Mark Russell: Takes a Look Back at 1984

Source:Mark Russell- Political satirist Mark Russell. 

Source:The New Democrat

1984 was almost unfair for the Democrats because they had no one who can beat Ronald Reagan and they probably knew that going in. If you look at where the country was in 1980 and where it was in 1984, it certainly wasn’t good, but the country was feeling much better than it was in 1984 than in 1980. Imagine waking up with a head cold or the flu and then waking up the next morning with a cold. You aren’t feeling great, the next morning with the cold and perhaps a stuffed nose and cough. But at least the headache is gone and you’re no longer vomiting every hour were able to sleep the whole night. Well that is how the country felt in 1984 with Ron Reagan compared with 1980 with Jimmy Carter.

1984 was what the what the hell year for Democrats. “Hey I can’t win so I might as well run for president, because what do I have to lose”. Which I believe was one of Walter Mondale’s campaign themes that year. “Vote for me, what do you have to lose?” 1984 was for Democrats what 1964 and 96 was for Republicans. The country not feeling great, but much better off than it did four years earlier. And when that is the case the party in power tends to get reelected. And if that party holds at least one chamber of Congress as well, they not only hold their majority in the House or Senate, but tend to add to it as well. Which is what Senate Republicans did in 84.

It is too bad for Democrats in 84 because they had at least two good candidates. And if Gary Hart was just able to communicate what he believed in 84, the Mondale line of “where’s the beef” doesn’t play as well or is even used. Because Democrats tended to like Gary Hart and did other Americans, but with Mondale they knew him and knew where he was on the issues. He was the safe choice especially considering they knew he wasn’t going to win anyway, but at least Fritz wasn’t going to embarrass them. Ron Reagan was something special as a politician and when things were going well under his leadership or at least perceived that way, he was almost impossible to beat. Which is what Democrats found out in 1984.
Source:Mark Russell

Mark Russell PBS: Election 76: We Get a President As Good As The American People

Source:Mark Russell PBS- with a political satiric look at campaign 76.

"From "Mark Russell Looks at Campaign '76"--clips from Russell's Dec 1975 special. It begins with a song about politicians sung to the tune of "A Modern Major General" from "The Pirates of Penzance." This special aired in 1988, and Russell does an introduction, providing some context that will help familiarize you with the political atmosphere of those bygone days. (Hint: Reagan doesn't win the nomination this year.) I love the delivery of the joke about Terry Stanford (who?!)."

From Mark Russell PBS

The two most important aspects of the 1976 presidential election had to be the Republican primaries between former Governor Ronald Reagan and sitting Republican President Gerald Ford. 

President Ford beat Governor Reagan handily in the Republican primaries early on in the winter and spring, sort of like a Super Bowl between the AFC and NFC during the mid and late 1980s, and early 90s. (For the 1 or 2 football fans that read this) And then Reagan makes a Richard Nixon like comeback in the summer of 76 and was able to take the primary season to the Republican National Convention in Kansas City, Missouri. 

And then the general election battle in the late summer and fall between former Governor Jimmy Carter and President Gerry Ford, where you have Jimmy Carter running as someone who was no better or worst than the people who vote for him and the people he would serve. (Not exactly a natural inspirer, Jimmy Carter) 

Carter ran against a sitting President in Gerry Ford, who was running as someone who wasn't as crooked as Richard Nixon, who wasn't as conservative Ronald Reagan, and who wasn't as boring and ordinary as Jimmy Carter. Getting American voters to think: "If this is the best that America can do for President, we're in a helluva lot of trouble." 

You can also see this post at The New Democrat, on Blogger. 

You can also see this post at The New Democrat, on WordPress.

PBS: Mark Russell Special (1987)

Source:PBS- Political satirist Mark Russell-

“It’s three days since the 1987 stock market crash, and Mark is singing the bear market blues away. He also jokes about the recent turbulence in the airline industry & takes us through a NRA fashion show to commemorate Florida’s new gun control law. There’s even a song for Arizona’s Evan Meechum, who tried to prevent passage of the Martin Luther King holiday in their state.” 

From PBS

1987 a year that I was eleven years old for the most of it, there you have it my age, now see if you can add 24 years to that and come up with the right answer on your own. I finished fifth grade in 1987 and started 6th grade. But enough about me, this blog is not my autobiography, not enough time and I would like you to read the whole blog before you fall asleep.

1987 was a fascinating year politically and I actually remember some of those stories as a eleven year old. Democrats took over the Senate, I don’t remember hearing about that, but I knew we had a Republican President and a Democratic Congress that year. Which was a very common arrangement in the 1970s and 80s, like an unhappy marriage: they stayed together for the sake of the kids, who happen to be the American voters who keep them in office.

