When I was visiting my girl Chrissy in Seattle last October, I met her best friend Jed Montgomery. The four of us (including Jed’s partner Chris) had some vigorous debates about American politics. I was trying to make my point that for all of Obama’s intelligence and oratory, at the end of the day he’s a member of the Democratic Party. In the last 60 years, the Democrats have provided a pretty appalling list of Presidents:
Harry Truman – Among other things, authorized the only use of nuclear weapons on a civilian population in history
John Kennedy – Among other things, authorized the attempted invasion of Cuba, nearly brought the world to the brink of nuclear war, was sleeping with Marilyn Monroe, etc.
Lyndon Johnson – Among other things, escalated the Vietnam war. Possibly implicated in the Kennedy assassination.
Jimmy Carter – Actually, a pretty good guy, defender of human rights.
Bill Clinton – Bombed and starved the people of Iraq, decided the best way to spend his days in the White House was to get blowjobs and stick cigars up an intern’s vag.
So… will Obama be another Jimmy Carter? Or… one of the others?
Anyway, Jed joins me on the show today to talk about our hopes and concerns for the Obama administration.
Good to hear this, first timer here. Thanks for posting, and YEAH JED!!! KEEP ON KEEPIN ON!!!
much love,
-sheldon-
(from southern utah)
Cameron, as much as I usually agree with you, just from reading this post I have a few points I think these Presidents deserve. Lyndon Johnson deserves credit for the strides he made in promoting Civil Rights here in the US, virtually unheard of in presidency until that point and he worked on that before become president. Yeah, pretty much his entire Greater Society scheme was disrupted by his war in Vietnam, but he had some good ideals. Main point: he did have some good qualities to him, especially in the context that at the time he worked on civil rights it was still unpopular with the government as a whole. It doesn’t exhonorate him, but I think in all fairness that needed to be said. Ok, so I really only have something good on him. The only other points I have are worse, like the Clinton’s administration of deregulation, among other things, which lent themselves to the current economic crisis. Fair enough, Cam!
Nicholas, I don’t think LBJ deserves much credit for the civil rights act. The US was in turmoil, violence everywhere, and it was just going to get worse. The Civil Rights Act was introduced by JFK anyway, LBJ just pushed it home after JFK was whacked. Like Obama shutting down Gitmo, it was as easy decision. There was no serious alternative. The USA had no moral integrity on the issue of racial discrimination and everyone with half a brain could see what kind of storm was brewing.
If you were American I would probably be upset or frustrated about your views towards Democrats, but your not.
I’m really offended that you didn’t mention the one good thing Clinton did while in office.
It was dicussed ( to present in detail for examination) when the presidents ,ex & future held there summit in the Oval Office on Jan, 7th.
It was of course, the BLOW JOB Clinton got in that very same Oval office from a 21 year old intern!
What’s the matter, don’t you consider this a good thing????
FINALLY! A place that presents honest opinions about both side of the issue. Not the koolaid drinkers or far-whichever abso-fanatics. Just reality. Every politician has faults. each party blows though it seems only Clinton was the reciever not the giver. Gotta love the party he threw for 8 years. And sorry but any president who strikes fear in the eyes of a probable enemy because they know, yes know he will kill them to protect and defend his country, gets my vote. Yep he did stupid things, but Bush did get things going again after 9/11. And being in those places where they do those things to themselves and others just because, will make you a nationalist. You live for your own country. Saying you don’t get to have an opinion about America because you are not an American is elitist crap. Everyone gets one, and in America we are the ones who are supposed to make sure it can be heard. Something we lose sight of sometines… OK off the box. Good Job. I miss OZ…
Alex, these aren’t MY views – these are the facts about the most recent Democratic Presidents. You *should* be upset and frustrated – but at THEM, not at me.
Come on technophiliac, look things up on the internet:
“Saying that “our ideals give us the strength and moral high ground” to combat terrorism, President Obama signed executive orders Thursday ending the Central Intelligence Agency’s secret overseas prisons, banning coercive interrogation methods and closing the Guantánamo Bay detention camp within a year.”
– http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1057910.html
So he isn’t leaving the black sites out.
In regards to Bill Clinton, I find it silly that your primary complaint about him is about the repulsive nature of his sex life rather than say his sanctions on Iraq and failure to interfere in Rwanda. Though, the way he tells it, the latter was the GOP’s fault because he knew they wouldn’t give him the authority to interfere so he decided not to press for such authority.
Cameron, I finally fully listend to the episode. Great as always! Still, I had a point to mention. You say that in closing G-Bay, Obama was making an “easy” (I believe that was the wording you used; if not, close enough) decision. I would have to disagree. Although it seems like an obvious necessity to you and me that such attrocities should be ceased, that is not the consesnus of the rest of the American people. Youmight be shocked by the overwhelming popularity G-bay enjoys along with the legalization of torture. His dicision was and is rather unpopular. Just thought you might be interested to know, since I don’t know if you’ve been here in the US since the President has reigned in on such issues. Oh, and you mentioned uncertainty on Hilary Clinton’s policy in regards to Palestine. She is an AVID, and I mean avid, and extreme supporter of Israel. If she had her way, our military would be thrice as active there now! yeah, she’s not my cup of tea. Just thought you might be interested to learn! Looking forward to your next show, especially to have Jed on again, as he was fantastic!
Jared, thanks for pointing me to the release about Obama shutting down the black sites! Looks like that came out about a few days before we recorded the show and I’d missed it. As for Clinton, I did mention Iraq first. 🙂 And I don’t think his sex life was “repulsive”, I just think he should have conducted it outside of the White House and not lied about it afterwards.
Nicholas, do you have any stats on how many American people think Gitmo should stay open? If the majority wanted it, wouldn’t they have voted McCain in?
Cam, I have been unable to track down exact ratings. However, if it helps, Gitmo and waterbording tend to be popular with Republicans, especially those farther to the right.
Oh I totally accept that the Republicans would love Gitmo to stay open. But Obama doesn’t have to care much about what the GOP wants (until they win back the Senate).
“I did mention Iraq first.”
Ok, my bad. You did mention it first in your show notes. But you didn’t mention it all in your show intro or in your dicussion with Jed.
Now, i’ll grant you its entertaining and funny to quickly dismiss Clinton as that guy who stuffed a cigar up a woman’s vagina in the white house, but he was president of the US. Nothing he does in his personal life is really very important relative to how well he uses his legal powers. The only thing that makes that sex act significant is that he got caught.
Lest I seem too dour, as I think I have tendency for doing: good show by the way. I like the relativism. It gets kind of depressing when we can only say that X and Y are bad rather than Y is better than X even if Y could use some work.
Jared, I think the thing that made Clinton’s thing with Monica significant was actually that he was using his position as President to get laid and he did on work time in the White House. That’s all kinds of wrong. Agree with you though that the violence he sponsored is a much more important reason to criticise his Presidency.