You are young. I recall very well his Presidency. First, I thought the pardon was a mistake. But then Ford did a remarkable job of restoring integrity to the office. On the economics front - his tenure was lackluster, so it was turn it over to another decent man whose tenure has been described by those more partisan than Ford as lackluster. Maybe the 1970's was a good time to be too young to remember.

One thing that can get lost in eulogizing Ford: IIRC, he used a lot of vetoes on legislation originated by Democrats, in efffect forcing a 2/3 requirement for passage. Doesn't mean he was a bad guy, but his expansiveness had limits.

Steve - I think your description of Gerald Ford is a fitting one. I was early in my college years when he served. We were all angry at Nixon and felt the pardon was wrong but time has given perspective and I think he understood that what we needed most was healing, not retribution. I don't really remember too much about his policies. I remember, as the son of a wheat farmer, hearing my father complain that he used wheat exports as a foreign policy weapon, usually at the expense of the wheat farmers.

I think we could benefit from someone as pragmatic and thoughtful as Gerald Ford in today's political climate.

Ford will be well remembered by history for getting most things right including the pardon controverisal only for the same reason the Kennedy assassination remains controversial, the conspiracy whackjobs.

The greater contribution was incidental and Kevin only hints at it. The last moderate repubican followed by the most feckless President in History set up for the 1st authenticaly conservative in History and thus the greatest economic boom, the defeat of socialism and other lefty religions, and the replacement of Kenysian economics with Supply side economics.

Who could have thought in 1981 The USSR would be gone in a decade and the majority of it's independent republics boastings flat tax rates with decade long growth rates double and triple Western Europe growth rates?

Ford was the right man at the right time.

In one of the obits, I read that not once was Ford invited to an event at the White House during the eight years of Reagan's presidency. That sort of sums up the chasm between moderate and conservative Republicanism.

(Can't forget those ludicrous "Whip Inflation Now" buttons, though. Or the New York Daily News' famous headline in the fall of '75: "FORD TO CITY: DROP DEAD.")

One more thing to consider: Had Ford not survived those two assassination attempts, Nelson Rockefeller would have become president. Think about those "Trilateral Commission conspiracy" allegations...

I do not agree that Ford's memory will be tarnished in the eyes of the Republican Party due to opinions that are out of step with the base today. Looking at the behavior of GWB and the Republican party lately, they will either ignore Fords mainstream ideas or, better yet, simply change them to suit their own needs. I can hear Bush talking about Ford in terms of the former presidents staunch support for the War on Terror and how Iraq remains the central front.

Truth be told, Ford was conservative, however, he was moderate and did not accomplish much in his short tenure. He will be coopted into the current ideology of the Republican party despite his own personal views.

The greater contribution was incidental and Kevin only hints at it.

Aaaaaaaarrrrrrgggh! Another wingnut totally misses the fact that Kevin didn't post this; Steve Benen posted it.

What is it with the reality-challenged crowd these days? They can't acknowledge anything, least of all the person who actually writes the post on the frickin' blog.

Anyway!

My question is, who is more appropriate to eulogize Ford? Obviously, Jimmy Carter is far more appropriate than any current Republican politician. And how strange is that? Were Jerry Ford serving in the US House right now, he'd be an outcast and a pariah amongst the current crop of Republicans. If Jerry Ford was a proponent of bipartisanship, the Grover Norquist/bipartisanship-as-date-rape modern GOP wouldn't let him serve in any capacity whatsoever.

How many Jerry Fords has the current GOP run out of their shrinking tent?

...the last moderate Republican president.

Of course, the elder Bush is looking moreso in retrospect (Big George is also the last living Republican ex-prez now).

These things come in threes...first James Brown, then Gerry Ford...who's next?

Place your bets.

One of Ford's sons is gay, which may or may not explain his pro-gay position.

Ford was a typical partisan during his House days. He was a kind of bromide-spouting, boosterish, Rotary Club Republican. What changed is that Republicans got the "fever" during the late 70s - extreme religiosity and/or ideology - and morphed into the grotesquerie of today. Ford was not the last of the GOP pragmatist presidents (George HW Bush has that honor), but he's the last Republican president who presided over a party that was still largely sane.

Steve Benen posted it.

Well, when they're paid per post, they tend to not spend too much time checking who wrote what or grammar.

And just echo what others have been saying, Steve, you've been doing a helluva job guest-blogging.

I'm about the same age as you and I don't have any memories of Ford other than Chevy Chase. I found it interesting that this morning on the radio, Cokie Roberts associated the death of civility in Washington with the end of Ford's presidency. Combine that with the genereal idea that the GOP veered hard right around that time, and the two seem to go hand-in-hand.

Although moderate compared to the neofascists who dominate the GOP today, Ford had one mission - to pardon Nixon. Those that say the pardon was justified are either blind partisans themselves or don't understand history. Nixon was a deeply criminal man who illegally bombed Cambodia, used the IRS to punish his enemies, cheated on his taxes, etc. He should have died in a federal penitentiary. Under the Geneva conventions, Nixon could have been tried as a war criminal.

As someone has already pointed out in this thread, Ford vetoed 66 bills in the three years he was in office and was an obstructuonist goon who dithered on the economy and left Jimmay Carter a godawful mess to clean up, as happens so often when a Democrat follows a Republican in the White House. Inflation was out of control and his WIN buttons were a joke. He basically was an ineffectual, incompetent caretaker president. I don't see that he deserves as many accolades as his wife, who has helped countless people recover from substance abuse probems.

He was an honorable, decent, humble man. There's a lot to be said for that.

He also wasn't the only person to lose an election for doing the right thing....but he might be the most obvious.

Compared to George W. Bush, Gerald Ford was an intellectual giant.

As probably the best athlete to have graced the White House, he took the SNL joke in stride.

However, a trool up thread who did not mention Kyoto, Eurarabia, the slew of 3 to 5 car garages across the land - My day is lost - Check back much later for his 87 posts on those subjects.

Ford is an unusual politician for a Repukeliscum.

Unlike most Repukeliscum after Eisenhower, he was not a criminal, nor did he commit crimes against humanity. This sets him apart from Reagan, Bush II, Bush I and Nixon.

Elect a repukeliscum, get a criminal.

"The GOP would be wise to honor Ford's tolerant, inclusive approach."

Ahem.

This comes from one of the lefty nutjobs who trashed moderate Senator Joe Lieberman for being "Republican Lite"!?

Steve Benen - try looking in the mirror, Bub!

Bits and pieces:

I wasn't too young to remember the Ford presidency, but was definitely too young to be paying attention. Have made something of a study of the Nixon-Ford years since, though.

Do have a problem with the idea that the pardon helped "heal" the country. It may or may not have been the right thing to do, but the idea that it improved divisions--or the comportment of would-be administrative thugs--isn't borne out by evidence. Indeed, all the Nixon-Ford staffers now working for Bush (I'm enjoying seeing the photo of Ford, Rumsfeld and Cheney flashed over and over today) seem to have learned only this from Watergate: There aren't many real repercussions, but next time, try not to get caught.

mr. shortstop this morning: "Wouldn't you love to see Carter show up at the funeral with his Habitat toolbelt on, and mistake W's head for a nail?" Well, yeah, that's what we all want.

Vincent's post made me laugh happily. I was just talking about those "WIN" buttons the other night. Uh, my holiday party conversation is nothing if not sparkling.

And P.S.: Enjoying your posts muchly, Steve.

Cokie Roberts associated the death of civility in Washington with the end of Ford's presidency.

Is there anyone more wrong than Cokie Roberts on a regular basis? You put her with her idiot husband and you have the ultimate Washington clueless power couple.

Civility did not end with Ford's Presidency; civility in this modern political era ended the day Tom Delay rose to the Republican leadership in the House. There was quite a bit of civility in the eras of Carter, Reagan, Bush 1 and even during Clinton's first few years; it wasn't all hate speeches, calls for killing liberals and gridlock. Things actually got done in this country, at one point, and I'm sorry but there is no great legacy that the Republicans can point to when it comes to Ford. He restored the dignity of the office and managed to hold down the fort until January 1977.

You can trace the transformation of the rabid right-wingers from marginalized purveyors of hate--like Rush Limbaugh--to Delay's ascendancy and ultimate overthrow of Newt Gingrich and the gradual acceptance of personal political destruction, which was honed to perfection in the hands of Karl Rove.

Wonder what Jerry Ford thought of Karl Rove.

"The GOP would be wise to honor Ford's tolerant, inclusive approach."

That is the truth. The current GOP has learned more from Adolf Hitler than from Gerald Ford.

Today's Repukeliscum party is revealing the truth in the old saying "Scratch a conservative, find a fascist."

I take exception to this:

Mr. Ford, who was the only person to lead the country without having been elected as president

Ahem! The Current Occupant wasn't elected either. He was appointed by, for all intents and purposes, Sandra Day O'Connor.

Ford was NOT a moderate Republican. He may look like one now, but that's only because the Republican Party has moved so dramatically to the right. (Heck, a couple more years of Bush/Cheney, and Reagan is going to look moderate, too). The moderate wing of the Republican Party at the time -- which is the only context in which you can judge him -- were people like Rockefeller and Javits, and compared to them, Ford was well to the right.

He also was not that decent a person. He was known in Congress for being a particularly spiteful, bare-knuckled type of political brawler. That's one reason Nixon chose him as vice president.

If Ford seems amiable and moderate and civil now, it's only because a) he's been out of the public eye for so long, b) time makes everyone look better, and c) his bumbling persona hid a lot of his more unsavory attributes.

Now who'll pardon Bush?

Civility did not end with Ford's Presidency; civility in this modern political era ended the day Tom Delay rose to the Republican leadership in the House. There was quite a bit of civility in the eras of Carter, Reagan, Bush 1 and even during Clinton's first few years; it wasn't all hate speeches, calls for killing liberals and gridlock.

I don't agree. I trace the rise of rightwingnutwackos to Newt and the fascist class of 1994. The central document is "Language: A Key Mechanism of Control". In this memo, Gingrich explains how to talk about Democrats. He says that words should be used which make Democrats look weird, bizarre and abnormal. It is this focus on divisiveness, all-out war and complete annialation of the enemy which has brought us to today.

