Month: January 2013

The Net Worth Of America’s Presidents, According To Time Magazine Estimates

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As we come to the 57th Inauguration Day of the President of the United States, it is interesting to assess the net worth of our 43 Presidents who have held that office.

Time Magazine did a detailed study of this issue, and the details are quite fascinating and revealing.

Apparently, John F. Kennedy would be worth a billion dollars in 2010 US Dollars, making him the wealthiest President we have ever had, although the Christian Science Monitor estimate is much lower, $125 million, which would make Kennedy tied for third with Theodore Roosevelt.

If one accepts the Christian Science Monitor figure, then George Washington is number one in wealth with $525 million, followed by Thomas Jefferson with $212 million, and then Kennedy and TR with $125 million. Then comes Andrew Jackson with $119 million, and James Madison with $101 million. Notice that the wealthiest Presidents are early one with Southern plantations, plus the wealthy families of Kennedy and Roosevelt, our two youngest Presidents.

Lyndon B. Johnson follows with $98 million; Herbert Hoover with $75 million; Franklin D. Roosevelt with $60 million; John Tyler with $51 million; Bill Clinton with $38 million; James Monroe with $27 million; Martin Van Buren with $26 million; Grover Cleveland with $25 million; George H. W. Bush with $23 million; John Quincy Adams with $21 million; George W. Bush with $20 million; John Adams with $19 million; Richard Nixon with $15 million; Ronald Reagan with $13 million; James K. Polk with $10 million; Dwight D. Eisenhower with $8 million; Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter, each with $7 million; Zachary Taylor with $6 million; William Henry Harrison and Benjamin Harrison (his grandson), each $5 million; Barack Obama, also $5 million; Millard Fillmore with $4 million; Rutherford B. Hayes and William Howard Taft, each with $3 million; Franklin Pierce with $2 million; and William McKinley and Warren G. Harding, each with $1 million.

The remaining nine Presidents have assets worth less than one million, in the following order: James Buchanan, Abraham Lincoln, Andrew Johnson, Ulysses S. Grant, James Garfield, Chester Alan Arthur, Woodrow Wilson, Calvin Coolidge, and Harry Truman.

So, the early Presidents and some 20th century Presidents are near the top of the list, while mid to late 19th century are not. Also, Lincoln, Wilson, and Truman, who all had a major impact in office, were quite poor on the scale of comparison to other Presidents. But at the same time, FDR, JFK, LBJ and Clinton, all Democrats, are four of the wealthiest eleven of all time! And Barack Obama is 28th out of 43 Presidents in net worth, with growing potential for him in the future!

The Truth About Presidential Executive Orders From 1893-2013

Ronald 3 Comments

New statistics have emerged regarding the use of Presidential executive orders, now being hotly contested because President Barack Obama is issuing 23 such orders on gun regulation, in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Massacre.

All Presidents from Grover Cleveland’s second term through Obama’s first term are covered in assessing how much these Presidents utilized executive orders. Thanks to New York Magazine for these statistics.

So for conservatives and Republicans, they can be excited to point out that Franklin D. Roosevelt, who they hate, issued, by far, the most executive orders. But of course, FDR presided during the Great Depression and World War II, the greatest crises since the Civil War, and, of course, FDR also served three complete terms and started a fourth before dying in office.

But after FDR, one discovers that Herbert Hoover was a close second in the four years of his term, having to deal with the Great Depression erupting in his first year in office. Of course, some conservatives think of Hoover as a progressive, but that is a major misunderstanding in fact!

Woodrow Wilson comes a close third, and this makes conservatives feel justified that it is Democrats, such as FDR and Wilson, who are the biggest “villains” on executive orders.

But then, how does one explain that below Wilson are Warren G. Harding and Calvin Coolidge, not much behind Wilson, but adored by conservatives? And next is William Howard Taft, considered a conservative when Chief Justice of the Supreme Court a decade after his Presidency. These three Presidents are Republicans, imagine that!

