Reply #2: Thom Hartmann was a must listen today.

[seafan]

Today's show was riveting.


Paraphrasing:


Lyndon Johnson was moving toward a peace agreement with the Vietnamese. At that time, there were around 5,000 US casualties. Johnson became aware that Nixon and his operatives were going behind his back to convince Saigon not to work with Johnson in any peace deal. That's when Johnson pulled Republican Senator Everett Dirksen aside and told him that he (Johnson) was on to Nixon's treachery and bluntly stated that it was treason. Dirksen agreed. This was Nixon's October Surprise. The direct result was Nixon taking the presidency, several more agonizing years of war and 58,000 US dead.

Johnson dropped his run for reelection in 1968 and his VP Hubert Humphrey lost to Nixon. Nixon stepped into office after what he had done to torpedo Johnson's efforts to end the Vietnam war.

Nothing short of treason led Nixon to an illegitimate presidency in 1969.



Then, along came Reagan and George HW Bush. President Carter was trying to work out a release for the 52 American hostages captured by Iran in 1979. Reagan and Bush orchestrated their own October surprise in the fall of 1980, as Republican operatives (including Poppy Bush) conspired and sent William Casey to meet in Spain with Iranians to hash out a deal with them. The deal put to the Iranians was to continue holding the American hostages (against Carter's efforts to free them) and to wait for Reagan/Bush to win in the 1980 election and they could get 'a better deal' (than with Carter) in their quest for airplane parts from the US. Iran needed these badly, and Reagan/Bush were going to send the parts to Iran via Israel. Iran agreed to it, thus roadblocking Carter's efforts to free the hostages. Carter then lost the election after these treasonous actions by the the Reagan/Bush operatives.

And Iran released the hostages simultaneously as Reagan took the oath of office. (I still remember seeing that on a split TV screen as it happened.)

Another illegitimate actor took over the presidency in 1981, with his illegitimate VP at his side.



We all know how George W. Bush was awarded the presidency in 2000. History repeating itself.



The glaring point to all of this history is that Republicans cannot now win presidential elections unless they cheat.


Thom Hartmann's point is that not since Eisenhower has there been a legitimate Republican presidency.



And for that, we have grievously suffered as a nation.