He also was not that decent a person. He was known in Congress for being a particularly spiteful, bare-knuckled type of political brawler. That's one reason Nixon chose him as vice president.

I wouldn't dispute that; he rose to power in the era of Lyndon Johnson and that's how they did business between the parties in those days.

I would submit that Ford sitting in the front row for the funeral of Tip O'Neill indicates that he did not carry that spite into old age and that he represented a time when people of opposing viewpoints could actually get things done.

Here's a pretty good assessment of Ford:

Throughout his political career, Ford was fond of saying that he had "many adversaries, but not one enemy" on Capitol Hill. Despite having well-defined, strong views, Ford avoided offending opponents by force of personality, living by House Speaker Sam Rayburn's adage of "disagreeing without being disagreeable."

Ford's ability to get along facilitated his political rise. In 1965, House Republicans, alarmed by the shellacking the GOP took during the previous year's elections, figured that they needed new leadership. Aiming to oust the crusty Charles Halleck from his position as minority leader, they targeted Ford as his replacement largely because he was popular and well-liked. The coup succeeded, and Ford began a slow rise to national prominence. In 1973, after Vice President Agnew resigned, Democratic leaders such as House Speaker Carl Albert and Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield told Nixon--whose presidency was already embattled--that Minority Leader Ford was the only person who could win easy confirmation as vice president. Although the Michigan congressman was not Nixon's first choice, he knew that Ford could add respectability to his administration and repair badly damaged relations with Capitol Hill. Within a year after becoming vice president, Ford was in the White House, and during his first week in office, he addressed Congress and pledged "communication, conciliation, compromise, and cooperation." Although Ford had many legislative scraps with the heavily Democratic 94th Congress, he conducted himself congenially, which helped restore civility to post-Watergate Washington.

Ford purged partisan acrimony partly through an open leadership style. When he was still a congressman, one reporter approached him about speaking to him sometime. Ford scribbled a phone number on a piece of paper and handed it to the reporter. Thinking it was an office number, the newsman asked Ford whom he should ask for when he called. "Just ask for me," Ford replied, adding that it was his home number.

If Ford's is somebody's idea of an "obstructionist" or a "goon", then that somebody is going to have a helluva time living with American politics. Ford represented a type of moderate, technocratic Republican that I remember well from growing up in Michigan. Governors George Romney and William Milliken were two other members of the breed -- though Republicans, they were broadly popular in a heavily Democratic state.

Ford and Jimmy Carter both had the thankless task of cleaning up the fiscal and moral wreckage left by previous administrations. They had to govern at a time when a broad political concensus ran aground and splintered, after working pretty well for 40 years. We might want to pay special attention to their tenures, since it's a certainty that whoever follows the Idiot Prince will have to make many awful and unpopular decisions.

I trace the rise of rightwingnutwackos to Newt and the fascist class of 1994.

Which is when Delay was elected Majority Whip and started to strongarm legislation through the House and began to viciously attack President Clinton. You can say what you like about Gingrich, but he was no where near as nasty or as brutal as Delay. Gingrich was thrown under the bus by Delay, so I think it's more accurate to cite Delay as the focal point of the shift.

If Ford's is somebody's idea of an "obstructionist" or a "goon", then that somebody is going to have a helluva time living with American politics. Ford represented a type of moderate, technocratic Republican that I remember well from growing up in Michigan. Governors George Romney and William Milliken were two other members of the breed -- though Republicans, they were broadly popular in a heavily Democratic state.

Unlike recent Repukeliscum, he did not try to ram his religious beliefs down the throats of the American people. I don't remember his, even a single time, using religion as a club to damage his opponents. That is the operative feature of current Repukeliscum fascism - using divisive religious language to elevate your side and damage the other.

Ford was a reasonable guy. I did not agree with him, but he was not a deranged insane wacko like the Repukeliscum of today. While you didn't agree with him, you could at least understand and possibly appreciate the motivating ideas. Balanced budgets, small government, reason instead of fanatical ideology. Oddly enough, these are now Democratic Party principles.

You can say what you like about Gingrich, but he was no where near as nasty or as brutal as Delay. Gingrich was thrown under the bus by Delay, so I think it's more accurate to cite Delay as the focal point of the shift.

I really don't distinguish between them. The operative notion in the Repukeliscum of the current day is "bully". They are all bullies. Gingrich was a well-read, thoughtful bully who used language as his primary club. Delay was a much more brutal and direct thug. They are both thugs. In point of fact, there are no REpukeliscum in power today who are not bullies and thugs.

It is Kremlinology indeed to attribute to ONE PERSON what the effect of a whole COHORT is. I thus believe that the Class of 1994, with Gingrich, Delay, Armey, and 4-5 others who have brought us to our current damaged state. I agree that Delay is a prime mover. He was not the intellectual leader. He is Stalin to Gingrich's Lenin, IMHO, the truly brutal character who takes the power away from the original mover once the power is in the hands of the Bolsheviks. Without Gingrich, I don't see the Repukeliscum as having gained that power.

Gerald Ford was the last Republican I voted for happily (I voted for Reagan, but not happily.) His remarks at the outset of his presidency were pitch perfect, and utterly inspiring. Ford was emblematic of a time when the Republican Party was largely made up of sensible people. Today it's a hothouse of radicals and others who seem not to have the country's best interests at heart.

It's sad to see him go. Rest well, Mr. President.

People are being too kind to Ford. I was an adult and paying attention during his presidency (and before) and he was at best a wheelhorse of Republican orthodoxy, a party man who was ready and willing to do whatever the party desired.

As for him being so civil and non-partisan, when he was in the Congress he spearheaded a completely trummped-up attempt to impeach Supreme Court justice William O. Douglas for writing an essay called "Points of Rebellion" during the Vietnam protest era. He was carrying water for the far right in that effort against the SC, which the right had hated and fought since Brown v. the Board of Education, Griswold v. Connecticut, and a host of other decisions.

His pardoning of Nixon was more a way of clearing the decks for the Republican party and himself to go forward than any attempt to heal the nation.

He looks good only in retrospect, after Reagan and the two Bushes. Next to the current resident, he looks like Lincoln. But so would Soupy Sales (for those of you old enough to remember).

Gerald Ford's reputation benefits greatly from the disgraceful state of today's GOP and the fact that he succeeded a criminal in the White House. But before he became Nixon's hand-picked vice president (and future pardoner), Ford devoted a lot of effort to being a Republican hit man. Some of us remember his ludicrous effort to impeach Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas, mainly in revenge because Nixon had been frustrated in his efforts to place a southern conservative on the high court (Haynesworth and Carswell). Anyone recall how Ford flapped around a nudie magazine in front of the TV cameras because Douglas had published an article in it? Oh, the horror!

Steve Benen: The GOP would be wise to honor Ford's tolerant, inclusive approach.

I don't know what alternative universe you live in, but in the reality-based world (the sky is blue here), we Republicans do honor Gerry Ford as a decent, tolerant, inclusive, humble man who did a good job under trying circumstances. Please review the conservative websites and news outlets today; you won't find any snarking or complaints.

No former president, elected or not, sucked on the gov't. teat longer or harder than Ford. He maxed out every potential benefit(and they were substantial) to which former presidents are eligible. I recall reading in the late 70s that he was getting $200 worth of fresh flowers in his office every day at taxpayer expense. He had no shame.

"He was an honorable, decent, humble man...".

As has been said in another case "he had a lot to be humble about", even if he did graduate from Yale.

Mr. Ford, who was the only person to lead the country without having been elected as president...

The media just can't get this right. He was the only president who was elected neither prez nor VP, of course.

/cmdicely

And Pale Rider and POedLib, I can't believe you're not accepting Cokie's premise that uncivil political discourse began with...Jimmy Carter.

How I'd love to backhand that annoying chick. Pale Rider's assessment of her and her dumbass spouse is dead on.

Gerald Ford was the only Republican I ever voted for and would still today. He was my first vote. The man put the country's healing ahead of his own political future. As bad as Nixon was, he felt the country would be best served if the Nixon impeachment/criminality was put behind

The Cambodian Holocaust occurred during President Ford's watch and he did nothing to save millions of people the US put in harm's way. That is what I will always remember about President Ford. I have seen no mention of this on the news programs, who all seem to make Ford out to be some kind of decent man.

His pardoning of Nixon was more a way of clearing the decks for the Republican party and himself to go forward than any attempt to heal the nation.

Bingo.

And we should mention the Myth Of Reagan, which we a conscious effort to dispel the Reality Of Nixon (who continues to be the true face of the Republican party).

Obviously, Jimmy Carter is far more appropriate than any current Republican politician.

Carter is a lying fool. There are many well qualified people to euogize Ford and they'll be led by his family and GWB.

Though I'm willing to give Ford the benefit of the doubt that it was made for best of reasons, The Pardon is unpardonable.

The great lesson of Watergate was that the Rule of Law is greater than the political power of men or parties. Ford's decision to short circuit this lesson resulted in the fact that ultimately, politics went on as usual. Money rules, dirty tricks are allowed, winning is everything and there is little consequence for misdeeds. If you liked Iran-Contra, Lee Atwater, Willie Horton, McCain/Bush in SC, Karl Rove, Mellon-Scaife, the Arkansas Project, Florida in 2000 and Swiftboating, well then you probably liked The Pardon. It was our best opportunity squandered to reform the political process. I cannot forgive Gerald Ford for this.

Doc Steve said to review the conservative websites today.

I would, but Uncle Paul put a trash V-Chip on the computer.

A lot of the comments seem to say that Ford was a decent guy because he's nowhere near as deranged as the Republicans we have today.

Man, talk about defining deviancy down.

Besides, given his history as party bag-man, I have no doubt that if Ford were active in politics today, he'd be as much an obsequious toady to the wingnut elements of the party as our current versions of "moderate" and "civil" GOP politiicans like Romney and McCain.

The man put the country's healing ahead of his own political future.

How'd that work out? Do you feel "healed"? Because the rest of us feel like the GOP regrouped and came back with bigger sledgehammers of corruption and cravenness, more brazen than ever for their understanding that if they get busted, all can be forgiven. And, oh, yeah, it's probably a good idea to do whatever it takes, legal or not, to get a permanent Republican majority so we don't have to go through these unpleasant investigations next time.

