George H. W. Bush

The Assassination Of Robert F. Kennedy 54 Years Ago Transformed The Future Negatively

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On this day, June 5, 54 years ago, in the Presidential Election year of 1968, the nation and the world were transformed in a way that still reverberates.

New York Senator Robert F. Kennedy, the brother of the slain President John F. Kennedy, was assassinated in Los Angeles at the Ambassador Hotel shortly after winning the California Democratic Presidential primary.

RFK was at a point where it seemed likely, although not definitively, that he might win the Democratic Presidential nomination to run against Richard Nixon.

The events of the past half century, from Richard Nixon to Ronald Reagan to George H. W. Bush to Donald Trump, have been very divisive and degrading in so many ways, but they might have turned out differently if RFK had lived.

One realizes that no one can be certain about the effects of a potential RFK Presidency, but for millions of Americans then and since, the shocking events of 1968 leave a sense of lost opportunity that has affected the past half century in a negative fashion!

My book, “Assassinations, Threats, and the American Presidency: From Andrew Jackson to Barack Obama”, Rowman Littlefield Publishers, 2015, Paperback Edition 2017, covers the tragedy of the RFK Assassination in Chapter 10!

The Bush Presidencies Gave Us The Two Worst Supreme Court Justices: Thomas And Alito!

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The legacy of George H. W. Bush, and his son George W. Bush, gave us, as all Presidencies do, positives and negatives in the long run of history.

But it is now clear that each of the Bushes gave the nation the two worse Supreme Court Justices in modern American history, both with an extremely narrowminded and vicious streak!

This is referring to the senior Bush appointment of Clarence Thomas in 1991, and to the junior Bush appointment of Samuel Alito in 2006.

Both Justices are so called “originalists’, who believe the Constitution must be understood in 1787 perspective, and do not accept the idea that 235 years have passed, and the situation of many groups, including the issues of gender, race, and sexuality, along with the concept of privacy, needs to be updated.

So we are on the cusp of a likely Supreme Court decision denying every woman the right to control her own body, whether a pregnancy comes about by rape or incest, as well as the danger to the life of the mother!

It also seems an opening not only to outlaw all abortions, but make it a criminal act of the mother and the doctor and hospital staff, and does not consider the effects on all women, whether pregnant or not.

Only a heartless autocrat with hate and vindictiveness in his or her heart would wish to impose tight government regulation on the private lives of women, or really, even men, who are affected by the imposition of a Judicial dictatorship, taking away a right guaranteed for 50 years, an unheard of reversal!

So the Bushes will go down in history in a very negative fashion for, whether realizing it or not, imposing religious views and personal vendettas of Supreme Court Justices they appointed on more than half of the population!

Joe Biden Becomes A Wartime President

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Joe Biden has become a wartime President, alongside James Madison, James K. Polk, Abraham Lincoln, William McKinley, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, George H. W. Bush, and George W. Bush.

At this point, he looks more like Lincoln, Wilson, FDR, Truman, and George H. W. Bush than the rest of the group.

If fortune goes against him, he might look more like Madison, who saw the nation divide during the War Of 1812 and the White House being burned; like Polk, who caused a split over slavery expansion during the Mexican War that helped to lead to the Civil War a decade later; like LBJ, who divided the nation over Vietnam just as he promoted the Great Society; like Nixon, who continued an unpopular war in Vietnam that ended up in a tragic loss; and like George W. Bush, who started two wars based on poor tactics and planning, and dominated by lies and deception in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas: Time To Recuse Himself In January 6 Cases, Or Retire Or Face Impeachment!

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Associate Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has been controversial since his appointment by President George H.W. Bush in 1991.

Accused of sexual harrassment by Anita Hill, Thomas made it his mission upon close confirmation to attack everything liberal and decent ever since, and has been the most extreme member of the Court for three decades!

And his wife, Ginni Thomas, has been an open champion of right wing politics ever since on her own, and has put her husband into many conflicts of interest.

But now, we are learning that Ginni Thomas promoted the January 6 Insurrection, and her husband is not cooperating in allowing evidence of such conspiring by a multutude of Donald Trump appointees to be submitted to the House committee investigating the events of that tragic day, although thankfully, the rest of the Court has moved forward in that regard, ignoring Donald Trump attempting to cover it up.

Thomas shoiuld retire, or face impeachment, as he is clearly the most corrupt Supreme Court Justice in modern time, or at the last, recuse himself from all cases involving the January 6 Insurrection.

And his wife should be held accountable for her actions on that day!

The Nightmare Battle For The Republican Presidential Nomination In 2024

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What a nightmare the Republican Party faces in 2024, as trying to find a nominee who is decent, competent, and NOT tied to the disaster of Donald Trump is a long haul!

