Lyndon B. Johnson

As Donald Trump Is About To Give His State Of The Union Address, His Public Opinion Ratings Are Lowest Except For His First Term!

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As Donald Trump gets ready for his State of the Union Address on Tuesday evening, his public opinion ratings (Gallup Presidential Job Approval polls) are the lowest of any President since 1945, except for his first term first month!

From Harry Truman to Trump, below are the ratings, in order of high to low!

Harry Truman 87
Lyndon B. Johnson 78
John F. Kennedy 72
Gerald Ford 71
Dwight D. Eisenhower 68
Barack Obama 67
Jimmy Carter 66
Richard Nixon 59
Bill Clinton 58
George W Bush 57
Joe Biden 57
Ronald Reagan 51
George H W Bush 51
Donald Trump 45 (2025)
Donald Trump 44 (2017)

So Donald Trump is not gaining approval for his radical, anarchistic, and disruptive domestic and foreign policies, with a majority of Americans uneasy about the direction of the nation!

Comparing Republican And Democratic Vice Presidents Since 1961!

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America has had a total of 50 Vice Presidents in its history since 1789.

Fourteen of those Vice Presidents have served since 1961, with eight being Republicans, and six being Democrats.

Asssessing their significance, and perceptions of their performances, there is no comparison that would rate the Republicans as superior to the Democrats, and in fact, the differences are massive!

The eight Republican Vice Presidents include in order of service in the office:

Spiro Agnew
Gerald Ford
Nelson Rockefeller
George H W Bush
Dan Quayle
Dick Cheney
Mike Pence
JD Vance

The six Democratic Vice Presidents include in order of service in the office:

Lyndon B. Johnson
Hubert Humphrey
Walter Mondale
Al Gore
Joe Biden
Kamala Harris

Nobody in their right mind would claim that the Republicans come anywhere close in background, image, and significance to the Democrats.

Only Gerald Ford, Nelson Rockefeller, and George H W Bush are looked upon in a positive way, while all six Democrats “shine”, and particularly Walter Mondale, Al Gore, and Joe Biden.

LBJ and Humphrey do not look as “good” as Vice Presidents because their Presidents chose not to utilize their talents adequately, which is a criticism of John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson.

Harris had the extra disadvantage of being unique, as a woman and mixed race Vice President, in a country where there is still misogyny and racism, sad to say.

But the remaining five Republican Vice Presidents are really horrendous, with Spiro Agnew and Dan Quayle clearly so, and with Dick Cheney, while certainly competent, perceived as “Darth Vader”, overly autocratic and seen in a negative light.

And Donald Trump’s two Vice Presidents are perceived in a negative light, but already, JD Vance in just six weeks appears far worse than Mike Pence!

In any scholarly ranking of Vice Presidents, the top three Vice Presidents in history would be in order–Walter Mondale, Joe Biden, and Al Gore.

And in any scholarly ranking of Vice Presidents, the bottom three would include in order—Spiro Agnew, Dan Quayle, and likely JD Vance!

The fact that Dick Cheney and Mike Pence would be rated above these three disastrous Vice Presidents, is quite a testimony to how horrendous Agnew, Quayle, and Vance have been to the office, with Vance “accomplishing” this failure in six weeks and by his statements and viewpoints expressed making the possibility of his succeeding Trump in the future as quite scary, to say the least!

Another Disastrous Republican Vice President In A Long Line!

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The Republican Party has had an amazing ability to find a group of horrendous, often unqualified, Vice Presidential nominees, many of them becoming Vice President of the United States, in the past six decades since 1964.

Barry Goldwater in 1964, himself a highly controversial Presidential nominee, selected New York Congressman William E. Miller, totally unqualified to be a heartbeat away, to be his Vice Presidential running mate. Thank goodness Goldwater lost to Lyndon B. Johnson and his highly qualified Vice President, Hubert Humphrey.

In 1968 and again in 1972, Richard Nixon had Spiro Agnew as his Vice President, until he was forced out due to scandal and resignation in October 1973. Agnew was a true nightmare, and the thought that had he not been forced out, that he would have been President in 1974, was a literal nightmare scenario!

