[This blog was born on January 12, 2009, and I took it down and put it up in different combinations of WordPress, Web hosting and domain names until I arrived here on January 25. But I didn’t re-post everything I had written. However, Pres. Abraham Lincoln was born 200 years ago today and Obama and his fell media minions are in overdrive to conflate Obama with Lincoln.This is more than I can stand, so I am posting here one of the columns I wrote on Jan. 18 for an earlier incarnation of this blog.]
I only have my father and Cuban Diva BFF as witnesses to prove that I was eager for Obama to compare himself to Pres. Lincoln in the 2008 presidential debates and for Sen. McCain to shut him down like this:
Sen. Obama: When you ask, “What experience do I have that qualifies me to be president?’,” I, uh, I will say, uh, (puts hand over eyes for a moment to recall memorized sound bite) that I am just like Abraham Lincoln because I, too, have lived in Illinois far longer than many others who have, uh, sought the office of, uh, the presidency, and, uh ….
Sen. McCain, interrupts, his face red with righteous rage: Senator, I served with Abe Lincoln; I knew Abe Lincoln; Abe Lincoln was a friend of mine. Senator, you’re no Abe Lincoln. (Tumultuous applause for several minutes. It’s MY fantasy, I say there would be tumultuous applause!)
Sen. Obama: Uh, I, uh, that, uh, that was uncalled for.
Sen. McCain: Mr. Obama, in the words of the late Lloyd Bentsen, former Democratic senator from Texas, “You are the one that was making the comparison, Senator — and I’m one who knew him well. And frankly I think you are so far apart in the objectives you choose for your country that I did not think the comparison was well-taken.”
Here is the Wikipedia entry on the vice presidential debate on Oct. 5, 1988, where Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Lloyd Bentsen told Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. Dan Quayle that he was no Jack Kennedy. It includes a partial transcription of the exchange along with a link to the full transcription.
Or, watch it now:
From the transcript:
Quayle: Three times that I’ve had this question — and I will try to answer it again for you, as clearly as I can, because the question you are asking is, “What kind of qualifications does Dan Quayle have to be president,” “What kind of qualifications do I have,” and “What would I do in this kind of a situation?”And what would I do in this situation? […] I have far more experience than many others that sought the office of vice president of this country. I have as much experience in the Congress as Jack Kennedy did when he sought the presidency. I will be prepared to deal with the people in the Bush administration, if that unfortunate event would ever occur.
Judy Woodruff: Senator [Bentsen]?
Bentsen: Senator, I served with Jack Kennedy: I knew Jack Kennedy; Jack Kennedy was a friend of mine. Senator, you’re no Jack Kennedy. (Prolonged shouts and applause.) What has to be done in a situation like that is to call in the Joint —
Woodruff (speaking to the audience to quiet them): Please, please, once again you are only taking time away from your own candidate.
Quayle: That was really uncalled for, Senator. (Shouts and applause.)
Bentsen: You are the one that was making the comparison, Senator — and I’m one who knew him well. And frankly I think you are so far apart in the objectives you choose for your country that I did not think the comparison was well-taken.
No, it is not.