John F. Kennedy

Which Presidents Would Belong On A Second Mount Rushmore?

Ronald 7 Comments

This morning, on MORNING JOE on MSNBC, there was a fascinating three hour discussion on the American Presidency, to commemorate the Fourth of July national holiday.

Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski had many distinguished guests, journalists and historians, to analyze the office and the 43 men who have held that position.

Three distinguished historians–Doris Kearns Goodwin, Jon Meacham, and Evan Thomas–gave their view of which Presidents would be appropriate for a second Mount Rushmore, if such a momument were ever to be built in South Dakota or elsewhere.

Their selections were certainly fascinating, controversial, and highly debatable.

Goodwin’s list was Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Ronald Reagan.

Meacham’s list was Andrew Jackson, Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy,and Ronald Reagan.

Thomas’s list included Franklin D. Roosevelt, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan, and George H. W. Bush.

So FDR and Reagan are on all three lists, and would certainly please progressives and Democrats on the one hand, and conservatives and Republicans on the other hand.

But there the disagreements begin, and lead to a total of six other Presidents being listed–Jackson, Truman, Ike, JFK, LBJ, and Bush No. 41.

One wonders if there has been disrespect shown toward Woodrow Wilson, who had such a long range impact on the office of the Presidency, although there has been a lot of criticism directed toward him over the years.

One also wonders about the famous “obscure” President, James K. Polk, who gained more territory in his one term than anyone other than Thomas Jefferson.

Also, the question arises whether Bill Clinton will see his historical stock rise as the years go by, to the point of possibly being a candidate for a second Mount Rushmore.

If this author and blogger were queried about his choices, the Presidents he would select would be to agree totally with Doris Kearns Goodwin: FDR, Truman, LBJ, and Reagan!

But now the reader can chime in with his or her views about a second Mount Rushmore, and the more the merrier!

A Century Of Struggle For Health Care: Theodore Roosevelt 1912 to Barack Obama 2012!

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Republican President Theodore Roosevelt, out of office and running on the third party movement, the Progressive Party, in 1912, first proposed some form of national health exactly a century ago as part of his New Nationalism platform!

His distant cousin, Franklin D. Roosevelt, considered it as part of his New Deal in the 1930s, but it was controversial enough to promote Social Security, which was called “Socialism”, and bitterly opposed by most Republicans, and used as a campaign issue by Republican Governor Alf Landon in the 1936 Presidential campaign.

Harry Truman actually was the first to promote a program as part of his Fair Deal programs in the 1940s, but the Southern Democrats and the American Medical Association bitterly opposed it as “Socialism”, and it died in committees in the US House of Representatives and US Senate.

John F. Kennedy proposed what became Medicare for the elderly as part of his New Frontier, but it was blocked again by the AMA and the Southern Democrats who headed Congressional committees in both houses of Congress in the early 1960s.

Lyndon B. Johnson overcame the AMA and Southern Democrats, and accomplished Medicare in 1965, and the Republicans campaigned against it, but failed to gain enough support to repeal it

Richard Nixon had devised plans for more health care legislation, but Watergate killed any movement in that direction in the 1970s.

Jimmy Carter also had developed a plan for expansion, but faced too much conservative opposition and other issues and crises, which drew attention away from the idea.

Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton proposed a major government program, but it went down to defeat in 1994, with Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and the conservative Heritage Foundation proposing a “mandate” instead, which would allow private health insurance companies to profit from health care reform, but nothing was done.

And Senator Ted Kennedy fought the good fight for decades, and was at least able to see progress before his death in 2009.

And when Hillary Clinton, and then Barack Obama, adopted the Heritage Foundation plan in 2008, far less than the original Clinton plan of the 1990s, suddenly the Republican Party and conservative ideologists bitterly opposed it, as they still do, and their hope is to repeal the program declared constitutional by the Supreme Court this past Thursday.

So it has taken a century, and we are the ONLY major nation in the world which allows millions of people to be uncovered for health care, and we have the opposition bitterly trying to destroy it, including Republican Presidential nominee Mitt Romney, who actually promoted the SAME idea successfully in Massachusetts in 2006, but now is out to destroy “ObamaCare”!

What a history, and hard to believe that it would take a century, and still be a controversy in 2012!.

Barack Obama And Mitt Romney Have Similarities In Many Ways!

Ronald 2 Comments

It is certainly odd, but it is reality that Barack Obama and Mitt Romney have many things in common.

