conservatives — and their candidates — were able to become an independent, vibrant force, free of the fetters imposed by the Republican political hierarchy and the liberal media." With only $4,000 in savings he began his direct-mail company "Richard A. Viguerie Company, Inc." His first client was Young Americans for Freedom, but he lost the account within six weeks. According to Viguerie this was due to "one of the frequent upheavals typical of an organization run by a bunch of college kids." The company grew as it found other clients the Conservative Caucus, the Committee for the Survival of a Free Congress, the National Conservative Political Action Committee, the National Right to Work Committee, the American Conservative Union, Sen. Jesse Helms' National Congressional Club and Gun Owners of America." His company also marketed many conservatives seeking elected office including "congressmen Phil Crane and Bob Dornan, Ron Paul, John Ashbrook, Sens. Jesse Helms and Strom Thurmond, California state senator H. L. 'Bill' Richardson, and candidates Max Rafferty, Howard Phillips, Jeff Bell and G. Gordon Liddy." Viguerie's reputation was such that Senator Robert Griffin recommended that liberal Democratic Senator George McGovern hire him when he was running for re-election in 1967. Vigureie later recalled that he was flattered, "I explained to the good Senator McGovern that we were poles apart ideologically, and he'd want someone more akin with his philosophy. We had a good long chat. At that early date, 1967, he had an appreciation of the power of direct mailing." By the 1970s direct mail would become a strategy used by both of the major political parties in the United States, including the outsider 1972 presidential campaign of George McGovern. The Senator was aided in his pursuit by his policy, beginning in 1970, of signing fund-raising letters for Democratic candidates for which he demanded nothing in return except the names and addresses of the people responding. This created "the famous McGovern list" by which his presidential campaign had a tremendous head start over other Democratic challengers. The head of McGovern's direct-mail campaign, Morris Dees, became a friendly correspondent with Viguerie with each redirecting would-be clients to the other if political leanings are not similar. Dees when approached by George Wallace staffers for a presidential run in 1976, recommended Viguerie. While Viguerie did employ some liberals, they worked "in 'support' work--working with lists, demographic studies, computer operations. …The men at the top,