A miniature version of Buchanan's "Cultural War" was in FULL EFFECT at the Reform Party convention, what with Hagelin's more liberal-leaning, well dressed, college educated, low-body-fat TM practitioners at hopeless odds with Pat's "brigade" of God-fearing, fried chicken-loving redneck xenophobes. In fact, the Hagelin camp had already declared Buchanan "disqualified" in a press release weeks before the convention for his suspicious vote-collecting practices. There was NO WAY these two groups were going to band together and effectively support the same candidate, and both parties-within-the-party knew it. One side would have to give — and if you knew Pat and his hard-nosed sister and campaign treasurer "Bay" Buchanan you knew it WASN'T going to be them.

Using old style inner-city precinct ward tactics such as BALLOT STUFFING and PHYSICAL INTIMIDATION (you know, the kind that helped get JFK elected), the Buchananites tried to squeeze out all Hagelin delegates before the convention even started. Omnipresent party chairman Gerry Moan allegedly made up rules and procedures at will — much to the horror of the "Robert's Rules" abiding Hagelinites — during a closed door debate over the "credentialling" of delegates, during which the Press was forbidden to enter and Hagelin supporters were forbidden to leave!

This near-riot (or "tiff," as Pat himself called it) was followed by the permanent separation of the two groups. Mingling meant risking a PUNCH IN THE NOSE for the next few days!