Abstract

Beltway Bandits

In 1984, singer Bruce Springsteen was a footnote in the U.S. Presidential campaign. U.S. President Ronald Reagan invoked the rocker's name while on the stump, provoking a mini ruckus and showing just how far out of the groove the Chief was. Springsteen, on his own tour at the time, brought an unmistakable progressive political message to his concerts. He revived Woody Guthrie's "This Land is Your Land," muttered some comments about arms control and belted out "War." Springsteen may have made his most straightforward political statement of the tour before a recent concert in Washington. It is a story denied by Springsteen's office, but according to a local television reporter, a receptionist at the Capitol Center arena said that Fawn Hall had shown up, asking to meet Springsteen.