Tribute to Gerald Ford 38th President of U.S.

[ruaidhri]

Gerald Ford died last night. He was a good, kind man that unexpectedly found himself President of the United States. It’s true, he did heal America following the hectic years following John Kennedy’s assassination. So much happened in so few, short years.

Kennedy’s assassination shook America to the core. Here we had this young, vibrant, President with his beautiful wife and young children. We were all anxious to do something for our country. We were excited to be Americans. Then, in an instant, all that was destroyed by an assassin’s bullet.

Lyndon Johnson was a wise political choice as Vice President. No one really expected him to become President. He was so different from John Kennedy. But, despite being from the South, he was one of our most liberal presidents. He truly wanted to make America a place of hope and fulfillment for all its citizens. But, like our current President, he turned a military excursion into a disaster for the U.S. and the world. Conscription, on-site news reporting and a constant flow of body bags fired up the youth who saw no value in America defending the corrupt government of South Vietnam in a war that was, in truth, a civil war.

Richard Nixon. At the time, as a Democrat, I hated him. Hate is a strong word but it aptly describes how I felt. Later, as I grew older and developed better vision of the past, I realized that he also was a people’s President who’s worst demon was his own insecurity. Of course we know what happened to his Administration. His Vice President Spiro Agnew was forced to resign and pleaded no contest to tax evasion and money laundering charges. Then Richard Nixon, appointed Gerald Ford, as Agnew’s replacement. Concurrently, Nixon had problems of his own, namely Watergate. With each day the news became more sensational as Congress considered impeachment. Finally, there was no place for Nixon to hide and he resigned leaving the White House to the Vice President he had appointed to replace Spiro Agnew. Gerald Ford became our 38th President.

Shortly following his ascension to the Presidency, Gerald Ford did the unthinkable. He granted Richard Nixon a full pardon. Wow! So many people wanted to burn Nixon at the stake. The news media was lathering at the mouth at the prospect of the upcoming trials. We were faced with the likelihood that a President of the U. S. would end up in jail. Gerald Ford ended all this with his pardon. With that single action he saved America from many more months of torment. Now, I was a Democrat. I intensely dislike Nixon. But, even at the time I realized that Ford’s action was the best thing he could do for our country. I sent him a letter telling him that I supported the pardon because it released America from self destructing.

During Ford’s Presidency, I actually liked the man. Now remember, I was a Democrat. That didn’t change. It’s just that Gerald Ford was hard not to like. During his short time in office we returned to the less stressful days lost with Kennedy’s assassination.

An interesting aside is that my cousin and her boyfriend at the time were friends with Steven Ford, the President’s Son. Steven invited my cousin, Penny, and her boyfriend Peter Frampton to the White House where they ended up spending time watching TV with the family http://heupel.com/eclectic/2003/09/ . Considering my family’s long Liberal, even Socialist, past it was amazing that one of us ever end up visiting the White House with a Republican President.

Later, when Ford ran for election in 1976, I, as a loyal Democrat, supported his opposition, Jimmie Carter. I realized I wouldn’t be upset if Carter lost and Ford stayed in office. I might have even voted for Ford if he hadn’t selected Bob Dole as his running mate. Regardless, I’ve always deeply regretted that I didn’t vote for Gerald Ford.

He was a good honest man.

[japanat]

I think Ford was truly an under-sung president. Sure, he wasn't dynamic like Kennedy, or polarizing like Nixon, but he was what we needed at the time.

Good comments, Ruaidhri!

Excuse me, did you say Peter Frampton? As in, he of the singing guitar? Wow.

[Jetsetlemming]

I have the same thoughts now as I did in middle school when reading Spiro Agnew's name:
O___o what kind of name IS THAT?
*cough* Alas poor Ford, we didn't know you all that well, but no news is good news when it comes to this sort of thing, I'd assume. No scandals or screw ups or corruptions makes you an ok president in my eyes.
Ruaidhri, how was Lindon Johnson liberal IN SPITE of the south? O_o I've seen a lot of southern democrats in my relatively short time. My own grandparents are, and dispise anything republican (I asked my grandfather why, and he said "what have republicans ever done for me?" when I asked him what democrats did for him, he grunted >_>).
*edit* http://heupel.com/eclectic/2003/09/05/weird-music-news/
Ruaidhri's link on his cousin and Peter Framptin links to a collection of blog posts across the month of september, 2003. The above link is to the specific post one about his cuz and the young Ford. I did, however, find some cool stuff surfing the link anyway, most notably this: http://magnatune.com/

[Beowulf]

Ruaidhri, how was Lindon Johnson liberal IN SPITE of the south?
Read up on the history of the Civil Rights movement. The race issue is what turned the South red. Johnson played hardball politics the likes of which haven't been seen since getting Civil Rights through congress.

