(My new American Thinker post)
We just heard that former Governor William Scranton died. Just the day before, we learned that Lindy Boggs passed away. They were both in their late 90s.
I
remember both of these political figures. I don't think that they make
them like that anymore. Scranton was a RINO before we knew what RINOs
were, and Boggs was one of those Southern Democrats that went out of
business with President Nixon's Southern Strategy.
Boggs
was really unique and i used to love her accent. She was elected to
the House after her husband was presumed dead when a plane was lost in
Alaska. She was also the first woman to preside over a national
convention in 1976, the year Jimmy Carter was nominated by the
Democrats. Her daughter is Cokie Roberts of ABC News and her son is a
lawyer and lobbyst.
Scranton
had a very distinguished career. He was elected governor of
Pennsylvania. He challenged Barry Goldwater in '64 and then he was a
foreign policy adviser and eventually became Ambassador to the UN.
Things
change and maybe politicians do too. However, it is fun to think that
I grew up watching people like these two.
They had a lot of class!
I
miss that today specially when I watch Senator Reid go on the US
Senate floor and say that someone told him that Mitt Romney had not
paid his taxes.
Tags: Governor Scranton and Representative Boggs
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(My new American Thinker post)
A
couple of days ago, we were talking about President Obama linking Ho
Chi Minh and George Washington. Many of us objected. One reason we
objected is because of men like Colonel Bud Day. He died over the
weekend and left behind a legacy of patriotism and bravery:
"Colonel Day's life was defined by the defiance he showed in North
Vietnamese prison camps, where besides Mr. McCain, the future senator
and Republican presidential candidate, whose Navy fighter jet had been
downed, his cellmates included James B. Stockdale, also a Navy pilot,
who became Ross Perot's running mate in his 1992 presidential campaign. When
he volunteered for duty in Vietnam and was assigned to a fighter wing
in April 1967, Colonel Day, then a major, had flown more than 4,500
hours in fighters.
On
Aug. 26, 1967, he was on a mission to knock out a surface-to-air
missile site 20 miles inside North Vietnam when his F-100 was hit by
antiaircraft fire. He suffered eye and back injuries and a broken arm
when he ejected, and he was quickly captured. Major
Day was strung upside-down by his captors, but after his bonds were
loosened, he escaped after five days in enemy hands. He made it across a
river, using a bamboo-log float for support, and crossed into South
Vietnam. He wandered barefoot and delirious for about two weeks in
search of rescuers, surviving on a few berries and frogs. At one point,
he neared a Marine outpost, but members of a Communist patrol spotted
him first, shot him in the leg and hand, and captured him. This
time, Major Day could not escape. He was shuttled among various camps,
including the prison that became known as the Hanoi Hilton, and was
beaten, starved and threatened with execution. His captors demanded
information on escape plans and methods of communication among the
prisoners of war, as well as on America's air war.
In
February 1971, he joined with Admiral Stockdale, then a commander and
the ranking American in the prison camp, and other prisoners in singing
"The Star-Spangled Banner" while rifle muzzles were pointed at them by
guards who had burst into a prisoners' forbidden religious service.
He
was released on March 14, 1973, having supplied only false information
to his interrogators.
He was promoted to colonel during his captivity,
and on March 4, 1976, President Gerald R. Ford presented him with the
Medal of Honor at a ceremony in which Admiral Stockdale was also awarded
the medal."
We don't know if Colonel Day heard President Obama's remarks about Ho and George Washington.
I heard President Obama's remarks and found them very offensive.
Yes,
I found them appalling because of men like Colonel Day. Yes men like
Colonel Day and Senator McCain were tortured by Ho's government. They
saw first hand that Ho was not George Washington.
Tags: Colonel Bud Day
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