JFK would be a Republican today

[Tracy Riddle]

Another one of those laughable sound bites many right-wingers spout in public, though privately they still think JFK was a communist.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/ra...-democrats

Rafael Cruz said that Americans "need to put principle above tradition."
"There are people voting Democrat because, 'My grandfather or my father voted Democrat.' Let me tell you something. The Democratic party today is not the Democratic party of John Kennedy. John Kennedy would be a Republican today," he said.

[Phil Dagosto]

I doubt that JFK could even abide the Wall St/corporatist/MIC toadies in the Democratic Party today let alone the Republicans.

[Joseph McBride]

"My father always told me that all businessmen were sons of bitches. But
I never believed it until now." -- JFK during his dispute with U.S. Steel
chairman Roger Blough

[Jim DiEugenio]

Isn't this hysterical?

::lilgreenman::::laughingdog::::

the idea that kennedy would be buds with the likes of Bush, Trump, and Rubio is nonsense.

I don't even think he would be palsy with HC or Kerry.

In fact, he would probably start his own party.

[Albert Doyle]

Jim, is that the jet effect in your icon?

[Jim DiEugenio]

No, its exploding crap.

Same thing.

[Martin White]

I guess throughout history the names associated with political parties have represented shifting ideals. I mean, hard to reconcile the pro-slavery Democrats of the 1800s with the Democrat JFK seeking to give equal rights in the 60s.

Or, on the opposite side of the spectrum, the Republicans who would sell voters' grandmothers if it would help Corporate America, with the Republican Abe Lincoln that abolished slavery. These days he'd be blasted as "anti-business", as was the UK Labour leader here in the UK before our election just because he wanted employers to pay a "living wage".

[Jim DiEugenio]

After Bobby Kennedy's assassination, Nixon won the White House in a very close election. Largely because Humphrey hesitated in denouncing the Vietnam War because of pressure from Johnson. Also because Anna Chenault cooperated with Nixon in not getting peace talks going since Nixon promised the SVN government a better deal than LBJ.

Without those factors involved, Nixon likely would have lost.

When Nixon took office, John Mitchell said,"This country is going to swing so far right, you won't recognize it."

Pretty darn accurate.

The problem is that this rightward curve was continued under Ford, Reagan, Bush, and Bush. To the point that stealing elections in Florida and Ohio became SOP. Not even investigated by the Justice Department or FBI.

The extreme rightward and lawless pressure pulled the center and left with it. To the point that we have a political spectrum that goes all the way to the right, including Libertarians and Neo Nazis, to the center, which is where the Democrats are, and the left extends about as far out as Howard Dean. Which means, there is no Left in political terms in this country.

The last vestige of it died at the Ambassador Hotel.

But these right wing fruitcakes don't want you to think that is the case. So they say, well see JFK and MLK were really conservatives.

What pablum. Its so crazy, but that is the world we live in today.

I say go to Costa Rica.

[Anthony Thorne]

Doesn't Lisa Pease have a book coming out on the RFK assassination soon? The summary at BlackOpRadio doesn't offer details about it but I recall it was mentioned recently. (I haven't listened to her interview yet).

To my mind the RFK killing differs from JFK to the extent that it hasn't totally been converted into a zany meme by trashier elements of the mainstream press, so they fall back on strategy two, which is blanket radio silence about the event, the destruction of evidence, Pepper's recent developments with the case etc.

I agree with Jim's description of the rightward lurch. Those photos of workers and members of poverty-stricken minority groups gathering with their families to salute RFK's funeral train are haunting in retrospect.

[Jim DiEugenio]

Lisa does have a book coming out on the RFK case.

She has about half of it done now.

It will be a real barnburner.