Among them are the following:

Both were born to families that had polygamy in their family history–Obama’s father being a Muslim, and Romney coming from Mormon background.

Both have graduate degrees from Harvard University–Obama with a law degree, and Romney with a law and a business degree.

Both Obama and Romney served in their prominent position for only four years–Obama in the US Senate from Illinois, and Romney as Governor of Massachusetts.

Both Obama and Romney are very bright and knowledgeable, but people find both of them are somewhat aloof and difficult to know on a personal level.

Both Obama and Romney have wives who are very popular, more than they are, and their wives are major assets to their careers and candidacy.

Both Obama and Romney saw health care as a primary issue, with Romney promoting a program in many ways adopted by Obama nationally, although now Romney repudiates his health care program in Massachusetts as a model for a national plan, and endorses the end of the Obama Health Care legislation.

In their careers, both were more liberal than most members of their parties, but both became more moderate in office as time went by.

Both have an element of shyness, and are considered analytical introverts, as compared., say, to Bill Clinton or George W. Bush. In this way, they are more like Jimmy Carter or Richard Nixon.

Both are suspicious of the news media, but then most politicians are that way!

Both love Star Trek, which shows an interest in science fiction and imagination.

Both Obama and Romney have had their religious heritage from their fathers (Muslim and Mormon respectively) seen as suspect, particularly with the fact that their fathers were born in foreign countries (Obama, Kenya and Romney, Mexico).

Both Obama and Romney had strong mothers, not uncommon, and in fact, very common among recent Presidents (including Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter, George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush).

Both Obama and Romney lost an earlier race of significance, Obama for the House of Representatives in 2000, and Romney for the US Senate in 1994.

Both Obama and Romney set a new standard for the Presidency, with Obama being the first African American President, and Romney potentially the first Mormon President.

Both Obama and Romney are excellent family men, with not a hint of personal scandal in either one’s background.

Both Obama and Romney would have to be considered among the most intellectual politicians and Presidential candidates we have ever had in US history.

There is no question that debates coming up in September and October will be fascinating to watch and analyze!

Firsts In Presidential Election Contests: Path Breaking Moments!

Ronald 4 Comments

Now that Mitt Romney has become the official GOP Presidential candidate, another barrier has been broken in Presidential contests.

As the first Mormon Presidential candidate, Romney has accomplished what one could call a “civil rights moment”.

We have had to wait a long time for new attitudes to develop, but we have so far accomplished the following:

1928–first Catholic nominee for President, Al Smith.
1928–first Quaker President elected, Herbert Hoover
1928–first Native American Vice President elected, Charles Curtis
1960–first Catholic President elected, John F. Kennedy
1968–first Catholic Vice Presidential candidate, Edmund Muskie
1984–first woman Vice Presidential candidate, Geraldine Ferraro
2000–first Jewish Vice Presidential candidate, Joe Lieberman
2008–first African American President elected, Barack Obama
2008–first Catholic Vice President elected, Joe Biden

And notice that with the exceptions of Hoover, Curtis and Romney, all of the “firsts” were by the Democratic Party, NOT the Republican Party!

Mitt Romney Advocate Of Limiting Presidency To Those Who Have Been In Business World!

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Republican Presidential nominee Mitt Romney has endorsed a constitutional amendment, further limiting who could be eligible for President to only those who have worked in the business world.

Under his idea, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Richard Nixon, Lyndon B. Johnson, John F. Kennedy, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Theodore Roosevelt and other Presidents would not have been eligible for the White House!

John McCain, Bob Dole, and other Presidential nominees would also be ineligible!

This is crazy, as to say that our President MUST have experience in the business world makes that more important than being in the military, or serving in government, learning the ins and outs of state and national government!

Looking at the record of those who have been in the business world, such as George W. Bush and Herbert Hoover, one has to say that Mitt Romney has no understanding of what the Presidency is all about!

Thankfully, no such crazy idea will ever go anywhere as a constitutional amendment, and hopefully, Mitt Romney will be able to go back to the business world, if he wishes, after losing the Presidential Election of 2012!

Republicans Claim To Be Pro Women’s Rights: Really?

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The Republican Party leadership in Congress loves to claim that the Democrats are wrong in calling them anti women, and campaigning against women.

But the facts belie Republican claims as shown as follows:

Both in Washington DC and in the states, Republican leadership is attacking women’s rights, women’s health, and women’s safety.

