Carter: (Zell) Miller's Senate Appointment Was "Mistake"

[kskiska]

WASHINGTON -- Former President Jimmy Carter says the appointment of Georgia's Zell Miller to the Senate was a mistake because his fellow ex-governor "betrayed all the basic principles that I thought he and I and others shared."

The comments, which Carter made Wednesday on the radio program FOX News Live with Alan Colmes, are the latest in a string of attacks prominent Democrats have made lately concerning the maverick senator who has endorsed President Bush's re-election and penned a new book arguing his party is out of touch with the South.

When Colmes asked Carter about Miller, the former president first said, "I would rather not even comment about Zell Miller on the radio," then proceeded to call the appointment "one of the worst mistakes" then-Democratic Gov. Roy Barnes made in his final four years in office.

Miller dismissed Carter's comments Thursday, calling the former president a friend of more than 40 years.

"And over those 40-plus years, I bet I've received about two dozen personal notes from Jimmy Carter," Miller said. "Half of them are giving me hell, and the other half are bragging on me. So, I figure I'm doing OK batting .500 with Jimmy Carter."

more…
http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/1203/11carter.html

[TacticalPeek]

1. I'd have to see the notes to believe that.

Maybe more like .167.

[CMT]

2. Jimmy Carter is absolutely right

and God Bless him for telling the truth. We would have been better off had someone like John Lewis been appointed--and it would have been historic to boot.

[benfranklin1776]

11. Amen!

I couldn't agree more.

[BOSSHOG]

3. Zell was a great Democratic leader

of the 19th Century and an icon of the idiocy of the Republican Party for the past 20 years. Its a shame he did not do the right thing and switch parties a long time ago. The Southern Democrats vacated the klavern in the 60s and the republicans have set up shot there ever since. You are a stain upon the Democratic Party, Zell. You are a hater, a homophobe, a racist, a typical conservative republican.

[billbuckhead]

4. Unlike Dean, Zell has fought against the Confederate flag

[CMT]

5. unlike Zell

Dean is campaigning hard to defeat Bush and his racist policies.

[Gman]

33. Unlike Dean

Carter has a rapport with the African-American community. Carter never had white people hold up signs saying "Blacks for Dean".

[madfloridian]

7. That is a tasteless remark.

It shows no insight, just pure hate.
On Edit, that deserves the Ignore button.

[Romberry]

12. Yup. And we all know that Vermont is just full...

...of confederate flags that need fighting. Why, I believe the capitol of the confederacy was there! And they have all those reenactments and celebrations of their Southern heritage each and every year. Yup. Old Dr. Dean really let us down there! Now the whole dang state is overrun with confederate flags!

[Cooley Hurd]

23. That doesn't even make sense, Bill...

Dean's never been in the position to "fight against the Confederate flag." He made one comment about the flag that was completely disconnected from the flag issue. Nowhere has he said he is in favor of the flag...

[ibegurpard]

28. I'm sorry, what does that have to do with the subject of this thread?

:shrug:

[xchrom]

31. your candidate still smells bad

[w4rma]

37. So obsessed over Dean you feel the urge to change the subject? (n/t)

[Faygo Kid]

6. I love Jimmy Carter

It must be agonizing to him to see what the Zell Millers of this nation are up to. Carter wasn't the greatest president, but he is a great human being - unlike Zell Miller who, except for the toe sucking, is another Dick Morris.

[Sallyrat]

22. And why do you say, 'he was not the greatest Prez"

This is a phrase that keeps being said about Pres. Carter. He was one of our greatest presidents.....why do you think those hostages were taken....not because of his weakness, but because of his strengths....He was noted for conserving.....even had the lights cut down at the WH......the oil cartel didn't like for us to conserve, they wanted us to glut......The grain embargo, many, many things he did to show strength and the GOP has dropped the slogan, a good man but a weak pres....I was in my 30's then and I KNOW he was a great man and president....don't buy into that propaganda.

[Hope4]

8. Interesting article

Here is one thing that keeps confusing me. Most on here are upset with Zell Miller and Bush. Yet a powerful group decide to go outside and get clark a very pro-bush team player. He is more like Miller and what miller states here that carter started ran as a miller type but govern more like a liberal.

So why are we even having a clark on our ballot with all the great dems we have. I just do not get it. Loyal dems on here like Joe L., DK, and others are attacked and yet the powers that attack think it is great to bring a person in who was not even a dem.

[Faygo Kid]

13. ???? Ever try grammar?

Could you edit this for those of us who only speak the English language?

[Skittles]

18. hey

that was rude. Suppose a person doesn't know good grammar? Perhaps a PM is in order.

[Catherine Vincent]

19. How rude!

:spank:

[Jim Sagle]

21. I understood him just fine. And I'll bet you did too.

[Media_Lies_Daily]

38. You'll be one of those folks the mods will be watching after January 1st.

[glitch]

25. Welcome to DU!

Try to ignore the occasional rudeness, this a great place to be!

[pinto]

29. hello Hope 4, I've seen a couple of your posts and like your input. n/t

[CO Liberal]

9. CO Liberal: Zell Miller IS a Mistake

:-)

[jayfish]

10. Where Are The Rest Of The

prominent Democrats on Zell. It took a month for any of them to publicly refute this turncoat. It came from the most unlikely of sources too. The rest must be getting their tutus refitted.

