please Stand Up? | author=Philip Klein | publisher=''[[The American Spectator]]'' | date=2008-05-21 | accessdate=2008-05-26}}</ref> nevertheless, he garnered more support than he had as a Democrat, placing second and third in two April 2008 [[straw poll]]s.<ref name="libdebate1">{{cite news | url=http://www.gravel2008.us/content/straw-poll-results | title=Straw Poll Results | publisher=Mike Gravel for President 2008 | date=2008-04-08 | accessdate=2008-04-08}}</ref> In the May 25 balloting at the [[2008 Libertarian National Convention]] in [[Denver]], Gravel finished fourth out of eight candidates on the initial ballot, with 71 votes out of a total 618; he trailed former Congressman and eventual winner [[Bob Barr]], author [[Mary Ruwart]], and businessman [[Wayne Allyn Root]].<ref name="lp-vote">{{cite web |url=http://www.lp.org/media/printer_588.shtml |title=Press Releases: Presidential and VP Vote Totals - Updated Live! |publisher=[[Libertarian Party (United States)|LP.org]] |date=2008-05-25 |accessdate=2008-05-25}}</ref> Gravel's position did not subsequently improve and he was eliminated on the fourth ballot.<ref name="lp-vote"/> Afterwards he stated that "I just ended my political career," but he vowed to continue promoting his positions as a writer and lecturer.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/05/25/libertarians-pick-barr-as-presidential-nominee/ | title=Libertarians Pick Barr as Presidential Nominee | publisher=[[Fox News]] | date=2008-05-25 | accessdate=2008-05-25}}</ref>

==After the campaigns==
In June 2008, Gravel endorsed the NYC 9/11 Ballot Initiative, saying the measure would create a "citizens commission rather than a government commission" with subpoena power against top U.S. officials to "make a true investigation as to what happened" regarding the [[September 11, 2001 attacks]].<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.thevillager.com/villager_268/pentagonpapers.html | title=‘Pentagon Papers senator’ calls for new 9/11 probe | author=Jefferson Siegel | publisher=''[[The Villager]]'' | date=June 18-24, 2008 | accessdate=2008-06-20}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.democracynow.org/2008/6/17/former_senator_mike_gravel_calls_for | title=Former Senator Mike Gravel Calls for Independent 9/11 Investigation and Prosecution of President Bush and Vice President Cheney | author=[[Amy Goodman]] | work=[[Democracy Now!]] | publisher=[[Pacifica Radio]] | date=2008-06-17 | accessdate=2008-06-22}}</ref>

In August 2008, Gravel was speaking to a crowd of supporters of [[Sami Al-Arian]] when he was caught on tape saying of Al-Arian's prosecutor, "Find out where he lives, find out where his kids go to school, find out where his office is: picket him all the time. Call him a racist in signs if you see him. Call him an injustice. Call him whatever you want to call him, but in his face all the time."<ref name="fox080508">{{cite news | url=http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/08/05/former-presidential-candidate-urges-crowd-to-stalk-federal-prosecutor/ | title=Former Presidential Candidate Urges Crowd to Stalk Federal Prosecutor | publisher=[[Fox News]] | date=2008-08-05 | accessdate=2008-08-19}}</ref> Gravel was criticized for potentially involving the children of the prosecutor, and Al-Arian's family disavowed the sentiments.<ref name="fox080508"/><ref>{{cite web | last = Barakat | first = Matthew | title = Al-Arian trial postponed as judge questions case | publisher = Fox | date = [[2008-08-08]] | url = http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2008Aug08/0,4670,AttacksProfessor,00.html | accessdate = 2008-08-18}}</ref>

==Electoral history==

{{main|Electoral history of Mike Gravel}}

==Writings==
* Gravel, Mike. ''Jobs and More Jobs''. [[Mt. McKinley Publishers]], 1968.
* Gravel, Mike. ''[[Citizen Power: A People's Platform]]''. [[Holt, Rinehart and Winston]], 1972. ISBN 0-030-91465-5.
** revised and reissued as ''[[Citizen Power: A Mandate for Change]]'', [[AuthorHouse]], 2008. ISBN 1-434-34315-4.
* Gravel, Mike and [[Joe Lauria|Lauria, Joe]]. ''A Political Odyssey: The Rise of American Militarism and One Man's Fight to Stop It''. [[Seven Stories Press]], 2008. ISBN 1-583-22826-8.
* Gravel, Mike and [[David Eisenbach|Eisenbach, David]]. ''The Kingmakers: How the Media Threatens Our Security and Our Democracy''. [[Phoenix Books]], 2008. ISBN 1-597-77586-X.

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}
*''The Pentagon Papers'' Senator Gravel Edition. Vol. Five. Critical Essays. Boston. Beacon Press, 1972. 341p. plus 72p. of Index to Vol. I–IV of the Papers, Noam Chomsky, Howard Zinn, editors.

==External links==
{{commonscat}}
{{wikinews|category:Mike Gravel|Mike Gravel}}
<!-- Before adding to this section, attempt to incorporate the information into the text of the article, and cite the source via a footnote -->
===Official Web sites===
*[http://www.gravel2008.us/ Gravel for President]
*[http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=gravel2008 Gravel2008 Youtube Channel]
*[http://gravel08.blogspot.com/ Gravel Blogspot]
*[http://www.myspace.com/mikegravelforpresident Official Myspace]
*[http://ni4d.org/about.htm National Initiative for Democracy] (Founded by Mike Gravel)

===Biographical===
*[http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=G000388 Congressional Biography]
*[http://demofound.us/people/gravel.htm Biographical entry at The Democracy Foundation]
*[http://www.gedview.com/gravel/ Genealogy of Mike Gravel]

===Pentagon Papers===
*[http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/pentagon/pent1.html Gravel edition of the Pentagon Papers] Complete text, with supporting documents
*[http://www.archive.org/details/GravelPapers1971 Unedited footage of Senator Gravel reading the Pentagon Papers in the Senate in 1971] Streaming and download links at archive.org
*''[[Democracy Now!]]'' Special: [http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/07/02/1331255 "How the Pentagon Papers Came to Be Published by the Beacon Press":] Mike Gravel and [[Daniel Ellsberg]] (audio/video and transcript)

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{{Persondata
|NAME = Gravel, Mike
|ALTERNATIVE NAMES = Gravel, Maurice Robert
|SHORT DESCRIPTION = [[U.S. Senator]]
|DATE OF BIRTH = May 13, 1930
|PLACE OF BIRTH = [[Springfield, Massachusetts|Springfield]], [[Massachusetts]]
|DATE OF DEATH =
|PLACE OF DEATH =
}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gravel, Mike}}
[[Category:1930 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:United States Senators from Alaska]]
[[Category:American democracy activists]]
[[Category:Americans of French Canadian descent]]
[[Category:American International College alumni]]
[[Category:American political writers]]
[[Category:American Unitarian Universalists]]
[[Category:American anti-Iraq War activists]]
[[Category:Americans favoring drug legalization]]
[[Category:Congressional opponents of the Vietnam War]]
[[Category:Democratic Party (United States) politicians]]
[[Category:Direct democracy activists]]
[[Category:French Americans]]
[[Category:Members of the Libertarian Party (United States)]]
[[Category:Speakers of the Alaska House of Representatives]]
[[Category:United States Army soldiers]]
[[Category:United States presidential candidates, 2008]]
[[Category:United States vice-presidential candidates]]
[[Category:Columbia University alumni]]
[[Category:People from Springfield, Massachusetts]]
[[Category:People from Virginia]]
[[Category:Social Progressives]]
[[Category:Former Roman Catholics]]

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