USPresidents

USPresidents https://www.dailykos.com/news/USPresidents News Community Action Copyright 2005 - Steal what you want Mon, 27 Jan 2020 05:34:08 +0000 Mon, 27 Jan 2020 05:34:08 +0000 Daily Kos rss@dailykos.com (Daily Kos) Daily Kos rss@dailykos.com (Daily Kos) Who were the best and worse U.S. Presidents? https://www.dailykos.com/story/2019/2/18/1835738/-Who-were-the-best-and-worse-U-S-Presidents On President’s Day, let’s ignore the current disagreements in Washington, D.C. and focus on U.S.’s past. Historians have the luxury of seeing the past more clearly. Generally, it takes at least a decade for historians to settle on who were the best and the worst. Surveys of historian, consistently rank <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abraham_Lincoln" title="">Abraham Lincoln</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_D._Roosevelt" target="_blank" title="">Franklin D. Roosevelt</a>, and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Washington" target="_blank" title="">George Washington</a> as the three best U.S. Presidents. These historians looked for very effective leadership. For the C-SPAN, <a class="external text" href="https://www.c-span.org/presidentsurvey2017/?page=overall" title="">"Presidential Historians Survey 2017"</a>, this included moral categories of ”crisis leadership,” “moral authority,” “pursued equal justice for all,” and also “economic management,” “administrative skills,” “performance within context of times,” and “setting an agenda,” and included relations with the public, Congress, and other governments. The worst Presidents may require more time to settle down but lets take a stab at it. One of the most recent surveys is from a year ago, by 170 members of the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/02/19/opinion/how-does-trump-stack-up-against-the-best-and-worst-presidents.html" target="_blank" title="">American Political Science Association’s Presidents and Executive Politics section</a>. The bottom three were W.H. Harrison, Buchanan, and Trump. Harrison died of pneumonia in 1841 after 31 days in office. Next worse was Buchanan who left office in 1861. Historians fault him, for his failure to resolve the issue of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_the_United_States" title="">slavery</a> and the secession of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_United_States" title="">southern states</a>, bringing the nation to the brink of civil war. Most Americans are well aware of the failures of Trump so there is no need for me to repeat them here. Democratic and Independent historians agree with this view. Of course, Republican historians views differ. They see the bottom three as Pierce, W.H. Harrison and Buchanan and Trump is only the fifth worse President, which should not be considered an endorsement. For more information see, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_rankings_of_presidents_of_the_United_States#Notable_scholar_surveys" target="_blank" title="">Historical rankings of presidents of the United States</a> <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/02/19/opinion/how-does-trump-stack-up-against-the-best-and-worst-presidents.html" target="_blank" title="">How Does Trump Stack Up Against the Best — and Worst — Presidents?</a> <a class="external text" href="https://www.c-span.org/presidentsurvey2017/?page=overall" title="">Presidential Historians Survey 2017</a> <div class="g-Text g-aiAbs g-aiPointText" id="g-ai1-162" style="width:80px;"></div> rss@dailykos.com (ForeignPolicy) Buchanan History Lincoln pierce presidents Roosevelt trump USPresidents W.H.Harrison Washington _1835738 Mon, 18 Feb 2019 20:37:03 +0000 Racists in the White House: A Chronology in their Own Words https://www.dailykos.com/story/2018/9/24/1798189/-Racists-in-the-White-House-A-Chronology-in-their-Own-Words In 1903, African American scholar and activist W.E.B. DuBois <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/1137159-the-souls-of-black-folk" target="_blank" title="">wrote</a>: “The problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color line.” As these quotes from statements or writings of American Presidents make clear, the history of racism in the United States started much earlier and extends into the 21st century. I am not including policies that had racist implications like restrictions on Jewish and Southern Italian immigration in the 1920s (Harding and Coolidge) and Japanese internment during World War II (Franklin Roosevelt) or racist innuendos by Ronald Reagan to welfare queens, only direct quotes. Donald Trump is definitely not our only racist President. Note: Some of these quotes are from before or after these men were in office as President, but that does not excuse them. <a href="https://archive.org/stream/retrospections00bernrich/retrospections00bernrich_djvu.txt" target="_blank" title="">George Washington</a>: (1798) "When we profess, as our fundamental principle, that liberty is the inalienable right of every man, we do not include madmen or idiots; liberty in their hands would become a scourge. Till the mind of the slave has been educated to perceive what are the obligations of a state of freedom, the gift would insure its abuse." <a href="https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part3/3h490t.html" target="_blank" title="">Thomas Jefferson</a> (1784): “Blacks, whether originally a distinct race, or made distinct by time and circumstances, are inferior to the whites in the endowments both of body and mind . . . This unfortunate difference of colour, and perhaps of faculty, is a powerful obstacle to the emancipation of these people.” <a href="http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=29475" target="_blank" title="">Andrew Jackson</a> (1833): It is to be hoped that those portions of two of the Southern tribes, which in that event will present the only remaining difficulties, will realize the necessity of emigration, and will speedily resort to it . . . They have neither the intelligence, the industry, the moral habits, nor the desire of improvement which are essential to any favorable change in their condition. Established in the midst of another and a superior race, and without appreciating the causes of their inferiority or seeking to control them, they must necessarily yield to the force of circumstances and ere long disappear.” <a href="https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/did-lincoln-racism-equality-oppose/" target="_blank" title="">Abraham Lincoln</a> (1858): “I am not, nor ever have been, in favor of bringing about in any way the social and political equality of the white and black races . . . there is a physical difference between the white and black races which I believe will forever forbid the two races from living together on terms of social and political equality. And inasmuch as they cannot so live, while they do remain together there must be a position of superior and inferior, and I as much as any other man am in favor of having the superior position assigned to the white race.” <a href="https://constitutioncenter.org/blog/marking-the-passing-of-maybe-the-most-criticized-president-ever" target="_blank" title="">Andrew