[Druid]

*nods*
In spite of the way the mon came into office, Sir Ford did a great deal for politics in general at the time. Put faith back in the whitehouse an' all that. I'm surprised that the mon performed as well as he did. Must of been kinda awkward to be ushered so quickly into the presidency after what happened, me thinks. Good mon, he was.

[c-rex]

It is a shame that President Ford died without ever getting to see the Ford School of Policy / his Presidential Library out in Ann Arbor. He used to watch it being built via webcam in the hospital and we were all hoping that he would be well enough to come out to campus during the summer.

Hail To the Victors Valiant President Ford!

[Jetsetlemming]

Read up on the history of the Civil Rights movement. The race issue is what turned the South red. Johnson played hardball politics the likes of which haven't been seen since getting Civil Rights through congress.
No, I didn't mean "how is Johnson liberal?" (though pointing to his support of civil rights as a sign of liberal-ness isn't a real good example, plenty of conservatives supported it too, including the vast majority of republicans), I meant, how is his liberalness in spite of his southern-hood? I've met a number of liberal southerners. I know that the south tends to have a reputation for being religously conservative, and in my experience they do tend to be in the rural areas (most of my visits in the south are to a dirt poor slum on the verge of being a ghost town on top a mountain in the far tip of the southeast corner of Virginia, 5 minutes from WV), but it isn't quite a monopoly, especially when you factor in the major metropolitan areas in the south like New Orleans, and Florida.
Anyway, it's sad that Ford died, though it's hardly a surprise considering his recent health. They said on the news that he was the oldest surviving president.

[Josh]

Yup, he survived a little more than a month longer than Reagan did I believe.

Go him. My grandparents said he was a pretty alright kinda guy. Im sure he is in a much better place now.

[Kass]

Read up on the history of the Civil Rights movement. The race issue is what turned the South red. Johnson played hardball politics the likes of which haven't been seen since getting Civil Rights through congress.

Johnson only pushed through legislation Kennedy started. Those weren't his proposals or ideas.

[ZaichikArky]

wow haven't kept up with the news. I really didn't know much about President Ford. Thanks for the bit of info about his presidency.

Rest in peace, President Ford.

[Trump]

I wonder, until Reagan died I had no idea there were any previous presidents still alive. All of the sudden there was a big deal about how there had not been a presidential funeral for so long and it made me look into it. So how many of you actually knew he was still alive?

It surprised me, I came back from Christmas vacation with my family and saw the news while I was at the gym. It just made me start thinking that I really didn't know much about him. I think the support an event like this draws is very positive and give me a good feeling.

[ruaidhri]

I was born in May, 1941. Franklin Roosevelt was our President. He was America’s only President that served more than two terms. Elected to his fourth term in 1944, he died on April 12, 1945, three weeks before my fourth birthday. His Vice President, Harry Truman completed Roosevelt’s term and won his own in 1948 against Thomas Dewey, serving as America’s president until Eisenhower took office in January, 1953. During this time of my life, the only living former President was Herbert Hoover, America’s 31st President, who directly preceded Franklin Roosevelt.

I was 11 when Dwight Eisenhower took over the Presidency. He Served until January 1961, when John Kennedy took office. During Eisenhower’s time America had two living former Presidents, Hoover and Truman.

During Kennedy’s term we had three former Presidents, Hoover, Truman and Eisenhower. Then, Lee Harvey Oswald assassinated John Kennedy on November 22, 1963. Lyndon Johnson became President with the same three former Presidents Hoover, Truman and Eisenhower. In October, 1964, Herbert Hoover died returning America to only two former Presidents, Truman and Eisenhower. Lyndon Johnson won his own term by a landslide against Barry Goldwater in 1964. He served as President until January 1968, when Richard Nixon took over. During the remainder of Johnson’s term Truman and Eisenhower continued as America’s only ex-Presidents.

Richard Nixon took office in January, 1969, with three living former Presidents Truman, Eisenhower and Johnson. In December, 1969, Dwight Eisenhower died returning America to only two living former Presidents, Truman and Johnson.

Then, in December, 1972, Harry Truman died leaving only Lyndon Johnson as a living former President.

