Huey Long

Huey Long, Joseph McCarthy, George Wallace, Donald Trump—The Art Of Demagoguery!

Ronald Leave a comment

It is now clear that we have in our midst a true demagogue—a person who appeals to the insecurity and disillusionment of many Americans about the direction of their nation in domestic and foreign policy.

We have had this before, and it always ends in disaster and loss of reputation, without accomplishing anything beneficial in the short run or the long run.

We had Senator Huey Long of Louisiana in the early 1930s, who gained a following of millions, talked about “Every Man A King” in the midst of the Great Depression. He ended up being assassinated in 1935 while seeking the Presidency. This is covered in Chapter 7 of my forthcoming book, “Assassinations, Threats, and the American Presidency: From Andrew Jackson to Barack Obama”, from Rowman Littlefield, to be published and available on August 15.

We had Senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin in the early 1950s, when there was the ongoing Cold War with the Soviet Union, exploited as an issue, causing the destruction of the lives and reputations of millions of Americans without any justification. It ended up with the collapse and repudiation of the Red Scare, and the early death of McCarthy from alcoholism.

We had Governor George Wallace of Alabama, who divided the nation over racial integration and civil rights, and won five states in the Electoral College in the Presidential Election of 1968, and then was shot and paralyzed for life during the Presidential Election campaign of 1972. This tragedy, ironically, led to a reformed Wallace who changed his view on civil rights as a result of his own handicapped condition as a result of the assassination attempt. I cover this in Chapter 11 of my forthcoming book on August 15, which I have listed the title and publisher two paragraphs above this one.

Now we have Donald Trump, who is promoting racism and nativism, and since he is super wealthy, his ability to influence the public view is, in many ways, more dangerous than any of the above demagogues.

Just as with the others, Trump will fail in the long run, but will be very dangerous in the short run. Let us hope that his demise will not be brought about in the fashion that occurred for Huey Long and George Wallace! We wish him good health and long life, but want him out of the political fray, because he has nothing positive to offer America, just negativism and division!

Longest Filibusters In US Senate History

Ronald Leave a comment

Kentucky Senator Rand Paul’s nearly 13 hour filibuster this week drew attention to that tactic which has been used to delay or prevent Senate action, or to protest something the government is engaged in.

Paul’s filibuster turns out to be the ninth longest filibuster, according to Senate records, by any individual.

The list of the top nine all time is as follows:

Senator Strom Thurmond, Democrat, South Carolina, 1957—24 hours 18 minutes

Senator Alfonse D’Amato, Republican, New York, 1986, 23 hours, 30 minutes

Senator Wayne Morse, Independent, Oregon, 1953, 22 hours, 26 minutes

Senator Robert La Follette, Sr,, Republican, Wisconsin, 1908, 18 hours, 23 minutes

Senator William Proxmire, Democrat, Wisconsin, 1981, 16 hours, 12 minutes

Senator Huey Long, Democrat, Louisiana, 1935, 15 hours, 30 minutes

Senator Alfonse D’Amato, Republican, New York, 1992, 15 hours, 14 minutes

Senator Robert Byrd, Democrat, West Virginia, 1964, 14 hours, 13 minutes

Senator Rand Paul, Republican, Kentucky, 2013, 12 hours, 52 minutes

The Dangers Of Political Extremism: Assassination Of Political Leaders

Ronald Leave a comment

Today is a day to dwell on the dangers of political extremism, the kind of rhetoric that we have been witnessing more than ever since the Great Recession occurred in 2008 and after. The election of the first African American President in 2008 has added to the cauldron.

The chasm between the political parties is wider than ever, and the hot rhetoric displayed on much of talk radio and Fox News Channel is more intense than ever, and will, unfortunately, get worse as the heat of the Presidential campaign intensifies.

Political extremism of the past led to political assassination in American history, as witness:

Abraham Lincoln, murdered at the end of the Civil War, April 14, 1865, by a Confederate sympathizer, John Wilkes Booth.

William McKinley, murdered by an anarchist, Leon Czolgosz, on September 14, 1901.

John F. Kennedy, murdered by Lee Harvey Oswald, a supporter of Fidel Castro and Cuba, 48 years ago on this date, and being commemorated today.

Martin Luther King, Jr,, murdered by a racist, James Earl Ray, on April 4, 1968.

Robert Kennedy, murdered by an Arab sympathizer, Sirhan Sirhan, on June 5, 1968.

These five assassinations, along with the assassination by mentally ill people of James Garfield and Huey Long; and the attempted assassinations of Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, and Ronald Reagan are constant warnings of the dangers of violence once passions are aroused to a dangerous level.

When one considers that an individual was recently arrested for having shot at the White House, and perceived as a danger to President Barack Obama, it makes one feel a chill go through his spine, this on top of a similar incident under Bill Clinton.

Our nation’s leaders are under constant threat, and we need to tone down our rhetoric in memory of the death of John F. Kennedy nearly a half century ago, as we do not want to go through the horror and pain of such an event ever again!

The Mid Third Year First Term Presidential Slump: Perfectly Normal!

Ronald 1 Comment

When one looks at the history of the Presidency, in the third year of the first term of a President, it is very normal that he suffers a loss in public opinion support, and is usually the low point of his first term, but often has had no effect on future electoral success.