Johnson</a> (1866): “This is a country for white men, and by God, as long as I am President, it shall be a government for white men.” <a href="http://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/document/national-life-and-character/" target="_blank" title="">Theodore Roosevelt </a>(1897): “Nineteenth-century democracy needs no more complete vindication for its existence than the fact that it has kept for the white race the best portions of the New World’s surface, temperate America and Australia . . . The whole civilization of the future owes a debt of gratitude greater than be expressed in words to that democratic policy which has kept the temperate zones of the new and newest worlds a heritage for the white people.” <a href="https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Woodrow_Wilson" target="_blank">Woodrow Wilson</a> (1902): “The white men of the South were aroused by the mere instinct of self-preservation to rid themselves, by fair means or foul, of the intolerable burden of governments sustained by the votes of ignorant negroes and conducted in the interest of adventurers.” <a href="http://articles.latimes.com/2003/jul/18/opinion/oe-kuznick18" target="_blank" title="">Harry Truman</a> (1911): “I think one man is as good as another so long as he’s honest and decent and not a nigger or a Chinaman.” <a href="http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=3&psid=1120" target="_blank" title="">Dwight Eisenhower </a>(1953): "These are not bad people. All they are concerned about is to see that their sweet little girls are not required to sit in school alongside some big overgrown Negroes." <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1991/07/21/books/on-the-way-with-lbj.html" target="_blank" title="">Lyndon Johnson </a>(1967): "Son, when I appoint a nigger to the court, I want everyone to know he's a nigger." <a href="https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Richard_Nixon" target="_blank">Richard Nixon </a>(1971):” I have the greatest affection for them but I know they're not going to make it for 500 years. They aren't. You know it, too. The Mexicans are a different cup of tea. They have a heritage. At the present time they steal, they're dishonest, but they do have some concept of family life. They don't live like a bunch of dogs, which the Negroes do live like.” <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fact-checker/wp/2016/07/25/did-donald-trump-really-say-those-things/?utm_term=.a71c3f20faeb" target="_blank" title="">Donald Trump</a>: “Laziness is a trait in blacks. It really is, I believe that. It’s not anything they can control” (1991); “When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best . . . They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people” (2015); and, "Why are we having all these people from <a href="https://www.vox.com/2016/7/25/12270880/donald-trump-racism-history" target="_blank">shithole</a> countries come here?" (2018). Follow Alan Singer on Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/ReecesPieces8" target="_blank" title="">https://twitter.com/ReecesPieces8</a> rss@dailykos.com (Alan Singer) DonaldTrump History Racism UnitedStates USPresidents _1798189 Mon, 24 Sep 2018 10:49:57 +0000 DK Quilt Guild: GOTV & The President's Quilt~ Photo Diary https://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/11/6/1589447/-DK-Quilt-Guild-GOTV-amp-The-President-s-Quilt-Photo-Diary <blockquote> DK Quilt Guild: A place for quilters to gather, share ideas, projects, and to make the world a better place, one quilt at a time. Join us and share your thoughts, projects, questions, and tips. Quilters here are at many different levels of skill. Beginners and non-quilters are welcome, too! </blockquote> <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/1600/Presidents" target="_blank">US President’s</a> Quilt <figure class="image-captioned"><a><img alt="The President's Quilt~ By Dorothy Vance" height="800" src="https://c3.staticflickr.com/6/5798/30447307170_7634290e00_c.jpg" width="756"></a> <figcaption>The President's Quilt~ By Dorothy Vance</figcaption> </figure> President Barack Obama was an Illinois State Senator in 2002 when this quilt was made. <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><a><img alt="IMG_9228" height="500" src="https://c7.staticflickr.com/6/5330/30115715774_1049b76832.jpg" width="438"></a> <figcaption>George Washington, John Adams, Martin Van Buren, Wm. Henry Harrison</figcaption> </figure> </div> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><a><img alt="IMG_9229" height="500" src="https://c4.staticflickr.com/6/5756/30747878195_11120f9109.jpg" width="422"></a> <figcaption>Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, John Tyler, James K. Polk</figcaption> </figure> </div> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><a><img alt="IMG_9230" height="500" src="https://c3.staticflickr.com/6/5812/30447286610_93ce949c7d.jpg" width="422"></a> <figcaption>James Madison, James Monroe, James Polk, Zachary Taylor</figcaption> </figure> </div> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><a><img alt="IMG_9231" height="500" src="https://c3.staticflickr.com/6/5342/30447277250_6591667cd4.jpg" width="438"></a> <figcaption>John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, Millard Fillmore, Franklin Pierce</figcaption> </figure> </div> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><a><img alt="IMG_9232" height="500" src="https://c4.staticflickr.com/6/5500/30112512883_49c97e03ce.jpg" width="419"></a> <figcaption>James Buchanan, Abraham Lincoln, Grover Cleveland, Benjamin Harrison</figcaption> </figure> </div> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><a><img alt="IMG_9233" height="500" src="https://c3.staticflickr.com/6/5768/30631136762_70bb4d9644.jpg" width="417"></a> <figcaption>Andrew Johnson, Ulysses S. Grant, Wm. McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt</figcaption> </figure> </div> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><a><img alt="IMG_9234" height="500" src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5734/30112415553_f819b0f884.jpg" width="420"></a> <figcaption>Rutherford B. Hayes, James A. Garfield, Wm. Howard Taft, Woodrow Wilson</figcaption> </figure> </div> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><a><img alt="IMG_9235" height="500" src="https://c8.staticflickr.com/6/5621/30659614951_9a2cf01f1e.jpg" width="396"></a> <figcaption>James Garfield, Chester Arthur, Woodrow Wilson, Warren Harding</figcaption> </figure> </div> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><a><img alt="IMG_9236" height="500" src="https://c4.staticflickr.com/6/5467/30659604611_c7dd10d13c.jpg" width="418"></a> <figcaption>Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford</figcaption> </figure> </div> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><a><img alt="IMG_9237" height="500" src="https://c4.staticflickr.com/6/5339/30110815243_49a8e804c5.jpg" width="452"></a> <figcaption>Franklin Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman, James