Doc's got it right.

not the senator: exactly.

Steve Benen wrote: "I think it's fair to say that Ford will be remembered as a modest, decent man"

Ford will, of course, be "remembered" by most Americans in whatever way the corporate-feudalist mass media brainwashes them into remembering him. Which will probably be as a "nice guy".

What Ford should be remembered for, among other things, is giving US approval -- along with Henry Kissinger -- to Indonesian military dictator Suharto to invade East Timor in December 1975. This invasion slaughtered tens of thousands of people in Timor -- with US supplied weapons, which was illegal according to US law. It was one of the worst atrocities of the 20th century.

It should also be remembered that Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney and Paul Wolfowitz served in the Ford administration, during which time they lied to the American people about nonexistent "advanced weapons of mass destruction" that they falsely claimed the Soviet Union was developing, in order to sabotage the policy of dentente initiated by Nixon, and justify a huge US arms buildup, thereby enriching the military-industrial complex that they would subsequently work for -- a performance that they repeated in the Bush administration where they lied to Americans about nonexistent "Iraqi WMD" in order to justify their long-planned war of unprovoked aggression against Iraq.

Ford was just another Republican president whose foreign policy consisted of supporting murderous right-wing dictators, crushing popular movements for self-determination that challenged US corporate imperialism, and manufacturing fake, phony "threats" in order to justify transferring trillions of taxpayer dollars into the coffers of the corporate elites of the military industrial complex.

CITY TO FORD: WHO'S LAUGHING NOW, HUH?

rdw wrote: "Carter is a lying fool. There are many well qualified people to euogize Ford and they'll be led by his family and GWB."

No, you are a lying fool. You are by far the stupidest, toxically ignorant asshole ever to post a comment on this site, and you are unworthy to lick Jimmy Carter's boots. So go on licking Bush's boots. A scumbag licking another scumbag's boots: that's your station in life.

Since someone else brought it up - One comment about the pop-eyed know-it-all, Cokie Roberts: Her father, Hale Boggs, would be so ashamed of her if he were still alive. She has become a creepy, self-important pedant whose opinion is worth less than nothing.

There are many well qualified people to euogize Ford and they'll be led by his family and GWB.

Well, do you think the fact that they've been close friends for 25 years means anything?

Ford was a close friend of his successor, Jimmy Carter, despite the fact that Carter defeated him in the 1976 presidential election. Their friendship began in 1981, after both had left office, when they attended the funeral of Egypt's slain leader Anwar Al Sadat. Up until Ford's death, Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, visited President and Mrs. Ford's home frequently.

The cultural differences between Ford and Bush couldn't be greater. Remember,

After Nixon's resignation in 1974, Vice President Gerald R. Ford became President, and Bush was one of the two leading contenders to be appointed vice president by Ford, but he lost to the other leading contender, Nelson Rockefeller.

Do you really think Bush 43 is going to eulogize the man who chose Nelson Rockefeller over his daddy?

Saddam Hussein went after Bush's daddy and look what happened to him.

Thanks for mentioning the long-lasting friendship between Ford and Carter, PR. (They also collaborated on a number of Carter Center projects, BTW.) I was going to, but thought: why bother? It's only rdw.

SecAn: You are by far the stupidest, toxically ignorant asshole ever to post a comment on this site, and you are unworthy to lick Jimmy Carter's boots.

I was going to suggest some alternatives for this title, but you're right. He really is the stupidest and most toxically ignorant poster here. He really is.

People are being too kind to Ford. …he was at best a wheelhorse of Republican orthodoxy, a party man who was ready and willing to do whatever the party desired.

I would submit that Ford sitting in the front row for the funeral of Tip O'Neill indicates that he did not carry that spite into old age

Ford was NOT a moderate Republican

Ford vetoed 66 bills in the three years he was in office and was an obstructuonist goon who dithered on the economy

What type of Never-Never Tinkerbelle land do y’all come from?

The politics of this fair nation has been dominated by highly competitive and often spiteful bare knuckle partisan politics since…oh…about 1796.

Jerry and Tip were friends who were known to sort out the business of the House over cocktails, and then just like Wile E. Coyote and the Sheep Dog, they would take to the floor of the House and rip into each other.

The pardon was a smart if not satisfying decision. A Nixon criminal trial would have been a show trial of the first order. The deposition and discovery process alone would have tied up the Whitehouse for at least a year. A high school student in 1974, I hated Nixon and I feel my interests were best served by his exit to San Clemente.

ChrisS has got it exactly right - the end of Ford's presidency and the hegemony of the right-wing in the Republican party go hand in hand.

Do not forget - and it is curious no one has mentioned it up till now - that in 1976 Ford beat back a furious, and radical challenge by Ronald Reagan. In that field Ford was certainly a "moderate republican" - this is not simply a product of today's blurred optics. At the time Ford was the inheritor of the Eisenhower-Dircksen-Nixon (pre-Watergate) Republican Party, whose policies he'd been more or less following throughout his career. His slogan - "Governor Reagan couldn't start a war; President Reagan could" sums up only a small part of their differences. So, too, Reagan's comment that he'd consider sending troops to prop up Ian Smith's soon-to-collapse racist state in Rhodesia.

This is why wingnuts like RDW have such a hard time handling Ford's death. Ford stands for much of what the modern Republican party has spent the last thirty years railing against. In his inane teleology, the best comment he can offer is that Ford paved the way for Reagan's victory in 1980. Quite a eulogy that.

It is amazing, given what we now know about Reagan and Republicans (party discipline above all else) that Ronnie ever would have challenged a sitting president of his own party -- or that bumbling, tongue-tied Ford could possibly have beaten him.

Nonetheless, Ford's close-run victory over Reagan and his subsequent defeat by Carter cleared the way for the takeover of the party, and we've been living with the consequences ever since. Though even this wasn't inevitable.

Sorry, Keith--

I was talking about the modern era, exclusively. I did not include the illegitimate children of Grover Cleveland, the Teapot Dome scandal, the graft and corruption of the Grant Presidency, the attacks on Alexander Hamilton and his mistress, et al, because I didn't think the turmoil around those scandals and events was relevant.

Yeah, the Witless Woot really knows how to write obits.

Shorter woot: Ford died - was Ok -BUT, CARTER TERRIBLE, and REAGAN, a Giant of a man - Will spend the next half hour extolling St Ronald's virtues, then procede into Kyoto, Eurabia, why Mark Steyn is the most brilliant writer in the history of mankind; now, who were we talking about again?

And why waste time debating who will read a eulogy? That is a family decision; you know, the Ford family, the folks who just lost a husband, father, etc.

Recent protocol indicate that the current President play a part, so he will be invited to speak as a representative of the American government and its citizens, big deal.

Although moderate compared to the neofascists who dominate the GOP today, Ford had one mission - to pardon Nixon. Those that say the pardon was justified are either blind partisans themselves or don't understand history.

The pardon may have been a necessary part of the process of healing divisions, just as amnesties often are in civil wars, but even if it was necessary it was premature: some type of process of establishing the reality of accountability was needed before any consideration of pardon should have been made. If nothing else, the truth was needed before the pardon, the capacity and will to investigate and hold the President accountable was necessary; once the truth was out, the verdicts and sentence were in, then the merits of a pardon for national healing would have been ripe for consideration.

The pardon, coming when it did, by underlining the practical immunity of the President to subsequent accountability, was a reason for the subsequent excesses by later executives: including Iran-Contra and the abuses of this administration. Law that is not enforced is no law at all, and the demonstrated lack of national will to enforce the law against the President has created a condition in which the President is, in practice if not in theory, above the law, which can only be cured by a demonstration of the will to enforce the law against the President, and where the abuses will continue to reach worse and worse extremes until that will is demonstrated.

Great post, Secular Animist. Ford was no saint and his support of Suharto was supporting genocide. He also did nothing about Pol Pot, and conservatives have roundly (and rightly) criticized Bill Clinton for doing nothing about Rwanda. More selective collective memory ....

On the pardon: for what its worth. An under-appreciated commentary on its wisdom came from none other than Judge "Maximum John" Sirica, in his autobiography.

His argument was that the pardon eliminated the only possibility of establishing Nixon's guilt or innocence, impeachment having been taken off the table by the resignation. Ford's pardon preempted the legal process, an in essence enabled Nixon to remain above the law. The time for pardoning - if there was to be one - for "healing," "political reconciliation" and all that stuff would have come after a conviction.

Apologies to cmdicely - I was typing while you were posting.

Bumbling and tongue-tied?
So much for image. Ford graduated from the University of Michigan, where he played football; he was probably the most capable athlete to sit in the oval office, and he had a better education than Reagan of Eureka. But Reagan had years of Hollywood coaching behind him, and his handlers were careful to have him photographed doing things he could do. As for football, he played George Gipp, didn't he? That was the photo that got shown.
As for Chevy Chase, they're probably trying to track him down at whichever dinner theatre he's playing at--if his agent isn't speeddialing the cable news shows.

We've all got to go some time, but I think the world would be a better place if Gerald Ford had died at age 73 and James Brown was still living on until age 93.

Alas, Steve Pardis stayed away from the content of my post, which was, shall we say, rather favorably inclined towards Ford.

Perhaps more favorably inclined than his own! Calling someone "the most capable athlete to sit in the oval office" comes close to damning with faint praise - or a joke right out of The Onion or The Daily Show!

But he's exactly right: Ford would be anyone's choice for the first-string Presidential Rotisserie League football squad, and there's no equating Ford's Michigan/Yale education with Reagan's small-college experience.

None of this matters. Image trumps - which is why it is hard to believe that Ford was considered the more "electable" in 1976. Or as someone once said of RR, a B-list actor makes a better politician than an A-list politician (or words to that effect).

" (Big George is also the last living Republican ex-prez now)."

The only "ex" prez we've had was Richard Nixon. He resigned. All the others are "former".

Hmmm, Abe as QB - William Taft could play the entire defensive line - Cleveland and McKinley as guards - Ford at center - Harding as the Lustful End, a version of West Point's Lonesome End - Reagan reprising his portrayal of George Gipp, Grant at fullback - Teddy at running back - Old Hickory at safety - Nixon as the offensive coordinator calling "mis-direction and sneaky plays", Truman as a wideout on the left, GWHB as a wideout on the right - Shrub as water boy, although on academic suspension.