Witness the following examples:

1, Franklin D. Roosevelt in his third year (1935) was denounced as a socialist, a communist, a fascist, and every other dirty name by opponents, including the American LIberty League, Huey Long, Dr. Francis Townsend, Father Charles Coughlin, and others. He went on to a smashing reelection victory, winning all but two states in 1936.

2. Harry Truman in 1947 was very unpopular and predicted to have no chance at reelection, particularly with the opposition party in control of Congress, and some members of his party suggesting he resign, because of the vote of no confidence represented by the Republican 80th Congress. He proceeded to win a miracle upset victory for reelection!

3. John F. Kennedy in 1963 was in deep trouble in the South because of his stand on civil rights, and he was on a campaign swing in the South, trying to mend fences, when he was assassinated.

4. Richard Nixon was at a low point in 1971 over the Vietnam War, with the Pentagon Papers being revealed and attempts of Congress to end the war by cutting funds. It was fear that his Democratic opponent might be strong that convinced Nixon operatives to become involved in the Watergate scandal, but Nixon won all states but one in 1972.

5. Ronald Reagan in 1983 had the highest unemployment rate since FDR, and low public opinion ratings similar to those of Barack Obama now (low 40s), but went on to win all but one state in 1984.

6. Bill Clinton had low public opinion ratings in 1995, particularly after the Republicans took over both houses of Congress, but won reelection in 1996.

7. George W. Bush had a lot of opposition and criticism about the war in Iraq in 2003, but went on to win reelection in 2004.

So it is not a danger sign that Barack Obama is suffering a low point in the summer of 2011, as despite many problems, he still has strong popular support personally, and the opposition Republicans are being blamed by many for the Debt Ceiling Crisis and its aftermath!

So don’t count the President out by any means, as the odds still strongly favor his reelection in 2012!

Michele Bachmann: Mentally Unfit And Mentally Unstable To Be President!

Ronald 1 Comment

Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann may be surging in the polls, as compared to all other GOP Presidential candidates, but she has proved herself mentally unfit, as well as mentally unstable, to be President of the United States!

With her reckless use of myths and falsehoods and invocation of God telling her what to do in her life and career, she has demonstrated that she is loony and nutty enough to be a danger in the Oval Office, with the power and authority to unleash nuclear weapons!

With her insensitivity and narrow mindedness toward those she portrays as having the wrong views about social issues such as abortion, gay marriage, racial relations, and immigration reform, she has disqualified herself from being able to unite the country around a common unity!

A President Bachmann would cause even further division and turmoil than we have right now, and would lead us to a right wing fascist mentality toward those who don’t agree with the narrow view of evangelical Christianity that separates “them” from “us”!

Also, the pushing of ABC News correspondent Brian Ross by aides of Bachmann, when Ross tried to purse an answer to a question, is totally unacceptable behavior, and reminds one of Huey Long “goons” during the early to mid 1930s in Louisiana! The nation will not tolerate a President who permits such mishandling of media as Bachmann seems to have no problem accepting!

Finally, the issue that Brian Ross was trying to bring up is crucial as well: the confirmed report that Bachmann has suffered for 15 years from migraine headaches that are extremely intense and required medical treatment many times, with indications, denied by Bachmann, but confirmed, that these migraines incapacitated her for periods of time and required lots and all kinds of pills! To top it off, Bachmann claims the migraines are caused by high heels, even though there is no correlation ever noted by any medical doctor between high heels and migraines!

Sounds as if Bachmann is at it again, with loony and nutty explanations, that just add to the image that she is, more than ever, mentally unfit and mentally unstable to be Commander in Chief!

Tea Party Outrages: More Evidence Of The Danger To The Reputation Of The US Senate! :(

Ronald Leave a comment

In the last week, and accelerating in the past weekend, we have seen outrageous statements and actions by several Tea Party Movement candidates for the Senate, proving that they are loons who should not be given the dignity of being United States Senators! 🙁

Ken Buck of Colorado declared that gay people can be compared to alcoholics, which can be partly genetic but can be overcome by strong efforts to change, according to him!

Sharron Angle of Nevada said that many Hispanics can be seen as Asians, because she sees them as looking very similar!

Christine O’Donnell of Delaware said that she had evidence that China was an imminent threat to the United States, based on having traveled with a group to China in recent years!

Rand Paul of Kentucky refused to shake hands at the end of a debate with opponent Jack Conway, because Conway brought up that Paul was a member of a strange Christian sect in college that promoted women being tied up as part of a ritual!

Joe Miller of Alaska has “goons”, a privately employed security group, which detained, roughed up, and handcuffed a journalist for trying to ask Miller a question after a public appearance by the candidate! This brings back memories of Governor and Senator Huey Long of Louisiana who had a group of “brown shirts” in the 1930s, that made some compare him to Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler!

This is besides the reactionary, backward, anti democratic views that these men and women profess, which should, on its own, be enough to convince voters in their states that they would be undermining the image of their states if they were to award a six year stint in the Senate to these wing nuts! 🙁

And while the Senate certainly has its embarrassments in some of its members, the damage that could be done by the election of Tea Party candidates would be massive! 🙁