E. Carter, Ronald Reagan</figcaption> </figure> </div> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><a><img alt="IMG_9238" height="500" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/6/5706/30709395256_73924f891d.jpg" width="435"></a> <figcaption>Dwight Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, George Bush, Wm. J. Clinton</figcaption> </figure> </div> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><a><img alt="IMG_9239" height="500" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/6/5541/30113960944_6574c26765.jpg" width="409"></a> <figcaption>John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, Wm. J. Clinton, George W. Bush</figcaption> </figure> </div> <figure class="image-captioned"><a><img alt="The President's Quilt~ By Dorothy Vance" height="800" src="https://c4.staticflickr.com/6/5536/30172626883_16e0cdfe4a_c.jpg" width="742"></a> <figcaption>The President's Quilt~ By Dorothy Vance</figcaption> </figure> This amazing quilt was a special exhibit of the <a href="http://www.sjquiltmuseum.org" target="_blank">San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles</a> at the <a href="https://www.quiltfest.com/upcoming-shows-and-events/pacific-international-quilt-festival/" target="_blank">Pacific International Quilt Festival</a> a few weeks ago. <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><a><img alt="The President's Quilt~ By Dorothy Vance" height="500" src="https://c3.staticflickr.com/6/5495/30115741554_ae2f58d472.jpg" width="500"></a> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> <ol> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Washington" target="_blank">George Washington</a>~ Timing. Worthy of Pride. Freed His Slaves After He Died</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Adams" target="_blank">John Adams</a>~ Named His Son Quincy. Sounds Princey.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Jefferson" target="_blank">Thomas Jefferson</a>~ Mover And Shaker. Purchased Land Three Cents An Acre.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Madison" target="_blank">James Madison</a>~ Years Brought The Star Spangled Banner And A Wife Who Behaved In A Victorious Manner.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Monroe" target="_blank">James Monroe</a>~ Too Old Europe” Don’t Intrude This Continent’s Ours. Please-Don’t Be Rude.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Quincy_Adams" target="_blank">John Quincy Adams</a>~ Scholars Note: President’s Sons Lose The Popular Vote.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Jackson" target="_blank">Andrew Jackson</a>~ Far Below Bad. Indians Were Had.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Van_Buren" target="_blank">Martin Van Buren</a>~ Folks Relate. Ate His Supper From A Golden Plate</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Henry_Harrison" target="_blank">William Henry Harrison</a>~ Spoke In Rain For Almost Two Hours. Caught Cold & Died. People Sent Flowers</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Tyler" target="_blank">John Tyler</a>~ (Follows Tippe-Canoe) Had Fourteen Children. Did The Polka Too.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_K._Polk" target="_blank">James K. Polk</a>~ West-Ward Ho. Stole Golden State From Mexico.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zachary_Taylor" target="_blank">Zachary Taylor</a>~ Lived To See In The First Safety Pin.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millard_Fillmore" target="_blank">Millard Fillmore</a>~ Whigs Reduced To A Turkey In The Straw After Backfire of This Law (Compromise of 1850)</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_Pierce" target="_blank">Franklin Pierce</a>~ White House Saw Tear-Drops And Pain And Were Sad When They Couldn’t Buy Cuba From Spain. </li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Buchanan" target="_blank">James Buchanan</a>~ Couldn’t Keep His States United. This President Was Not Delighted.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abraham_Lincoln" target="_blank">Abraham Lincoln</a>~ Returned By Night, A Borrowed Book And Thus Began That Haunted Look</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Johnson" target="_blank">Andrew Johnson</a>~ Impeachment By House Makes You A Grouch</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulysses_S._Grant" target="_blank">Ulysses S. Grant</a>~ Voters Favor Martial Man. He Served Failed Terms Then Picked Up Pen.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rutherford_B._Hayes" target="_blank">Rutherford B. Hayes</a>~ Thou Wife, Lemonade Lucy, Held An Easter Egg Roll. A yr. 2000-ish Election Did Take Its Toll</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_A._Garfield" target="_blank">James A. Garfield</a>~ Had The Presence Of Mind To Be Born In A Log Cabin But Later Got Shot Near A Train He Was Grab’n</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chester_A._Arthur" target="_blank">Chester A. Arthur</a>~ Congress Liked Exclusion Act Clearly Racial. Arthur Liked MuttonChops Feast Or Facial.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grover_Cleveland" target="_blank">Grover Cleveland</a>~ Married In The White House. This Executive Served Terms That Were NonConsecutive. ***</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Harrison" target="_blank">Benjamin Harrison</a>~ Was Not A Gripper. A Countryman, However Invented the Zipper.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grover_Cleveland" target="_blank">Grover Cleveland</a> ***</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_McKinley" target="_blank">William McKinley</a>~ Defined Country As Global Power. His Mortal Wounds Made Businessmen Dour</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theodore_Roosevelt" target="_blank">Theodore Roosevelt</a>~ Loved Charge Up San Juan Hill. Oft’ Confused Self With Scoutmaster And Buffalo Bill</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Howard_Taft" target="_blank">William Howard Taft</a>~ Started Tradition To Throw Out First Ball. People Stood Back When He Passed In The Hall.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodrow_Wilson" target="_blank">Woodrow Wilson</a>~ Scholar’s Hopes Were Dashed When Senate Rule Treat Not To Be Passed. (My 14 Points)</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warren_G._Harding" target="_blank">Warren G. Harding</a>~ Teapot Dome Steam Such A Scorch. He Wished He Had Stayed On His Porch. </li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calvin_Coolidge" target="_blank">Calvin Coolidge</a>~ Born On Fourth Of July, This Yankee Had No Truck With Spending, Chat, Or Hanky-Panky.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbert_Hoover" target="_blank">Herbert Hoover</a>~ From Upbeat Jazz And Shimmy Time-To Brother, Can You Spare A Dime?</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_D._Roosevelt" target="_blank">Franklin D. Roosevelt</a>~Freedoms And Terms Numbered Four- His Better Half Was Eleanor.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_S._Truman" target="_blank">Harry S. Truman</a>~ Washed Out His Sox, Was Nice To Bess’s Mom. Launched CIA, And Dropped A Bomb.