OK, I was a grown-up during those years and I remember Ford very well. I remember:

1.him refusing to meet with Solzhenitsyn, who had just been freed after years of prison and house arrest, because he didn't want to offend Brezhnev.

2. him refusing to meet with Walter Sipple, the Secret Service agent who saved his life, because he didn't want a photo of him shaking hands with a homosexual;

3. breaking the record deficits set by Nixon;

4. the Mayaguez disaster, when he pissed away 41 American lives that were lost AFTER the vietnamese had already agreed to return that ship because he insisted on fighting on.

Amazing how 30 years of listening to the conservative media's drumbeat of lionization of Republican presidents can turn your mind to mush. Well, I, for one, REMEMBER.

And that includes you too, Steve! If you think Ford was a "moderate Republican President", you are just plain ignorant.

The examples you cite are well AFTER he was president. WHILE he was president, James Reston, the moderate senior columnist at the New York Times, called Ford "the most conservative president since Calvin Coolidge". And no one was about to argue with that.

"Speculation as to whether there was some kind of 'deal' that may have elevated Ford in exchange for a promise to issue that pardon."

Ford was asked about it and did not deny it. This appeared in Woodword's book, for God's sake!

Steve, you are not a competent person to write this post.

The only "ex" prez we've had was Richard Nixon.

Well, if Santa brings my most-desired Christmas gift late, we'll have another.

I can't believe no one has quoted LBJ's great line about Jerry Ford: "He played too much football without a helmet." Michigan and Yale education notwithstanding, fair assessment or not, he had a lingering reputation in the House for being a bit of a dullard.

Re the pardon:

Many of these comments have the sound of the certainty of absolute right and wrong options that we normally associate with Republicans. As I recall living through that time, Ford had no "right" choice available to him: rather he had to choose the "least bad" option. It's important to remember that many Republicans felt Nixon had been given unfair treatment (as in a later case, when Iran-Contra was "just a crminalization of political differences"). Pursuing Nixon would likely have been more destructive than it was worth.

As I recall living through that time, Ford had no "right" choice available to him: rather he had to choose the "least bad" option.

Mostly agree with this statement, which is why I commented that there were arguably good reasons for a pardon. Nevertheless, the practical--and, in my opinion, intended--effect of Ford issuing a preemptive pardon a bare month after taking office was to pave the way for subsequent unchecked presidential abuses of power and flouting of the law. It's a horrible legacy, and Ford seems to have known exactly what he was doing when he chose it.

Do you really think Bush 43 is going to eulogize the man who chose Nelson Rockefeller over his daddy?

He'll do it and he will do it well. GWB has already proven his class by giving Slick Willie over the top praise for his service at the unvieling of the Clinton Presidential portrait.

The fact is that's what Presidents are required to do. Had Reagan died during the Clinton Presidency Bill would have given him the best Eulogy he and his writers were capable of giving. There is a time for partisanship. This isn't it.

First, Cokie Roberts is saying Jimmy Carter and his admin were uncivil? Because they stepped on entrenched Dem as well as GOP toes, or why?

Second, Steve gives Jerrry Ford too much credit.

A. Jerry WAS a conservative, or considered so at the time. The goalposts have been moved a fair amount in 30 years, between neocons and the rise of the religious right.

B. Pardon was wrong. Ford started his admin with one foot ethically in the hole. Made it look like a "deal" had been cooked up even if it hadn't. Made it even look like a deal had been cooked to get Ford the No. 2 job the year before.

C. Helsinki Accords? Half wrong. Perhaps it was the best we could halfway expect out of the half-senile Brezhnev, but we didn't have to publically tout them. Combine that with Ford's "no domination of Eastern Europe" statement and that probably cost him the election right there.

RDW have such a hard time handling Ford's death.

I don't have a hard time at all. Ford was a great man who served his country with class and distinction. He lived a long and very full life with a great family and obviously full of friends. As far as being moderate I suspect everyone here is forgetting his choices as Chief of Staff and Defense Secretary. That would be Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld. Now that's a moderate legacy!

As far as his Presidency it's clear that aside from the pardon his was but a transitional period leading to the Carter debacle and then the magnificant period that started in 1981. National Malaise indeed.

The most interesting thing about the pardon is the comparison between the hysterics of the day from the twits on the left versus the overwhelming consensus today that Gerald Ford showed great courage and wisdom in doing the right thing at the right time at great political expense to himself.

rdw: "There is a time for partisanship. This isn't it."

Like for instance your stupid, ignorant, sneering attack on Jimmy Carter, you despicable, hypocritical scumbag.

rdw wrote: "GWB has already proven his class ..."

Bush proved his "class" by lying to the American people about a nonexistent "threat" from nonexistent "Iraqi weapons of mass destruction" in order to deceive them into supporting a long-planned war of unprovoked aggression that has killed tens of thousands of innocent Iraqi civilians and more Americans than died in the 9/11 attacks, all for the benefit of his ultra-rich cronies and financial backers in the oil corporations.

Gerald Ford was an enabler of the mass murderer Suharto, who killed tens of thousands of Timorese civilians with US-supplied weapons.

Ronald Reagan was a mass murderer whose terrorist wars, funded with money that he begged from Middle Eastern oil dictatorships, or got by selling weapons to Iran, killed tens of thousands of innocent people in Central America.

George W. Bush is a mass murderer who has killed tens of thousands of innocent Iraqis.

And you are a disgusting cheerleader for mass murderers.

At least you can look forward to death -- when you arrive in Hell you can lick Ronnie's boots.

pardon........ was a reason for the subsequent excesses by later executives:

That's Silly. Bill Clinton did not decide it was OK to lie under oath because he'd get pardoned anyway. In fact Slick Willie knew better than anyone that pardon by Ford cost him the election and thus pardons in the future were LESS LIKELY rather than more likely.

Dragging NIxon thru the mud would have served no positive purpose. The truth of his character came out and History has marked him appropriately. Fords decision wasn't just brave but it was wise as well. The circus at that point was more than a year old. It was time to end.

I was in first grade in the fall of 1976 at a private school in Westchester County, and one of the Rev. Sun Myung Moon's sons was a classmate of mine. I recall that we had some heated political debates on the schoolyard that season. These consisted of his shouting "Ford!"; my shouting "Carter!"; repeat ad infinitum.

rdw wrote: "... the overwhelming consensus today that Gerald Ford showed great courage and wisdom in doing the right thing at the right time at great political expense to himself."

That is no doubt the "overwhelming consensus" of delusional right-wing nutcases who wallow in toxic ignorance, like you. It is not the consensus of the American people.

Ford made a deal with Nixon, through Alexander Haig, that Nixon would resign if Ford agreed beforehand that once he became President he would pardon Nixon. The pardon was corrupt from the beginning. As others have noted, it prevented Nixon from being held accountable for his numerous crimes and it laid the groundwork for the "imperial president above the law" approach that led to the Iran-Contra crimes of Ronald Reagan, and which Rumsfeld and Cheney brought to the present Bush regime.

You are nothing but a sycophantic worshipper of criminals and murderers.

he had a lingering reputation in the House for being a bit of a dullard.

Standard treatment for a conservative in the MSM. Jerry was only an All American athelete and a success in everything he did having reached the pinnacle of political power. But he's the dullard. It takes a high level of stupid to believe that. You must be an intellectual.

why Mark Steyn is the most brilliant writer in the history of mankind

I never said that. But he is funny. Read 'America Alone' and you will understand why GWB had so distinctly moved the USA away from Western Europe. In fact read todays WSJ editorial page and you'll just get a slice of the longstanding treachery practiced by France against the USA in the Middle East for a period of over two decades.

You people have no idea of the thoroughness of the case made by the WSJ against France. It isn't that we're no longer allies. They are our enemy.

rdw: Dragging NIxon thru the mud would have served no positive purpose.

Perhaps we should say the same about other criminals. Why bother with the expense of trials and imprisonment? Let history decide about that guy who stole your car.

Perhaps we should say the same about other criminals.

The President isn't some other criminal.

rdw: France [is] our enemy.

And they've got WMD's! When do we invade?

rdw wrote: "Dragging NIxon thru the mud would have served no positive purpose."

Wrong, you disgusting bootlicker. Holding Nixon accountable for his numerous, grave crimes against the American people would have established that presidents are not above the law and that criminal actions by a president are intolerable and will be punished under law. This would likely have prevented the bloody crimes of Ronald Reagan in the Iran-Contra conspiracy from ever taking place.

rdw: "Fords decision wasn't just brave but it was wise as well."

It was neither "wise" nor "brave". It was a cynical and corrupt decision to hide the full extent of Nixon's criminality from the American people. It ensured that although Nixon was removed from public office, the totalitarian gangsterism that he engaged in would rise again -- as it did, in the administrations of Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush.

rdw: "The circus at that point was more than a year old. It was time to end."

It was not a "circus". It was the investigation of -- which should properly have led to the indictment, prosecution and conviction for -- the numerous grave crimes that Richard M. Nixon committed against the American people.

Of course, that's the sort of investigation that right-wing brownshirt scum like you always think "should end" with the Republican criminals being let off the hook.

As opposed to the SEVENTY MILLION DOLLAR so-called "investigation" of the nonexistent "Whitewater scandal" by a corrupt, partisan Republican prosecutor who was the bought-and-paid-for agent of neo-fascist right-wing extremist billionaires like Richard Scaife, for the purpose of destroying Bill Clinton's highly successful and popular presidency.

You people have no idea of the thoroughness of the case made by the WSJ against France. It isn't that we're no longer allies. They are our enemy.

Not that this is anything new. Reminds me of a great line by greatest WWII General. "I'd rather have a German division in front of me than a French division behind me"

rdw: The President isn't some other criminal.

I see. Some ne'er-do-well who steals your car is a real criminal. But if you're elected to the highest office in the country, we have lower standards.

When do we invade

Too late. They are already under attack.

You people have no idea of the thoroughness of the case made by the WSJ against France. It isn't that we're no longer allies. They are our enemy.

