A politician you respect (no spam)

fable · Post by **fable** » Sat May 24, 2003 9:30 am

Sam Clemens (Mark Twain) once said that "The difference between a statesman and a politician is that a statesman is dead. There are far too few statesmen." Be that as it may, we all encounter somebody in political life who really went out on a limb for his or her beliefs, and did so with both competence and enthusiasm. Somtimes, they make a difference; sometimes, they don't. But they do surface in various country's political systems, from time to time.

Whom would you like to praise, in that light, and why?

HighLordDave · Post by **HighLordDave** » Sat May 24, 2003 10:00 am

One of my favourite people who happened to be a politician was Rep. Pete Peterson (D-Marianna, FL), who was my Congressman during the 80s. Peterson was a USAF pilot who was shot down over Vietnam and held as a POW for 6½ years. After retiring from the Air Force, Peterson moved to Florida where he served several terms in Congress, before being appointed Ambassador to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Being a Democrat, Peterson was relieved of his post when Dubya was elected and now works in the private sector trying to get American companies to invest in Vietnam. Peterson is not only an outstanding public servant, he's a good guy and I was proud to have him represent me in Congress.

dragon wench · Post by **dragon wench** » Sat May 24, 2003 10:14 am

I always had deep respect for Canada's former prime minister, the late Pierre Elliot Trudeau.
He had a vision of the country that included many of the values I believe in, and he believed strongly in trying to create a culturally diverse and just society. He was also decisive leader, and a highly intelligent one.

Certainly, like any politition, the man had his faults, but when he died a few years ago I was profoundly saddened... his death was a great loss.

Recoba · Post by **Recoba** » Sun May 25, 2003 2:27 am

A little known politician in the UK called Paddy Ashdown (Liberal Democrat) - he was ex- special forces and was no nosense plain speaking guy - who avoided all the 'spin' (lies) of the other two main parties and when I turned 18 (elligible to vote) he was responsible for sending out mail shots (signed by him which I received) asking for my vote in my area - which no other party did with some very good reasons why it would be beneficial for us.

Plus which other politician when attacked in the street could take on his assailent single handed and perform a citizens arrest? He got my respect for that alone.

Recoba

Silur · Post by **Silur** » Sun May 25, 2003 4:35 am

Currently, Jimmy Carter tops my list, partly because he annoys the @%# out of Bush, but also because he's been bringing up really uncomfortable issues on the global political arena. The german chancellor Gerhard Schröder is also on the "good guys" list for standing up against the enormous pressure the "asses of evil" put on everyone to go fight Iraq.

The list at the other end of the spectrum still outnumbers this one by about a googolplex to one...

der Moench · Post by **der Moench** » Sun May 25, 2003 7:22 am

And I've looked, believe me ...

No. There is no politician I can honestly praise, without reservation.

Beowulf · Post by **Beowulf** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:36 am

I would say Seán Lemass, Irish PM 1956 - 60, IIRC. He did many great things, including being the first Irish Taoiseach to meet the Northern Irish PM, and try to normalise relations with the North (unfortunately, the troubles intervened

). His economic policies also laid the foundations of the economic boom in the 90's.

More recently, there's Noel Dempsey, current Minister for Education. I sometimes disagree with him, but I admire his honesty and conviction, especially in relation to the current debate about reintroducing college fees.

Nightmare · Post by **Nightmare** » Sun May 25, 2003 11:57 am

I'm with DW. Pierre Trudeau is near the top of my list.

Bloodmist · Post by **Bloodmist** » Sun May 25, 2003 12:17 pm

Nixon and Bill?

I don't really trust any politicians... Besides maybe the ones from youth parties, that doesn't have that much to lose, and can stick their neck out, for their cause.

ObsidianReturns · Post by **ObsidianReturns** » Sun May 25, 2003 7:43 pm

Minister Ralph Goodale. I won't bore you with what he does and who he is, but basically, I wrote him a letter if he would be interested in spending an afternoon with my highschool class (We aren't.. ordinary)
Within a week I recieved a return letter asking for times.

He spent almost 2 hours with us, answering questions. That kind of willingness to meet with those who can't yet vote earned my respect.

Trudeau, is well, Trudeau, God of Canadian Liberals. And possessing some of the best come backs in political history.

Maharlika · Post by **Maharlika** » Sun May 25, 2003 8:34 pm

Do you have anyone in mind, fable?

...in the Philippines, I'd go for the former Health Secretary and now Senator Juan Flavier.

The guy is oozing with charisma backed up with "walk the walk" and his aura radiates with sincerity. This guy doesnt try to attract attention to himself like all those grandstanding politicos. He'd rather go to the task at hand and get down to business.

Another guy I admire is the present Metro Manila Development Authority Director Bayani Fernando -- very professional very direct and he also walks the walk and not all talk.