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dwight_D._Eisenhower" target="_blank">Dwight D. Eisenhower</a>~ Hero Came Home To Honors And Bunting. Commander In Chief. Engaged Witch Hunting.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy" target="_blank">John F. Kennedy</a>~ Charm, Myth & Power Defined Him A Winner. The Audience Roared At “Ich BinEin Berliner”</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lyndon_B._Johnson" target="_blank">Lyndon B. Johnson</a>~ Great Society Balm Was Lost In VietNam.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Nixon" target="_blank">Richard Nixon</a>~ Pumpkin Papers, Enemy Lists, Smoking Tapes, Devious Twists.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerald_Ford" target="_blank">Gerald Ford</a>~ “I Am A Ford-Not A Lincoln” Pardoned Nixon Without Even Wink’n. </li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmy_Carter" target="_blank">James E. Carter</a>~ Jimmy C’s Peanuts Hit The Spot For A Win. Made Daily News With His Colorful Kin.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronald_Reagan" target="_blank">Ronald Reagan</a>~ Arms Deals, Deficit Soars. Actor See Role In New Star Wars.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_H._W._Bush" target="_blank">George H. W. Bush</a>~ Oleaginous Father Passed Values To Sons & Said- He Was Out Of The Loop During Drug Swap For Guns.</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Clinton" target="_blank">Bill Clinton</a>~ Appetites Big-Folks Like His Gig. When He’d Shoot Off His Toes-The Audience Rose. </li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_W._Bush" target="_blank">George W. Bush</a>~ Pledged To Help Parents Put Food On Their Children- Folks Find Yale Cowboy’s Plans Bewildren. </li> </ol> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><a><img alt="Obama's Star~2011~ Quilt by Allyson Allen" height="430" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8470/8088524352_fb1edb78af.jpg" width="500"></a> <figcaption>Obama's Star~2011~ Quilt by Allyson Allen</figcaption> </figure> </div> 44. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama" target="_blank">Barack Obama</a> 45. ? <blockquote> Let’s GOTV and make <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hillary_Clinton" target="_blank" title="">Hillary Rodham Clinton</a> 45 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ </blockquote> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><a title=""><img alt="Rosie~ Skill Builder Sampler Quilt (Detail) by Marlene Oddie" height="320" src="https://c4.staticflickr.com/6/5492/11599003435_6e3f890b26_n.jpg" width="240"></a> <figcaption>Rosie~ Skill Builder Sampler Quilt (Detail) by Marlene Oddie</figcaption> </figure> </div> We NEED writers! Your diary can be elaborate and full of photos, a simple story of your own quilting history or that of someone you love, a discussion of a current project or a technique you're learning, new adventures... You could post quilt retreat-day recipes (things like crockpot meals, so food appears without much attention from you)... We could do show and tell or open thread, also, but either way, we need diarists to host. It is EASY if you're willing to take the chance. Please join in! Please volunteer within the comments or you can send Pam from Calif a kosmail. DKQG Diary Schedule 11/13 — OPEN 11/20 — OPEN 11/27 — winifred3 12/4 — OPEN rss@dailykos.com (Pam from Calif) Community DKQuiltGuild presidents Quilting Quilts USPresidents _1589447 Mon, 07 Nov 2016 00:00:10 +0000 Savoring the Obama Presidency. A 50-year list of best-to-worst presidents. https://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/8/24/1563066/-Savoring-the-Obama-Presidency-A-50-year-list-of-best-to-worst-presidents Although diehard Republicans despise Barack Obama, many of us are savoring the last five months of his presidency. It didn’t quite hit me what a good president he’s been, until I stumped three people critical of his policies with this simple question: “Name one president better than Obama during the last 50 years.” That led me to make a 50-year list of best-to-worst presidents. This wasn’t an easy task, as it’s as much a reflection of one’s values as it is of the effectiveness of the president. For me, being an environmentalist author and civil rights supporter, I naturally gave higher marks to presidents strong in those areas. With that in mind, here’s my list: 1) Barack Obama: He rescued the economy after George W. Bush crashed it and stopped the Bush-Cheney torture program. He saved the American auto industry. He made major steps on civil rights—gay marriage is now legal. He improved international relations by signing a nuclear agreement with Iran and reestablishing diplomatic relations with Cuba. He’s been one of the most effective environmental presidents ever—renewable energy is booming, the Keystone XL pipeline has been stopped, and the Paris agreement has been signed. He also made health care available for all. Most impressively, he’s been successful despite a Republican Congress determined to put party-before-country and oppose him at every turn. 2) Jimmy Carter: While few would rate Carter as high as I do, the military didn’t fire a shot or drop a bomb during his presidency. We need more “Peace Presidents” like him. Carter was also far ahead of his time on conservation. Imagine where we’d be today if we had heeded the advice from his Address to the Nation on Energy. 3) Richard Nixon: Say what you want about Watergate and his personality issues, but Nixon was the last “Republican Environmental President.” He created the EPA, signed the Clean Air Act Extension of 1970, signed the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, and signed the Endangered Species Act of 1973. 4) Bill Clinton: Because I admire Clinton, I feel like I should rate him higher, but NAFTA, the Defense of Marriage Act, and Don’t Ask Don’t Tell knock him down a few notches. His positive accomplishments include signing the Federal Assault Weapons Ban, the Brady Bill, the Family and Medical Leave Act, and the Telecommunications Act of 1996. He also balanced the budget and deactivated 1,700 nuclear warheads from the former Soviet Union. 5) Lyndon B. Johnson: He signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act, and the Freedom of Information Act. His support of the Vietnam War was a major negative, however. 6) Gerald Ford: He signed the Safe Drinking Water Act and was the ideal man to take over after Nixon resigned. Because he wasn’t elected, he governed from the middle. He also laughed with America, as Chevy Chase opened Saturday Night Live each week with a Gerald Ford fall. 7) George H.W. Bush: He was a better president than his son, but he appointed ideology-before-law judge Clarence Thomas to the Supreme Court and vetoed Congressional attempts to reinstate the Fairness Doctrine. The latter made Fox News and AM-Hate radio possible, which in-turn led to the rise of bigoted demagogue and national embarrassment Donald Trump. 