The House of Representatives passed a bill weakening the Violence Against Women Act two weeks ago.

Virginia passed legislation requiring women undergoing an abortion to undergo medically unnecessary and physically invasive sonograms.

Senate Republicans are blocking a measure to deal with wage discrimination against women.

On abortion, seven states have made it more difficult to get an abortion, by making the deadline for getting one much earlier, before knowledge of fetal abnormalities or health risks are available, Criminal penalties are also set up to intimidate doctors from performing abortions, making it more difficult to stay in business, and endangering the lives of women who often cannot gain an abortion even at the risk of their own lives.

Planned Parenthood has been systematically attacked, with funds cut for basic health care services for the poor, on the argument that the main activity of the group is abortion, when it is only about 3 percent of the funding of the organization, and is not its primary role in promoting women’s health.

The 1963 Equal Pay Act under President Kennedy is being fought bitterly, with the attempt to update the law to help women gain equality in pay for equal work being opposed by Republicans, and states such as Wisconsin are going backward on women’s rights to equal pay.

Domestic violence legislation is being fought by Republicans, who do not wish to include lesbians, native American women, and undocumented immigrant women who are in danger, and can no longer report abuse to law enforcement authorities, to go after the abusers.

How can anyone say that the GOP is NOT declaring “war” on women? One is judged by one’s actions, not words!

Presidential Courage And Human Rights: From John Quincy Adams To Barack Obama

Ronald 3 Comments

One of the most important roles of a President is to be a moral leader, a person who sets the standard for what is moral and ethical in public affairs,

And nothing is more important than to have the courage to take leadership on human rights matters, whether in the United States or in other nations.

In that regard, Barack Obama will always stand out for what he did on Wednesday, speaking up for gay rights, including the right to marry.

Who else among our Presidents can be seen as a moral leader on human rights issues?

John Quincy Adams, as President and in his post Presidential career in the House of Representatives, campaigned against slavery and the slave trade, and was censured by the House of Representatives for fighting the gag rule (forbidding discussion of slavery in the House chamber) over and over again. He also represented the slaves aboard the slave ship Amistad, and won the court case for their freedom in 1841.

Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, a move many thought was unwise and might undermine the Union effort during the Civil War. But he believed that African Americans should be given freedom.

Harry Truman took the earliest steps in promoting civil rights for African Americans in the 1940s when segregation reigned in the South, and he went ahead anyway and promoted integration of the military and of the nation’s capital, Washington, DC.

Dwight D. Eisenhower alienated the white South when he sent in National Guard troops to Little Rock, Arkansas, to enforce integration of a public high school.

John F. Kennedy followed Eisenhower’s lead, in promoting National Guard intervention at the University of Mississippi and the University of Alabama, to bring about integration, and also proposed a civil rights law that he had to know would be extremely difficult to accomplish.

Lyndon B. Johnson, despite his Southern heritage, became the great proponent of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, knowing it would turn the white South over to the Republican Party, as it did.

Richard Nixon signed affirmative action into law, which became one of the great advancements in civil rights for women and minorities.

Jimmy Carter became the advocate of promoting human rights overseas, instead of accepting violations by so called “friendly” nations, as part of the business of diplomacy. He was bitterly criticized as naive, but his human rights beliefs remain one of his great legacies.

And now Barack Obama joins this group on Presidential courage in relation to the advancement of human rights! Kudos to him!

Nicholas Katzenbach Dead: Major Figure In 1960s Issues Under Presidents Kennedy And Johnson

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Another veteran of the Kennedy-Johnson era, Nicholas Katzenbach, has died at the age of 90.

Not as well remembered as others, partly because he wished to avoid the spotlight, Katzenbach was actually an extremely important figure, as Under Secretary of State, Deputy Attorney General, and Attorney General.

The author has the memory of Katzenbach confronting Alabama Governor George Wallace in June 1963, at the University of Alabama, when Wallace tried to block the registration of two black students, and Katzenbach took a firm stand, and Wallace stepped aside. Few more dramatic moments have occurred in a public place, with no one sure what would happen!

But Katzenbach was also involved in the integration of the University of Mississippi by James Meredith in 1962; the defense of the Vietnam War before congressional committees; the investigation of the assassination of President Kennedy; advice during the Cuban Missile Crisis; passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965; and struggles with J. Edgar Hoover of the FBI, but supportive of Robert F. Kennedy, the Attorney General before him.