Fortunately, Nixon appointed Gerald Ford as his Vice President to replace Agnew, a blessing, and Ford selected Nelson Rockefeller, former NY Governor and three time Republican Presidential contender as his Vice President, both appointed under the 25th Amendment.

When Ford selected Senator Bob Dole as his Vice Presidential running mate in 1976, while controversial for his utterances, Dole was at least qualified for the Vice Presidency, as was George H. W. Bush for the eight years of Ronald Reagan.

But then came Dan Quayle as Vice President under George H. W. Bush, a man who came across as not very bright and a bit terrifying to imagine him succeeding to the Presidency, when Bush had a heart issue, that thankfully was resolved successfully, and lived on to 2018.

In 1996, losing nominee Bob Dole had former Congressman and Housing Secretary Jack Kemp as his running mate, not horrible but not preferable to Al Gore, Bill Clinton’s two term Vice President.

Then, George W. Bush had Dick Cheney of Wyoming as his Vice President, certainly competent, and actually having a great impact in the first term of Bush, but seen as very arrogant, nasty, and corrupt, and having great responsibility for the Iraq War, based on false information.

Then, an all time low was Sarah Palin as John McCain’s Vice Presidential running mate in 2008, the most scary and incompetent running mate in modern history, making even Dan Quayle look better.

This was followed by Mitt Romney in 2012 having Paul Ryan, later Speaker of the House, but seen as similar in right wing extremism to Cheney.

And then we had Mike Pence under Donald Trump, dutiful and obedient, but seen by many as a religious extremist, and yet repudiated by Trump, who endangered him at the time of the January 6 Insurrection for failing to stop the Electoral College Vote Count, and by Trump not calling off the mob attack that was threatening Pence’s life.

And now, we have JD Vance, who quickly is demonstrating how right wing extremist and undiplomatic he is on his first involvement in international affairs, along with his divisive domestic comments. His connection with powerful technology executives, including Peter Thiel, and Elon Musk, is totally horrifying!

The thought that Vance, at age 40, is a heartbeat away from the Presidency is terrifying!

Donald Trump Trying To End All Progress Of Civil Rights Movement Of 1950s And 1960s, Wiping Out History Of Equality!

Ronald 29 Comments

It is shocking, but not surprising that Donald Trump is aiming at ending all civil rights laws and enforcement, going back to the time of Lyndon B. Johnson, and really even back to earlier efforts and support of Harry Truman, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and John F. Kennedy.

It is also an attack on the advancements that came under later Presidents and Congresses, to promote equal opportunity, and overcome generations of discrimination and bias by state and local governments.

It is reviving the hatred and prejudice enunciated by generations of the Ku Klux Klan, and such individuals as Orval Faubus of Arkansas, Ross Barnett of Mississippi, Strom Thurmond of South Carolina, and most notably, George Wallace of Alabama.

It is a bold move to reinstall Jim Crow laws that dominated from the Gilded Age to the era of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s.

It is the final surrender of the Republican Party, which had promoted civil rights at a time when Southern Democrats were advocating segregation and defiance of the federal government.

Now, we have a wealthy New York real estate magnate proudly promoting what he has believed his entire life, to bring back the racism and nativism that he has advocated, with so many excusing him or saying that he is not such, when he most clearly is so!

And to top it off, Trump is attempting to remove Birthright Citizenship from Native Americans, the original and only “true” Americans, as well as discriminating against Latinos and Asian Americans as well, as he considers only “white” people from Europe as “true Americans”!

When and how will this crazy revival of hate and prejudice be stopped dead in its tracks?

When will the Republican Party remember the basis of their existence in the mid 19th century, when they were a party of racial equality?

Joe Biden, Despite Low Public Opinion Ratings At End Of Presidency, Will Rise In History!

Ronald 3 Comments

President Joe Biden leaves office in three days, with low public opinion ratings, despite his multitude of accomplishments in his one term of office.