In January, 1973, Lyndon Johnson died and America had no living former Presidents. This continued until Richard Nixon resigned and Gerald Ford became President.

Gerald Ford didn’t win an election on his own. Personally, I deeply regret I didn’t vote for him. He was everything he’s credited with today. He was a good decent man and deserved his own term. During his term Richard Nixon was America’s only former President. Perhaps one of Gerald Ford’s greatest contributions was to keep him out of prison by granting a full pardon. America needed a lot of healing following Richard Nixon. What we didn’t need was a long trial and imprisonment of a former President.

Gerald Ford was succeeded by Jimmie Carter in January, 1977. During Carter’s single term America had two former Presidents, Nixon and Ford. Ronald Reagan defeated Carter for a second term and became President in January, 1980, winning reelection in 1984. During his term of office America had three living former Presidents, Nixon, Ford and Carter.

George Bush, Sr. became President in January, 1989. With his assumption America had four living Presidents for the first time in my life. They were Nixon, Ford, Carter and Reagan. Bush, Sr., defeated by Bill Clinton only served a single term.
When Bill Clinton became President in January, 1993, America had five living former Presidents, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan and Bush, Sr. This, again, was a first for me, five former Presidents. Then, in April 1994, Richard Nixon died. America went down to four living former Presidents.

Bill Clinton served two terms leaving office in January, 2001. His replacement was George Bush, Jr., who returned America to five living former Presidents, Ford, Carter, Reagan, his own father, Bush, Sr. and the man he succeeded Bill Clinton.

During the six years of Bush junior’s term, two former Presidents have died. Ronald Reagan died in June, 2004, and Gerald Ford, in December, 2006. America today has only three living former Presidents, Carter, Bush, Sr. and Clinton.

So thus is my life with former Presidents. Much of what people learn about former Presidents is from the eulogies delivered at the time of their deaths. The ceremony is important because it helps us to understand who we are as a nation, where we came from and our Presidents’ contributions

[Roxie]

I'm certain you can turn that into some sort of drinking/confessional game.

[Trump]

So I was... 15 when Nixon died. It makes me sad that I don't remember it at all.

[Kass]

Gerald Ford is the first president have any memories of, mostly from the end of his term. From there, I remember them all. In 1988, I voted in my first election.

That we've had five livng former presidents twice in recent history is pretty stunning. I'm not even sure it has happened before 1993. I'll have to look that up.

Gerald Ford might not have any events that define his presidency like landmark legislation or the like, but he was exactly what this country needed--an honest man who could heal the wounds left by Nixon.

[Soli]

I noticed that all the flags that I saw when I was on the bus going to school this morning were at half mast. My history teacher told me about Gerald Ford when I asked him about it.

The people I asked at school (before history class) if they knew why the flags were at half mast looked at me funny and said, "Who cares?" =/

[Trump]

The people I asked at school (before history class) if they knew why the flags were at half mast looked at me funny and said, "Who cares?" =/

That attitude really bothers me =/

[ruaidhri]

Solitudity, your fellow students response doesn’t really surprise me. Actually, I don’t believe many students in my 1950’s High School would have responded any differently to the death of a President that had left office a minimum of 12 years before any of them were born. My class of 59 wouldn’t have really cared much about Calvin Coolidge, who served from 1923 to 1929.

My particular family was always politically active so I was more the anomaly than the standard. But, that didn’t happen. Coolidge didn’t die in 1929; he died in January, 1933, more than eight years before I was born. But, because I’m curious I decided to discover what exactly was Coolidge’s legacy. He assumed the office following Warren Harding’s death in August 1923. Harding, a man the Republicans chose because “he looked like a President” led an administration rife with scandal http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/wh29.html .

Al Smith, who was the Democrat’s standard bearer in 1928, spoke of Calvin Coolidge in somewhat the same way many today speak of Gerald Ford’s. Smith said, "His great task was to restore the dignity and prestige of the Presidency when it had reached the lowest ebb in our history ... in a time of extravagance and waste...." http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/cc30.html .

As we leave High School, College, get a job, get married and have a family we realize that our lives are impacted by the actions of the people in Washington, our State Capitols and even our Counties, Cities and Villages. Then, we pay attention to who’s elected. We care about how are taxes are spent because they take money from our pocket. And, we care about honesty in government. That’s what Gerald Ford brought to the table, honesty and good faith following a period where hit lists and dishonesty reigned.