Whoa, one war is enough, there, stud. Think we should finish the war we're in before we send five divisions racing towards the Left bank of the Seine?

Why are they helping us in Afghanistan?

Why are they helping us to enact punishing sanctions against Iran?

Typical rdw--the opinion page of the WSJ is notoriously fact free and meant to serve as chum thrown in the water for sharks like yourself.

for the purpose of destroying Bill Clinton's highly successful and popular presidency

Don't take it out on me. He lied under oath. He admitted it. He lost his license to practice law, paid a fine and paid Paula $800K. History will record he was impeached on merit.

On the pardon - someone at the time asked if you would really want to trust someone who had no opinion about Watergate in 1974 or 75 with the responsibility of sitting on that jury. The trial would have been a circus, and the country was better off not going through it. As a politician, I suspect Ford knew Nixon had already gotten the worst punishment a politician can draw - infamy as long as American history is remembered.

I'm not sure what anyone here expected Ford to do about the Cambodian holocaust - invasion wasn't on the table and the Khmer Rouge was pretty impervious to diplomatic pressure. He was similarly powerless to do much about inflation - the fiscal policies and the first of the oil shocks had already hit the system and there wasn't much left but to let them work through.

The greenlight on East Timor was shameful, but come on - one of the worst atrocities of the 20th Century? I'm not sure it makes the top 10 of a very bloody era.

I often wonder how different the last 30 years would have been if he'd squeaked past Carter. The late '70's were going to be pretty unpleasant no matter who was President. In 1980 the Democrats could have won with almost anyone, as the GOP did with Reagan, who was considered a real stretch at the time. Would have made for very different subsequent history.

Bill Clinton did not decide it was OK to lie under oath because he'd get pardoned anyway.

Nor do I consider that an "excess", an abuse of executive power, which is why it wasn't on the list of abuses that were enabled by that pardon.

In fact Slick Willie knew better than anyone that pardon by Ford cost him the election

I suspect that Bill "Its the economy, stupid" Clinton may have a rather different idea than you do about what caused Ford to lose the election, and might attribute that more to inflation and Ford's perceived (and actual) lack of a program to deal with it rather than the pardon of Nixon.

thus pardons in the future were LESS LIKELY rather than more likely.

The issue isn't whether pardons where more or less likely in the future, but whether the will to hold the President accountable for abuses of office existed, which could have been demonstrated had the pardon not been issued prematurely (whether or not it was later issued).

Were I to point to effects on the Clinton administration, though, I wouldn't point to the Lewinsky affair or anything connected to it, I would point to the complete absence of any consequences for what was much more defensibly labelled as an abuse of office, the war against Yugoslavia waged not only without authorization by Congress but in the face of clear opposition from Congress.

Dragging NIxon thru the mud would have served no positive purpose.

Prosecuting Nixon for his abuse of the power of his office and his attempts to subvert the democratic process and Constitutional government would have demonstrated that such abuses would not be tolerated.

Fords decision wasn't just brave but it was wise as well.

Ford's decision was neither was nor brave.

The circus at that point was more than a year old. It was time to end.

It wasn't a circus. It was righteous indignation at an attempt to subvert the government of the United States. The time for it to end was when the conspiracy was revealed and torn out root and branch and the guilty identified and convicted in courts of law. Then they could be sentenced and/or pardoned as the interests of justice and national concerns directed.

rdw wrote: "In fact read todays WSJ editorial page ..."

The Wall Street Journal editorial page is corporate-sponsored, right-wing extremist propaganda for weak-minded, ignorant, gullible idiots like you to read and regurgitate. It's pablum for the brownshirt moron brigade. It's a load of crap. It's no wonder that you are so stupid and ignorant when you wallow in that cesspool every day.

Can't fault RDW, our house Hegelian, for his consistency: Ford is notable (aside from his personal attributes - great family, friends, class, etc.) as the prelude to Reagan.

Makes you wonder what RDW would have said in '76 when Ford had the temerity to pointedly criticize the R-god's shortcomings. Given how he responds here to anyone rude enough to question Bush, I suspect he wouldn't have been nearly as charitable as he is towards the now-deceased Ford.

One other point - as for pardons being less rather than more likely, this would come as something of a surprise to Bush One, who felt not the least bit encumbered from handing out midnight pardons to Cap the Knife and others implicated in the Iran-Contra fiasco. That's the beauty of teleologies: the grand scheme doesn't require the dreamer to deal with messy evidence. Faith-based history...

Reminds me of a great line by greatest WWII General. "I'd rather have a German division in front of me than a French division behind me"

That was Patton, and his remarks were tempered by the fact that, in World War I, the exhausted French divisions were unable to fully support the newly-arrived US divisions.

Oh, and Patton was not only fluent in French, the French served in his honor guard at his funeral:

On December 24, 1945, General George S. Patton Jr. was buried in the cemetery with full military honors. The cortege arrived at the cemetery at 10 a.m. Serving as Honor Guard was an American Battalion consisting of troops of the 1st Infantry Division, the 4th Armored Division, the 9th Infantry Division, and the 2nd U.S. Cavalry Division. Also serving as Honor Guard were troops from the 146th and 151st French Infantry Regiments, and troops from the Luxembourg and Belgian Armies.

A little history wouldn't hurt you, Wooten. You're not gonna find any facts on the editorial page of the WSJ and you're certainly not going to find any credible citation of history there, either.

Why are they helping us in Afghanistan?

They're not. IN typical French fashion their tiny 200 man contingent is prohibited from any dangerous zones.

It's Classic.

This is one reason why I keep telling you they would be useless in a war zone. They have no experience. They have neither the will nor the means to do battle.

Henry Hyde slipped up and said out loud that the impeachment of Clinton was just payback for Nixon being forced out of office in disgrace. Clinton was the first two-term Democrat to be elected since Nixon, so he was the one.

That's what I look for in a politician, lemme tell ya. Not a sense of advocacy, not a sense of fiscal responsibility, and cetainly no sense of accountability or fair play. No. I look for bloodthirsty thugs who are never sorry for their sins; only that they got caught committing them. I want a politician who lives to extract payback on those with the audacity to expect accountability, even if it means punishing the next generation.

Friend of Labor: "That's the beauty of teleologies: the grand scheme doesn't require the dreamer to deal with messy evidence. Faith-based history"

rdw is a delusional right-wing extremist crank, whose main stock in trade here is singing the praises of mass murderers like Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush, and regurgitating the comically phony propaganda that he soaks up from the editorial page of the Wall Street Journal, Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, et al.

rdw: GWB has already proven his class

Marian Fontana met G.W.Bush on the first anniversary of 9/11. He was told that her fireman husband had been killed in NYC that day and that 9/11 was also her wedding anniversary.

Bush responded. "I guess that's like the double whammy."

the opinion page of the WSJ is notoriously fact free

They have 2M readers who know better plus they are constantly cited by Fox, Talk Radio and all over the web. They have produced catalogues of UN and French treachery in great detail over a long period of time. This is very influencial stuff and more than any other reason, why public support for both the UN and France is so deep in the toilet.

You are of course unaware of many of the convictions on the food for palace scandal as well as several scandals within the Annan family.

if it means punishing the next generation.

The next generation wasn't puunished. Slick Willie was punished. He lied. He got caught and HE was punished. He lost his law license and paid a fine. He was impeached. All well that ends well.

Pale Rider: Typical rdw--the opinion page of the WSJ is notoriously fact free and meant to serve as chum thrown in the water for sharks like yourself.

rdw, a "shark"? Come on, he's cute. Kind of like a rabid guppy.

..i have to laugh at the many stories today (a-p, fox both print and radio) that reference ford being a common man....

because he made his own english muffins....

too funny..

Alex: I can see him, snarling and bumping his head against the side of his three-treasure-chest fishbowl.

They're not. IN typical French fashion their tiny 200 man contingent is prohibited from any dangerous zones.

Oh, brother...

36,000 French troops are deployed overseas, including 13,000 participating in crisis management operations.

A significant number of French troops are deployed overseas. Basically, they serve two main purposes: pre-positioning requirements and crisis management operations. For this later course of action, French troops are participating in world stabilization mandated by UN resolutions as part of NATO, EU or coalitions. Those actions are currently taking place in Afghanistan, Africa, the Balkans and Lebanon.

With numerous troops overseas, France is a strong US partner in advancing security throughout the world. As an example, the 7,600 French troops in the Caribbean area and Guyana play a major role in countering drug trafficking alongside the US Joint Inter Agency Task Force South. Another example is found with the 10,000 French forces, which are present in the Pacific region and the Southern Indian Ocean where they are controlling sea lanes, notably through the French contribution to Task Force 150.

With more than 1,900 troops, France is also a major US partner in Afghanistan where in particular French fighter aircraft are presently providing close air support to both the NATO International Security Assistance Force and the American-led Operation Enduring Freedom.

Then rdw upchucks again and reveals just how ignorant he really is (probably because he's read that Powerline article on how the French are going to withdraw from Afghanistan at some point).

This is one reason why I keep telling you they would be useless in a war zone. They have no experience. They have neither the will nor the means to do battle.

The French army is full of combat veterans from operations in West Africa:

Ivory Coast: France has had for years a permanent military presence in Ivory Coast, under the terms of a defense agreement with that country. In the fall of 2002, under the terms of a United Nations resolution, France deployed around 4,000 troops to protect foreign civilians and prevent a civil war. After the deployment of a UN peace keeping force (ONUCI) and a new resolution of the UNSC, their current mission consists of protecting non-combatant foreigners and supporting UN forces in charge of monitoring the ceasefire and assisting the parties in undertaking DDR (Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration);

Africa :1,300 troops in Chad and 200 in the Central AfricanRepublic contribute by their presence, at the invitation of both governments, to the stability of these countries and to the training of their armed forces for peace-keeping operations;

For years, France has been involved in operations in Africa, hence contributing to international security and stability. 5,000 French troops are stationed in Djibouti, Gabon and Senegal under bilateral agreements.