This is a sad state of affairs, but clearly, the American people at large are not very knowledgeable or good at making judgments about Presidents as they leave office.

History records that Harry Truman, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Jimmy Carter left office under the cloud of negativism.

But now, Truman is generally rated 5th or 6th among all Presidents in ratings of Presidential scholars and experts.

Eisenhower is generally rated 5th or 6th among all Presidents, either ahead or behind Truman.

Lyndon B. Johnson, despite Vietnam, is rated in the bottom of the top ten, and in one survey, ahead of John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan.

Jimmy Carter is rated in the mid 20s, but it is clear his stature will rise, possibly to the bottom of the first third, or 15 Presidents.

Joe Biden has already been rated number 14 in one scholarly survey, and despite low public opinion ratings now, it seems assured he will remain in the top third or fifteen of the Presidents.

Sadly, American public opinion is ill informed and ignorant in many respects, and when it comes to being asked who are the greatest Presidents, invariably, John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan are rated at the top, not Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, and Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Many experts would say that while Kennedy and Reagan consistently are in the lower part of the top ten Presidents, that both are somewhat overrated.

So it will probably, sadly, take until Joe Biden’s life has ended, before he will be completely appreciated for all the good he did!

Jimmy Carter, The Best One Term Environmentalist President

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Jimmy Carter may have only had one term in the Presidency, but regarding environmental issues, Presidential scholars and Environmental experts agree he had the most productive one term we have seen, although it may be that Joe Biden’s one term might be seen in evaluation in the future as having surpassed Carter.

Carter put solar panels on the White House, which his successor, Ronald Reagan, had removed.

Carter put tens of millions of acres in Alaska off limits to developers, specifically 56 million acres under the 1906 Antiquities Act passed under Theodore Roosevelt.

Before he left office, he added another 100 million acres in Alaska of Wildlife Refuge under protection, an amazing accomplishment.

Carter had a great Interior Secretary, Cecil Andrus, former Governor of Idaho, who worked against the domination of mining, oil, timber, and grazing interests, and limited control of dams that could harm the health of rivers.

Also, Carter presided over the creation of the Department of Energy as a Cabinet post.

One can only imagine how much more Carter might have done had he won reelection in 1980 over Ronald Reagan.

As it is, Carter is rated as one of the top eight environmental Presidents, alongside Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden.

Murder Of United Health Care Insurance Executive Screams For Total National Health Care By Government!

Ronald 11 Comments

The sad, tragic murder of a United Health Care executive by a disgruntled young man is a cry in the night for massive reform of health care insurance.

Unfortunately, the health care industry, being so profit driven, does not do well by millions upon millions of consumers.

The Republican Party and Donald Trump are so oriented toward “unbridled capitalism” that they will not take action.

The Democrats, who were the party that promoted Medicare, Medicaid, the Affordable Care Act, and similar legislation, are instead, constantly attacked, as Republicans and conservatives continue to wish to destroy the great accomplishments of Franklin D. Roosevelt, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Barack Obama.

The argument that the United States is “better” than most European countries and Japan on health care is a massive lie, but all that needs to be said is that the nation does not want “socialism”, even though it works, and there is a more humane system in many industrial nations around the world.

The profit motive should not be the dominant factor it is in deciding who gets health care, and how they receive it!

Musk, Ramaswamy Want To Destroy Federal Programs, Must Be Prevented

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The unofficial Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), formed by Donald Trump, and headed by billionaires Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy has no government authority, but is insanely proposing cutting the federal budget by up to $2 trillion, or one third of the total government spending, purely insane in nature!

Rather than raise taxes on billionaires and millionaires, including Musk and Ramaswamy, as well as other less wealthy, but prosperous Americans, so that they pay their “fair share”, Donald Trump wants another massive trillions of dollars tax cut for the elite wealthy, similar to his massive tax cuts in 2017, and earlier ones under George W. Bush and Ronald Reagan.

About one fourth of all of the national debt of America occurred under Donald Trump in his first term, and he is ready to add trillions to the national debt while cutting important programs.