Oh, I didn’t agree with everything Ford did as President. After all, I am a Democrat and he was a Republican. But, as I wrote in my previous posts, I wish I had voted for him, not because I didn’t like Jimmie Carter but because in hindsight I believe he might have done better in those disastrous years between 1976 and 1980 when America faced a stagnating economy, high inflation and the Iranian hostage crisis.

[Trump]

That makes me wonder, do you think an honest straightforward president would do a better job than the usual type of person (scheming, closed minded, self centered, etc) who gets the job?

[ruaidhri]

Trump, no, I don’t believe honesty is necessary to get the job done. Actually, sometimes I believe honesty impedes effective leadership.

I believe, like Gerald Ford, former President Jimmie Carter was a good honest man. It was this moral character and his commitment to human rights that I believe guided President Carter when he allowed an old American friend and ally, the recently deposed Shah of Iran, to come to America for treatment of cancer. This action, although humanitarian, was the direct cause of riots in Tehran and the takeover of the American Embassy by Islamic radicals. It also greatly contributed to Jimmie Carter’s loss to Ronald Reagan in the 1980 election.

How do I believe Gerald Ford would have handled this situation? Of course, we’ll never know for sure but I believe he would have more carefully considered the possible ramifications and avoided the confrontation. I don’t believe he would have allowed the Shah to receive treatment here in America and I also believe he would have been more direct in his response if an American Embassy were seized anywhere in the world.

So, in the 20/20 clear view of hindsight, I would, if able to travel back in time, switch my vote and vote for Gerald Ford in the 1976 election.

[Trump]

Are there any other cases where you might have switched your vote? I have only been able to vote in the last 2 presidential elections, and I cannot say I have been pleased with any of the candidates. (Technically, I was 18 in 1996 and able to vote, but I had no idea what was going on while I a freshman in college). Was there a time when people supported one candidate or another because they actually liked the candidate, as opposed to disliking one candidate more?

[ruaidhri]

Trump, good question, especially considering that I have always been a party line voter. I am a Liberal with a capital “L”. I believe if I want my liberal philosophy to prevail then I must vote for viable liberal candidates, which in the real world means, Democrats.

The major political parties are highly organized with the ability to raise the dollars necessary for winning elections. In return they expect and enforce compliance with party policies as dictated by their leadership. This, I don’t like. That’s what turns me off to third-party candidates. They certainly make a statement but they don’t win elections. The higher the office the more difficult it is for an individual to stray from the party. Conversely, the more local the election the less party politics plays into how the individual represents his or her constituency. For that reason, with elections at the more local levels, namely village and county, I pay little attention to party affiliation. I am more interested in the person running and their individual philosophy and talents. But, when it comes to electing a state or federal legislator or chief executive I have consistently voted the party because it is the party, not the individual, that permits ideas to become laws. I have strayed from this rule when it comes to state politics but rarely. Generally, party leaders run a tight ship and hold a tight reign on their legislators and even executives. I can like the opposition personally but fear how they’d be “forced” to vote.

Your question was if there were other past Presidential elections where if given the opportunity, I would switch my vote. Well, I’ve voted in every election following my 21st birthday, which prior to the Twenty-Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was the legal voting age in the United States. I first voted for President in 1964 and have voted in every election since. I always voted for the Democrat. If given the opportunity to go back in time I would vote for Gerald Ford in 1976 because I believe many of the problems we have today can be traced back to Carter’s naive human rights policies that ignored the real world and the resultant Iranian hostage crisis and the United States weak reaction. In hindsight, I believe Gerald Ford would not have admitted the deposed Shah of Iran into the United States and I believe if Ford were faced with the takeover of an American Embassy he would have acted more decisively to rescue the hostages.

When I voted for Johnson I believed he was a dove and Goldwater was the hawk. I did hesitate voting for Humphrey in 1968 because he was Johnson’s Vice President and supported the administration. Originally, I supported Eugene McCarthy then Robert Kennedy. But, in the end, I did vote for Hubert Humphrey. Humphrey, of course, lost and we didn’t have another Democrat in the Oval Office until Jimmie Carter. I already wrote that I’d change my vote to Ford. Following Carter the next Democrat elected was Bill Clinton. I liked and still like Clinton. Oh, I know he doesn’t have the best moral fiber but I don’t really give a damn about that. So, the answer to your question is: I would not have changed my vote in any other Presidential election other than for Ford.

With state politics I have voted for Republicans both for the legislative and executive branches. My opposition for the opposing Democrats was so strong it overcame my fear of strengthening the Republican voting machine.