8) Ronald Reagan: He appointed activist judge Antonin Scalia to the Supreme Court. His trickle-down economics policy was a horrible failure. He traded arms for hostages and repealed the Fairness Doctrine. Even worse, he ripped the solar panels off the White House and started the Republicans on an anti-environmental, global-warming-denying crusade that continues to this day. 9) George W. Bush: He did the worst thing any president could do—he lied to get our country into a war. He also became the “Torture President” and crashed the economy. And if that wasn’t enough to earn the bottom spot, he was also responsible for his running mate, Dick Cheney, who is easily the most evil nationally elected politician in American history. With the above in mind, I hope you’ll cherish these final months of the Obama presidency. We may not have another president like him for a long time. rss@dailykos.com (Marty Essen) BarackObama CivilRights Clinton Democrats DickCheney DonaldTrump Elections EndangeredSpecies Environment EPA GeorgeBush JimmyCarter Republicans SupremeCourt USPresidents _1563066 Wed, 24 Aug 2016 13:11:11 +0000 How Will History Rate Barack Obama? https://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/8/9/1558294/-How-Will-History-Rate-Barack-Obama Richard North Patterson has written <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/richard-north-patterson/coming-this-fall-the-subl_b_10925030.html?" target="_blank">an appreciation of Barack Obama</a>, in which he observes: <blockquote> <div> But his accomplishments bear at least some resemblance to those of Franklin Roosevelt in the early days of the New Deal, or of Lyndon Johnson before he crashed and burned in Vietnam. </div> <div> He ameliorated the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. He saved the auto industry. He extended health care to millions of Americans. He put two capable and progressive women on the Supreme Court. And he did so in the face of unprecedented partisanship and polarization. </div> <div> In the area of foreign policy and national security, he took out bin Laden and decimated Al Qaeda. He negotiated the Iran deal, and opened a new relationship to Cuba — controversial acts which, in the end, will likely be vindicated by history. And he helped design and negotiate an international treaty to combat climate change. </div> <div> It is in foreign policy, as well, that the principal criticisms of his tenure lie. It can be argued that he left Iraq too soon, entered Libya too precipitously, and abandoned his redline in Syria for too little. But it is surely true that in the Middle East the consequences of action or inaction are as difficult to forecast as they are severe. </div> <div> In the end, there is little doubt that history will view Barack Obama as a very consequential president — perhaps even, some may argue, a great one. </div> </blockquote> I’ve been wondering how historians of the future will rank Barack Obama among US presidents so far. In the top 10%? There have only been 44 presidents, and it’s doubtful resident Obama will rank among the top four presidents. In the top 20%? I’m inclined to think yes. Maybe the 7th or 8th greatest president the country has had. What are the qualities that make a great president? My choice would be: Effectiveness in office An agenda that leaves a positive effect The character of the person Barack Obama scores well on all three. Compare that to two presidents that history will not look kindly on: Reagan was an effective president, but his agenda has had a negative effect on the country. (Demonization of unions, the notion that paying taxes is a bad thing, contempt for international law.) Nixon normalized relations with China and during his administration we got our environmental laws, but he extended the horrors of Vietnam, and his personal character left much to be desired. So I’ll throw the question out there: Where do you think future historians will rank President Obama among the first 44 presidents? rss@dailykos.com (John Q) History Obama USPresidents _1558294 Tue, 09 Aug 2016 22:19:24 +0000 Presidents and cartoons: You think Obama gets dissed? Look what Abe Lincoln faced https://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/2/14/1477817/-Presidents-and-cartoons-You-think-Obama-gets-dissed-Look-what-Abe-Lincoln-faced Few would disagree that President Obama has faced an unprecedented amount of vitriol during his time in office. The Photoshopped images of his head on witch doctor bodies, the vicious anonymous attacks on social media, the hateful comments on websites, the death threats, the liberal use of the “n” word — we’ve all seen and read it. But he’s hardly alone. Every president from George Washington on has suffered the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune—and of political enemies in the media and in Congress. And the nation’s editorial cartoonists have done their part over the nation’s history to mock those chief executives in derisive fashion. “Cartoons work best when they attack,” wrote Stephen Hess and Sandy Northrop in Drawn & Quartered: The History of American Political Caroons (Elliott & Clark, 1996). “With the rare exception of applauding a peace agreement or a singular individual act of valor, cartoonists are nobody’s cheerleaders. Some cartoonists gauge their success by the hate mail they receive.” In honor of Presidents’ Day, let’s look at some examples of the cartoon vilification of our commanders in chief. rss@dailykos.com (Sher Watts Spooner) AbrahamLincoln AndrewJackson AndrewJohnson PoliticalCartoons PresidentsDay TheodoreRoosevelt USPresidents _1477817 Mon, 15 Feb 2016 01:15:24 +0000 IAN: Tuesday, August 11, 2015: "Laughs" from the Gipper. https://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/8/10/1409049/-IAN-Tuesday-August-11-2015-Laughs-from-the-Gipper Everyone at IAN, pretty much, loves an off-beat holiday.  And I found one for today, August 11th.  Although its origins are, IMO, a bit creepy. Tuesday!  A day to yuck it up--or not. <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/71829982@N00/5713737626/" title="Itzl Alerting by nodigio, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2310/5713737626_1fa725a5fe_t.jpg" width="100" height="75" alt="Itzl Alerting" /></a> <blockquote>As you can see by Itzl's concerned look, this group gives Kossacks a safe place to check in, a daily diary where we can let people know we are alive, doing OK, and not affected by such things as heat, blizzards, floods, wild fires, hurricanes, tornadoes, power outages, earthquakes, or other such things that could keep us off DKos. It also allows us to find other Kossacks nearby for in-person checks when other methods of communication fail - a buddy system. If you're not here, or anywhere else on DKos, and there are adverse conditions in your area (floods, heatwaves, hurricanes, earthquakes etc.), we and your buddy are going to check up on you. If you are going to be away from your computer for a day or a week, let us know here.  We care!</blockquote> <blockquote>IAN is a great group to join, and a good place to learn to write diaries.  Drop one of us a Kosmail and ask to be added to the Itzl Alert Network anytime! We all share the publishing duties, and we welcome everyone who reads IAN to write diaries for the group!  