Margaret Thatcher & Ronald Reagan: The Ultimate 80s Power Couple - by George Schultz

[DonViejo]

by George Schultz Jan 1, 2050 9:40 AM EST

The two leaders saw the world in a similar way, and together they dominated a decade. George Shultz, Ronald Reagan's secretary of state, recalls working with the Iron Lady.

As President Reagan’s secretary of state from 1982 to 1989, George Shultz formed his own special bond with British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. As told to Newsweek's William Underhill.

Margaret Thatcher was an agenda politician who also seemed to have an instinct for the process. And that was Ronald Reagan too.

In fact, “ideological soulmates” is a very good description (of their relationship). I don’t think it was so much that she was pro-American or that the president was pro-British. It is more that they saw the world in similar ways, (particularly) the Cold War and the vitality of Western economies. That meant we could work together very effectively and produce results that were outstanding. Whenever the Reagan administration had any dealings with the Soviet Union or went to Moscow, for example, we always communicated with her directly. And the same was true whenever she went there. We just shared our impressions, our instincts, and our ideas.

She was always alert to what was going on, and her comments were pithy and to the point. She didn’t like mushy things, so you could always count on her to firm things up—which is what we tended to want. When we first met, she took me up by the arm and wheeled me up to a room in Chequers (the prime minister’s official residence outside London), and the two of us sat there for a couple of hours on our own exchanging ideas. It was so refreshing. We argued, we talked, and got along just fine. I was able to tell her what was on the president’s mind, and she registered her views with me. I could see she was very confident of herself: she thought things through and she knew what she thought—very much like President Reagan.

Of course, we had our differences. When we came back from (the 1986 U.S.-Soviet summit in) Reykjavik with an agreement that it was desirable to get rid of all nuclear weapons, she came over to Washington, and I was summoned to the British Embassy. It was then that I discovered the meaning of the British expression to be “handbagged.” She said: “George, how could you sit there and allow the president to agree to abolish nuclear weapons?” To which I said: “Margaret, he’s the president.” She replied, “But you’re supposed to be the one with the feet on the ground.” My answer was, “But, Margaret, I agreed with him.” She went on to Camp David, where she told the same to the president—but in softer language.

-snip-

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/04/08/ideological-soulmates.html

[alsame]

1. And they both

sucked.

[bemildred]

2. Let the hagiography begin. nt

[xtraxritical]

3. Just barf me.

[santamargarita]

4. I don't give a fuck about either asshole.

At least they're no longer ruining our countries.

[mulsh]

5. "Mush Mind" is what underlings at the State Dept called Shultz.

n/t