Alexander Cockburn considers Jerry Ford "America's greatest president"

[WI_DEM]

pretty much because in Cockburn's opinion Ford did "the least possible harm."

http://www.thedailypage.com/isthmus/article.php?article=5216

[Greeby]

1. You gotta be kidding me

Ford laid the groundwork for a lot of what was to come.

Anyone who hires Cheney, Rumsfeld, GHW Bush and James Baker, and keeps Kissinger is not my idea of a man who does no harm

[novalib]

2. HE PARDONED NIXON!!!!!!!!

GODDAM IT!!!!

Ford FUCKING PARDONED NIXON!!!!!

He obstructed JUSTICE!!!!

[ronnykmarshall]

7. Beeep .....beeep .......

Ford Thread!

[The Magistrate]

3. He Finds New Ways To Demonstrate His Idiocy Daily, Sir, This One Does

"The man's like a goose: each day he wakes up in a whole new world."

[johnnie]

4. The guy's name is CockBurn

Maybe he is just bitter. :shrug:

[Annces]

5. that one threw me for a loop too n/t

[Staph]

6. James K. Polk as best President ever (?)

I remember reading the opinion of some historian, many years ago, that James K. Polk was the best President ever, because he set four goals for himself and completed those goals in his first and only term.

Those four goals were establishment of the Independent Treasury System, reduction of tariffs, resolution of the Oregon border dispute, and the purchase of California.





It just goes to show you that some historians are completely nuts.

[On the Road]

10. Ford Might be Considered the Anti-Polk, in Fact

Polk met his goals at the expense of principle. The Mexican War fundamentally wasn't any better than the Iraq or Vietnam wars.

That's a pretty low bar, but avoiding hubris and jingoism is one reason people appreciate Ford in retrospect. I have actually heard Cockburn's sentiment expressed before.

[valerief]

8. Oo, that kinda talk makes my you-know-what burn! nt

[LisaM]

9. He lives just to bash Democrats

This is just one of his many little jabs. He's always this way. I read his column just to find out how many insults he can come up with - against the Democratic party. He's a tool of something, but I haven't yet figured that out. I wish The Nation would drop his column.