Every member is an editor, so anyone can take a turn when they have something to say, photos and music to share, a cause to promote or news!  </blockquote> <blockquote>We do have a diary schedule. But, when you are ready to write that diary, either post in thread or send FloridaSNMOM a Kosmail with the date. If you need someone to fill in, ditto. FloridaSNMOM is here on and off through the day usually from around 9:30 or 10 am eastern to around 11 pm eastern.</blockquote> Monday: <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/user/BadKitties">BadKitties</a> Tuesday: <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/user/ejoanna">ejoanna</a> Wednesday: <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/user/Caedy">Caedy</a> Thursday: <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/user/uid:681595">art ah zen</a> Friday: <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/user/FloridaSNMOM">FloridaSNMOM</a> Saturday: <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/user/Siris">Siris</a> Sunday: <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/user/loggersbrat">loggersbrat</a> rss@dailykos.com (ejoanna) August Holidays Humor IAN TheGipper USPresidents _1409049 Tue, 11 Aug 2015 04:55:09 +0000 Liz Cheney and James Madison https://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/7/16/1314330/-Liz-Cheney-and-James-Madison I have not yet read Ms Cheney's new book about James Madison, but I intend to. However a cursory examination (if I'm wrong please correct me) would seem to indicate that she failed to mention that James Madison was an American-French dual citizen. It is not that widely known but James Madison (as well as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Payne) were offered French citizenship by the Assembly of the French Revolution in 1792 as an acknowledgement of their contributions for the cause of liberty. AFAIK, we have no documents recording either Washington or Hamilton's answers, but we do have a rather enthusiastic letter from Madison gladly accepting such an offer and (I'm paraphrasing) saying that every enlightened person had two homelands: his own, and France. More under the orange squiggle. rss@dailykos.com (Lupin) DualCitizenship France History JamesMadison LouisianaPurchase ThomasJefferson USPresidents _1314330 Wed, 16 Jul 2014 14:10:04 +0000 An Updated History of Recent Presidents and Unemployment https://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/7/3/1311574/-An-Updated-History-of-Recent-Presidents-and-Unemployment <div class="dkimg-c"><img src="http://images.dailykos.com/images/92727/large/Unemploy.jpg?1404421449" alt="" width="550" height="436" /></div> It should be noted that the one decrease for a Republican, Reagan, is also the president with the highest sustained double-digit unemployment of any of these. rss@dailykos.com (bluto211) Barack Obama BarackObama Jobs Labor republicanvsdemocratunemployment Unemployment UnemploymentRate USPresidents _1311574 Thu, 03 Jul 2014 21:05:00 +0000 A First Look at the President Christie Administration https://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/4/16/1292579/-A-First-Look-at-the-President-Christie-Administration A friend of mine in New Jersey sent me the highlights of a “Restricted” report back on the first of April which was produced by New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s Transition Team. This report documents which policies the electorate could look forward to being implemented in the new administration and the suggested government and party jobs that the various members of Gov. Christie’s staff and campaign team would obtain after the election. So what? You might ask. We know already. That’s yesterday’s news. No, this is news because this report was produced by Gov. Christie’s 2016 Presidential Transition Team and was finished December 2013. A resolute leader and savvy politician like Gov. Christie knows the advantage of doing serious advanced planning. The Governor also knows the importance of  choosing a team of loyal and trustworthy supporters who he can depend on to carry out his policies in a responsible fashion.   rss@dailykos.com (jmcmeans) Bridgegate ChrisChristie Corruption Elections New Jersey NewJersey Politics Republicans Snark USPresidents White House WhiteHouse _1292579 Wed, 16 Apr 2014 22:08:54 +0000 Obama May Have Aimed For Greatness, But He’s Hitting Average https://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/5/18/1210082/-Obama-May-Have-Aimed-For-Greatness-But-He-s-Hitting-Average On the evening of the New Hampshire Primary in 2008, after he had come in a close second to the woman who would eventually become his 1st Secretary of State, then-Senator Barack Obama addressed a crowd of his supporters in Nashua to reassure them that sometimes second place is victory and that their drive and determination in bolstering his campaign would bear fruit. This was almost five and a half years ago, a time before the Great Recession, when we thought that the two seemingly endless wars, the erosion of our civil liberties and the greatest natural disaster was the worst of George W. Bush’s legacy to us. It was also the time when the limpid exhaustion of our faith in government was found by the Obama campaign and nursed back to health like a foundling rescued from some Dickensian hovel. Those selfsame Chicago streets that saw the blood of innocents splattered upon them by Daley’s thugs back in ’68 had given us a new candidate who brought with him a Kennedy-esque sense of mission and purpose. <a rel="lightbox" href="http://s3.amazonaws.com/dk-production/images/32839/lightbox/picture-31.jpg?1368911779"><img src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/dk-production/images/32839/large/picture-31.jpg?1368911779" alt="" /></a> <div class="dkimg-cap">Then-candidate Obama speaking at a rally in Nashua after the 2008 New Hampshire Primary</div> In January of 2008, we cried out for something to latch on to that could make us believe that this time would be different—that this time our voices wouldn’t sputter out into the gloam of the American experiment. Barack Obama knew how we felt and he rose to glory on a wave of hope and change, focus grouping his way to the Presidency of the United States of America. He knew what we wanted and he gave accordingly, which is why in the wee hours of that New Hampshire morning, he turned to his faithful and told them, “We’ve been asked to pause for a reality check. We’ve been warned against offering the people of this nation false hope,” pausing just long enough to let the siren’s song of that replenishing word sink in, before continuing, “But in the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything false about hope.” And so, in lockstep with that quintessentially American narrative that conflates possibility with reality and glorifies the exception at the expense of the rule, Obama tapped into our need to believe that a man or woman egocentric enough to run for President would also be selfless enough to sacrifice his political capital for the welfare of his people. The first time around, we believed him because he was the agent of change we’d all been waiting for. The second time around, we believed him because we couldn’t bear the thought of believing anything else. Considering that they were both lanky, oratorically gifted Senators from Illinois, I suppose the comparisons between Obama and Abraham Lincoln, were inevitable. Even before the Iowa Caucuses had officially set off the race for the Democratic nomination in 2008, <a href="http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2007/12/ken-burns-compares-obama-to-li.html">prominent historians and pundits were already comparing the two men.