Reply #55: Johnson was a very complex man; he deserves better than simplistic dismissal

[PurityOfEssence]

It definitely sounds like he was scared. He was probably feeling guilty for being a Texan at this point, especially since Dallas was considered a "hostile" city and Kennedy had been warned against going there. He also probably felt the conflicted anguish that decent people feel when close associates that they don't particularly like meet an unjust fate.

Johnson was a very big man in every way, and his failings and greatness exemplify humanity itself. This is a man who was ham-fisted to get his way and still wanting to bridge divides. THIS was the man who gave civil rights to blacks, and he did it by force of will against much of his own power base because he felt it was right. This man fought for the poor. He was also very insecure and too good at getting his way for his own good.

These flashes of insight simply make him more interesting to me, and I see him as a bit of a bumpkin who got farther than he ever expected, for both good and bad. There was greatness in that man, and only those with a grudge or an inability to embrace complexity and paradox won't see it if they look a wee bit.