We begin with Donald Trump himself, who is rapidly losing support, but still has clout in the party, even though he is actually a cancer destroying the image and reputation of the party of Lincoln, TR,Ike, Reagan and George H. W. Bush!

Then we have former Vice President Mike Pence, whose only good deed was counting the Electoral College vote on January 6, 2021 properly and correctly, but there is no way imaginable that he could win the Republican Presidential nomination, and his religiosity is a real turn off to moderate voters.

Then there is a slimmed down former Secretary of State and Central Intelligence Agency Head Mike Pompeo, but his admiration of Vladimir Putin insures he is not going anywhere!

Then we have former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, who once had stature and respect, but has lost all of that reputation being so much a lackey to Donald Trump, and at the same time, changing her mind regularly on the former President

Then, we have Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Texas Governor Greg Abbott, and South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, all of whom are competing with each other to be further Right Wing than the others, including warring on truth, history, racial justice, women’s rights, and gay rights, as well as attacking the concept of masks and vaccinations during the COVID 19 Pandemic.

Florida is unique in that it has three Republicans all ambitious enough to think they should be President, including DeSantis, but also Senators Rick Scott (involved in Medicare Fraud), and Marco Rubio, who was a major critic of Donald Trump in the 2016 Republican competition for the Presidency, but has, like most Republican officeholders caved in and given up all principles in bowing to Trump throughout his Presidency, and refusing to strongly condemn the January 6, 2021 Insurrection!

The Senate is full of Presidential wannabes, besides Scott and Rubio, including Insurrectionist promoter Josh Hawley of Missouri, who put up his fist in support on January 6; Tom Cotton of Arkansas; Rand Paul of Kentucky; Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee; Ted Cruz of Texas; Lindsey Graham of South Carolina; and Tim Scott of South Carolina.

One can add to that list Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin and former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.

There are also clear anti Trump Republicans, including Illinois Congressman Adam Kinzinger; Wyoming Congresswoman Liz Cheney; Maryland Governor Larry Hogan; Nebraska Senator Ben Sasse; and Utah Senator Mitt Romney.

The Supreme Court Reputation Reaching An All Time Low

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The US Supreme Court is in a crisis, as its reputation in public opinion polls, and among Supreme Court “watchers”, is reaching an all time low, not matched since the late 1920s and early 1930s.

The Court has never been as right wing in substance as it is now, since a century ago, and even going further back to the late 19th century Gilded Age era.

The Supreme Court’s reputation was glowing in the time of the Warren Court (1953-1969) and even moving forward to the Burger Court (1969-1986), and still having an image of balance in the era of the Rehnquist Court (1986-2005).

This was due to the reality that many Republican appointees to the Court, including the following, avoided hardline conservativism:

Eisenhower–Earl Warren, William Brennan
Nixon–Warren Burger, Harry Blackmun
Ford–John Paul Stevens
Reagan–Sandra Day O’Connor, Anthony Kennedy
HW Bush–David Souter

These eight Justices made a massive difference in enunication of Supreme Court opinions.

Sadly, George H W Bush’s appointment of Clarence Thomas, and George W. Bush’s selection of Samuel Alito, veered the Court far to the right, and Donald Trump’s three appointments—Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, Amy Coney Barrett—have continued that trend.

The fact that Thomas and Kavanaugh have been connected to accusations of sexual harassment, and that Alito, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, and Barrett were chosen by Presidents who lost the national popular vote, and that Gorsuch took a seat that was meant for Barack Obama’s nominee, Merrick Garland, and that Barrett was confirmed for the Court less than two weeks before the national election—only adds to the fury and disgust felt about the Supreme Court!

This has, reportedly, disturbed Chief Justice John Roberts (2005- ), whose historical reputation is being damaged, as he has moved, personally, from being conservative to attempts to create a moderate balance on the Court. Sadly, it is not working, so there are some rumors that he might retire from the Court after 17 years as its leader, as that is about the norm for most of the 17 Chief Justices in Amerian history, with the exception of John Marshall (1801-1835) and his successor, Roger Taney (1836-1864).

That would be a major step forward, to retire, and allow Joe Biden to pick a Chief Justice, which has not happened for a Democratic President since Harry Truman in 1946!

The Vice Presidency A Thankless Job!

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The American Vice Presidency has been described as “stand by equipment”, as there is no great power in the office.

It is a frustrating office, as any Vice President must avoid seeming to take away attention from the President.

If anyone was to ask many Vice Presidents, if not all, how they felt about the position, the likelihood is that the response would be unprintable!

Ask Lyndon Johnson, Hubert Humphrey, Nelson Rockefeller, George H. W. Bush, Al Gore, and Mike Pence, as just a few examples!

They would all have plenty to complain about, if able to openly express their feelings and thoughts!

And one can be sure that Kamala Harris already has similar feelings and thoughts!

The Republican Party Has Gone Bonkers, And Conservatives Need To Leave And Form New Party!