I remember hearing about Iran Contra and even having some idea about what that was. I remember hearing the names Col. Oliver North, Admiral John Poindexter, Bud Macfarline who was President Reagan’s Director of National Security. I remember even seeing parts of the Iran Contra hearings that were held I believe both in the House and Senate on TV. I remember hearing that Vice President George Bush was going to run for President.

I remember hearing names like Dick Gephardt, Al Gore, Joe Biden, Gary Hart, Paul Simon all Democratic members of Congress who were going to run for President. I remember hearing the name Bob Dole and knew he was the Senate Minority Leader. And what that job was and knew he was going to run for President as well. I obviously wasn’t a political junky yet, but my parents were and got to hear these stories.

1987 wasn’t a fascinating year because of these things that were happening and the people who were involved. But what was going in these people and their lives. You have two major Democratic presidential candidates, both strong progressive voices in the party, having to drop out because of personal scandals. Gary Hart a former two-term Senator who did not run for reelection in 1986 because he wanted to run for President full-time in 1988.

Gary Hart came close to winning the Democratic nomination in 1984 and was probably going to be the frontrunner in 1988. But then dares the media to follow him around because as he said he had nothing to hide. Well, if he had nothing to hide, he must of had an open marriage, because he was caught having an affair with Donna Rice who was a federal employee at one point. Their love affair could probably make a good porno movie on Cinemax, or well MSNBC.

You have Joe Biden a three-term Senator and Chairman of the Judiciary Committee who presided over the Bob Bork’ Supreme Court nomination, that’s a story by itself, have to quit his campaign because of a plagiarism scandal. No wonder Joe Biden talks so much, he has so much material to use from other people. Way to go, Joe! I could get to the rest of 1987, but I already here some snoring so I’ll spare you for now. Perhaps in a future post.

In 1987 you had great political stories inside and outside of Washington relating to the Federal Government. The Administration with Congress and of course presidential politics outside of Washington with Dick Gephardt doing well enough with his 1988 presidential campaign, that he gets elected Leader of the House for the next Congress, the 101st Congress.

And this is four years before 1992 with Bill Clinton, Ross Perot and the rest of the gang. Where you have a President go from a 90% approval rating to losing reelection in 1992 with just 37% of the Popular Vote. How time flies when your approval rating is dropping like an asteroid being dropped from a bridge. But that is American politics for you with our ups and downs, we love you until we don’t. 

You can also see this post at The New Democrat, on WordPress. 

You can also see this post at The New Democrat, on Blogger.

Mark Russell PBS: Looks at Campaign 1980: Can a Hollywood B-Actor Play President?

Source:Mark Russell PBS- political satirist Mark Russell talking about campaign 1980.

"Political comedian & musical satirist Mark Russell looks back at the 1980 presidential campaign. Remember when George H.W. Bush was against Reagan before he was for him? Do you remember when Ted Kennedy fought President Carter for the Democratic nomination? If you're too young to remember, forget about the history books and wikipedia; take a hilariously historical look back with your host, Mark Russell." 

From Mark Russell PBS 

I agree with Mark Russell that the two most important parts of the 1980 campaign season, was the primary fight in the Democratic Party between a sitting U.S. President in Jimmy Carter and a sitting U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy. For multiple reasons, but I think the two most important and interesting reasons are the facts that a Democrat would challenge another Democrat in The White House, knowing that he could lose and hurt his own party and perhaps even his own future. 

The 1980 campaign was also interesting because the Democratic campaign was a contest between someone who didn't know why they were running for President in the first place, who at least privately didn't even want to be President, (which might explain why he didn't know why he was running for President) against someone who didn't know why they should be reelected President again, because he couldn't sell his own program, agenda, and successes that he had in his 1st term as President, in Jimmy Carter.

But then go to the general election campaign where you had a former Governor of California in Ronald Reagan whose basic campaign was to make America work again, get tough on Russia, and oh by the way, I'm not Jimmy Carter. But other than the Reagan economic plan of across the board tax cuts, I don't think American voters got much of an idea of what a Reagan presidency would look like. 

Ronald Reagan running against a President Jimmy Carter, whose basic campaign theme seemed to be, he's not Ronald Reagan. He's not going to slash Medicare and Social Security or force poor people out of their public housing and kick them off of Welfare.

I think the 1980 political campaign season can be summed up this way: the last two years (1979, 80) were really bad. The problems the country we're facing were really bad. Americans want a change and new direction. They're not sure Ronald Reagan is the man to make America work again, but he's a decent, likable, funny guy and he's not Jimmy Carter. So they're going to take a chance on an ex-b-movie actor, who bombed as a b-movie actor, who thinks he can now play President of the United States, over a peanut brain, I mean peanut farmer (understandable mistake) and we'll see how the country is doing 2 years later when Congress is up for reelection. 

You can also see this post at The New Democrat, on Blogger. 

You can also see this post at The New Democrat, on WordPress.