The list continues in order as follows:

Theodore Roosevelt
Harry Truman
Jimmy Carter
John F. Kennedy
Gerald Ford
Lyndon B. Johnson
Richard Nixon
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Ronald Reagan
Bill Clinton
George H. W. Bush
William McKinley
George W. Bush
Barack Obama
Grover Cleveland

Hey, wait a minute here! Obama is next to last of these 21 Presidents? How is that possible, after the rhetoric employed by Republicans such as Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky? Could it be that Paul does not know the facts, and does not know history very well? You know the answer!

And executive orders have become quite rare after Truman, so were most utilized by the eight Presidents from TR through Truman.

In other words, Barack Obama has NOT abused the executive orders authority, and has hardly used it, and Republicans TR, Taft, Harding, Coolidge, and Hoover all used it an amazing amount of times!

But do conservatives really care to know the truth? Again, the answer is obvious!

Rand Paul Revives “Nullification” From The Pre Civil War Years

Ronald 16 Comments

Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, obviously planning to run for President in 2016, is throwing down the gauntlet to President Obama, stating that he believes that the President is acting as if he is a King or monarch, and saying that any executive orders that the President issues on guns will be “nullified” by Congress.

There are a number of problems about this assertion by Rand Paul.

By bringing up “nullification”, he is forgetting that the Civil War was fought over precisely that issue, the concept of states rights, that a state could nullify laws or actions of the federal government. And that viewpoint lost the war!

Also, what does Rand Paul think he is going to do, other than “grandstand” to win the support of the extreme right wing in the Republican Party? There is no way that he or the Congress could “nullify” Presidential actions, particularly with a divided Congress and a Democratic controlled Senate.

Of course, Paul or someone else could move to impeach the President, and that could actually happen on totally flimsy grounds in the Republican controlled House of Representatives. But the ability to remove the President is less than zero, as without more than 45 Republicans in the US Senate, and the impossibility of gaining 67 votes for conviction and removal, all that Paul is doing is roaring like a “paper tiger”, making a lot of noise, gaining a lot of publicity, none of it flattering, and only stirring up further polarization and conflict.

Rand Paul, as many realize, is a nightmare, who will plague the Republican race for President in 2016; will never become the nominee of the party; and were he to do so, he would take the party and its future down with him.

Face the facts: Rand Paul is nutty, whacky, loony, and his libertarian and isolationist views will never carry the day in a national election!

Poll On Republicans: 26 Percent Positive, 49 Percent Negative

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A new poll shows Republicans at a low point in popularity, only gaining 26 percent support, while 49 percent see the party as negative.

Also, 64 percent of Republicans believe Barack Obama is hiding his past, with many believing the “Birther” theory that he was born in Kenya, and is not an American citizen. Also, 19 percent believe Obama stole the 2012 election.

What can one say after hearing these poll numbers? The Republican Party has become so right wing, so out of touch with reality, that it will believe anything negative about Obama, and has made clear that they will do everything possible to block any successes by the President on any subject, including the economy.

With their inability to gain majority or near majority support of women, Hispanics and Latinos, Asian Americans, African Americans, young people, gays and lesbians, labor, environmentalists, and of 60 percent of the electoral votes of the nation, the Republican Party needs to change its tune, but looks as if they are doubling down on their obstinacy, obstructionism, and negativism.

This means further defeats, and possible dissolution of the Republican Party after 160 years of existence, including glorious times, sadly now a faint memory!

Parental Upbringing Of Children And Pop Culture Must Share Blame For Violence With Gun Industry And NRA

Ronald 4 Comments

As the nation faces the reality of massive gun violence, there is no question that the gun industry and the National Rifle Association must take some of the blame for the carnage.

But it is more complicated than that. The lack of proper parental upbringing of children is very evident as well, as anyone who observes the way children are allowed to behave in public places, and often has lack of parental supervision for a myriad of reasons, can testify to. Being a parent is a very difficult job, as this blogger can testify to, but in this age we are living in, too often parents abdicate their responsibilities for convenience, or in order to be “popular”. One cannot see parenting as a popularity contest, and one cannot be a “friend” of his children, but instead must be their model for future behavior and responsibilility.

At the same time, “pop culture”—meaning violent video games, and constant production of violent movies by Hollywood—must share a large load of the responsibility for instilling in children the images of constant violence with guns and other destructive instruments that promote death. Children are witness to constant carnage from a very young age, and for mentally unstable children and adults, this can lead to acting out in real time, as we sadly have seen multiplying in recent years. More intervention on mental health matters must be pursued, and if someone is shown to be dangerous, he or she must be reported to authorities, and privacy rights cannot win out over public safety, as too often has happened in recent tragic events.