</a> The fact that Obama has frequently voiced his admiration of the Illinois Rail-Splitter and used one of his bibles in each of his inaugurals probably didn’t help matters either, but I think it’s safe to say that someone as historically conscious as President Obama certainly aspires to be remembered in the same class of Commanders in Chief as Lincoln. The only problem is that, after a full term and change in office, Lincoln has actually come off looking more like Ulysses S. Grant. Now, when I say that Obama’s presidency has born a great many similarities to Grant’s, I don’t mean it in terms of the leadership styles or policies, nor do I mean it as an insult. As a native Ohioan, I have soft spot for U.S. Grant on account of his being arguably the greatest President to ever come out of The Buckeye State, a distinction that is both a legitimate and a backhanded compliment. Ohio can claim that it holds the record for having the most Presidents born within its borders than any other state in the union, but it can’t really say that any of them were that great at the job(1). What this adds up to is that Grant was a top-flight leader in a sub-par subsection of Presidential history, but was pretty much the definition of mediocrity when you include everybody else. On <a href="http://fivethirtyeight.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/01/23/contemplating-obamas-place-in-history-statistically/">Nate Silver’s recent meta-analysis of Presidential rankings</a>, Ulysses S. Grant came as close to the statistical middle of the pack as you get, checking in as the 23rd best President in our nation’s history(2). He doesn’t fair as well in the rarified air reserved for two-term Presidents, but he isn’t scraping the bottom by any means either. Grant ranks 16th among the 19 US Presidents to have served two terms, but he manages to avoid inclusion in the triumvirate of shame down at the bottom of the list, which consists of Calvin Coolidge (27th), Richard Nixon (29th), and George W. Bush (38th). <a rel="lightbox" href="http://s3.amazonaws.com/dk-production/images/32840/lightbox/00680r.jpg?1368911830"><img src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/dk-production/images/32840/large/00680r.jpg?1368911830" alt="" /></a> <div class="dkimg-cap">Advertisement for President Grant’s reelection campaign in 1872</div> Ultimately, Ulysses S. Grant was a competent President who showed flashes of greatness and occasions for disgrace in equal measure. After a mercifully brief and oppressive interlude with Andrew Johnson after Lincoln’s death, Grant reestablished the federal government’s commitment to civil rights by passing the 15th Amendment, protecting African American suffrage, signing The Civil Rights Act of 1875 and using a combination of legislation and military force to break up the nascent development of the Ku Klux Klan. At the same time, Grant oversaw one of the most corrupt administrations in US history, a dubious distinction that is evidenced by an alarming 11 scandals in the federal government over his eight years in office. Granted, none of the scandals directly involved Grant in any way, but they were indicative of a larger culture of nepotism and under-the-table activity that would cast a pall over some of his accomplishments. Over the past week or so, the Obama Administration has come under tremendous scrutiny for their association with or involvement in the IRS’s targeting of Tea Party groups and the Department of Justice’s seizure of AP phone records, scrutiny which is not unreasonable. Unlike the GOP’s obsessive-compulsive witch hunt concerning the attack in Benghazi, both of these incidents warrant the public’s outrage and should be remedied in a just and timely matter. No matter how severely you dislike a given group or how much you are appalled by the widespread misuse of the non-profit label for tax purposes, it is still unconscionable to pinpoint a specific ideology for IRS scrutiny while refraining from cranking up the heat on everyone else. Likewise, it’s not constitutional for an administration to steal phone records for more than 20 separate lines from a major news source and neuter the 1st amendment in the process. <a rel="lightbox" href="http://s3.amazonaws.com/dk-production/images/32841/lightbox/republicans-and-some-democrats-are-demanding-investigations-on-the-irs-scandal.jpg?1368911870"><img src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/dk-production/images/32841/large/republicans-and-some-democrats-are-demanding-investigations-on-the-irs-scandal.jpg?1368911870" alt="" /></a> <div class="dkimg-cap">“Hold on now, I’m nowhere near as bad a the last guy. Perspective, please.”</div> All of that being said, these scandals aren’t earth shattering. The IRS has been used as a political tool for decades and government has tried to encroach on the rights of the press for as long as there has been one. Anyone describing President Obama’s actions as Nixonian needs to sit down and breathe into a brown paper bag until the vein in their foreheads stops throbbing uncontrollably. When Obama starts trying to break into Republican National Headquarters, secretly bugs everything that happens in the Oval Office and <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-250_162-634636.html">gets so knock-down, drag-out drunk that he can’t talk to David Cameron and deal with a crisis in the middle east</a>, then you can call the man Nixonian. At this point in his presidency, Barack Obama hasn’t been bad enough to be considered a failure, but he hasn’t been good enough to be labeled a success. 