The election rhetoric is already hot and heavy and sure to get hotter. Can we perhaps agree that we can look to a few talking heads to get the straight dope on the election aftermath?
As a conservative Pub I nominate Pat Cadell and Bob Beckel (usually). I’m sure many will tell me I’m wrong…so who then?
And among the multitude of Dem/Lib/Progs (whatever you want to call yourselves), do you respect the opinion of anybody on your right.
Most of the ones I respect on the right have been run off by the Tom Delay wing.
I had great respect for John Danforth (MO Senator) and Joel Hefley (CO Representative). I don’t agree with them on many things, but they are fine men and I would trust them on just about anything.
When he’s being his professorial, thoughtful, self and not a scheming evil kingmaker, Newt Gingrich. I’d rather have him for dinner than Bill Clinton, even though Clinton is probably the best president I’ve lived through (i.e. from Nixon onward.) He really is much less rhetorical and more analytical than most Republicans when he’s actually trying to convince people of his point of view (and yes, that isn’t saying much.)
Used to respect McCain but now I don’t as much considering his recent pandering to the extreme Right.
I’m not sure which side I really qualify for… Talent appeared to be a good man until the christian right and the national republican party got ahold of him. Its really disappointing to watch him now. I’ll second Newt. It can be fascinating watching/listening to him give a well-thought-out answer to a good question. I’ll just lay down the gauntlet and say that any vocal real conservative (libertarian, small government) in the republican party would quickly gain my respect. I would love for one to be pointed out to me. Also would love to see some market-friendly-solution democrats. If our government was full of these, we’d be in good shape.
George Will, nearly always reasoned and insightful.
P.J. O’Rourke, although he’s got his worshipful side when it comes to the military-industrial complex.
Sometimes even (gasp) Pat Buchanan when he’s on the jobs-for-Americans kick.
I highly enjoy James Lileks’ cultural commentary, but when it comes to politics (or anything suggesting politics) he’s pounding Kool-Aid doubles, no chaser.
Forgot John Dean. I read Conservatives Without Conscience cover-to-cover. It took some guts to speak out against the authoritarian style when it’s so prevalent in power.
I’m an Independent Conservative. I nominate: Pat Cadell, Chris Matthews, and the analysis, not conclusions, of Peter Beinart. Oh, and don’t foget the sanest Dem of them all, Zell Miller.
Of the ones who are still breathing, the first one off the top of my head would be George H. W. Bush. Just wish he’d have the cojones to give Junior a much-needed smack in the head…
I would’ve said Dennis Hastert until fairly recently. I suppose I’ll still cut him some slack insofar as it would be well nigh impossible to occupy his seat and not be called upon to shovel some horse manure from time to time.
Mind you, I’m taking “political opposition” at its most literal, not its most liberal. There are some Republicans whose opinions I not only respect but also often agree with, and for whom I would probably vote under the right circumstances. But then that means we aren’t politically opposed, doesn’t it?
For that matter, I could list some liberals and some wing nuts of the mostly-lefty persuasion that I could consider opponents… OK, I would say I respect Lenore Fulani’s opinions on a variety of topics (especially social justice politics), and I’d be no more likely to vote for her than for Denny Hastert, so that should count.
Biden can be very sharp. But,he alas is a political whore and is owned.
Clinton is smart but he is responsible for NAFTA ,so I would bitch him out
I miss Hunter Thompson who told it like it is.
Talking heads are usually so depoliticized that I can’t tell on any given issue whether I will agree with them or not, and those I respect.
Unless they come from such extremist organizations as Pacifica Radio or Fox News and then, no, I don’t respect them, because they are knee-jerkingly biased.
Regardless of their party affiliation, I rarely afford talking heads any degree of respect. Their primary purpose is to make noise, not to offer intelligent analysis, so I feel that most of them will say anything - and, of course, ignore the facts any time they turn out to be wrong. If you made me choose one, I’d say George Will. He does seem reasonable on the rare occasion that I read him.
There are Dopers on the opposite side of the spectrum that I respect more than any talking head.
God help me, I like Pat Buchanan. He’s the only right wing talking head that says the Pubs are going down big time and deservedly so. He also stands up for the working man in that he knows what a disastrous effect NAFTA has had on the US industrial sector. I’d never vote for him in a million years, but he seems to speak what he believes and doesn’t try to spin things to make the Pubs look better.
PB is pissed at the Republicans because they snubbed him. He’s a culture warrier of the type that would make O’Reilly blush, and is about as openly racist as anyone can be these days. And he certainly does spin things for the Pubbies-- whenever it suits him. On top of that, he’s a well educated guy with an excellent graps of history-- which makes things even worse because he should know better. I beg you to reconsider.
Among the Republicans, I respect Alan Simpson and Jack Kemp, and I even forgive the latter guy for teaming up with Dole in '96. Of course, you gotta love Goldwater, if we’re allowed to vote for dead people in this poll.
Among the Democrats, I respect Russ Feingold and Sam Nunn, although the latter guy is a bit too socially conservative for my tastes. Still, he was a straight shooter and not afraid to break with his party and work with the other side. I found Feingold to be the single most level headed guy in the Senate during the run up to the Iraq war, and he seems to keep his politicking to a minimum.
You make good points and as I said, I’d never vote for him in a million years (though he did amazingly well in 2000 with Jewish Floridians). But the guy does speak his mind and doesn’t try to polish turds the way that so many other politcos do. I forget which GOP honcho was on today predicting that the Republicans would hold the House and another claiming that there was no racial intimidation in Florida in 2000 or 2004.
We discussed the question of whether Buchanan deserves the “racist” and “antisemitic” labels in this GD thread three years ago.
And I don’t see how a reasonable person can dispute that when Buchanan, or for that matter most anti-immigration activists nowaday, talk of the difficulties of assimilating foreigners of a different “culture,” they are using that as a code word for “color.” But some on this board have.