"Duke's attempt to mainstream his Klan led to a steep rise in membership. By opening up the organization to women, Catholics and teens, he expanded its ranks. Also crucial was Duke's successful courtship of the major media. That courtship began in 1974, when Duke challenged popular talk-show host Tom Snyder to invite him onto his nightly show on NBC. Snyder accepted the challenge and, at the age of 23, Duke made his first appearance on national television.
During the next few years, Duke would score several major coups by getting the media to cover Klan actions that were little more than stunts. These included "Freedom Rides North" during battles over school busing in Boston (only a small handful of Klansmen actually made it to Boston) and a much-hyped "Klan Border Watch" in Southern California that involved fewer than a dozen Klansman.
Duke's stewardship of the Klan faltered on his inability to retain top leaders. Frustrated by what they saw as Duke's boundless ego, his well-known womanizing, and repeated accusations that he was embezzling Klan funds, several high-level resignations crippled the organization in the late 1970s. These included the departure of Tom Metzger, who left the KKKK in 1979 and remains highly critical of Duke today. Metzger has called his former colleague a fraud, an egomaniac and a ripoff artist. Many former Duke colleagues continue to make similar charges.
In 1979, Duke began to distance himself from the Klan, running for a Louisiana state Senate seat as a conservative Democrat and winning 26% of the vote (9,897 votes). In 1980, he also made a halfhearted run for president."
David Duke
