Gorbachev: Bush 41 called Reagan ‘extreme,’ said GOP supporters ‘blockheads’

[IDemo]

By Daniel Tencer
Thursday, October 29th, 2009 -- 3:45 pm

Vice President George H. W. Bush confided in Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev that he believed Ronald Reagan was an "extreme conservative" supported by "blockheads and dummies," the former Soviet leader claims.

"In 1987, after my first visit to the United States, Vice President Bush accompanied me to the airport, and told me: 'Reagan is a conservative. An extreme conservative. All the blockheads and dummies are for him, and when he says that something is necessary, they trust him. But if some Democrat had proposed what Reagan did, with you, they might not have trusted him,'" Gorbachev said in an interview with The Nation.

Gorbachev added that he had been informed that, following their first summit in 1985, Reagan reportedly described his Soviet counterpart as a "die-hard Bolshevik" -- this despite the fact that Gorbachev would soon come to be known as a reformer who opened up the Soviet Union politically and ushered in an era of co-operation between east and west.

It's no surprise that there were tensions between Reagan and the elder Bush. In 1980, the two politicians ran aggressive campaign against each other to secure the Republican nomination for president. During that campaign, Bush famously described Reagan's economic policies as "voodoo economics." Many historians believe Reagan picked Bush as his running mate after the primaries because of Bush's popularity with some segments of the Republican electorate.

http://rawstory.com/2009/10/gorbachev-bush-reagan-extreme/

[Gman]

1. Bush 41 also once referred to the right wing as having an extra chromosone

or something similar

[Ardent15]

2. Reagan was an ideologue...Bush only cared about money.

nt

[grace0418]

13. It's hard to know which is worse.

I mean, I suppose you could argue that at least Reagan had the power of his convictions, as loathesome as those convictions may be. The Bush family doesn't care who they screw to get what they want.

Oh well, I suppose it's like trying to decide whether horse shit or bull shit smells better–what's the point?

[LuvNewcastle]

3. Back then I used to wish that Gorbachev

was our President. Reagan was such an obvious fraud.

[FrenchieCat]

4. Where do I send my campaign donation? This guy is to the point and has spine!

[Octafish]

5. ''Blockheads and Dummies.''

He should know.

Thanks for the heads-up, IDemo. Can you imagine being president and having the former head of America's Gestapo breathing down your throat? And you've already survived one nearly successful assassination attempt. Poppy must've driven Pruneface mad.

[LostInAnomie]

6. Sadly, Bush 41 would be considered a moderate Democrat by today's standards.

Nixon would have been a crazy lefty.

[Ardent15]

7. Hell, St. Ronnie Reagan himself wouldn't win in the party of Palin..

nt

[Juche]

8. I'm not surprised

He lost to Reagan in the 1980 primary and ridiculed his economic theories.

Bush 41 was before my time but reading up on him, sadly yes he would be considered a conservative democrat by 2009 standards.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_H._W._Bush#Domestic_policy


Raised taxes. Signed the ADA act. Extended the clean air act. Extended unemployment.

Sadly we are entering an age where Reagan seemed like a sane conservative compared to the ones we have today who call for armed treason, assassination, secession, and vote strictly out of spite without giving a damn whether the bills are good or bad for the US.

[Jawja]

9. Well, George H.W. Bush should

know a "blockhead and a dummy" whenever he sees one.

[tanyev]

10. The same "blockheads and dummies" that adored his son.

How'd you like that, 41?

[GoCubsGo]

11. They were HIS base, too...

At least during 1988. Poopy could not have gotten elected without them--as the 1992 election proved. They all ran to Perot after that.

[tanyev]

12. Oh, they voted for him, but they never lurrrved him they way they did 43.

And Poopy was happy to take their votes, but he never seemed as comfortable around them as his doofus son did.