Oh, and they're helping us in the Balkans so that frees up more US personnel for operations in Iraq in Afghanistan:

Kosovo: with 2,100 personnel, France is the third largest contributor to this NATO operation, after Germany and Italy;

Bosnia-Herzegovina : 400 French troops are deployed under the EU flag of mission Althea ;

Clearly, you are the stupidest and least well-read wingnut who ever set foot on the face of the Earth, and that's saying a great deal.

Pale Rider wrote: "A little history wouldn't hurt you, Wooten. You're not gonna find any facts on the editorial page of the WSJ and you're certainly not going to find any credible citation of history there, either."

rdw isn't interested in "facts" or "credible citations of history". Look how he responds to them when they are posted here -- he invariably launches into a prolonged non sequitur, ranting about some unrelated subject.

I take this to be evidence of his actual mental illness. When confronted with a reality that challenges his delusions, he runs away from it into some other delusion.

He posts the same tiresome lies again and again, and when they are conclusively refuted he simply posts them again.

What he wants, and gets, from the WSJ, and Fox News, and Rush Limbaugh, is not "facts" and information. It is confirmation of his delusional world. And of course he always gets it, because it's a delusional world that they created in the first place, for their army of weak-minded ignorant dittohead dupes, like rdw.

People like rdw need someone to hate -- in his case, it is the usual right-wing targets: the French, Jimmy Carter, and above all, "liberals". I expect this need arises from (probably appropriate) painfully low self-esteem that can only be assuaged by feeling superior to someone else. rdw needs to feed on right-wing propaganda to maintain his ability to sneer at someone like Jimmy Carter as "that simple bastard" while proclaiming his own shockingly ignorant self "the smartest of the smart".

Oh, well. On a public comment board, you're inevitably going to have some idiotic crank spewing offensive bullshit to impress himself with his superiority. And at present on Political Animal, we've got rdw.

Global Citizen: I can see him, snarling and bumping his head against the side of his three-treasure-chest fishbowl.

Mental images like that make me really wish I could draw cartoons.

Don't confuse Wooten with facts, Pale Rider.

the exhausted French divisions were unable to fully support the newly-arrived US divisions.

Are they just as exhausted in Afghanistan? It's funny how that happens isn't it. And keeps happening!

No more my friend. They'll never again get anything more than the trivial, insulting support they've offered the USA in return.

The WSJ is quite good and quite honest. They've destroyed Kofi and showed us the immense incompetence and corruption at the UN. Read tday's pages and you'll understand the level of treachery from France.

The liberal media won't refute it. They won't cover it. Not a problem. This isn't 1992. We now get all of the news. I can't wait to hear a liberal politician propose a re-engagment with the French and/or Western Europe. It would be suicide. IN fact, as you do know, they study polls. The polls are saying, "Don't even think about it". They won't.

Come on, he's cute. Kind of like a rabid guppy.

He's notoriously fact free as well.

What's funny abour rdw and his disgusting bile is that Carter will be treated quite well by history, whereas King Buttfuck will be considered the WORST we have ever had.

Think of it, rdw: a liberal way higher on history's list than King Buttfuck. Makes my day.

Oh you useless little man. You are so pathetically ignorant of history it flabbergasts me. Have you any idea what Europe had been through by the time the US got involved?

Your perfidy is staggering in scope.

Oh, well. On a public comment board, you're inevitably going to have some idiotic crank spewing offensive bullshit to impress himself with his superiority.

I thank you for that kind sentiment, and I wonder if I could trouble you for a bit of respect the next time I use these threads to foment rebellion against the evils of liberalism?

Do not cast such horrible stones at little rdw--he is attempting to communicate the facts as he sees them to an elite, effete, and ineffectual band of tired old liberal hippies who think the Trilateral Commission and Richard Perle are going to get into a black SUV and drive through the parking lot of their apartment complex, listening to their thoughts with an NSA-designed MindReader3000.

I raised about $35,000 for Jerry Ford in 1976 and attended the convention with a young lady whose name escapes me. As I recall, she regaled a room full of campaign workers with her ability to do the splits three different ways and pick up a Whip Inflation Now button off of a linoleum floor with the business end of her [I dare not say what as I would likely run afoul of the censors, but it rhymes with hoo hoo!]--not an easy thing to do in the days before Spandex.

Ford will be well remembered by history for getting most things right including the pardon controverisal only for the same reason the Kennedy assassination remains controversial, the conspiracy whackjobs.

Bullshit. Ford will be remebered as the nice guy that started the trend amoung the Washington elite of not holding Republicans accountable for their crimes. When you don't hold people, or Partys or ideologies accountable they go on to commit greater and greater crimes. Ford allowed the GOP to matastisize into the virulent right wing cancer it is today. Bush and his horrible ideas is the end product and McCain is the escalation of Bush.

I personally am glad to see the repukelinazi scum still here. I think of you guys and the devastating destruction that you suffered on Nov 7, and it makes me feel good all over again.

I have printed up little notes like that, and now, when I see a car with a "W" sticker, I put a little note under their windshield. After all, now that you fucking morons had your butts kicked in the worst defeat suffered by a losing party in maybe 100 years, you need to be reminded of that fact. So, that's what I am doing - gloating.

And, you know what? It is gonna be MUCH MUCH WORSE in 2008. You will lose the WH, and you will lose 4-5 MORE SENATE seats.

to an elite, effete, and ineffectual band of tired old liberal hippies

Go Cheney yourself Norman. I'm 36. Your arrogance and clueless confidence knows no bounds. You're typical of the minds that have led us into Iraq and making America lose the war against al-Qaeda and radical islamists.

Time for new minds to lead America.

I have printed up little notes like that, and now, when I see a car with a "W" sticker, I put a little note under their windshield. After all, now that you fucking morons had your butts kicked in the worst defeat suffered by a losing party in maybe 100 years, you need to be reminded of that fact. So, that's what I am doing - gloating.

You beast!

You put one of your notes on my vehicle, didn't you? I panicked and had an episode! I pressed the alarm button on my OnStar system and they immediately dispatched a New Hampshire state policeman who took down a report and placed your note in a cellophane bag! And the paramedics they sent told me I very nearly had a coronary!

Soon, and very soon, you will be held accountable for your dastardly trick, sir! And when you do, you'll have me to thank for it!

You...you...beast!

[goddamn it, censors, why must you torment me? Your uncle Norman wants to unload on these little shits...]

Uncle Norman, you must calm yourself before you do yourself a greivous injury. And without you to set us straight, whatever would we do?!?!?

Nemesister:

Go Cheney yourself Norman. I'm 36. Your arrogance and clueless confidence knows no bounds. You're typical of the minds that have led us into Iraq and making America lose the war against al-Qaeda and radical islamists.

No, Nancy Pelosi wants to welcome Usama bin-Laden to Washington and let him address a joint session of Congress so he can air his grievances--that's what is costing us this war. Democrats want to surrender and pray for mercy while the Republican Party stands as the lone sentry against the horrors of terrorism and Islamofascism.

Thirty-six? I have hats older than you, son. Hats with brims on them. Hats that serve a purpose. You serve hash brownies to your homies and watch that Kutcher fellow play his little punked pranks on good people, do you not? You serve Red Bull and trucker speed to your gal pals and make pilgramages over to Vermont so you can gaze slackjawed up at the front door of that fellow Trey Anastasio and pray that he flings a garbage bag full of memorabilia over the fence so you'll go away. [sorry if that's too local for you, but I spent the holiday in Burlington over the weekend--ick! Too many hirsute liberals and far too many people wearing socks with sandals]

Time for new minds to lead America.

Preferably, they will be strong young Republican minds and not minds that are fried and damaged from overexposure to hipping hopping music, boobies, confused dope fiends, sugar water and The Jamie Kennedy Experiment.

Nancy Pelosi wants to welcome Usama bin-Laden to Washington and let him address a joint session of Congress so he can air his grievances

Well, Festivus is over for this year, but maybe we can hoist him on the Aluminum Pole next year and he can be agrieved about that, too.

And hell, if Nancy lured him in to address congress, at least we would know where the fuck he is, and we could arrest him.

Preferably, they will be strong young Republican minds and not minds that are fried and damaged from overexposure to hipping hopping music, boobies, confused dope fiends, sugar water and The Jamie Kennedy Experiment.

I see you have been consorting with Mark Foley. He likes strong Republican minds, and long firm Republican penises.

You guys are all a bunch of disgusting perverts. Get your fucking mind out of the gutter, you pervert.

Hormonal Citizen:

And hell, if Nancy lured him in to address congress, at least we would know where the fuck he is, and we could arrest him.

Bah! You liberals would fete that tall freak downtown at McCormick & Schmick's and pick up his bar tab (cheapskates that you are, of course you'd pick up the bar tab of a devout Muslim who doesn't drink!)

I made a funny! Bwah hah hah hah!

Hell, Normie, bin Laden's a devout Muslim the way Bush is a devout Christian: when the cameras are on.

Short drop:

bin Laden's a devout Muslim the way Bush is a devout Christian: when the cameras are on.

You and your little dog Toto are going to rue the day you ever gave me a fresh round of back talk.

Uncle Norman, take your pill. your temple-vein is throbbing. Calm youself, or I shall get the injection ready.

Do not cast such horrible stones at little rdw--he is attempting to communicate the facts as he sees them to an elite, effete, and ineffectual band of tired old liberal hippies

It's not original, but needs saying: everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts.

Hormonal Citizen:

Uncle Norman, take your pill. your temple-vein is throbbing. Calm youself, or I shall get the injection ready.

Say again? I couldn't hear your yip-yip-yip over short drop's complaining.

Doc: I do remember Soupy Sales. I watched him everyday when I was a child in the fifties. The bow tie, the hat, the cork in the wall. My brother gave me Soupy DVD for Christmas. White Fang, Black Tooth.

not the senator: Amen.

cmdicely: You stole my thunder but with better language.
Friend of Labor (and others): I agree

I was quite angry about the pardon. I feel it caused a lot of division in the country. It showed that politicians were above the law. There should have been a trial. This is the American way. We bring our grievances to the court. Both sides have a chance to air and rebut testimony and evidence. A judge or jury decides guilt or innocence and there is (usually) a public record left for history. If the country needed a pardon it should have come after the trial verdict.

rdw wrote: "The President isn't some other criminal."
You're right. President Nixon was a much bigger criminal than most of us ever have the misfortune to meet.

