Edmund G. ("Jerry") Brown, Jr.

1938-
Governor of California, 1974-1982

Governor Moonbeam.

A charismatic and controversial figure during the 1970s, Jerry Brown fused old-fashioned liberalism to an assimilated counterculture and offered some of the more unconventional departures in American politics during the 1970s. First elected California governor in 1974, Brown rode a wave of voter disgust with "politics as usual" into office; from there he used his position to advocate unusual politics. He urged Americans to "lower their expectations" and live sparingly; as governor he eliminated elaborate ceremonies and sought to simplify official language. He expressed the traditional liberal concern with the rights of minorities (especially migrant workers), but he attacked bureaucracy, high taxes, and elitist education. He inaugurated programs to utilize California's geothermal, solar, and wind power. His vocal opinions, willingness to argue abstractions (fluent in Latin and Greek, he had a predilection for the theologies...