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The Republican Party and its long history is ending, effectively, with the crazy decision of the Republican National Committee to censure Congresswoman Liz Cheney of Wyoming, and Congressman Adam Kinzinger of Illinois!

And the party apparatus has declared that the January 6, 2021 Insurrection was “legitimate political discourse”, an absolutely lunatic statement that is having all past Republicans shamed, and many principled moderates and conservatives in the party today stunned beyond belief!

The party can be considered to have committed suicide, and all decent people in and out of government, need to make clear that they are abandoning the party, as many already have, and start a new conservative party, based on principles, not lawlessness, bloodshed, and violence!

Can any sane person imagine any of the great Senators, Congressmen, Governors, and those connected to past Republican Presidents and nominees who would not be appalled by the total recklessness and conceding to a tin horn lunatic named Donald Trump that has now occurred?

What would Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, and George W. Bush say?

What about all of the other luminaries of the Republican Party past and present?

How can such Republicans today as Lisa Murkowski, Ben Sasse, Mitt Romney, and others NOT quit the party and denounce what they have declared about the January 6 Insurrection, and the mistreatment of Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger?

One Term Presidencies That Mattered: Jimmy Carter, George HW Bush!

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President Joe Biden stated at his end of first year press conference yesterday, that he planned to run for a second term in 2024, and that Kamala Harris would again be his running mate.

That is to be expected at this time, but by early 2023, Biden will need to make a final decision on running, so as to open the race to alternative choices if he announces he will retire.

The concept that a President must seek reelection was not the case with three Presidents, who decided not to run–James K. Polk in 1848, James Buchanan in 1860, and Rutherford Hayes in 1880. But Polk, despite not running for another term, is considered to have accomplished his goals, and as it turns out, his health was not good, and he died 105 days after leaving office in 1849.

Buchanan and Hayes are not considered to have had successful terms, and they may have sensed that they could not win reelection.

Other one term Presidents, such as Benjamin Harrison and Herbert Hoover, had horrible depressions to deal with, helping to cause their defeats in 1892 and 1932, and William Howard Taft had a split in his party with former President Theodore Roosevelt, which doomed his campaign for reelection in 1912.

Gerald Ford was a special situation, having not been elected, succeeding Richard Nixon, and having a bad economy, which doomed his desire for election to a full term in 1976, although he is considered in a kind manner at this point, having worked to unite America after the Watergate Scandal and resignation of Nixon.

But the two most recent Presidents defeated for reelection, before Donald Trump, had real accomplishments in office, although they were unable to win a second term, Jimmy Carter in 1980, and George H. W. Bush in 1992.

Clearly, all Presidents since Rutherford Hayes in 1880, who have survived a term, have attempted to be reelected, but since Biden will be 82 years old weeks after the Presidential Election of 2024, he might decide not to run, or his health might be such that he is told he should not run.

First Year In Oval Office Under Most Presidencies Problematical, And Joe Biden Better Than Many!

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One could argue that Joe Biden has accomplished a great deal in the first year, while often having disappointments and shortcomings.

Two major pieces of legislation were accomplished (The American Rescue Plan, and the Physical Infrastructure legislation), and the only reason why the Build Back Better bill and voting rights have failed to be accomplished is the opposition of two Democrats–Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema–and the reality of an equally divided Senate for only the third time in American history!

While inflation has become a major problem, the stock market dramatically rose, more jobs were created in the first year of a Presidency than any other administration, and the unemployment rate has dropped to a very low rate.

There are still the issues of the COVID 19 Pandemic, and the disaster of Afghanistan withdrawal, but the first issue was unpredictable as the worst health crisis in a century, and the second would have been the same result had Donald Trump stayed on as President, since he had made a deal with the Taliban without Afghanistan government involvement, to leave in May 2021, NOT as occurred in August 2021!

So some disappointing developments in the first year of a Presidency are not unique to the 46th President!

When one looks back at other Presidencies, it is actually quite common that the first year of a Presidency is a learning curve, and does not reflect on whether such Presidents will be, in the long run, successful, and also have the possibility of successful reelection.

The following Presidents had very successful first years—Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Lyndon B. Johnson, George H. W. Bush!

Three Presidents had what could be described as mixed records in the first year in office–Dwight D. Eisenhower, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama.

The following Presidencies in the 20th and 21st century were far from successes in their first year:

Harry Truman 1945
John F. Kennedy 1961
Richard Nixon 1969
Gerald Ford 1974-1975
Jimmy Carter 1977
Ronald Reagan 1981
Bill Clinton 1993
Donald Trump 2017

Among these eight Presidents, four—Truman, Nixon, Reagan, Clinton–won reelection.

So it is not time to say that Joe Biden will fail to succeed, as he already has in many respects, and it is not time to say he cannot win reelection fo a second term!