This probably deserves its own post, but I think of the modern era, no president has been as disrespected as President Obama in terms of how he is treated by other politicians. I know presidents of both parties have taken a lot of heat from the general public, but I think for the most part, presidents have been respected by other politicians because they have respect for the actual office. Now before you get all riled up, can you think of another president been as disrespected by other elected officials like our current president? Not only while speaking at a joint session of Congress he was interrupted by a congressman yelling at him for being a liar, have a finger pointed at his face on a tarmac by a Governor, but he’s also had to defend his citizenship by numerous elected officials. Yeah, politicians have thick skin and if they can’t take the heat they have to get out of the kitchen, but I was so moved by Bob Schieffer’s words that I thought I’d start Bag of Randomness off with what he had to say, which you can find at the 40-second mark.
I will give Obama credit, he’s never complained about any of the examples I stated above with the possible exception of his citizenship being taken in to question because of how it was distracting from more important issues.
Gov Jan Brewer’s book last week was ranked 311,472 in terms of sales on Amazon.com, after this incident, he book climbed to 14 as of this posting. That’s a 22,000,000% increase and I’m sure some sort of record.
In keeping things a little political but moving on to calmer waters, John Tyler was the tenth President of the United States. He was born in 1790 and took office in 1841, andtwo of his grandchildren are still alive!
Matthew Broderick is going to reprise his role as Ferris Bueller for a Super Bowl commercial. Here’s a preview.
Was anyone really surprised to find out that a game show host was drunk on the job? I mean, really, was that sooo shocking? Has anyone seen any Family Feud episodes with Richard Dawson?
Halfsies is a new start up in Austin and NYC that is trying to help people eat less at restaurants while helping to feed the hungry and decrease the amount of food that gets thrown out. Basically, you pay full price for a half meal, so you eat less and the money goes to feed the hungry.
If you have ever been closely involved with a pregnancy, you are familiar with a book called What to Expect When You are Expecting. A comedy based on the book will soon hit the big screen and there are some funny movie posters that showcase the film’s stars, such as Cameron Diaz, Elizabeth Banks, Brooklyn Decker
Unfortunately, latent racism is one of the sources of the hostility towards the President. Racism compounds the hatred already in place because of his political affiliation. Mainstream journalist and pundits are very afraid to start using what has been demonized as the "race card," but bigotry is apparent and to say it is not occurring is simple denial.
WOW! Still the race card? Perhaps the disrespect comes from the fact that he ("O" as in "W") obviously does not respect anyone either. What comes around goes around. Those that throw out the race card, do so because, since they tare racist, they automatically assume everyone else is too.
Hey Larry, you mentioned that Obama doesn't respect anyone. Can you give me an example of how he has been disrespectful to another politician in a public setting? I want to understand where you are coming from. I stated three examples in which elected officials have been disrespectful, but other than disagreeing on policy, I don't recall our current president showing any kind of disrespect to another elected official. Sure, there's campaigning and disagreement on policy, but I would like to understand what you think he has done to show he doesn't respect anyone, in particular, the office that is held and whether it was in a public setting.
Thank you for sharing the Bob Schieffer clip. I couldn't agree more with you. I've also notice constituents have become more hateful, as well. It's all very wrong.
I agree, there is a little more open disrespect to the office of the president than I remember by members of Congress, but I think the hatred shown by constituents is nothing to new. The Clinton scandal and the Iraq war for Bush could bring out harsh talk from both sides in the general public. So maybe Congress is just catching on that their constituents don't mind them being disrespectful to the other side. I personally would prefer the office stay respected, but the fact that it isn't doesn't have to mean our democracy will be much worse off in the long run necessarily. From what little I've seen this has been going on in England for some time: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TsAa9VmwOaI
Keith, thanks for bringing this up in a winsome (not divisive) way.
I have been continually surprised at how this president has been treated. Years ago, I was strongly dissuaded from the Republican argument as I watched the presidency of George W. Bush. But what really turned me sour on the GOP was far more compelling than the Bush years: the behavior of conservatives ever since. When Barack Obama was elected, and as he (tries to) govern, conservatives in all levels of power have behaved as children who got their toy taken away.
True, liberals were quite annoying when Bush was in power, but the low levels to which Obama's opposition has gone is far more disappointing and dangerous, in my opinion.
Here is a "for instance." What would be more harmful to the country: having a president who is actually a practicing Muslim, or, having ~20,000,000 citizens falsely believe that their Christian president is a practicing Muslim? I submit the latter is more dangerous.
