Posted on 01/29/2016 5:27:41 PM PST by SamAdams76
Long before there was a Megyn Kelly, there was another presidential debate media scapegoat -- a New Hampshire newspaper editor by the name of Jon Breen.
Or, as then-candidate Ronald Reagan called him back in 1980, "Mr. Green."
That's always cracked me up -- Reagan, apoplectic with rage, yelling at this guy, in front of an audience of 2,400 screaming voters in a high school gym, and he can't even get Breen's name right. How's that for the ultimate insult? It's as if Donald Trump started calling his blonde Fox nemesis "Kelly Megyn."
Actually, Donald Trump should be so lucky as to get as much mileage out of Megyn Kelly as Reagan got out of Jon Breen. After losing the Iowa caucuses to George H.W. Bush, Reagan found himself trailing him in at least one N.H. poll by 21 points.
Following his confrontation with the editor, Reagan crushed Bush in the New Hampshire primary, 50-23, and was never seriously challenged for the nomination again.
What happened was, Reagan's campaign managers thought he had the GOP nomination wrapped up. As the front-runner, Reagan even skipped a pre-caucus debate in Iowa. Stop me if you've heard this one before.
Anyway, when the campaign shifted east, the Nashua Telegraph, of which Breen was executive editor, offered Bush and Reagan a one-on-one at Nashua High School on the Saturday night before the primary. But the paper couldn't pick up the tab unless it invited the other five GOP candidates.
Reagan, desperate, offered to pay the expenses. But realizing that this was the last big media event of the campaign, Reagan decided to invite the other five GOP candidates. He figured he needed to split up the anti-Reagan vote.
Bush said no, the debate in Nashua would have to go on as scheduled, one-on-one. Breen, a veteran N.H. Republican operative, agreed. According to Craig Shirley, who recounted the event in his book, "Reagan's Revolution," the debate was supposed to start at 7:30 p.m., but there was a standoff among the five candidates present. Finally, at 8:15, Breen and Bush sauntered out to the microphones.
Reagan was visibly angry. He strode out onto the stage, and motioned to the other candidates to join him.
"Can I address the audience?" he asked moderator Breen.
"No!" said Breen, whom Shirley describes as rude. The crowd started booing him. Breen then ordered the tech to turn off Reagan's mic, twice. But the tech was on Reagan's side. After the second order, Shirley wrote, Reagan "turned to Breen with blood in his eye and thundered, 'I am paying for this microphone, Mr. Green!'"
And that was basically it. No one remembers much else that happened that evening.
No networks were broadcasting the debate live, but in the subsequent hours leading up to the election, on TV the cut of an angry Reagan yelling at "Mr. Green" ran about a million times.
If Breen is still around, he'd be 75 or 76. I found one Breen in the 603 area code yesterday, and that guy's voicemail sounded like he was about the right age. Alas, he didn't return my call.
If this scenario played out today, no doubt many anti-Trump people would be saying how Trump must be "scared" to debate Bush one-on-one by insisting on the other candidates joining the debate.
Fred Thompson did the same thing too. No more hands!
Reagan never had to deal with “moderators” who are so openly partisan as are Crowley and Kelly.
I don’t know.
I tell my kids you guys are lucky, when I was a kid we were slaves, ate dog poop and drank cat pee.
You should feel blessed.
Title: I see this as a high credential. Reagan was the last real, true, caring PRESIDENT this country had. He loved this country and deeply respected the oath of the office he occupied. A 1000 year man.
Cruz and Trump are NOTHING like Reagan when debating. They can’t even get a clue.
‘I am paying for this microphone, Mr. Green!’
Reagan bump!
You must have been rich.
You are right Reagan wouldn’t be as vulgar as Chump. He’d say, “atleast I don’t have a flag flying from my head.
As a field hand we had to go out and retrieve it. It was tough I tell ya
Reagan would never have taken cheap snarky shots at conservative Republicans like Trump has to Cruz.
It’s what we have come to expect for New York values. Trump isn’t fit to shine Reagan’s shoes, let alone fill them.
Some posters on Commiestate are complaining Radio host Howie Carr is appearing at a Trump Rally next week.
You had a house??
u right Reagan never fouled a fellow conservative. my bad
Except Reagan was to the right of the moderates and Trump is to the left of them.....
ObamahatesPacoal, 1st I noticed your name. I’m a Texan by choice from Philly. I keep telling my family the Marcellus has more gas to supply the entire Northeast and thankfully NY is stupid (ny values) to make it illegal to frack Marcellus. You folks could lay pipelines throughtout the entire northeast and have cheap energy independence.
Nah, I think a better idea is to shovel 2 feet of snow off solar panels. Yep that’ll work
I think Chump will be to the left of everybody except the 1%
Bookmark
Trump is to the left of the moderates only if one embraces Islam and allowing any rapist or serial killer who wants to come to the United States and do as they wish free reign to do so.
And one hundred percent of the people who defend the moderates are of that same ilk.
No exceptions.
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