May 15, 2004
BETTER THAN CARTER ANYWAY:
Dukakis says Kerry would bring Truman-like style to White House (The Associated Press, 5/15/04)
Former Democratic presidential candidate Michael Dukakis said he's hoping John Kerry, should he win the presidency this fall, applies the sort of wisdom to issues like the Middle East turmoil and universal health care that Harry Truman would have in his administration.
Great, not just one of our worst presidents, but the one who--even if we agree with his action--helped cause the Middle East turmoil by recognizing the state of Israel over Secretary Marshall's strong objection. At least he was a one-termer, too unpopular to even run for re-election. Posted by Orrin Judd at May 15, 2004 7:05 PM
Come on, Truman was at least a normal man, who had run his own business, functioned as a Senator, and knew the difference between right and wrong. John Kerry doesn't fit any of those categories.
Posted by: jim hamlen at May 15, 2004 8:33 PMHe surrounded himself with crooks, didn't get us out from under the New Deal after the war and left the USSR in place.
Posted by: oj at May 15, 2004 8:41 PMOJ
Yeah, but he finished off WWII in fine style.
PS. He ended price controls in the US after the war, even though it wasn't particularly popular with his party. Those price controls caused considerable problems in Britain and Europe.
However your point is well takened. Jim is right that if I was chosing between Truman and Kerry I would take Truman.
Posted by: h-man at May 15, 2004 8:52 PM"Truman, for his part, besides his ill considered desire to maintain price and wage controls after the War"
The above quote is from your review of the Truman biography. If that is correct then I stand corrected on my assertion that he ended wage and price controls. (So maybe he was one of our worst Presidents)
My reference to ending WWII in fine style of course refers to the war in the pacific.
Posted by: h-man at May 15, 2004 9:12 PMAnd what should he have done with Israel, OJ?
Posted by: Robert Schwartz at May 15, 2004 9:31 PMTrumanesque wisdom applied to the Middle East?
Is Dukakis suggesting that we nuke the place?
Posted by: Timothy at May 15, 2004 10:45 PMI hope he's not referring to that cute "the buck stops here" slogan. But that's kind of how I read "Trumanesque" these days after the Abu Ghraib flap and the 9/11 panel where day after day the president is asked for an apology.
Kerry can't even take responsibility for falling on a ski slope or reading a speech.
Of course, Zumwalt did say Kerry was a loose cannon, so maybe the guy is talking about nuking the region.
Posted by: NKR at May 15, 2004 11:15 PMRobert:
I'm okay with recognizing Israel, but Marshall was right--it was a mistake.
Posted by: oj at May 15, 2004 11:57 PMIsn't your 'endorsement' of Marshall's position a defense of nuanced, fearful elitism over plain common sense?
Posted by: jim hamlen at May 16, 2004 10:14 PMNo, common sense would have said American security was more important than the inevitable Jewish homeland being a state and being in the Holy Lands, neither of which was inevitable.
Posted by: oj at May 16, 2004 11:26 PMOJ: You and JFK go into a corner and work this one out. I say it was God's Will, and therefore inevitable, and if it agrivated the Arabs and the Soviets, so much the worse for them.
Posted by: Robert Schwartz at May 17, 2004 4:00 AMI have no problem with a Jewish state, I'm just
afraid at the moment that we have two.