I'm glad you brought this subject up. It has sparked some good thoughts in the comments so far and I like that. I did not vote for President Obama and I don't agree with a lot of his positions, but I find what Jan Brewer did to be disgusting and appalling. He was elected to office by the voters in this country according to the process laid out in the Constitution and has earned our respect for that alone. If we can't agree with that, can we all at least agree that he's earned the right to not have a finger wagged in his face because he's an adult and a human being. What ever happened to manners and courtesy?
Political divisiveness in this country has certainly peaked in the last 4 years, but it's been ramping up toward this level since the election in 1992. People's disdain for President Clinton set this country on a path toward political nastiness from which we haven't been able to divert.
Bryan. I agree about the divisiveness, but I'd argue that it stretches back to Goldwater's loss in 1964. That campaign, and the ensuing loss of the election, began the sense among conservatives that they are victims.
Well, really, I guess we could argue that the real divisiveness occurred before, during, and after the Civil War. But in the modern era, I'd say Goldwater begat the bitterness, later to be enflamed by Bill Clinton's successes.
Unfortunately, latent racism is one of the sources of the hostility towards the President. Racism compounds the hatred already in place because of his political affiliation. Mainstream journalist and pundits are very afraid to start using what has been demonized as the "race card," but bigotry is apparent and to say it is not occurring is simple denial.
WOW! Still the race card? Perhaps the disrespect comes from the fact that he ("O" as in "W") obviously does not respect anyone either. What comes around goes around. Those that throw out the race card, do so because, since they tare racist, they automatically assume everyone else is too.
Hey Larry, you mentioned that Obama doesn't respect anyone. Can you give me an example of how he has been disrespectful to another politician in a public setting? I want to understand where you are coming from. I stated three examples in which elected officials have been disrespectful, but other than disagreeing on policy, I don't recall our current president showing any kind of disrespect to another elected official. Sure, there's campaigning and disagreement on policy, but I would like to understand what you think he has done to show he doesn't respect anyone, in particular, the office that is held and whether it was in a public setting.
Thank you for sharing the Bob Schieffer clip. I couldn't agree more with you. I've also notice constituents have become more hateful, as well. It's all very wrong.
I agree, there is a little more open disrespect to the office of the president than I remember by members of Congress, but I think the hatred shown by constituents is nothing to new. The Clinton scandal and the Iraq war for Bush could bring out harsh talk from both sides in the general public. So maybe Congress is just catching on that their constituents don't mind them being disrespectful to the other side. I personally would prefer the office stay respected, but the fact that it isn't doesn't have to mean our democracy will be much worse off in the long run necessarily. From what little I've seen this has been going on in England for some time: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TsAa9VmwOaI
Keith, thanks for bringing this up in a winsome (not divisive) way.
I have been continually surprised at how this president has been treated. Years ago, I was strongly dissuaded from the Republican argument as I watched the presidency of George W. Bush. But what really turned me sour on the GOP was far more compelling than the Bush years: the behavior of conservatives ever since. When Barack Obama was elected, and as he (tries to) govern, conservatives in all levels of power have behaved as children who got their toy taken away.
True, liberals were quite annoying when Bush was in power, but the low levels to which Obama's opposition has gone is far more disappointing and dangerous, in my opinion.
Here is a "for instance." What would be more harmful to the country: having a president who is actually a practicing Muslim, or, having ~20,000,000 citizens falsely believe that their Christian president is a practicing Muslim? I submit the latter is more dangerous.
I'm glad you brought this subject up. It has sparked some good thoughts in the comments so far and I like that. I did not vote for President Obama and I don't agree with a lot of his positions, but I find what Jan Brewer did to be disgusting and appalling. He was elected to office by the voters in this country according to the process laid out in the Constitution and has earned our respect for that alone. If we can't agree with that, can we all at least agree that he's earned the right to not have a finger wagged in his face because he's an adult and a human being. What ever happened to manners and courtesy?
Political divisiveness in this country has certainly peaked in the last 4 years, but it's been ramping up toward this level since the election in 1992. People's disdain for President Clinton set this country on a path toward political nastiness from which we haven't been able to divert.
Bryan. I agree about the divisiveness, but I'd argue that it stretches back to Goldwater's loss in 1964. That campaign, and the ensuing loss of the election, began the sense among conservatives that they are victims.
Well, really, I guess we could argue that the real divisiveness occurred before, during, and after the Civil War. But in the modern era, I'd say Goldwater begat the bitterness, later to be enflamed by Bill Clinton's successes.