RutherfordGate: Historian Responds to President Obama’s Hayes Slur

New York News and Features ^ | 3/15/2012 | Dan Amira

[blueyon]

It's not unusual for President Obama to criticize his Republican predecessors from time to time, but this morning, he targeted his scorn not at George W. Bush or Ronald Reagan, but ... Rutherford B. Hayes. As Politico reported:

Speaking about the need to develop new sources of American energy in Largo, Md., Obama used our 19th president as a failure of forward-thinking leadership.

"One of my predecessors, President Rutherford B. Hayes, reportedly said about the telephone: 'It’s a great invention but who would ever want to use one?'" Obama said. "That's why he's not on Mt. Rushmore."

[El Cid]

I would love for them to carve a figure of Obama at the base of Mt Rushmore shining the shoes of the presidents who are there honorably.

I doubt he'd have made a competent shoe shine boy. Other than a gift of grift, and enough gab to con the witless, I can't see any real talent or display of work ethic in the fellow.

[ngat]

Alinsky’s rules for radicals: Ridicule is the most potent weapon. So the Orwellian leftist rewrites history, ridiculing perhaps the best man, and one of the better presidents of the second half of the nineteenth century.

[Lonesome in Massachussets]

Americans are just too stupid to recognize Obama's brilliance, doncha know?

[Lonesome in Massachussets]

I was more surprized to learn that John Tyler, who was born in 1790 has a grandson who is still alive. http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2012/01/president-tyler-grandson-alive.html

That would be like me having a grandson who lived into the 2170’s.

[liberalh8ter]

The audacity of dope.

[sten]

although... i’m sure someone will make a mint on 0failure shaped urinal cakes

[longtermmemmory]

most all obama voters are ignorant when it comes to history and even the meaning of words.

Obama voters only view the world via DNC talking points.

If the Obama reelection committee said dictionaries are racist, then Obama voters would say dictionary burning is an obligation to fight racism.

[Chgogal]

“We thought it was a bit unsporting of Obama to attack President Hayes, who is quite unable to respond. So we called up the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center in Fremont, Ohio, where Nan Card, the curator of manuscripts, was plenty willing to correct Obama’s ignorance of White House history. Just as soon as she finished chuckling.”

President DumbA$$ educating future voting Dummycrats for the Democrat Party.

[BerryDingle]

I’m somewhat surprised he knows who Rutherford B. Hayes is.

Same here. This proves his "speechwriters" are as dumb as he is.

Sound of teleprompter glass pane shattering on floor--hub cap falling off podium.

[BerryDingle]

"That's why he's not on Mt. Rushmore."

That's why you are on Easter Island.

[PapaBear3625]

President Tyler was a randy old bugger. Born in 1790, he married his second wife in 1844 when he was 54 and she was 24, and had 7 children with her, the last when he was 70. Lyon Gardiner Tyler then went on to also marry a much younger second wife and fathered children with her at 70.

[f1boss]

LOL I grew up across the street from Spiegel Grove, The Hayes Estate. Me, my brothers, and our fellow explorers covered every inch of the place, and toured the museum weekly at min. I've been in Texas for 30 years now - good to see a shot of the big ole trees around there. Hayes’ horse is buried near the grave site pictured above.
As I recall, the election was fraught with Democrat fraud, or so it was claimed. See: http://www.rbhayes.org/hayes/president/display.asp?id=512&subj=president
Sounds like there was plenty of fraudulent activity to go around.
It's a long read, but it explains why Barry & Co know about Hayes: the Dems were out-maneuvered. Carry on!
Mark

[Boojum_Reborn]

Funny, though: St. Reagan cited the same quote.

http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entries/reagan-cited-same-rutherford-hayes-anecdote-as-obama

[aDCBeast]

Alexander Graham Bell said it first.

He showed president elect Hayes his first generation phone which was ugly and strange looking. Hayes said the line ‘It’s a great invention but who would ever want to use one?”. Since Hayes was not president .. no WH reporter ... and no personal record.

Bell redesigned the phone to the crank phone with the ear piece on the end of a wire. Bell requested that it be installed in the WH and Hayes went for the PR op. Bell had repeated the Hayes line until Hayes allowed Bell to install the phone in the WH.

Reagan repeated this story in a speech in 1985. Obama used the same Reagan story as he often uses former Reagan stories so republicans can’t whine about it.