[ZaichikArky]

Wow. I find it incredibly interesting that you have remained a liberal throughout your entire life. As I understand it, many people are not like this. They can be hippie flower-children when they're in college, but generally when they graduate and start making more money, the conservatism becomes prevalent. I remember a high school government teacher telling our class an anecdote. When she was in college back in the day, a college professor pointed his finger at several of her friends and said something like "you, you, you, you will all be conservatives 10 years from now." Sure enough, most of her friends ended up being conservative. She remained pretty liberal throughout her life, though.

I think I will be liberal for the rest of my life. When my parents were poor immigrants to this country 16 years ago, they must have been liberal as well. The first election they were able to vote in was Clinton's second term, I think, and they voted for him. They also voted for Gore. Now, suddenly my dad calls himself an "ultra conservative" and while not affiliating with a party, he votes only for republicans now. My mom is not at all political, and pretty much just votes what my dad votes on. My dad and I always have political debates. It gets really annoying sometimes -_-

Anyway, I'm not sure if I'll ever vote for a Republican. I am liberal, but then there are the liberals who attend the school I go to. My school is more of a smaller scale version of Berkeley, however lately we've had more protests that have gotten ugly. I don't want to get into the hippiest hippies imaginable, but I'm not like them either. I'm liberal, but not blindly liberal. We'll see 10 or even 20 years from now how I vote XD.

[ruaidhri]

ZaichikArky, yes, as people age they become more conservative. The same even holds true for me. I’m not the man I was back in 1960. Still, I’m a Democrat.

Both my parents were born over 100 years ago, my father in 1898 and my mother in 1902. They grew up when the “working man” had to fight for every dime, when both companies and workers fought bloody battles over union representation. They survived WW1, the Depression and WWII.

To my parents, the Republicans served the rich while the Democrats the common man and woman. They believed it was proper for the government to somewhat flatten the distribution of wealth. They believed the community should provide services to its citizens. They believed in helping the poor and providing equal education for all. They believed the government should levy taxes according to the individuals ability to pay. They believed the more money an individual earned the greater the percentage of that income should be taxed.

Those are the opinions I shared back in 1960. As the world changed, Vietnam taught me that even Democrats don’t always serve the common man. I became less naïve. Then marriage and parenthood focused my attention on how many dollars my government took out of my check every week to put into other people’s pockets. I lost some of my enthusiasm for sharing when it was my dollars being shared.

Over the years, my fortunes grew and my salary increased and my investments prospered. My wife also was fortunate in her employment. We moved to an affluent neighborhood where being called Democrat was and remains a dirty word. My village President lives two doors down. Of course he’s a Republican and I voted for him. He does a good job. He properly manages my community where there is no evidence of poor people. I am not by any stretch of imagination poor. I am a capitalist with heavy investments in various markets. Still, I’m a Democrat.

I still believe in community. I still believe in sharing. I still believe in graduated taxes. I still believe that in order for a democratically elected Republic to work it needs to be responsive to the majority of its citizens not just the rich.

Mostly, I dislike the Republican Party’s primary focus on reducing taxes without regard to the increased costs of running the government or the needs of the people. Believe me cutting services does not hurt me or my neighbors. We’re insulated. There is no poor section of town.

What’s happening is the rich are truly getting richer while the poor, poorer. So, instead of the government putting its hand in the pockets of the rich it is the rich that are removing dollars from the pockets of the poor. I just don’t believe that’s right. Also, I distrust and fear the Republicans close ties to American zealots, the religious right. While I respect their right to worship in their own way I wouldn’t want them placing restrictions on my freedoms. And, I really dislike how elections have become so dirty. While politics has always had its mud flinging, I see the Republicans as masters as defamation. What saddens me is that the Democrats realize the effectiveness of those tactics they are fighting slur with slur and sometimes even beating the Republicans to below the belt punches.

I really do wish a new viable party evolved that represented the common man and woman of the new millennium. Until that happens, I’m still a Democrat.

[Roxie]

ruaidhri.....
Are you running in 2008? Cause you might give Obama a real run!

[Beowulf]

Hell I know I'd vote for him. I think the principle problem with politics today is that politicians serve the interests of politicians instead of the country. All they care about is getting re-elected and staying re-elected. Anyone who believes otherwise is probably ignorant.

