So I'm sitting here wondering how in hell

[malaise]

someone ran for electoral office as Head of the Federal Government and the country while telling people that government was not the solution, government was the problem. And why was that in the inaugural address.


Seriously how the hell did Reagan pull that off?
Please Obama remind them why there are governments in liberal democracies - you know that little Social Contract thingy!!

That is all.

[liberalmuse]

1. You must be watching MSNBC.

I grimaced at that. You can't even compare this phony actor to men like Lincoln, FDR and JFK. And what a LIE! Hence, with that, he kicked off an era of unprecedented greed and "ME, ME, ME". What a terrible speech.

[malaise]

3. Yep and the reminder sickened my stomach

An absolute fake.

[Captain Hilts]

2. Carter was that bad a president, sorry to say. No matter how honorable his intentions. nt

[lunatica]

5. Actually Carter was not a bad President. The Iran Hostage situation

and the crippling residue of the unresolved Vietnam war which caused him to make his 'malaise' speech had us on the verge of finally facing our national failures and becoming a grownup and mature Nation when along came Reagan and wrapped us in the Jingoistic flag our eternally adolescent population just loves. So naturally Americans gladly went back to their delusional bubble about what a great nation we are and how we are perfect and they hate us for our freedoms...

Reagan made it because his Presidential campaign was a hollywood production which featured uber patriotic visual footage of the American flag strategically waving in superimposition to every Reagan appearance. He went so far as to make a deal with the Iranians not to release the hostages until the day he was Inaugurated. Faux Patriotic sentiment was so thick you couldn't cut it if you tried.

[Berry Cool]

6. Reagan won because he was smart enough to realize that Americans don't like being depressed.

They want hope. They want optimism. They want to believe things can get better. They really don't want to be told in a somber way that things are bad and that they must take their medicine and deal with it.

Obama is smart enough to realize that too. But he's not shying away from reality and truth and trying to peddle bullshit the way Reagan did. He's selling the same honest message as Carter. The difference is, he knows how to present it: not with doom and gloom, but by saying "Hey, we're better than this. We can solve this problem. Let's do what it takes to make it happen, and when we do, we will have sunshine and rainbows again."

[deaniac21]

7. Gas shortage, double digit inflation and 21 percent interest

rates didn't help either. Asking for his entire cabinet's resignations didn't help. Ted Kennedy running against him in the democratic primaries showed that many democrats weren't real high on him either.

[tularetom]

4. It was easy for Ronnie to portray government as "the problem"

after four godawful years of the incompetence of Carter.

Out of control inflation, 18% mortgage interest rates, gas price gouging and shortages. It was a terrible time.

[madmom]

8. republicans don't believe in government, so how can they, in all truefulness, govern?