Minerva · Post by **Minerva** » Mon May 26, 2003 4:13 am

Originally posted by Recoba
A little known politician in the UK called Paddy Ashdown (Liberal Democrat) - he was ex- special forces and was no nosense plain speaking guy - who avoided all the 'spin' (lies) of the other two main parties and when I turned 18 (elligible to vote) he was responsible for sending out mail shots (signed by him which I received) asking for my vote in my area - which no other party did with some very good reasons why it would be beneficial for us.

Plus which other politician when attacked in the street could take on his assailent single handed and perform a citizens arrest? He got my respect for that alone.

Recoba

I agree Paddy Ashdown has done great job. He was the first few to realise the seriousness of Bosnia situation in UK and voiced over and over about it. I think Lib Dem (in UK) is doing good job, especially Labour party moved more or less centre forcing Tory losing their way completely. I also think Simon Hughes of doing good job, especially human right issues, and Menzies Campbell is fantastic Shadow Foreign Secretary. Some in Labour party actually said Blair would love to have Campbell as his Foreign Secretary.

I like a few back benchers, such as Bob Marshall Andrews and Diane Abbot. Robin Cook earned my respect by his resignation speech-- funny, he was great when Labour was in opposition and still good heavy weighter when he left the Cabinet, while he was cr@p during his years in the Cabinet.

I have respect for David Trimble, the leader of Ulster Unionist Party. I don't agree with everything he/UUP says (or any other I mentioned above. I'm primarily a satirist). But, the peace process in Northern Ireland has been relied upon his determination and stabourness greately, and, without him, the process could have collapsed long time ago.

fable · Post by **fable** » Tue May 27, 2003 10:30 am

It's no secret that I intensely dislike the whole majority-based political system in the US, preferring the proportional representation of many Northern European countries. That said, I do respect Jim Jeffords, the senator from Vermont. Not because he put a halt to some of Dubya's policies of financial mismanagement, since that was onlya temporary setback; but because he acted independently, courageously, against an administration that he knew was going to do its level best to end his lengthy political career when he left the party.

You may remember Jeffords as the moderate Republican who was being strongarmed by Dubya to sign on to important legislation he strongly disagreed with. When Jeffords refused to back Dubya's first 1 trillion plus taxcut, the administration deliberately started bypassing Jeffords and put out the word to ignore all his proposed legislation.

After serving six terms as a Republican representative and three as a senator, Jeffords went independent. This effectively turned him into a pariah with his party, where he had exerted a great deal of control by virtue of his seniority, despite Bush. (That counts for a great deal in US congressional politics.) His key legislative proposals were poleaxed by the administration, which also began a national disinformation campaign about his previous accomplishments. Through it all, Jeffords stood by his principles of a government based on checks and balances, where the executive branch was not able to command the legislative to instantly do its bidding.

Other moderate senators have rolled over for the administration, but Jeffords didn't. Got to hand it to him for that.

C Elegans · Post by **C Elegans** » Wed May 28, 2003 12:54 pm

I have a great respect for the Serbian politicians Vojislav Kostunica and the late Zoran Djindjic.

Gerhard Schröder and a few others in German politics, which I hold as among the most respectable in the world.

I agree with Minerva on Robin Cook.

And I actually used to respect Tony Blair - feels like a joke in retrospect

Chanak · Post by **Chanak** » Wed May 28, 2003 2:04 pm

I find that I agree wholeheartedly with the writings of Samuel Clemens (aka Mark Twain) in general on the subject of politicians and the Congress. In fact, I admire the cynics of his day very much, Ambrose Bierce topping my list. The "Devil's Dictionary" is quite a poignant and entertaining collection of snippets from that man's articles and other writings over the course of his career. At one time, I used a few of my favorite Beirce quotes in my sig.

I do indeed prefer the model of representation we use in this country, and would love to see a return of the statesmen, and the spirit of public service that once was common in the halls of our Government, on both the Federal and state levels. The only way this could happen would be to dismantle the enormous bureacracy which firmly entrenched itself during, and following, the American Civil War. The likelihood of this happening is very slim.

To this end, one such man I admire greatly is Thomas Jefferson, visionary and one of the Founding Fathers of my country. He was a statesman, driven by a vision that, to me, incorporates the very spirit of America. He was strongly against a powerful central government, a concern which I share as well. History is replete with the harsh lessons of too much power resting in the hands of the few. He sought to deny a place for the career bureacrat, and entrenched politician. On the other hand, his arch-rival and nemesis, Alexander Hamilton, favored a strong Federal Government. From the looks of things, it looks like Hamilton got his way.