[Jetsetlemming]

I'm curious, based on your impressions of republicans and the effects of voting for the "other" party.
What's your opinion of moderate republicans like Rudy Giuliani (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudy_Giuliani) and conservative democrats like Joe Lieberman (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Lieberman)?
Personally, I really like Rudy, I think he's good at getting things done and getting people to like him and calm down and quit bickering so much, and dislike Lieberman, who's far, far too censorship-prone for my tastes (as in Hillary Clinton). I really hate how much Lieberman lets showy issues like his "for the children" censorship play a role in his voting. He supports some things that I actually do like, like school voucher education programs. :(

[Trump]

Well, the past two elections have definately taught me that both parties serve the rich. I don't know if it is the same rich or different rich, but it doesn't really matter. After examining many issues, there are some things I agree with the Republicans about, but I find myself still siding with the Democrats more often. I think half the time though I disagree with both of their philosophies. For example, Republicans want to just cut spending and give tax breaks without any regard to where the money comes from or how that will affect the nation. On the other hand, I think Democrats want to spend too much and I am definately against increasing taxes with out a damn good reason. So who do I side with? It is definately a tough choice.

I strongly dislike Hillary Clinton. I don't know why, but I think it stems from the fact that her political career seems more important to her than following her beliefs or representing her constituents. Rudy Giuliani and Joe Lieberman I like better though. I think they have stronger character and have a better chance of standing up for what they believe in, even if that isn't exactly what I believe.

[Beowulf]

I strongly dislike Hillary Clinton. I don't know why, but I think it stems from the fact that her political career seems more important to her than following her beliefs or representing her constituents. Rudy Giuliani and Joe Lieberman I like better though. I think they have stronger character and have a better chance of standing up for what they believe in, even if that isn't exactly what I believe.
Did you read this before you posted it? Hillary serves her career more then Rudy or Lieberman? You do realize that Lieberman is the guy who lost as a Democrat and so (instead of accepting his defeat in the primaries like a responsible politician would do) he runs as an independent? This is also the same guy who claims that videogame violence is the sole reason kids kill each other.

[Kass]

Lieberman puts his constituents first. He is a bit of a doofus in my opinion and I disagree with many of his policies, but he isn't so much a politician that he puts the party before the people like most politicians. Running as in independent is the most courageous thing he could have done. Odds were he'd spend a lot of money and lose. Instead, he'd made enough of his constituents happy that they told the Democratic party to piss of and put Lieberman back in office.

The parties do not have the best interests of America at heart. They have retention of power at heart. They couldn't care less how the average American gets by. If they did, they wouldn't vote themselves middle of the night pay raises, take "gifts" that are really bribes, would actually reform welfare, get rid of social security as it is, throw out the tax code and start over, burn the Department of Education to the ground and get real jobs.

At least Lieberman has the courage to stand up and disagree with his party when his conscience and constituents demand it rather than kissing Harry Reid's and Howard Dean's asses. That's exactly why they ran him out of the office as a Democrat. The PARTY actively worked against him because he didn't toe the line and bow and genuflect before the Altar of the Democratic Donkey. God forbid someone actually have an independent thought in amongst the Democratic party leadership. The party withheld campaign money they gave to his opponent, campaigned against him and actively tried to undermine him.

I find it truly poetic that the party went out of its way to get rid of one of the few members who dares to think for himself and then got their heads handed to them. I didn't like his GOP opponent and I love it that Lieberman will be there everyday to remind the Democratic leadership that they can't bully everyone into submission, contrary to Nancy Pelosi's thoughts on the matter.

[Jetsetlemming]

If they did, they wouldn't vote themselves middle of the night pay raises, take "gifts" that are really bribes, would actually reform welfare, get rid of social security as it is, throw out the tax code and start over, burn the Department of Education to the ground and get real jobs.
My vote goes to Kass. :P

[Beowulf]

I love how far Kass can read into a post then take off running with it. I'm surprised that the race was so close for Lieberman, being an incumbent he has a 93% chance to to be re-elected. The fact that he lost the primaries was a huge slap to the face. And Kass, before you get too riled up let's keep in mind that the reason the Dems pressured Lieberman was because he supported the Iraq War. That issue alone is what gave Dems both houses of Congress.

The parties do not have the best interests of America at heart. They have retention of power at heart.
Was this not what I was just saying 3 or 4 posts ago?

[Trump]

I don't think the support for the Iraq war is what cost republicans their seats. It was more than they did not think the war through before charging headlong into something they were not prepared for. Their lack of forsight and inability to continue to produce results in Iraq were the problem.

I do wish primaries were given as much media coverage as the main election though. Right now only the fervent supporters of candidates and other people who are very politically active vote in the primaries. So it really has nothing to do with most of the members of the party.