Posted on 07/27/2006 2:40:34 PM PDT by beckett
Why does the president call the secretary of state "Condi"? And what exactly is his philosophy?
Thursday, July 27, 2006 12:01 a.m. EDT
Why does President Bush refer in public to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice as "Condi"? Did Dwight Eisenhower call his Secretary of State "Johnny"? Did Jimmy Carter call his "Eddie," or Bill Clinton call his "Maddy," or Richard Nixon call his "Willie" or "Hank"? What are the implications of such informality?
I know it is small, but in a way such things are never small. To me it seems a part of the rhetorical childishness of the age, the faux egalitarianism of the era. It reminds me of how people in the administration and Congress--every politician, in fact--always refer to mothers as moms: We must help working moms." You're not allowed to say "mother" or "father" in politics anymore, it's all mom and dad and the kids. This is the buzzy soft-speak of a peaceless era; it is an attempt to try to establish in sound what you can't establish in fact.
(Excerpt) Read more at opinionjournal.com ...
You hit the 'post' button twice there. It's ok. It takes time to learn how to use a mouse.
Still waiting.
Three times now. I think you're taxing your brain cells.
Still waiting.
Four times. I think the fact that Reagan "cut and run" from Lebanon is shaking your faith.
A relevent post? No, that would asking for too much.
Still waiting.
Relevency? Not yet.
Still waiting.
Relevency? Not yet. Still waiting.
Relevency? Not yet. Still more waiting.
Even a liberal like you is capable of that. No?
Just admit that Reagan cut and run from Lebanon and your pettiness will lift away.
Reagan stood for something.
You stand for nothing.
Relevency? Not yet. Still more waiting.
That wouldn't be selling Iran missiles as in IRAN-CONTRA would it?
Reagan Man will argue that Reagan man did not stand for selling arms to Iran.. he sat for it.
Did you notice the other day that Israel was surprised to find Hezbollah had American weapons? They shouldn't be surprised. Reagan sold US weapons to IRAN and Iran is supplying Hezbollah.
You convinced me long ago that you hated Ronald Reagan. All liberals do.
Sure doesn't work out that way. You betray Reagan's essence with every vile post you make. I think you joined here specifically to embarrass the great man's name. You say you are here to advance the conservative agenda, yet you do the opposite. I suspect you do the opposite on purpose, else you'd moderate your despictablitity level.
And I'll continue to refer to you as 'Reagan Embarrassment'!
Great post!
He most likely relies on his sense of personal judgment when it comes to others and is a good judge of character, sincerity and real ability.
What Noonan is complaining about is his almost adolescent informality and playfulness in a position noted for formality and ritual. What most people who think for a living miss is that he is at all times more himself than they are, Ronald Reagan was and so on. He pays a price for this but he is unwilling to split himself up into different persona depending on the circumstances.
If you ever meet him you will find him 100% focused on you, contactful with you and you sense his great presence. This even in a reception line. I can easily see him as walking into a room (before becoming President) and "pocketing" the majority of people there as well as "pocketing" more political donations than they intended.
Different people prefer different leadership. The cognoscenti generally want predictable ideology and thinking to base policies on. People such as the President are more likely to be flexible and ready for compromise and change depending on the circumstances they find. It is not they have no consistent policies but they do have a consistent goal to succeed and basically prevail in spite of the usual ups and downs of domestic and international events.
The President might not like it, but he is closest to Harry Truman in temperament and ability to make contact with people. He is not an exact clone but they both were people Presidents with great flexibility in achieving goals. Both were and are severely criticized for lacking in ideological purity.
Finally, the President has conservative views but he is a Republican and eager to expand his influence and success. Thymos lives in his soul and the elites hate him for it. Plato would approve.
As an addendum people who see him as lacking in intellectual vigor and consistency are missing something else. The President is a fox in his approach to governance. He is not a hedge hog making decisions on a priori beliefs to the exclusion of reality. Future generations will see this more clearly than our own.
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