Tomás Ó Flatharta

Looking at Things from the Left

Archive for the ‘Lyndon Baines Johnson (LBJ) USA Presideint 1963-68’ Category

“Desperate for the Limelight” – in Britain Far Right Reform Recruits Dodgy Conservatives – bilious stomach cramps predicted

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Dirty personalized politics are ugly.

A British Tory statement about their former colleague Suella Braverman (and recent government minister) stated she had mental health problems. Some trusting souls may believe party leader Kemi Badenoch and her colleagues sincerely regret that low blow. Possibly, if bad publicity becomes a serious difficulty, a very junior staffer will be blamed and sacrificed. But don’t hold your breath.

Let’s remind ourselves of a similar, and famous, Lyndon Baines Johnson dirty trick which allegedly crushed an election opponent in 1950’s Texas.

“Christ, we can’t get away with calling him a pig-fucker,” the campaign manager protested.

“Nobody’s going to believe a thing like that”. “I know,” Johnson replied. “But let’s make the son of a bitch deny it.”

LBJ let the son of a bitch deny it dirty trick hoax

LBJ went on to greater things and became President of the USA in 1963 after John F Kennedy was assassinated.

Very little political substance divides the Badenoch tories and the Nigel Farage reformites.

A correspondent notes “Suella Braverman is clearly a bloody awful figure but (it is) a low blow for the Tory leadership to comment on her mental health.” “The Conservatives did all we could to look after Suella’s mental health” is all a bit “she looks tired.” Braverman is a careerist racist. That’s more than enough to criticise.”

Mainstream British politics is in deep sewers.

This sludge has dangerous implications for Ireland. As things stand now Reform is on course to win the next British general election in 2029.

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The (undemocratic) Democratic Party machine lurches toward the election – Grim Presidential Tales from the USA

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Sharon Smith, writing for International Socialism, explores the control wielded by the Democratic Party establishment over the nomination process in her article, “The (undemocratic) Democratic Party machine lurches toward the election.

Foreword : USA Presidential elections are shit-shows – mud-slinging works.

Readers may know a famous Lyndon Baines Johnson (LBJ) quip about why he called his opponent a pig fucker. Johnson admitted it wasn’t true, but “I want him to have to deny it,” he explained.

Mr Johnson became President of the USA in November 1963, taking over from the assassinated John F Kennedy.

Johnson won an election landslide in 1964 claiming his opponent Barry Goldwater was a fanatical warmonger. By 1968 demonstrators all over the globe were marching against the USA invasion of Vietnam – a favourite chant was :

“Hey, Hey, LBJ

How many kids did you kill today”

Donald Trump (age 78) looked more mentally capable than President Joe Biden (age 82) in a recent TV debate. The New York felon, convicted in a jury trial and fined 86 million dollars for sexually assaulting the writer E Jean Carroll, is now up against a more formidable Democratic party opponent Kamala Harris (age 59). The gloves are off :

“Ms Harris, speaking at a private fundraiser headlined by singer-songwriter James Taylor in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, said much of the rhetoric coming from Mr Trump and his running mate, US Senator JD Vance, was “just plain weird.”

Her use of the word “weird” to describe her opponents was part of a new strategy from Democrats.

The Harris campaign called Mr Trump “old and quite weird” following his appearance on Fox News on Thursday, and at least one supporter showed up outside the event yesterday holding a sign proclaiming “Trump is weird.” – RTÉ News Report


The (undemocratic) Democratic Party machine lurches toward the election – by Sharon Smith

What the Democratic Party establishment wants, it gets—and that includes its chosen presidential candidate. It had anointed Joe Biden well before the election primary season got underway in early 2024. This is why Biden ran virtually unopposed and predictably won every Democratic primary.

But the path to Biden’s reelection was not as smooth as Democratic Party leaders envisioned, mainly because Biden’s cognitive decline—underway for several years—has accelerated in recent months. Perhaps the leaders of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) believed they could shield the public from Biden’s decline through the entire election cycle by limiting his time in the public eye. That strategy backfired badly. The Party leadership is entirely to blame for the ensuing chaos. But don’t expect them to change course.

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