Previous Election Comparisons

This Election already has been a historical one.      
And more history promises to be made.      
Numerous comparisons to past elections can be borne out by similarities.  

One common one is that of Bob Dole and Bill Clinton. In this case, there are several similarities. Bob Dole, the republican,  is a war hero as is John McCain, the republican. Barack Obama is not a war hero and neither was Bill Clinton. Obama like Clinton is being criticized regarding experience. However, the economy favors the party not in power, the democratic party, in both cases. Obama and Clinton both are running as agents of change. Neither Dole nor McCain are good speakers.

Another possible comparison, however, is to John F Kennedy.

Obama is the best political speaker in at least a generation, hearkening us back to John F Kennedy's speaking ability. Both are/were charismatic, dynamic and relatively young. Both are/were visionary and progressive.

Nixon also ran on experience. Both Nixon and Kennedy were senators. Most recently, Clem Yeobright informed me (and I didn't know this) that actually Nixon had just finished serving as vice president. So, this was not actually pitting two sitting senators against each other.  

When we watched Gore's endorsement given in Detroit (June 22), we saw Gore refer back to several attacks made on Kennedy (at first without mentioning upon whom the attacks were made!).

The democratic nominee was attacked as "youthful" and "too naive and inexperienced".

In addition, Ted Kennedy reminded us that his brother was exhorted by the elder statesman Harry Truman (in the same democratic party) to wait his turn.

Gore pointed out that JFK's effective retort was that to exclude all those below the age of 44 would be to leave out Madison who fathered the Constitution, Washington from leading the Revolutionary Army and Columbus from discovering America.

Wikipedia here:  

http://en.wikipedia.org/...

Kennedy was initially dogged by suggestions from some Democratic Party elders (such as former President Harry Truman) that he was too youthful and inexperienced to be president; these critics suggested that he agree to be the running mate for a "more experienced" Democrat. Realizing that this was a strategy touted by his opponents to keep the public from taking him seriously, Kennedy stated frankly, "I’m not running for vice president, I’m running for president." [2]

As soon as I read that, I thought of Obama's comments in Mississippi, knowing that they shared Ted Sorenson as a speechwriter. And lo and behold I found this as a source in the wikipedia article.

http://www.nytimes.com/...

Mr. Obama then added, "They are trying to hoodwink you."

{This is the great classic Mississippi video where Obama points out that the Clintons had said in the past that their first test for their vice president was a person who was ready to assume the presidency immediately and they had said that Obama wasn't ready at 3 a.m. since all Obama had was a speech.  but that they might possibly consider him for a vp spot since they might together make a formidable team with Clinton at the top and Obama at the  bottom.  He pointed out that this was the okay doke and that the Clintons were trying to hoodwink us, that they were trying to bamboozle us!}

Similar suggestions about being a running mate dogged John F. Kennedy during the 1960 election, when he fought off claims that he was too youthful and inexperienced to be president.

"Kennedy put the kibosh to that," said Joel K. Goldstein, an expert on the vice presidency and a professor at the St. Louis University School of Law. "He saw it as being sort of a strategy that would cause people not to take him seriously as a presidential candidate. So he just said, frankly, ‘I’m not running for vice president, I’m running for president.’ "

So, Obama used the same phrase Kennedy used (perhaps written by the same speechwriter-although it is direct) to counter the same bogus Republican charge successfully [and became who we know him to be today].

Please join me in continuing our best wishes to a true American hero (certainly one of my alltime American heroes and in my hall of fame), Senator Ted Kennedy!!!!

We love you Senator Kennedy!!!