No don't be coy, Uncle Norman. You know full measure what the Doctor said, and why he gave me the prescription for the injectible lorazepam, and not you.

Wake up, mods--Charlie now posting as Al in Prager thread.

It showed that politicians were above the law

No it didn't. Presidential Pardons are part of the law. The legality of the pardon was never questioned.

Carter will be treated quite well by history

Mr. National Maliase was a disaster and will be remembered as a disaster. He turned Iran over to the mad mullahs and they've been a dosaster ever since. He left double digit inflation, unemployment and interest rates a 444 day hostage crises and a Soviet Union which treated him with total contempt.

What's more, of all the Presidents, including Nixon, he's the least liked as a person. He's a bitter, interefeering ego-maniac. His role in North Korea was a dosaster for him, Clinton and the USA. He's a fool.

Have you any idea what Europe had been through by the time the US got involved

What's the point? Current day French treachery has zero to do with WWI or WWII. Current Day Western European Military weakness has zero to do with WWII.

If you read America Alone and/or any of the recent histories of European military spending and activity combined with their economic performance you can see the future is bleak. They've reduced their spending and with weak economic growth and growing welfare state demands military spending will continue to shrink. This EU force is and can only be a bureaucratic boondoggle.

We saw this in Kosovo. This was a European mess caused by a low rent tyrant and the European powers were totally powerless. They were unable to do a thing. Nothing happened until the US, against the wishes of the UN, stepped in.

That will not happen again. European military problems will be solved by Europeans or they will not be solved.

France to pull troops from Afghanistan

By ELAINE GANLEY, Associated Press Writer
Sun Dec 17, 11:52 AM ET

PARIS - France is to withdraw its 200-strong special forces from Afghanistan, all of its ground troops engaged in the U.S anti-terror operation there, authorities announced Sunday.

rdw wrote: He's a fool.

No, rdw. Jimmy Carter is not a fool. You are a fool. You are an ignorant dumbass. You have nothing to offer but slavish regurgitation of the scripted propaganda that is spoon-fed to weak-minded, ignorant brownshirt dupes like yourself by the right-wing propaganda machine.

This site has seen a parade of stupid, know-nothing right-wing dumbasses arrogantly spouting idiotic bullshit, and you are the most pathetic of the lot. You are worthless garbage and the comments you post here are worthless crap.

And now that the right-wing extremist Republicans have been driven from the Congress, and the majority of state legislatures and governorships, by the overwhelming rejection of the American people, you are also irrelevant. Just a doddering old crank, muttering to himself about the awful French, and that fool Carter, and the wicked pinko liberals, and the great hero Ronald Reagan Who Single-Handedly Defeated Communism, and the savior of the world George W. Bush, as you fade into terminal irrelevance.

It is very sad to see a mind destroyed by right-wing propaganda. But you chose that fate willingly, so it is what you deserve.

Global citizen, etal

A bit off thread but cool. The Chester County (PA) comissioners recently approved the use of $3.3M in county funds to assist in the conservation of 13 projects totalling 864 acres.

These funds are being levered with other private and public funds to complete these transactions. This has become a regular occurance in this region as well as across America.

All of the public funds were raised with voter approval of dedicateds taxes which have not been sunsetted. It's a terrific example of America getting greener.

I wrote at 2:53PM: rdw isn't interested in "facts" or "credible citations of history". Look how he responds to them when they are posted here -- he invariably launches into a prolonged non sequitur, ranting about some unrelated subject.

rdw at 6:02PM: A bit off thread but cool. The Chester County (PA) comissioners recently approved ...

"A bit off thread" -- for a discussion about Gerald Ford?

No, it's not "a bit off thread". It is exactly what I predicted earlier -- it's a total non sequitur, in response to your falsehoods and delusions being completely demolished.

Or maybe it's in response to my mention of the result of the 2006 elections, in which your right-wing extremist Republican Fascist Party suffered a historic defeat, and the overwhelming rejection by the American people.

Only people like you, with irreversible brain damage and permanent cognitive impairment from too much exposure to Fox News, support them any more.

Global Citizen:

Two reviews. I made the point previously the alternative press isn't just profitable but it's flourishing. America Alone is at the top of the charts and this book will join Mark Steyn's. It's about Reagan, Thatcher and Pope John doing exactly what the liberal intelligencia was preaching not to do.

*********************************

John O'Sullivan's The President, the Pope, and the Prime Minister gets a rave review today in the Wall Street Journal.

BTW — in case you missed it — Michael Knox Beran reviews JOS's book in the current NRODT and calls it "dazzling."

*******************************************

BTW: The uber liberal newspaper from Minnesota the Star Tribune was just sold for $530M less than 50% the price the previous owners paid 8 years ago. I think it's fair to surmise they didn't buy it to lose money and major force reductions are coming.

When you consider the rapid media changes of the last 15 years it's just stunning. Mark Steyn doesn't give a rats ass if the New York Times reviews his book or not. He's got the bestseller without them. The NYTs won't Review O'Sullivan book either but the 2M readers of the WSJ will read this praise.

Books, talk radio, blogs, etc. It's a different world.

in response to your falsehoods and delusions being completely demolished.

Not one of my posts has been remotely discredited.

My 'facts' on Chester County support my previous point that the USA is by far the greatest nation in the history of civilization especially regarding managing the environment.

The story in the Daily Local newspaper is typical of our capitalist system in marshalling our amazing wealth toward environmental improvements. I am very, very fortunate to live in an area that is loaded with open spaces many of which will be open spaces forever thanks to decades of efforts at creating tax incentives and a series of public/private partnerships in creative ways to se aside land and invest in resource improvements.

The advantages the USA has over everyone else are multiple:

1. amazing wealth.

2. amazing financial creativity.

3. a tax system designed to keep the wealth in private hands.

4. a tax system designed to incent the very sucessful to use their wealth and great minds toward maximizing environmental investments.

It's quite stunning when you think about it. I'd like to recommend you visit the Delaware Watershed's website to see a regional example of how advanced we are in the USA. This eco-system is the cleanest, healthiest it's been in over 150 years. I've been fishing in the Delaware Bay and Atlantic and I've been able to see the water get clearer almost each year and the steady rise in fish counts confirms the success.

I'll also recommend the NJ Fish and Game commission. Over the last many years they've created 8 artificial reefs off the cost 2 of which are newer and uncharted while they study how quickly fish embrace the new habitat (quickly) and if / how often they travel from one reef to another. This being America, land of constant innovation and improvement, you just know the current reef structures will be greatly enlargesd as private donations roll in and the Commission will open more reefs.

I also happen to know the State of PA has a very extensive research project underway in cooperation with the State university system to improve the methodology of replacing old strip mines with high quality forests as well as the re-introduction of the famous American Chestnut and Elm trees. As you know America's forests are expanding and there are more trees in the USA today than at any time in the last 200 years. PA is making serious strides to keep that trend long lasting.

I have to just laugh at the twits trying to sell Al Gore as an intellectual. His movie is a joke. It's utterly pathetic. You fools are showing it in classrooms to brainwash the kids. Except it can only work of it's correct. Except he's so perposterous in his predictions reality
is going to teach these kids to ignore academics and the entire global warming crowd for being total fools.

I pride myself on being a scholar of the Nixon years. No one who protested the war felt that Gerald Ford pardoned Mr. Nixon for the good of the country. Conversely, there appeared to be some sort of complicity, a long-standing friendship between the two, a loyalty, perhaps consciously or unconsciously emanating from previous engagements, favors, appointments, kinship, being Republicans, whatever...
They have already started the revisionist history in 2006. Some of us might have to write a book.

Perhaps RDW could explain why the Passenger Pigeon, Carolina Parakeet, and numerous other species were driven to extinction in the "greatest nation in the history of civilization especially regarding managing the environment." What a moron.

Deny global warming the very day they admit that the polar ice caps are shrinking and making the polar bear a threatened species. Good show.

Yep, another opportunity cost of war--global warming. Our government ignores the environment.

Ford did a remarkable job of restoring integrity to the office pgl at 8:46 AM

for getting most things right including the pardon…rdw at 9:07 AM

The advantages the USA has over everyone else are multiple:…… rightist dim wit 7:09 PM

Amazing debt

Financial cons of amazing complexity

An unfair tax system that has the upper middle class pay a higher rate than the wealthiest.

A regime in total denial of the facts of science favoring faith-based information.

I have to laugh at twits who try to smear Al Gore. Those are the people so proud of their ignorance, they work overtime to flaunt it.

I was 11 years old when Nixon resigned and Ford pardoned him. I recall vividly that the day of the pardon was the first time I heard the words quid pro quo, and the contempt was palpable in my father's voice.

I was just a few years older and watched the scenario like a future citizen journalist

I was subjected to regular news blackouts at that point in my life. That became policy at various points in time in our household after the USS Thresher tragedy.

My future citizen journalist event was Three Mile Island. All of my classmates were setting their hair on fire, and I was looking at how well the containment chamber had done it's job.

Oh ,was I into the Nixon demise. It was a total obsession, from high school to college.
I remember it well. And Three Mile Island was three hundred miles away, but scary and gross. There were pictures of bizarrely large leaves from plants following the accident. But I think I was more afraid of what happened at Kent State.

I think that is why I never bought into the Bush presidency charade nor the Reagan bluster. And I was around in the Carter years and while there was an energy crisis, and we watched how long we showered, and had to deal with the rationing of gas on odd and even days, depending on your specific license plate, I loved Jimmy Carter, and thought he was a remarkable man. I don't know why he gets such a bad rap. He was pretty cool.

"There is no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe..."

Gerald Ford
Ford/Carter Debate
Oct. 6, 1976

“Jerry Ford is so dumb he can't fart and chew gum at the same time."

LBJ

Good night bloggers. The similarities between Richard Nixon and the endless Vietnam War, and George Bush, and his tragic, selfish Iraq war, are amazingly similar.

The lies, coupled with the deceptions, and the opportunity costs, are all terribly similar.

Nixon saw what was coming, and resigned. Bush, well, Bush has a developing storm...we'll see what happens. He looks as if he is ready to go over the edge.

