Oral history interview with Jack Robertson

This oral history interview with Jack Robertson was conducted by Clark Hansen, in seven sessions from November 7 to December 30, 1988., in Robertson’s office at the Bonneville Power Administration in Portland, Oregon, as part of the Senator Mark O. Hatfield Oral History Project.

In this interview, Robertson discusses his family background and early life in Portland, studying abroad in Austria through Stanford University, and his memories of student protests against the Vietnam War. He then talks about joining U.S. Senator Mark Hatfield’s staff in 1973, after he worked as a volunteer for Hatfield’s 1972 re-election campaign. He speaks about his duties as a legislative aide, and later press secretary, from 1973 to 1982, including speechwriting, research, and correspondence. He speaks at length about other members of Hatfield’s staff, particularly the role of Gerry Frank in how the senator’s office worked. He speaks at length about the procedures of the Senate Appropriations Committee. He speaks about Hatfield’s relationship with members of the Oregon delegation and with Oregon governors. He discusses a real estate scandal that affected Hatfield during his 1984 re-election campaign.He speaks at length about how Hatfield’s personal morality influenced his votes on legislation, particularly regarding weapons and foreign policy. He also speaks about Hatfield’s reaction to the Carter Administration’s failed attempt to rescue hostages from Iran, about his efforts to locate soldiers missing in action in Vietnam, and about his work to get chemical weapons removed from storage depots in Oregon. He briefly talks about Hatfield’s views on free trade. He discusses Hatfield’s advocacy of neighborhood government, his work on other legislation, and his position on gun control and environmental protection. He closes the interview by discussing Hatfield’s legacy, his own reasons for leaving Hatfield’s staff.