The last time we had a GOP candidate kinda sorta like Trump we got Medicare, Medicaid . . . . .

[Stinky The Clown]

. . . . the end of legal segregation in public facilities, education, housing, and other areas, some measures of gun control, elimination of immigration quotas, significant aid to the arts, education, urban and rural development, and a fairly effective "war on poverty" that, as far as it was able to go, lifted millions out of poverty.

I know many like to vilify Lyndon Johnson, but, with his "Great Society" vision arguably makes him the last great truly liberal president, in the mold of FDR. Sure, presidents since him have given us things we liberals want, but none since him have done it in such volume and breadth.

His opponent in his only run for election to the office was Arizona's Barry Goldwater, who, in the context of the time, was a far right extremist on the issues of the day - mostly the fight against Soviet Communism. He was supported by such far right "luminaries" as John F. Buckley and the John Birch Society. At the time, he was seen as the man who would lead us to realities akin to the movies Dr. Strangelove, Seven Days in May, and On The Beach.

Ironically, however, it was Johnson who actually DID get us deep into a terrible war in Southeast Asia.

But I digress.

While the parallels and analogies are far from perfect, these seems to me a lot of similarities among the electorate and the candidates in 1964 and now.

In '64 it was Johnson by a landslide.

In '16, if its Trump, it could be the same sort of election.

[dsc]

1. the end of legal segregation

happened before that election, the Civil Rights Act was passed in 1964 but the rest are points well taken.

[HassleCat]

2. Coat tails

Johnson ran for election shortly after the Kennedy assassination, and we still had many Dixiecrats to bolster the Democratic majority. These re different times. If Trump is the Republican nominee, we are likely to have him as president. Even if a Democrat wins, we will absolutely not see anything even remotely akin to the Great Society programs. That would require a shift of 100 or so seats in the House of Representatives. If you're saying the election could follow a similar pattern I can see that, although I think it's unlikely a Trump candidacy would lead to a Democratic landslide.

[olddots]

3. if I could relive the past I wouldn't .

Imagine if Donald was married to Lady Bird .

[Mass]

4. Actually, Cruz is a better analogy. Trump is nothing more than a demagogue ready to use the old

white supremacists/old Southern Democrats turned Republicans in order to gain power for his personal gains, and sadly, demagoguery can win (he is now calling for an elimination of the loophole for carried interest, but obviously NOT for real estate).

Goldwater had a vision, even if he was wrong. Trump is no more than a megalomaniac and sadly, these people attract, in our world of real television. Network/Man of the Year is unfortunately no more fiction.