As I have written about in the past few posts, ‘tis the season for a candidate’s words to be taken out of context or used against him as an example of their secretly held radical agenda. Be careful, my friends. When you play this game, it might come back to bite you. Think you can match some wild pronouncements with the actual speaker? I’ll give you 4 chances to play.
Quiz # 1:
"The job… is to maneuver and bait the establishment so that it will publicly attack {me} as a 'dangerous enemy. Today, my notoriety and the hysterical instant reaction of the establishment not only validate my credentials of competency but also ensure automatic popular invitation."
Was this Newt Gingrich, explaining his campaign strategy against the entrenched GOP establishment, or the writings of Saul Alinsky in "Rules for Radicals”?
Hard to tell at first, since the Gingrich campaign has been following Saul Alinsky more closely than he claims Obama has been. The quote is from Alinsky.
Quiz # 2:
“We’re going to close the unproductive tax loopholes that allow some of the truly wealthy to avoid paying their fair share. Such tax loopholes “sometimes made it possible for millionaires to pay nothing, while a bus driver was paying 10 percent of his salary — and that’s crazy. Do you think the millionaire ought to pay more in taxes than the bus driver, or less?”
Was this President Obama during a fundraising event in Ohio last week, or a former President also interested in reforming the tax code?
The year was 1985. The president was Ronald Wilson Reagan firing up a crowd in Georgia. Funny, that sounded like class warfare coming from the Gipper, but that’s what he said.
Quiz # 3:
“We can either settle for a country where a shrinking number of people do really well, while a growing number of Americans barely get by. Or we can restore an economy where everyone gets a fair shot, and everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same set of rules.”
Was this populist John McCain while campaigning in New Hampshire in 2000, or the current President speaking this year? Ok, that one was easy. It was Obama, but hopefully you had to stop and think first.
One last quote for today, but I encourage you to find your own.
Quiz # 4:
“The needs of the poor must take priority over the desires of the rich; the rights of workers over the maximization of profits; the preservation of the environment over uncontrolled industrial expansion; production to meet social needs over production for military purposes. These challenges present us with important areas of … collaboration and form a vital part of our mission...”
This one is multiple choice. Could these socialist words have come from disgraced Democratic candidate John Edwards during his announcement speech in New Orleans, February 2007? How about Pope John Paul II during the Eastern European uprisings of the 1980s? Finally, could this be Samuel Gompers, one of the leading labor union advocates of the early 20th century?
These radical ideas were from the now beatified Pope John Paul II, spoken in September 1984, a man whose take on world affairs was generally respected.
The next time someone throws a quote from a public figure your way, stop and think. That’s all. Just stop and think first. When Newt calls Obama a Saul Alinsky radical, stop and think that Newt is employing Alinsky tactics in his campaign. When Obama is accused of fostering class warfare by calling for shared sacrifice by the wealthiest among us, stop and think that Reagan agreed with him and said so publicly. When a liberal questions new restrictions on workers’ rights and the callous disregard of the environment, stop and think that the leader of the world’s 700 million Catholics might have agreed.
We still have time to stop and think, don’t we?
Bonus Quiz:
"This is the most important election in a generation, and your vote will change the course of history. We will either choose the forces of division and defeatism, or we will choose optimism and opportunity for all Americans. This is the choice."
Was this Al Gore, George Bush, John Kerry, Barack Obama, John McCain, Bill Clinton, Bob Dole, Bush 41, Walter Mondale, Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford, Ricard Nixon, George McGovern...figure it out yet?
Bonus Quiz:
"This is the most important election in a generation, and your vote will change the course of history. We will either choose the forces of division and defeatism, or we will choose optimism and opportunity for all Americans. This is the choice."
Was this Al Gore, George Bush, John Kerry, Barack Obama, John McCain, Bill Clinton, Bob Dole, Bush 41, Walter Mondale, Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford, Ricard Nixon, George McGovern...figure it out yet?
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