The 1960s era fades ever more in history with the death of Nicholas Katzenbach.

Barack Obama’s Most Courageous Decision: One Year Ago, A Moment That Will Live In History!

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A year ago today, President Barack Obama followed through on a courageous decision, a moment which will live in history on a short list of decisive moments of America’s Presidents.

The decision to gamble on the killing of Osama Bin Laden was extremely risky, and had it failed, it is likely that Barack Obama would be facing defeat in 2012, rather than the strong likelihood of a great victory this coming November.

What else matches this courageous decision of Barack Obama?

The decision of Abraham Lincoln to resupply Fort Sumter, leading to possible confrontation with South Carolina in 1861, and the beginning of the Civil War.

The decision of Franklin D. Roosevelt to give aid to Great Britain in 1940 and 1941 to help them to survive Nazi Germany’s assault.

The decision of Franklin D. Roosevelt to open up the “Second Front’ on D Day in 1944.

The decision of Harry Truman to use the atomic bomb on Japan in 1945.

The decision of Harry Truman to overcome the Berlin Blockade of the Soviet Union, with the Berlin Airlift of 1948-1949.

The decision of John F. Kennedy to overcome threats, and resolve the Cuban Missile Crisis peacefully in 1962.

The decision of George H. W. Bush to go to war with Iraq’s Saddam Hussein after the invasion of Kuwait in 1990.

We are very blessed that this nation had a man of courage and conviction to lead us into this effort to end the life and career of the greatest terrorist of modern times, Osama Bin Laden!

And when we watch ROCK CENTER with Brian Williams tonight on NBC, we also realize how fortunate we are that Obama had around him such talented and brilliant people as Vice President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, along with others!

Rare Popularity Of Former “Living” Presidents In Past Century: TR, Ike, Reagan, Clinton

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The Presidency tends to cause the decline of popularity of those who hold that office, because they have to make controversial and difficult decisions which undermine their image after four or eight years in office.

In the past century, in the time of modern media exposure, which makes the Presidency a national concern on a daily basis, most Presidents, upon leaving office, have seen their public opinion rating collapse, and usually, only after they die, does their image, and respect for the difficult decisions they made, revive their popularity among both scholarly experts and the general public.

This discussion, of course, must eliminate those Presidents who did not survive the office, including Warren G. Harding, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and John F. Kennedy. However, FDR and JFK would remain highly popular in death on a regular basis since their deaths, while Harding’s brief popularity after his tragic death collapsed upon learning of the sex and other scandals during his Presidency, and he has not recovered in ratings by any group.

The only Presidents who remained generally popular after leaving office were Theodore Roosevelt, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton.

William Howard Taft, Herbert Hoover, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, and George H. W. Bush left office after defeat, and none of them were well regarded after their time in office. Carter and Bush had the bad luck of being followed by popular Presidents Reagan and Clinton, and Bush has had the bad luck of having both his predecessor and successor well regarded, making his time in office look quite unimpressive by comparison.

Woodrow Wilson, Calvin Coolidge and Lyndon B. Johnson left office, with each under a cloud of disrepute, with Wilson seeing the defeat of the Versailles Treaty ratification and membership in the League of Nations; Coolidge seeing the coming of the Great Depression crash on Wall Street within months of his retirement; and Johnson having to bear the burden of the Vietnam War: and all three died within four years of retirement, highly unpopular.

Taft regained respect for his service as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court; Richard Nixon gained respect for his foreign policy expertise in his long 20 years of retirement, but did not gain popularity for the rest of his lifetime; Harry Truman also had 20 years of retirement, but only gained popularity and respect after his death; Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter started to be regarded better as the years went by, with Carter about to surpass Herbert Hoover in longevity after the Presidency, but still condemned by many experts and the general public; and George W. Bush remains unpopular and seems resigned to the fact that he may not gain popularity or respect until he has passed from the scene.

Eisenhower and Reagan retained their public popularity in their post Presidency despite scholarly criticism of their time in office, and both are now regarded more highly, even by scholars, than they were when they were retired and alive.

TR and Clinton share a special bond, as both were young when leaving office; both were highly verbal and opinionated and constantly made news; both had charisma and were loved by the general public in their post retirement years; and TR actually ran for President on a third party line, while Bill Clinton would love to run again, as many Americans wish he could be President again, but of course, the 22nd Amendment prevents that, so instead, the push for his wife, Hillary Clinton, to try for the Presidency again in 2016 is growing!