Among those being targeted are:

Veterans Health Care
Drug Development and Opioid Addiction Treatment
State Department Funding
Housing Assistance
Justice Department Funding
Education Spending
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
Health Care (Affordable Care Act, also known as Obama Care)
Federal Student Loan Program
International Security Programs
Head Start Program

Additionally, the goal is to cut the federal work force, get rid of talented and competent and experienced public servants, and hire lackeys who would do Donald Trump’s bidding, and in the process, promoting total chaos and anarchy in the federal government.

Also, some Republican members of Congress would love to get rid of Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, programs adopted under Franklin D. Roosevelt and Lyndon B. Johnson, and constantly the subject of attacks by right wing forces!

Democrats, while not the majority, must do whatever they can to prevent such outrageous actions, finding those Republicans in both houses who have principles and ethics, too few, but they are there!

This is a true existential crisis of massive proportions, and every effort imaginable must be waged to prevent such a disastrous set of circumstances that would destroy the federal government!

Our government cannot go back to “states rights”, which supposedly was resolved by the Civil War!

The Gilded Age was the late 19th century, and we cannot go back 150 years under any circumstances!

Democrats Have Cleaned Up Republican Economic Messes Since 1953!

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It is amazing how Republicans have lied incessantly for the past 70 years about the economy under Democratic Presidents, when it is such Democratic Presidents who have revived the economy after Republican Presidents managed to preside over economic recessions.

John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson presided over economic prosperity in the 1960s, after three recessions under Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Jimmy Carter presided over an economic recovery from the Recession of 1974-1975 under Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, but sadly had to deal with another short lived, six months, recession in 1980, which was one of the factors, but not the most important, in his defeat, as the only Democratic President who had an economic decline since 1953.

Bill Clinton presided over an economic recovery from the recession under George H. W. Bush in the early 1990s, having a long period of economic prosperity.

Barack Obama presided over a long economic recovery from the Great Recession of 2008-2009 under George W. Bush, over 75 months from 2010-2017.

Joe Biden presided over revival of the American economy, from a great economic recession in office in 2020 under Donald Trump, a time of dramatic economic loss due to the Covid 19 Pandemic.

While there were moments of high inflation under Joe Biden due to the aftermath of the Pandemic, as with all Democratic Presidents, there was job growth, with most jobs created under them, and the percentage under Republican Presidents being very few under Presidents Eisenhower, Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and the Bushes, and a massive job loss under Donald Trump.

These are economic facts, no matter what Donald Trump and Republicans claim to be the truth!

More Defections From Republican Party And Trump Than Ever Since 1964 And Barry Goldwater!

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The nation is witnessing more Republican Party defections from Donald Trump than from any Republican Presidential nominee in the past 60 years, since Barry Goldwater in 1964.

Goldwater, the most right wing Republican nominee ever, by comparison, is now seen belatedly as a libertarian. While definitely a right wing conservative who alienated the eastern liberal wing of the Republican Party, led by Nelson Rockeller, William Scranton, George Romney, and others, in retrospect, he was not as threatening as Donald Trump is.

Golcwater attacked the New Deal of Franklin D. Roosevelt, and spoke of defeating Communism and the Soviet Union, including escalating the Vietnam War, but he did not call for the end of the Constitution, or prosecuting critics, or deporting millions of people as Donald Trump is advocating.

And in later times, Goldwater supported Abortion Rights and Gay Rights, so clearly, dramatically different than the present MAGA Republicans who swear by tyrant Donald Trump.

Goldwater was not personally corrupt as Trump is; did not have multiple marriages and divorces; did not promote the idea of overthrowing the results of an election; and did not personally promote character assassination of his opponent, Lyndon B. Johnson.

And most importantly, in 1974, ten years after his massive Presidential defeat, as again a sitting US Senator, he went to the White House and told Richard Nixon he should resign, or would face conviction on impeachment charges.

So Barry Goldwater was a decent loyal American, unlike Donald Trump, who makes Richard Nixon look like a “choir boy” by comparison!

One can be certain that he would repudiate Donald Trump, and would not have backed him in 2016 or 2020, as well as 2024!