Jay

[TacticalPeek]

14. I love Jimmy Carter.

From his session with Tweety last night:

Do you believe this war with Iraq is consistent with the American tradition of only fighting defensive wars?

CARTER: No, it’s not.

The Iraqi war was a radical departure, Chris, from all previous wars in which this country has ever been involved. As I have tried to explain to the American people in a very faltering way, through speeches and editorials, I thought it was a completely unjust and unnecessary war, certainly to be launched unilaterally, with just a few British troop tagging along behind us.

And I think that the results since then have proven that it was unjustified and unwise. I do believe, though, that now we have to, all of us, have to back our young men and women over there, who are heroes in my mind and everyone else’s. And I think that America has to keep control of the military or security aspects in Iraq from now on, maybe with the help of a few more people.

But we have not yet been willing to share responsibilities and the privileges of politics and economics in Iraq. And I think that’s been one of the main fallacies that has brought about the surprising disappointments that we still are experiencing every day in Iraq.

MATTHEWS: Do you think this is the last war that President Bush will fight like this? Or could he go into Syria or to Iran, following the same rationale or maybe public and private rationales, the mix that we’ve gotten, to fight other wars, if he gets reelected for four more years?

CARTER: Well, that’s completely unpredictable, although I think it was quite predictable that President Bush and his advisers quite early decided to go to war in Iraq, no matter what happened in the United Nations or anywhere else in the world.

But I think now there’s been a level of disappointment or surprise in the aftermath of the war in Iraq that might be a deterrent factor. So I don’t really anticipate us launching another war, certainly not on our own. And I certainly can’t conceive of the United Nations or other major countries joining us on such an adventure as a preemptive war, so-called. I think that premise has been substantially discredited and will deter any future adventures of that kind.

MATTHEWS: If you were writing the history of today and you were sitting back, the way we used to study history in grade school, what were the immediate causes of the war, what were the long-term causes of the war, what were the real deep-history causes of us going to war with Iraq? If it wasn’t WMD, if it wasn’t a connection to 9/11, if it wasn’t self-defense, what drove this war?

CARTER: Well, I think there were a group of dedicated people, maybe experiencing the aftermath of the Gulf War under President Bush Sr., who would determine from the beginning, somehow or another, to contrive a way to go into Iraq and to overthrow and to capture and to execute Saddam Hussein.

And that included the present vice president and the present secretary of defense and others, who have surrounded President Bush. And I think they induced in him very early a commitment that this was the thing to do. And I don’t know if they really believed it or not, but it has been proven by facts that Iraq did not contain a mass array of weapons of mass destruction that were threatening the very existence or security of America.

I think it has been proven that there’s no tie at all between Saddam Hussein and al Qaeda and the worldwide terrorist organizations. So, those things that were promoted as facts by top people in our government have been disproven. Whether they believed those statements or not, obviously, no one knows except them.


http://www.msnbc.com/news/1003995.asp


I know.

[Kolesar]

24. The year 2003 & the conquest of Iraq in review. Good stuff.

[maxrandb]

15. Duhh!! n/t

[PROGRESSIVE1]

16. Now if Daddy Miller had just used a condom then we would not...

have this problem today!

[jobycom]

17. Wow, did Miller just imply that Carter was lying, or a hothead?

That's a bit like implying that Christ was a mean-spirited bully, which is exactly what the Repubs seem to imply... and since Miller votes with the Repubs... Oh, nevermind, I get it now.

[DACT]

36. Are you implying that Carter is Christ?

Methinks he's not.

[Media_Lies_Daily]

39. Are you implying that you actually...

...thought before you posted?

Get a grip.

[xxqqqzme]

20. caught the replay of

Jon Stewart's interview of zell from last night's TDS. He is one huge sorry excuse of a democrat. The very idea that he can accuse the democratic party as catering to special interests but find the rethugs free of such influence - well, stunned me as much as it did Jon. There is not one single piece of legislation, not one EO, not one policy shift, put forth by this rethug gang of criminals, that is not bathed in the green-ness of special interests. Who does he think wrote the 'Energy Bill' - The Sierra Club? 'No Child Left Behind' - the NEA? radical, right wing court nominees - NOW? An absolute clown. Hope squatter rewards him w/ an invite 2 the pig farm. He can help him clear brush, help pickles sweep the porch.

[Cooley Hurd]

26. Don't you think he came across as a nut on TDS?

It remined me of the Ann Coulter interview, the audience was clearly NOT on their side...

[ellie]

32. I screamed at the tv

last night when that prick said the Democrats would lose in 2004. Yea, with people like that on our team, we need no enemies. What, pray tell, have the Democrats done to lose the South? Not racist enough to go after the neanderthal Confederate vote? Zell can go f**k off.

[ibegurpard]

27. ZING!

:spank:
Coming from Carter, who I have generally found to be exceedingly diplomatic, them is strong words indeed!

[LynneSin]

30. This is why I love Jimmy Carter

How can you not adore this guy??

[Blue_Tires]

34. thank you james earl carter

for taking a stand on principles

[Mechatanketra]

35. Miller: "The lurkers support me in e-mail".

Translated from obsolete politician to modern net.speak.

:eyes:

[RainDog]

40. The South is out of touch with the 21st century.

...and before I get flamed...I'm from the south, and I say that from lots of experience.

the best thing that could happen for this country would be if the fundies went and raptured themselves.