So those in the video games industry, and directors in Hollywood who enrich themselves on the promotion of bloodshed and violence must be held accountable, and the American people have already indicated that these industries have a responsibility to prevent their profit motive from adding to the tragedy of gun violence, as much as the gun industry and the National Rifle Association.

Ultimately, better parenting is required, so as to monitor children utilizing video games, and the desire to watch violent movies. If people, with their money, refuse to buy video games and to attend showings of violent movies, those industries will have to reform themselves, due to the action of parents and adults.

It is time for action, not just talk!

The National Rifle Association Vs. The American People!

Ronald 17 Comments

The National Rifle Association and a percentage of its membership have declared war on American safety and security by their vicious campaign against any new gun regulations in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Massacre! But Barack Obama and Joe Biden have come up with a series of legislative ideas and executive orders that will challenge the NRA’s dominance on this issue!

The American people want action, and Pew Research Polls prove that as shown below:

85 percent want background checks for private and gun show sales.
80 percent want people with mental disorder to be prevented from purchasing guns.
67 percent want a federal data base to track gun sales.
58 percent want a ban on semi automatic weapons.
55 percent want a ban on assault style weapons.
54 percent want a ban on high capacity magazines.
53 percent want a ban on online sale of ammunition.

So the American people overwhelmingly support sensible gun control measures, and the NRA is fighting against this tide, and is using its power with Republicans to prevent any action.

But the Republican Party, if it continues this unwillingness to recognize the threat to all of us by lack of regulation, and instead backs wing nuts like Alex Jones, and continues to support the NRA, and lets Kentucky Senator Rand Paul and others like him to become the image of the party on this matter, they will suffer heavily at the polls in future elections!

The “New” Generation Of Democrats: Led By Andrew Cuomo Of New York And Martin O’Malley Of Maryland!

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As the next Presidential term begins in a few days, the focus has been on Vice President Joe Biden and outgoing Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as the two most likely front runners for the Democratic Presidential nomination in 2016.

While certainly that is possible, it is also conceivable that a “New Generation” of leadership may be emerging to contest their front runner status, and just might be the alternative to either Biden or Clinton.

Two Northeastern Governors have likely plans to announce for President, and both are working very hard to establish their credentials in similar fields of endeavor.

These two gentlemen are New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley.

Both have become leaders in promoting gay rights and gay marriage in their states, and both have taken leadership in the area of gun regulations in wake of the Sandy Hook Massacre in Connecticut.

Both are very bright, articulate leaders of the future, whether or not they enter the contest for the Presidency, and both have extensive executive experience in public office.

Both will certainly be heard from in the future, and will be discussed regularly over time on this blog! So stay tuned!

Rapidly Growing Polarization Threatens Safety Of President Obama And Vice President Biden!

Ronald 7 Comments

As the fury and anger of critics of President Obama and Vice President Biden on so many issues—the debt ceiling, gun control legislation, Cabinet nominees, gay rights, immigration reform, climate change, and foreign policy controversies (including a nuclear Iran, the Syrian Civil War, Afghanistan, Pakistan, North Korea)— continues to escalate to dangerous emotional levels, the safety of both men is, more than ever, a subject of great concern not often directly talked about publicly.

The argument could be that both the President and Vice President have exceptional Secret Service security, and that we need not worry.

But as one realizes as we begin the 50th anniversary of the John F. Kennedy assassination this coming November 22, no security detail can guarantee the safety of any President, Vice President, or anyone else.

There is always the “lone wolf” out there, ready to sacrifice himself to gain glory, to make a political point, to act out hatred of someone, knowing they will be part of the American history story forever, as much as John Wilkes Booth, Charles Guiteau, Leon Czolgosz and Lee Harvey Oswald—the assassins of Abraham Lincoln, James Garfield, William McKinley, and John F. Kennedy, respectively!

And the rhetoric that has become “normal” these days is far greater than it was even when John F. Kennedy was traveling to Dallas, Texas, almost 50 years ago.

