Mrs. Luce's first appearance on Firing Line (#13, in 1966) had been titled "The Future of the Republican Party," and on that occasion, as the Republicans were busily repudiating Barry Goldwater, she had been tough on their stagnation. By 1977-after Vietnam, after Watergate-the Republican Party had less than half as many registered voters as the Democratic Party had and a comparable disparity in elected officials, but Mrs. Luce, although no less scathing about the current scene, draws a distinction that, in retrospect, seems predictive of Ronald Reagan's success: "Each time the Republicans come in simply as critics and tinkerers and repairmen ... they go out a little weaker. Because what is needed is not only carpenters to repair the holes in the Democratic roof. What is needed is a new architect that gives the people a vision of a better future."