Former football star, congressman, presidential candidate, vice-presidential candidate, and cabinet secretary Jack Kemp died today. He was 73.
Kemp first gained fame as a quarterback for the Buffalo Bills in the American Football League. As a player he helped found the AFL Players Association and served as its president.
After football Kemp turned to politics, getting elected to Congress from the Buffalo area in 1970. Kemp was a supply-side economics supporter in Congress and was the co-author of the Kemp-Roth tax cuts legislation in 1978, widely seen as the beginning of the supply-side era that would flourish under President Reagan.
In 1988, Kemp ran unsuccessfully for president losing to Reagan's Vice President and successor George Bush. He was passed over by Bush for Vice President in favor of Senator Dan Quayle. (I was in New Orleans for the convention at the time of the announcement and had just purchased a Bush-Kemp button.) Kemp joined Bush's cabinent as the Secretary for Housing and Urban Development. Unfortunately, Kemp's efforts to enact a bold conservative domestic agenda was largely styied by the Bush loyalists.
In 1996, Senator Bob Dole chose Kemp as his running mate in an effort to shore up support among the conservatives who distrusted Dole's record on taxes.
Kemp will be remembered for his many conservative stands. He was a supporter of a strong military, an anti-communist, pro-life, anti gun control, and of course a champion of supply side economics.
Kemp was also a believer in taking the conservative message to to the cities where he advocated welfare reform, public housing privatization and enterprise zones.
May he rest in peace.
Showing posts with label Bob Dole. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bob Dole. Show all posts
Saturday, May 02, 2009
Wednesday, September 03, 2008
Something new every day
Jay Nordlinger wishes former Senator Bob Dole was speaking at the convention:
Two Wars, Two Heroes [Jay Nordlinger]My opinion of Bob Dole, already high, just went up.
I wish Bob Dole were here at this convention, speaking for McCain — he wore a POW bracelet that bore his name, for years.
Sunday, June 01, 2008
Burned by the book
Welcome to the sunburned version of "Idiot Politician of the Week". My famous last words yesterday before taking my son to soccer camp? "Maybe I should get some sun screen."
But as red as I am, Vladimir Putin still has me beat. The ex-KGB member and current Prime Minister of Russia asks the question, "How can one be such a shining example of democracy at home and a frightening monster abroad?" Gee, maybe if you weren't such a frightening monster at home you could be a frightening monster abroad, too. How are Chechnya and Georgia coming along?
There's no fool like an old fool, and former JFK speechwriter Ted Sorensen is older and more foolish than ever. Sorensen believes Barack Obama is the spiritual heir to the assassinated president. Is that before or after Obama promises to pay any price and bear any burden for freedom? Considering that John Kennedy campaigned on "a missile gap", had a war record, and cut taxes after coming into office, it's hard to believe I haven't seen the similarities before. Who knew that Barack Obama was secretly a rich white guy with a string of mistresses and a desire to invade Cuba?
Speaking of the old and the foolish, former Senator George McGovern is showing that wonderful political acumen that helped him lose 49 states. First he claimed he had more foreign policy expertise than Senator McCain. Some day we might actually see it. Then he attacked Senator McCain's war record. Is this really where the Democrats want to go?
But having the idiot book thrown back at him this week is former White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan. Either he's just sold out and cashing in, ruining his reputation, or he had no courage of his convictions while working in the White House. Either way, even the leftists aren't cutting him a break, demanding he donate the money from his book to charity. Bob Dole was right when he said if you want a friend in Washington DC, buy a dog. Oh yeah, Bob Dole kicked McClellan, too. So this week we're awarding a special Idiot Politician of the Week Piggy Bank prize to Scott McClellan. He now has a place to keep his thirty pieces of silver.
But as red as I am, Vladimir Putin still has me beat. The ex-KGB member and current Prime Minister of Russia asks the question, "How can one be such a shining example of democracy at home and a frightening monster abroad?" Gee, maybe if you weren't such a frightening monster at home you could be a frightening monster abroad, too. How are Chechnya and Georgia coming along?
There's no fool like an old fool, and former JFK speechwriter Ted Sorensen is older and more foolish than ever. Sorensen believes Barack Obama is the spiritual heir to the assassinated president. Is that before or after Obama promises to pay any price and bear any burden for freedom? Considering that John Kennedy campaigned on "a missile gap", had a war record, and cut taxes after coming into office, it's hard to believe I haven't seen the similarities before. Who knew that Barack Obama was secretly a rich white guy with a string of mistresses and a desire to invade Cuba?
Speaking of the old and the foolish, former Senator George McGovern is showing that wonderful political acumen that helped him lose 49 states. First he claimed he had more foreign policy expertise than Senator McCain. Some day we might actually see it. Then he attacked Senator McCain's war record. Is this really where the Democrats want to go?
But having the idiot book thrown back at him this week is former White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan. Either he's just sold out and cashing in, ruining his reputation, or he had no courage of his convictions while working in the White House. Either way, even the leftists aren't cutting him a break, demanding he donate the money from his book to charity. Bob Dole was right when he said if you want a friend in Washington DC, buy a dog. Oh yeah, Bob Dole kicked McClellan, too. So this week we're awarding a special Idiot Politician of the Week Piggy Bank prize to Scott McClellan. He now has a place to keep his thirty pieces of silver.
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