Paul O'Neill said Bush was like a blind man in a roomful of deaf people. No room for others' views, apparently.

Bush seems to be acting in that manner now, as we speak. I think I heard him quote LBJ today that he was worrying about the deceased soldiers at night. Karl Rove must have told him to say that so he would seem sincere. Sorry guys, it is too late.

Goodnight, CWA. Sweet dreams. See you tomorrow.

I hope that the paranoid nightmares that sneak out of my Id's closet now and then are just that - paranoid nightmares.

bad credit credit cards bad credit credit cards

and we watched how long we showered, and had to deal with the rationing of gas on odd and even days, depending on your specific license plate, I loved Jimmy Carter, and thought he was a remarkable man. I don't know why he gets such a bad rap.

It is really possible to be this stupid?

American Presidents allow markets to work. Socialsist morons create huge govt boondoggles, rationing and shortages. There's a reason why after Reagan as elected Americans went back to doing what Americans do. Take any shower they want. As hot as they want. For as long as they want.

and the contempt was palpable in my father's voice.

And who did Daddy blame for JFK? Fidel? The Mob? The CIA?

have to laugh at twits who try to smear Al Gore

Try? You think it takes work? He was at the bottom of his class at school below even Bush and Kerry. They are least admit they weren't good students but at least went on to graduate / law schools and received advanced degrees. Little Lord Flauntleroy failed out of divinity school and quit graduate school.

The man is a dolt.

could explain why the Passenger Pigeon, Carolina Parakeet, and numerous other species were driven to extinction

Because they could not evolve to a constantly changing world. It's the same reason why species have been dying out for 10B or so years and will continue to die out.

Did you catch the news yesterday where they discovered 50 NEW species on one of the remote islands in the Pacific? We're doing such good work we are constantly discovering new species and/or new member of old species once thought to be extinct.

I agree America was not always this way. But When Dick Nixon recognized we needed to do a better job on the environment he created the EPA and we've been getting dramatically cleaner ever since.

In fact, the real good news is in what is to come. The EPA has only been around 30 years but thru it's efforts, and the efforts of so many others, we have gained a great deal of knowledge, have developed broader organizations and partnerships, and raised a great deal more money with the promise of much more.

Everyone living at or near a coastal community and seen and experienced the huge investment in managing sanitation and farm run-off and the payoff in dramatically cleaner river and ocean water.

I believe it was two years ago off the coast of Florida they sunk a huge air craft carrier to create a reef and after attracting fish and other sea life almost immediately it's become a diving mecca. We are still learning how to do these things in the most cost effective and safe manner.

Also look at people like Ted Turner. Admittedly a whack job but he's used his considerable fortune to buy a great deal of land he will turn into a permanent conservatory. He's but one example. You just know Ted is able to do a better job getting the best land, and the most land because it's his money and his passion than some govt pencilneck would have managed.

America works.

This is the problem for the doom and gloomers. You keep at it with the 'woe is me' act when anyone can see for themselves the environment is getting cleaner. It probably killed the editors of the Philly Inquirer to run pictures recently of various fish life found at and above the famous Dam at the Art Museum recently. There were record sized stripped bass caught, rare turtles seen transversing one of the two fish ladders and a pair of otters were spotted.

In 1975 the river at this Dam carried a stench such that people could not walk in the gardens behind the art Museum. Today the walkway is bustling and it's on of the most scenic spots in Phila. There were no fish ladders and today there are two and fishing has returned to the entire river. It was more than a dozen years ago oxygen levels returned to normal and longer that pollution has been very tightly controlled. Much of the city gets it water here.

This is the Schylkill river which feeds into the Delaware at the Naval base. This story has been repeated in every feeder creek, stream and river and the Delaware is the cleanest it's been in 150 years.

America works.

Mike,

The DOW Indusrials climbed 102 points to a NEW RECORD of 12,501.

I didn't look it up but my quess is Bill Gates and Warren Buffet made another $2B.

Deny global warming the very day they admit that the polar ice caps are shrinking and making the polar bear a threatened species. Good show.

Change happens. It's been happening on this planet every day for over 13B years. I am wondering if the trend has been broken. IN the 70's Time and Newsweek were warning of the coming ice age because we had a mini-cooling trend from the 40's thru thr 60's. I don't blame them. It sells to the conspiracy kooks.

Last I saw the warmest year was 1998 and it's been cooler every since with 2006 cooler than 5 of the previous 6 years. Australia, recently blessed with a visit from Al Gore, just had it's coldest Xmas week in history. If you think they're not having fun mocking Al you are not thinking.

Here's what's going to happen. The trend is going to reverse soon if it hasn't already. They don't have a friggin clue what causes the trends to reverse or what sustains them except the Sun is a primary driver. You are the same twits who believed in socialism and this will prove to have been every bit as stupid.

Fortunately, your panic attacks are relatively harmless. You might scare the crap out of yourselves but if it wasn't global warming you'd be saving us all from something else. It's a bit annoying we piss away about $4B on this nonsesne sustaining the entire industry but it could be worse.

Look at Canada and Europe.

Those simple asses think they can rely on govt bureaucrats to improve the environment. They think signing Kyoto was actually a smart thing to do. The Canadians are screwed. The Tar Sands is the dirtiest place in the world. They're trashing their own country and every drop of the oil produced is exported to the USA.

Tell me that's not a great deal. ANWR oils sits in the ground in reserve getting more valuable while we replace that oil with oil from Canada. We get the oil. They get the pollution. Plus ANWR isn't going anywhere. It's money in the bank.

Even better is our ethanol program. The American farmer us getting money rained on their heads. I realize the image of the family farmer is somewhat misleading but still it's cool the farm industry gets such a boost. It's doesn't hurt the great companies like Archer Daniels Midland either.

Ethanol burns cleaner and by 2012 will displace 10% of gasoline imports with the potential to go to 20% by 2015.

America works. Keep Govt out of the way and it works best.

rdw, I'm guessing that you're more suited to an Etch-a-Sketch than to a computer. Now go outside and play.

The similarities between Richard Nixon and the endless Vietnam War, and George Bush, and his tragic, selfish Iraq war, are amazingly similar

They're not even remotely similar. Even forgetting the dramatically bloodier aspects of 1968 Iraq is a power-struggle between Islamic sects. It is a religious war for control of the 'old' Iraq excluding Kurdistan. In Iraq each side is supported, and supplemented by religious fanatics from outside Iraq providing money, arms and bodies.

We have created a very successful country with 6M citizens in Kurdistan. They now have a very viable homeland that is both safe and prosperous. They are as large as Israel and will in less than a decade have double the population. Their economy is well developed and growing 20% per year. No matter who ends up in control in greater Iraq the Northern Kurds will not only be safe but will be strong and prosperous. Neither the Shites or Sunni can threaten the Kurds. And attack by either would be devastating.

They have very wisely used this time to absorb a massive wave of immigrants and jump start the economy. Time greatly favors the Kurds as they grow larger, stronger and wealthier every day. They will be like Israel. An island of democratic stability in a region of chaos. Give them a decade and they will dominate Syria as a military power.

"Declassified State Department document: Arafat reponsible for storming of embassy and murder of Americans in 1973."

When we revisited this story in June at the time the Office of the Historian published its account, John Hinderaker wrote:

[T]his whole incident illustrates why most conservatives have so little confidence in the State Department. The Americans who were brutally murdered by Yasir Arafat's thugs were State's own employees. And yet, for years the department covered for Arafat. Why?

The question stands

******************************************

The above is from Powerline. ABC will stay away from this story about Jimmy Carters and Bill Clintons great friend Arafat. Unfortunately ABC and the MSM don't control the flow anymore. This will be big news and it will be used to trash the legacies of each man. They knew Arafat killed our diplomats. It's also a further example of the treachery of Western Europe and Arafats supporters among the American left.

Now go outside and play.

I bring good cheer. Why do so many on this blog find good news to be bad news?

You can't be pessimistic ALL the time!

Here's a mixture. UNleaded is down about $.10 the last few days and crude about $3. But this morning the Dow is down 15.

BTW: natural gas has tanked. The warm weather in the Northest east has crushed demand and appears set to continue. The extended forecast is for above average temps.

Since good news is depressing for you and you like being depressed here's a web site for you. Ethanol.org. You will see American Capitalism at it's best when properly incented by tax policy. Every week there's an announcement of a huge new ethanol plant under construction and/or the rollout of a fleet of new vehicles able to burn E85. This is 85% ethanol. What has been very encouraging here is this mix is burning better than expected and the difference in MPG isn't near as bad as expected. It's more like 3% to 5% versus 10% to 15%. That's a substantial difference.

This has already been the nations most successful alternative energy program of the last 35 years and I predict will be more successful than even optimist are suggesting.

It's clean burning, creates american jobs and helps the farm industry. What's not too like?

Give consumers a choice between ethanol grown in the USA or Gas imported from Arabia and they'll got for ethanol is huge numbers. The producers will not be able to meet demand. The money going into production is already huge and it's growing. The same is true for R&D.

Already one lab has announced a process which improves fermentation yields by 50%. South Dakota already produces enough ethanol to replace all gasoline demand in the state but exports 90% to other states. This is as production is still increasing by 50% per year. The farm belt will cut gasoline demand by over 50% within a decade. Unless of course they decide to supply the rest of us 1st.

more good news:

prices for big oils shares are off because US inventory data showed large increases in inventories for gasoline and other distillates. Crude is down due to a sharp drop in imports but still way above average levels this time of year.

natural gas inventory data will be released on Friday but producers are already depressed. Heating demand in the Northest drives natural gas and there's no demand.

We may have our warmest winter ever in PA. Demand for heat will be rock bottom while ethanol production is exploding. You can see this bodes very well for long term energy pricing and emissions data. While Canada ramps up Tar Sands digging the USA ramps up clean burning ethanol. We get cleaner. They don't even et close.

Doesn't that drive you up a friggin wall? The most successful alternative energy program by far was created by GWB. The most dramatic improvements in emissions happened under GWB.

RDW viciously smears someone in just about every post.

He finished this board with ten consecutive posts.

One would have to be on the Bushies' payroll to blog endlessly while continually regurgitating republican talking points.
It is an emesis, not a contribution to discussion