Plain speaking (Interview with W)

U.S. News ^ | 12/30/2002 | KENNETH T. WALSH

[MHGinTN]

BTW they don't read your faxes and emails, you are wasting your time with that approach. Bill Frist is my Senator. I assumed he read my fax because of the personal letter I received in reply that cited one issue over which he holds ambiguous thoughts. Piss up another pole.

[1rudeboy]

Ya' know, when all is said and done, I would prefer that you vote Republican. (This is meant as a compliment, and is my idea of a snappy response). I will see you around.

I'm sorry that you feel that the Party does not represent you, and that's about all I can say.

[hchutch]

Not only that, we don't have a major asset needed for a seaborne assault: Fire-support from Iowa-class dreadnoughts.

We need those ships back, ASAP.

[W04Man]

wunderkind54, My sentiments also, get well.

[SamAdams76]

If Reagan was as prepared as you say he was, why did he surround himself with so many lousy people? You are only as good as the people around you. GWB seems to have a top-notch staff and that counts for much. Also, Reagan was never able to deliver a Republican congress so much of his agenda was thwarted.

[RLK]

If Reagan was as prepared as you say he was, why did he surround himself with so many lousy people?

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What the hell are you talking about. Reagan was responsible for the ascendency of Powell. Rumsfeld was a Reagan man. Pearle was a Reagan man. Bush has retreaded Reagan people.

[RLK]

Also, Reagan was never able to deliver a Republican congress so much of his agenda was thwarted.

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Are you at all aware of how many archleftist senators were thrown out of office on Reagan's coattails in 1980?

[SamAdams76]

You conveniently left out people like James Watt, Michael Deaver, John Poindexter, etc. Over 100 senior officials from the Reagan Administration were eventually accused of illegal or unethical behavior.

Granted, this is "bush league" stuff compared to what would come later with Bill Clinton, but the fact is, one of Ronald Reagan's major flaws was that he was loyal to a fault and thus did a poor job of rooting out people in his Administration that did him harm. Even his wife Nancy will gladly point that out. After all, she would take matters into her own hands to get some of these people fired, Donald Regan being the most well-known example.

I like Ronald Reagan a lot. But I'm not saying he was without faults.

[RLK]

My impression is that you are attempting to draw me into some kind of screwball superficial argument. I'm not in the mood for it.

[SamAdams76]

Are you at all aware of how many archleftist senators were thrown out of office on Reagan's coattails in 1980?

Yes I am, though sadly Ted Kennedy wasn't one of them. And sadly again, control of the senate was lost two years later. Fact is that Reagan never once had control of the Congress. Tip O'Neil was always there to keep the Reagan Revolution from being fully realized.

You criticize people here for viewing GWB through rose-colored glasses but you appear to have the same fault with Reagan. As great a man as President Reagan was, his presidency failed to live up to its potential due in large part to the people he had around him.

The jury is still out but I think it is becoming clear that while GWB is certainly no Ronald Reagan, he does have a much better group of people around him than did Reagan. And with a GOP-controlled congress (both houses), he may well end up doing far more for the conservative agenda than did Reagan. While I am not one of those putting GWB up on a pedestal just yet, I am certainly not underestimating him.

[SamAdams76]

My impression is that you are attempting to draw me into some kind of screwball superficial argument. I'm not in the mood for it.

I can see that you are not. You want to criticize GWB and condemn those who support him as starry-eyed teen-age groupies. But you want to be Ronald Reagan's starry-eyed teen-age groupie and you are not in the mood to discuss it. Okay then. I get the picture.