And we have talk show hosts on radio and Fox News Channel who thrive on building hate and animosity and conspiracy theories, and will stop at nothing in their hateful and divisive rhetoric!

And we have the power of pressure groups, and not just the National Rifle Association, but many others, who ratchet up the stress and tension by making it seem like the world will end, due to the federal government passing legislation or extending executive authority, as if we are Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, the Soviet Union, or Communist China, when our history and our heritage have nothing to do with the history of those nations!

As we come up to the second inauguration of Barack Obama and Joe Biden, we all need to do a lot of praying that the polarization which exists will not lead to a greater tragedy which solves nothing, and just would show the depths of the threats we face from right wing wingnuts who want to set back the progress of America, and are delusional about the world they live in!

Impeachment Threat Against Barack Obama Grows, But Really A “Paper Tiger”!

Ronald 10 Comments

President Barack Obama is being inaugurated for a second term as President in a few days, but is already being threatened by reckless critics with the idea of impeachment, if he takes action on the economy, gun rights, the war in Afghanistan, immigration, or just about any other issue that causes fury among his critics, including the moronic “Birthers”, who still insist that Obama was born in Kenya, not America.

But the reality is that the threat of impeachment is a “paper tiger”, a totally useless exercise which will not, under any circumstances, lead to the removal of Obama from the Presidency.

The reasons for this conclusion include:

The fact that Obama has done nothing and will do nothing that is truly impeachable, meaning he will not “commit high crimes and misdemeanors in office”.

The fact that the critics know this, but may want to besmirch his reputation, using the same tactics against Bill Clinton in 1998-1999, a development which actually raised Clinton’s popularity and reputation and undermined the Republican Party image and standing.

The fact that removing Obama will not improve the situation politically, as Vice President Joe Biden would continue the same policies and initiatives of the President, and this would give him a leg up for the next Presidential election.

Finally, there is the interesting fact that Obama would have an unusual and ideal situation were he to be impeached, and face a Senate trial. This is that Obama would be the only President facing impeachment who would have a Senate with a majority of the membership being of his own party!

55 Senators are Democrats, and with the need to gain 67 votes to remove, it would require 40 percent of the Democrats and all of the Republicans to remove the President from office, and that will never happen!.

In comparison, Andrew Johnson, Democrat, had 42 Republicans in a 54 member Senate in 1868.

Richard Nixon, Republican, had 57 Democrats in a 100 member Senate in 1974.

Bill Clinton, Democrat, had 55 Republicans in a 100 member Senate in 1999.

So realize that impeachment is a political weapon that only demagogues will utilize, and while a majority of the House of Representatives can vote to impeach on flimsy grounds, and while such an action becomes part of the obituary of that President, there is no threat at all to Barack Obama asserting his powers and leading us for the next four years!

The Sixty Percent Plus States In The Presidential Election Of 2012

Ronald 8 Comments

An analysis of the results of the 2012 Presidential Election, now that all of the votes have been tabulated, shows that eight states voted for Mitt Romney by sixty percent or more, and that seven states and the District of Columbia voted for Barack Obama by sixty percent or more.

The “best” Romney states are in order:

Utah—72.62 percent
Wyoming—68.64 percent
Oklahoma—66.77 percent
Idaho—64.09 percent
West Virginia—62.27 percent
Arkansas—60.57 percent
Alabama—60.55 percent
Kentucky—60.49 percent

The “best” Obama states are in order:

District of Columbia—90.91 percent
Hawaii—70.55 percent
Vermont—66.57 percent
New York—63.32 percent
Rhode Island—62.70 percent
Maryland—61.97 percent
Massachusetts—60.65 percent
California—60.24 percent

Note that the District of Columbia and the seven highest voting states have the highest incomes and educational achievements, with three of them being New England States, three of them Middle Atlantic locations, and two being the Pacific Coast.

On the other hand, the Romney states are among the lowest in incomes and educational accomplishments, including three being Mountain states, two being Southern states, and three being Border states (Oklahoma, West Virginia, Kentucky).

This makes clear that poorer “Red” states are simply not using their intelligence, as voting Republican does not benefit them at all, while the “Blue” states are wealthier and understand the benefits of support of the Democratic Party!