2016 is a long ways away, but if his first term mirrors his second term, then he won’t escape the confines of mediocrity that he so desperately wants to avoid. During the Bush years, I remember telling folks that all I really wanted from my next President is someone who wouldn’t embarrass America on the international stage, someone who possesses competence, and someone who doesn’t make things worse. By and large, President Obama has met these expectations, but I’m not satisfied. I suppose it’s because the Bush years were like being in an abusive relationship that you desperately wanted to get out of, but you didn’t know how, and the Obama years have been like dating somebody who never answers your calls and has the sexual proficiency of a bag of Grape Nuts. When you’re with the abusive partner who makes your life a living hell, you’d give anything just to be with somebody who wasn’t that attentive and bad in bed. But, once you’ve gotten out of the awful relationship and have your life back, you realize that you don’t want a romantically challenged and often absent partner either. Candidate Obama promised us the world. He made us believe that he could transform Washington DC and make it work for the people instead having it work people over. However, President Obama has taken the hope and the change that he campaigned on and turned it into dour acceptance and stasis. We were led to believe we were getting Lincoln and we got Grant. We got average. ————————————————- 1. Of the 8 Ohio-born Presidents, 3 died in office during their 1st term (William Henry Harrison, James A. Garfield and Warren G. Harding), 1 died during his 2nd term in office (William McKinley), 1 won The White House without winning the popular vote (Rutherford B. Hayes), 1 left virtually no historical footprint, and 2 are remembered more for positions they held outside of The White House (Ulysses S. Grant and William Howard Taft). 2. For what it’s worth, George H.W. Bush was ranked as the 22nd best POTUS in history, securing his place (for now) with Grant as our Nation’s most average President. rss@dailykos.com (Virally Suppressed) 15thAmendment 538Blog AbrahamLincoln APseizure Benghazi Nate Silver NateSilver Obama ObamaIRSScandal Ohio POTUS presidentialrankings UlyssesSGrant USPresidents _1210082 Sat, 18 May 2013 21:20:19 +0000 Which two (three?) US Presidents were also French? https://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/9/9/1129619/-Which-two-three-US-Presidents-were-also-French You know how some crazy birthers always say that Obama can't be a "natural-born citizen" because he was born with dual citizenship? (Actually, he was born with the potential of being a dual citizen, but chose not to become one.) In any event, while doing some research (another long story) I came across an Act of the French Congress passed during the French Revolution on 26 August 1792 which conferred French citizenship to a number of worthy foreigners, including Jeremy Bentham, Thomas Payne, Alexander Hamilton and... George Washington and James Madison! This is the link to the French <a href="http://fr.wikisource.org/wiki/D%C3%A9cret_du_26_ao%C3%BBt_1792">wiki page</a> and the same in the French <a href="http://books.google.fr/books?id=9UYUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA367&lpg=PA367&dq=D%C3%A9cret+du+26+ao%C3%BBt+1792+++Assembl%C3%A9e+Nationale+L%C3%A9gislative&source=bl&ots=aDy6UocHLr&sig=svLU1GZvgQNxFU-ruKqFvwUMB5s&hl=en&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=D%C3%A9cret%20du%2026%20ao%C3%BBt%201792%20%20%20Assembl%C3%A9e%20Nationale%20L%C3%A9gislative&f=false">archival records</a>. More under the squiggle... rss@dailykos.com (Lupin) France History USPresidents _1129619 Sun, 09 Sep 2012 16:02:16 +0000 No Foolin' - Bush makes Pres Poll Final Four https://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/4/1/962361/-No-Foolin-Bush-makes-Pres-Poll-Final-Four I just wish this was an April Fools story. It would be really funny. But it's not...and it's not. The National Constitution Center in Philadelphia has a blog called <a href="%20http://blog.constitutioncenter.org/">Constitution Daily,</a> a nice one to check every once in a while for historical and Constitution-related tidbits. To coincide with the NCAA basketball playoffs, the blog decided to run a Presidential bracket and see who came up as the Presidential champion. Well, they're down to their <a href="http://blog.constitutioncenter.org/your-final-four-fdr-washington-lincoln-and-bush/">Final Four</a> and here are the match-ups: rss@dailykos.com (Montco PA Dem) AbrahamLincoln FranklinRoosevelt George W. Bush GeorgeWashington GeorgeWBush NationalConstitutionCenter Polls USPresidents _962361 Fri, 01 Apr 2011 16:35:41 +0000 Dirk's Chicks? https://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/10/18/794675/-Dirk-s-Chicks With rumours brewing that the Dirkmeister (former Idaho Governor Dirk Kempthorne) is mulling a run for president, it is a good time to revisit some speculation that has been around for years. rss@dailykos.com (123idaho) GovernorDirkKempthorne Idaho LarryCraig sexscandals USPresidents _794675 Sun, 18 Oct 2009 21:58:29 +0000 Lincoln: "Broadswords, in a pit." https://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/9/30/786975/-Lincoln-Broadswords-in-a-pit I wrote this for <a href="http://communionblog.wordpress.com/">my blog</a> a couple of weeks ago, but in discussion in a diary yesterday <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/comments/2009/9/29/9534/46706/126#c126">mentioned it</a> and was advised to cross post it here, for the political lessons which can be drawn and are appropriate to our current situation.  So, here it is - make of it what you will. JD rss@dailykos.com (Shadan7) AbrahamLincoln dueling History USPresidents _786975 Wed, 30 Sep 2009 12:34:54 +0000 Obama Swiftboaters: Irish Ancestry, not Islamic https://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/1/13/436115/-Obama-Swiftboaters-Irish-Ancestry-not-Islamic THERE's something particularly appropriate in our new multicultural Ireland that the latest highprofile US politician to have emerged with Irish ancestry is black. It was revealed last year that Barack Obama is descended from a shoemaker in <a href="http://:%20%20%20http://www.offaly.ie/NR/rdonlyres/ADBC07AC-76DC-4BFF-BB45-CA75D3612564/494/moneygallphoto.pdf">Moneygall</a>, Co Offaly. While public attention has focused recently on Obama's father's Kenyan nationality and as the Republican smear machine prepares to swiftboat his image and depict him as a Muslim sent in to infiltrate the US body politic, Canon Stephen Neill, a Church of Ireland rector from the nearby town of Cloughjordan, has explored his family tree and discovered one branch leading to a shoemaker from Moneygall. Moneygall consists of one stoplight, two pubs and 298 residents, a Catholic church and a sports pitch used by the local Gaelic Athletic Association club. Barack Obama, the charismatic Democrat who could become America's first black president is one of us. Ah, the <a href="http://blogs.ancestry.com/circle/?p=1346">luck of the Irish</a>! rss@dailykos.com (Asinus Asinum Fricat) Barack Obama BarackObama Ireland Irishroots Moneygall swiftboaters USPresidents _436115 Sun, 13 Jan 2008 19:07:02 +0000 The American Credo Stamps ... and Bush https://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/11/20/412906/-The-American-Credo-Stamps-and-Bush I used to believe in the United States of America, and a cause of the beliefs I held were the burning convictions behind the foundation of "these United States." A conviction such as that of Thomas Jefferson... <img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2356/2050084665_e1c65da6d2_m.jpg" /> ... who swore hostility against TYRANNY over the mind of man. I wonder what he would have said should he be made aware of the  present U.S. Attorney General's opinion on waterboarding and torture. Join me for a few more thought provoking Credos. rss@dailykos.com (SteinL) CredoStamps George W. Bush GeorgeWBush USPresidents _412906 Tue, 20 Nov 2007 19:16:21 +0000