Another figure from the past century that I admire greatly is Ronald Reagan, former President of the United States. He was, to me, a throwback to the days of men such as Theodore Roosevelt, leaders who had a definite vision for America they were willing to stand by under fire. The mess he inherited when he assumed office was unfortunate indeed, and he never was able to get a handle on the deficit...however, the contributions Ronald Reagan made to both the United States and the world are invaluable. He single-handedly beat the Soviet Union at their own game of military build-up, a tactic that resulted in the demise of one of the most oppressive and brutal regimes the world has ever seen. His tactics were so effective that it resulted in the Soviet leader's personal visits to America to sue for peace, something which was unheard of in the Kremlin beforehand. I am sure Gorbachev made Nikita Krushev roll in his grave over that one.

Indirectly, the collapse of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics also resulted in the re-unification of Germany. Such a victory is no small thing indeed, and one day I would like to return to the Germany I once knew years ago, when it was divided. The Wall is gone...along with the minefields, concertina wire, and soldiers armed with sub-machine guns. Many lost their lives trying to escape the oppression of the DDR...and it is fitting to see that their sacrifices were not made in vain.

The Z · Post by **The Z** » Wed May 28, 2003 7:08 pm

Menelik II (I think that's his name) of Ethiopia.

at99 · Post by **at99** » Fri May 30, 2003 7:28 am

well I like tony blair , he is not afraid to stand up for what he believes in and I believe is a class ahead of most politicians.
He is not afraid to stand up to european countries over issues , and put his career on the line over his beliefs (how many european politicians would do that eh ). I believe I have a better idea of how WWI & II happened after seeing the way european politicians behaved over Iraq.

someone said they liked robin cook and the way he resigned....each to his own

C Elegans · Post by **C Elegans** » Fri May 30, 2003 8:06 am

@at99: Views of Tony Blair certainly seems to differ even more now after the invasion of Iraq. I discussed a lot of British politics with my British friends in London last weekend, and they dislike and disrespect Blair even more now than before. Previously, when I used to like him, my British friends pointed at all the promises he has broken regarding the nation politics, reforms in education, public transport, the health care system etc has not happened. Now, seven weeks after the Iraq invasion and not finding any WMD:s, they dislike him even more...and nobody understands his agenda.
In any case, Blair is an interesting person....

fable · Post by **fable** » Sat May 31, 2003 8:52 am

Since I put in a good word for a US Republican, I think I'll do the same for a US Democrat. More specifically, the long-serving Senator from Massachusetts, Edward Kennedy. Yes, his family is powerful and immensely wealthy, but he's put up with the tortures of the damned over the last forty years, and proven himself not merely a survivor, but a paladin fighting the Good Fight as he sees it. He's had to watch as two of his siblings were assassinated in office. His own conduct in the Chappaquidic! incident (which involved an unreported car wreck that killed his young secretary, also in the vehicle with him) blighted his typically ambitious career. The changing political climate in the US did the rest, as the country veered back to the ultra-conservativism of its roots.

Right now, Kennedy is one of four left in a Congress of one hundred senators whose record labels them as a "liberal." That's in a political climate where a huge sum of money has been spent over twenty years to pervert the definition of a liberal among the general public into something almost hellish. Through it all, and despite some pretty reactionary regimes, Kennedy has continued to fight for the things he believes in, using the power of his seniority and knowledge of Congress' inner workings to affect deals with the majority Republicans. He carefully crafts victories in this slow, unrelenting fashion. Whatever one may think of his political views, his unremitting struggle has earned him the respect of even his most conservative senior colleagues.

Lazarus · Post by **Lazarus** » Mon Jun 02, 2003 5:10 am

Originally posted by fable
…Be that as it may, we all encounter somebody in political life whose life and rep is actually squeaky clean, who really went out on a limb for his or her beliefs, and did so with both competence and enthusiasm…

I cannot think of any “squeaky clean” politicians, though I must admit I don’t go out of my way to examine them all. I know the locals well enough to choose the lesser of all evils …

Originally posted by fable
…and proven himself not merely a survivor, but a paladin fighting the Good Fight as he sees it. He's had to watch as two of his siblings were assassinated in office. His own conduct in the Chappaquidic! incident (which involved an unreported car wreck that killed his young secretary, also in the vehicle with him) blighted his typically ambitious career…

So how does Kennedy fit in with that “squeaky clean” ideal? I’m pretty much opposed to his policies, but even if I weren’t, I don’t think I could term him in any way a “Paladin,” and then mention Chappaquidic in the next sentence!

I think if you wanted a democrat “fighting the good fight,” you would have been better off picking Wellstone. I loathed the man’s policies, but he always (AFAIK) stayed true to his beliefs. He, too, though pulled a typically political maneuver when he ran for his third term – something he had promised not to do when he first ran for office – saying the Minnesota “needed him.”